Dropped the keys down the hole!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hoggs222]

Here is a letter that my buddy just wrote to Marcum about dropping his car keys down the hole. (By the way, I am the other person in the story.)

To Marcum and staff,

I would like to share one specific memory that many have heard and who all has requested that I share my story with the staff at Marcum. This story involves one of the first Outdoor Viewing Systems (OVS) that Marcum had sold for recreational use. It has taken several years for me to share this story with all of you at Marcum for one simple reason. You won’t believe what I am about to tell you…

I had been Ice fishing for the better part of 15 year in my native state of Minnesota and have used many different products in the quest to land the “big one”. My first experience with using an underwater camera had came from fishing with a friend who has the Marcum OVS. We had fished on several different lakes throughout the years and on many occasions had brought the camera with us to investigate (in most cases) what had been stealing our bait! This time would prove to be more of a necessity then an extra curricular fishing activity.

We had set out on a very cold and frigid February Friday afternoon to Alexandria MN to participate in the 2003, Alexandria Ice Fishing Challenge held on Lake Le Homme Dieu. We had pulled my fishing partners wheel house up with us to stay in and to fish throughout the weekend. We were fortunate to be able to park the fish house just minutes from the tournament boundaries. Once we had settled in for the night we dropped a few lines line’s and did our best not to freeze throughout the night in the below zero temperatures. We had survived the night but to our disappointment our shiners and fat heads did not. It was just hours before the start of the contest and we new that if we were going to have a chance we were going to need bait. I grabbed the remote for my truck and pressed the auto start button so the truck would warm up before we went for bait. Auto start. What a wonderful addition to owning a vehicle in Minnesota . I pressed the button and waited for the truck to start. Sometimes when it is as cold as it was it will take one or two attempts for the engine to fire up. First attempt, nothing. Second attempt, nothing. Third attempt, see where I am going with this? You guessed it, the truck did not start. (Why you ask is this part of the story relevant? You’ll see, just hang on). On the middle of the lake during the coldest weekend to date was not the place you wanted your truck to freeze up. We called AAA for a tow but they would not drive on the lake to pick us up. We asked a near by group for a tow into shore and they without hesitation gave us the tow we needed. On the way into shore I decided to try starting the vehicle since the fuel was being sloshed around. To my surprise the truck started and we made it to the gas station to fill up the truck buy a bottle of Heat and most importantly the bait. We made it back with time to spare before the start of the contest.

Unfortunately it was so cold out we struggled to keep the holes open and after about an hour and a half the warm fish house just minutes away was calling our names. We stayed in for the remainder of the day and night and caught just a few fish. The next morning (Sunday) we awoke and decided to leave early. Again I pulled out my keys and pushed the auto start button. This time the truck had started. Great right? Well as I turned to put my keys back in pocket I bumped my elbow on the TV stand located directly above an open Ice hole…. As most already know that when something is dropped in the vicinity of an ice fishing hole there is a good chance that the invisible ice fishing hole funnel will grab whatever object has been dropped and suck it to the bottom of the lake. I can guaranty that you have never seen a grow man go from a standing position to on his belly with his arm down the hole in a nano-second. Well I can tell you one thing 22 ft of water is a long ways down when your keys are at the bottom.

Let me set the tone for you. It is Sunday morning the dealerships are closed, you are 120 miles from home, your truck is running and your keys are at the bottom of a 22’ hole. And no I did not have a spare set. At this point desperation kicks and in and even the thought of drilling enough holes to tie a rope around yourself and jump in crosses your mind for a split second. We gathered our thoughts and remembered that we had the Marcum. The camera it’s self was not going to magically pull the keys from the depths of the lake but it would at least give us hope if we were to see them. We lowered the camera down to within and inch or two of the bottom. As we started to pan the murky bottom we (to our surprise) could see just the one button on the remote. The keys had sunk into the murk and had given us little hope for retrieval but we brainstormed a plan with the tools we had at our disposal. We tied on a large daredevil that for what ever reason was in the tackle box. In addition we added several sinkers and hooks to give us a little extra gripping power. We lowered the retrieval rig in and watched on the screen as we came closer to the bottom. We could see that the keys had drifted further from the hole then we had thought and knew that after several attempts we could not reach the keys. Not wanting to give up we used the six foot steel chisel that we had to chisel a channel in the 15” ice in the direction we hoped the keys had traveled. After several attempts and 2 hours later we finally thought we had chiseled enough ice that we would be able get to the keys. The biggest fear we had at this point was pushing the keys further into the muck and not being able to see them. As my buddy held the camera still I lowered the rig one more time. I was getting close and could see that the keys appeared to be beneath the retrieval rig. As I positioned myself I slipped and dropped the rig. Once the muck settled it was clear neither the rig nor the keys were visible. At this point we thought we had lost the battle but would give one last ditch effort. It was clear to us that I ripping motion would be the best chance for one of the hooks to grab the keys. I stuck my arm down the hole as far as I could to try and get a better angle and in one quick jerk I pulled the line. Almost instantly I could feel tension on the line and started the process of pulling the line up. While I was pulling the line up I thought I had saw something shiny flicker in the lights of the camera. As the line was coming to an end it was clear the shiny thing I had seen was in fact the keys to my truck. After almost three hours and most importantly the use of the Marcum Outdoor Viewing System we were able to retrieve the truck keys and drive home.

To this day I unfortunately do not own a camera but last year I did upgrade from a FL-8 to the Marcum LX-3 which I would not fish without. I would like to thank Marcum for the opportunity to share my story and for being able to use and enjoy your products.

Sincerely, Matt Stewart

Andover, MN

[Aces In The Hole]

Wow, great story! Glad your buddy got his keys back. I once thought I dropped my camera down the hole once, but it turns out that I was too drunk and didn't remember putting it back in my bag. I guess that was for the best!

[Powerstroke]

I have used a camera and daredevil to retrieve keys in 25ft of water and also to snag some $200 sunglasses in 10ft of water using a large net. They do have many uses, sometimes the least important of which is fishing.

[Marmot]

Almost lost my celly to the gravitational pull of the ice hole this evening. For some reason I had my phone in the front pocket of my shirt and didn't have the pocket buttoned. Leaned over to grab my beer from the floor of my portable. Phone hits about 2" from the hole.

[PierBridge]

A magnet is a must have and has bailed me out a few times including my brand New 6" Lazer.

[I_icefish_in_my_sleep]

Great Story! After reading this I think it would be a good idea to put a small floating device on my set of keys when out fishing this year. IF I ever get to go out ON the Snowy Floaty Slushy ice that is.

[hoggs222]

The funny thing is that next week I went out and bought a bunch of floating keychains.

[Hammer Handle]

Could be worse.

I had a friend who dropped her keys in the toilet (she was changed clothes in the bathroom).

She bent over to pick them up and "whoosh", down they went. It was one of these automatic flushers.

[ChuckN]

Great story.

I lost the auger bit from my Strikemaster gas auger once in 20' of water (BTW, inspect those bolts ). An underwater camera helped me retrieve it! Cameras are awesome tools for locating anything underwater. They can pay for themselves in cases like this.