Girl excels in fishing competition

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This article was published 16/06/2021 (1542 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

At only six years of age, Paisley Connolly has reached the final two in a national fishing competition for charity.

Joined by her father, Scott, Paisley has spent the past three weeks competing in the On The Other Line Canada contest.

Although Scott has been helping her along the way, Paisley has to reel in each fish herself for them to count.

The fourth and final round of the elimination competition began Tuesday and will cap off with a winner announced June 22.

Each round has consisted of a different challenge, with this final week’s winner determined by whichever angler catches the greatest number of species. When both competitors catch the same species, the largest of the two earn a point.

Paisley is fishing against Adam Turnbull, who has spent the competition in Alberta.

It has been a fun few weeks, Paisley said Tuesday during a brief lunch break from fishing at the family’s home in Rapid City.

She’d joined her father in fishing in Rivers first thing that morning and planned on hitting up the Assiniboine River during the afternoon, hoping to catch a few new species.

The highlight of the contest thus far, Paisley said enthusiastically over the phone, has been flying in an airplane.

This, Scott said, took place during their recent fishing trip up north to Flin Flon.

Although Paisley was shy on the phone, her mother, Michelle, said the youngster is a fishing enthusiast, and competitive to boot.

“She’s been going hard,” Michelle said, adding she has been proud to see how dedicated her daughter has been to the cause.

Paisley’s enthusiasm for competitive fishing predates this contest, having earned her first angler badge at the age of two.

Scott was in another national fishing competition last year, when he decided to have Paisley join him.

“One of the rules in that competition was that if you had a child with you, their catches would be counted,” he said. “I brought her out and she ended up out-fishing me.”

She had a similar enthusiasm during the winter, when she’d join her father in waking up long before the sun rose to walk across a pitch-black lake, “loving every minute of it.”

Whichever participant comes out on top Tuesday will receive a cheque for $1,000 toward the charity of their choice, with Paisley and her family choosing Autism Canada as their recipient.

Her brother, Dexter, 9, has autism, and Paisley said that in addition to horsing around with him, she serves as something of a bigger sister by helping look out for him.

Regardless of whether Paisley comes out on top, the family wanted to do something for the cause, so they started an online fundraiser toward Autism Canada.

Their goal of raising $1,500 was quickly surpassed, with $2,820 raised as of Tuesday, with another two weeks left to go.

In addition to raising money, the fundraiser gets participants involved in Paisley’s fishing expeditions, with every donation of $20 allowing people a chance to guess the length of the biggest fish she catches during the month.

The winner will be the closest without going over and will receive a night’s accommodation at Bakers Narrows Lodge and a guided fishing trip on Lake Athapapuskow.

Scott said it has been a positive bonding experience with his daughter and that they’ll spend the final days of the contest fishing throughout Westman.

“It’s been an awesome experience and we’re just happy to do it,” he said, adding that raising money and awareness for a cause near and dear to the family has been a bonus.

Paisley’s progress can be tracked online at the “On The Other Line Canada” Facebook page, and the related fundraiser can be found at canadahelps.org/en/pages/paisley-fish-for-autism.

» tclarke@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB