“Dude! What is totally with the pink boat?”
My pal, Kirstie Pike (Prois Hunting Apparel), and I heard that and we saw that attitude as our guide Robert Eddins, of RO Drift Boats, Bozeman, Mont., rowed us down the Madison River for a little outing in the pink boat.
The “pink boat,” aka Judy — was named for Ian Davis’s mom, who died of breast cancer. He is one of the owners of the boat and co-owns Yellow Dog Flyfishing in town.
Kirstie Pike, on her first fly-fishing trip, caught and released two beautiful rainbow trout. Photo by Barbara Baird.
At first, it seemed that some anglers stood bewildered that a guy would be out in a pink boat, and also, (thank you, Robert) a pink shirt. And then, when the guys on the river read “Rowing for the Cure” on the side of the boat, they got it. In fact, only 11 days old today, the boat has raised thousands of dollars for Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, Montana, affiliate. A 16-foot drift boat, created by Eddins and crew at the family-owned firm, based on their most popular model, it also contains a donations box. This box received a few donations from guys today that reached in their pockets, and who knows who they thought of when they made the donation? For it seems these days, no one has not been affected by this thing called breast cancer.
You may read about the reasons for the boat here in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle’s article, but suffice it to say, these folks in Bozeman are on to a good thing. We got a few honks from cars and trucks on the nearby road and a whole lot of smiles and waves. The boat’s mission is to visit Western cities, in the hands of skilled guides, promoting awareness and collecting money to fund more breast cancer research — so maybe people will not have to name pink boats after their moms, sisters, daughters or other women (or men) they love.
Robert Eddins and the pink boat. Photo by Barbara Baird.
Publisher/Editor Barbara Baird is a freelance writer in hunting, shooting and outdoor markets. Her bylines are found at several top hunting and shooting publications. She also is a travel writer, and you can follow her at https://www.ozarkian.com. View all posts by Barbara Baird
Love it! I however had to work today while you two were out playing! lol Glad you two had a great time for a great cause!
Love the boat, Love what it stands for, REALLY like the guide in the pink shirt! And can’t help but be jealous of a wonderful day of fly fishing that the two gal pals (Barb & Kirstie) had in a beautiful part of the country!
I am so very very jealous. Kirstie, you were supposed to catch your first fish on a fly rod with me AND you both were on the pink boat without me. GRRRRRRR. That aside I am so glad you guys got to go and had so much fun! What an awesome cause!
Awesome time, Barb and Kirstie! It gave me goosebumps just knowing how exciting it must have been for you guys when people were honking and commenting along the way, knowing what you were doing was for the cause! And I’m sure the “pink” boat is going to have an amazing effect on many, many people.