Bill Lowen is best known as a professional bass fisherman and for good reason. The two-time Bassmaster® Elite Series champion has competed as a full-time pro for 20 years and has accumulated nearly two million dollars in career earnings.
Lowen’s consistency, friendly demeanor and old-school fishing style has endeared him to fans throughout his career, and he’ll be the first to say he absolutely loves what he does for a living. But believe it or not, bass fishing is not Lowen’s biggest obsession.
“I love my job but I’m not afraid to say waterfowl hunting is my number one passion,” Lowen said with a smile. “This year my tournament season lasted from February to the end of September. We just wrapped up the NPFL (National Professional Fishing League®) on Logan Martin and as soon as my boat was on the trailer my mind went to duck hunting.”
It would be disingenuous to say Lowen starts thinking about waterfowl as soon as he has tournament competition behind him for the season. The truth is, he never stops thinking about it. Both pursuits complement one another and allow the longtime Yamaha pro to keep his head in the game whether he’s chasing bass or waterfowl.
Lowen has been consumed with waterfowl hunting since his dad took him as an
eager eight-year-old, and it’s a heritage he has passed down to his children, nieces
and nephews.
“I never stop thinking about waterfowl hunting,” Lowen offered. “If I’m fishing in the back of a pocket and I spook a few ducks, my mind drifts to where they are going, how they’d fly back in, and how I would hunt them. On the flip side, during the winter I’m out chasing ducks but I’m constantly reading the water and thinking about bass. The two are linked for me, but make no mistake, there is nowhere I’d rather be than in the duck blind with my family.”
Lowen’s two primary pursuits are further connected through some of his professional relationships. Several of Lowen’s sponsors span both fishing and the waterfowl world including Xpress Boats®, Drake Waterfowl® Systems, Boss Shotshells®, and Mossy Oak® to name a few.
“Dollar Bill” Lowen competes out of an X21 Pro Xpress® Aluminum boat with a 250HP Yamaha V MAX SHO® during fishing season, but he trades that in for a HD20DDP 20-foot aluminum Xpress® hunting rig with a 115HP Yamaha V Max SHO® for waterfowl.
Lowen’s Hunting Rig
Lowen prefers a bigger than average waterfowl boat for one main reason – safety first, second and always.
“Safety on the water is my number one consideration during hunting season,” Lowen explained. “I take a lot of kids hunting, and we might be out in sub-zero temperatures, with a 20-mph north wind on some days. We’re leaving at dark-thirty, and I value the peace of mind knowing I have a big, sturdy boat with the most reliable motor in the world on the back of it to get us home in a hurry regardless of the situation.”
His concerns about concealment come far behind the importance of getting back to shore safely. When it comes to hiding his boat and his hunting party, Lowen has a custom-made solution.
For years he dreamed of a low-profile, hard sided blind built onto his duck hunting boat and when he’d exhausted all options already on the market, Lowen built one himself.
“It took me four or five years of game planning, but I hatched a plan to build the boat blind of my dreams,” Lowen beamed. “It started by cutting a 16-foot jon boat in half, which I used to make the sides of the blind. The jon boat only came up to about waist high, which was too low, so we designed some moveable sides with fencing material and it really all came together better than I could have hoped. It took us two months to build but I wish I had it ten years ago.”
A lot of Lowen’s waterfowl pursuit takes place on the Ohio River, where he is usually hunting over deep water or areas he can’t get out and build a blind on shore. His ingenious boat blind design has not only helped Bill and his family get into more duck action, but it’s made their hunts more enjoyable, too.
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Lowen’s consistency, friendly demeanor and old-school fishing style has endeared him to fans throughout his career, and he’ll be the first to say he absolutely loves what he does for a living. But believe it or not, bass fishing is not Lowen’s biggest obsession.
“I love my job but I’m not afraid to say waterfowl hunting is my number one passion,” Lowen said with a smile. “This year my tournament season lasted from February to the end of September. We just wrapped up the NPFL (National Professional Fishing League®) on Logan Martin and as soon as my boat was on the trailer my mind went to duck hunting.”
It would be disingenuous to say Lowen starts thinking about waterfowl as soon as he has tournament competition behind him for the season. The truth is, he never stops thinking about it. Both pursuits complement one another and allow the longtime Yamaha pro to keep his head in the game whether he’s chasing bass or waterfowl.
Lowen has been consumed with waterfowl hunting since his dad took him as an
eager eight-year-old, and it’s a heritage he has passed down to his children, nieces
and nephews.
“I never stop thinking about waterfowl hunting,” Lowen offered. “If I’m fishing in the back of a pocket and I spook a few ducks, my mind drifts to where they are going, how they’d fly back in, and how I would hunt them. On the flip side, during the winter I’m out chasing ducks but I’m constantly reading the water and thinking about bass. The two are linked for me, but make no mistake, there is nowhere I’d rather be than in the duck blind with my family.”
Lowen’s two primary pursuits are further connected through some of his professional relationships. Several of Lowen’s sponsors span both fishing and the waterfowl world including Xpress Boats®, Drake Waterfowl® Systems, Boss Shotshells®, and Mossy Oak® to name a few.
“Dollar Bill” Lowen competes out of an X21 Pro Xpress® Aluminum boat with a 250HP Yamaha V MAX SHO® during fishing season, but he trades that in for a HD20DDP 20-foot aluminum Xpress® hunting rig with a 115HP Yamaha V Max SHO® for waterfowl.
Lowen’s Hunting Rig
Lowen prefers a bigger than average waterfowl boat for one main reason – safety first, second and always.
“Safety on the water is my number one consideration during hunting season,” Lowen explained. “I take a lot of kids hunting, and we might be out in sub-zero temperatures, with a 20-mph north wind on some days. We’re leaving at dark-thirty, and I value the peace of mind knowing I have a big, sturdy boat with the most reliable motor in the world on the back of it to get us home in a hurry regardless of the situation.”
His concerns about concealment come far behind the importance of getting back to shore safely. When it comes to hiding his boat and his hunting party, Lowen has a custom-made solution.
For years he dreamed of a low-profile, hard sided blind built onto his duck hunting boat and when he’d exhausted all options already on the market, Lowen built one himself.
“It took me four or five years of game planning, but I hatched a plan to build the boat blind of my dreams,” Lowen beamed. “It started by cutting a 16-foot jon boat in half, which I used to make the sides of the blind. The jon boat only came up to about waist high, which was too low, so we designed some moveable sides with fencing material and it really all came together better than I could have hoped. It took us two months to build but I wish I had it ten years ago.”
A lot of Lowen’s waterfowl pursuit takes place on the Ohio River, where he is usually hunting over deep water or areas he can’t get out and build a blind on shore. His ingenious boat blind design has not only helped Bill and his family get into more duck action, but it’s made their hunts more enjoyable, too.
Back to Blue Life