DICK POOL

Dick Pool started as a tackle inventor with innovative underwater film techniques and then advanced as a leader for the conservation of California salmon and steelhead for more than 30 years. He developed an underwater system to film and watch salmon lures being trolled, and with the information then invented the Salmon Rotary Killer and helped open up the world of downrigger trolling on the California coast.

Pool has served on numerous state and federal salmon advisory committees and has testified as an expert witness on salmon issues before the California Legislature and the U.S. House of Representatives. His appointments include the California Fish and Game Upper Sacramento Salmon and Steelhead Advisory Committee; the advisory committee on winter-run salmon for the National Marine Fisheries Service; and the Board of Directors for the American Sportfishing Association.

“When we figured out how to film trolled lures and then watched a big salmon make 17 passes at a lure without getting hooked, it was like watching the greatest secret show on Earth,” Pool said.