By Bill "Billy" Siemantel
There are boats you buy. And then there are boats that become you.
On a showroom floor in 2015, I shook hands with Rick Pierce and became the first person to drive the BassCat Caracal off that floor. Powered by a Mercury 225 Pro XS, she wasn't just a boat—she was a promise. A promise that somewhere between the rod lockers and the livewell, between the first cast and the last weigh-in, something extraordinary would happen.
And brother, did it ever.
The BassCat Bloodline
This story doesn't start in 2015. It starts in 2000, when I walked into an office in Mountain Home, Arkansas, with Ron Pierce and bought my first BassCat Classic right after winning the BassCat Invitational against 700+ teams. That Classic became my tournament warhorse. Then came the BassCat P4—the filming platform, the B.A.S.S. Masters machine, the boat that taught me what "fishability" really means.
But the Caracal? She was different.
She was the evolution. The culmination. The boat that would carry me through Angler of the Year campaigns, through lure development for FishLab and Okuma, through product testing that would end up in your tackle boxes. She was my mobile laboratory, my film studio, my sanctuary, and—on one fateful day in 2021—my rescue vessel.
The Nick That Saved a Life
In 2021, I was running the Big Bass Zone Junior Championship on Lake Taneycomo, Missouri. Coming in for weigh-in, something caught my eye. Two people—drowning. In the middle of the lake. No time to think. No time to hesitate.
I got to that husband just before he went down. Rushed him to the paramedics. And in the chaos of saving a life, I ran that beautiful Caracal straight into the dock.
Nick.
Scratch.
Battle scar.
You know what? I never fixed them. Never even thought about it. Because those marks aren't damage—they're memory. They're the reminder that life is fragile, that seconds matter, and that sometimes the most important thing you do in a boat has nothing to do with fishing.
Those "blemishes" keep me grounded. They remind me how lucky we are to be out there at all. Because at the end of the day, it's not about the perfect gel coat—it's about the perfect moments that happen when you're humble enough to serve something bigger than a tournament check.
A Decade of Wraps and Mojo
Thanks to Signarama and Mike Reese, that Caracal wore her wrap like a suit of armor. For 10+ years, that boat looked showroom-fresh. Here's the magic trick nobody tells you: run a quality wrap for a decade, peel it off, and boom—brand new boat underneath. It's like having two boats for the price of one. The gel coat underneath? Pristine. Evergreen. Timeless.
That's the thing about investing in quality on the front end. Yeah, it stings a little when you write the check. But when you're still turning heads eleven years later? When your boat looks as good as the day Rick Pierce handed you the keys? That's when you know you bought right.
The Tournament Trail & The Teams
With Ron Thompson and later Tim Tuttle, that Caracal became a weapon. Angler of the Year titles. Countless tournaments. Hours of film work for the BBZ brand. From 2019-2021, she served as the command center for the Big Bass Zone Junior Championship, giving hundreds of kids their first taste of competitive fishing and the BBZ mindset.
She wasn't just a fishing platform. She was a lure development lab for FishLab. A product testing facility for Okuma. A proving ground for every sponsor who trusted me to show the world what their gear could do.
And here's what I believe: sponsorship isn't a handout. It's a handshake. When someone puts their brand in your boat, they're saying, "We trust you to represent us." That responsibility isn't taken lightly. Every rod, every reel, every lure—if it was on that boat, it earned its place through performance, reliability, and the kind of quality that you can hand down to the next generation with pride.
The Passing of the Torch
Today, that Caracal has a new family.
John and Robert Drisner just drove off with her. A father-son team. Down-to-earth. Good-hearted. The kind of people you want to see succeed. And as I watched them pull away, heading straight for the lake to "put some fish stink in the boat" and break her in proper, I felt something I didn't expect:
Peace.
Because handing that boat to them wasn't a sale. It was a passing of tradition. Like a grandfather handing a rod to his grandson. Like a father teaching his daughter to tie her first Palomar. That's the BassCat way. That's the BBZ way. When something is built to last, it deserves to keep lasting. It deserves to create new memories, new stories, new history.
The Next Chapter: 2027 Puma
So, what's next? I'm sitting down with Rick Pierce to hand me off to the California rep to order the 2027 BassCat Puma. Mercury Pro XS 250. Lowrance Ghost trolling motor. Full Lowrance electronics suite. Lithium Pro batteries. Power-Pole Charge system.
Built for fall tournaments. Built for filming. Built for the next evolution of BBZ.
But here's what I know: whatever that new Puma becomes, it will stand on the shoulders of the Caracal. Every lesson learned. Every fish caught. Every life touched. Every scar kept.
Words of Wisdom for the Drisner Family
John and Robert—here's what that boat taught me:
Keep the scratches that matter. Not every mark needs fixing. Some exist to remind you how precious this all is.
Invest in quality once. Cry once, smile for a decade. Or two.
A boat is only as good as the memories you make in it. Tournament checks fade. Photos yellow. But the feeling of pulling someone from the water, of watching a kid catch their first big bass, of sharing a sunrise with someone you trust? That's the real currency.
Hand it down with honor. When you take care of something, it takes care of others. Pass it forward.
Fish through the fish's eyes. The BBZ mindset isn't about what you see—it's about what they see. Every cast is an illusion. Every retrieve is a conversation. Make it believable.
The Sponsor Shout-Outs
None of this happens without the brands that stand behind the madness:
• BassCat Boats — Rick Pierce and the Pierce family: 25+ years of trust, quality, and tradition. Simply the best.
• Mercury Marine — From the 225 Pro XS to the new 250, reliability that never quits.
• Lowrance— Electronics that find fish and keep you safe. Ghost trolling motor? Game changer.
• Power-Pole Total Boat Control — Charge system and anchors that hold you where the fish live.
• Lithium Pros — Batteries that last longer than your fishing stories.
• Signarama / Mike Reese — Wraps that protect your investment and keep you looking pro.
• FishLab Tackle — Lures developed and tested from that very boat.
• Okuma Fishing USA — Rods and reels that handle everything from 10-pounders to tournament pressure.
To every sponsor: I don't ask for freebies. I ask for partnership. And in return, you get every ounce of passion, promotion, and performance I have. That's the deal. That's the BBZ way.
Final Cast
John and Robert—go put fish stink in that boat. Go write your own Caracal Chronicles. Go create the kind of memories that don't need perfect gel coat to be perfect.
And when you look at those dock scars someday, remember: a boat is just fiberglass and horsepower until someone gives it meaning.
This caracal gave me everything. Now she's giving it to you.
Tight lines, kindred souls. Welcome to the BassCat family.
— Bill "Billy" Siemantel BBZ | Hall of Fame | Just a guy who still gets excited about the first cast
P.S. — Rick, let's get that Puma order locked. The next chapter isn't going to write itself. 🎣
