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Kim Bain-Moore - Fishing phenomenon

Diana Rudolph (left) and Kim Bain-Moore (right) between takes on Nantucket Island, Mass. while filming an episode of Breaking The Surface, which will air on the Sportsman Channel beginning Oct. 3. Kim Bain-Moore with a male coho salmon (distinguished by the hooked snout) caught during the August run of silver salmon on the Kanektok River in Alaska with Alaska West Outfitters.

By Tammy Sapp

Fishing is in Kim's blood. Her mother, whom she describes in her blog as a champion angler and a runner-up and big fish winner (against the men) in one of the first ever bass tournaments in Australia, often fished the surf as baby Kim rode along in a backpack. And her father was a professional angler on the saltwater scene in her home state of Queensland, Australia and also ran a tournament series there.

"I grew up in the best of circles, and we had opportunities for good fortune to shine on us with a few wins and placings," Kim said.

Her memories are of fishing weekends, holidays, vacations and any chance she could get at the creek near her home. As a kid, she always asked Santa for fishing tackle. Before she was a teen, she was manning a johnboat outfitted with an electric motor. By her own admission, she had it bad.

According to Kim, though, there never really was an "ah ha moment" about what she would do when she grew up.

"It was more of an ongoing process. When I was 14 years old, I wrote a back to basics column for "Queensland Fishing Monthly." My tournament career began to kick in when I was 19 or 20 years old and in my early 20s, I started to get serious about tournament fishing."

So how did Kim go from Australia to Alabama, where she resides today with husband Andre?

In 1998, Kim and her dad went on holiday to the South Pacific Island of New Caledonia. Up to that point, their focus was mainly saltwater fishing. On a day that Kim says changed her life, they caught their first ever northern strain largemouth bass from a small lake. It was game on for Kim.

"After that, I knew I wanted to go to America to catch largemouth."

Kim and her parents began learning all they could about fishing for black bass. Their quest took them to America in 1999 and 2000, where they familiarized themselves with the BASS scene. In April 2000, Kim headed stateside to cover the 2000 Bassmaster Classic for an Australian magazine. By 2003, she had made it to her first BASS Open Championship at Toledo Bend, Texas.

Her rookie year on the Academy Sports + Outdoors Women's Bassmaster Tour was nothing short of amazing. She pulled off an upset win in the season opener and then never finished lower than sixth place in the tour's other events. She wrapped up 2008 with a coup: same-day wins in the tour's championship and points race. Due to that win and a change designed to create more BASS buzz and fans, Kim's role changed from ESPN commentator on the Classic to the first woman in history to participate in the event.

While Kim didn't win the tournament, she said the support she received was fantastic, aside from a few of her male Classic competitors who weren't exactly enlightened. However, she said she just ignored any negativity, put her head down and fished her heart out.

She also found strength in those who supported her, especially the girls who had made signs to cheer her on. During the Classic, long days on the water were followed by lengthy autograph sessions. This was on the heels of an endless series of interviews for ESPN's First Take as well as coverage by SportsCenter and ESPNews, CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, Time magazine, LA Times, USA Today and the Australian press as well.

"It was totally overwhelming, but pretty incredible," Kim said.

About a year before her Classic appearance, Kim experienced another life changing event when she said "I do, from this tournament forward in fishness and in health" to fellow professional angler, Andre Moore. While they have competed against each other in tournaments, this year they opted for more quality time as a couple so Andre fished the Bassmaster Opens while Kim competed in WBT events. Put them on the same team, though, and they're a force to be reckoned with. And, these two peas in a pod love fishing saltwater tournaments together. In January of 2009, Kim and Andre competed as members of a four-angler team and took the top prize in the first 2009 event of the Southern Kingfish Association's Yamaha Professional Kingfish Tour. Kim also scored first place in the women's division.

When asked what she likes to do for fun, the answer is, of course, go fishing! But she'd be hard pressed to pick what she likes best, saltwater or freshwater fishing.

"I grew up saltwater fishing. It's in the blood. I like to catch something that strips a lot of line. I like the physical challenge, straining to get that fish to the boat. Freshwater fishing is more of a mental challenge, figuring out where they are and what they'll bite on."

While Kim's recent past is a whirlwind tour of instant fame, her future looks even more promising. She's co-hosting a new TV show called Breaking the Surface with fly fishing expert Diana Rudolph. The show will follow Kim and Diana as they pursue just about anything that swims in cold, warm and saltwater and will air on the Sportsman Channel. The show's primetime debut will be Saturday, Oct. 3 at 9:30 p.m. EST. You also can catch the show Fridays at 1:30 p.m. and Sundays at 7 a.m. (EST).

Also, on the horizon is more travel, on top of the 21 countries and 25 U.S. states she's already fished in.

Kim's no stranger to TV. Or to world travel. However, there is one thing on her agenda that would be a new experience.

"We've been talking about starting a family. I'd love to take my kids fishing someday, to see it through their eyes, when that first little bluegill crunches their worm. There's just something about kids' enthusiasm."

The most immediate thing on Kim's mind, though, is next month's WBT Championship. The 2009 championship will be Oct. 16-18 on the Red River out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La. Stay tuned to the Women's Outdoor Wire to see who will earn enough points to take the 2009 Toyota Tundra WBT Angler of the Year title, which comes with a berth in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic.

You also can follow Kim at: http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/tournaments/news/story?page=b_blog08_Bain

For more information about the WBT, visit: http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/tournaments/wbt/index