Call it fate, destiny or the workings of a “higher power” but, when two personalities with similar ambitions come together there’s no telling just how far and wide the parameters are for what they can achieve. In this case, the ambition is to raise carp awareness worldwide, especially in the United States! To the majority, carp in the United States are considered a trash fish but that is soon going to change.
In recent months there has been a carp fishing collaboration developing out of North America that appears to have the necessary ingredients for a “winning combination”. With a common goal of raising carp fishing awareness world-wide, Larysa Switlyk of “Larysa Unleashed” and Ken Keene of TOKS have recently formed a new alliance that officially kicked off when they met for the first time in July, 2012 at the world’s largest sport fishing tradeshow, ICAST.
Although it was at the ICAST event where they would have their first official meeting, it was just months prior during the 2012 World Catfish Classic that a brief encounter with Frank Warwick would have Larysa interested in carp fishing using the European style approach.
That is when Larysa agreed to be part of a three person team also comprising Frank Warwick and Jason Cann during the 2012 Meet Carp Romania competition which was to follow only months later.
It was at this event Larysa would get her real first dose of specialized bait and tackle of which Larysa says: “This experience was a real eye opener. The techniques and strategies used was nothing I have ever seen before which raised my level of curiosity for the sport even more. After catching my first carp, I fell in love with the fish and want to do whatever it takes to get others to appreciate how special these carp really are.”
After fishing with Frank Warwick and Jason Cann in Romania, Larysa’s desire for learning more about the sport would continue to grow. It was around this time Larysa would go on to compete for Team USA in the 2012 World Carp Classic, which proved to be very important.
“After attending an event of this magnitude, I came back to the U.S. with a much better understanding of how great this sport really is and how important it is to try to get others to understand it as well,” she recalls.
While still in the early part of 2013, Larysa Switlyk and Ken Keene wasted no time drawing attention to the sport. Having recently participated together in one of the longest running carp fishing competitions in North America at the Austin Team Championship, Larysa and Ken discovered that it’s not only their passion for the sport they have in common but their ability to fish together as a productive team.
Ken says: “Going into the competition I had no idea what to expect from Larysa as a teammate. What impressed me the most was how much she already knew and her ability to improvise when necessary. I am excited to see her expand as a carp angler and look forward to hopefully fishing with her in the future.”
Larysa and Ken bring something more to the table than just themselves and the idea of raising carp fishing awareness.
They’re both relying on their individual brands, along with the help of television and Internet to reach a much broader audience.
Launching her new TV Show, “Larysa Unleashed” on NBC Sports come July 2013 and Ken Keene running the World’s Largest FREE Online Carp Fishing competition – TOKS Big Four International, these two individuals appear to have a tremendous amount of potential and seem fully equipped to shake things up within the world-wide carp fishing industry.
For detailed information on the New TV Show “Larysa Unleashed’ visit: www.LarysaUnleashed.com
For more information on the World’s Largest FREE Online Carp Fishing Competition visit: www.BigFourCarp.com
