There’s no telling how many times I’ve sat in my boat after dark or before daybreak trying to find a bait in a locker or spooling new line. All the while I’d be holding a Maglite in my mouth or trying to adjust a headlamp where I need the light. I found a better way recently, though. I had a Rigid Industries A-Series marine light system installed on the front deck. It’s a series of LED lights that draw little power, but put out an immense amount of light. You can get them in white, red, amber, green or blue – all the same color or mixed. It’s just the right amount of light; they don’t create so much glare that it impedes your view of things around you. So, bottom line, you still get the full benefit of your boat being lit up so you can see your rods, tackle or whatever.

The kit lights mount on the inside gunwale of the front deck. There are two options – four or six lights. Mine is the six-light package. I installed them myself. Basically, everything in the Rigid Industries kit comes put together so it’s just a matter of running a few wires and drilling a few holes. The cost is about $400, but that includes a lifetime warranty.

The first thing that we tournament anglers do in the morning is unlock our rod lockers, take out the rigs we’re going to start with and make sure everything is ready. Having good light helps me get organized and makes me feel like I’m getting off to a good start each day. Besides, it looks cool. I call it functional bling.