Hannes Novak

I got into fishing through my uncle, who had his own pond in the north of Austria “Waldviertel” and he always brought me over in the summer months and took me with him when he went fishing. That’s when I fell in love with nature and sitting by the water. Who doesn’t love sitting by the water at dawn, watching the mist drift over the lake and listening to the birds waking up in the morning.

Later, with my mobility came the urge to travel abroad more to fish, initially to Italy on the river PO, where I tried to catch the big carp that Kurt Grabmayer (one of the most famous anglers in Austria and Europe), had repeatedly told me about.

After that I spent a lot of time with Kurt on his favourite water, Lake Raduta in Romania.

In more recent times, I have found myself returning to the mystical body of water known as Rainbow Lake, as well as frequent visits to some Croatian waters which have developed into big carp venues.

Today, I have my own lake in Austria, where I have hand-picked all the fish and grown them on, to create my dream lake.

Because of family and work I can no longer manage 120 nights a year, so for me, efficiency and any edges I can utilise play a major part in my angling.

Through my time in the fishing industry, I had previously got to know and work with some of the people at Evolve. We had worked very closely together on product development in the past, resulting in a long-distance friendship developing. So naturally I was thrilled and jumped at the chance to join the Evolve team when invited. I am excited to see what the future holds.