Meet The Lure Designer Who Is All The "Rage"

From his recent induction into the USA Martial Arts Hall Of Fame, to his successful line of children's books, Steve Parks, known by many as "Big O," has a wide range of accomplishments under his (black) belt. But in the fishing industry he's best known for designing some of the most successful soft plastics on the market: Strike King's RageTail series.We took a few minutes to sit down with Steve and ask him a few questions about fishing, karate, and life.

What was the first bait you ever designed?

Guiding night trips on Lake Fork, I needed the loudest and most aggressive soft plastic Buzz Bait ever, for use over surface grass and moss beds without fouling... The Rage Shad was Born!

What makes Rage Tail baits different from other soft plastics?

All of our different products are designed with the patented RageTail flange, to give them their own unique action, vibration and water movement.

What's it like designing baits with pros like Kevin VanDamn?

At Strike King/Rage Tail we have many of the best pro's in the world and there are big advantages in working together with them. We call this our 'DreamTeam Think Tank'. Having anglers like KVD to assist with the design and proving of our baits is huge.

Where did the nickname "Big O" come from?

I guess at 6' 4", 235 lbs. "Little O" doesn't really fit :) But seriously, the name Big O was given to me years ago by students in one of my karate schools.

How do you have time for it all?

What we love and are most passionate about, we will make time for. There are no laws or rules to say that we can only have one passion, purpose or direction in life... We should follow our Dreams 'PLURAL', depending on the amount of time and effort we feel is necessary.

Do you have any secret baits in the works you can tell us about?

There are many and if I told others about them, they wouldn't be so secret anymore now would they :)