Several years ago, my son Elliott came up with a great way to remember his PBs (personal bests) through the fishing season and his young career. He purchased an inexpensive 17x23-inch cork bulletin board and hung it in our living room. After he lands (and releases) a PB, he retires that special lure to the wall (top photo).

One of Elliott Maas’ lures to make his Wall of Fame is a Northland Fishing Tackle Forage Spoon tipped with a Clam Outdoors Maki Mino. He used this combo to land a beautifully marked 17-inch white crappie through the ice.

I sure wish I would’ve thought of this Wall of Fame idea as a kid. It would be great to look back over the decades and see the specific lures responsible for my biggest (at the time) largemouth, smallmouth, northern pike, muskie and more.

As you can see in the photo above, some of Elliott’s prized PB lures are still in good working order, but he still retired them. Of course, that means he has to purchase the exact lure as a replacement for his tacklebox. (Fact: He typically purchases several replacements!)

My favorite lures on his Wall of Fame are those with teeth marks and bent wires; they tell a story. It won’t be long and Elliott will have to hang a second cork board in our living room. Note: A lure never comes down from the board. As PBs are topped, the new lure takes its rightful place on the wall.

A Wall of Fame display is also a great idea for dads and moms (and other fishing mentors) who are looking for gift ideas for the young anglers in their lives.

Elliott’s PB smallmouth weighed 6 pounds 2 ounces and was caught on a Heddon Baby Torpedo. That topwater lure was retired to his Wall of Fame, and he has since added a couple more Baby Torpedoes to his tackle box.