Mark's Outdoor Resume and Accomplishments
Mark Sak has been a big part of the Michigan Outdoor Industry for over 30 years. He began his career as a tournament angler fishing local walleye tournaments and Red Man Bass events in 1992. Moving to the Michigan Walleye Tour in 1994, and covered every tournament stop in Michigan’s Premier Outdoor Publication, Woods-N-Water News allowing readers to learn tips on fishing their favorite lakes. Mark gained a great deal of his fishing IQ while qualifying for 6 MWT championships. In 1999 Mark made the jump to the nationally televised In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail. That same year he developed his moniker the “Great Lakes Sportsman,” and it has been part of his life since then. During his 7 years on the PWT, Mark qualified for 2 National Championships, finishing in the top ten anglers of the eastern division twice, collecting many awards like the Coleman Cool under pressure award along the way. One of the greatest awards he ever received was a note on the back of his first Coleman Cool under pressure award from Tournament Director Jim Kalkofen. Kalkofen took the time to attach a note reading “Mark, To a very deserving PWT Pro, Jim K.”
Promotion and multi-media
Mark has been on some of the best Promotional Staffs in the country. Yamaha Outboards, Yar-Craft Boats, Rapala, Off Shore Tackle and Jiffy Ice Augers, and Otter Outdoors are just a few companies he has represented over the years. Mark is as accomplished on the hardwater as he is on soft. Mark’s articles are read in magazines such as Game and Fish Magazine, In-Fisherman, Pheasants Forever Magazine, Michigan Outdoor News, Woods-N-Water News and Great Lakes Angler Magazine. He is also an accomplished photographer and has had hundreds of photographs published in print and online.
In 2003, Mark joined the Pro staff of Mike Avery’s Outdoor Magazine Television and Radio and stayed with this experienced outdoor video/radio producer for 5 years. A trip to Kodiak Island Alaska highlighted those five years and allowed Mark to be directly involved in video production. In 2006 Mark left the Outdoor Magazine to produce his own syndicated radio show on the Michigan Talk Radio Network which ended when the network was sold. He continues radio work regularly with Wild Michigan Radio with Duran Martinez and provides commentary on all subjects in the outdoors.
Stewardship and Conservation
Mark has also been diligent in giving back to the outdoors. He was a President of Lapeer County Pheasants Forever from 1999 to 2012 and received volunteer of the decade and entrance into the Longspur Society. He remains with the chapter today. The Lapeer County Chapter has received two Michigan State Council of Pheasants Forever Youth Mentor awards for the chapter’s work with youth hunting. Mark has been an active part of Pheasants Forever Habitat program and in 2009 was nominated for Field and Stream Magazines “Hero of Conservation Award” for assisting in developing a seed program to assist the State of Michigan’s CREP program through USDA and the Soil Conservation Service. This program assisted in keeping hundreds of thousands of pounds of sediment from eroding into Saginaw Bay through buffer strips while creating hundreds of acres of habitat for upland game birds.
One of the most recent battles that endangered recreational angling in Michigan was an onslaught of commercial netters attempting to gain access to Michigan’s coveted Game fish. Mark jumped into the fray with both feet writing 5 articles in two of the highest circulation magazines in Michigan including The Great Lakes Sportfishing News, a publication that reaches every Representative, Senator and includes the Governor. He shared what other fishing communities saw when game fish became depleted, and the economic collapse followed. Mark also went on the seminar circuit to inform fishing clubs around the state how to contact and appropriately support recreational fishing to the political representatives.
Youth Mentorship
Mark also was an integral part in developing one of the best youth programs in the United States. In 2004, Mark’s Chapter of Pheasants Forever collaborated with Safari Club SE Bowhunter’s (Michigan), to join forces with the Salvation Army Outdoors Program. Salvation Army reaches out to youngsters in distressed areas to allow them to experience the outdoor lifestyle. This collaboration was very special as Safari Club offered these kids the opportunity to achieve their hunter’s safety certificate and Lapeer County Pheasant Forever took them out hunting for the first time in their lives. For inner city kids this was life changing and many stayed in contact to show members where they had been hunting or fishing. The program outcomes were so good the Salvation Army took the program to the national level. Mark was heavily involved in the very first meeting to discuss the possibility of making this program work and pledged the chapter would be there if the kids could get that hunters safety. It was a very big success.
Mark also continues to work diligently with youth events and has been involved with the Lake St Clair Walleye Association’s youth ice fishing event as well as several other youth events and clubs around Michigan. He is currently heavily involved in Otter Outdoors Varsity Pro Staff which assists young anglers understand the importance of stewardship and conservation as well as professional promotion. Working with these companies and others, Mark has provided many seminars and free product for children attending these events. He has supported thousands of kids wanting to participate in the outdoor lifestyle.
Communication Leadership and multimedia
Currently, Mark continues to write and produce video after leaving the Pro Walleye Tour in 2007. He was one of the first to develop VLOG’s which was a new form of media to keep up with the astounding changes in the outdoor media world. Mark was one of the few writers in the country that was producing the written word with accompanying video. He received two Mort Neff awards through the Michigan Outdoor Writers Association for his VLOGS. He has received national, regional, and state-wide writing, photography, and video awards in Outdoor Writers Association of America (OWAA), Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers (AGLOW), and Michigan Outdoor Writers Association (MOWA). He also has recently assisted with craft award judging for the Ohio Outdoor Writers Association and has been published in OWAA’s Outdoors Unlimited with a “how to” article on web video.
Michigan Outdoor Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement.
Mark was also the 2015-2016 President of the Michigan Outdoor Writers Association and has also held positions on the Future Sites committee, Toyota Scholarship committee, MIOWA.net web site chair, Membership Recruitment chair, as well as Craft Improvement chair and was a board member for 10 years. Mark also was the founding Chair and implemented the formation of the Michigan Outdoor Hall of Fame. This hall of fame was a collaborative effort between MOWA and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and is located at the Carl T. Johnson Education Center in Cadillac, Michigan. Over 40,000 visitors pass through the education center each year.
Mark received the coveted MOWA Papa Bear award for lifetime achievement in 2016. His focus as President assisted MOWA with the leadership needed to keep the organization in the spotlight with media across the state of Michigan. Mark is also an active member of the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers. He is married to wife Shannon and has one daughter Jacquelyn.
