THREE LAKES - You're ice fishing with frozen hands, struggling with line, or even losing fishing rods.

All of that can ruin your day on the lake.

Karol Baugh of Three Lakes thought there had to be a better way.

So he invented one.

"My thought was, you should be able to use some of your equipment, pick the length rod that you want, the weight of the rod, the line, and the reel and the drag, and fish any fish you want to, just like you would in the summer time," Karol says.

What he calls the K Baugh Blue is far ahead of traditional tip ups or tip downs.

But it also can handle just about any type of rod and reel.

"You can fish four feet of water, or you can fish 40 or 100 feet of water, because you're using a reel with a drag. It just makes everything easier," Karol says.

It took months and months of tinkering to master the K Baugh Blue.

The next step after that – going into business with it.

Karol has a deal with Zelazoski Wood Products from Antigo for the wooden parts, but after that, he’s his own assembler, packager, marketer, and delivery man.

"It's been an interesting trip for me because from the ground up to marketing myself, I've pretty much been in charge of the whole thing," says Karol.

The product is available at several Rhinelander-area sporting goods stores, including Mel's Sporting Goods.

Karol's email is kbaugh@gmail.com.

Story By: Ben Meyer