Catch of the day: Tri-State Baits opening in Waynesboro

Shawn Hardy, The Record Herald
·3 min read

James Ganoe fishes every chance he gets, but that hasn’t happened too much recently as he prepares to open Tri-State Baits on Friday, Sept. 1, at 72 West Gay St., Waynesboro.

The brick-and-mortar store came about after his e-commerce business Lurebuild.com, which provides all the supplies needed to make a fishing lure from start to finish, outgrew his house.

The lures featured at Tri-State Baits are mainly custom-made by mom-and-pop businesses and artisans across the United States, as far away as Washington State and as close as Waynesboro and Blue Ridge Summit.

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“I decided to help my customers sell their products,” said Ganoe.

Tri-State Baits will sell live bait such as nitro worms, waxies, nightcrawlers, red worms, super worms and crickets and live fish including shiners, rosy reds, fathead minnows, bluegill and, in the spring, trout.

James Ganoe, shown with a brown trout, is opening Tri-State Baits in Waynesboro on Sept. 1.
James Ganoe, shown with a brown trout, is opening Tri-State Baits in Waynesboro on Sept. 1.

“Nowhere else around here offers all these types of baits,” said Ganoe, explaining if he wanted to buy minnows, he used to have to drive all the way to Fort Loudon. The crickets and super worms will appeal to people who have pet lizards.

“What makes us unique is the assortment of lures and assortment of baits,” said Ganoe, who is helped at the store by fishing friends Preston Shaw, who prefers catfishing, and Austin Shaffer, who prefers bass fishing.

“They each have their own specialties … it gives us a good variety of knowledge,” said Ganoe. He enjoys fishing locally for catfish, trout and bass, but likes to travel to different locations, like ocean fishing off Myrtle Beach, S.C., and salmon fishing in New York.

He shares a fun fact from his storehouse of fishing knowledge: The state record large-mouth bass — 11 pounds, 3 ounces — was caught by Don Shade of Waynesboro at Birch Run Reservoir in Adams County in 1983.

Tri-State Baits, a one-stop shop for local fishermen, will open at 72 W. Gay St. in Waynesboro on Sept. 1.
Tri-State Baits, a one-stop shop for local fishermen, will open at 72 W. Gay St. in Waynesboro on Sept. 1.

Ganoe expects he’ll get anglers from Adams County, too, at his one-stop shop that sells everything fishing-related except boats. The selection includes name brand rods and reels, rod holders, nets, tools, hardware, lanterns, hats and sunglasses.

Ganoe had been airbrushing lures for a number of years before he started Lurebuild.com in 2019. The online business offers 60,000 unpainted lures and thousands of hooks. It will now operate out of the back of Tri-State Baits.

The 38-year-old spent 18 years in finance with various companies in the area, before going fishing full-time with Lurebuild.com about two years ago.

He said it was a scary move, but now he has a consistent clientele. His business got a boost by the COVID-19 pandemic when outdoor sports with social distancing like fishing really took off.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Greater Waynesboro Chamber of Commerce will be held 4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, when there will be cake and beverages.

Tri-State Baits will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

The phone number is 717-552-6227 and the current website is Lurebuild.com

The Tri-State Baits website hasn’t been built yet and Ganoe also plans to launch the related businesses Juggernaut Fishing and SHOPTACKLEUSA.COM

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This article originally appeared on Waynesboro Record Herald: New Waynesboro store, Tri-State Baits, is one-stop shop for fisherman