Patent ID: 7908786

Claim:
A rod holder that is mountable to a surface such that the rod holder is configured to support a fishing rod, a reel attached to a handle of the fishing rod and a fishing line which attaches to the reel and suspends from the fishing rod, the rod holder comprising: an elongated sleeve defining a proximal end, a distal end and a body disposed between the proximal end and the distal end, the body delimiting an internal channel that extends between the proximal end and the distal end and that opens out of the distal end, the proximal end includes a slot defined through the body and includes an aperture defined through the body at a position on the body that is opposite the slot, the distal end includes a first cut-out and a second cut-out which are in communication with the internal channel, the second cut-out being positioned perpendicular with respect to the first cut-out and opening out of the distal end; a tension member that operatively connects with the proximal end of the sleeve, the tension member includes an arm having a head portion and a tail portion, the head portion being positioned through the aperture, the internal channel and the slot of the proximal end to extend beyond the slot, the tail portion extending beyond the aperture and connecting with the surface; and a spring bias connected to the proximal end and connected to the tail portion such that the aperture is located between the tail portion and the slot, wherein the spring bias in response to a fish strike applies an opposing spring force to the proximal end of the sleeve.