Tackle Update: L.S.D. Designs

Things have been great! First off, the weather around here has been more than terrific. Being that we're just days away from December and I live in Minnesota, yet there's not a single speck of snow in the whole state. The lakes are no where near ready to freeze and best yet the smallmouth bass have been just chomping!

**Above Picture: Owner of Biovex and L.S.D. Designs, Katsushi Umeda, with a nice Minnesota smallmouth bass.

A couple weeks back my wife Bri and I got the opportunity to do a photo shoot for Katsushi Umeda, owner and founder of Biovex and L.S.D. Designs, a tackle and apparel company based out of Japan. As most of you know, I've been with Biovex now for a couple years and have all the confidence in the world in their tackle, and for the record some of the new products that will be coming out will surely take the industry by storm. Unfortunately I'm not at liberty to talk about these new products just yet but I assure you they'll be worth the wait. The photos we took are going to be used for both companies 2010 catalogues but even better, will also be used in some of Japan's most popular fishing magazines. I decided on one of my best smallie spots for two reasons, one that Katsushi had never caught a smallmouth bass and two, maybe more importantly, I'd be very hard off to be holding a small fish for all of Japan's die hard bass anglers to see. I mean come on, I have a reputation to withhold here.

Lucky for us the fish where biting and the size was good. Katsushi also managed to catch his first smallmouth and a good one at that. We got some excellent photos and got to try out some of the new lures that will be released this year. Bri and I where also impressed by the outdoor gear that L.S.D. has been creating. We sported a new line of waterproof boots, as well as sunglasses and hats. Bri loves their new jackets, the Amsterdam Series, that offers a lightweight, breathable, waterproof, yet stylish look that is sure to be a big hit anywhere. I've always been a big fan of their tackle bags. There's none better on the market, they offer all sorts of sweet styles yet have all the efficiencies one could possibly think of. More importantly the quality of all these products are second to none, when your in the elements as often as I am this is something you don't take for granted, it's a must.

**Above Picture: Bri and I on a L.S.D. Designs ad as seen in many of Japan's popular fishing magazines.

Well with the weather forecast still staying favorable for days to come, I'm planning to get out and exercise some bass over the holiday weekend. I just can't get enough of those brown fish, as a good friend of mine always says, I'm diseased!

Oh yeah, did I mention the Vikings are 9-1??!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tricks of the Trade - Autumn Small River Smallies

Fall is quickly turning into one of my favorite times of year. As the weather forecasts shift, bringing in cool temps and cold rains, our northern waters start to go through a rather dramatic change. The biggest change that occurs is the drop in water temperature making the lakes abundant vegetation and forage start to die off or hibernate. This pushes the bass out of their deep summer haunts and schools them up in large groups in the shallows, gorging themselves for the long winter. Over the past few years, the fall has produced some of my best fishing of the entire season. No matter if it's largemouth in a lake or smallmouth in the river, these fish all move to relatively shallow water and put on their feed bags, making them all more susceptible of falling for one of my baits.

While in Tennessee last month, I found the largemouth to be in big schools in less than a foot of water on the shallow flats in the creek channels. These fish where feeding up for the winter and they where wreaking havoc on the many schools of shad that where doing their annual migration up the creeks to spawn. Now back home Minnesota, I've been spending every extra hour out chasing smallmouths in some of our local rivers. The success is been good and the size has been rewarding, but the key to catching them has been to trigger the school. Once the school gets excited, it can result in fish after fish for cast after cast.

Targeting small river smallmouth this time of year I find micro ledges off flats to be especially productive. There will be times when the fish roam the flat chasing baitfish but the majority of the day you can find them hanging off that immediate first drop, for instance where the 1 foot flat drops to 5 feet. The fish tend to stack in these areas, and when fished correctly can result in check cashing bags at the scales.

**From left to right: A picture of my front deck Lowrance Unit as I'm am Paralleling the ledge break.

One river in particular I found the ledge to go from two feet down to seven rather quickly. I fished my bait thoroughly along the 7 ft break concentrating on the bottom. Once I caught a good smallie I would instantly slow down, or better yet, I STOP! It's critical to not spook the school. Once I release the fish my next cast is to the exact same spot that the last one came from and more times than not I'll get met instantly with another bite. It's not uncommon for me to throw back 10 times and get bit on 9 of those casts.

I find bait choice not to be to big a deal this time of year. The bass are not always that picky to what they eat. Mother nature says it's time to fatten up for winter so they do, they start eating anything and everything that comes there way. Not to mention the competition to eat because of others in the school. Although I do still have my favorites that have produced so well for me over the past few years.

Early in the fall I like to throw crankbaits like the Biovex Micro Crank and Biovex Mid Runner, these work real well at impersonating baitfish and can be fished fast on shallow ledges. When there's a presence of baitfish or fish are busting bait on the flats, there's nothing better than a topwater spook, or my favorite, the Reaction Innovations Vixen. Another great reaction bait this time of year is a Super K Swim Jig, which subtle action locates these schools of bass rather quickly. Last but not least, there is no bait better at catching cold bass than a jerkbait and lately I've been using either a soft jerkbait pegged with a 1/32 oz. Tru Tungsten sinker to keep the nose down or a hard plastic jerkbait like the Megabass Ito Vision 110.


Once I've caught one or two from the school on the reaction bait, I slow down and pick up a bait like a tube or a beaver and continue to pick apart the ledge. I like the YUM 3" Tube and a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver. The tube I usually rig hook exposed with a light tube jig. Last weekend my buddy Rich Lindgren went out with me and had success by rigging a stupid tube, which you can read in one of his recent blog entries. Basically, the stupid tube is a texas rigged ball head jig, which when rigged correctly works it's way through cover with relative ease. I've also been finding success with this method and the Tru Tungsten Ikey Head Ball Buster is extremely effective for the job. The Beaver, I texas rig with a 4/0 Mihatchii Hook and a pegged Tru Tungsten Sinker, size ranging from a 1/8 oz. to a 1/2 oz.

The rod and reel I feel are critical to your success in that once the schools are located, it's important not to miss hook ups or drop fish during the fight. Just as a fighting smallmouth can fire up the school, a spooked smallmouth can turn them off in a second. To better combat this I use a G Loomis 843 casting rod with a Shimano Core 100MG lined with 12-16 lb. Gamma Edge Fluorocarbon for the beaver and the tube I go with a G Loomis SMR822 GLX spinning rod paired with a Shimano Stella 2500S and 8 lb. Gamma Touch Fluorocarbon.

Lastly, not all ledges are created equal, in fact some never hold fish. This time of year I stick to the main river channel. If I was on a big river with larger creek channels than those may prove productive, however the rivers I've been fishing are northern rivers that are not that wide and don't offer much for creeks. I look for turns in the river where current has made these ledges over time, then the key to really dialing them in is the bottom content. I look for rocky areas on these main river turns, in my opinion the more snags the better. This is where tungsten comes into play, it's smaller diameter allows it to be worked through the rocks and snags without getting hung up. When the sun is shining, any emerged wood in these areas can be especially productive, for this I like to pitch a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver with a 1/4 - 3/8 oz. Tru Tungsten Sinker. I use 16 - 20 lb. Gamma Edge Fluorocarbon for this to assure I get the fish out of the laydown, and there's not a stronger line on the market than Gamma Edge.


With the next week showing a very favorable weather forecast, try taking a break from raking leaves and try these tips on your favorite river. Maybe, just maybe, when you mix football, brats and trophy smallmouth together you'll see why fall has become my favorite time of year.

See you on the water!

What Lies Ahead?

With the tournament season all wrapped up and winter just right around the corner, I find myself wasting no time preparing for what lies ahead in 2010. My plans are to step it up and really concentrate on tournaments that can take me to the next level and eventually pave the way to accomplishing my life goal of competing at the tour level. To be fortunate enough to actually obtain this goal would be incredible. I plan to continue to fish in the top circuits throughout the midwest, at the same time start preparing for larger national level tournaments. My next major move would be to enter the FLW Strens and the Bassmaster Opens, in an attempt at earning my way onto either tours, the Bassmaster Elite Series and/or the FLW Tour. The lakes that host these national pro tourneys are scattered throughout the United States and to consistently finish at the top requires an extremely versatile angler. I do have some knowledge of lakes outside Minnesota and Wisconsin, but really want to spend the next year or two learning how to fish other lakes throughout the country before I make the commitment and take that plunge to the next level. I want to be sure to give myself the best opportunity to succeed. Which also leads to the question of what happens if I do make it to the Elites? Being financially secure enough to compete at the Open level is manageable for a younger guy like myself, but having the financial security to compete at the tour level is a whole other thing. I could really use the next few years to save money and even more important, continue to develop business relationships with companies that have the same visions and the means to offer that security.

This year I plan on fishing a Weekend Series event as a non boater on Kentucky lake in either May or June in an attempt at helping me get more familiar with classic ledge fishing. This style of fishing is not something that we do here in Minnesota and there is no better place to get a crash course than Kentucky or Tennessee in the early summer. I've also got plans to fish the Bassmaster Weekend Series event on Grand Lake, OK, in mid April on the Pro side. I've been down there the past 3 years in a row and every year I've managed to do well. Going down there and competing against locals on their water would be a great test for me. I've also not decided on which one, but I will be registering into a Open tournament as a non boater. Before I put up the cash I want to be familiar with all that goes into one of these tournaments. Most of it is basic tournament bass fishing I would imagine, but in the long run I think it would prove beneficial.

I'll be fishing the Silverado Pro Tour again next year with my sights set on both winning an event, as well as the top honor of winning the Angler of the Year title. I'll also be competing in the Bassmaster Weekend Series with the main goal of qualifying for the National Championship. In the two years I've fished this circuit I've been fortunate to do well, my first year I finished second in the Angler of the Year points and managed to cash a check in 3 out of 5 tournaments. This year I won the first event of the season against an 88 boat field and both seasons qualified for Divisionals. Neither year though have I qualified for the National Championship. Accomplishing this definitely is at the top of my list. Plus to sweeten pot, the championship is being held on Alabama's pride and joy, Lake Guntersville.

This winter I'm looking to have the most productive off season yet. I want to establish a few successful habits that will assist me on the water. One is preparing for tournaments off the water by studying maps and using tools like Google Earth and getting better familiar with the body of water before I ever even launch my boat. This will help develop better game plans well before the first day of practice.

I also think it's very important to be in the best physical shape I can be. Tournament bass fishing requires extremely long hours in less than perfect conditions. The amount of wear and tear on both your mind and body can be debilitating. I've been spending a lot of time at the gym working on my strength and endurance. The more reps I make in the weight room the further I'll be able to cast that spook and the more accuracy I'll have flippin' a jig to a tournament winning largemouth. The biggest benefit is the more you work out the healthier you are in both body and even more importantly, the mind. To a tournament bass fisherman, mental strength is the biggest asset, it's what separates the pro's from the legends.

Though with all this, you know I'll still be spending time on the water! Chasing around smallies this time of year is as addictive as it gets. I've managed to get out a few times the last week and had some pretty good success. Look for pics to be posted soon.

To My Loving Family

With the tournament season starting to wrap up for the year, I think back to all the ups and downs I've had throughout the past seven months. Some where real good and others not so good, either way they where all worth it. The bad times gave me something to learn from and made the high notes all the better.

Through these times though I've been extremely fortunate to have someone with me every step of the way, my lovely wife Bri. Baby, I cannot begin to express how much you mean to me and I know that I couldn't do any of this without you. You have turned my goals into our goals and continue to push me to higher levels.


Since I was a little kid all I've wanted to be when I grow up is a professional bass fisherman. I want this more than anything I could ever imagine. I'm 29 years old now and am getting ready to make an even harder push at accomplishing these goals. Long days on the water, away at nights for tournaments, financial commitments, and through all these you are right there standing next to me, pushing me and believing in me every step of the way.

Bri, I know in my heart the level of committment you bring to our family and every time I'm on the water, every cast I make, I'll be pushing to accomplish these goals we've made for us. I blog about myself and my career all the time, this one's for you. Thank you.

I love you,

Josh

American Legacy Fishing Company

Last Saturday, I was paired with Adam Daywalt for the final day of the Bassmaster Weekend Series Regional Qualifier. Even though the fishing wasn't great, the conversation through out the day made up for it. This guy's just as big of a tackle freak as me! Adam was telling me about the company he works for American Legacy Fishing Company, www.gloomis.us, an internet based company that carries full lines of G Loomis and Shimano. Being that I'm a 100% G Loomis and Shimano junkie, he instantly had my attention. Not only do they carry G Loomis but they have EVERY rod in stock. I'm especially interested in the brand new G Loomis Topwater Rod (TWR802C), a 6'8" Meduim action rod perfect for throwing around poppers like the Megabass Pop-X.


They also will accept warranty rods and offer a trade in program. They'll give you the going rate for your used rod, so you can use that to upgrade into the rod you've always wanted. Who does that?

American Legacy also is up to date with all the new Shimano and Diawa reels that are on the market. I've already been putting together an order and am getting really close to pulling the trigger on that new Shimano Core 50MG. I just love the Core 100 MG and MGFV that I expect big things out of the 50 MG. I'll pair that up with the new topwater rod from Loomis and have the sweetest set up imaginable. It'll cast those light poppers a mile!

They also have the complete line from Megabass, which is actually incredibly difficult to find specific baits here in the states. Lately I have been really catching the smallies on the Megabass Ito Vision 110, this jerkbaits the real deal, crazy action and mimics a baitfish to perfection.

With Christmas right around the corner, remember to check out American Legacy Fishing Company. Not only do the cater to bass fisherman, but have a full selection of walleye, muskie and fly fishing rods and reels.

Just for the record, Adam was the first non boater partner I've had that paid me gas money in Megbass lures and custom cranks! How sick is that?!!

BASSMASTER Weekend Series Regional Championship

Old Hickory Lake, Hendersonville, TN

My anticipation for this event was through the roof. Being that both my wife Bri and I want to move to Tennessee, it made this trip all the more special. Bri was even dedicated in that she put aside four of the first five practice days to be out on the boat with me. In the end she got pretty good at throwing a buzzbait as well as feeding the ducks our granola bars.

The first day of practice I put aside for fishing down in the river and decided I would spend all day in Spring Creek. I had done a lot of research prior to launching and had an idea where the bass would be, but really wanted to dial them in early and instead of running all over the lake I figured I would work this entire cove and once I felt I had them dialed in, I would duplicate that pattern all over the lake and start looking for more and more productive areas that held bigger fish. In the end this concept sounded a lot easier than the reality would be. I managed 4 keepers and a dozen or more shorts. The fish where shallow for the most part but the keepers where scattered around different structure and came on different baits. I caught a 15" largemouth on a bluff wall on a Rapala DT Flat 3 (Parrot), I caught another 14" largie on a Biovex Stangun Spinnerbait, as well as another 14" on a Biovex Micro Crank Shallow Runner (Fune Orange Belly), and my best keeper, a 18" largemouth came off a laydown in 7 ft. of water on a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver (Xmas Pumpkin) with a 1/4 oz. Tru Tungsten pegged sinker. I caught most my shorts by throwing a 1/4 oz. Super K Swim Jig in a Pro Staff only color (mostly white with a bit of black and green pumpkin).













After day one I was pretty convinced of one thing, I was going to have to move water and make as many casts as possible. This is a bit out of my comfort zone, just in that I like to locate good fish and then slow down to catch them. I don't like feeling that I'm leaving good fish behind me. This is something I know I need to work on to continue to develop into a versatile angler. So I was more than happy to step up to the challenge.

Day 2 and 3 of practice I continued to spend my time up the river and fished the Bartons Creek area as well as some other smaller, less known creeks and pockets in the area. Fish where easy enough to catch but finding keepers where more than difficult. Both days I believe I caught 4 keepers each day with none being more than 15 inches. Most of these keepers came on one of three different baits, a 3/8 oz. Chatterbait (White), a Strike King 1 XS Crankbait (sexy shad or chart. blue back), and the Biovex Micro Crank Shallow Runner (Fune Orange Belly).

The final two days of practice I spent closer to the dam in Cedar Creek, Drakes Creek, Station Camp Creek and several other smaller creeks in the area. Both days I managed my standard 4 keepers but had a kicker each day. One day I whacked a healthy 4 pounder from a boat dock in Drakes Creek on a 3/8 oz. Tru Tungsten Jig (Green Pumpkin) and then went on to fish another 100 or so docks in the creek and never got another bite. Then the last day I managed another 4 pounder by throwing a homemade football jig on a secondary point in about 12 feet of water. I went on to fish a dozen in a half other points and never got a bite. I guess this is standard on Old Hickory. Like I said before, trolling motor down chucking and winding as fast as possible for 8 hours and maybe I could get myself in contention to qualify for nationals.

Day 1 of the tournament started out tough near the dam, so around 10:30 I decided to make the run up river to Spring Creek where I finally manged a keeper off that same laydown but instead of a toad 18", I got a barely bumper 14" rat. In the box it went. After another 2 or so hours with nothing more than a handful of non keepers I ran back toward the dam and managed to catch another 14" largemouth on the chatterbait. Day one I weighed in a very disappointing 2 fish for 2.88 lbs. and was sitting in 108th out of 169. The good news was that I needed to make the top 50 to qualify for nationals and was only 4 pounds back from 30th. So I knew I still had an excellent chance of making up ground. The bite was tough for everyone which I was quickly learning was common place for Old Hickory.






















Day 2 came and I ran to a spot in Cedar where I had missed a big one in the last minutes the day before and managed to catch two small ones and dropped a good 3 plus pound largemouth. It was still pretty dark and I was throwing my chatterbait threw the tulle grass, when I realized it was on. The problem was that it was all to common to hang up on the stem of the plants which felt the same as a fish grabbing the bait. By the time I realized I had a fish on it was way to late and she got off.

From there I ran up a creek arm close by where I had seen a lot of shad up in the dirt shallows, literally dirt shallow, 6 - 8 inches. I got a few short strikes but ended up catching a barely 14" largemouth on the Strike King 1XS. The fish choked the bait and was bleeding real bad, I quickly sunk the fish in the livewell by employing a heavy ice fishing weight to keep the bass from turning on it's side and added a bunch of Please Release Me.

I fished and fished all day and in the end only managed small ones that wouldn't cross the 14" mark. At weigh in I checked my keeper and because of all the blood loss was just barely touching the 14" mark, I wasn't sure if it would go, it was the closest I had ever seen. Since I had revived the fish and it was healthy I just let it go instead of risking a DQ and it wouldn't of helped me get to Nationals, it would of only made me look a bit better on the final standings. With a 15 hour drive ahead of me back to Minnesota it seemed like the most logical decision. In the end the lake proved to be as tough, if not tougher than I had thought, to make the top 50 a guy only had to catch a two day total of 11 pounds and was in. To make the top 25 I only needed a two day total of 14 pounds. That's a tough bite!

I had a lot of time to think back on the week while I was driving home and really don't have many regrets. I learned a lot of solid info that will pay huge dividends in the future. I learned a lot more about shad which is the primary forage in that part of the country and even better I feel a lot more comfortable with a crankbait in my hand. Being a die hard jig fisherman and topwater guy, this was much needed. From here on out, I'll always have a crankbait tied on and on the deck of my boat. My strength is slowing down and flipping cover, whether it's wood, docks, mats or milfoil, and if that's the pattern of any given tournament I have all the confidence in the world that I'll be in the top when it's all said and done. I also feel more than comfortable with smallmouth gear like spinning rods, 8 lb. test and a 3" tube or shakey head and my most favorite way to catch them would be throwing a football jig probing deepwater for giants, but crankin' just hasn't been my thing and I know if I can incorporate that technique as a go to strength I'll be able to contend with the best all over the country. Challenge accepted!

Now back home, old man winter is letting us all know he's right around the corner. Most people start getting all ready for hunting and or ice fishing, not this open water junkie. No not at all, it's time to go whack some schooled up smallies and toad smallmouth at that. Rivers and small creeks this time of year get chucked full of smallies that school up for the long winter, where the current keeps the water from freezing solid you will find me. This is the only way I know how to recharge my batteries after a long grueling tournament season.

This winter keep checking back as I'm looking at adding a lot more tips and techniques for others to try. I've been getting a lot of emails and am humbled by all that read and follow my blog all over the country. Really I can't believe how many are out there that frequent my site. Thank you. Being that I am a tournament fisherman I can't always give to much information that can be used against me, however while out fun fishing working on new techniques on non tournament waters, I'm going to break down what I look for and what works for me so that it may help another angler out there looking to sharpen their skills. If anyone has any ideas or questions please email me and I'll be sure to address them personally or do a blog entry on the topic.

Good luck to all the hunters coming up, even though I haven't been doing much hunting the past few years I can still smell it in the air. I just can't seem to put down the rod and reel. Also hats off to all the fisherman that where able to weather the storm that is Old Hickory and qualified for nationals on Lake Dardenelle.

Brant Brothers Claim Top Spot!

Generally here at Josh Douglas Fishing I don't go to far out of my way to promote other anglers, it kind of defeats the overall purpose of a self promotion website. With that said I have always prided myself on giving credit where credit is due, especially when the credit goes to my team tournament partners and very close friends.

Ryan Brant and brother Corey Brant found themselves both in the number one spot of the Silverado Angler of the Year standings when the season ended on Lake Minnetonka earlier in the month and both got to fish together in the year end Shoot Out!


The season had lots of ups and downs but both managed to make all the right decisions and in the end where better than all the rest. "I don't think we could have scripted it any better", said Ryan on being paired with brother Corey for the Shoot Out. Ryan contributes his success to long hours on water that he wasn't all that familiar with. Corey, who fished on the Am side, gave his pro's the credit on finding good areas but also on the time he spent himself perfecting different patterns form the back of the boat. I personally have said this since the beginning of the year, it's hard to find a better Am to have in your boat than Corey and I guarantee any of his Pro's would say the same!

Hat's off gentleman!

Denny's Super 30 Shootout

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

I hurried home from the river with just enough time to line up a few rods, get some baits prepared and get ready to take to Tonka for the year end Denny's Super 30 Shootout. After talking over the game plan with team tournament partner Ryan Brant, we came to a very specific pattern that we felt would give us the best shot at taking the two grand first place prize.

Tournament morning started slow with our first couple spots not producing anything. Even our third spot was getting a bit depressing until we came to a small isolated area that always looks good but never seems to produce for me. I even made a comment to Ryan that we never seem to catch anything off this when all of a sudden I get a nice bite. I quickly set the hook on a giant 4+ pound largemouth and as I was getting it to the net it just came off. I couldn't believe it! This has been a thorn in our side on this lake all season. If it isn't me than it's Ryan and if it's not Ryan dropping a big one than it's Corey. I'm sure it's starting to sound like a broken record but sadly it's true. I guess we should just chalk it up to a type of slump, like when a NFL running back gets a case of the fumbles, but believe me this is a slump that will end soon. We all put way to much effort into finding good schools of fish that we just CAN NOT drop the big ones when we hook up. If I sound a bit annoyed it's because I am, unfortunately this wasn't the only big one that we dropped in this tournament. Luckily though, before we could let it get us down Ryan hooked into a nice one that definitely got into the livewell. I managed a few smaller ones and before we knew it, we where well onto our way of filling a descent limit.

We caught fish through out the day making small culls here and there. As the day was starting to get long and the images of dropped fish haunting our thoughts, we decided to call an audible. I told Ryan that not far away was a spot that fishes small but produces good ones. In fact I've fished this area 10 to 12 times and only caught 2 fish of it but both where over 5 pounds. We worked the area and as we where about to leave Ryan sets on what ended up being big fish of the tournament at 5.05 lbs. In fact we made another nice cull like this within 20 minutes and where within sight of winning this thing.

Unfortunately time wasn't on our side and we weren't able to make any more culls to help our bag. We we're one of the first to weigh in our 8 fish limit which came to a solid 23.10 lbs. and landed us in third place with big fish honors when it was all said and done. We where both more than thrilled with the outcome. It was an up and down season but we where consistent enough all year to make the top 12 and in the end walked away with the much needed $1000 dollar pay day plus another $300 for big bass!


Now I'm planning to take a week or so off from fishing and start getting things ready for the upcoming Bassmaster Weekend Series Regional Championship held on Old Hickory Lake, just outside Nashville, TN. I've been doing all sorts of research trying to put together as much useful knowledge of the lake before I head down. Though it calls for an extremely hard bite, my anticipation level is through the roof. I really feel like this tournament could set up well for my strengths. I'll try to put up a prelude entry to the event before I go. Tennessee here we come!

BASSMASTER Weekend Series Tournament

Mississippi River Pools 3, 4 & 5, Alma, WI

It was important going into this event for me to have a strong showing. There's multiple reasons for this, one being that because I missed the last tournament out of LaCrosse due to conflicting tournament schedules with the Silverado, I would have to have a strong finish to assure I made divisional's held on Old Hickory, in Hendersonville, TN. Before the LaCrosse tournament I was sitting strongly in 5th place in the Angler of the Year standings, but after I missed an entire event I dropped like a rock and was sitting in the low 40's.

Another reason I was looking for a strong finish was more of a personal one. I really like fishing the river and my favorite time of year to be down there is definitely during the fall. Although in the past the river hasn't been very accommodating to me during this time of year. Last year I put in lots of time preparing for the MN State Federation Championship held nearly at the same time. What ended up being one of the best practices of my life quickly turned into a nightmare on all sorts of different levels. Day one of the tournament my engine's impeller quit causing me to overheat before I could even get to my starting spot, eventually causing a DQ because I had to be trailered off, I never even made a cast. The next day after getting my engine fixed, we all sat due to fog, during this time I received a call from my wife Bri that our four year old rottweiler Kairo who had been diagnosed with lymphoma cancer a few weeks prior, had just taken a major turn for the worse. Then after the 3 1/2 hour fog delay I got to my spot and was able to finally start catching some good fish, on the way back to weigh in one of my injectors popped. So with this all said, it was personally real important to me to have a better outing down here this time around.

I spent almost all of my practice focusing on pool 5. After two solid days I was able to come up with what I felt was going to be a solid game plan and I had multiple spots that held both quality largemouth's and smallmouth's. I spent a few hours on pool 4, mainly finding areas that had potential for a good fish or two and where located close to the weigh in site, somewhere I could spend my last 45 minutes in the day. When I went to load my boat to get off the water I thought of an area much further north (30 minutes or so) that always has good smallies on it this time of year. I only had an hour before I had to be off the water for registration so I trailored my boat to the closest ramp and launched again. On my second cast I hooked into a 3 1/2 pound smallie and the best part was that shad was flickering all over the place, a key ingredient for this place to be on.

All night I rigged rods wondering what I should do, If I ran up river it would take 30 to 40 minutes in perfect conditions and then take at least 45 minutes to get to my second spot and that's if I could lock straight threw without waiting on a barge. After going round and round I finally came to a commitment that I would make the run, I mean I had to, I always live by the no risk no reward philosophy, it's just not always a bullet proof way of thinking though.

After a nice run, I made it to my first spot and on my second cast throwing a Amp Lures Pop (Parrot), I put a nice 3 pound smallmouth in the boat. The shad started blowing up everywhere but the problem was I couldn't get anymore bites. There was a nice school of smallies there but they where way more content chasing around real food and wouldn't commit to anything I was throwing. I did manage a few but they where all just an 1/8 of an inch short of the mandatory 14" size requirement. Finally afternoon was really starting to close in and I had to make a decision, I had managed one more 15" smallmouth, it was either stick out the day up here and maybe run to a couple more mediocre spots and scratch out a limit or make the run back down river and lock threw to pool 5. I decided it was time to go.

After the 45 minute run back to lock I was devastated to find three barges sitting at the lock. I come to find out that the lock has been down all day because a barge had broke down inside the lock. Being that I spent all practice in pool 5 I had to come up with a plan quick. I decided I would just slowly pick apart the area that I had planned on saving for the last 45 minutes and just spend 4 hours there and try scratching out a limit. After two hours quickly went by with nothing more that a few shorts, which I might add where again an 1/8 of an inch shy, I finally hooked up with a quality largemouth going about 4 pounds. This really put the fire under me because if I could manage to just fill a limit than I would have a nice day 1 sack and haven't even touched my stuff on pool 5. Although I gave it my all, the small area that I had to fish just didn't have the quantity or quality needed for me to put together a limit and I ended day 1 with 3 bass for roughly 9 pounds.

Going into Day 2, I had a slightly different agenda, I found myself way out of the money, but my day 2 Am partner Jeremiah, was sitting in 4th place after he had a successful day 1. My goal instead turned on making sure he got a check as well as showing face and putting together a nice limit of my own. After an up and down day, we where both able to catch fish and in the end Jeremiah was good enough for a solid 5th place finish. I myself ended in a tough 41st place, though with that said it was still a good enough showing to make divisionals, believe me when I say I can't wait to get to Old Hickory!!

No time to rest though, I'm off to Minnetonka tomorrow for the Denny's Super 30 Shootout Championship. Wish me luck!!

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

The pressure was really on for this tournament largely because it was the 5th and final Super 30 of the year, with the exception being the top 12 in the AOY race will get to go at it next week in a one day year end Shootout. A no entry fee, 5 grand for first showdown between the best teams on Tonka. Corey and I found ourselves sitting in 13th place, one spot away. We figure we need to at least make the top 10 today if we where going to make post season play.

Our plan of attack was to go after big fish, we where truly looking for 8 good bites. We had a lot of water to run but figured we'd let the first few spots dictate how we fished out the rest of the day. Our first area worked well when I was able to boat a solid 4 pound largie within the first half hour. Area two was almost as good when I added a 3 pounder to our bag. Our third area proved most productive when things really started hitting the fan. Corey went back to back on two nice 3 pounders and I managed to ad a few small ones to round out our limit.

With an already good bag with only two hours down, we knew we had put ourselves in perfect contention to go for the win. We knew we need 2 more solid culls and we'd have a sack. Fishing started to slow a bit, which we knew would happen but we said we'd stay patient and look for those big bites. Finally Corey set into a donkey of a largemouth and as he was fighting the fish to the boat he switched sides with his rod and we managed to catch the rod into the landing net and the fish come undone. Not exactly the team work we had come accustom to and to make matters worse Corey got another big one caught up and unfortunately for us that one got off to.

We ran water the remainder of the day and both managed to make a few small culls, but still had a few small two pounders left when it came time to weigh. Our sack put the scales to 23.01 lbs. on a 8 fish limit and in the end we finished two spots from the money in a solid 10th place. Because of our effort we where able to move up one spot to take 12th in the Team of the Year race and hold the last spot in the Year End Shootout. It's going to be a blast!

Up next I'll be headed back down to the Alma, WI for the final Bassmaster Weekend Series two day event on the old Mississippi River. I am very much looking forward to this event, I really like fishing the river in the Fall. Wish me luck!!

Silverado Pro Am Bass Tour

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

I've been really excited about this tournament for some time now, that I did everything imaginable to get ready for it. I found time to practice and put in hard work 8 of the past 14 days. I knew that because of my 49th place disaster last month, I would have to finish at least in the top 3 to have a legitimate chance at making the shootout. Even more importantly, I consider Minnetonka my home lake and would love to notch a win here in such a big event. It would just mean a ton to me personally. I've only been fishing the lake for 3 years but since then I have put in my fair share. In my defense Minnetonka can be real addicting, it's got some really nice fish in it, four pounders are the norm here.














**From left to right: A few pics from practice of me rigging up some tackle.

At take off I was pretty confident. I had a good practice and was really on some nice fish. The fishing wasn't fast but the quality was there, when I'd get bit it was a good one. I was able to put together around 15 or so spots that where more than productive in the weeks heading in but the problem was that I couldn't pattern when they would be there. I would check them periodically through practice and found that one day they would bite in the morning and the next day not until late afternoon. So my plan was to milk run these spots and at least try to fish everything twice. The bad part was that I was on the move a lot but the good part was that every cast I made I knew I had a legitimate chance to catch a four pounder. It's not every tournament a guy gets that opportunity.

The tournament started out great with a quick limit and a nice nearly 4 pound largemouth hitting the livewell. I decided to go check a small isolated spot that I knew had great potential. It didn't take but a minute and I hooked into a solid 5 pound fish just to have it come to the surface and spit my bait. It got off!! Man, I can't even begin to explain how much that hurts when that happens.

As the afternoon wore on the fishing really started to slow and I just wasn't able to get enough of the big bites that I needed to put together a winning bag. In the end I weighed a limit of 6 bass for a total weight of 12.93 lbs and a disappointing 28th place finish. Although it wasn't the outcome I was looking for, I was still somewhat happy in that I worked very hard and was extremely prepared for this tournament. Frankly I just didn't get the bites needed, but I put myself in the best position to win. If I can continue to prepare for all my other tournaments like I did this one, I'll have a very highlighted future. It's going to take a ton of self determination, but that's the challenge I live for.

A sincere congratulations to my two real good buddies and my team tournament partners, Ryan and Corey Brant, who after a very successful year both found themselves on the top of the Angler of the Year points. Ryan finished 1st on the Pro side and Corey ran away with the honors on the Am side and now the brothers are paired together in next week's Shoot Out. Way to go guys!

Gopher B.A.S.S. Federation Club Tournament

Lake Minnetonka, Twin Cities, MN

Tonka, Tonka, Tonka. In the next couple of weeks, I could be competing in four different derbies that will combine for a total first place earnings at 70 grand, all of which are being held on none other than Tonka itself. Needless to say that I jumped all over the chance to join my MN Federation Club, the Gopher Bassmaster, for a weekend throwdown.

It has been decided by the MN B.A.S.S. Federation that next years venue for the state Championship will also be held on Lake Minnetonka. This is an event I am extremely looking forward to. Since the tournament is local, I figure it gives me the best chance at advancing myself to divisionals and make a run at the BASSMASTER Classic.

Being that Minnetonka is only 15 minutes from my house, I've been spending every extra second out there, trying to put in my time and piece together a solid pattern before the Silverado lands there in two weeks.

I was out there both Thursday and Friday before the club tournaments and managed to locate good fish relatively quickly. Since the lake is being divided in half each day I spent most of Thursday on the east side and friday on the west. I checked a few spots that had help me secure a solid 7th place finish last year on Minnetonka for the Bassmaster Weekend Series, but more importantly I spent a vast majority of my day trying to locate new areas. All in all, I was very pleased with the outcome and was pretty excited to get out there Saturday morning and start filling up livewell.

Unfortunately, because of these big tournaments that are coming up in the next few weeks I really can't get into many details on what worked and what didn't. Saturday we awoke to our first cold night, touching the high 40's. Although the bite was really tough, I managed to use my patience to help me to a awesome 2nd place finish with a total of 5 bass weighing 12.59 lbs.

Sunday's Tournament, held on the lake's east side, started out even more chilly with overnight low's in the low 40's. Again I was able to put together a solid game plan and rode it to a very gratifying 1st place finish with a winning weight of 16.32 lbs.

Although I have lots of work to do, I can't help but to be excited.

Check back soon!

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

After a rough finish at Saturday's Silverado tournament at Lake Minnewaska, I was anxious to get out on Tonka and get that bad taste out of my mouth. Pairing up for this tournament was my buddy Corey Brant.

We managed to get out on Sunday to practice and found the fishing to be great. The big ones where biting and we didn't even fish any of our tried and true spots. Instead we searched new water and where able to find some nice areas holding good schools of fish.

Tournament morning went very slow and we left some of our best areas with not even a single bite. After fishing about three productive areas with nothing to show, I knew we needed a change. We've found that power fishing some of these areas proves to be most effective, but after these tactics weren't producing, we needed to scale back and throw a bit more finesse at them. Being that my boat was in the shop, I didn't have the proper tackle along so I made the suggestion to Corey who was obviously thinking the same thing. It wasn't two casts later and Corey sets the hook. We managed to put a small limit in the boat and things started turning for the better, so much better that Corey managed to get a solid 4 1/2 pounder safely in the boat after it was completely pinned down in the thickest milfoil and he was only using 8 lb. line!! It was sick. That's just not how it happens, but things started going our way.

We weighed in with 8 largemouth's going 23.10 pounds, good enough for a solid 9th place finish. Unfortunately they only paid out 8 spots, but we moved up from 20th to 13th place in the Angler of the Year points race and are only sitting one place outside the top twelve who all get invited to fish in the no entry shootout.

I'm excited because next week Bri and I are taking the dogs up to the cabin for a fun relaxing weekend. Then when I get back it'll be nothing but Minnetonka, with a lot of big events taking place there next month I need to be sure to be a top my game. I'm really looking forward to it.

Silverado Pro Am Bass Tour

Lake Minnewaska, Starbuck, MN

This whole tournament was a challenge for me literally from start to finish. Two weeks prior to the actual tournament I put aside a couple days to get out there and practice. Being that I had never even seen the lake before, I wanted to at least get out there for the weekend and check things out, get a good feel for the fish and more importantly get familiar with the lake itself. Unfortunately, an hour after I launched my trim went out completely on my motor and instead of figuring out the mystery of Lake Minnewaska, I was forced to limp back, load up and head back home to get things patched up.

Once tournament week came around I was charged up and ready to go. I got a new trim motor put in my Evinrude and it was running great. I was able to practice Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and it wasn't until mid afternoon Friday that I finally found a few good schools of fish. I didn't have a backup plan at all but if this pattern held up it could produce winners. I've never had this challenging of a practice and worse yet, had never felt this uncomfortable about my opportunities get a check.

Well to make a not so long story even shorter, my pattern definitely did not work out. After four straight days of sun, tournament day gave way to stormy and cloudy skies which definitely effected my fish. I struggled half the day to even coax a single bite and when I finally wised up and made the proper adjustments I dropped the few good fish needed to fill a nice limit. Instead I managed to only weigh in three bass for a total weight of 4.56 lbs. and took 49th place, dead last. I once said after winning the first event of the 2009 Bassmaster Weekend Series, that in order to actually win one of these tournaments everything has got to go right, from practice all the way to the the weigh in. The competition is just too stiff and someone ALWAYS manages to catch them. On the other hand, to finish last, most everything has got to go wrong.

Although very disappointing, I've still managed to learn a very important lesson that will make me an even better tournament fisherman. I've learned to be a bit more humble. In only my second season fishing at this level, I've been so fortunate to have had the success's that I have. I've done this by putting in my time and trusting my own decisions on the water. This tournament I didn't listen to the voices in my head telling me I needed to adjust, instead I was stubborn and didn't make the proper changes until it was to late and then panicked and didn't stick with the adjusted game plan long enough to make it work and it resulted in my worst performance by far. Someone once told me to be a true winner you must first learn what it's like to loose. Point taken....

Congrats to my good buddies Ryan and Corey Brant for their strong finishes, 3rd and 7th respectively. Hats off gentleman!

Japan to Hold New World Record Honors?

I've waited a few weeks to post about this topic but as more time goes by it seems all things are legit and George Perry's tanker 22.4 lb. largemouth bass that held the world record for the past 77 years is on the verge of being trumped. Manabu Kurita, 32, has reportedly caught a reported 22.5 lb. largemouth from Lake Biwa in the Shiga Prefecture of Japan.

Early reports where that Kurita caught the giant early afternoon on July 2nd using livebait, a species similar to a bluegill. The Deps pro also caught a 18 lb. largie a few years back on a swimbait.


Lake Biwa, the largest lake in all of Japan, is known for it's beauty and and it's depth, bottoming out at a gnarly 300 feet. Despite all the giant bass that Biwa holds, Japanese officials have been working to oust largemouth bass from the lake, trying to eliminate all invasive (non native) species from the lake. Even the Lake Biwa Museum Restaraunt serves black bass on it's menu.

With Japan leading the way in the bass tackle industry, it seems fitting that they may now hold the big bass honors. Although with all the giants coming out of California in the past decade, I feel it won't be long until the record gets toppled once again.

Congratulations to Manabu Kurita and his awesome catch. In my humble opinion it's by far the most prestigious record to hold in all the world.

BASSMASTER Weekend Series Tournament

Mississippi River Pools 9 & 10, Prairie Du Chien, WI

What a tournament. Literally from the beginning of practice this was a grind it out type of event. The venue was the Mississippi River Pools 9 and 10, which borders both central Wisconsin and central Iowa. I have never been to this stretch of the Mighty Miss before and wasn't sure what to expect. I had a very hectic week before with sponsor meetings and guide trips and was only able to allow myself two full days of practice. Being that I don't know the water at all and have limited time to prepare, I decided to cut out pool 9 all together and concentrate on only pool 10. I figured since the tournament blast off was on 10, it made more sense for me to stay there and not waste valuable fishing time locking threw. Plus from the internet research that I did, it didn't sound like any one pool was much better than the other.

I got on the water early Friday morning and quickly starting running south figuring I would slowly make my way back north as the day wore on. Six miles down river and all of a sudden my run came to a quick stop when I spun the hub in my prop. Surely there is worse things that can happen, but annoying and a waste of time none the less. As I crawled my way back to the boat ramp fighting current and going no more than 5 miles an hour, I was able to get a hold of a traveling partner and fellow competitor Brian Brown. Luckily for me he was only about 7 miles from me and was happy enough to come down and lend me a hand. After about an hour or so I was back in business and on my way. Fishing though was slower than expected and finding keepers was next to impossible. I found areas that I knew had to hold fish but couldn't get bit to save my life. This was discouraging because I knew the conditions where perfect for catching fish. It was mildly hot and we where dodging thunderstorms all day. Literally the bass should have been jumping in the boat and from what I was told from other competitors they where having awesome days on other stretches of the river. Finally around 5 o'clock I was forced off the water when all hell broke loose and a mother of a storm was headed straight at me packing baseball sized hail, lighting and flood producing rain.

The next morning I found out that local highways where closed due to mudslides and knew for certain that this would drastically effect the river's water clarit, making finding clear water a challenge. When I launched, I instantly noticed the main river channel was already getting muddied up. Despite all this my last day of practice was a huge success. I was able to find a nice area that offered deep water and had some great laydowns and the key was it maintained clear water. I flipped a Tru Tungsten Jig (black and blue) to the timber and and on the first flip caught a chunky three pounder. Two flips later to a different piece of brush and out came a 2 1/2. I continued a ways pulling on what had to be around 15 to 20 nice bites.

I decided this would be a great place to start and then headed out to find a secondary spot. I figured since the conditions where going to set up right that I should look for some slop areas that I could finish my day on. It didn't take long at all and I found a few key areas and also as equally important when river fishing, I found my routes in and out of these areas. By about 4:30 it was time to get off and head over to registration where I again got a bad boat draw and was in the third flight, boat number 55. The good thing was that I knew I was fishing two solid areas both having the potential to produce winners.

After take off I arrived at my first spot and was disgusted to see the water had turned to chocolate milk. I knew this would effect the bite but wasn't sure how bad. After three hours of fishing lets just say it was horrible and I finally called the areas quits leaving with one 14" largemouth. Leaving this area and heading to my back up area I was a bit discouraged but knew I still had about five hours of fishing and knew I wasn't out of this at all.

My second area started no better for me and after a couple hours I was yet to catch a keeper sized bass. I was mainly throwing a 1/4 oz. Super K Swim Jig, a Sumo Frog (black) and flippin' almost everything. I must have tried 15 different plastics trying to get bit. A few other guys where saying how the bite in this area really died down and that it was much better earlier in the morning. This was discouraging to hear, but as long as bass are in an area I'm determined to catch them. Finally after about and hour or two I caught my second keeper, a descent 16" largemouth on the rat.

With only about a half hour remaining before I had to check in, I was really starting to get anxious. I had only about 20 minutes of actual fishing time because of the 10 minute boat ride back to weigh in. Finally the slop exploded and within seconds I had boated my third keeper. Feeling I had an outside chance now to get a much needed limit I called an audible and shot to one last small area that I knew could have two keepers on it. The area was a nice little point that was surrounded by pads and duckweed. After a few casts with the rat a nice bass came flying out the water missing my frog all together. After a few more throw backs with the frog and a Sweet Beaver, I decided to move on, I only had a minute or two before I absolutely had to get back. A few more casts and I whacked another keeper! That made 4. Now extremely determined to catch a limit I swung back around and made a few more casts at that nice one that had blew up on my frog and wouldn't you know it, on literally my final cast it inhaled my frog and I put my fifth in the boat, a nice largemouth going about three pounds.

I raced back to barely make it in on time and weighed in at 10.78 lbs, good enough for 21st place. I generally would be disappointed with this kind of finish. I fish these events to cash checks, but I couldn't help but happy with the outcome. EVERY tournament angler will have bad days, days they will not come in with a limit. Leaving I felt this should have been one of those days, however I impressed myself by staying focused and using every available second I had to put a limit in the boat. Probably the biggest part of being a successful tournament fisherman is to develop mental toughness and today I feel I took a step in the right direction.

Congratulations to my boy Brian Brown for his outstanding first place finish and big bass honors. Since he plans on buying a house down in Kentucky in the next couple weeks I'm sure that 10K payday will come in real handy for him and his wife. Congrats Buddy!!

Silverado Pro Am Bass Tour

Le Homme Dieu Chain, Alexandria, MN

Today was the second stop of the Silverado Tour held on the Le Homme Dieu Chain, in Northwestern Minnesota. After a solid sixth place finish here last year in the BASSMASTER Weekend Series event, I was more than eager to get back up there and try to do even better.

During practice I was having no problem catching fish and was able to catch them both deep and shallow. Big fish where few and far between though and I could tell right away that it wasn't going to take a giant sack to win this event. In fact, I figured everyone was catching them and it would take about a two and a half pound average to be at the top. If I could manage to put a true four pounder in the boat and a bunch of two's, I would be in great shape.

It wasn't until the day or two before the tournament when I was out practicing with my wife Bri that I found a couple areas that where holding some quality Le Homme Dieu keepers. I was getting plenty of good bites and even hooked up with a solid four pounder and Bri managed to boat a nice three pound largemouth on a Biovex Stangun Omega Spinnerbait (Bluegill). I knew if I was lucky enough to get an early boat draw, I would be in the driver seat the rest of the day. I don't want to get into to many specifics on the bite but let's just say my number one pattern fit right into my wheel house.

The unfortunate part was that my confidence quickly took a blow when I found out at registration the night before the tourney that I drew boat 49 out of 49. I was dead last to go at take off. Usually I wouldn't be so bummed about this but the way the lake was fishing, I knew that the areas I wanted to fish weren't any secret and was certain that I was going to have sloppy seconds once I finally managed to get there. Despite all this, I knew this area was holding winners and was still committed to getting there.

After take off I quickly discovered that I wasn't getting left sloppy seconds at all, no it was more like thirds or fourths. I did manage to put a few keepers in the boat, but we're talking about text book peanuts here, aka dinks, going all of 12.5 inches. With my mind starting to scramble a bit I just started running to all kinds of water, anywhere that I had gotten good bites during practice. I caught fish all day, some pretty good ones and even made plenty of culls, but in the end I still had three 13.5 inch bass in the well and knew that wouldn't be enough to get a check. I weighed in at a not so hefty 10.66 pounds, only good enough for 25th place.

I hold myself to such a high level that I couldn't help but be disappointed in the outcome, though I know I did with what I could. I'm probably fortunate to finish as high as I did. On the upside I only dropped three spots in the Angler of the Year points race and am currently sitting 19th with 2 events left. With the top 14 getting invited to compete for a brand new Ranger Boat in the Silverado Shoot Out, it's more than important that I finish strong the rest of the way.

Looking ahead I get only a day or two off and I'll be headed down to the Wisconsin/Iowa border to compete in the third stop of BASSMASTER Weekend Series going out of Prairie Du Chein, WI. Being that I've never been there before I have no idea of what to expect. I'd like to say that I'm just fishing this one for the points but the competitive side in me won't settle for much less than the win. I guess that's why I live for this, wish me luck!

BASSMASTER Weekend Series Tournament

Mississippi River Pools 3 - 5, Alma, WI

After winning the first event of the 2009 BASSMASTER Weekend Series last month, I was more than stoked to get back on the Mighty Miss and attempt to go back to back. Since my 29th birthday is only two short days away I couldn't think of a better birthday present for myself.

I was able to get out and give myself ample practice time and really felt I had found some good areas. The other thing I spent time on was learning the vast backwaters that line the main river channel. Running these areas can be as difficult a task as actually locating and catching fish. A guy's really got to know where he's going when running at high speeds and idling isn't always an efficient way to get around. It just simply takes to long to get from one area to another and makes it actually impossible to get into some of the best areas. Since the backwaters are littered with sand humps, stumps, weeds, wing dams, rocks and whatever else floats down river, it's essential to know what your doing.

Every day of practice I was able to locate good fish but finding them grouped up was a bit difficult. I did manage to catch good largemouth and smallmouth each day and figured I would just have to run lots of water and I'd be in good shape. I didn't have any one lure that was always working and I was truly junk fishing the entire time. At one point I counted 21 rods on the deck of my boat all equipped with different lures that where all somewhat catching fish, everything from topwater to bottom baits and everything in between. Do you have any idea how much Gamma Edge Fluorocarbon I went through preparing my rods for game day? It'll make you cringe, but better safe than sorry. Good thing it holds up for a long time and I won't need to change it until my next major tourney.

Unfortunately I drew boat 72 out of 78 and was forced to wait a while tournament morning before I could got to work. My plan was to lock down to pool 5 right away and try to be back to pool 4 by 11 o'clock. Since I was one of the last to take off, I wasn't able to lock through with the first group and had to burn even more time waiting to get into pool 5.

Finally I got through and quickly arrived to my first stop. On my second cast I loaded into a nice smallie going 3 to 4 pounds, but because of a bad hookset the fish came off. Not the start I was looking for, but before that smallie could get back to the school and snitch me out I made another cast and hooked up with a nice smallie that weighed 3 pounds 11 ounces. That got me back on track and after a few more casts with no results I headed to another spot that I had caught some real good ones at in practice. One my first cast I managed to hook up with a HUGE smallie going well over 5 pounds and after about a good 30 second fight my line snapped and what was easily the biggest smallie I have ever been hooked up with disappeared. This was a hard pill to swallow, not only would it have been a personal best but it would have really put me in awesome shape to repeat a win. I looked at my line and saw it was tattered up and looked like shredded cheese, I had been fishing around rock and shells and must have had my line pretty beat up before I even made that cast. I maybe break off a fish once or twice a year, sure they get off but they don't break my line that often. I should have checked before I ever made that cast, but lesson learned, it was just horrible timing, but I can easily say that I won't make that mistake twice.

I needed to build some momentum so I decided to go do some flipping for largemouth in an area not to far from where I was and attempt to put together a quick limit. After loosing two giant smallies in the first half hour of actual fishing, I needed to start going in the right direction. It didn't take long and I put a 16'' largemouth in the box. I also caught a few more but they where in the 13" range and where not past the mandatory 14' mark to keep. After about an hour or so of flipping I decided to head back to my spot that I broke off that toad. I was able to catch a nice 17" smallie but that was all. I guess when you send the queen of the school back with a hook still in her mouth, things tend to get a bit "spooky" in that area.

At about 11 o'clock it was time to lock back through to pool 4. I had a few areas that had coughed up a couple 4 pound largemouths in practice and figured this would be a good area to fill a limit. I knew I had to fish fast and just started chucking and winding a Super K Swim Jig and was able to fill a respectable limit.


I weighed in at 12.42 pounds and tied for 27th place out of 78 boats. Not horrible but disappointing none the less. I couldn't help but think what could have been had I landed those two smallies early in the day. I was less than a pound away from cashing a check as it was and with those two I would've had the chance to take the win. But what if's surely don't cut it and I tilt my hat to those that made it happen. To be at the top of the leaderboard in one of these events means you had one heck of a good day on the water, limited your mistakes, and was better than the rest. Congrats to those that did!

I'm currently sitting in 4th place in the Angler of the Year points with the next stop in July at Prairie Du Chien, WI. I can't wait!

Congrats to my good buddy Rich Lindgren for his solid 8th place finish! That a boy Rich!

Tackle Update: Super K Swim JIgs

Over the last two years swim jigs have become a staple for me on waters in both Wisconsin and Minnesota. Known largely for it's effectiveness on river systems, I've found it to be equally productive on our lakes as well. When worked correctly, the swim jig comes through the thickest of vegetation when little or no hangups and at the same time offers a very unique subtle presentation.

Since swimming a jig is generally known as a shallow water technique, this subtle presentation becomes even more important. Most "weekend anglers" are shallow water fisherman and the shallow flats on heavily fished waters get very tough. There are always a good number of big bass shallow but these fish simply see a lot of flamboyant baits like frogs, spinnerbaits, and big jigs. Swim jigs on the other hand can still be power fished and move water quickly, but also offer that finesse factor to get shy bass to strike.


Over the past year or two, I have experimented with all sorts of different swim jigs and quickly realized that they are not all created equal. I've found that a little tackle manufacturer out of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, has got it down to a science, Super K Swim Jigs. Their superb design of the bait starts with the perfect cone shaped head that insures the bait slips right through the grass. You can throw this bait anywhere! It also comes standard with a hand tied skirt and is offered in many bass catching colors. The best part of this jig is in the business end, Super K Swim Jigs come standard with a stout 5/0 Gamakatsu hook. Fish bite and don't come off!

Please feel free to visit Super K online and see for yourself just how many more strikes you'll get!

www.SuperKFishing.com

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

Today was the second tournament of the Denny's Super 30, held on Lake Minnetonka. This is a team format tournament, which consists of Myself, Ryan Brant and Corey Brant. Being that we all are in other tournaments we split up the events. The first tourney held last month was taken by Ryan and Corey and this month was Me and Corey. At the end of the year the top 8 teams qualify for the Shoot Out and compete for an additional 5 grand and even last place takes a check.

I was able to get out on the lake on Friday morning and all day Sunday. I found the fish to be scattered. I stayed away from any of my good water and instead looked for new areas, I just didn't want to stick any good sized fish a day before the tournament as I knew I would be fishing there no matter what.

I did find a new area that was holding some good smallmouth. It wouldn't be a winning spot but could definitel cough up a couple nice 3 pound smallies. With an 8 fish limit those could be crucial.

Most the bass seemed to be scattered anywhere from a foot of water to twenty feet, it was just hard to nail down a solid pattern. Although at the end of the day Sunday, both Corey and I where pretty confident in our game plan. The fishing was going to be hit or miss for everyone and it was just crucial to have a solid three pound average when we took to the scales. We knew we had a lot of water to fish and made the commitment to run and gun, spending no more than 15 minutes at any one spot without catching a keeper.

The weather tournament day was great. It was sunny and 80 degrees with a nice 5 - 10 mph wind. Corey and I managed to put a limit in the boat rather quickly but size was an issue. I did haul off and put a quality 4 pounder in the boat right away in the morning but all the rest where between 1 pound and 2 pounds. We made plenty of culls throughout the day. I was pretty much power fishing, while Corey was following up with more of a smaller finesse presentation. I think this is important at times. When some bass are active and others are not, having a one two punch like this can really be beneficial. Corey was catching fish all day but the size really wasn't there. None the less we where culling, even if it was only for an ounce or two at a time.

With about an hour left it was beginning to be crunch time for us to make a move. It was starting to cloud up so we made the decision to head shallow and try to pop a couple good ones. I was able to catch one more solid keeper a nice 4.8 pound largemouth, that ended up being our big fish and culled out a 1.7 pound peanut.

We weighed in at 20.3 pounds only good enough for 18th place, about two pounds out of the money. We did manage to move up a few more spots in the Team of the Year race though. In the end we where one big fish or two descent fish away from cashing a check.

Next tournament is the second stop of the Bassmaster Weekend Series held back on the Mississippi River. After winning the first event last month, I'm really looking to back it up with another strong finish. I'll have plenty of days to practice so if things go well it should be a great birthday for me! Wish me luck!

Denny's Wednesday Nighter

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

Tonight's tournament was the second time I've been on Tonka this season. With other tourneys I haven't even been able to get out on one of my all time favorite bodies of water. The sad thing is Minnetonka is one of the best bass fisheries in all the Midwest and it's only a half hour from my house. And I've only been out there twice?? Well, needless to say that will change now that summer is officially here. I'll be spending every available second out there sticking 5 pounders from the abundant vegetation that amasses the lakes interior.

Fishing these with me is my good friend Joe Perez from Mobile Marine Pros. We where able to get out and practice last Sunday. Fishing was poor for the most part. We fished deep, shallow and everything in between and just weren't able to put together a good pattern. The fish seemed scattered and inactive. We probably caught 10 at the most but I did manage a nice 4+ pound largemouth, but most all the rest where just peanuts. With limited practice we decided we would just go by the seat of our pants and hope some older areas worked out. We figured I would power fish from the front and Joe would size down and try to pick up the inactive fish with some well known Tonka finesse presentations.

At blast off we headed to one of my favorite deep spots. On my first cast I boated a nice largemouth weighing just shy of 4 pounds. That really gets the blood flowing, but we still knew we had a lot of work to do. On Tonka you have to almost always have nothing but a 4 pound average if you want a legitimate shot at taken first. We continued to work the area for the next hour and Joe did manage to boat a small keeper.

After fishing another hour with not even a bite, Joe recommended a very obvious spot, that I think most people overlook, including me. We caught a lot of small bass under the 12" mark and I did manage one small keeper on a drop shot.

With three in the box, I decided to try some shallow water that has worked well for me in the past. I managed to boat two more around the three pound range and unfortunately dropped another solid three after an awkward hookset.

With only 45 minutes remaining we headed to the first area we started. I did manage to make one small cull before time ran out. We only weighed 11.53 oz. and finished somewhere in the middle of the pack. Dean and Ted Capra won the tournament by almost 3 pounds with a weight in the mid 18's.

The weather forecast calls for plenty of sun and temps in the 80's. The hotter the weather, the better the fishing! See you on the water!

Silverado Pro Am Bass Tour

Green Lake, Spicer, MN

Today was the first stop of the 2009 Silverado Pro Tour. For the past few years I have been looking forward to being apart of this tour as it's probably the top tournament circuit in the mid west. So naturally you can see why I have been so eager to get out and prove myself amongst the best bass fisherman this area of the world has to offer.

The first stop was to Green Lake, a clear and rocky lake that's chuck full of smallmouth bass. This lake also offers a fair amount of largemouth bass, but generally if your targeting them in a tournament your most likely missing the boat all together. What the lake lacks for in vegetation, it more than makes up with it's abundance of off shore structure and shallow rocky infested flats.

Being that I had only been to Green Lake for a total of maybe 10 or 11 hours last year, I knew I had a lot to learn. I was able to get up there around 5 pm on Wednesday evening and quickly launched my boat. I used what little time I had left in the day to just get a feel for the lake. The water temp was in the low 60's, making me believe that the smallmouth had to be in the heart of the spawn and with the full moon approaching figured I would spend all day Thursday searching out shallow area that held a good number of spawning fish. I was able to catch a few nice sized smallie's by burning a spinnerbait and also managed to catch a 4 pound largemouth on a jig. Remember what I said in the last paragraph? Now that's great. Just another thing to get in my head while trying to piece together a quality pattern.

Thursday brought sunny skies and relatively calm winds. Perfect for searching for bedded smallies. I found them pretty easy to catch and was able to mark anywhere from 50 to 60 beds. They could not stand a 3" Biovex Real Craw in their face. I rigged it on 8 lb. Gamma Edge Fluorocarbon and secured it on a Tacklesmith Banana Jig XL (3/32 oz). I also was able to catch a few by simply chucking a 3/8 oz. Biovex Stangun Spinnerbait (#10 White Chartreuse).

On Friday I was able to get out with Aaron Teal. He was my Am partner and was paired with me for this event. Aaron is one heck of a good stick, he understands how to break down water and has all the mechanics to fish both shallow and deep water.

I had my mind made up that I was going to use this last day of practice entirely to searching out some deep water areas. I wanted to find some good pre and post spawn fish that could give me a winning sack. It didn't take long and Aaron sets the hook on a nice 4 pounder. I worked with that and headed to another area that looked relatively the same and like clock work I caught a nice 3 pounder. I continued to do this all over the lake and the fishing was fantastic. I would simply pull up to these deep rocky areas and catch a fish, all around 3 pounds and a couple in the 4 pound range. Literally I'd catch one on my first cast, way point it and leave.

This left me in a pretty good position. I had both a shallow and a deep pattern that was catching good numbers and good sized fish. Even though the forecast called for high winds, I made the commitment to stay deep instead of joining the crowds by fishing for bedded fish. It was just icing on the cake when I found out I drew boat 47 out of 49 for take off.

Morning started out windy from the get go and the temp was in the very low 40's. The high was called for around 45 to 49, down from 75 the days before. The forecast also called for plenty of rain.

Catching fish was really not a problem at all. I easily a had a limit within the first hour and a half and a good one at that. The problem was all the fish where around the same size. All where right in the 2.5 to 3.5 pound range. I caught all my fish on a Tacklesmith Tungsten Football Jig, which worked perfectly for those deep water smallmouths. I never broke one off, it came through the rocks perfectly. Aaron was also catching them by employing various soft plastics.

The wind was definitely an issue though when it came to efficiency. When your fishing for schooling smallmouth it's important to stay on top of the school. They're so competitive that they almost get to easy to catch once you fire up a school. Usually once you hook into a good smallie off of structure like this you want to get your bait back down there right away. Usually I wouldn't even put the fish in the box before I would make my next cast. This proved to be a problem in that the wind was so strong it would blow me 100 yards away from the spot before I could even get the bass unhooked. Not to mention fighting wind like this all day really wears on the boats batteries. My Minn Kota 101 was able to keep up but my cranking battery was really taking a load being that I had multiple Lowrance Units on, running livewell to rejuvenate these deep fish and a constant bilge pump to get rid of all the water that was coming overboard by both the rain and the three foot waves. Seeing that my battery was really running low I decided it was important to get to the other side of the lake where if something happened I would be within trolling motor distance of the weigh in site. When points are critical a disqualification due to late weigh in can be devastating.

With an hour or so to go in the tourney, I decided to work a shallow flat out in front of the loading docks. I caught a few more that weren't able to cull on the Biovex Spinnerbait and did manage one more small cull by sight fishing a nice smallie off her bed.

I knew I had a solid limit but didn't know if it was worthy of collecting a check. I knew I didn't have the fish to win it but thought a top 10 was possible. After it was all said and done I was disappointed to find out that my limit of 17.53 pounds was only good enough for a 16th place finish. I didn't get a check but a top 20 is very important in the long run. It's not a sprint it's a marathon and after the first stop I'm in great shape at making the top 20 and fish for a brand new Ranger in the Shoot Out this September.

Up next is the Denny's Wednesday Nighter in a few days. Ahh finally, I get to get out on Tonka! I hope they're biting!

Also please check out the article on my win at the BASSMASTER Weekend Series, on the American Bass Anglers website.

http://www.abaproam.com/newsdetails.php?news_id=177

Happy Fishing!