Denny's Super 30 Shootout

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

Two for two! Corey, Ryan and myself again manage to make the Denny's Super 30 Shootout this year and a bit more convincing than the year prior. Last year was our first year fishing the Denny's and somehow made a late season push and snuck in the backdoor taking the final spot and rode that to a 3rd place finish in the Shootout. This year consistency was on our side and we rode it to a 9th place overall seeding. We never made it rain but we never got blown out either, in fact we were really only one fish out of the high end paychecks in all but maybe one tourney.

Hopefully this would be our time to shine and up for the task was Corey and myself. The bite had been tough in the days leading up to today though practice we managed enough good bites to think we were on them well enough.

Unfortunately for the two of us things started out slow and worse yet, it never really got better. I broke off on two that probably would have helped and did manage to catch a couple good ones but we never really got the bites we needed to even come close.

In the end, we finished in 12th place, a far cry from what was needed to win. By far Corey and I's worse day on Tonka all year. Even if I could have a mulligan, I still don't know what I would have done differently. Probably nothing. We were around good fish but sometimes things just don't pan out. It's frustrating but Tonka overall was very good to us this year and we're really looking forward to our third year, we're figuring this beast out and catching them all seasons. Hopefully we can notch our first Denny's win in 2011!

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

Going into this event Corey and I found ourselves in a very good spot, we were sitting 8th overall in the points and today was the last event before the end of the year shootout. The top 14 qualify for postseason play and we had a pretty good lead over the 15th place team so barring some catastrophic setback, we were pretty confident we were in. Though of course we wanted more, we really wanted to claim our first Denny's win and throughout practice we got enough bites to give us that extra shot of confidence.

Tournament morning started slow but we managed a small limit relatively easy. Early afternoon things got a bit better when I was able to boat three close to three pound largemouth and Corey really gave us a shot when he yanked a 3 pound and an almost 5 pound largemouth.

Now with still about roughly four hours to go we were sitting with around 20 pounds but still had three babies (12") in the boat. Still 4 hours on Tonka to cull out 3 rats? Easy! Right? Well I don't think we ever made another cull the rest of the day. Signs of a tough day, I guess.

We weighed in with just shy of 20 pounds good enough for 10th place and finished in 9th overall in the team of the year standings. Hopefully our bite gets a bit better before the Shootout next week!

Even more importantly, I'd like to wish my beautiful wife Bri a Happy Anniversary! 5 awesome years of marriage to the most perfect wife in the world. Besides how many women understand when their man fishes a bass tournament on their anniversary? Just one of the many reasons she's the best! Love you Baby!

Silverado Pro Tour

Horseshoe Chain, Cold Spring, MN

This entry is a hard one for me to write about, so much that I felt I needed to wait until some of my feelings inside developed and digested before I wrote it out. I realize that I write this blog for the public to view but first and foremost it's a personal diary for me, something that I'll be able to refer back to and remember both the good and bad trials in my pursuit of professional bass fishing. To some, these entries may not seem like much more than me promoting myself for personal gain. To me, these entries are the product of mine and my families hard work and dedication to a sport I cherish and love more than almost anything else in the world.

Going into this tournament, this venue was one I was excited for since I first saw it was included on the tour schedule. I had never even been on the chain before but from what I had heard, I knew it would fit my style better than any other body of water we were going to be fishing all year. First off, it's a river system and this section of the Sauk River houses both smallmouth and largemouth bass. The chain is known for it's stained water and abundance of shallow cover that lines it's banks. It also has an abundance of rock, some of which is out deeper forming nice structure and others up shallow mostly in the form of riprap banks.

There was also some added pressure because of poor performance's in the first three stops I needed to win this event to qualify for the post season Tournament of Champions held on Lake Minnetonka were a brand new, fully loaded Ranger bass boat was on the line. Being a part of this post season event meant a lot to me, in fact it was the sole reason I chose the Silverado over other tournament trails. I consider Lake Minnetonka my home water and the opportunity to win a new boat there would mean the world to me.

Throughout practice I was able to build some confidence in multiple different areas targeting largemouth but was concerned by the lack of smallmouth catching. It wasn't until my final day of practice that I really put in the effort on locating some brown fish. This was partly on purpose because this year smallmouth have really burnt me in the Silverado. Usually I prefer to chase them but after getting punked by them in the last two stops, I wasn't exactly eager to count on them in a tournament that had so much on the line.

I was able to get my Am partner Lance out for the final day of practice and in the morning we ran around so I could show him what I was planning to fish the next day so he'd have a good idea of what to expect. Every now and then we'd stop and fish some new water and try to find a couple more things that could give us that push and assist in a much needed win. On one of these such stops, Lance fired a spinnerbait and wouldn't you know it he catches an easy 5 pound smallie. I turned around and fired my crankbait to the same area and landed a solid 2 1/2 pound smallie. This was an extra shot of confidence because this spot was out of the way and I was very confident not many people knew it existed. This way I could leave it until later in the day and hopefully make a few key culls once my largemouth bite slowed down a bit.

I ran a few more areas that I thought may hold some smallies and was able to catch a few, nothing huge but worth the stop. I had found a couple riprap areas and a few deep rock spots as well.

After a late boat draw, I started on a spot that transitioned from riprap to sand. After a few casts with a crankbait I put the first fish in the box, a 15" largemouth. I then ran some of my spots were I had pulled on some fish and couldn't buy a bite. After a couple hours with only 1 bass in the box I decided it was time to get to the smallies and see if they were going to actually cooperate with me.

I approached my first spot and noticed it was getting pounded by the wind. I made a few casts with the crankbait and caught 2 keeper largemouth's right away, only going about 13" each. I switch to a carolina rig and after a few short strikes I landed a quality 3 pound smallmouth. A cast later and Lance boats a 2 pound smallmouth. Everything was rolling in the right direction when I got another bite, I set the hook and instantly knew I was in trouble as there was to much slack left in the line and before I could adjust I watched a doozer smallmouth jump 3 feet in the air and throw my bait. That hurt but I was able to somewhat shrug it off and after a few more casts with no takers I decided it was time to head out and let that area simmer.

My next area was a riprap bank and it only took three casts with my crankbait and I was hooked up with a huge 4 plus pound smallie. I noticed right away I only had her with the back treble and did an excellent job thumb spooling her and when she was wore down we went in with the net and somehow managed to get the front treble caught in the net and in no time the smallie sprung loose. Ouch, that one really hurt and after visually watching two real nice fish get away I couldn't help but feel it mentally. I knew this chain of lakes was going to fish tough and that big bites had to be capitalized on and I couldn't help but have that awful feeling in my stomach.

Still I tried to stay positive but as the day wore on my bite got worse and worse and I couldn't seem to get a single largemouth to bite. I decided to go back to my riprap spot and after a few casts again hooked up with a bruiser of a smallmouth and after a very short fight wouldn't you guess, she got off. I checked my crankbait and was just ill when I saw that one of the hooks on the back treble bent out. Insane!

Now still one bass short of a limit, I went into full out panic mode. I knew I was still in it but really wanted to get a limit and after about an hour I finally boated our limit fish on a 3/8 oz. Tru Tungsten Jig. The 13" largemouth came on a laydown in about 2 feet of water and after fishing the rest of that bank with no more bites I decided I better head to one last spot before time ran out and hope for a hail mary.

After a few casts with a crankbait God himself answered and again I was hooked up with another 4 plus pound smallmouth. I worked liked crazy to keep that fish on and just as the net came in it was like deja vu, the net caught the treble on my crankbait and before my eyes I watched yet another bruiser come off at the boat. I truly felt like I was going to vomit. It was the most disheartening feeling I have ever had in all my days of bass fishing. I knew that I had the tournament all but won and some how managed to throw it all away.

This way of thinking came to a quick reality when I arrived at weigh in and found that most the field failed to come in with limits. I weighed in a limit of bass for 10.2 pounds and took a disappointing 16th place, 5 pounds shy of the winning weight.

I've had dropped fish cost me money in tournaments and possibly even a win or two, but never have I had it so obvious to myself and in such a big event. I knew what I had to accomplish and put myself in position to do just that, just to finish in such a gut wrenching way. Sure I left 8 grand on the table and even worse left what could have been my spot in the TOC, but none of that hurt as much as the feeling of knowing what I had to do, being right there and watching it all vanish. In my little world, I'm sure it's the equivalent of fumbling the football on the goal line with only seconds left in the end of the fourth quarter, with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

I waited for all these thoughts to calm in my head before writing this because I now have a better appreciation for the outcome. Sure it eats me like none other but it's all part of the game and may not even be the last time it happens. This is probably one of the reasons I fish competitively instead of for the simple fun of it. I'm definitely not the only one that can say they had it and then lost it, in fact everyone of my idols in the sport can say the same. Instead of sitting and feeling bad for myself and my misfortune, I'll instead use this as a motivator. I proved to myself that I could have and maybe even should have won this event, with just a little luck or better execution I could have done exactly what I set out to do against the best Minnesota has to offer.

With all this said, I want to send out a special congratulations to my very good friend and team tournament partner Ryan Brant for besting the field and notching his first big win. I always said to him for the past 3 years we've been fishing together, if I can't win it, I hope he does. Well congrats man, you deserve it! Hat's off Brant!

Smashing 'Em!

The past couple weeks between tournaments, I've been out putting in work doing guide trips and testing new sponsor products. One of my favorite things to do when out doing this is to practice and sharpen my skills. There's a few examples of this and I'm a firm believer that anything I can do to better myself and my fishing will eventually payoff when the money's on the line.

One is always to be looking for new water. This has got to be one, if not the best way to become a better fisherman. This is a skill that the best have and it shows by continued success at the scales. Bottom line is fish move and you need to be able to move with them. Sure we all have spots that seem to always produce no matter the time of year but that's very rare. Usually you need to be able to follow the fish as they transition through the seasons. Every time I'm on the water I attempt to find something new or learn something about what the fish are relating to. Even if the lake your on isn't a big tournament lake, it teaches you to always keep an open mind and how to fish different types of water.

This brings me to my next point. When I'm out on the water and I'm not practicing for a tournament, I try to use baits and styles of retrieve that I don't have much confidence in. Sometimes I'll use baits that I do have confidence in to find fish holding areas but then try to switch baits and see if I can trigger them to bite. This is what builds confidence in new tactics and makes me more of a well rounded angler.

The past week or so I've had the opportunity to do just that and let me tell you the end reward is far more satisfying then accomplishing the norm. Recently I had a guide trip, I had decided I would meet the client in the city he was staying and fish a lake that is right within minutes of his hotel room.

I had been to this lake before but very rarely ever this time of year and if I was we basically just threw frogs at all the abundant vegetation that makes up this lake. This is a solid pattern on this body of water but it is also the most obvious.

I had been getting bit on lakes in the area fishing deeper and thought that if I could find some nice deep structure I could provide some awesome fishing for my client. I was very happy when after about a whole 5 minutes of Humminbird Side Imaging work along with studying my Navionics Mapping Chip, I located a nice point that had some scattered hard bottom along with some patchy weeds. The target area itself sat in about 14 feet of water. On my first cast with a hand tied 1/2 oz. Picasso Football Jig I landed a chunky 5.6 pound largemouth bass. Awesome!

My client and I went about 4 for 4 each on consecutive casts after that both catching bass no smaller than 3 pounds. Already a good trip and we haven't been on the water for more than 15 minutes!


I continued this pattern around the lake and located 6 or 7 different spots that all had some of these similarities and also had the same end result. We boated giant after giant in what finished out as one of the best outings I had all year. No joke, we boated a 6 pounder, multiple 5 and 4 pounders and our fair share of 3's. In fact, I don't think we caught but 1 that went under 3 and all came on some of my favorite baits, a football jig and an Outkast Tackle jigworm. The kicker was we ended up spending about 2 hours frog fishing the slop without a single blow up. Huh? Things to think about.


Leaving I was obviously excited. I had provided an awesome experience for someone and also got to jack up on some toads. Even better I had challenged myself to find something new and the result was overly rewarding. Still though the competitor in me wanted more so 5 days later I was right back there with a buddy to do some sponsor photos with the many big bass that where available for the picking.

My confidence level was through the roof, I mean these fish were really making it easy on me. I was throwing baits that I have nothing but confidence on, in areas that gave me more confidence then I knew what to do with. We only had 4 hours to fish as my buddy had to be to the Minneapolis Airport by noon. 4 hours? No problem!

I took my buddy to the first spot and gave him the quick rundown, handed him a Picasso Football Jig and told him the technique. I thought I'd just sit back, tie up a couple rods that I was going to need for an upcoming tournament and get ready with the camera. After about 1o minutes with nothing I decided it was time to get up and show him how it's done. Nothing. Not a bite. OK, OK hold up here. This is a fluke, I mean they were jumping in the boat days ago here, they gotta be at the next spot.

Well after about 2 hours without a bite, my confidence went way down and the new word to describe me would be embarrassed and humbled. Maybe now it's time to revert back to old faithful and get to the slop with ole' Kermie.

After about another hour of no bites, no hook sets and just a whole lot of talking, I figured we needed to get back out to the main lake, they had to be there now. We worked all these spots on the way back to the boat ramp and continued to throw the jigworm and football jigs and couldn't buy a bite. Now I was going from the outing of the year to the first skunk in the past 3 years! Unbelievable!!

On our very last stop, which was also our very first stop this morning, I was accepting defeat. I mean I couldn't get a bite on spots that where holding giant sacks just days ago and I was throwing baits that I had nothing but confidence throwing. As I was putting my rods and tackle away I saw my new bag of Biovex Deep Runner Crankbaits. This ate at me even worse because I was hoping to get to use these and catch a few nice bass with them so I could send some quality pictures back to Biovex.

Deep cranking is not a strong suit for me, in fact it's probably the worst technique in my repertoire. I just never had much success with it and really never tried to hard to make it work. Just always kind of had the impression that if they'll bite a deep crankbait, they'll definitely bite my jig, carolina rig or worse case a shakey head. Even though I knew this was a invalid and biased opinion some habits are just to hard to break.

With only 10 minutes left before we had to load up and bail out, I decided to tie one up and see how they run. They are a brand new bait released by Biovex and look absolutely amazing, I'm sure they run even better than they look. I took my first cast and had to make just a slight tweak to the line tie and had it running perfect. The bait got down quick and ran nice and tight without to much drag which results in less fatigue to the angler. It took me another cast or two to find the hard spot and about on my third cast I was grinding the plug into the bottom right through the strike zone. Just as I was thinking how cool it would be to one day find this crankin' bite and 'WHAM", my rod loads up on a giant 5+ pound largemouth. That was insane and extremely addicting! I was grinding the Deep Runner over the rocks and the fish just inhaled the bait.


After a couple pictures I released the fish and was immediately overwhelmed with happiness because that was probably the first true deep crank lunker bass I've ever caught. I thought I may have activated the school and maybe now I could catch another one and we both started throwing our football jigs and Carolina Rigs, and yet again, nothing. Just then I started thinking it must have been just one solo fish that happened to show up right as my plug came ripping through. Curious I picked up the crankbait and chucked it back across the point and wouldn't you know it, as soon as it hit the bottom I was instantly whacked and again boated another lunker going an easy 4 pounds. On my next 5 casts with the Biovex Deep Runner I went 4 for 5, all going over 3 pounds. Now if that's not an eye opener I don't know what is!


Unfortunately for the both of us we had to get off the water but again similar to 5 days ago when I was leaving this lake I had a smile on my face. Sure we struggled hard, really hard for 95% of our outing, but the last 5% will never be forgotten. One, I now have a ton of confidence in a bait that before just got tucked into the bottom of my boat and two, found that it can be a better option than good old faithful. Those fish didn't just show up that last 10 mnutes, they were there the whole time and just had no interest in what I had to offer. They were on a reaction bite and wasn't fooled by the old ball and chain or by dragging a big jig. Again, even though I knew this to be true, I mean there's a reason crankers like Kevin VanDam have made millions on top of millions throwing this bait, sometimes the only way to truly buy into it is to actually accomplish it. Good for me, once again I had reason to have a smile on my face! There is no such thing as perfect, but hard nosed preparation will get you the closest thing to it.

Up next I'm outta town practicing for the last stop of the Silverado Pro Tour held on the Horseshoe Chain of Lakes near St. Cloud, MN. You think I'll have a Biovex Deep Runner tied on?

Tackle Update: New Baits from Biovex

As an aficionado of well made, high end tackle, I pay attention to detail when I see new baits hit the market. I'm not always convinced of the baits that hit the mainstream, in fact there has got to be something that attracts me to the bait. This is why I'm so excited about some of the new products that have been released by one of Japan's industry leaders, Biovex.

First off, I'd like to introduce the new Biovex Amp Wake, a top of the line wakebait that has a sick action when pulled across the top of the water. Sure the bait is appealing to the eye, but it's the aggressive action that the bait omits just under the surface that's the real appeal. This Wake has been a staple for me from the postspawn through the end of Fall. It's a big fish bait that provides big time action.


Next is the Biovex Amp Stay 80SP, a suspending jerkbait that is the perfect size and action for any bass whether it be spotted, smallmouth or largemouth. I've had the best luck with this bait catching cold water smallmouth bass. The Stay 80SP, is a non intimidating bait that hovers in place yet imparts an erratic action when worked appropriately or can be fished with a mellow retrieve when the bite is really tough. Again the size of the 80SP is perfect in my eyes at seducing wary fish.


Last but not least, is the Biovex Amp Deep Runner, a deep running crankbait that has a tight wiggle, is realistic as can be and runs to deep depths. I've always been a HUGE fan of the Biovex Midrunner and this is that bait on steroids! On light line this bait will easily hit 15 feet and hits it quick. It's big lip ricochets off cover with perfection and the size off the bait is very appetizing for large bass. I just got a box of these in the mail and already have been using these as a one, two punch with a football jig to entice deep largemouths. The Deep Runner is already a staple in my tackle box.


I'm very lucky to be sponsored by Biovex as their baits are not yet available to the U.S. market. I've been hearing some rumors from the Biovex camp that there may be a big announcement coming some time in the future. That's exciting news considering I've been working with them on designing some new baits that I know are going to be a huge hit. Keep checking in.

I'm also proud to say that both Bri and I have been involved in some of the marketing for the company over in Japan. Here's an ad from one of Japan's largest bass magazine's, Rod and Reel magazine.

Cabela's Kids Fishing Event

Today I got the honor of representing myself, Tru Tungsten and the rest of my sponsors by helping out at the Cabela's Kids Fishing Event. At first I didn't really know what to expect from this and actually had a little bit of anxiety toward it. This definitely struck me as odd because I've done numerous fishing events and have never had a problem, in fact I'm actually pretty good at them. My years of experience in the hospitality industry as well as my true love for fishing makes gabbing about it quite easy, though the idea of entertaining children was actually a little intimidating. Not all these kids get the opportunity to get out and fish and I really wanted to be sure they had an awesome time. They are the next generation of our sport and enthusiasm starts now.


The Cabela's, located in Owatonna, MN, has two private ponds that are stocked with both bluegills and largemouth bass. Cabela's provided all the rods, reels, tackle and bait as well as a free lunch for all the children and family. My job was to walk around the ponds and help out in any way I could, mostly by taking fish off, retying rigs, untangling lines and of course putting nightcrawlers on hooks.


I couldn't believe how many kids showed for this opportunity and better yet just how many fish were caught. I'm talking more slab sunnies than I could imagine and one little girl even caught close to a 3 pound largemouth bass, her first to say the least.

I stayed more than busy and really truly enjoyed myself. There is nothing better than watching kids become hooked on fishing right in front of my eyes. So much of my fishing career is selfish and all about me and how I can be better. It is far more rewarding watching kids fall in love with fishing than to cash a check at a big tournament. It reminded me of when I was a kid and how much I purely loved fishing before the money, sponsors and reputation got involved. To be honest it was humbling and I am very blessed I got the opportunity to be involved. Hats off to Cabela's for providing this free event, here's a company that truly cares and stops at nothing to give back to the outdoors.


Next year when this event comes around again, I'll be sure to do a better job of notifying my followers on my site, via Star Tribune's Outdoor Page and both Facebook and Twitter.

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, MN

Pressure's on! It's time to make it or break it out on Lake Minnetonka this time of year. Going into this event we found ourselves sitting in good position in the team of the year points with a respectable 9th. With only 2 more tourneys left before the Shootout, it's time to prove your in for the long haul. The top 14 teams qualify for the year end championship and let me be the first to tell you the competition is stiff, all 51 teams can and will sack 'em and it's important your one of the teams consistently bagging 'em up.

Ryan and I are the two up for this go round and practice went great. I mean it when I say it we probably had the best practice we have ever had. Not only did we get bites in all the places we wanted to get bites we also never burned a single fish. We were able to pull on every bite, never sacrificing a good one.

We had a early boat draw and decided to start in an area that usually has done us well and things really didn't start all that great. I caught a couple right away but nothing to get your blood flowing, my biggest was probably 3 pounds.

We went on to fill a limit right away but size was embarrassing to say the least, I mean we had like squeakers in the boat, babies to say the least. Finally we had a decision to make whether to stay and pound it out or head to the other side and start banging out on some water and kind of sling from our hip. I made a suggestion that we stop by an area that had been good to me first and then we'll make the journey. This proved to be worth the stop because it didn't take minutes and Ryan was at war with what ended up being a 5.25 pound giant. There's is nothing more gratifying then culling a 5 pounder out for a 12 inch dink.

Minutes later and I was wrestling with a giant and again we made a sick cull with a 4 pounder and got rid of another little bumper baby. Sticking with this pattern, Ryan suggested an area that was very similar and again another cull. We finished the day by running these areas making a few culls here and there and in the end finished up with a solid 12th place and moved up to a two way tie for 8th place in the Team of the Year standings with only 1 more event left.

We still had a couple small fish in our limit and yet again were oh so close to pulling a top 3, still in the end we're getting so close we can taste it. We just got to keep putting in the work and we'll reap the reward soon enough.

Silverado Pro Tour

Green Lake, Spicer, MN

This was a tournament that proved to be a learning lesson from the very get go. I've had some past experience on Green and really thought I'd have an ace in the hole for this event before I even got there. This probably proved to be my biggest mistake.

Last year I finished with a very respectable 14th place while fishing the Silverado in early June. The obvious bite was a spawning bite and the vast majority of the fish were up on spawning flats. I also found great success fishing deep, very deep. Being that this tournament was mid summer, I thought this would be the ticket to cashing a much needed check and turning my luck in this years Silverado events.

Throughout practice I tried like hell to make the deep bite work and really wasn't getting the bites I thought I would, though when I did get bit it was a giant 4 plus pound smallie.

This caused a good deal of confusion in that I kind of adopted a mentality that all I needed was 6 bites all day and since the quality was there I could easily weigh over 20 pounds. As practiced continued though I realized that there would be a better than not chance that I may not even get 6 bites all day. This was obviously a problem.

Everyday of practice I was able to catch a couple quality fish but patterning them was horrible. I'd catch one out of 30 feet on a dropshot, then I'd catch one out of 2 feet on a spinnerbait. In 3 days of practice I caught roughly 10 smallies going over 3 1/2 pounds and all on different baits out of different depths.

Though I was a bit confused onto what, when, where and how I was going to catch 20 pounds, I knew I was around the fish to do it and just planned to junk fish all day.

To make a long depressing story short, we managed to drop two giant smallmouths in the morning that really hurt. My Am partner Brian Brecka put on a clinic thereafter and really stepped up putting a couple in the box and giving us a shot to still put together a solid limit.

As the day wore on I was able to start making some big culls and caught our biggest bass on a Biovex Midrunner Crankbait and then followed that up with a nice largemouth on a flippin' bite as well as another lunker smallie on a tube over a rock pile.

In the end we weighed in with 6 bass totaling 15.75 pounds, only good enough for a very disappointing 30th place. It's really tough when I think of what could of been had we landed those two doozer smallies right away in the morning that got off at the boat. We would have weighed in around 20 pounds and cashed a check as well as moved up greatly in the points with only one tournament to go. With that said though I was still so off in the big picture, most guys whacked the crap out of them and probably threw back 18 to 19 pounds. I was so close, yet so far away.

I'm more than upset with the outcome, this one really hurt. I missed the ticket all together and also missed the opportunity to still put together a bag. It's disheartening to say the least. I've been tournament fishing hard for 3 years now and have always had good success. This year has been horrible, bad practices, bad decision making and bad execution along with bad luck have all combined to have me on the outside looking in. Not a position I'm used to and definitely not a position I will get used to. A little humiliation can be a good thing and will provide the extra motivation necessary to get back on top. Now the only way I make the Shootout on Lake Minnetonka is to win at the last event at the Horseshoe Chain. I'll never turn down a challenge and am excited at the opportunity.

Up next though, it's time for the Denny's Super 30 on Lake Minnetonka where we're currently sitting 9th in the Team of the Year points race with 2 events remaining. The top 14 teams qualify for the end of the year Shootout. Time to turn this year around, starting now.

A Weekend to Remember

This past weekend, Bri and I along with our good friends Matt and Luanne, went up to Bri's family cabin for a fun and relaxing weekend on the water. As I said in my last post, Bri's cabin is seriously one of my favorite places in the world. The fishing is fantastic but just being off the beaten path and away from the everyday hustle and bustle of the city is a treat all of it's own. Anyone who knows us knows that sure we grew up in the city but our heart is in the country and we're doing everything it takes to make the permanent move. I know I'm fortunate to get to many different lake destinations throughout the year but there's something a bit more satisfying enjoying it with my family and good friends without all pressures of tournament fishing.

We were blessed with beautiful weather that gave way to clear nights with plenty of shooting stars to wish on, while we kicked it around a campfire, enjoying good conversation and roasting delicious pudgy pies. Ahh, pudgy pies, something I have never heard of that will now be a staple for me while sitting around a fire. I'm not sure whether to hate Matt and Lou or love them for it?

Some other highlights from our trip was climbing to the top of the ranger station overlooking the entire area. It's really a breathtaking view all the way up there and never seems to get old. During a good old booze cruise, we also managed to breakdown in the pontoon on the complete other side of the lake, we couldn't of been any further from the cabin! After trying like hell to paddle with zero success, finally a couple came to our rescue and towed us all the way back. Thank God for them two, otherwise we may still of been out there.



The fishing was good though it started slow. Matt and I started by fishing reeds with really nothing to show for it. We then went even shallower and started throwing around some topwater frogs through all the cover. The action was better here but still not what I was accustomed to on the lake. There was a lot of fish in these areas but they just weren't wanting to eat the frog. I think we hooked maybe one for every five blowups. They were just smacking the bait, more pestered by it.

My wheels starting turning and I decided it was time to check another area of the lake. We were finding some action shallow just not with total success yet it was still good enough that I couldn't get myself to completely abandon the shallows and head for deep water. So instead I picked a area of the lake that had a lot of boat docks but also had some mixed floating vegetation between them. I figured worst case that if we still couldn't get bit real good on the pads that maybe we could bust a couple under docks.


It didn't take but the first dock and I knew the answer to the question was found, I caught three good ones under one dock. We continued on that pattern and I don't think I ever picked up my frog rod again, I just kept slinging jigs under docks and just kept catching fish after fish. The jig we were using was the one and only Tru Tungsten Jig, is there really any other kind?

Matt, who loves to fish more than anything but just doesn't have the time to fish as much as most the people that get in the boat with me, hadn't ever skipped a bait under a dock before, let alone a jig on heavy baitcasting gear. Between raising two kids and running his own auto garage, Gustavson Repair, it's hard to get the time to learn such an advanced technique. You think I'd be easy on him and rig up a spinning rod with a senko on it but where's the glory in that? If your going to learn something, learn it the right way from the beginning. Instead I handed him the exact same setup and was more than impressed at his determination to conquer it.

In fact it didn't take to long at all and wouldn't you know it he sets and lands a nice bass from under a dock on a jig. Not only was it his first dock fish but it was his first jig fish! It took me a long time to catch my first jig fish and he does it in less than an hour and under a boat dock! That's sick!


After an awesome trip we capped it off with a night out a Zorba's, yeah that's right, Zorba's with a Z. Though come Sunday morning I think we all mutually agreed that Zorba's was probably the worst idea of the weekend. We were all a bit on the slower side if you know what I mean?

I gotta say that this past weekend was just what I needed, time with my beautiful wife, two dogs and some of our very best friends! I feel relaxed and recharged and chomping at the bit to get back on the water and put my game face on! The Silverado Tour hits Green Lake baby! I can't wait!

My Favorite Place in the World

I went from counting down the weeks, to counting down the days and now we're getting close to counting down the hours. Soon Bri and I, along with two of our good friends Matt and Luanne, will be heading up north to one of my favorite places for both fishing and relaxing, Bri's cabin in McGregor, MN.

The cabin is just awesome and we're all in need of some good fun including bar-b-queuing, sitting around the fire and tipping a couple back. The best part is the fishing is untapped! No one is fishing bass on this lake and the bass grow big, real big! In fact, I caught my Minnesota big bass at a lake just down the road tipping the scale at a whopping 7 lbs. 6 oz!

I'm hoping my new G Loomis Swimbait Rod will be in before I go as I plan to chuck the old shoe (Weedless Huddleston) to bass that I guarantee have never seen one before and also plan to power up the Humminbird Side Imager on a lake that has never been scanned for it's hidden rockpiles. I'm 100% confident that we'll have plenty of pictures and video to show off our weekend's results!

I've been passing the time by spending some time on the water locally. I've been doing some guide trips as well as getting out and doing some camera work. This past weekend we spent out on one of my favorite bodies of water fishing deep structure with my go to favorite bait, the Picasso Fantasy Football Jig. The fish were movie stars as they were more than happy to make their appearances for the video camera. Keep checking in as the video should be up and ready to be viewed very soon.

If anyone is interested in getting in the boat with me for a guided trip contact me sooner than later. The summer largemouth bite is on and the fall smallmouth bite is right around the corner! In fact, last week I did a corporate guide trip for a company out of Wisconsin. Instead of a company golf tournament, it was a company bass tournament. Not only did my boat catch fish, they won the whole tournament! What a outing! These guys really worked me, they had me running from front to back taking off fish and snapping photos. It was just awesome!!


Well, all for now! I got lots to do before I head up for a weekend of partying and setting hooks on donkey largemouth! When I get back it's back to business and preparing for the next Silverado Pro Tour stop at Green Lake, in Spicer, MN. Talk about a smallie haven!! I'm more than excited! I can already hear my drag spinning!

Silverado Pro Tour

Lake Minnewaska, Starbuck, MN

I have been thinking about this event for a year now. Almost exactly a year ago on these exact waters, I had my worst bass fishing tournament of my life, nothing went good, seriously nothing. This lake really made me mad, I couldn't find a pattern at all and I couldn't catch fish no matter what or where I attempted to do it. The result was to be expected, my worst placing ever and I completely knocked myself out of the Angler of the Year standings, blowing my chances at qualifying for the TOC.

Now you can see why this upcoming tournament weighed so heavily on my mind, this lake really intimidated me. Sure I was determined to get some revenge, but when you spend days on the lake with nothing to show, it's sets a bit of anxiety up for my return trip.

To offset some of this, I managed to put together a lot of practice time to help me better understand how this lake works. Wouldn't you know it after my first weekend back I had one of my best outings of the year. I found two spots where in a matter of 10 casts, I caught 5 largemouth weighing over 23 pounds. If that's not a confidence builder than I don't know what is. The problem was the tourney was still a few weeks away. Will they stay there? That was the real question and one I wasn't about to bank on.

**Bri and I camping at Hobo Park on the shores of Lake Minnewaska while practicing for the Silverado.

Lake Minnewaska, known as a good largemouth lake also has an awesome population of good sized smallmouth bass. Last year I had a heck of a time trying to find them and on game day managed to drop three real nice ones. This practice I spent my share of time looking for these elusive ghosts and it didn't take long to get tangled with a good one. Throughout the remainder of practice I managed to find a half dozen or so spots that were holding good sized smallies, but my one concern was that I couldn't catch more than one, I wasn't finding schools but instead single rogues that frequent these areas to feed. So every time I'd check these spots it was hit or miss.

Going into tournament day, I was pretty pumped. I had some areas that were holding really nice largemouth as well as smallies. When I got to registration I found out I drew boat 6 and really got excited. My original plan was to start on my two big largemouth spots, but with that early of a boat draw I knew I could get to one of the few "community" smallie spots and hopefully put a couple big smallies in the box right away. I was confident that no one was on my largies and thought it would be beneficial to roll the dice.

I even checked my starting spot right away in the morning the last day of practice and couldn't keep the smallmouth off, I pulled on fish after fish and it took a lot to finally get them to spit the bait. I was amped and ready to go! I knew going to bed that night that I had given myself a chance to win this one, a far cry from where I was here a year ago.

Right away tournament morning I raced to my first spot. Nothing. You gotta be kidding me? They were just here! After about 45 minutes I raced to another smallie spot and again, nothing. I probably prefer to fish smallies all in all, but I don't know why? There's a reason they call them ghost fish, they're known to just disappear.

After burning up a good two hours with nothing to show for it, I finally raced to my good largemouth. Maybe the smallies are being fussy, but I'll get the largies going. Well I did just that, only I left these two spots with a limit of 12 inch fish. Not what I had in mind, but it's a limit, we're upgrading from here.

With the temp starting to climb up I decided to go get at those smallies again. This time I was met with a bunch of short strikes and saw a real nice four pound fish follow my bait to the boat. I did manage to land one 14" and another 16" smallie.

I knew of a few weedlines that were holding some quality largemouth and decided it was time to head there. It didn't take to long to upgrade our limit to all 14" fish and with only 45 minutes to go I decided to finish out the day on one of my largemouth spots where I had previous success. The bite was on and I made a few small culls and with only 20 minutes to go was caught between staying here or trying for that big smallie that followed all the way to the boat. Just then I bang a nice 3.6 pound largemouth and decided to stay.

Looking back now, I wish I would have left right then because one more quality fish and I'd of been way up in the money. Instead I weighed in with a 6 fish limit weighing 12.72 pounds and with a dead fish penalty ended with 12.47 pounds, good enough for 20th place.


My emotions after this one were a bit conflicted. On a personal level I was happy, I finished way better than I had done last year, saved face and moved up in the points. On the other hand, the competitor in me was more than disappointed. I had worked my butt off in practice, found good fish and wanted the win. I don't fish these tournaments to place mediocre, I fish them cause I want to win them. That's what it's all about.

Tournament Update - Denny's Super 30 TOY Race

2010 Super 30 Minnetonka

Team of the Year Standings

Team of the Year - 2010 1-Jun 21-Jun 12-Jul Total

1 Brad Cline & Jason Berg 49 48 43 140
2 Ted & Dean Capra 47 38 50 135
3 Cody Zdrazil & Dusty Mahn 46 40 45 131
4 Steve Hauge & Corey Guttenfelder 41 33 48 122
5 Matt Pretzel & Craig Walters 38 39 41 118
6 Brad Leuthner & Jeff Meuwissen 42 28 42 112
7 Rod & Rustin Robinson 33 43 32 108
8 Eric & Greg Schultz 15 44 49 108
9 Josh Douglas & Ryan Brant 37 32 38 107
10 Chuck & John Hengel 18 42 47 107
11 Shane Raveling & Joe Bartusek 50 34 22 106
12 Todd Doege & Bob Hennen 29 41 35 105
13 Mike Vinci & Paul Neumann 17 46 40 103
14 Seth Feider & John Figi 16 49 37 102
Jason Holmer & Jason Dudek 39 25 33 97
Andy Young & Larry Wittig 44 37 15 96
Todd Brezinski & Joe Ecklund 23 45 28 96
Joe & Guy Feldmann 10 47 39 96
Chad Kastenbauer & DaveSicheneder 24 26 44 94
Randy LaTourelle & Corey Weber 10 50 30 90
Corey Larson & Mark Persson 31 24 34 89
Andy Hribar & Randy Hayes 48 30 10 88
Jacob Larson & Toby Ferriel 30 10 46 86
Steve Lee & Ron Feyo 43 14 20 77
Chuck McGannon & Jeremy Bester 20 36 21 77
Mike Carter & Pat Wenning 34 10 29 73
Noah Schultz & Che Johnson 28 19 23 70
John Vig Jr & John Walsh 32 27 10 69
Bruce Smith & Paul Sladek 35 21 13 69
Mike Brill & Andy Peterson 14 20 31 65
Lonnie Murphy & John Nelson 25 29 10 64
Torrie Oswald & Bob Biehler 21 31 10 62
Dalon Schmidt & Brad Lutz 40 10 11 61
Will Pappa & Gary Flicek 36 11 12 59
Pat Bartley & Chris Zakashefski 27 15 17 59
Dennis & Austin Felix 12 22 25 59
Denny Nelson & Bob Younghans 10 23 26 59
Steve Loraus & Matt Burch 13 10 36 59
Chris Luedtke & Tadd Johnson 45 10 x 55
Jeff Gilmer & Randy Wilcox 10 10 27 47
Jay Green & Steph Peterson 19 13 14 46
Gordon Covyeow & Darrell Preston 10 16 19 45
Colby & Brady Bolin 11 17 16 44
Steve Rowe & Tom Zrust 10 10 24 44
John Nugent & Al McColl 22 10 10 42
Steve Karsseboom & Steve Higgins 10 18 10 38
Peter Madonna & Pat Ripley 10 12 10 32
Tim Dedeker & Alan Melby 10 10 10 30
Tom Conboy & Jim Oster 10 10 10 30

So as you can see we're sitting in good position for qualifying for the post season "Shoot Out". We're in a much better place than we were at this point last season and we managed to qualify last year and go on to claim 3rd in the Shoot Out. The plan is to stay the course and try to continue to move up the rankings by cashing a couple checks going out! Wish us luck!