BASS Elite tournaments require a lot of road time

Published 12:30 pm Monday, December 21, 2015

I really like this year’s Bassmaster Elite schedule. There are almost no smallmouth tournaments.

I missed the last half of last year because I broke my wrist. I was having a good year and was fishing good. It wasn’t a fishing accident. I fell down in my driveway. I think it is going to be fine. I have fished with it and it is getting stronger every day.

Our first tournament is March 17-20 on the St. Johns River in Florida. That will be fun. I really love that place. It is either going to be spawn or early post spawn. It may be a little late for the spawn.

Fishing the St. Johns River is a little misleading because most of the fishing is in Lake George, which is a big lake. It is really cool because it has manatees and huge bass, plus it is nice and warm that time of year. I have caught several big bass there.

Then two weeks after that we are going to Winyah Bay in South Carolina. I have never been there. It is kind of interesting because we got a memo the other day that said we can run in the Atlantic Ocean if we need to.

Fishing a place you have never been to you have that X factor, it can be a little scary, but it can also be exciting.

Not knowing anything about that area, some guys will be calling someone they know that has fished it. I don’t know anyone over there so the way I will prepare will be to see if I can find some tournament info on that body of water so I know what to look for. I will also try to read a couple of fishing reports to know how they caught and how much influence the tide has, whether there are rocks or grass.

If I have to go way up the river to find some backwater lakes that is where Google Earth comes in. On a river that gives you an idea of where you are. Topo maps are especially good on reservoirs.

We are fishing Bull Shoals and Norfork in April. That is going to be a fun event. We are going to be fishing both lakes, two days on one and two on the other. They are trying new things and I think that is awesome.

They have some smallmouth, but there is bigger largemouth and some spotted. It is going to be after the spawn. Those lakes are crystal, crystal clear. I like fishing those lakes that time a year.

From there we go to Alabama’s Wheeler Lake. That should be post spawn there so it could be a top water tournament.

Then we are on Toledo Bend in May. I would rather fish there in June, March or April, but I will take it. That has been one of the hottest lakes in the county the last few years.

The week after that is the Toyota Texas Bass Classic on Lake Ray Roberts. That is going to be awesome, and then on June 6 we have the Bassmaster BASSfest on Lake Texoma.

In June we have s tournament in New York and one in August in Maryland. I like the Potomac River. I have not fished there in a couple of years, but the last two times I was there I had a first and a second.

We also have one on the Mississippi River in September.

That equates to a lot of time on the road because when we aren’t fishing we are often working sponsor shows or boat shows. From the first of March until the end of June it is going to be a pretty good rodeo.