September 2, 2010

Normally, I would be breaking the blog and archiving August. However, I'm behind in my computer work, and I won't have time to do that today. So, I'll just keep this month open into the next.

A few days ago the Cementman came down with his wife and granddaughter to pick up his grandson at the airport. They came down early, and we went out for dinner. Before we ate, he brought me down his chip out of his trail cam, and I copied some pictures from it of a bear that they have been baiting. Rick has a buddy that drew a bear tag.

Getting ready for the bear hunt.

It's just not black bears that like caramel corn and chocolate.

BassFan came out with an article talking about the recent DQ from the Lake Champlain FLW Eastern Series event. Angler Jim Gildea fished a TBF event on Champlain the weekend before the Eastern Series event. He failed to check out what type of off limit period was involved in the Series event and ended up breaking the off limits rule. He reported it himself, after he said a friend of his brought it to his attention.

Gildea finish 7th in the Eastern Series competition and won $7,896 which he will now have to get back. I haven't read anywhere yet what they intend to do about redistributing the money. They did say that they would move anglers up in places, but that would also, I would think, change the pay out. I did check the FLW leaderboard for the event and Gildea is no longer there, and the angler that is now in seventh shows he received the same payout as Gildea. It must be a pain to cut all those checks over again, but I'm sure the anlgers don't mind the bump up.

There is news from Mark Zona about his new "Zona's Awesome Fishing Show" which will air starting January 2011 on the Outdoor Channel. In the press releases, it was mentioned several times that the show will be shown during prime time on Saturday.

I'm sure you recall Zona's original show on ESPN2 which was called "The World's Greatest Fishing Show." I liked the program and I use to make sure that I scheduled things around watching it.

With ESPN deciding to get away from outdoor programming Zona had to move to the Outdoor Channel to get back on the air. I'm looking forward to watching it again.

Mike Elkins emailed me to ask that I include another reminder about the upcoming "Fishing With the Pros, Lifeline Charities Tournament" on Muskegon Lake this weekend May 5th. It's going to be a great tournament with good payouts and a chance to also help out a very worthwhile charity. Think about coming to fish. The link above will take you to a PDF file with all the info.

Tuesday, I copiloted a trip to the Midland area to pick up my buddy John's boat. He's been having trouble with his motor now for a couple of seasons. We all know how frustrating it is when you have boat engine issues. Especially the phantom type that make you doubt whether you're going to get back in once you launch. John fishes out of Turtle Creek, Ohio on Lake Erie so it's important to be able to trust your equipment and your motor.

John has a friend over that way that recommended he try Barringer Motor Sports and Marine. Tyler Barringer works on inboards, outboards, stern drives, and also does jet ski repairs. Barringer's is located near Sanford, Michigan just north of US 10 off Highway 30.

John and I were both very impressed with Tyler's knowledge and expertise. He really investigated the problem, researching the net and engine specs etc. After fixing the problems he found, he took John and I out on the boat for a test drive on Wixom Lake . He spent several hours with us going over the boat and showing John things that he never knew about the boat even though he's had it for three years and has had it in to three other very reputable marine mechanics. I wouldn't hesitate to give him a call if you're having mechanical issues. He has my 5 star rating. If you want to reach him, his number is 989-488-7496.

Well, I have some other blog topics to talk about, but just don't have the time this morning. The last cast of the day is another edition of Dave Mercer's Facts of Fishing . Take care and make sure you take some time out of your work day to do something that puts a smile on your face. P.S. GVSU takes on West Texas A&M tonight at GVSU at 8:00 p.m. Check out the link for the TV schedule, if you can't go watch them live. They are a fun team to watch.

August 28, 2010

Man, I hate to go political, but one of my pet peeves are those constant emails from acquaintances that contain information that has a political agenda. That's fine, but 99% are just unsubstantiated or out of context innuendo, but that doesn't stop people from shuffling them on an on through cyberspace. Please, if you get emails like that do a little bit of research to see if they are any where close to being true. If you haven't heard of Snopes.com you should familiarize yourself with it. It is one of those quick references that looks objectively at circulating emails. Just because it's on the internet certainly doesn't make it true or factual. Do yourself a favor before you send something out, and check to see if it's fact or fiction.

Well enough of that. Today the FLW Eastern Series event on Lake Champlain concluded. I was hopeful Day 1 when I saw the results, because an old acquaintance from a few years back, Sheron Brown, was in third place.

I rode with Sheron on Day 2 of the B.A.S.S. National Championship on Lake Toho. He was the Day 1 leader there. He's from Shirley, Mass. On Lake Champlain, Sheron had a couple of tough days, but still finished high enough to take home $5,182.

Sheron Brown from Shirley, Mass.

Ray Scott really to a liking to Sheron

Sheron was very adept at handling the media. Very smooth and developed the nickname, "Show Time."

The winner on Champlain ended up to be Shinichi Fukae. Shinichi relied heavily on a drop shot rig to target suspended fish. The fish he found on his electronics were in 40 feet of water. His best target range was 35 feet. If you're interested in reading the article which contains info on the other four anglers who fished the final day, here is the link: Shin wins FLW Series Eastern . If you're interested in the leaderboard for the event here is that link: FLW Series Eastern Event Leaderboard .

Last Thursday I dropped in at the Outdoorsmen Pro Shop to get a tip on a pole that I bought at my sister's garage sale. While Grayson Wilson fixed my Bionic Blade, he asked me what I was doing that evening. I told him that I didn't think I had anything on my schedule, and he went on to ask me if I wanted to fill in as a crew member for one of his regular partners, Mike Harvey, who fishes with him in their Thursday night salmon tournament series. I told him that I knew very little about salmon fishing, but he said all I needed to do was drive the boat. So, I said I could probably handle that.

I met Grayson at his house, and we loaded his Lund with all the rigging and tackle. We then headed for the State DNR Ramp at Port Sheldon. Actually the ramp is called the Pigeon Lake Ramp . It took a bit for me to find that out because I always thought of it as Port Sheldon. It was also the first time that I had actually put in there.

Pigeon Lake Ramp, Port Sheldon, Lake Michigan Access

Waiting at the dock, Ray and Grayson

From the ramp, its a short idle through the lake to the short stub piers. The idle gave Grayson and his teammate Ray (I'm not at all sure of the spelling) Van Seitfield a chance to get rods out and lures tied on. They had a bunch of spoons, boards, paddles, flies etc., but my bass boat ensemble of tackle looks like it may still outweigh all the salmon paraphernalia. Maybe not though, those spoons weigh a lot more than plastic.

Pigeon Lake is quite small. It only takes a few minutes to idle out to the big lake.

Once we made it to the pier heads we waited until the other boats in the tournament group made it to the rendezvous spot.

Waiting for the tournament mass start.

...and then we were off!

Grayson and Ray were in the lead in their tournament group going in to this last Thursday nighter. Their lead wasn't overwhelming, so they needed to put some fish in the boat if they were going to end this last night on top.

As with both business and pleasure it often boils down to location, location, location. Where to start is always a confluence of experience and current conditions. The salmon are getting ready to come up the rivers to spawn. How far out the schools would still be is often a guessing game. The warm weather had the cold water behemoths still seeking the cool watery depths.

Many of the captains had been fishing the "mud" off Grand Haven. The "mud" is the plume from the Grand River that extends out into Lake Michigan at Grand Haven. The baitfish, mainly alewives, like the warmer river water. The salmon make sorties from below filling up on the baitfish before their annual pilgrimage upriver. However, word was that the salmon were gone. Grayson theorized that the school that had been feeding there moved upriver. So, Grayson and Ray decided to head for another spot that seemed to be holding fish earlier in the day. They ran almost due west out to 200 feet of water. We actually stopped in about 180 feet of water and began setting lines. I really don't know how many they eventually set, I didn't count them, but I thought I heard them say they had eight or nine lines out.

They begin setting lines either from the inside out or vice versa. The outside two lines were on planer boards . These boards are designed to plane away from the boat. Your lines clip to them, extending the trailing baits quite a ways out from the boat. You can just barely see the planer boards in the picture below. One red blip can be seen above the reel handle of the center rod and the other is just under the bow in the far left rod.

Inside the planer board is usually a dipsy diver or maybe a jet diver. Next, straight out from each side of the boat are lines attached to the down riggers. The riggers are motorized winches that lower lead cannon balls to which the deep lines are attached with clips. Setting all these lines after affixing all the spoons , paddles , plugs , and trolling flies , is a time consuming event. We hadn't quite gotten to our 200 foot mark, when all the rods were finally ready to fish. As we neared our target area, the graph started to turn red with big arches of bait fish. It was looking good.

It wasn't long till we had our first fish on and then the work began. You need to manage the fish to keep him behind the boat so he doesn't run across and tangle your lines. It takes quite a bit of team work to get the fish in without creating havoc.

Ray handed me the rod to reel this first fish in. No pressure, as they both said, "We really need this fish."

The salmon was a long way out and it probably took ten or more minutes to get it in. It turned out to be a pretty good first fish, about a 8-10 pound Chinook or King Salmon . I ended up reeling in about four of the fish we caught. To bring one of these big lake giants in, you pretty much stick the butt of the rod in your belly and reel down and lift. You just need to be patient and let em run when the get hot. The tricky time comes when netting them. As they near the back of the boat, and the netman readies, you point the rod at the fish, and when the netman nods, you lift the rod tip pulling the fish into the outstretched net.

Once the fish was in the cooler it was back to business. There were several times when we had two fish on at once, and it can get crazier than that when you have 9 rods out. Having multiple fish on is not that uncommon event. Managing all rods definitely requires at least three people in the boat.

Once we established the zone it was a steady troll at about 2.7 to 3 mph. It takes constant vigilance to make sure your pace stays the same. With the wind and waves your speed tends to bounce around. Here's Grayson checking the tachometer and Ray watching lines.

Lines set, speed right, ready for another King.

We stayed on an east to west troll, and we did the best when trolling west. You wouldn't think it would matter, but it does. Part of it may be actual currents that are flowing in the big lake. Because of heavy winds, the water can build up, and at times rather significantly, on one side of the lake or the other. On Lake Erie, the water has risen and dropped over 15 feet leaving boats in marinas sitting on the bottom. When that water shifts back to level out it creates some fairly significant current that the fish then relate to.

We trolled until about 9:15 p.m.. The weather was perfect. Not too much wind and the air temperature was just right. The bugs got bad later in the evening. You didn't want to talk much on the ride back in or you'd have a mouth full. When I got home and looked in the mirror I still had several stuck to my face.

We had to be back at the dock by 10:00 p.m. per tournament rule. We caught 9 fish, 8 Chinook or King Salmon and one Coho .

Grayson with a couple of the Kings we caught.

A peek inside the cooler.

The sunset and full moon rise were spectacular!

Again per their tournament rules, you can weigh six fish. Grayson and Ray weighed in their six at 47 lbs. and won the night and the year end total. The big salmon of the night belonged to Joe Merrit. It was sixteen plus pounds.

I'm not sure if this is Joe or his partner. I am sure about the King being a money winner!

I'm not a salmon fisherman that's for sure, but I did enjoy being out, and I can certainly see how it could get in your blood in a hurry. Figuring out the quarry whether it be bass, walleye or salmon is what draws one to the fray. I enjoyed watching two experts dissect all the components to put a bunch of fish in the cooler. I certainly appreciate the invite.

One of the best things about fishing for salmon, is that you bring home a bunch of good eating. Grayson filleted all the salmon and gave me about 10 fillets. Once I got home, I vacuum sealed some, ate some, and had 8 pounds worth smoked.

I called around to ask about where to take the fish to get it smoked. I have a place up north I go to, but haven't ever taken any to a place around here. Brent Vawter texted me saying that the Big O' Smoke House in Caledonia on M-37 was a good place to take your meat.

I had to pick my buddy John up at the airport Friday, so I dropped my fillets off at Big O. They charge $1.50 a pound to smoke it. You can have flavors added, so I decided to try some cajun, and the recommended brown sugar. Not only will Big O smoke it for you, and add any of their flavors, but they chunk it up and vacuum seal it. They do charge extra for the flavoring and the vacuum sealing.

I brought my fillets in with the skin on, and I see on their website that they recommend it. However, when I was there they said the salmon will take on more of the flavoring and be a bit dryer if it has the skin removed. They agreed to take the skin off for me. One thing they don't recommend is that you freeze the fish in water. You can bring in frozen fillets, but fresh is always better. I'll let you know how it tastes.

If today's blog reads a bit disjointed, it's because it was composed that way. It's been on my computer desktop for a couple of days. It's time to put it to bed. Take care and I hope you had a great weekend.

August 25, 2010

Another beautiful day in Michigan. The humidity and temperatures are almost perfect. If you could just dial these days in or bank them, it sure would be great. It won't be long though before the frost is on the pumpkin. The acorns are falling like crazy in my yard. I can't even park in the driveway for fear the truck would be pummeled with the squirrel induced brown bombshells.

I checked greatlakesbass.com this morning, as I regularly do, and found a reference to a new page that Lt. Dan has spent considerable time in putting together and posting. It's a weather page like no other. He's got links to just about everything and anything you would want to know about Great Lakes weather and lake conditions. You really need to check it out. Here's the link: GreatLakesBass.com Marine Weather Links & Resources .

As we move into September and October fishing, the action can be ridiculous, but so can the weather. You really need to keep an eye on it, and with all the technology that is available, it's really just at your fingertips. I rarely leave to fish anymore without checking the radar. With Kimmel's new page of resources you can just call Al Roker's home phone for a weather update.

In the wake of all the goings on with the sale of B.A.S.S., BassFan has been doing a chronological history of B.A.S.S.'s relationship with ESPN. It gets a be a bit of "Facts Overload," but it's timely and gives you an idea and a reminder of just what's been happening since Ray Scott sold the company (for reportedly $40 million). Their report is in two parts. Here is the two links: A Walk Through History-Part 1 (2001-2004) Charting The ESPN Decade In Timeline Form , and A Walk Through History-Part 2 (2005) 2005 Redefined And Further Split The Sport . There should be a couple more parts to this chronicle forthcoming.

I also found on BassFan another article about the recent Northern Open on the Detroit River. They say the event is on the Detroit River, but it really is a Lake St. Clair or Lake Erie event that takes off on the Detroit River out of Elizabeth Park. Some anglers, I'm sure, do spend some time in the river itself, but Todd Schmitz won the event on Lake St. Clair.

Having fished a number of tournaments out of Elizabeth Park, the decision is always which way do you go. Do you make the hour to an hour and a half run to Lake St. Clair to catch numbers, or do you head to Erie which is known for its super sized smallies. Lately, or I should say in the last two or three years St. Clair has been giving up some big bags and tournament wins.

Chris King, an Ohio guide on Lake Erie took a commanding five pound lead in to day two of the Open. He was making long runs to his home waters capitalizing on some big schools of upsized brownies. The final day the wheels came off for him. He came back in with a goose egg. That's right, not one fish, not two fish, or even one blue fish, but zero fish. I'd really like to hear his account of that final day. It had to have been excruciating. The man obviously knows the lake and his quarry. To make that long run, only to have that school of fish decide to leave for parts unknown must have been exacerbating.

Schmitz, won the event but almost by default. Having the leader have a day like King had was not what he could have expected.

Schmitz, a Hoosier hailing from Goshen, IN had to take two days off during his prefishing for the event to take care of business. Like many of us, he works a real job to make a living and it called for him to be away at a bad time fishing wise. Taking those days off though hurt his Day 1 when he only had 17+ pounds.

Todd had found a school of big smallies on a big flat near the mouth of the Detroit River. He was just off the shipping channel that winds it's way from the St. Clair River through the shallow waters of Lake St. Clair to the Detroit River. It's a well travelled freighter route.

Immediately after the tournament, Schmitz said he caught his fish cranking the shipping channel over sandy spots he found. In the BassFan article, he said he was off the shipping channel on a large adjacent flat. Sometimes it's hard to know what to believe. You know what they say about anglers. "If you want to know if an angler is lying watch their lips. If they're moving they're lying."

Anyway, Schmitz said his key depth was between 12 and 14 feet. He also said that that when he caught a decent fish, it would be spitting up perch. That prompted him to use a perch colored Bomber Fat Free Shad . Sounds simple enough. I have some good perch imitators, and like a many anglers do after hearing such reports, they give them a few casts and then revert back to their favorite bait. I have, however, been making an effort to throw more crankbaits and jigs beyond the token few casts. The key phrase is here, "I'm trying." It's easy to fall back in to old habits.

In any case, if you want the link to Schmitz article here it is: Detroit River Open Winning Pattern Schmitz Stayed With St. Clair And Relocated Big School I haven't gotten much information on the Tear Drop Classic results. I do know that Josh Myers and Kasey Kyser won, and that Mike Meysar and Ricky Skinner Jr. came in second. Josh and Kasey had a two day total of over 35 lbs. I should be getting a story to post from "Cerdo cazador y extraordinario fabricante de salchichas" Nick Vawter soon. Nick and his son Brent were in second Day 1, but Long Lake must have been tough for them Sunday.

Just an F.Y.I. there is going to be a Lifeline Charity "Fishing With The Pros" event coming up on September 5th on Muskegon Lake. It's a very worthwhile charity, and "Fishing with the Pros" has been around a while. Many may be familiar with the event they run out of Traverse City each Fall. This Muskegon event has an $125 entry fee. Here's a link to their tournament Flyer: Muskegon Lake Lifeline Charity Tournament . The Lifeline tournament director is a guy many of you may know or have heard of, Greg Mangus. The payout looks pretty decent, and it's for a good cause, so if you get a chance check out the flyer and consider this event.

Last but not least, is a bit of information you probably have long been waiting for, Al Roker facts and tid bits. Did you know that Albert Lincoln Roker Jr. was born in Queens and is related to Lenny Kravitz. Roxie Roker, from the show "The Jeffersons," is Lenny's mother and Al's cousin. Did you know Al is an author of several books. One is titled, "The Morning Show Murders." Did you know growing up that Al wanted to be a cartoonist. He's been married three times (He's presently married to Deborah Roberts, who fills in at times on the Today Show.) and has three children. Did you know one of Roker's breaks that brought him a certain amount of notoriety was when he had an elevator race on TV with David Letterman. You may know Roker lost over 100 pounds following gastric bypass surgery. Last but not least, Roker holds the record for most appearances on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien"

Well that's going to be it from me today. Make sure you take time out of your work day to do something, if for a few minutes, that puts a smile on your face, it's good for what ails you.

The final cast of the day is another installment of Dave Mercer's Facts of Fishing . I love this guy! One crazy fisherman, and one creative film maker.

August 22, 2010

The Northern Open in Detroit is in the books. There were a bunch of big bags of smallmouth weighed. As I thought, it took 20 pound bags over the three days of competition to be a serious contender. The winner was Todd Schmitz from Goshen, Indiana. Schmitz had a three day total of 61 lbs. The win netted the Hoosier $46,000.

During his on stage interview Todd said he caught his fish over sandy areas along the shipping channel in Lake St. Clair. He used a Bomber Fat Free Shad in a perch color. He went on to say that on the bright days he would use a more natural color and on the cloudy days he would switch to a brighter hue of the same pattern.

That perch color is always a good choice here in the north. I wonder if he's ever tried the Koppers Live Target Perch Crankbait . I know I've done some damage with it over on the East side. If you watch the slide show that opens with the web page you will see one picture of me in my GVSU sweatshirt holding a nice smallie that has a Koppers' Perch in its mouth.

Ryan Said finished third in Detroit with a last day bag of 20-9 lbs. to close the gap and almost steal the win.

Ryan, a Michigan angler, came in second in the first Open event on Champlain. Dave Wolak won that event, but opted not to fish in the Motor City. That really gave Said a great opportunity, which he seized rather confidently. Ryan has a commanding 73 point lead in the Open race. It's looking good for him to walk away after the final Chesapeake Bay event with a spot in the the roster for the Bassmaster Classic. The top two, in each Open gain entry into the Big Daddy of bass fishing shows. Here is the link to the Northern Open Standings after Detroit .

If you're interested in the standings for just the Detroit event, here they are: Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Northern Open #2 Leaderboard . The article up on the Bassmaster site for the event can be found using this link: Schmitz Scores Big .

The Tear Drop Tournanment Trail anglers are up in Interlochen on Long Lake this morning. They fished the first leg of the event yesterday on Green Lake. Day One leaders were Meyers and Kyser with 17.1 lbs. Second place Saturday was the Vawter Boys with 15.6 lbs., and third was the team of Chris Mieras and Ray Dillion with 12.9 lbs. Spinnerbaits, senkos, and drop shotting seem to be the best techniques and or baits on the day.

It looks like it will be a two horse race for the Classic title, but you never know what will happen. Chris King had the Day 2 lead in Detroit and came in with a goose egg on the third day. You just never know. That is why they call it fishing instead of catching. I'll have a report soon as to how Tear Drop Classic ends up.

One of the techniques that has been a stand out the last couple of years, and has been reported as a primary tool this week in Detroit and in the Tear Drop Classic has been the drop shot. It's still a technique that I know many anglers are still not confident in. I have recommended Seth Burill's Drop Shot Secrets Revealed two DVD set to a number of people. It's one of the best instructional DVDs I've ever watched. Very detailed with lots of good tips and information. It covers drop shotting from beginning to end, and then one DVD in the set shows Seth using it for a variety of different species from bass to lakers. For $20 you won't be disappointed.

If you use Seth's link above, you may also want to explore his video library. For a yearly membership, which cost about the same as a magazine subscription, you gain access to a wealth of information. Seth has a TV program on the Sportsman's Channel and has been filming for years. I watch episodes on my laptop all the time. It's really convenient and easy to use. I don't receive a dime from the endorsement, or for that matter, putting his banner link on my site. I just feel that if you're an angler looking for new and informative fishing info, he offers a lot for a little $.

After having breakfast with the guys on Saturday, Nick Vawter sent me some pictures of some whitetails that his hunting partner took down in Texas where Nick and he live. It's getting close to bow season and I thought some deer pictures would get the juices flowing for all the bow hunters out there.

Some nice Texas neighborhood whitetails.

Wow, what a deer. Check out the feeder in the front yard.

That's going to be it from me today. I've got a few things to do and we may head over to the Taste of Saugatuck . It looks like the weather will be perfect and man they have some good food and entertainment there. Take care and enjoy the rest of the weekend.

August 21, 2010

This morning I had a chance to share breakfast with some fellow anglers. Nick Vawter, Ed Opalek, Gary Evans, and Rick Skinner met at the Old Time Diner in Hudsonville. It's a an eatery right out of Guy Fieri's "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives."

We had some lake discussions, talked about tournament fishing, and even discussed a possible trip or trips to the East Side next year to fish St. Clair and or Erie.

I'd really like to get a group to go over and fish for a long weekend. The fishing is great, and it's a chance to spend some time at dinner etc. with some fellow anglers which is always time I enjoy and look forward to.

The East Side has been where it's at this week. The B.A.S.S. Northern Open, with an 180 boat field, will fish three days, well maybe three days. On day three they cut to a 30 boat field.

The tournament is being dominated by what you would call local experts on the big water. David Hasty from Ohio was the Day One leader. I met Dave down in Tennessee when I went down to fish Cherokee Lake after qualifying for the BFL Regional. He's a Basscat owner which made me like him right away. He guides on Erie, and should be a contender as long as the weather allows him to make those long Lake Erie runs.

Today the field blasted off at 6:30 a.m. and pros and coanglers alike hoped to make that 30 cut. Twenty pound bags aren't uncommon, and it will take about that each day to be a serious contender.

I watched the weigh-in unfold today. There were a number of names I recognized as locals, and then there were the other tour level big names. I also saw the names of several of the competitors that I know personally. It's always fun to see a name on the list that you know. It's like rooting for a home team.

Here's a link to the Day 2 Northern Open story: "Monster Limit of Smallies puts Ohio Angler Ahead by Nearly 5 Pounds" .

You can access the leaderboard for the pros and cos from the aforementioned article or click on this leaderboard link . Don't forget to also click on the coangler tab on the leaderboard link to see if you recognize any of your buddies.

Being a camera hound I always check out the photo gallery for these events. The B.A.S.S. photographers are some of the best. For the Irons area guys, check out the picture of Josh Meyers: Northern Open Photo Gallery . There is also a good picture of one of the funniest and best bass anglers on the planet, Gerald Swindle, A.K.A. the G-Man.

Starting last year, Mike Iaconelli and Pete Gluszek have brought back "Bass University." They did well with the venture and plan a second year starting this November. The first class will be given in Kissimmee, Florida near Lake Toho on November 6-7.

The dynamic duo, Ike and Pete, are putting the classes together and to make them as relevant as possible, they promise to use local pros as well as having some of the big names involved. They also plan on having more hands on, and more 1:1 time built in to the class day. In some of their venues they will be offering some on the water opportunities.

The closest class to our area will be one held in Chicago on December 4-5. If you're interested in more information, here is a link to a BassFan article covering the second year of classes: Year Two of BASS University .

While we're on the topic of dates for next year, I called B.A.S.S. today to double check with them as to when they will be holding registration for next year's B.A.S.S. Marshal program . They said that the information would be up on their site in the next couple of months. They went on to say that they thought the registration date would be during the first week of January. I hope to sign up for the Pickwick and Wheeler events.

Well, that's it for me today. Take care and enjoy the weekend. If you get hungry Sunday, check out the "Taste Of Saugatuck." I've been there since Clare Ray from Traverse, open up Spectators Sports Bar and Grill. He has a booth there and always has great food. There will also be a bunch of other restaurants there serving up their favorites. They also has some great music in the band-shell which is right on the water. If you're not fishing, and you're like me, I'm looking for some good eats.

August 18, 2010

When it's cool in the evenings and through the night, I start getting visions of smallmouth moving up on the sand flats in Northern Michigan. It may still be a few weeks before the cooler water, and shortening of the day trigger those smallies into their fall feed. When that time comes, I hope to be there throwing double willow leaf spinnerbaits and hanging on tight.

I've been getting reports from Tear Drop anglers that are up in Michigan's Great Northwest Corner prefishing for this weekend's Tear Drop Classic. Thus far, the fishing has been tough. Not a lot of consistent action. An F.Y.I., Dennis found out that there will be a tournament on Green Lake, Sunday. Originally the Classic schedule called for Long Saturday and Green Sunday. He's decided to reverse that order for this weekend.

Prior to the last two Tear Drop regular season events a few of us have been getting together for breakfast. We're going to meet in advance of this weekend's Classic at the Old Time Diner in Hudsonville. Any an all are welcome to join us to swap fishing yarns, and to complain about aches and pains. I've made a few invitation phone calls, and sent a couple of emails, but consider this your invite. You don't have to be fishing the Tear Drop. You may be fishing an outlaw series like Shoreline , just kidding Ed. It's just a good time to get together and commiserate and compare notes.

One of the emails I sent was to recent retiree from Kellogsville, Ed Dyer. Ed has tournament fished for years and is an avid outdoorsman. You may remember the deer hunting adventure Ed shared with us last year. Here's a shot of Ed with a nice toothy critter he caught on Big Whitefish on a Koppers Live Target Perch Crankbait .

Ed with a Big Whitefish Lake Pike

You can feel the tremors building from the East Side of the state as the date for the Detroit River Northern Open draws near. The anglers will be launching from Elizabeth Park on August 19th. There will be a number of Tour Level Pros there, as well as some of the best local Great Lakes anglers around. Ryan Said is one such local that is currently sitting second in Open points going in to the event. The top two anglers in the Opens get an automatic berth in the Bassmaster Classic.

Dave Wolak, an Elite Series Pro, won the first Open on Champlain and sits atop the points list. However, he has decided to sit out the Detroit River event because he's already qualified for the Classic and doesn't want to muck it up for some of his buddies that are trying to qualify. Here's the B.A.S.S. Northern Open article: High stakes in the Motor City .

Dove-tailing the Northern Open news is a recent article on Bass Fan that talks about the significance of the AAA events like the Opens in the B.A.S.S. organization and the American Fishing Series (The new name for the old Stren Series) that the FLW has. This rankings analysis article gets a little be numberish, but it's interesting and helps you keep all the qualification routes clear in your head: Rankings Analysis: Reese Still Dominant, Ehrler And Thrift Ascend . There is another article that follows this one and gets a bit more specific as to who may be in the running to qualify for post season contests. Here's AAA-Level Events Affect Championships, Tour Fields

During the past couple days that I've been home surfing the net, I found an editorial by BassFan, Editor-In-Chief, Jon Storm. Jon has some pretty interesting things to say about all the shake ups from FLW and BASS. He's hopeful that the changes will usher in a new era of bass angling. Here's the article: Upon the Cliff .

One of the things I've been meaning to update everyone on is Harry Swank's status. Harry had back surgery a couple weeks ago and following the surgery he suffered a heart attack. Because of the back surgery, they couldn't go in again and do open heart surgery so they patched him up and sent him home to recover. He'll have to go back in later and get the ole ticker worked on. I've emailed Dennis, Tear Drop Director, to see if I can get Harry's phone number. When I do I'll give you all an update.

The final cast of the day is another installment of Dave Mercer's Facts of Fishing . Take care, and make sure you take some time out of your work day, if it's only just for a few minutes, to do something that puts a smile on your face.

August 15, 2010

Man I was hoping that the humidity would break today. I thought they had forecasted some cooler weather starting today. Oh well, all you can do is just deal with it.

I've been following the P.A.A. Leaderboard from their Tour Stop #2. Yesterday, the top 30 slugged it out on Lake Norman in North Carolina. It's been a see saw affair with Edwin Evers and Shinichi Fukae. Fukae was in the lead going in to Day 3, but Evers weighed the largest bag, 14.28 lbs. of the tournament to pull away at the end by nearly six pounds. Here is an article from BassFan summarizing the event: DeFoe Rallies For 2nd - Evers Wins By Nearly 6 Pounds As Fukae Falters . If you're interested in looking at some pictures from the event, here is a link to the P.A.A. Final Day Photo Gallery .

To follow up on the other big tournament going on, The B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Regional Championship up in Bay de Noc. That tournament ended Saturday, with Brian Mailot, of Columbus, OH taking home the first place hardware.

Mailot fished all three days as a coangler and won the prestigious tournament from the back of the boat. That's quite a feat! My buddy Don Fowler of Cadillac won the Northern Regional down in Vermillion, OH from the back of the boat.

What happened to Don, and what I suspect happened to Mailot, is that they drew a boater that hadn't had much prefishing time, if any. The boater deferred to their rider's way points and fished their spots. When you fish the big water like that their is very little "back seating" that occurs, simply because of the type of fishing. In fact, it's my opinion, when you're fishing the bottom and doing a lot of drifting with tubes, and even drop shotting, the guy in the back of the boat has the advantage. The back seater doesn't have to worry about the trolling motor, and as the boat pivots in the wind the back of the boat becomes the pivot point and doesn't move as far. This means the line in the back of the boat stays in contact with the bottom and in the strike zone longer.

Here is a link to the leaderboard for that event. The individual anglers are at the top and the team results art at the bottom of the page. Wisconsin won the team event with the Michigan team finishing second. 2010 Northern Divisional - Day Three

Segwaying on the Don Fowler connection, I gave Don a call on Friday and he was at the airport in Flint picking up his son. Don and his son along with his buddy Phil, his brother Dave, and Dave's son, are on up in Canada on a black bear hunt. Don went up last year as well in hopes of filming a trophy hunt. The big bear that had been frequenting the area never did show, but Don did take a good bear.

Don Fowler and his 2009 Canadian Black Bear

There are a couple of things happening this week, starting today that you might be interested in. Number one, and it's something that's ending rather than starting, is that if you want to apply for a doe permit, today is the last day. Here is the link to the Michigan Department of National Resources: Hunting Applications and Drawings - Doe Permit . You can apply for the permit online and the cost is $4.

The second thing you may want to put a reminder for in your phone calendar is that on Tuesday of this week, at 3:00 p.m. the FLW website is going to be conducting a live chat with the winner of the Forest Wood Cup, Kevin Hawk. If you haven't been involved in a live chat before, they are very interesting. You can log on and post your own questions or simply watch and read what others are posting. You can actually submit questions ahead of time and you can also view the transcript of the chat at a later date if you happen to be working for a living and not able to watch it live. Here's the link to the the live chat: FLW Live Reel Chat with Kevin Hawk scheduled for Aug. 17 at 3 p.m. ET . I have been sitting on Nick Vawter's story from the Tear Drop Tournament Trail's final event on White Lake. I resized the pictures a couple of days ago, and I'm ready to format and post the article today. Here's Nick's story:

Vawter and Vawter Get Vicious On White

White Lake Champs and AOY Winners, Nick and Brent Vawter

Story and Pictures by Nick Vawter

The final stop for the 2010 Tear Drop Tournament Trail was August 8th, on White Lake . White Lake is actually the mouth of the White River just off Lake Michigan. Yes, it's considered a swollen river mouth and so you may not by MDNR rules use a drop shot rig. Here's a excerpt from the MDNR rules listing the lakes where drop shotting is illegal: "*Drowned river mouth lakes listed by county: Allegan: Kalamazoo River and Silver Lake; Benzie: Betsie Lake; Manistee: Arcadia Lake, Manistee Lake, and Portage Lake; Mason: Pere Marquette Lake; Muskegon: Duck Lake, Mona Lake, and White Lake; Oceana: Pentwater lake, Silver Lake, and Stony Lake; Ottawa: Macatawa Lake and Pigeon Lake."

Whitehall's recorded history began around 1859 when Charles Mears, a noted lumber baron in the area, platted the village along with Giles B. Slocum. They named it Mears. In 1862 it was renamed Whitehall. The population continued to grow due to its strategic location for floating and distributing lumber. White Lake was later connected to Lake Michigan by a dredged canal. Whitehall nestles on the southwest shore of White Lake.

On the northeast end of the lake is village of Montague. Montague was named by Noah Ferry in honor of his father, William Montague Ferry. Ferry also founded and named Grand Haven and Ferrysburg. Noah Ferry was killed in the Battle of Gettysburg.

If you're interested in fishing White Lake take the Whitehall/Montague Exit off US31. It's just north of Muskegon. Follow Business 31 (Colby St.) west through town. Just after you cross the river you'll see a sign for the Municipal Ramp. Turn left at the first light (I believe it's Waters St.) after the bridge and follow the road around to the ramp. There is a large parking lot with room to launch several boats at a time. They do charge a $10 fee to launch from this ramp. I'm told that it's worth the price. The ramp on the river is washed out and very narrow and you can easily hang your trailer up on it.

Once you launch and leave the ramp, there is a long "No Wake" to the where the river opens up into the lake. There is access to Lake Michigan through the pier heads. Many tournament anglers run to White from the Grand River, and or Muskegon Lake.

If you are fishing the lake and want to get a bite to eat, there are docks just past the bridge, that you can use to eat at "Dog and Suds," an old classic burger rootbeer drive-in.

The Tear Drop Sunday's, August 8th event rounded out a six lake season race for Angler of the Year and qualification into the Classic in which the top ten boats, tournament director, and a wild card draw compete for a total $5,000.00 prize pool (See the flyer on the main page of the teardropbass.com website. The $5K is based on a 25 boat field.).

Sunday morning started off a little unfriendly weather wise for anyone desiring to venture out on the water. The launch is popular for many boaters, bass and salmon fishermen. However, Sunday morning's forecast for winds up around 20 mph out of the south must have left many anglers snoozing and waiting for a better day. It appeared that the Tear Drop boats were the only ones using the ramp.

Because the Municipal Ramp is located at the river end of the lake, the launch area is narrow and buoy lined. Consequently, we all lined up in the parking lot so we would be ready to motor out single file to the end of the No Wake where the launch boat would do its thing.

You can't help but notice the days are getting shorter. The summer solstice, having passed, erodes the long daylight hours, and bright 6:00 a.m. mornings are giving way to dark gray low light take offs.

Dennis held a quick pre tournament meeting, and then we scrambled to get boats in the water. Brent and I launched towards the end of the pack. After I backed Brent and the boat into the water, I began to pull forward and my trailer took a big bounce. Josh Meyers was sitting in his boat launching alongside us and he began hollering. I thought I had either jumped the dock or ran over someone. Josh shouted my tire had fallen off! Instantly, I imagined that I was dragging a one legged trailer. Luckily it was only the spare. After parking and walking back to the dock with Kasey, I told him I hoped this wasn't going to be a bad omen.

As we idled out through the no wake zone far back in the pack, I felt I could tell which gas station everybody bought their boat gas from. Our throats were sore from the fumes. Vision was fading fast, we needed fresh air. As we cleared the long no wake zone we nosed our boat out into the wind to see what White Lake was offering. It was breezy and quite choppy.

When we idled out, the nose of the boat was rocking up and down and wind was whistling through your ears. We were very glad we asked around to see what take off numbers other guys had drawn. With the wind howling, it was impossible to hear the numbers being called out.

We watched as the boats began blasting off, Baker and Evans along with Kaiser and Yeager decided to head back into the no wake zone to fish. Either it was their first choice, or they didn't want to deal with what Aeolus, the Greek God of Wind, was serving up.

We drew take off number eight and knew Mike Mesyar and Rick Skinner Jr. drew seven. We watched them take off and waited several seconds and took our turn. After we got up on plane, the ride wasn't too bad. The waves were close enough that we didn't spear the big rollers coming our way. We looked over to the south, where we had decided earlier would be our first choice to start. We realized we'd take a beating if we started there. We opted to head for our second choice, farther down on the west shoreline in hopes of getting some protection from the wind. We started quickly and put two 2 1/2 pound fish in the box. We knew from perusing the many other clubs fishing results that fish of this size would not win this event. It was going to take bigger fish.

As we were headed down the shoreline, we threw a couple casts at some docks. Without giving you a play by play, we culled out our 2 1/2 pounders, and had ourselves a live well full of big bucketmouths by 9:00 a.m. Our Ardent cull balls totaled about 18 lbs. This was a great feeling. We continued to catch keepers throughout the day, however, fish over 3 lbs. were what we needed to cull, and they were few and far between. What a perfect predicament to be in though.

As we worked our areas back over a second time, we watched a pretty humorous event unfold. Ryan VanDeburg and Doug Hall were fishing the opposite end of a weed flat we had began to drift over. We watched as Doug set the hook on a fish. Ryan was running the electric motor, and we were watching Doug pulling hard. Ryan stood up and then sat down several times as Doug struggled to tell if he had weeds or a fish. At the weigh in, we learned Doug thought he had a fish, then thought he had a weed, then Ryan thought Doug had a fish. Then Ryan netted Doug's fish. It ended up being one of their better fish. The story is one we can all relate to, and it's always funnier when it happens to someone else. I figure we can laugh about it because they sure did.

Brent and I have made it a habit to lift the lids and check our fish often during the day. All morning long all our "riders" were fat and happy. Then about 1:00 p.m., I checked, and we had one fish dead and one fish struggling. I broke out the defibrillator and paddles. If only I had a can of Sprite. (In a recent TV show anglers poured a can of Sprite down the gullet of a bleeding fish. They claimed it stopped the bleeding very quickly. It must be the sugar in the drink.) When we got to the dock both fish had expired. These were the first dead fish we've weighed in this year. This was not how we wanted to finish up. We figured the one pound penalty would cost us a place or two.

We decided to head back to dock early and try to weigh our remaining live fish a.s.a.p. In the Tear Drop rules, you may only weigh up to two dead fish per event. As we sat next to the dock pumping the livewells with fresh lake water, we watched Dan Shine roll into the parking lot on two wheels.

Dan had mentioned that he would try to be at the weigh in and grill up some hotdogs and brats for all his old buddies. He later confessed that he departed late and was in fact speeding just a tad to get to the launch on time. His truck was having issues, and I guess he wanted to have enough momentum to reach the launch in case it broke down on the way.

The normal post tournament chatter began as the smell of the grill wafted the waterfront. The anglers began gathering around the scales waiting to weigh their catch and see how they fared on the day, and there were several teams that were waiting to see if they would be fishing the Classic.

Everybody was making the usual queries as to each others success. We didn't hold back and gave our estimate without hesitation. Usually, I'm the guy who would just say "We did OK, just a limit". But the guys we fish with didn't deserve this kind of coyness.

As I was taking pics of fish during the weigh-in at the docks, I tried to walk back up to see how things were stacking up. Just about the time I'd get up near the scales, somebody would be walking to drop their fish back in the lake. I would have to hustle after them to take some pictures.

The official announcement of the top five places took a little longer than usual because we also needed the official overall standings in order to announce who had made the Classic. Dennis was recording everything on his laptop, which uses the Tournament Pro Software to instantly calculate, not only the tournament results, but the Classic standings as well. There were three sets of teams tied in the 7th, 9th and 11th place slots. The cutoff was going to be close.

While the guys were waiting they moseyed over to visit the hot-dog stand. Dan had potato brats, venison brats, and hotdogs. He had all the fixings ready including chili, onions, condiments, chips, and ice cold sodas.

One Vicious Cookout!

Brats and Chili Dogs helps stave off the hunger pangs.

After a few minutes, Dennis was calling the group over to make his weigh-in announcement.

Tear Drop White Lake Weigh-in

Lots of folks showed up for the weigh-in.

Brent had kept an eye on the weigh-in and we pretty much had figured that we had won first place with 17.63 lbs after taking our one-pound penalty for 2 dead fish. It just sounded better when Dennis read it aloud. We were handed the envelope with $400.00. Brent's' several scouting trips paid off. We had notched our first win as father and son with the Tear Drop.

White Lake Winners, Nick and Brent Vawter

Coming in second place was Rick "The Cement Man" Skinner and Craig "Back up and Dump" Stumbrie with a hefty sack weighing 15.67 lbs. Having made a couple of scouting trips down from Irons, the $200 for second would help defray expenses.

Second Place on White Skinner and Stumbrie

The third place spot went to the Ludington duo of Mike Mesyar and Rick Skinner Jr. Their 14.14 lb. bag of largemouth provided for yet another payday for them. A crisp $100.00 bill.

Third Place on White Meysar and Skinner Jr.

Fourth place went to the BassCat Hudsonville team of Ryan Van Deburg and Doug "I'm not sure what I have on the end of my Line" Hall. That 2.9 lb. weed bass helped them on their way to a 13.48 lb. bag and $40.00.

Fourth Place on White Van Deburg and Hall

Rounding out the final money spot was the Stanley Cup team from Traverse City, Brian Macdonell and Wes Herndon. They got a $40.00 check for gas money with a 13.10 lb. bag of fish.

Fifth Place Herndon and Macdonell, Wes representing The TC Team

There were also the Na-Tah-Ka gift cards that went out to the sixth place team of Jesse Weener and Ross Machiela.

Na-Tah-Ka Gift Card Winners Machiela and Weener

As mentioned, the final season event would determine the Classic anglers and crown the Anglers of the Year. The season ended with Brent and I tied with Josh and Kasey for total points. The Tear Drop rules state that ties in Classic points are broken by whomever has the highest weight in the last tournament. Therefore, it was Brent and I that would be receiving the AOY honor.

Trailing Myers and Kyser by seven points going into this event, I would have wagered vast sums it wouldn't have ended up like this, but everybody has unusually good days, and days when the fish just don't bite your bait. Josh and Kasey made it close especially with Kasey catching the big fish of the day a 5.32 lb. largemouth.

Representing Myers and Kyser, Kasey with Big Bass

Kasey's Big Bass Winner's Vicious Shirt

We have had an extremely blessed season, and I am a rich man for having had the opportunity to spend time in the boat chasing bass with my son. I can honestly say that we began this season with one goal and that was making the Classic. AOY was not even discussed, even right up to the end. So, needless to say, we were shocked and surprised to end up on top.

Another team that is counting their blessings is Dan "The Ice Cream Man" Warner and "Pops" Warner. That lucky duo drew the Wild Card slot.

One team, out of all the teams that fished all six events, is drawn for a trip to the Classic. The Ludington duo were the lucky ones.

I would like to thank everyone that helps to make the events run smoothly especially Dennis, our Tournament Director, and Josh Myers our weighmaster. I would also like to thank all the Tear Drop contestants. Brent and I couldn't ask for a better group of guys to participate in these events with.

Last, but certainly not least, we would all like to thank all the Tear Drop sponsors and especially the host sponsors this week Swaffer's Gateway Chrysler, in Clare , and Timberwolf Furnace Co. in Muskegon . Please check out the flyer that can be found in many northern businesses and online at teardropbass.com. We would appreciate you giving them a chance at your business.

The Tear Drop Classic two-day event will be held August 21 on Long Lake and August 22 on Green Lake up in Interlochen. Remember the off limits begins Thursday preceding the event.

Until then...keep a tight line. Here's the rest of the pictures from Sunday's contest.

Wyoming, Michigan's Brian Tagg

Matt Kaiser

Ludington's Dennis Cook and Bruce Mitchell

Representing Team Brauneck, Jeff Brauneck

The Team of Gary Evans and Dave Baker

Subbing for Harry Swank Ray Dillon with Chris Mieras

Rookie team of the Year, Jack Kowalski and Alan Pike,

I would like to once again thank Nick Vawter for his report on the White Lake tournament and for taking all the great photographs. I'll have the report on the main page under the 2010 button soon.

August 13, 2010

If you're going out today remember to tie your shoes backwards and be mighty careful, it's the ominous and ever foreboding "Friday the 13th."

I've never been a scary movie fan so I don't have any "Friday the 13th" movie trivia stuff to use to set fishing segways up here. I'm a happily ever after movie ending sort of person.

If you read Brian McCarter's story in the previous blog post, all I can say is Brian, you'd better stay in bed, no better yet, get under the bed, and lock the doors buddy.

The first day of the P.A.A. tournament on Lake Norman is in the books.

Lake Norman, North Carolina

E squared, Edward Evers, and Shinichi Fukae, are tied for the lead with 14.96 lbs. Both Evers and Fukae had penalties which dented their weights. Evers was late getting back, costing him a pound and Fukae had two dead fish.

Guy Eaker, who claims Norman as his home lake, finished third with 13.79 lbs. Boyd Duckett was in fourth with 12.87 lbs. Dave Wolak, whom I rode with a day on Pickwick this Spring, is in sixth with 11.32 lbs. My Wheeler, Alabama buddy Matt Herren is in eighth with 10.86 lbs.

The weather, like just about everywhere, continues to be very hot in North Carolina. The anglers on Norman were catching mixed bags of spots and largemouth. The patterns were predictable with some opting to go after the spots deep with a dropshot, while others pursued largemouths shallow.

Fukae, who uses his wife as an interpreter on stage, said he was very, very lucky and hooked a six pounder late in the day to help him share the lead with Evers. Fukae said that he was using only one bait and that was a shakey head. Neither one of the leaders said they were confident about repeating their weights today. We'll have to wait and see what happens.

Here is a link to the Day 1 P.A.A. Leaderboard . If you would like to read the Day 1 story here is what is posted on the P.A.A. site: Evers, Fukae Atop Leaderboard .

Up in Bay de Noc there is a smallie slugfest going on. The B.A.S.S. Federation Northern Regional is fishing the last day of their three day tournament up there. Here's a link to the Day 2 story: Mailot Moves to the Top . Once you go to the link, click on the blue hyperlink at the top of that page for the leaderboard. Michigan's team is in third just a tad bit out of second.

Each state sends a twelve man team to the Regional. The top angler on each team moves on as their state's champion to fish in the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation National Championship. At the National event, the top angler in each division moves on to fish the Bassmaster Classic. Your odds, once you make your state team, are not all that bad. You have to be the top angler on your team after the regional (That's 1:12 odds), and then you need to beat the seven or eight other anglers in your region once you are at the Nationals (1:8 odds). Definitely not easy by any stretch, but it's not an insurmountable feat.

The Michigan Federation State Championship is going to be on Muskegon Lake in September. If you want to compete in a State Championship, you can. You just have to go to the Michigan B.A.S.S. Federation Nation website and follow the application procedures. Who knows. you could be who I end up rooting for in the Classic. (It's probably too late to fish this year's state championship, but read up on the rules and have a go at it next year.)

It would appear that just about all the fishing news is centered on the B.A.S.S. anglers. The B.A.S.S. Northern Open begins next weekend in the Motor City, and the anglers will be using the ramps at Elizabeth Park on the Detroit River.

I've taken off out of Elizabeth Park a number of times to fish Federation tournaments and or BFLs. The ramp is part of the Detroit area parks system. It's a big ramp with lots of parking. The ramps themselves are quite steep and difficult to load your boats from though. You have to be very careful not to power load, not that anyone would think of doing that, because there usually is a sheriff hanging around the docks that will not hesitate to write you a ticket. When your boat touches your trailer the big engine better be off.

When we go over to fish the East Side, and use Elizabeth Park, we stay at a motel in Woodhaven. If you use the Google Map link above you will see that it's not very far from the ramp. There are two hotels there in Woodhaven, a Best Western , (I've always stayed at the Best Western) and right behind the Best Western is a Holiday Inn Express . There is a Knights Inn there as well, but I wouldn't recommend it. The two places I mentioned are where most of the anglers stay at. I'm sure they will be booked solid for this weekend.

When you take off from Elizabeth Park, you are at the south end of the Detroit River within eyesight of Lake Erie. The run from there to St. Clair in the morning takes about a twenty minutes, if you are running wide open. Coming back from St. Clair, especially on a weekend, you had better allow more than an hour for the same run. That river gets hellacious in the afternoon on a busy weekend. The waves get larger that you would imagine they could. The downtown part of the river has high cement walls that cause the waves to bounce off and come back across every which way. They become a mish mash that you just have to grind through. Once out of downtown, it gets better because the shore is lined with broken concrete which helps to dissipate the waves.

If you plan to head to Erie, it's just a short run to the mouth and then it's up to you; you can head out to the main lake to fish rock piles or fish the North Shore. If the wind is from the south, good luck on the North Shore.

If you are a little gun shy about fishing the lakes, that end of the river has some pretty decent smallmouth fishing. It's protected, and will undoubtedly have a bunch of anglers in it if the wind is howling during the Open.

If anyone is interested, I have talked to Dennis, the Tear Drop Tournament Director, about scheduling around Tear Drop events so we can plan a trip or two to the East Side. It would be a just for fun trip, a couple of long weekends where we could fish as a group on St. Clair or Erie.

The big water can be intimidating, but there is security in numbers. However, even though we could or would fish in groups, there are plenty of areas to fish a bunch of boats without feeling the least bit crowded. We'll be working on scheduling some 2011 dates.

One last thing, is an article talking about next week's Northern Open. Here is the link to High Stakes in the Motor City .

That's going to be it for today's blog. The last cast today is a quote from Hellen Keller. Grand Rapids, by way of F.Y.I. was one of the first cities in the country to open a school for the deaf following the oralist teachings of Hellen Keller. Miss Keller once said, "Face your deficiencies and acknowledge them. But do not let them master you." Take care, stay cool, and take some time out of your day if only for a few minutes, to do something that kindles your passions, like reading the blog hopefully does.

August 11, 2010

Another hot and humid day and another day that the yard didn't get mowed, just too hot. I did manage, however, to brave the heat and humidity to go fishing for half a day. Ryan from the Tear Drop called me yesterday and wanted to know if I wanted to go soak a few worms in White Lake.

I met him at his house at 6:00 a.m., and we were headed north. We got to White, and could see a storm headed our way from the west. I had checked the radar before we left, and at the ramp Ryan checked its progress on his cell phone. We had some time before it would arrive, so we launched and fish for about an hour and then had to put it on the trailer as a line of thundershowers moved through.

It wasn't all bad though. We managed to find a restaurant close by serving breakfast. After some pancakes, eggs, biscuits and gravy, splashed with some coffee, we were able to saddle up again and give it another whirl.

There was a pretty good east wind, and you know what they say, "When the winds in the east the fish bite the least." We pretty much proved that axiom today. Ryan did his best to dispel the old phrase and boated two keepers, but they were the only two fish that found their way into the boat.

We fished until about 1:30 p.m. and headed for home. Ryan was planning to use some of his vacation time and would be heading north to Interlochen State Park to prefish Long and Green. He's trying to get a feel for the lakes ahead of the Tear Drop Classic that he will be competing in up there at the end of the month.

Here are a couple of pictures of the largemouth that entertained us today.

A nice White Lake Largemouth

A post breakfast fish

Even though the fishing was tough we had a good time. There are always going to be some tough days on the water.

Speaking of bad days on the water, I was on greatlakesbass.com where I read a post by Nemesis Baits' , Brian McCarter. He wrote a short story about his "Day on the Water" during this past weekend's Wonderland Marine Open . I emailed Brian and asked him if it would be alright to print his story in the blog. He graciously agreed. I can't say that I think you will enjoy his article out of respect for Brian, but I do think if you have fished long enough that you certainly can relate to his story. Here it is from McCarter himself written just after the Wonderland event. "Thought I would share a little of my day with you guys.

Myself, and Jon Jezierski teamed up to fish the Wonderland Open this past Sunday. The tournament went out of Erie Metro Park. Since I have not spent any time on Erie in the past couple years, and Jon was feeling confident about Clair, we opted to make the long run up the Detroit River, despite having a mediocre 3 days of practice.

We made it to the one spot we had that was holding good fish in practice in 1 hour exactly. I shut down and jumped to the front deck. I grabbed the trolling motor cable to drop it in, and it broke which just about put me in the water.

Jon came up to the front to fix it, and told me to get busy with the dropshot rig. I bend down to grab my dshot rod and notice the weight had come off the clip, and the rig was wrapped tight around my other 3 rods. After a 5 minute untangle and retie, I am making my first drop of the day.

We are marking a lot of small arches and the occasional good size arch. Despite my efforts, I am getting no love on the goby. So, after 20 minutes, I switch to the sniper worm. It soaked, and soaked, and soaked some more, but no takers. I decide its time to start cranking so I put down the DS and pick up the big stick.

Jon and I are both throwing the same crankbait, but in different colors. After a few casts, Jon hooks into our first keeper, a 3 pounder. Not a bad way to start I guess, but we will need bigger to compete with the St Clair and Erie stud muffins.

We continue drifting and cranking. Out of nowhere, Jon yells " Dude, the SOCK!!!" I turn to see my drift sock floating 20 feet behind the boat and sinking fast.

Jon had time to get in a couple casts at it with a crank while I turned the boat with the trolling motor, but she sank before he could get a hook into her.

So here we are, 30 minutes into the day and one of our most important tools is making its way to the Detroit River via the lake bottom. My anger level is at a 5. But not long after, I hook into a good fish on the crank. After a short battle, Jon nets our biggest of the day. We didn't weigh it for big fish, but I would say it went between 4.25 and 4.5 lbs. Not a bad number two fish. My anger level dropped to a 3.

We drifted well past our main stretch with no more bites, so we decided to run back down and do a drift in slightly shallower water. Once we got to the next area, not far from our first, I jumped back up front and went to make my cast. All of a sudden, I see my crankbait heading towards the Canadian shoreline at 300 mph. At about the same time I look down to see my brand new spool of fluorocarbondoesn't exploded into a huge tangled mess. Jon had tried to sneak a cast over my shoulder, and I caught is line. My anger level is now at a 6.

I switch spots with Jon since he seemed to like the water up front, and i needed to switch reels and get back to cranking. By the time i was finished rigging, Jon was reeling in our 3rd keeper. This one a little smaller than the last 2 at about 2.5 lbs. We continued drifting at 3 mph and again got out of the fish. So another run into the 3 footers and 30 mph winds was in order. this time, we would drift deeper than our first drift.

We shut down, and again, i make my way to the front of the boat. i fire my crank out and it doesn't hit the water when JJ breaks the news to me. " Dude, the nets gone!" Wow, when it rains, it pours. We forgot the grab the net off the back deck before we took off and now, it too is property of Lake St Clair. How could things get any worse? We are in the middle of the lake with 25 - 30 mph winds and no drift sock. Our primary pattern is throwing big stinkin crankbaits with big stinkin hooks in 3 and 4 foot waves, and we have no way of netting the fish. To top it off, my port side livewell is not holding water and we don't know how long our 3 fish have been sitting in 3 inches of water. My anger level is at an Defcon 8, and to tell you the truth, I'm ready to head in and call it a day. However, Jon gets me calmed down and back to fishing. Fortunately, it doesn't take long to start catching them.

Our third drift fills our limit and culls our smallest fish. Right towards the end of the drift, I have a big one follow my crankbait up the boat and then shoot underneath us. I put the crankbait rod down and quickly grab the DS, and I dropped it straight under the boat. That's when it happened. Being in too much of a hurry, I had left the crankbait dangling over the side and a wave caught it. The rogue wave ripped my $300 setup into the drink. For a brief moment, I could see it as it floated out the other side of the boat, but it sank out of sight rather quickly. Jon took multiple casts in the area with the DD crank, but never made the lucky cast that could have brought my rig back to me. My anger level is now at an 83.

So at this time, I'm pretty much done. I'm so unnerved that I can't even fish! Really, I was completely frazzled.

At that time, we were drifting too fast to dropshot or drag a tube. The crankbait was perfect for 2 reasons. The first being that they were biting it, and the second being that we could cast them out 50 yards with the hard winds and cover a lot of water, despite how fast we were moving.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to get Jon to loan me his phone long enough to call my wife and tell her to come pick me up at Nine Mile, but he won't give it to me. Instead, he gives me his backup crankbait rod and tells me to get busy. Well, I got busy alright. I lost my next 2 bites.

Long story short, we tried a few more spots, and caught a 24 lb. limit of walleyes. It was time to start heading back in.

It took us two hours to get from LSC to horse island in the Detroit River. We looked for a miracle 5 lb. largie bite for about 20 minutes, and then we headed back to the launch.

The line back at the docks was long, and that shallow water weed was clogging up my intakes. Next thing I know, my alarm is screaming, and my overheat light is on. Everyone in the area is staring at us.

I shut the motor down for a couple seconds and then fired it back up, but it was still over heating. I gunned it in reverse a few times, and the light and alarm went off. Thank goodness, we still had another 10 minute idle/wait to get to the dock.

Long story even shorter, we weighed in 16.5 lbs for the day, which was actually 2 lbs more than I thought we had, but it was still a disappointing finish. After weigh in, we grabbed a couple hot dogs, some cold water, and sat down to eat. All of a sudden, my flip flop doesn't feel right. I look down and the stupid little piece that goes between the big toe and whatever you call the second toe is broken. I cant even keep the thing on my foot. Gimme a break.

About the only good that happened during "The Day," was that Wonderland offers $100 for the best fishing story award. Well, there were some good stories told, but the crowd voted for the story of "McCarter and the Day From Hell," as told By J.J. Sniper, to be the best of the five. We took home the check for our troubles. When I walked up to accept the check after we won I added the flip flop part and everyone laughed except me.

So next time you break off a big one, or blow a fuse, or forget your soda in the car; think about your ole buddy McCarter, and how bad bad luck can be, and maybe you will feel better.

In closing, I would like to say thanks to Wonderland for again putting on one of the best tournaments in the state. Thanks to everyone who helps out and makes it happen. Thanks to everyone who voted for our story, I needed the money. I would like to add one last huge thank you to Jon for putting me on the deep crank pattern, which is something I literally dream about catching like that at least three times a week. Have mercy, it really is the most exciting and fun way to catch them."

Thanks Brian for sharing. I'm hoping that writing this piece was cathartic for you! You deserve some solace after a day like that. From experience, I know if one fishes long enough you end up with some similar "situations" that make you want to be dropped off at the bank, and not the one you pay your mortgage at. To your credit, if I can describe it that way, I don't think I've ever heard of that many things going south in just one day though. You had to set some kind of record. Maybe you should just quit fishing and make some of those great Nemisis Baits all day. Nah! Keep making the baits and never stop fishing!

Just a quick piece of news if you haven't heard. Charlie Evans, the CEO, and man with the microphone at FLW weigh-ins, stepped down after 28 years with the FLW organization.

I found the announcement a bit of a surprise. Evans had said while on stage at the Forest Wood Cup just a couple days ago, that he was looking forward to many more years with FLW. It appears that Irwin Jacobs had other plans for him!?!

Another bit of news from the FLW's competing trail, B.A.S.S., is that Eric Bond is the leading the Michigan team in the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Northern Regional up on Bay de Noc. Here is a link to a summary of Day 1's action: Johnson Jumps Into First after Day One: Northern Divisional There's two more days of fishing in the Regional, and lots of smallies to catch yet. We'll have to wait to see on Friday who will represent Michigan in the Federation Nation National Championship. There will be an angler representing each state in the Northern Region moving on to the Championship. There, the other regions will also have their champions all trying for a berth in the BassMaster Classic. Six, or is it seven, will fish in the Bassmaster Classic. The highest placing angler in each region gets a Classic berth.

Check out the archived day by day account, at the very top of this blog page, of Don Fowler's trip to the National Championship a few years back. It is and was quite a ride!

Tomorrow the second tournament in the P.A.A. Trail begins on Lake Norman. You may recall that Tommy Biffle won the first event on Cherokee Lake, TN. Many of the top pros from both the FLW and B.A.S.S. will be butting heads and trying to catch some of the lake's big spots. There undoubtedly will be a bevy of bank beaters as well who will be looking to cash in on a largemouth bite. We'll have to see if it's the dropshotters or the flippers who will reign supreme.

Well, I've let time slip away again as I've intermittently plunked on the keyboard during the course of this evening, and I've pushed this entry composition well into the night. In fact, it's after midnight. Before I the hit the hay, I'd like to be sure that I fulfill a promise to my neighbors Ty and Lane. They went on vacation recently and caught some nice bass. Here's the future of the sport with some largemouth trophies.

Lane with a summer memory on the line.

Here's Ty with a nice keeper of his own.

Congratulations boys! Keep chunkin' and windin' and learn from McCarter to keep an eye on your equipment even in the heat of battle with Mr. Smallmouth or Senior Largemouth.

Take care and try and stay cool. It's suppose to be a scorcher again tomorrow.

August 10, 2010

Oppressive. Kind of a funny word that is often used when the temperature and the humidity levels match. Stifling, might also be a a good descriptor as well , but one way I describe the conditions when it gets this sticky is, "No dear, I am not mowing the lawn today."

We certainly have had a hot, muggy, summer. Having to stay home this summer, more than we've ever had to before, has made us start thinking about getting central air installed. Most years, we've been fortunate to be able to spend the bulk of the summers at the cabin, so we've gotten by without the AC at home. Oh well, I guess having to deal with this heat and humidity is still better than shoveling snow and fishing through an eight inch hole.

Speaking of fishing, as you know the Tear Drop had its final regular event on White Lake this past Sunday. After the weigh-in, Tear Drop Director Dennis, made the announcement that team Vawter and Vawter, and Meyers and Kyser had tied for the number one overall AOY spot. He went on to say that the tie was broken by total weight for the year. However, that was how it use to be done years ago. The new rule, which was published in the flyer and 2010 rule page, stated that Classic Point Ties would be broken by whomever had the most weight at the final event of the regular season. This being the case Team Vawter should have ended up as the AOY Team. Once Dennis realized the mistake, he contacted the teams involved apologizing for the mix up. According to Dennis both teams handle things admirably, and things are once again right in the universe.

Nick Vawter called me, and he was happy either way with their teams performance on the year. He admires Josh and Kasey's fishing prowess, and to be tie with them on the year says something. I know Josh and Kasey would have liked the plaques as well, but they both have several, and Josh must have a room full of them. He's won the AOY more than any angler in the Tear Drop history. He's what you would call a darn good stick!

Any way, Dennis wanted me to post a short piece he wrote concerning the incident. Here it is: "As your Tournament Director, I take great pride in trying to orchestrate a well run event. My goal is to create an outing where every one can have fun while still having a very competitive environment. To do that, we work hard on coming up with a plan and a comprehensive set of rules. Well, I let everyone down.

My apologies to all of our members, but especially to the teams of Nick and Brent Vawter and Josh Myers and Kasey Kyser.

The weigh in at the final event is always a little hectic for me with all the calculations to determine the Classic qualifiers, and I failed to follow one of my key principles, and that is to check and make sure we're following the rules. In my rush to get everyone the results, I assumed that the tie breaker was total season weight, which it used to be. However, this rule was rewritten a few years ago to benefit the anglers who performed the best in the head to head battle at the finish.

Rule number one states that all classic tie breakers will be decided by the total weight of the last tournament. This means that, Nick and Brent Vawter were actually the ANGLERS OF THE YEAR. Congratulations to them!

I have talked to both of these teams, and I must say, we have some of the nicest people in our club. The Vawter's were reluctant to make any waves until I told them that we have to remedy the situation because the rules are written for a reason, and if we didn't follow them, they're not worth the paper they are written on. So, after a few minutes of convincing Nick, I finally got him to agree, again reluctantly. When I spoke to Josh about it, he understood completely, and he had nothing but praise for how well the Vawter's fished during the last half of the season. He said they deserve it. He also said he wished the Vawter's could have gotten the glory at the tournament. Thats a pretty classy statement from Josh. Thank you.

I will be getting plaques made up for the Vawter's for their AOY accomplishment and will be presenting them at the Classic. Again, I apologize to everyone, and I will endeavor to make sure this does not happen again. Thanks to these two teams for being such good people and for always thinking about their fellow competitors first. Thats what makes this sport great." Submitted to the blog by Dennis Cook.

It looks like class being displayed all the way around. It certainly is not always easy to stand up and say a mistake has been made, and I would say Dennis handled things as well as could be expected. Things happen, and when they do it is always gratifying to me when those involved can work through them amicably.

Well how about talking about something fishy. There is a lot of news on the web centering around the recent FLW Cup contest on Lake Lanier, down in Georgia peach country.

I read a Bass Fan article today that had some more information about young Mr. Kevin Hawks victory. It basically reiterated what I had in the blog Sunday. It talked about, and showed his two key baits: the drop shot Roboworm and the Fish Head Spin. It also talked about how he had maxed out his Lowrance GPS with brush-pile coordinates. (I wonder if he knows he can buy a bigger SD card).

Hawks talked about how he had the most success drop shotting when the sun was high. On the cloudy days, it was much tougher for him. He said he ran about 50-60 brush piles each day looking for active fish. Here's the link to the article: Cup Winning Pattern Hawk Maxed Out His GPS Storage, Ran Hard .

If you have been following the Cup contest and or reading the blog, you are aware that the FLW, in the form of its CEO Irwin Jacobs, made what Jacob's described as two bombshell announcements during the last two days of the contest. One was that Walmart was coming back as a major sponsor and the other that T. Boone Pickens, was joining him as a partner. If you want more specifics on these really important developments you can check out these two releases on the FLW site: FLW Outdoors announces long-term title sponsorship agreement with Walmart , and the T. Boone Pickens becomes partner in FLW Outdoors .

It really makes you wonder how all this will shake out in terms of money for anglers, Federation support, etc. It has to be a good sign, but again, how will it affect the two major tournament organizations competitiveness. How well will B.A.S.S. be able to stand in there and compete for anglers.

B.A.S.S. recently announced that it too was shaking things up with its tentative deal to sell the organization to a group headed by Jerry McKinnis. In my August 4th blog, I discussed that deal. I guess only time will tell as to how everything will all work out.

I did read an article about Ray Scott's reaction to the McKinnis sale. Ray feels it is the right move at the right time, and that he's sure that the new group will be just what B.A.S.S. needs. Here is the article with the Bass Boss's take on the new deal: Scott Fired Up, Just Like The Very First Days .

I've talked before of my once in a lifetime trip to spend the weekend at Ray Scott's house. He is quite a man and worthy of all the accolades that he's acquired. If you ever get the chance to read his book, Bass Boss , I think you should. It's a very good read and full of a lot of bass fishing history.

My buddy Don Fowler, past Michigan B.A.S.S. State Champion, got an invite to Ray's, and I got to tag along to fish against Ray and Don Cochran, former B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Director.

Don took a bunch of video of our conversation with Ray in his living room after dinner. I'm going to be editing it soon and making an iMovie DVD.

I have made a DVD of Don's victory at the B.A.S.S. Northern Regional on Lake Erie at Vermillion, Ohio. I was telling Tear Drop angler Jesse Weiner that I have it when I saw him Sunday. Jesse was also a member of Michigan's team during that regional, and I thought he might like a copy of the DVD.

One last item today kind of dovetails my fish care discussion of a few days ago. I was reading on Dan Kimmel's Great Lakes Bass site about a group of guys that were haveing a good time on an outing with their kids on a reservoir in Idaho. Jokingly, one of the men push another out of the boat. Not realizing the man couldn't swim, there was some panic as the men tried to get the guy back on board. It ended up that all four adult men onboard were in the water, and it appears at this time, that all the men ended up drowning. If things could be worse, there were a number of their children on board who witnessed the whole affair and drifted for a long time before they themselves were rescued.

Trouble can be on you in an instant, and it behooves us all to refresh ourselves when it comes to safety. Mr. Kimmel put a link up on GLB that takes you to a MDNR website that has some very good and important safety information. It is an excellent site to sit down and explore with your children. You all then would be up to snuff on how to be safer in and around the water. Here is that link: The Handbook of Michigan Laws and Responsibilities . Well that's going to be it from me today. Have to get over to my mother's to fix a leaky faucet. If you're within a four block area of 28th St. and Burlingame, make sure you put in earplugs. I pride myself in controlling the language I use, but when plumbing is involved, all bets are off.

The final cast of the day is a quote from Clark Moustakas. Dr. Moustakas is one of the leading experts on humanistic and clinical psychology. He once said, "Accept everything about yourself - I mean everything, you are you and that is the beginning and the end - no apologies, no regrets." Good advice. Having taught handicapped children all my life, I often gave that kind of advice. How you were born is a matter you can't control. Moving on from there, however, is entirely within your control. You have to play the cards your dealt, I'm a firm believer in that. Take care, and make sure you take some time out of your work day to do something that puts a smile on your face. It's good for the soul, and it may even involve a little filet of sole.

August 8, 2010

Forest Wood Cup news and Tear Drop Bass Finale info is coming to you today on the blog. The Forest Wood Cup crowned its new champion today at about 5:30 p.m. The young man who won the event is a Californian by the name of Kevin Hawk. Kevin made the Cup qualifying out of the National Guard West circuit. Once he qualified he move to Buford, Georgia to be close to Lake Lanier where he would compete for the Cup. Looks like the move paid off in a big way. He won $600,000, but didn't collect the additional $100,000 for being Ranger Cup certified. Hawk runs a 2005 Ranger, and as I said, he's a young kid, and he probably lives rather meagerly and couldn't afford a newer boat. He fished the FLW Tour this year as a coangler.

Prior to today, the purse for winning the cup was $500,000 with an additional $100,000 Ranger Cup money. However, Irwin Jacobs, made as promised, his second "bombshell" announcement which affected the total purse. Yesterday he made his first announcement stating that Walmart was back as a long term major sponsor. Today, Jacobs announced, that his buddy, T. Boone Pickens, was joining him at FLW as a partner.

Pickens is a billionaire that has been in the news because of his plan to help America wean itself of Middle East oil. Pickens, toward that end, has entered into a plan to develop wind turbines. Jacobs is partnered with him in developing and or producing the turbines. There wasn't too much information on exactly how their new partnership would work or how it will effect the FLW Tour, but it would be safe to say that there is a high probability that even more cash will be infused into the FLW organization, i.e., Pickens wrote a check to the winner of the Cup today for $100,000! That's what brought Hawk's total winnings up to $600,000.

Coming in second and winning $100,000 was Cody Meyer, third Larry Nixon took home $85,000, forth was Brent Ehrler winning $60,000, $50,000 went to Troy Morrow, and $45,000 went to Ronald Hobbs Jr.

Hawks said that he relied on two lures to capture the title. One of the baits was a Albino colored Fish Head Spin . He used a white Zoom Super Fluke Jr. with the Fish Head. The other bait that Hawk used was a 3/8 oz. dropshot rig with a Morning Dawn Robo Worm . Hawks strategy was to try to run as many brush piles as he could. Lanier is inundated with man made brush piles on most every point and hump. The fish would be suspended above the piles. He was catching his bigger fish from his areas on the Fish Head.

It didn't take long to have stories pop up on the net. I checked around 11:30 p.m. and BassFan had this story, The West Rides Again: Hawk Swoops In For Kill, Claims Cup . On the FLW site, they had this article: Hawk Claims Championship Title at 2010 Forrest Wood Cup .

There will undoubtedly be many more articles in the next few days giving us the scoop on how the other anglers caught their fish. The Cup finale will be aired on the Versus Network on October 10 at 12:30 p.m.

Today I limped over to White Lake in my truck that still has something going on in the rear end. So far it has held up. and I hope my mechanic calls me back tomorrow so I can get whatever is wrong taken care of. At White Lake in Montague, the Tear Drop anglers were competing in their final regular season event. I miss seeing the guys, and I was glad that I was able to go over and take my grill and cook them some brats and dogs. Today's results and the Cumulative totals indicating who made the year end top ten Classic are up on the main page under "Rules and Info."

I was busy burning dogs and didn't hear the weigh-in final results today so I had to check the link above as well. My good buddies the Vawter Boys took first place! These guys have been on fire this year. Second place went to my B.A.S.S. travel partner Rick "The Cementman" Skinner and his back seater net man Craig Stumbrie. (Rick told me to say it Craig)

There will be a White Lake story and more pictures up soon. For now here are a few shots I was able to snap from today.

The Tear Drop White Lake Weigh-in

The Meyers' Clan Show of Support

Rick Skinner and Craig "Back Up and Dump" Stumbrie

Doug Hall and Ryan Van DeBurg

The Tear Drop White Lake Chili Dog Social

Well, it's 2:02 a.m., and I have to get up at 7:00 a.m. so it looks like I'd better hit the hay. Take care, and make sure you take time out of your work day tomorrow to do something that puts a smile on your face. It's good for what ails you.

August 7, 2010

I'm sitting at the keyboard this morning, after doing some surfing of the net, listening to an audio program on ESPN where they are interviewing KVD. I see the program is about 25 minutes long. It's basically discussing KVD's season and how things went down in the recent B.A.S.S. AOY Toyota Tundra Trophy Chase. One of the things he is talking about is how he tries to make the best out of his bad days, if Kevin really ever has bad days. He likens it to a NASCAR race where sometimes you end up on a given day driving a tenth place car. It's not what you want, but recognizing what you have to work with that day is critical to doing well over the long haul. The goal, when that happens, is try to take that tenth place car and finish say seventh. Don't try to take it to the front and wreck it trying to do more than you can and end up losing all the points. It make sense. In any contest there is only one winner. The odds of you winning are stack against you, but how you handle each trip out is critical. Here's the link if you have time to listen to the interview: Q & A With KVD .

I'm trying not to chew any gum while I listen to KVD's interview, and also try typing today's blog. I got KVD coming in through the ear buds, while I'm reading the on the water FLW Forest Wood Cup info., and typing. Pretty good for an old man. Now if I could only chew gum and walk...

The on the water boat has "The General" Larry Nixon at 11:03 with 4 fish. As you may recall the 30 anglers today are trying to put themselves in the top six in order to be able to fish for the title tomorrow.

I'll probably have this blog up all day so I can add to it as I follow the FLW pros. Here's the link if you want to get a tiny bit of info from their: On the Water Blog .

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, I had breakfast with Gary Evans and Nick Vawter yesterday. Gary is the webmaster for the Shoreline Tournament Trail. He asked me if it would be okay for them to run the blog on their site for a while, and I said OK. One of the things Gary was chatting about on that site was fish care. You know I had some info recently on that topic right after Aaron Marten's fiasco at Lake Jordan where he added too much ice and killed some fish costing him probably around $60,000.

Like with any subject, there are lots of different views on livewell tips. Some argue that hydrogen peroxide is harmful, some say to add this or that, or that you need to buy aeration or oxygenation systems. There are pros and cons with all of it I'm sure, but the bottom line is that there are things anglers need to do to properly care for the resource once that fish is in the boat.

As you know, I Marshaled two B.A.S.S. events down in Alabama this year. I won't name names, but two of the anglers I rode with sorted their fish by laying them on the carpet. I've seen and heard about people doing this, and yes I have had fish flopping on my carpet that have come out of the net or fallen off the hook as I landed them. I think we can all agree that having them flop on the abrasive carpet is not a good thing. Toward that end, I feel we all should be using some type of culling system that calls for weighing each fish as soon as possible and limiting the number of times the fish need to be handled so they don't end up on the carpet.

I have heard good things about the Ardent Smart Cull System , and I plan on switching over to it soon. For $40 it's a very easy to use management system. Ardent Smart Cull has round floats that attach to the fish via a cable. The floats themselves have dials that you rotate to register the fish's weight. It is easily read in the livewell, so you know at a glance which fish is which.

One thing I use when weighing fish is miniature weigh bags by Bag-Em . They're 12x18 inch bags with a nice grommet that the hook on your scale goes through. The fish don't flop off the scale, and the bag keeps them calmer cutting down the amount of handling. I really like mine, and I feel they really save me time, and more time means more casts.

I would hope everyone knows not to lift big bass by their jaws without supporting them under the body. Years ago, I fished a state federation championship and drew Scott Moody who runs Auburn Hills BPS aquarium. He says one of the biggest reasons for bass mortality after fish are released are broken jaws. He says you can easily snap them by lifting a bass by the lip without supporting its body. Once broken the fish will slowly die.

Once your fish is onboard, measured, weighed, and put in the livewell there are some other things that can be done to protect the catch.

With the heat that the dog days of summer brings, anglers can often help their catch by icing their livewells. Some say that when the water temperature reaches 65-70 degrees and others say 75 degrees that you should use ice. However, you must be sure that you don't use too much and drop the temperature by more than 5-10 degrees. If you do you'll end up like A-Mart with floaters.

Another thing concerning ice is to try and get ice made from water that doesn't contain chlorine. If you live in the city you probably have water that has been chlorinated. If you have well water you should be okay. To be safe, always use Please Release Me (This link will take you to a short video that will give you some great fish care tips). As well as providing other benefits that increase fish survival, Please Release Me removes chlorine.

Two other often mentioned items that are added to the live well are salt and hydrogen peroxide. If you watch the video from the Please Release Me link above, you will learn how to determine the size of your livewell, so you know exactly how much salt and hydrogen peroxide to add. Too much is not a good thing.

Bass secrete ammonia through digestive wastes and through their gills. To lower ammonia levels, every three hours you should drain half of your livewell water and then add fresh lake water and reload with your chemicals, remembering to use only half as much.

Discussing fish care is like updating your CPR skills. It's just a good idea to do on a regular basis.

Well I am getting ready for the FLW Forest Wood Cup live weigh-in . It's just minutes away from beginning. Irwin Jacobs just got done announcing one of his bombshells that he promise were coming during the event. Jacobs got up on stage and announced that Walmart is back as a primary sponsor. Walmart is bringing their brand sponsors like Land-O-Lakes, Folgers, etc. back as well. These endemic sponsors will be wrapping anglers boats as well as providing financial support. There are a lot of FLW pros tap dancing on decks of their boats!

Jacobs claims that this contract with Walmart is a multi-year deal indicating Walmart was back for the long haul. That certainly will monetarily infuse the FLW Tour substantially. Maybe we'll see the Cup prize money back up to that cool million where it has been.

Well the F.L.W. Cup third day weigh-in just concluded. Michigan's Chad Pipkens finished, eighth or a place or two either way, on the coangler side. Congratulations Chad. On the pro side, Brent Ehrler is in first with 39-03, Cody Meyer is in second with 38-11, Larry Nixon is in third with 37-07, Kevin Hawk is in fourth with 36-01, Ron Hobbs is in fifth with 35-03, and the last angler to make the top six cut is Troy Morrow with 35-01. Only 4-2 lbs. separates the top six. Should be an exciting finish tomorrow. It's really anybodies game at this point.

Well that's it from me today. Good luck to all the BBT anglers and the Tear Drop anglers tomorrow. I'm planning on bringing the grill and some dogs to the Tear Drop weigh-in. Maybe I'll see you there.

August 6, 2010

The FLW anglers and a spattering of pros from other circuits are on the water as I type competing in the second day of the $500,000 Forest Wood Cup. I wonder how those guys get themselves psyched up for a tourney where the first prize is a measly $500K? Being a tad bit facetious here, but I'm sure it is probably just the opposite. They probably have to really calm themselves down and try, and I'm sure it's easier said than done, to tell themselves it's just another tournament.

Reading the first day reports, it appears that the temperatures are still in the "Broiler" range down in Atlanta. The forecast calls for some reprieve through the night in terms of temps. They're calling for overnight temperatures in the 70s and daytime temps in the low to mid 90s.

The Cup battle is on Lake Sidney Lanier, named after a Georgian poet by the name of Sidney Lofton Lanier. One of Sidney's poems that he's well known for is called "The Song of the Chattahoochee."

Lake Lanier was formed from a 1950's Army Corp of Engineers project. They built a series of dams on the famed Chattahoochee River. The lake was opened to the public in 1957. It's located 48 miles north and east of Atlanta. Check it out on Google Earth .

I missed the live weigh-in today, but checking just after they finished, I see where Cody Meyer from Grass Valley, CA is the Day 2 leader with 27-06 lbs. Meyer nearly won last year's Cup in Pittsburgh.

Larry "The General" Nixon, my sentimental favorite, is in second with 26-02 lbs. Tied for third are Jason Christie and Jason Meninger. Fifth place is held by the Day 1 top dog Kevin Hawk, another Californian. Sixth place is held by a pretty good stick by the name of Brent Ehrler. If you're interested to see who all made the top 30 cut today, here is the link: Day Two Results, Forest Wood Cup . Tomorrow, the field is cut to six anglers. Unless someone finds the mother lode, ounces will probably separate the group.

Reading a bit of what the FLW had up on its website, it has been pretty tough fishing for a bunch of guys. J.T. Kinney's brush pile pattern went north on him today. Kinney was in 3rd place after Day 1, and after Day 2... he dropped to 19th. Ouch! Here is a good read recapping Day 2: Quick Bites: Forrest Wood Cup, Lake Lanier, Day 2 .

I have been waiting for the two big announcements that FLW CEO Irwin Jacobs says he's going to make at this year's Cup. Some speculate that one of those announcements is that there will be a unifying championship next year between the FLW and B.A.S.S pros. Very interesting. I'll let you know when or if I hear the big news.

Today, I had breakfast, or I should say I sat and watched Nick Vawter and Gary Evans eat breakfast. I had to fast this morning for a procedure I had schedule in the afternoon. I had a great time. It's always a good time talking fishing with good people like Gary and Nick. Hopefully we can make it a regular event and all are welcome.

Thursday, I went fishing with Gary in his BassCat Puma. Man, you talk about a sparkly! It's a beautiful boat.

If you haven't be privy to the story, Gary and his partner Dave "Not Doug" Baker won the boat in the Bass Cat Owners' Invitational down in Mountain Home, Arkansas. To win the boat, all they had to do was end up number one in a 630 boat field! Not 630 anglers, which would be a tad bit more than a host of fishermen, but it was a 630 boat mega tournament, and the vast majority were southern boys with a history on the local waters. Who would have thought that two northern boys had a snowbirds chance, but lo and behold they came, they saw, they conquered! Here's a picture of the boat, along with Gary and Dave on stage with Mr. and Mrs. "BassCat" Pierce.

Bass Cat Owners Invitational Winners Gary Evans and Dave Baker

Gary shining up the Cat

While we were out fishing we ran in to Tear Drop regular Matt Kaiser and his wife Mindy. Hopefully I have Mindy's name right. I'm terrible when it comes to remembering names.

Matt Kaiser and his wife Mindy on a prefishing trip to White Lake

The Kaisers looking for where the big ones live.

Matt is currently sitting fourth in the Classic standings, and he looks to be a shoe in for the Tear Drop grand finale.

Before I wrap up today's blog, I need to make some amends. I recently posted that Brian's Sealcoating was in Montague, and it is actually in Manistee. Sorry Brian. Here's the info. on his business: Brian's Superior Sealcoating LLC, 5756 Pine Creek Road, Manistee, MI 49660-9126. You can reach him at 231-723-6482. If you're in need of such services, please give Brian first shot at the job.

The parting cast of the day comes from basketball coach extraordinaire, John Wooden. He once said, "The most important key to achieving great success is to decide upon your goal and launch, get started, take action, move." I think advice like that is something that could buoy many a folk. Take care and just one more work day in this week.

August 4, 2010

Good morning! Yeah, I guess it's still morning. The big news of the day is the announcement that ESPN has a preliminary agreement to sell B.A.S.S. to a private group comprised of Jerry McKinnis, Don Logan and Jim Copeland.

You may recall Jerry McKinnis from his long running fishing show called, "The Fishin' Hole." Recently he has been working for ESPN producing shows for them. He's been on the Bassmaster TV show a number of times as well as a guest commentator.

McKinnis has partnered up with Dan Logan, who is an avid bass angler who lives in Birmingham, Alabama. Logan has been in the print media business for years and was CEO of Time Inc. He also oversaw a little company called, AOL Time Warner.

McKinnis and Copeland are good buddies with George Bodenheimer, who is President of ESPN and ABC Sports. Supposedly there was a gentleman's agreement between Bodenheimer and Copeland that if ESPN decided to sell B.A.S.S. that Copeland would be the first to know.

Jim Copeland and Don Logan met while working in New York. Logan was a lawyer and Copeland was work for Time Warner. They say that they were the only guys that talked funny (Southern drawls) in New York and became fast fishing friends.

Copeland is described as a "financial star," and he's best known for being the former CEO of an international financial services firm called, Deloitte. He's still on the boards of three different Fortune 500 companies.

It looks like a pretty solid investment group with the right type of experience to manage an organization like B.A.S.S.

ESPN is still going to air the Bassmaster TV show, but where the rest of the organization will head is still uncertain. McKinnis is promising to run the organization with a lot of passion and says, "This is not all about bass-fishing tournaments. It just has to be more than that, and we have to get back to that."

That's the kind of statement the local guy likes to here. It has been the local clubs and state federation that initially drove B.A.S.S. and brought it to its prominence. Let's hope that the sale will infuse the sport with some new energy drawing more anglers into the fold. If you would like to read the whole announcement article here is the link: "BASS Will Be Sold: McKinnis, Logan, BASS Discuss Pending Sale" .

While we are still on the topic of B.A.S.S., I recently read another story written by award winning outdoor writer Don Barone. Don wrote a very well done article about the Wounded Warrior outing that the B.A.S.S. Elite 12 participated in before the Lake Jordan AOY event. Here's the link to the story: " ... Oh Beautiful ... " .

Coming from across the aisle, so to speak, is the FLW kickoff tomorrow of their Super Bowl event, the Forest Wood Cup. Day one's live weigh-in will begin at 4:00 p.m. ET. For a look at other online possibilities check out this link: FLW Live .

Yesterday my son, and his friend Josh, and I, went to White Lake and put the boat in around 5:00 p.m. We fished until dark.

I've never been to White before so we just went fishing. We started on the south shore about half way down the lake. We started shallow and worked deep throwing a variety of baits. We didn't have a lot of action, but did catch three largemouth with the biggest being around 3+ pounds.

My son with a White Lake keeper.

White Lake , Me, Fish

Not having the boat out in a long time, I was very pleased with how it ran. I'm still having issues with my front graph. The unit only shows it's receiving 8.7 volts. Every time I start the boat the unit shuts off. That's a real pain. Not so much for the sonar function, but the GPS and mapping comes up at some random spot, and you have to scroll in and find the lake and then scroll in to your spot on the lake. Do that 10 times, and it doesn't become any fun at all.

I posted a thread of my graph woes on greatlakesbass.com , and I got a bunch of help. The best connection was from Gary Evans from the Tear Drop. He said that he had to run a dedicated wire from front to back in his Puma for his new Humminbird, and he offered to give me a hand doing it on my boat. Being mechanically challenged, I am going to latch on to that offer.

Gary's offer was the good news, the bad news was on the way home from the lake yesterday I started getting a noticeable clunk when the truck shifted from first to second and second to third. I'm going to have to get that checked out. You have to have some confidence that your boat will run and that your truck will get you to the lake and back. I'm feeling better about the boat, but now the truck looks like $$$$ to me. Oh well, it's only plastic.

I called Munson hospital today to see if I could talk to Harry Swank who had back surgery and then open heart surgery there just days ago. They told me he had been discharged, which is surely a good thing. Keep him in your prayers for a speedy recovery. The Tear Drop anglers will miss his presence this coming Sunday on White Lake.

The parting cast of the day is a quote from a sports legend, Vince Lombardi. I thought with football camps starting up he would make a good choice for quote of the day. I've used this quote before, so if you remember it just bare with me. Vince once said, "The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur." I like that quote. Especially because, winning doesn't happen all that often. Some of the Elite anglers haven't won a tournament in years. Despite that, they still come out with a positive attitude and work as hard as they can to maximize the chance that they will win the next one. Really that's all you can do, and more importantly you have to learn to feel good about your best effort and not just the winning aspect of the game. Like my favorite Longfellow quote that I use as a tag line in my emails says, "Not in the clamor of the crowded streets, nor in the shouts and plaudits of the throng, but within oneself lies victory and defeat." Have a great Wednesday, trash day for me.

August 2, 2010

I am up late after a long day, and I just finished converting Nick Vawter's Portage Lake article. So here it is. I'll have it on the main page soon.

2010 Tear Drop Tournament Trail

2010 Portage Lake

Pike and Kowalski Put The "B" In Bass Fishing.

Sunday, July 25th the Tear Drop anglers made their fifth stop of the Tear Drop Tournament Trail at Portage Lake in Onekama. They say Onekama, in native Indian tongue, translates to "Portage". Preceding the Village of Onekama was the settlement of Portage at Portage Point. It was first established in 1845, at the western end of Portage, at the outlet of Portage Creek. In 1871, when landowners around the land-locked lake became exasperated with the practices of the Portage Sawmill, they took the solution into their own hands and dug a channel through the narrow isthmus, opening a waterway that lowered the lake by 12 to 14 feet, bringing it to the same level as Lake Michigan. When this action dried out Portage Creek on 14 May 1871, the settlement, which had only the week before been designated as Onekama with a Post Office under that name, moved to the previously submerged land at the northwestern shore of the lake near an earlier settlement called "Brookfield".

In 1880, the first public buildings were built in the new village. These included the Pierce Grist Mill and The Gilbert Brothers' Saw Mill. In 1882, the first school was built next to the present-day Congregational Church. In 1883, a large summer hotel, The Glen House, was built near the Glen, with its three mineral springs that were believed to have medicinal value. The village was incorporated in 1891 and included the earlier settlement known as Brookfield. This incorporation created a long narrow village about 1.5 miles long with the business section on the former lake bottom and residences on the higher land. In 1889, a branch of the Manistee and Northeastern Railroad was extended to the village. In terms of early Michigan villages it had hit the big time. Not nearly as classy as its southern neighbor Manistee which in the late 1800s had more millionaires than any other area of the country! True story!

Before I go to much further, I must apologize for not getting this story composed sooner. I'm on vacation this week, and it seems that I have more available time to work on writing a follow up to the tournament when I'm working.

For years, most Teardrop anglers look forward to getting to the Portage lake section of the schedule. At this point in the season, I like to study the numbers, work the math, and calculate what to expect from the lakes and other anglers previous successes. I for one really appreciate the time and effort Dan and his support staff put into maintaining the website. Before each tournament, I find myself perusing each year's results from his archived tournament articles. For the past few years, I've personally saved each individual tournament results along with the AOY standings after each tournament takes place. I've calculated from this that a team needs a minimum average of 51 points each tournament to make the Classic cut. All this calculating doesn't mean a whole lot. You really can't totally control your fishing success nor predict the success of others, but it helps size up the competition and builds the excitement for our on the water contests. My hunches for Portage Lake were only about 50/50, so much for all my paper work.

If you read Dan's blog from the weekend you know Brent and I met him for breakfast Saturday morning. At breakfast, Dan gave us a couple new Vicious hats to wear for good luck, and a couple packs of Vicious soft plastics to try out. That all worked out pretty well for us, and we are going to meet him again before the final tournament on White Lake in hopes of some lucky Vicious shirts, pants and shoes.

Let's forego statistics, predictions, and superstitions and get down to talking about what really happened out there Sunday July 25th. I checked the weather seven days prior to Sunday's tournament, gazing sourly at the ten day outlook. It called for a high probability of rain nine out of the ten days. Sunday was being forecasted as the only nice day.

You usually figure a Michigan forecast, that far out, to be exactly the opposite by the time that day rolls around. Amazingly though, the weather was true to the prediction.

You have probably read about our poor luck when it comes to drawing for a blast off number. Well, Brent and I must have paid our dues as Brent drew the number two position for takeoff. It just happened that no one drew number one giving us the first take off slot. No one drew number one because there were more numbers in the hat than there were teams. Dennis never knows exactly how many boats will show up and just puts a given number in the hat.

Sunday morning was one of those beautiful northwest Michigan dandy's with a five mph north breeze. Larry King was running solo and launched the boats off. Leaving first we headed to one of our favorite spots and were left alone for the first hour. We boated three keepers during the first sixty minutes. I say "we" however, those first three fish were boated by Brent which meant I would be making a roast beef sandwich around mid day for him. Once again, I had lost or lunch making bet.

We observed guys running and gunning pretty early on. That usually is an indication that people aren't catching fish. Matt Kaiser and Dave Yeager fished past us around 9:00 a.m., and we both had 3 fish in the box at that time.

You kind of figure 5 1/2 hours should be plenty of time to bag two more keepers, but the action just died for us both as the day bore on. Just as we were parting company with Matt and Dave, Brent boated our fourth. We felt we had fished the area out, so we headed to a spot that Brent had picked out as our number two spot. After about three casts in this spot, I had my first and only keeper of the day. A nice 3 1/2 lb. largemouth. We drifted back over that spot and Brent culled two fish out and replaced them with two in the 3 lb. range. That would be it for us for the remainder of the day. It would have to do.

Coming back in to the launch at 2:30 p.m. you could see some disappointed faces. At first, I thought it was because they only had twelve to thirteen pounds of fish. That's not an uncommon Portage day. But to my surprise, and to many others, it was a tough day on the water and many had no where near that amount.

I heard comments that Allen Pike and Jack Kowalski had a super day, but that news was interspersed with references to some uncommonly poor results from some of the Tear Drop stalwarts. Allen and Jack put a hurting on everybody.

Pike and Kowalski had found the "mother lode." They brought in a very nice bag of mixed fish weighing 17.15 lbs. This was one of the biggest sacks of fish caught on Portage in quick awhile. They also had big bass of the day which I think I heard Allen say that they had two fish that were tied at 3.82 lbs. Their accomplishments won them $400.00 for 1st place, $160.00 for big bass and a bunch of extremely valuable Classic points. They advanced from 11th in the Classic to a solid 5th. Congrats Allen and Jack!

Taking a Vicious 2nd place was my favorite team, Vawter and Vawter. The new hats and Vicious plastics were the lucky charm. We had 14.99 lbs. of bucket-mouths. Our finish provided us with $200.00. It would come in handy since we had to replace a bag of tackle that was swiped from our boat a few days earlier. Josh kiddingly has offered to sell it back for fifty cents on the dollar.

Nick and Brent Vawter

Third place was the team you always find in the money. Josh Myers and Kasey Kyser. They had their limit by 7:00 a.m. The 13.50 lbs. of fish placed a cool $100.00 in their pockets and the points they garnered pretty much locked them in to first place in the race for AOY with a very nice SEVEN point lead. I capitalized SEVEN because Josh was trying very hard to slide an extra point in between his boat and us. Like he needs the extra points.

Kasey Kyser, Josh was weighing fish again.

Fourth place went to a team that I had picked early on to win money on Portage. Like I mentioned, I reviewed the previous articles, and a name that kept popping up as a money winner on Portage was Mesyar. Mike Meysar and Ricky Skinner came in with 13.37 lbs, just 2 ounces behind Josh and Kasey to secure a fourth place finish and $40.00.

Ricky Skinner Jr. and Mike Mesyar

Fifth place went to a team that is just a little down on their Sunday luck this season. Manistee's very own Fred and Jeff Brauneck. Jeff has been stacking up the money when he fishes with his bride on the week nights. However, Jeffery says he can't seem to get dad to kick it in gear. Fred and Jeff brought in the final double digit bag weighing 12.78 lbs to make for a $40.00 check and also the Na-Tah-Ka gift cards.

Jeff and Fred Brauneck

If you read Dan's blog from the weekend you know Brent and I met him for breakfast Saturday morning before this tournament. Dan gave us a couple new Vicious hats to wear for good luck, and a couple packs of Vicious soft plastics to try out. That all worked out pretty good for us, and we are going to meet him again before the final tournament on White Lake in hopes of some Vicious shirts, pants and shoes. We will be meeting again for breakfast August 6th, if anybody wants to join us. Read his blog for place and time.

The final tournament in the series will be August 8th on White Lake. Upon conclusion of that event an announcement of the top ten teams that will be fishing the Classic will be made. There will also be a wild card drawing. All those teams that are not in the top ten, and have fished all six 2010 tournaments, will have their names placed in a hat and one lucky duo will win a spot in the Classic. As delineated in the Tear Drop Rules, the tournament director has an automatic berth in the Classic. That will put 12 boats on the water to fish for a share of the Classic Jackpot. If you're in the Muskegon/Whitehall neighborhood August 8th stop on in and watch the weigh-in. They're a lot of fun.

Before I sign off I'd like to recognize this week's sponsors, Brian's Superior Sealcoating in Manistee , and the Na-Tah-Ka on Big Bass Lake . Be sure to check out the Tear Drop flyer found in many of the businesses in Michigan's Great Northwest Corner. You can also view it as a PDF file on the main page of this website. Give it a once over. If you are in the market for the goods and or services offered make sure you give these much appreciated sponsors a chance at your business.

Until then...keep a tight line.

Tournament Director Dennis Cook's partner Bruce Mitchell

Rick "The Cementman" Skinner

Hudsonville, Michigan's Ryan Van DeBurg

Ludington's House of Flavors Ice Cream Man Dan Warner

Jesse Weener

Dave Yeager

Traverse City's Brian Macdonell

July 31, 2010

As I started the blog entry for today, I noticed I again forgot to change the date on the last entry. Oh well, it's fixed now.

I also noticed that mi amigo de Texas volando bajo de la pesca, Nick Vawter has his Portage Lake story ready for me to convert to the web. I'll work on that today, hopefully, and see if I can't make it the first entry for August. His other articles can be found on the main page under "2010."

I have a problem with that button for those articles. When you click on it the text is white and there is no orange background fill to make it stand out, so it is very difficult to see. You have to wait until the slide show in the background is dark to read it. I'll be working on fixing that soon. It sounds like a simple fix, but due to the fact that my son sets that up, and uses a program I don't have, I am at his mercy as to when he gets it done. I have asked him about it before, and he said it's a platform issue, meaning on some browsers the background fill shows up and on other it doesn't. When you do a webpage what you see on your program page isn't always what shows over the net.

We all need to be channeling positive thoughts today and chanting a KVD, AOY, KVD, AOY mantra today. Kevin is leading after the first day on the Alabama River and goes in to the final day with a three pound lead.

Last weekend they fished Lake Jordan in Alabama in the first week of the Chase and KVD finished third behind Aaron Martens and Russ Lane. Skeet finished a distance tenth, but because of his phenomenal record breaking season he still sat in first place going in to today.

Kevin has to have some help in order to pull off the upset and claim his sixth AOY title. (Roland Marten is the only angler with more AOY titles than Van Dam with an amazing nine AOY victories.) In order for KVD to win the AOY crown, he would have to win today and have Reese finish no higher than third. Reese goes in to today in second, but only has a two ounce lead over third place Aaron Martens and a 12 oz lead over Edwin Evers. So, we need to be rooting for KVD and for Martens or Evers to eak ahead of Reese.

The weather for the Montgomery, Alabama area is suppose to be brutal today. Air temperature of 100 and heat index 108-113!! That's going to mean their fishing for par boiled fish!

The Live Weigh-in on this final day won't be until 7:00 p.m ET.

I am going to upload this much of the blog and then add to it as the day goes along. Before I do though, I wanted to make sure everyone put Harry Swank on their prayer list. Harry, has fished the Tear Drop and a myriad of other tournaments for many years. He has been having back problems and went in for surgery. The back surgery, from what I heard went well, but the next day, while in the hospital, he had a massive heart attack. They have him in a medically induced coma. It sounds like it's going to be touch and go so please add him to your prayers.

As I said above, I'll be adding to the blog as the day goes along while I'm following the AOY contest.

Well KVD won the AOY trophy he says nonchalantly. What's up with this guy? If I was Skeet Reese I would consider opening up a restaurant or something. You got to feel for Reese, even though I was hopeful and chanting KVD mantras.

Van Dam now owns six AOY Championship trophies. He is three behind Roland Martin who had nine. Winning the event today gives him 19 career wins which ties Roland for most career wins. KVD has now run away with the career earnings title. He's amassed close to five million in tournament winnings! He really is as some call him, the "King Kong of the fishing world." Unbelievable! Congratulations KVD and way to represent our great state!

If you're interested here are a few of the early stories out summarizing the tournament: "Past Becomes Present: VanDam Bests Reese At Montgomery Once Again" "VanDam Wins Sixth AOY" .

Not only was KVD's win great news, but Rick, Craig, and I think Kasey went up to Munson Hospital in Traverse City and visited Harry Swank. They felt Harry could handle the open heart surgery so they brought him out of his medically induced coma and operated. Rick says that he is obviously in some pain after two major surgeries, but he was conversational and Rick felt he looked good. We'll certainly continue to keep him in our prayers.

Well that's going to be it for today. Don't forget that at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow, you can watch the first leg of the AOY Race on ESPN2. Yes we know who wins, but it's still great to see all the footage of how it all went down.