Monday, January 21, 2008

The Big Show


Things have been rather uneventful this Winter for the Ichthyophile. After the tournament season ended I put up all my tackle and dusted off the duck hunting gear. We've had an average season I'd say. Some days were downright boring. We finally got some good COLD temps here the last couple of weeks which has at least made it feel like duck hunting weather. The season will wrap up on the 27th and then it will be time to start thinking about how I can improve on last year's fishing season. That starts with looking at maps and deciding where I can put brush piles to help attract some better fish to certain areas.

Another thing I've decided to do this year to improve my knowledge and skills is participate in a REAL professional tournament. The B.A.S.S. Elite tour series is making a stop on Kentucky Lake this June. The Elite series is the name given to the organization's major annual tour. Each tournament consists of the top 100 professional anglers from the previous year or who have met certain career criteria. With those 100 pro's will be 100 co-anglers; one of which being me. The tournament is a 4 day event. After the first 2 days the field is cut down to the top 50 pro's and top 50 co-anglers. Day 3 is the co-anglers' final day. The winner of that will receive a brand new, fully rigged bass boat, retail value approx. $45k. Not too bad. The most important thing I want to gain from this experience is just that-experience. Each day I'll be paired with a different pro who may fish a different style or different pattern. I hope to learn how they think and how they evaluate certain conditions and the decisions they make accordingly. There are a lot of anglers I'd love to be paired with and as long as I don't get stuck with this guy I should have a great time. If you remember back in June 2006 I posted my thoughts on his behavior. Let's hope I'm spared the "pleasure" of that experience.