July 1, 2010

The Elite Series postseason is going to kick off soon, and it was my goal at the start of the season to be in these two events. I thought that if I made it, I would have an excellent chance to do well with the two events being in Alabama on water I know pretty well.

Unfortunately, I didn’t make the top 12. I’m glad to have qualified for the fifth year in a row for the Classic, but I’m a spectator for the postseason tournaments that will ultimately decide the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year.

I also think I’m in position to do a little analysis. I should start by saying I believe the favorite is the obvious choice: Skeet Reese. Skeet had a great season — another great season, I should say — and he has a pretty solid lead in the points race.

The lead isn’t so solid that he can’t be caught, especially considering the accelerated points system in the postseason, Skeet could actually have two solid events and still not win AOY. For example, if Kevin VanDam was to place first in both events — and everybody on the tour knows that’s possible — and Skeet finishes a respectable fourth in one event and fifth in another, KVD wins AOY.

If that happens, BASS might want to take a hard look at how the postseason is set up. I’m not saying one way is better than the other, but the question is this: do we want to have a season-long points race or do we want to have a regular season that essentially is just a qualifier for two final playoff events?

Again, Skeet had a phenomenal year and put himself in an enviable position. He’s out front. But he’s not a lock, because every one of those 12 anglers can catch them. Edwin Evers is a great angler, and he’s not far behind. He probably has the best chance to catch Skeet just because he’s closer than anybody else.

Cliff Pace always seems to be in the hunt. He flies a little under the radar, but he’s been solid for years. Derek Remitz and Terry Butcher had really good years, and John Crews was lights out most of the year.

You’ve also got some solid veterans in Tommy Biffle, Gary Klein, Greg Hackney and Aaron Martens. They know how to fish those Alabama waters.

I also think Russ Lane will have a couple of good tournaments. He’s on his home water. He’s fished those bodies of water 50 times more than almost anybody in the field. He’s got a long way to go catch up, but I think Russ will do well.

But back to Skeet and KVD for a minute.

There’s no doubt that they are the two stars in our world. They are to us what Magic and Bird were to the NBA a couple of decades ago. We’re all trying to reach Skeet’s and KVD’s standard. I’ve said recently on several occasions that Skeet’s the best angler in the world right now but if he is, KVD is a close second. It’s been interesting to me this season to see how many people — particularly media guys — have discussed the subpar season that KVD has had. But that only goes to show what a standard he has set. I mean, look at what he did. He had two wins, including the Classic, and he finished in the top five again. It’s tough to do much better than that.

It should be an interesting postseason. I still wouldn’t bet against Skeet, though.

June 24, 2010

At the end of every Elite Series season, I take a look at what went right and what went wrong with my performance. And, looking back at this past season, that kind of analysis is easy.

There was good news on one hand and bad news on the other. The good news is that I earned a trip to the Bassmaster Classic for the fifth year in a row. I’m pleased with that. There aren’t a whole lot of anglers that can say they’ve made five straight Classics.

I was able to do that because — when the pressure was on — I caught fish. I had to have two strong finishes at Kentucky Lake and Fort Gibson Lake. I did that. I started Kentucky Lake outside the Classic cutline and finished 19th there. I was 12th at Fort Gibson to move up to 25th in the AOY standings.

The Fort Gibson tournament was especially nice. When the high water on the Arkansas River forced BASS to move the event from the river to Fort Gibson, we were on a reservoir nobody was prepared to fish.

What struck me about the Fort Gibson tournament was that we were all on a level playing field, and the cream rose to the top. There were exceptions, because a few terrific anglers had bad tournaments. That happens. However, generally, if you check the leader board after that tournament was over, look at the names in the top 20 to 25. Those are some sticks. Did you see, for example, Skeet Reese and Kevin VanDam and Gary Klein on that list? Yes. They were all in the top 12 as a matter of fact.

That was a fun tournament.

But back to analyzing my own performance for the year; whereas I was happy to finish 25th in the standings and make the Classic again, 25th is not where I want to be — and I can thank two lousy tournament performances for not finishing in the top 12. I understand a lot of anglers can probably say the same thing: “If I had done better at this tournament or that tournament, I would have had a much better finish.” But in my case, I had an 88th-place finish at the California Delta and 73rd at Smith Mountain Lake. I had no chance at the top 12 after those performances.

On a tournament trail, consistency is the key. All tournament anglers know you’re not going to be on your game every week. There are just too many factors involved. Take my tournament at Smith Mountain Lake. That’s a place I’ve fished well in the past. I’m comfortable there. But I got in a bad rotation on the water and nothing worked. I had good areas, and I knew where the fish were. There were only so many bites to be had, and I was always in the wrong place at the wrong time.

As I said, that kind of thing happens. I wouldn’t change my approach there if I had to do it again tomorrow.

The point is you have to overcome obstacles and be consistent. I could have made adjustments at Smith Mountain that might have helped me finish in the top half of the field. If I had finished 40th at Smith Mountain and the Delta, instead of 73rd and 88th, I’d be fishing in the postseason.

You have to be consistent, and you have to address your weaknesses.

I’ve used the following example several times. I think Skeet Reese would be the first to tell you that a decade or so ago, he wasn’t even close to being the angler he is today. Comparatively, he just couldn’t catch them. But he did something. I don’t know exactly what he did, but I know for sure that he eliminated his weaknesses. One by one, he overcame the things that were holding him back, and the result is he’s now the best angler on our tour.

That’s my challenge. Get more consistent. Eliminate the weak events.

June 17, 2010

I was excited about this tournament Elite Series tournament yesterday, and I’m still feeling good.

As you’ve probably read, we’re fishing on Fort Gibson Lake with only one day of practice. The Arkansas River was just too high, so they moved the event at the last minute, but that was a good call.

It wouldn’t matter where we were fishing, I’ve got to catch them because I’ve got to secure my spot in the Classic. I need to stay within the cutline, and if I have one more good day of fishing I’ll be in.

I had more than 16 pounds today, and that was good for 12^th. I would have been in the hunt for the lead if I had been able to bring in a couple of them that got lost in the brush.

I fished it today the way I knew I had to. I got back up in the river beds and found them. Mark Davis and Russ Lane were in there with me, but we all got along fine. We were up in the skinny part of the river. The water was stained and there was some current. I know how to maneuver in that kind of water.

It’s a fun tournament and it’s exciting because of the change in the format. It’s our last pressure day of the season, and, as I said, I just have to catch them one more day. If I catch them tomorrow, I’ll secure my place in the Classic. I don’t even have to catch them good, I just have to catch them.

It’s no surprise that Tommy Biffle is in the lead. It’s his home lake. He didn’t even practice on the one day we had to practice and I don’t blame him. If the Elite Series held an event in Demopolis, I wouldn’t practice, either. I wouldn’t want to show anybody my spots.

Today, I just went out and got some fish on flipping bites. I don’t really know where I’m going, but I’ll approach it the same way tomorrow.

The way it stands now, there will be about 50 guys out there who caught them and will stay with what they have. The rest of them will be looking for new stuff, so tomorrow we might have some company.

This is fun.

June 17, 2010
Fishing without preparation

By the time you read this, the Elite Series anglers will be doing something we don’t get to do often — almost never, in fact. We’ll be fishing on a body of water we haven’t prepared for. Tommy Biffle and a few others from around here know this water, but for the most part, all the pre-practice everybody had done on the Arkansas River is down the drain. There is no local help; there are no waypoints to rely on. It’s just old-fashioned fishing.

I like it. I’m confident. Great anglers can catch them when they have to, and I’m going to have to do what great anglers do.

I think BASS made the right call by moving this event from the Arkansas River to Fort Gibson Lake. They had the floods not too far from here, and it’s bad on the river. I was in my boat the first day of practice on the Arkansas River, and I’ve never seen so much trash. I hit a line of trees so thick that I literally couldn’t cross the river.

Changing venues like this threw us all off, but it was the right thing to do. This is going to be fun — I think.

We had one day of practice — actually not even a whole day, because we had our anglers’ meeting that took up part of the day. During the practice time on the lake, I ran the whole thing, doing very little fishing. I didn’t have a lot of success, but we’re all in the same situation.

From what I have seen that’s available on the Internet, it’s supposed to have some pretty good fish. It’s heavily stained right now, so that will come into play. I also know there should be a deep bite, but I didn’t find it because I didn’t know where to go.

My plan early in the event is to go up the river because they’re pulling water. I’ll put myself in that environment because it’s one I’m familiar with. After that, we’ll just see how it goes.

It’s no secret that a lot anglers are nervous because there are plenty of people on the cutline. In my case, I need to make the cut to make the Classic, so this is by far the biggest event of the year for me.

So again, I’m going to catch them because I have to. We’re in a pressure-filled event, and it’s going to be hard. Obviously, I can’t guarantee that I’ll fare well, but I think it’s going be interesting. I like that.

It’s good to have a couple of days at Kentucky Lake where you catch them. I was concerned coming in because I was pretty close to the cut line for the Classic. I am in 40th spot in angler-of-the-year points, and I need to move up a couple of places.

Today, I’m sitting in 15th place in the tournament and feeling a little better. As I’ve said in this blog several times in the past, I wish I didn’t have to scramble at the end of the year. But I’ve had to do it three years in a row now. I had a couple of bad early tournaments and put myself into a pressure fishing situation.

But the past two days have been solid. I have a spot on this lake. It’s a ledge that I like. And it’s possible that when this even is over, the spot will have saved my butt twice. In 2007, I won the Ultimate Match Fishing title on the same spot. I beat Kelly Jordon, one of our Duckett Fishing pro staffers, by fractions. And I won that title on the ledge I fished at today and part of Wednesday.

It’s a crowded spot, and I couldn’t get there on Wednesday until about 1 o’clock. But by the end of the first day I had 16 pounds, 4 ounces and I was in 33rd place. Today, I had an early launch and got to the spot as quickly as I could. I ended up with more than 21 pounds today, and that was good enough to move me up to 15th.

The fish are deep, but they’re out there. And I’m heading for the same area tomorrow.

June 9, 2010

But something else has also been on my mind lately, and that is the mess we’ve got in the Gulf of Mexico.

This blog space is probably not supposed to be a forum for political ideas or national issues, so I’ll try not to do this often. But I just can’t believe that we are looking at the possibility of seeing the destruction of the Gulf of Mexico. We won’t truly know for five or six years, but the Gulf could be gone as a fishery.

Several things coming out of this oil spill disaster are obvious. One is that our ecosystems are fragile. They’re certainly way too fragile to see as much as a million gallons of oil a day dumped into any body of water, no matter how big that body of water is. And that’s what was happening up until about a week ago.

Crude oil is not like refined oil. It has more chemicals. We have dolphins floating up to the surface. It just doesn’t get much worse that that.

You know, diluting chemicals is what we did back in the sixties and seventies. No matter how bad a substance is, our solution was to dump our waste and chemicals into the river because we figured the water would dilute them. And we’re still doing it. It seems like we might not be treating this oil spill as a big problem because people have the idea that this will be OK in time. It will dilute. Well, maybe it will and maybe it won’t. But right now all that contaminated water is just lurking out there. Mostly it’s staying off the shore, but for how long?

There’s no doubt that BP is responsible. And they will pay. But the thing that bothers me even more than what BP did is the response — or lack of it, I should say — that is coming from our government. Let me explain what I mean by that. I understand that we have a lot of problems in this country, and we’ve got a lot of issues that need to be addressed. But we’ve also got access to the greatest minds and the greatest problem solvers in the world. So why couldn’t our government have sized it up on the third or fourth day, not the 30th or 40th day, that we’ve got a catastrophe on our hands?

Why couldn’t our president have said: “OK, we’ve got a problem that needs to be solved right now. Sometime later, we’ll sort out whose fault this is. The lawsuits can be filed later. But right now, and I mean right now, let’s fix this problem. Let’s pitch in together. I don’t care who did it, let’s clean this mess up.”

I’m not blaming any specific administration. It wouldn’t be right to point fingers just at the Democrats, because we saw the same thing from a Republican administration after Katrina. Then and now, the government seems to only care about pointing fingers and protecting its image. Meanwhile, the problems keep getting bigger and bigger. What good is being politically correct when you’re not doing anything to fix the problem?

I’ll throw out one example. After the earthquake in Haiti, within hours our government had committed a billion dollars in assistance. I’m not saying that was the wrong thing to do. I’m just saying that it looked like the right thing to do, and that’s what our government did.

I understand that the problems in Haiti and the Gulf of Mexico are different. But they were both serious. We’re looking at the possible destruction of one of the primary bodies of water in the world. Who knows what the economic impact of this oil spill will be? So what if, in this case, after the third or fourth day, our government had sized up the problem and committed a billion dollars of our resources to help fix it. You think that might have done some good? You think that might have saved the Gulf of Mexico?

Maybe.

And let me ask another question. What if this weren’t the Gulf of Mexico? What if we have a huge toxic spill in the Tennessee River or the Ohio River? You think our government will act quickly? I know I don’t have a lot of confidence.

One last thing. I don’t want people to think that I think it’s the government’s responsibility to fix all our problems. It’s not. In fact, I want as little government interference in my life as possible. But what I am saying is this: BP is a private company; they’re in it for profit. The BP’s of the world are going to make mistakes. But when they do screw up, why can’t we work together to fix the problem before we start deciding who screwed up and what the punishment should be?

I think the government should be our grandfather, the guy we can call on to help when there is a problem that’s too big for one company to fix. We should be able to trust our grandfather.

Our government has the resources to be that grandfather. The government shouldn’t run our lives, but we pay a ton of taxes. In return for those taxes we pay, we have a right to expect the government to step in and help when there is a problem that’s too big for us. And contamination of the Gulf of Mexico is way too big for BP.

It seems to me that we’ve lost our way. Fixing problems doesn’t seem to be a high priority anymore.

I hope the Gulf survives.

May 27, 2010
The best kind of fishing

First of all, it’s rare to get a chance to fish a tournament close to home. If I were a local angler, I wouldn’t want Elite Series anglers coming onto my turf. I understand that. But I can fish a local event in Demopolis because it’s where I live. I know all of the anglers who will be in the tournament, and they understand that it’s a great opportunity for me to be able to fish there with William.

It’s certainly great to be part of the Elite Series. Just about every week on the tour is exciting, challenging and usually fun. But for sheer enjoyment of the sport, nothing beats fishing a tournament with your child.

I have three kids. There’s William and his brother Jack, who is 12. My daughter Anna Belle is 9. Jack and Anna Belle aren’t so much into fishing, at least not now. But William is getting into the local tournament scene. He’s placed at a few events, and he was proud of that. I’m proud, too.

As I said, the best kind of fishing is with your child, but we on the tournament trail have to be especially careful how we bring our kids along in the sport. In William’s case, he’s developing at his own pace. I like to encourage him and teach him, but I’m also trying to give him some room to see things for himself. Some things he will just have to experience first-hand before he’ll fully grasp them.

Most anglers, at all levels of competition, seem to be like me — they’re proud of their kids and they’d like to see them fish competitively. But there’s always a temptation to push them, which creates a risk of seeing them burn out early.

Although we want to teach our kids, I think most of us on the tour are conscious enough not to put much pressure on them too early. You know how most kids are. When the temperature is in the 90s, spending 13 hours on the water in that kind of weather can work on their enthusiasm. When the enthusiasm is gone, so are the “teaching moments.”

On the other hand, it’s outstanding to see the kids of some our Elite Series anglers as they start to make their way into the competition level of our business. I’d love to see William continue to fish tournaments and get better and better, if that’s what he wants to do.

But for now, all I know is that on Saturday we’ll be fishing together in the Kiwanis tournament, and I’m happy about that.

Speaking of being proud, I have to congratulate Jason Williamson on his victory last week at Clarks Hill. This is Jason’s second win in two seasons, but it’s his first win as a member of the Duckett Fishing pro staff.

Terry Scroggins, another Team Duckett member, placed third at Clarks Hill.

We’ve had plenty of opportunities this year to have the Duckett Fishing white MicroMagic rods on television. Byron Velvick won the Clear Lake tournament in California, so we have two wins under our belts.

In addition to their strong finishes at Clarks Hill, Jason had a second-place finish at Smith Mountain and Terry was fourth there.

I have one top 12, a ninth-place at Clear Lake, and a 15th place finish at Pickwick. I have a feeling that Kelly Jordon is going to get into a groove soon and finish strong.

Overall, there have been six Elite Series events, and Team Duckett has two first-place finishes. Not bad.

May 14, 2010
First there were Dance and Martin and KVD, now there’s Skeet

In fact, I could almost start and finish this blog with one sentence: Skeet Reese is the best angler in the world.

I have said on many occasions that Kevin VanDam, a friend and a person I respect immensely, is the Tiger Woods of our sport. Of course, I’m probably not the first and certainly not the only one to have said that. It’s almost a cliché now. KVD’s longtime consistency and his ability to come through time and again under pressure make him the closest thing we’ve got to Tiger Woods.

But staying with that thought, Tiger Woods might not be the best golfer in the world right now. It’s probably Phil Mickelson. It doesn’t mean Tiger’s finished or that he’s even struggling, it just means there’s somebody out there better.

And right now, in our world, Skeet Reese is the man.

That’s not rocket science. In fact, it’s kind of obvious if you look at the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points race. If I’ve got my facts right, Skeet could take his boat out on Clarks Hill next week and “zero” in our tournament, and he’d still be the points leader. That is amazing.

What’s also amazing is the way Skeet’s doing this. He’s done it in river water, big lakes, creek beds, shallow, deep, rock ledges, open water. There’s nothing the guy can’t fish. And like all the truly great anglers, he’s intense and focused — but he’s cool under pressure.

I’d like to point out that as early as 2007 I said that Skeet was looking like the best angler on tour because he was becoming so consistent and so versatile.

And since then, he’s only gotten better.

In our sport, like all sports of passion, there are people who follow the pros to see who’s on top. And it’s fun to watch players (in our case, anglers) reach their peak and dominate. In bass fishing, a lot of us thought there would never be another angler to accomplish the things Roland Martin and Rick Clunn did. Then along came KVD.

And now we’re seeing greatness again. Skeet has had five top fives in a row. Great as he still is, Kevin’s never done that.

Who knows how long this will last? But it’s fun to see what Skeet’s doing, and it’s an unbelievable challenge right now for us other anglers to try to beat him.

But here’s one more question. Out there in the Elite Series field, is there a next great dominant angler? And, if so, who would that be?

Well, who knows? Maybe Iaconelli will get on a roll. Or maybe Alton Jones will hit another streak. Maybe one of our Duckett Fishing guys — Terry Scroggins, Kelly Jordon, Byron Velvick, Jason Williamson or Pete Ponds — will find a groove and start dominating. Terry and Kelly have been pretty close to that in the past.

Or, since this is my blog, maybe the next one to dominate will be a businessman from Alabama who starts spending a little less time on business and a little more time working on his fishing game.

That would be sweet.

Although it’s early in the season, I’m under pressure to do well at Pickwick. So a good first day was what I needed. Fortunately I got it. Ninth place with a 17 pounds and 11 ounces.

There are a lot o f fish in this lake. Everybody on the water caught a limit today. But like almost everywhere we go, it’s all about getting on to a big fish or two. I had two today. I caught a 5-pounder and a 4 and a half. I got one with a hollow belly swimbait and another one sight fishing.

I’ve got several patterns going, and it looks like the pattern might hold out. I hope so.

We’re looking at some stormy weather tomorrow. Should be interesting. 

The Elite Series is at Pickwick Lake in northern Alabama this week, and this is one of my favorite areas of the country. This part of Alabama is famous for two things near to my heart: good music and good fishing.

People my age (getting close to 50) who have followed the music business know something about the history of Muscle Shoals, which is close by and where some of the anglers are staying.

There are a couple of great recording studios in Muscle Shoals. People like Aretha Franklin, Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Allman Brothers have all spent time recording here. The studios were hot back in the ’60s, and they’re still in business, making recordings for all types of music.

But this week it’s fishing on one of the country’s great fishing lakes. There are a lot of fish in the lake and it’s a good time of year, so I doubt that catching a limit is going to be much of a problem. Size might be, but finding enough fish probably won’t.

I wish I could feel really good about this week, but it’s hard to feel completely confident about tournaments these days.

I don’t like to talk too much about why I don’t feel as confident as I’d like to feel. When I actually say the reason out loud, it sounds like an excuse, and I don’t want to make excuses. But the truth is I’m spending too much time these days working my businesses and not enough time fishing.

The good news is that business at my truck-leasing operations is good. And my new business, Duckett Fishing, is also going extremely well. People seem to like the microguide rods we’re making, and that’s gratifying for all of us at Duckett Fishing.

But the bad news is that being so busy with Southern Tank Leasing and Duckett Fishing hasn’t helped my fishing career. I’ve had two awful Elite Series tournaments and one good one. It’s time for another good one.

More than anything, I’d like to be a fulltime angler. For example, I would love to have been at Kentucky Lake last week getting in some practice time before our cutoff date hit. But it just wasn’t in the cards. No matter how important it is to fish well at Kentucky Lake, there was just too much going on with the other businesses to get away.

But, hey, we make choices in life. So I’m going to have to make the best of my practice days and hope things turn out well.

Fortunately, I’m pretty familiar with Pickwick, so it could be a good week.

Sometimes, though, I just wish I had a few extra days. And I also wish all these other anglers around me weren’t so good.