Smallie smashin’ time!

I’m in a really good state of mind going into the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship this week on Michigan’s Bays de Noc.

I’m in a really good state of mind going into the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship this week on Michigan’s Bays de Noc. I’m always mentally prepared for the challenge of a Bassmaster Elite Series event, but this week will be fun for me.

That’s because there’s very little pressure on me, as opposed to the regular-season events. I’m mathematically out of the running for AOY, so I’m fishing with a little different objective than the guys who are still in the hunt.

I’m coming into this tournament in 11th and hope to win a little more of that AOY money. Naturally, I want to win, just like the other 49 guys fishing this event, but without the prize of that AOY title on the line, I’m actually expecting to have really fun time fishing.

I’m kinda fishing my own tournament in my head. It’s not like the regular season events where I have to balance that ongoing calculation of points and the goal of qualifying for the Bassmaster Classic. Thankfully, my win on Dardanelle locked up the Classic spot, so when the tournament starts this week on Bays de Noc, I’m not going to worry about fishing conservatively. I’m going to go out there and do my best to catch ‘em good each day and just push my season finish as high as I can.

In addition to the AOY standings, this tournament also offers me sort of a down-the-road benefit in terms of gaining knowledge and experience on waters I’ve never fished before. Since I don’t fish up north that often, I’ll be using this event to learn and prepare for the future.

I think that’s another reason I’m looking forward to this event as a fun tournament – almost like a mini-vacation week. It’s the adventurous nature of fishing these big water venues. I like fishing open water and I do a lot of it back home in Oklahoma, but these northern lakes give you a lot more to work with – and a lot more to consider.

I’m just hoping the wind doesn’t blow too terribly. I definitely like an adventure, but I’m also realistic about safety. There’s no question, you have to respect these big waters. That’s why I prepared in advance.

In addition to my Mustang inflatable PFD, I brought the old traditional zip-up life vest just for peace of mind in the big water. I also brought a 5-blade prop for better performance in rough, open water. I also brought extra bungee cords to strap down my trolling motor and anything else that might want to rattle or shake loose while I’m running through those big waves.

From past experiences on big water, I know that you have to secure everything. You really can’t overdo it with these precautions because if you don’t get there or you don’t get back, you can’t weigh your fish.

The other think that will be different about this tournament is that I’ll get to put a spinning rod in my hand. I’ve never had anything against this, but with the schedule of events I typically fish, spinning rods and finesse tactics are just one of the productive options and I usually end up going with a different technique.

But on the Bays de Noc, drop shotting will very likely be the dominant deal. I’m looking forward to this because Yum has a line of new drop shot baits and I’ll be using one called the Kill Shot. It’s a short, stout body bait with a flat tail and a raised vertical tail ridge for maximum motion.

Now, even though I think the drop shot will account for a lot of the fish caught this week, the great thing about these northern fisheries is that they give you a lot of options to fish deep or semi-shallow. With the Yum Kill Shot, along with a Bomber crankbait and a One Knocker Spook, I think I can do pretty well. I love catching smallmouth and I hear this place has a bunch.

Coming off the Bass Pro Shops Northern Open presented by Allstate on Lake St. Clair last week, I really didn’t do a lot of research prior to this event. However, I think that just contributes to the relaxed feeling I’m carrying into this event. It’ll be kind of like a painter with a new canvas and I’ll just fish hard and react to what I encounter.

I’ll be very serious in my approach because the name of the game is finding as many spots that hold fish as you can. But you just need one good spot. On these big water fisheries, you can win a tournament on one core area if is holds the right fish.

Hopefully, in a week I’ll be telling you about a good finish at the AOY Championship event, but regardless of how that one turns out, I’ll definitely start sharing details about my two primary offseason activities – deer hunting and basketball.

I’ll be spending a good amount of my time preparing for next year a day at a time by working on my equipment, talking to sponsors about new products and laying out my travel plans. But after a full season of tournament fishing, I need to rest.

My ideal relaxation will be sitting in a deer stand during the day and watching my daughters’ basketball games at night.

But first, I have a date with some big smallmouth.