We talked about some of the fishing aspects of competing in the Elite Series last week but now it’s time to talk about the schedule and a couple of other things.
Editor’s Note: Read Part 1
Qualifying for the next level is one thing. Being successful at the next level is another. Most of the Opens for each division are in the same geographical area. Maybe you don’t have a lot of experience on one or two of them, but they’ll all fish mostly the same. That couldn’t be farther from the truth in the Elites. The difference between venues is like night and day.
Our first tournament is in Tennessee on Cherokee Lake in early February. It’ll be cold, in and out of the water. The lake is deep and clear. I don’t know where the fish will be when we get there, but I’ll guarantee you they won’t be anywhere like where they’ll be when we get to Lake Okeechobee in Florida two weeks later.
If you think that doesn’t matter or that those adjustments are easy to make, you’re in real trouble. Deep and clear isn’t shallow and murky. Cold isn’t hot. Florida bass aren’t Northern Strain bass.
And, it might be better to fish in a pair of jeans and a shirt than it is in long underwear and a stocking cap, but the adjustment isn’t as smooth as you might think. It can get in your head and make you think things that aren’t right.
Did I mention size? Cherokee is about 30,000 acres. You can run it easy enough. Okeechobee is measured in square miles, 730 of them to be exact. It doesn’t run so easy.
Your mindset is what it’s all about at this level. Everybody fishing the Elites can fish. We’ve all won big tournaments and are respected in our hometowns. That’s why we’re here. The winners will think about the tournament every waking moment. They’ll use every trick in the book. There’s no slack at this level, and that brings me to some other things like time away from home and money.
Time away from home can be an issue if you and your family aren’t used to it. I’d suggest that you agree in advance when and how often you’ll be calling home. You can’t keep making call after call. You have tackle to redo and maps to study before you go to bed — every night.
While you’re at it you might want to have a plan for what happens when one of the kids gets sick, the car breaks down or the furnace quits. Make sure everyone’s on the same page. Somebody’s going to have to take care of those things besides you. You have fish to catch.
That’s just at home, though. On the road you can expect the unexpected. You will have truck trouble, boat trouble or equipment trouble at some point during the year. That’s a fact. You’d better have a plan.
Who are you going to call for help? How are you going to pay for those things? And please, don’t tell me you’ll do it from your checks. There isn’t an angler alive who can tell you he won’t miss two or three checks in a row. Depending on earning a check from any individual tournament is crazy.
What I’m saying to the true rookies who are now joining us is that this is a business, a full-time business. Deal with it that way. Your goal should be to build a successful career. If it was to make the Elite Series, go home. You’ve already made it.