As a veteran pro angler, Edwin Evers has long known how to break from a pre-tournament game plan and successfully adapt to changing conditions. Evers has had to do that recently in an area where he’s a rookie – the “Healing Heroes in Action Tour,” powered by OPTIMA Batteries.
“It has worked out great,” Evers said. “The next one (at Lake Guntersville, April 13) is really going to be special.”
It will be significantly different from the first of these events, which was held March 14, the Saturday before the Bassmaster Elite Series tournament at the Sabine River. And that one differed greatly from the original plan. Evers has been able handle various scheduling problems and, in the process, tweak the format for the better.
“Not only will you get to compete head-to-head with an Elite Series angler, me, it will be streamed live on the Internet (for three hours),” said Evers about the Guntersville event. “Your buddies can watch at home. I might be getting my butt kicked, but whatever happens, it’s going to be available for everyone to see.”
Bass anglers interested in learning how the Elite Series pros fished the previous four days on Guntersville will also get a treat: During the 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. live stream on Bassmaster.com, Evers will analyze the winning patterns from the tournament, which will have concluded the previous day.
“I think this is going to be very cool,” Evers said.
There’s still time if you and a friend would like to be part of this event, fishing against Evers and U.S. Army veteran Jake Whipkey of Boswell, Pa., the WWIA member selected. Bidding closes at noon (CDT) on Monday, April 6. Bids can be submitted at Evers’ Facebook page. As of mid-afternoon Friday, the top bid was $1,250.
“My goal was to raise about $2,000 for each of the five events, so I could donate $10,000 to the Wounded Warriors In Action (WWIA) program,” Evers said. “The prize package alone would retail for probably $2,000, plus you get a great on-the-water experience and a chance to give back for the service provided by our veterans who have been injured in action.”
Giving back to military veterans has been Evers’ primary goal since he began putting this program together two years ago. OPTIMA Batteries, one of Evers’ main sponsors, “stepped up in a big way,” he said, which allowed the “Healing Heroes In Action Tour” to begin this year.
After the Lake Guntersville event, three more are scheduled in conjunction with Bassmaster Elite Series events: May 30 at Paris, Tenn.; July 25 at Waddington, N.Y.; and Aug. 8 at Cecil County, Md.
For more information, and to post a bid, visit Edwin Evers Facebook page.