LA CROSSE, Wis. — Nick Trim is one of only a couple of true locals competing in the 2025 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship at Upper Mississippi River presented by Lowrance.
And on Wednesday, on Day 1 of the tournament, he looked every bit the man to beat on his home water.
Trim, a 42-year-old resident of Galesville, Wis., caught a five-bass limit of 21 pounds to stake himself to more than a two-pound lead in this four-day derby in the southwest corner of the state.
Lane Clark, of Anderson, S.C., is second with 18-15 and Richard Cobb, of Berea, Ky., is third with 18-10. Another 18 anglers are within 5 pounds of the lead after battling a cold and windy day on the river.
Trim, no doubt, has the edge on experience in this field, composed of some 248 anglers in the boater field and almost as many in the nonboater division. He has, after all, fished this stretch of the Mississippi River since he was a boy and on Wednesday, he called on that deep well of knowledge to pinpoint bass as they moved into traditional wintering areas.
“In practice, the water was about 60 or 61 degrees, and the fish weren’t ready,” Trim said. “But these two cool nights we just had really got them fired up. I spent the whole practice not looking for fish but looking instead for where fish were going. I really just fished local knowledge of where they winter, where they go.
“I figured that if I found fish in practice, they probably wouldn’t be there when the tournament started because of the cold weather that was coming,” he continued. “So, I took a gamble, and it paid off, I guess. I don’t know if I can do it again tomorrow, but we’ll see.”
If history is an indicator, Trim will be a tough out on the Upper Mississippi. He won the Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier presented by Lowrance here in May 2024 during the spawn, with a three-day weight of 65-4. That qualified him for the 2024 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship presented by Lowrance on Oklahoma’s Grand Lake, where he finished sixth in that event last November.
Trim’s confidence is high, considering his previous experience in big tournaments. And now that he’s 20 miles from his house and fishing familiar water?
“I feel like as long as I fish clean and I keep my head on, this is mine to lose,” Trim said. “And I didn’t feel that way after practice. But after I checked things today, I feel really good. It’s set up the way I was expecting.”
Trim said he committed to a largemouth bite on Day 1 and had 17 1/2 pounds in the livewell with plenty of time to spare. So, he went hunting for smallmouth bites — a move that paid off in tremendous dividends.
“I wanted to see if the smallmouth would fire,” he said. “On my third stop, I caught a 6-pounder (the heaviest weighed on Wednesday). It might be a personal best for me on smallmouth here. I really could do no wrong today. Everything went right.”
Clark, 21, also was “fired up” after weighing 18-15 following a “very tough practice.”
“I don’t think I caught a limit over three days, but I found something today,” Clark said. “They were biting today and I left them biting. The difference I think, was timing. That, and the cooler weather got them biting. They weren’t really active when it was warmer. I’m not sure. It’s my first time fishing up here and I’m still learning.”
Clark said he’s fishing current for a mix of bass, though he weighed five largemouth on Wednesday.
“I caught a couple smaller smallmouth, but they didn’t make the team today,” he said. “But I had a 4-8 largemouth. I’d rather have those if I can get them … But I have mixed feelings. I’m banking on one or two places. I don’t know if it’ll hold up for four days, but I’m hoping I can hit them to make the cut and see how things go from there.”
Cobb, who won the Kentucky B.A.S.S. Nation Championship to qualify for this tournament, also brought five largemouth to the stage on Day 1. He said he’d prefer a mix of bass, but didn’t see any of the heavy smallmouth some locals predicted would be vital to winning this week.
Thursday’s weather forecast is expected to be much like Day 1 — temperatures in the mid-to-upper 40s with steady winds blowing from the northwest at 10-15 mph. A frost advisory is in effect overnight Wednesday, with temperatures expected to drop to 34 degrees.
Wisconsin’s Jediah Barrett, 20, is atop the nonboater field with a five bass weighing 15-15. Kentucky’s Nico Urso is a close second with 15-10 and Arizona’s Michael Grisham is third with 14-3. Colorado’s Andrew Bowman caught a 5-pounder that was the heaviest among nonboaters on Wednesday.
Anglers from each of the 48 continental states and seven foreign countries are competing this week for a total cash purse of $223,000, not counting entry fees and more incentives that will go to top anglers. The Top 3 in the standings after the championship will earn berth in the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour when it’s held in Knoxville, Tenn., on the Tennessee River March 13-15. The overall winner also will claim a $50,000 cash prize in addition to paid entries into the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series in 2026.
All competitors will fish on Thursday, with the Top 40 in both boater and nonboater categories making the cut to Friday. The nonboater champ will be crowned after Day 3, with the winner claiming $10,000 cash. That angler, and the Top 10 in the boater division after Day 3, will advance to fish Championship Saturday. Any other nonboater whose weight is greater than any of the Top 10 anglers in the boater division will also compete on the final day.
The Day 2 take-off is scheduled for 7:10 a.m. CT from Veterans Freedom Park in La Crosse. Weigh-ins will begin at 3:30 p.m. CT at the La Crosse Municipal Boat Landing.
Daily coverage of the 2025 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship at Upper Mississippi River presented by Lowrance can be found on Bassmaster.com.
Explore La Crosse is hosting the week’s events.
