Cooler weather is cool, until it’s not.
That’s kinda the uptake from Day 1 of the Nitro Boats Bassmaster Elite Qualifier at Norfork Lake presented by Bass Pro Shops.
The field of 134 competitors brought in 101 limits, but only a third of the field broke the 10-pound mark.
The culprit: A mild cold front that finally broke the region’s prolonged period of brutal heat.
Prior to the event, I spoke with local pro and Bass Cat Boats President Rick Pierce, who described several weeks of daytime highs often reaching 100 degrees leading up to the tournament. Deepening the ongoing drought conditions that have plagued Northern Arkansas, this meteorological malady had Norfork’s bass lethargically enduring late-summer swelter.
Anglers also suffered through baking conditions during practice, but all that changed when the Day 1 launch saw a pleasantly brisk morning in the upper 50s. With mostly clear skies, daytime highs reached into the mid-80s.
Today’s complexion should be similar, with slightly lower highs.
Wonderful conditions for tourists and pleasure boaters. For anglers — not so much.
The Change
Astronomical fall begins at the autumnal equinox (day/night equal length), which arrived a day prior to the tournament’s start. Henceforth, nights grow longer and days grow shorter.
The summer/fall transition is an interesting time, as diminishing photoperiod tells bass to feed up for winter’s approaching leanness. However, once nature cracks the whip, fish scatter from their fairly predictable summer chill spots and start roaming more.
Add in the early-season cold front’s “bluebird” conditions — bright skies, rising barometric pressure — and fish get weird. Not uncatchable, but short on consistency.
Obviously, Kaden Buchmann, who led Day 1 with 16 pounds, 7 ounces, and Mike McClelland, who trailed by only 2 ounces, got the job done. However, both spent a lot of time running and gunning to find their bites.
Bassmaster Elite Randy Howell, as well as his son/fellow EQ competitor Laker Howell, reported struggling with the topwater game that was reasonably predictable just a couple of days earlier. Elsewhere, Chad Pipkens said the cold front’s effect played out in predictable fashion.
“It had a pretty negative impact, for the most part,” he said. “When they’re up shallow, they’re there to eat; and they’re still up there, but they’re just in a weird funk.
“They chase your bait, they follow and their strike zone is just not as big.”
As Pipkens explained, this scenario rewards casting precision, but that’s not always possible.
“The problem is, when you get a little ripple on the water, you can’t seem to make the right cast and you end up spooking them,” he said. “That was kinda the deal (on Day 1); you thought you were on ‘em, but you might be a few feet off to the side and they just don’t move to eat the bait.”
They’ll Figure It Out
When you consider the fierce Bassmaster Opens competition that anglers faced to reach the EQ series, this field comprises straight-up bass fishing technicians. Not everyone will put the puzzle pieces together, but the Day-2 leaderboard will likely reflect a handful of code crackings.
Arkansas pro Beau Browning, who placed 17th with 12-2, described a lightbulb moment that turned a first-round struggle into a solid opening limit.
“This place always plays mental battles with me and today was no different,” Browning said at the Day 1 weigh-ins. “I was sitting out there at noon just struggling and I made one really key move and I caught a big one and another good one and culled out everything in my bag.”
Browning said his game-changing decision involved a bait adjustment that turned short-strikers into biters. This, he said, gave him a significant confidence boost going into the second day.
We’ll likely hear more tales of anglers who struggled in the opening round, but found success through key changes and pivotal moments.
One thing’s for certain: in these challenging conditions, big bites will go a long way on Norfork. Kollin Crawford set the high mark with his 5-2. McClelland got his first day rolling with an early 5 and a few others showed off Ozark dandies in the 4-pound range.
Even one big Day 2 bite will fuel a big leaderboard move, but if someone finds two or more of those top-tier fish, they’re gonna be dangerous.
An Honor Well Deserved
Notably, while Pierce was onsite for the Day 1 weigh-ins, he won’t be among the Day 2 crowd.
Pierce will be formally inducted into the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame tonight at Johnny Morris’ Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium in Springfield, MO. A well-deserved honor for a longtime Bassmaster competitor who loves Norfork, even when it’s being stingy.
