Inside Elite Boats

Inside Elite Boats: Caleb Hudson

Take a tour of 2026 Pro Guide Batteries Rookie of the Year Caleb Hudson's boat that he ran during his rookie season.

Posted on
Photography by
Dalton Tumblin
In this edition of Inside Elite Boats, 2026 Pro-Guide Batteries Rookie of the Year Caleb Hudson takes us inside his ROY rig.
During his first season as an Elite angler, Hudson ran a 2025 Phoenix 21XE.
At the front, Hudson has a Minn Kota Ultrex with Garmin LiveScope attached to the pole.
A different view of the trolling motor.
For easy access to the boat, Hudson installs BoatEFX trailer steps.
A better look at Hudson’s LVS 34 transducer used during forward-facing sonar events this season.
A Capshield Marine provides a layer of protection for his trolling motor head.
For FFS events, Hudson uses his Garmin 9219 for live sonar, and he uses a Lowrance HDS 12 for mapping.
An overhead view of Hudson’s FFS event setup. Not pictured is Hudson’s Humminbird 12 that he pairs with Humminbird 360.
Holding it all together is a BoatLogix Triple Bow Panel Mount.
The Minn Kota foot controls with Spot Lock capabilities.
His Power-Pole controls are located right next to the trolling motor pedal.
During this shoot, Hudson was loaded down with smallmouth gear as he prepared to take on the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario.
All of Hudson’s baitcasters and spinning rods fill up the rod lockers on the left side.
Those rods are protected by a variety of sleeves.
The middle bin is neatly organized, with his most-used tackle and a line spooling station ready to go.
On the left side Hudson has plenty of room for an extra safety gear, life jackets and his rainsuit.
Extra reels and some random goodies are stored in a small bin next to his drive side windshield.
…
No matter where he is at, Hudson always carries these two baits.
A Greenfish Tackle jig paired with a Zoom Speed Craw is a favorite of Hudson.
A Spro RkCrawler is another staple in the lineup.
One of the boxes he keeps at arms length is his jerkbait box.
He stores those in a SPRO utility box.
Next up is Hudson’s urchin box, which includes a variety of sizes and colors.
More soft plastic goodies.
In the driver’s seat.
Gotta keep Jesus close by!
Gauges and buttons galore …
The Humminbird unit is Hudson’s sidescan unit, especially when he’s searching for schools, shellbeds and hard spots.
Hudson’s control pad is right at his fingertips on the driver’s side.
He also installed a little shelf to store his cull tags.
…
Another BoatLogiX mount …
… it keeps his console graphs locked down.
Here’s the spot for snacks and cold drinks.
His most used tools are easily accessible.
Hudson’s “bait graveyard.”
Several RkCrawlers are ready for their turn to play.
Hudson always has a couple of jigheads on standby.
It wouldn’t be a day on the water without crisp audio from a TurtleBox.
An angler’s “junk drawer” is right between the seats.
Another view of the cockpit area.
The back deck is equally organized.
Soft plastic storage, a couple of tackleboxes and a rope hang out in one of the back deck compartments.
With an angry Lake Ontario on the horizon, Hudson had his pool noodles ready to go for extra bass protection in his livewells.
More tackle bags are in the other compartment.
In one of those bags, you can find a legendary soft plastic: the Zoom Magnum Trick Worm.
Everything on his boat is powered by Powerhouse Lithium Batteries.
Two 36-volt, 60-amp-hour trolling batteries with two 16-volt, 80-amp-hour batteries running parallel in case of an emergency. A 12-volt, 160-amp battery serves as his cranking battery.
A closer look at the PowerHouse Lithium 3 Bank Charger. Also installed is Power-Pole Charge with an emergency start built-in.
A Mercury 250 Pro XS speeds him around the lake.
…
Bracketing the motor are two 10-foot Power-Poles.
The extra length helps Hudson stay put in the shallows.
An Atlas hydrolic jackplate allows him to move the motor wherever it needs to be given the conditions.
And for added peace of mind, The Leash will keep his motor behind the boat in the event of an emergency.
Finally, a look at the three-blade Mercury prop.
And that is what a ROY winning rig looks like. Thanks, Caleb!

Related