A little anxious about being a Marshal for the first time, Bret Schmitz got plenty of bang for his buck in the 2019 Bassmaster Elite Series season opener on his home fishery, the St. Johns River.
So, Bret, you see anything exciting?
“Other than catching an 11-pounder on a wacky rig,” he said facetiously with a big laugh. “No, nothing at all.”
Schmitz, 52, of Daytona Beach, Fla., was in the boat when John Crews landed his 11-pound, 2-ounce behemoth, the largest fish of the B.A.S.S. season. Schmitz said he was a touch nervous and quiet at first, but that quickly abated.
“I wanted to establish a rapport and not get in his way,” he said, adding he knew he had to bite his tongue since he competes on the St. Johns in the Tedders Bass Club. “I couldn’t tell him anything about what I do, or where I go — it’s against the rules. I certainly didn’t want to do anything to put him in jeopardy.”
The Marshal program was created by B.A.S.S. in 2009 for observers to ride along with the pros. Interested parties, usually local anglers, ride in Elites’ boats for two to three days of fishing. While they can’t fish or offer any information on fishing, they are asked to enter weights in BASSTrakk, photograph fish catches and send blog posts for Bassmaster.com. They also assist in making sure all rules are followed.
Marshals are trained at a meeting then have a meet-and-greet with the Elites and dinner. They also receive Bassmaster Marshal apparel and products from tournament sponsors. Most report learning from the pros is the greatest benefit.
“It was special,” Schmitz said. “There were some techniques and things I saw — I did not realize how good these guys are skipping baits. That’s not in my wheelhouse. (Crews) would take a spinning rod with 10-, 12-pound test, with a long Senko, and he could skip that thing 10 feet under a branch. That was incredible. That’s how he caught that 11-pounder.”
It was a thrill to see Crews pull the bass out of a big mat on light tackle, said Schmitz, who actually has a larger bass to his credit as he’s surpassed 12 pounds.
“To see his face was exciting because it was his personal best,” Schmitz said. “To watch him try to catch his breath after getting that big girl in the boat, it was very fun.”
Schmitz sent in the following photo for publication on Bassmaster.com, and then he was called for their location and a camera boat was sent their way. Seeing such a catch was a bonus; his greatest benefit was seeing how the pros fish his body of water and learning techniques he might incorporate, like wacky rigs.
“That’s something that none of these guys in my club fish,” he said. “That’s what Crews caught that 11-pound girl on. I’ve dedicated a rod to having a Wacky rig. It hasn’t panned out yet, but I haven’t given up on it.
“Also to understand how they’re trying to read what the fish are doing. I signed up for it again this year. What’s that tell you?”
He’ll be there when the season opens Feb. 6-9 at the 2020 AFTCO Bassmaster Elite.
Bobby Friedrich, 57, of San Antonio, is another club level angler who will make his return as a judge in the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department at Lake Fork, June 5-9. That will be his third event serving for head judge Tim Cook, a member of his Canyon Bass Club in San Marcos, Texas.
“I’ve had a great two years doing it, and I’m going to do it again this year,” said Friedrich, contacted while at his Bass Pro Shop. “Everyone I’ve drawn have just been super guys.”
Judging for Chris Zaldain the year before, Friedrich said he had a great draw in 2019 on Lake Fork: Micah Frazier, Brandon Cobb and Keith Combs.
“Just meeting those guys, watching them dissect a lake and to see how they operate and what they do, it’s just really fascinating to me,” Friedrich said. “I enjoy fishing and being on the water with those guys because they’re the best, and just watching them is really interesting for me, just a very enjoyable day on the water.”
Friedrich, too, feels like he’s now involved in Bassmaster history as he witnessed a rare occurrence — the best day of the year by an Elite. At Texas Fest, judges use a scale provided to weigh the angler’s fish then enter it in BASSTrakk and a scorecard. Friedrich said it was amazing to chronicle Cobb landing two 8-pounders, make an 8-pound cull with his 11-1 and total 37-15 on Day 3 en route to winning total of 114-0.
“When he hooked up on that 11, that was incredible,” he said. “He thought it was a 5-pounder at first, it was so interesting. When his rod bowed up, we were like, ‘Oh my God, that thing is huge!’ It was a blast for me.”
Impressed with Frazier’s topwater practices on their Day 1, Friedrich said he’ll take those lessons with him, as well as other specifics like how quickly Cobb worked his jerkbait.
“I’ll do a couple slight twitches and a pause,” he said. “He was just like twitch, twitch, twitch, working that thing like crazy. I think just to get those reactions bites. That’s definitely something I picked up from him.
“When I was with Keith Combs, he would fish an area. ‘I know there’s fish here.’ He left across the cove, then ran back 15 minutes later and caught three keepers. I was amazed at that. He was telling me it was all just timing this time of year. Just going back to spots you have confidence in is one thing.”
With Cobb winning, Frazier taking third and Combs seventh, an angler might do well to draw Freidrich and his judging mojo in this year’s Texas Fest, June 5-9.
On the other side, Schmitz said after Crews’ success, he had a polar opposite experience with Shane LeHew, who stuck with his game plan to fish for bedding bass on Lake George.
“He spent all day in there and it just didn’t pan out for him. I saw him get frustrated,” Schmitz said. “It made me feel a little better about myself. There’s days I go out there and get absolutely smoked. To see a pro go through the same trials and tribulations that I do as an amateur, that was enlightening.”
If you’re interested in becoming a Bassmaster Marshal, check out the Elite season schedule below to see which events might suit you, then click this link to register.
2020 Bassmaster Elite Series schedule
Feb. 6-9, St. Johns River, Palatka, Fla.
Feb. 14-17, Chickamauga Lake, Dayton, Tenn.
March 6-8, Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk, Lake Guntersville, Birmingham, Ala.
April 2-5, Lake Eufaula, Eufaula, Ala.
April 16-19, Santee Cooper Lakes, Manning, S.C.
May 29-June 1, Sabine River, Orange, Texas
June 5-9, Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Lake Fork, Quitman, Texas
July 23-26, St. Lawrence River, Waddington, N.Y.
July 30-Aug. 2, Lake Champlain, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Aug. 13-16, Elite makeup date
Aug. 20-23, Lake St. Clair, Macomb County, Mich.