smlbass

My offer for gas money is made after the tournament is over. I would not offer my $20 minimum at the beginning and then be exposed to a 5 minute run and troll the rest of the day. I always make the offer after the tournament, when I can fully evaluate the day's runs that were made. If the boater runs 5 minutes from blast-off and trolls the rest of the day, I would explain to them that with that small of a run on the big motor, I don't feel obligated to provide gas money. Each situation is different and you have to evaluate each individually. You also have to take into account the attitude the boater had during the day in response to recommendations you were ASKED for by them. In one tournament on my local lake, I had the boater make a run that didn't produce, but he took my advice and made the run. I felt that I should give more based on his taking my advice. What you have to realize is the scale is a sliding scale based on the day. Don't lock yourself into something that is not fair to you before the tournament starts. Always see what runs were made, even to the point of seeing the gas gauge before blast-off and comparing it to the idle into weigh-in. I have used this technique and guessed the amount of gas used and made my offer based on this. So far, I haven't had any issues when making the offer of gas money to the boater using my techniques. I do admit that I am over analytical when it comes to giving someone money that I have worked hard to get into my bank account. All the boaters I had this past year on the BFL, every single one came up to me at successive tournaments and asked how I did that day. To me, I had gained respect from the boater by being a good net man and paying my share of the expenses of the day we shared together on his boat. To me, the biggest thing you can do when fishing draw tournaments is gain respect from your partner as an angler and a person. Your reputation will grow whether you catch fish or not.

Dale, congrats! I wish I could have made it to Old Hickory, but my wife was sick and needed help with the kids. Sometimes you have to put priorities in order. I would have loved to be there, but it took a back seat to family matters.

I use an X-Tools scale with Ardent Smart Cull Tags. Just dial in the weight on the ball and then compare scale to ball. The Ardent Smart Cull Tags rock.

1. Ask during the pre-tournament meeting ask what the boater is on. Adjust your tactics to what has been working for them. They are going to fish what they found during practice. 2. Never, ever front the boater. If you accidentally do, immediately apologize and be more careful with your casts. When I accidentally fronted the boater and immediate apologized, they didn't get offended. 3. By all means, offer the boater money before the tournament or right after weigh-in for gas. Some will refuse, but most appreciate your contribution to the day. I do $20 minimum but more if a big run was made during the day. I adjust based on current gas prices. 4. If the boater wants to talk, then talk. But if the boater is so focused there is no conversation, keep comments to yourself. 5. Be a great net man. Watch out of the corner of your eye and when you see your boater has a fish on, GRAB THE NET. The boater will dictate whether he needs the net or not, but being fast on the net will gain you some respect that will be reciprocated when you have one on. The biggest thing is to enjoy the experience.

I was just curious when most people consider themselves to be professional bass anglers. What you say you have been told does make perfect sense to me.

To be honest, I don't really keep up with the fish weights in my signature. I plan on doing it every spring....but it falls by the wayside. ;D I guess I should change it to something better...~THINKING~

Thanks for the replies to correlate percentage income to fishing. The problem I have with that philosophy is I have a high paying day job and for fishing to contribute the majority, I would have to make close to 6 figures fishing...bummer... I guess I will keep considering myself an amateur and enjoy what my day job provides to me, the opportunity to do in my pursuit of cornering billy bucketmouth.

When do you start to refer to yourself as a Bass Fishing Pro? I have won several local team tournaments and sitting pretty well as a Co-Angler on the BFL Regional circuit. Don't get me wrong, I don't want my income to come from fishing. I am just trying to figure how to identify myself in relation to fishing. My day job affords me the opportunity to fish on a higher level than local tournaments.

I agree that the Ardent SmartCull is an awesome addition to my boat. I use the X-Tools scale, scroll the weight into the ball and culling is simple.

My boater has decided to not fish the rest of the Division tournaments. :-[ I am in dire need of a guaranteed boater for the remainder of the division. I am currently 32nd in points for the division and can't afford to miss a tournament due to not getting in due to no boater. PM me if you are interested. Thanks!

Are you fishing alone? If so, maybe we can hook up for a couple hours and use my boat. Are you staying around Indian Pointe by chance?

I have a pair of Oakley Half jacket polarized slate lenses. They seem to do really well in the water I fish.

Congrats on the boat. I am sure you and your dad will make many memories out on the water.

I have a 16 foot Nitro and have had many good finishes with it. A smaller boat has it's advantages, you can get into tighter spots than those 21 footers. Tournament fishing is about catching fish, not what your boat looks like. So what if those $50,000 boats pass you at blast-off. You may be more limited in where you fish for the tournament, but if you are on fish, they don't care if you are in a 21 foot boat or a 14 foot jon boat.

Haven't seen it on TV, but it was funny!

When having less than limit-5, and it's a keeper, throw it in the box. One in the box is always better than one in the water. Culling a small keeper fish is easier than trying to catch a big keeper. As the old saying goes, "A bird in hand is better than a bird in the bush."

I am going to be fishing all events. It was a grind from the back of the boat also. I have happy to have the fish.

We did mostly bed fish. We also hit docks quite a bit.

My boater had 2 fish for 4 lbs 12 oz and finished 67th. He was a super nice guy and that made the day so enjoyable.

Results are in. I finished tied for 38th out of 132 co-anglers today. Thanks for the advice dealing with a boater that I haven't fished with before. That advice made the day much more enjoyable for both of us.

Thanks for all the advice. I feel pretty confident in what I have planned to tie on. The etiquette lessons are most appreciated. Up to this point, I have been mostly a team fisherman in local tournaments, with excursions into larger team events. This is my first event "going it alone" without my regular partner. Thanks again.

I am going to be fishing my first ever BFL Event on Saturday as a co-angler on my home lake. Any advice?

I may an exception to the norm, but I had problems with one class in college. Failed it twice, same professor with the same curriculum. I also didn't finish college due to other obstacles. What I have found is most employers look at real world experience against a college degree. I majored in Business Management and Marketing with a minor in Economics. What do I do now? I am an IP Network Engineer purely based on real world experience and knowledge. If the course is not in your course of major, don't sweat the small stuff. You probably won't end up doing work related to your major, unless you are going to be a school teacher.

Obviously, I live and fish on Smith Mountain most of the time. I have ventured to Phillpot, Buggs, and Gaston for tournaments.

Since the post above has a reference to me, I think I will chime in. Depending on weather, topwater can be extremely hot in the mornings until around 9. Spinnerbaits are working also but the go to presentation has been the jig when the bite slows down. Been catching quality fish on a carolina rig on secondary points during the slow times also. I fish mostly in the northern part of the lake, so it might not translate to the clearer water downstream.