Man o man, I’m still giddy thinking about how much fun I had fishing with my partner Ken Schmidt in the Rock Creek Tournament. If we would have caught half as many fish as we had laughs, there is no doubt we would have won the tournament. With that being said, out of all fifty nine teams that competed in the tournament, there was not a boat that wasn’t there to win. Unfortunately, only one team can win so having fun is a very important factor in tournament fishing. For anybody that fishes tournaments or is curious, they are a blast and a lot of HARD work! You will meet some incredible people (and fisherman), laugh your butt off, sleep like a baby after long days and fish with all you got to cash a check.
Ken and I lost our big fish bite we found pre fishing and had to resort to putting five fish in the boat each day. We stayed very consistent and weighed almost 15 lbs both days which ended up fairing us well. I learned that during a very tough bite, sometimes being consistent is key. I was telling Ken we need to go hunt big fish but his experience in tournament fishing new better. We were sitting in 8th place after day one and by weighing almost the same weight day two we ended up with an incredible 5th place finish overall. We felt very good about our hard work and I learned a ton from Ken and the other anglers. Remember, especially in tournament fishing is super IMPORTANT to keep an open mind.
A few tips for any tournaments success:
1.) Have at least 4 or 5 good fishing spots going into a tournament.
2.) KEEP POSITIVE…if your partner is getting down; tell the best jokes you have. Also, remember it is not over until it’s over. We didn’t put our first fish in the boat until noon on the second day.
3.) Don’t get beat up on how other people are doing in the tournament. Have faith in your ability and do your best. You can’t win them all.
4.) Have the best bait available rather it’s live minnows or fresh Berkley GULP!!! Makes a big difference.
5.) Have all your tackle and rods…you never know when a jig bite will go sour and the cranks will start producing.
6.) Have fun but don’t hit the bottle to hard…it’s important to be at your best!
7.) Be courteous…if someone pulls a big weight off a certain spot don’t pull in on them the next day. Tail piping will get you a bad reputation!
8.) Don’t get hung up on the past…just because a spot was producing a week ago doesn’t mean it will now. Try them, but don’t rely on memories and old spots.
9.) Have plenty of Kit’s Tackle…are you “Jiggin’ the Dream”
10.)MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL…HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Trevor Johnson
Kit’s Tackle
www.kitstackle.com
For more great fishing tip’s, blog’s, and great fishing tackle and equipment check out Kit’s Tackle website
