Courtesy of Luke Stoner – Dynamic Sponsorships

GROVE, Okla. – Practice has concluded on Grand Lake o’ the Cherokees for the REDCREST presented by Costa and the 41-competing anglers have Tuesday “off” outside of a few championship festivities. A “day off” just a few hours before the start of biggest tournament of the year is actually filled with final tackle prep, countless interviews and media obligations.
Walking through the boat yard today, the excitement and nervous energy is palpable.

Casey Ashley is no stranger to championship events and has a knack for staying even-keeled regardless of the anticipation around him. Ashley offered a few of his main takeaways from practice and themes of this tournament.

Whereabouts

When Ashley launched his boat for the first day of practice Sunday morning, finding where not to fish was number one on his priority list.

“Grand is a lake where you can run a pattern once you get a few bites and get some confidence,” Ashley explained. “But it’s also a fishery that has different sections, and those sections seem to fire at different times. It’s not exactly easy to get a bite out there right now and you can spend a lot of time fishing dead water if you’re not careful. That’s something I’ve learned the hard way here. So, finding where not to spend time is key.”

It’s springtime and fish are on the move; Ashley knows the fine details of his game plan are subject to change and need to evolve throughout the tournament week. But he believes the best areas of the lake should stay somewhat consistent.

Weights

The second factor Ashley wanted to try and get a handle on during practice is what weight range he should be targeting per-day. Scoreable bass are two pounds and bigger this week on Grand Lake and having an idea of how much weight is needed to do well each day is imperative.

“Knowing what weight to be shooting for during practice is definitely one of the most challenging things about our format,” Ashley said. “In an event like this, with the full field fishing the first two days, we don’t necessarily know what to expect. I didn’t know if I needed to be practicing for 40-pounds of scoreable bass per day, or 25-pounds of fish.

“While it may make my job a little harder during practice, it makes the tournament more exciting for the fans, because you’ll be seeing the best anglers in the world figure it out as they go along. Especially those first two days of competition.”

Weather

In any early spring or late winter tournament, weather is always a huge part of the story. This week will be no different in northeast Oklahoma, which is made clear when you study the 10-day forecast.

Competition starts tomorrow with forecasted temps in the 30s, heavy winds, thick cloud cover and some rain mixed in. But look ahead to the weekend and we’re expecting much warmer weather with abundant sunshine.

“We’re going to start off wearing Sunrise Silver lenses and winter Simms gear, but by the weekend we might be in t-shirts and need Blue Mirror lenses to block out the sun,” said the longtime Costa Sunglasses pro. “Drastic swings in the weather are par for the course with an early spring derby, though. We just gotta roll with it.

“I’ve been watching the weather in Oklahoma for the last few weeks, and I expected spring to have sprung out here to be honest. When I saw water temps were still as cold as they are (upper forties) I was surprised. I was hoping for warmer water temps, but the lake is still full of fish and we still gotta catch ‘em.”

While Ashley may have preferred warmer water and more stable spring weather, he has proven he can perform at a high level even when the air temperatures are low and frigid. Famously at his 2015 Classic win on Lake Hartwell when boats were literally freezing to their trailers, and most recently at Lake Fork for Stage Two of the Bass Pro Tour when he power-fished a spinnerbait and a jig amidst freezing temps and sleet en route to a 4th place finish.

Don’t let Ashley’s calm and cool demeanor fool you, the South Carolina native has ice in his veins and is always one to watch when he can fish his strengths. Grand Lake could absolutely be set up for a shallow water, power-fishing showdown this week; which is right in Ashley’s wheelhouse.