AnglersChannel

Arey guided by patience as teacher, angler and turkey guide

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

When he’s not on the road competing as a Bassmaster Elite Series pro, a phone call with Team Toyota’s Matt Arey can cover a wide range of topics, and young daughters Reese and Wren can often be heard in the background.

Arey often plays the role of “Mr. Mom” to his two blonde-headed girls, while sweet wife Emily fulfills her full-time career obligations as Director of Records and Educational Partnerships at Cleveland Community College near their Shelby, NC home. But now, under C-19 virus stay-at-home orders, he’s added “distance learning” instructor for 7-year-old Reese to his daily obligations.

“I have to be honest, when I first started teaching her I got frustrated a fair amount, and it really tried my patience. I had to learn to slow down and be really repetitive,” admits Arey, who earned a degree in agriculture business and economics from NC State.

Things are going just fine now. In fact, on the morning of our call, Arey had already successfully covered a reading comprehension worksheet, math fractions, and an adjective project in which Reese had to use various words to describe bubble gum.

Away from the makeshift in-home classroom, Arey has tested his patience in the turkey woods, as well as trying to perfect his skills with the relatively new category of lures referred to as glide baits.

Extremely realistic looking in their highly detailed design, glide baits are hard baits with a single mid-body hinge that allows them to swim with a very lazy “wide S” motion to tempt aggressive bass. They typically range from 4 to 12 inches long, and cost anywhere from $35 to $235 each. Arey often favors throwing a 6.5” version called the Hog Father Jr. on 20-pound P Line fluorocarbon.

“A glide bait is definitely a specialized bait that’s probably not going to get you 40 bites a day, but the bass that commit to eating it are generally bigger fish,” says Arey.

Weather and water conditions have to line-up well to precipitate glide bait success. For Arey that includes fairly clear water that allows big bass to see the lure, but also wind and sunshine to increase visibility and mask their shyness.

“Glide baits are a great bait for drawing strikes from big female bass suspended around boat docks either right before the spawn, or seeking their first good meal right after the spawn. But you have to exercise a lot of patience until you catch your first bass of the day on a glide bait, as well as patience to carry you through to that second bite of the day. But again, the bites you get are going to be good ones,” he says.

Few outdoor adventures teach patience more so than turkey hunting, but Arey has proven himself savvy on four successful hunts this spring. He shot one in North Carolina, one in South Carolina, called one in for a buddy, and his most rewarding time in the turkey woods was calling one in for daughter Reese.

“Turkeys are born paranoid, and they die paranoid, because their whole life is spent avoiding their many predators. So walking into the woods, sitting next to a tree, calling a few times, and killing one, only happens about 10% of the time,” he says.

Arey says for starters you need an in-depth understanding of the terrain you’re hunting because that dictates a gobbler’s potential travel path to your call. He also warns that too many hunters try to ‘take their call to the gobbler’ by walking closer to where they believe the bird to be, rather than waiting on the bird to come to them.

“Let the gobbler work. Let him do his thing. Don’t over call, and don’t get in a game of chase with him. Have patience and make the gobbler come to you,” he says.

From bubble gum based adjective lessons with daughter Reese, to luring gobblers over a ridge top and big fat bass from under docks on glide baits – patience is indeed the central fiber to success in Matt Arey’s life these days.

by AnglersChannel

College Fishing Builds Foundation for Success Part 2

Luke Stoner - Dynamic Sponsorships

Part one of this story gave a quick glimpse into the last 10+ years of Drew Sanford and Dalton Wilson’s lives. Two former Carhartt Bassmaster College Series anglers turned propane industry entrepreneurs who in many ways embody the American dream.

They both credit a love of the outdoors, specifically their dedication to bass fishing, with helping establish the tireless work ethic necessary to expand one local propane business into four burgeoning companies. All while raising beautiful families and remaining active in the outdoors. They don’t just talk about the impact fishing had upon them either; Dalton and Drew live it.

The Green-LP wrapped Toyota Tundra you see in the picture above is Dalton’s personal vehicle. He bought it and became a Toyota Bonus Bucks member largely based on Toyota’s support of the fishing industry. Furthermore these two, along with their co-workers, proudly wear Carhartt on the job site as a “thank you” for what Carhartt has done for college fishing throughout the past 8 years. Fishing is woven into their lives as well as their work, and they wouldn’t have it any other way.

A passion project

The “fishing division” of James River Manufacturing was started two years ago as a pure and simple passion project. Drew had experience in making his own lead jig heads and had enough connections within the fishing industry he believed he could produce them for tackle companies in the Ozarks region. Drew thought if nothing else, it would keep him connected to bass fishing.

“I have a lot of moving parts in my life, but I needed to feed the hobby part of my brain,” Wilson laughed. “Fishing has always been a part of my life and I figured this was a way I could spend a few minutes of my day playing with fishing lures.”

After doing some research on the equipment needed to scale his production process and bring his vision to life, Drew realized it was more of a financial commitment than anticipated. So he brought in Taylor Baker – a friend and recent graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute who happened to be adept with a 3D printer and CNC machine.

Using some “redneck engineering” and a can-do attitude Drew, Taylor, and Dalton helped piece together a one-of-a-kind mold production outfit in the corner of their Green-LP warehouse. They use a CNC machine to construct any type of lead mold an angler or a tackle company could think of; from ned and shaky heads to swimbait and ball jigs.

Their distinctive manufacturing machine then mass produces the jig heads, sandblasts them, and applies a powder coat before “cooking them” to finish the process. Lastly, the jig heads are painted to order before shipping out to a tackle company near you.

With a little elbow grease and some TLC, their passion project was operative.  After seeing their creation run smoothly and efficiently, Drew started thinking about applying a similar system to another piece of equipment he was innately familiar with; propane tanks. And thus a new endeavor began…

James River Manufacturing expands

Drew and his Green-LP technicians have a lifetime of experience in the propane industry, and knew that restoring old equipment was a service in high demand. The biggest issue was, renovating old propane tanks proved to be a time consuming and costly process.

With their newfound jig head production system up and running, Drew began thinking he could apply a similar procedure on old propane equipment instead of football jigs. Between sandblasting, applying primer and paint, then heating the assets to an ideal temperature, many of the steps were comparable. They just needed to expand the size of their machine to fit propane equipment and add some fine-tuned details. So that’s exactly what they did.

Ultimately, the techniques and experience learned from producing lead fishing lures helped Drew’s team make a business out of refurbishing old truck barrels and propane tanks. The deep-rooted knowledge of the propane industry Drew’s team possessed was imperative of course, but they aren’t afraid to give credit to the small fishing division for many of the finer details.

James River Manufacturing now has its very own warehouse dedicated to making old propane tanks look as good as new, for commercial and residential uses. JRM is one of the largest outfits of its kind in the entire Midwest, and they perform their services with quality and the customer top of mind. Something Drew; Dalton, and their crew of associates have become known for across all of their business endeavors.

(Writers note: We were introduced to Drew Sanford and Dalton Wilson after they served as photography talent on a Nitro Boats shoot for Michael Engelmeyer. Engelmeyer owns and operates Great Outdoor Studios, which produces breathtaking imagery for a myriad of outdoor industry leading companies like Toyota trucks, Bass Pro Shops, Carhartt, and Nitro boats among many others.)

by AnglersChannel

John Cox - Sharing his Love of Bass Fishing with his Family

Vance McCullough

“Hey, you’re gonna get eaten by an alligator there! Get in the boat,” instructs John Cox as we talk on the phone. The warning/instruction isn’t for me, but rather, his daughter whom he is fishing with on the St Johns River, home to grande gators for sure, as well as a bunch of big bass.

Cox is doing what most of our favorite professional anglers are during their quarantine-induced downtime – taking the opportunity to share his love of the sport with his family.

So, what does one of the best pros on Tour throw when there’s no tournament pressure and he just wants to have fun?

Topwaters.

And why not, it’s that time of year across the southern region and beyond. Bass are spawning, guarding fry, terrorizing bream beds and generally just hanging out in warm, shallow water. Big bass especially like to trap a meal on the surface. But sometimes the goal is to jerk on a bunch of fish, regardless of size. Cox has a trio of favorite lures to get the fun going.

“The other day I went to this stocked pond and they were schooling on shad. It was incredible. My three main topwaters were the Berkley Cane Walker – I really like that one when there’s a little bit of a chop on the water because it’s a little bit bigger. That was my one  for when the wind was blowing. In calmer areas I would throw the Berkley J-Walker, just walking the dog with it really fast. In the early morning and in the evening when it started getting cloudy, right before the storm rolled through, I’d go to that Choppo. It was unreal. So much fun.”

Side note: to learn about the lake Cox had so much fun on recently, check out his Instagram @johncox_fishing. Maybe plan yourself a trip there!

Cox favors the Choppo for fishing in 3 feet or less, the J-Walker for deeper water. “I feel like the J-Walker gives them a little bit more time to come up to it so I’m kind of throwing that in three-to-ten-feet of water.”

Cox works the J-Walker at brisk pace but because it doesn’t make a lot of forward progress fish will commit to it from a distance. “I feel like when they see it walking, it’s a little bit more like ‘oh, I can catch that thing’ because it’s back and forth compared to the Choppo on a straight wind. They smoke that Choppo in shallower water, but the J-Walker, they’ll come out of deep water and bust it.”

Cox is excited about the new size of Choppo that Berkley has rolled out. “We only had the 120 and the 90. I really like the 90. Now we have the new one, the 105, and that one has got to be one of my favorites.

“The 120 is awesome when you’re around giant fish, but that 105 is the perfect in-between size. I mean, the 90 is great. Anywhere you go you’ll catch them on it, but when you’re going after a little bit bigger ones and the fish are wolfpacking, I like the 105 because when there are four or five fish coming behind it the smaller ones kind of stay off of it and the better ones get it.”

What if Cox had to be quarantined with a single lure for pond hopping and just having a blast, in general? “Aw man, the 90 is so much fun. That’s what we’ve got tied on now is the 90,” says Cox of his now-gator-safe kids as they ease the boat into the river.

One frequent complaint that shows up in online forums and reviews is that the stock hooks on the Choppo are light. Some people prefer to swap them out for heavier models. In this writer’s experience, they look a lot like the hooks we’ve always used on prop baits and jerkbaits – and landed plenty of big bass on. I’ve had no problem with them and have had to reach for pliers to dig them out of the fish that usually get both sets of trebles buried. Cox likes them just fine.

“I actually like light trebles; I don’t like really heavy trebles. I think the guys that are complaining are the ones that got the Whopper Plopper back in the day, throwing it on 60lb braid and a flipping stick. I throw all my Choppos on the rod I throw the Frittside crankbait on, the 7’6” medium-heavy Veritas Winch, and I throw the 90 on 15lb Big Game (monofilament). I don’t even throw it on braid.

“But yeah, if there’s one bait I’m gonna pond fish with, topwater-wise, that Choppo 90 would be it.”

by AnglersChannel

Cody Huff’s Rolling with the Changes

Courtesy of Luke Stoner / Dynamic Sponsorships

As is the case for most of us right now, the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed Cody Huff’s short-term plans. Fortunately, Huff’s long-term goals remain as steady as the Bethel University wrapped Toyota Tundra he’s driving throughout the 2020 tournament season.

After a strong showing at the 50^th Bassmaster Classic, Huff had his eyes set on the remaining Bassmaster Opens and graduating from Bethel. The 2019 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Bracket champion experienced an incredible start to his 2020 fishing campaign; which included two major wins in February as well as a day three appearance at the Classic. Not bad for a 22-year old full time college student.

While he would have preferred to keep his momentum rolling, Huff’s plans were adjusted when fishing tournaments across the country were postponed or cancelled, and social distancing requirements became the new norm.

“When reality hit me and tournaments started getting affected I was definitely a little disappointed,” Huff admitted. “There were a lot of cool places I planned on traveling to this spring, but to be honest the biggest bummer is missing out on my final year of college fishing. With that being said, there are more important issues going on in the world right now than a few fishing tournaments.”

With maturity beyond his years, the young man from Ava, Missouri has come to terms with a few personal disappointments while maintaining a positive mindset.

After an extended Spring Break, Huff learned he would not return to his Alma Mater to round out his senior year. Instead with 12 credit hours left to receive his Business degree, Huff is completing online courses to finish his college education.

And even though tournament competition has been put on hold, Huff knows most dates will be rescheduled and has been spending as much time on the water as possible. He has been sure to #FishSmart - practicing safety, responsibility, and common sense anytime he heads to the boat ramp. Taking advantage of the break to sharpen his fishing skills, optimize his equipment, and spend time with family.

“On the bright side I’ve been able to use the time off to get out on the water as much as possible,” Huff said. “I haven’t been able to spend a spring around home since leaving for college. So it’s been great to have the extra family time along with fishing our local lakes. There are always some positives if you look at it the right way.”

Famed Ozark fisheries like Bull Shoals and Table Rock Lake have been Huff’s regular stomping grounds as he prepares for the new dates of the Opens to be announced. While Huff is making the most of the downtime in Southwest Missouri, he is hopeful he’ll be able to spend a few days scouting some of the fisheries left on the Bassmaster Opens schedule; another advantage of looking at the glass half full.

For now though, Huff refuses to remain idle and continues to work hard at whatever task he has in front of him. Whether that includes submitting online assignments, chores around the house, chasing after turkeys, or improving his fishing skills – It’s all the same to Huff. He’ll lean into his Midwestern roots and roll with whatever changes 2020 throws his way with his eyes looking forward.

by AnglersChannel

College Fishing Builds Foundation for Success

Courtesy of Luke Stoner - Dynamic Sponsorships

Photos provided by Michael Engelmeyer https://www.greatoutdoorstudios.com/

Part 1

Out of all the college fishing success stories circulating the outdoors industry nowadays, the story of Drew Sanford and Dalton Wilson should rank as high on your list as any. The southwest Missouri natives still bass fish competitively on the regional circuit, and Dalton’s Tundra qualifies him as a proud Toyota Bonus Bucks member, but that’s not what makes their story special.

Dalton and Drew are young men, but they are salt of the earth type dudes who embody the American dream. The kind of guys who helped grow one local propane business into a rapidly expanding enterprise, who have their company logo embroidered onto Carhartt shirts for their employees to proudly wear; reciprocating the support Carhartt gave to college fishing in their formative years.

These bygone Carhartt Bassmaster College Series anglers may have impressive fishing careers, but the true success story lies in the incredible progress their businesses have realized since 2014. And it all began with bass fishing.

Connecting and college fishing

 Drew and Dalton have roots in central Missouri, but the two didn’t get to know each other until joining the University of Alabama fishing team. Growing up in Missouri wasn’t the only thing these fellas had in common; they also loved to bass fish. Drew, a few years Dalton’s elder, actually transferred to Alabama from Drury University in Springfield, Missouri where he helped start Drury’s college fishing team.

The Missouri transplants decided they could stand one another, and lived together in Tuscaloosa while attending school and competing in college fishing derbies. Things were going fine up until Mother Nature decided to drop a bomb in the form of the horrific F5 tornado that devastated parts Alabama and Mississippi in the spring of 2011 before leaving several other states in its wake of destruction.

The 2011 Super Outbreak was one of the largest, deadliest, and costliest tornado events ever recorded. Drew and Dalton’s Alabama living quarters, their college home, was destroyed. This series of events changed their futures immediately and sent both young men on different paths.

After returning to Missouri and dusting themselves off, Dalton ultimately received a scholarship to college fishing powerhouse Bethel University; while Drew graduated before heading to chase his bass fishing dreams at the next level, competing in the Bassmaster Opens.

Dalton went on to have an incredible college fishing career, winning major events and remaining a threat at any tournament he entered. Drew excelled at his pursuits, too. While near misses and mishaps plagued his Elite Series goal, Drew continued to be competitive in the Opens and FLW Costa Series competition. That progressed until 2014 when Sanford decided it was time to go to work; so he headed back to Rogersville, MO to run MS Propane.

Green-LP is born and quickly grows

 MS Propane is a retail propane store that handles residential propane delivery. By the end of 2014, Drew owned and operated MS Propane. His honest, hardworking nature helped the local store experience continued growth when he hired Dalton at the beginning of 2015. Dalton had a similar unrelenting work ethic as Drew.

Dalton was hired to paint residential propane tanks, but he would keep a change of clothes in his car and go door-to-door handing out flyers in search of new business when he finished painting. Drew took notice of Dalton’s above-and-beyond efforts, along with new clients he was bringing to the store. After only two weeks, Dalton was promoted to manage sales for the company.

“In all honesty fishing is what helped instill that work ethic in both of us,” Sanford said. “Look at any successful professional fisherman and beneath their logo filled jerseys you’ll find a serious work ethic. Whether it’s propane business or bass fishing, you have to put in the time and effort to set yourself apart.”

Dalton’s list of responsibilities wasn’t the only thing growing. When they struggled to find quality propane hauling trucks to best service their customers, Drew began having them manufactured in-house out of necessity; and thus Green-LP was born. Green-LP produced bobtail trucks that were among the best on the road. With an already rock-solid reputation from their work at MS Propane, word quickly spread about Green-LP’s services and quality.

Green-LP began building bobtail and service trucks for neighboring outfits as well as performing regular maintenance and repairs. Their dedication to producing quality equipment now finds them selling Green-LP trucks nationwide.

The reality is, I could stop this article right here and it would be a sure-enough Americana success story. A couple young men finding success in their employment through diligence they credit bass fishing and the outdoors with disseminating into them… But the tale doesn’t stop there. At 32-years old Drew Sanford has gone on to open Green-LP Transport, building tanker semis to haul propane, ethanol, and biodiesel to a four state area surrounding Missouri.

Drew has also launched James River Manufacturing, a two-division business that started producing fishing lure components like jig, swimbait, and shaky heads. This small passion project Drew began to keep himself connected to bass fishing has now grown to refurbishing residential and commercial propane equipment; using the same processes he learned producing and painting jig heads. But we’ll save the rest of that story for part two.

(Editors note: We were introduced to Drew Sanford and Dalton Wilson after they served as photography talent on a Nitro Boats shoot for Michael Engelmeyer. Engelmeyer owns and operates Great Outdoor Studios, which produces breathtaking imagery for a myriad of outdoor industry leading companies like Toyota trucks, Bass Pro Shops, Carhartt, and Nitro boats among many others.)

by AnglersChannel

One-Boat Challenge Results in Donation to Support Conservation Efforts

Captains for Clean Water and Coastal Conservation Association Awarded Funds for Continued Conservation Work

RACINE, Wis. (April 17, 2020) — As winners of the first ever Humminbird® and Minn Kota® One-Boat Challenge, Charlie Breitenbach and Seth Funt claimed bragging rights among their fellow competitors and a $10,000 first-place prize to be split between the two fishing-related charities of their choice. Breitenbach chose Captains for Clean Water and Funt chose the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) to each receive $5,000 in funding from the two organizing companies.

The One-Boat Challenge brought together eight anglers from a variety of fishing backgrounds to compete in bass fishing-related challenges on Mexico’s iconic Lake El Salto. In a reality-style four-episode show, the winning duo fought off the other teams to ultimately find the sunken prize in the final episode, which initially premiered on April 9, 2020.

With help from Humminbird and Minn Kota products that make up the One-Boat Network™, the four teams competed for charities that support the fishing community and the resources anglers enjoy. Both Breitenbach and Funt felt strongly about giving back to the fishing community in order to help solidify the ability of future generations to continue to enjoy the sport they've always loved.

“I chose Captains for Clean Water because they are fighting for Florida waters. I want my kids to have the same opportunities I had growing up – fishing, surfing and just enjoying the water with my family,” Breitenbach said. “I am also friends with a lot of Captains all over Florida – this is their livelihood!”

Funt shared a similar passion for the work of the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA), his chosen charity.

“I support Coastal Conservation Association because of its large-scale governmental and fundamental oversight towards managing fisheries. CCA’s approach is science-based in the effort to manage fisheries in a sustainable manner across the country,” Funt said. “I am a very big advocate of the sport fishing industry and believe that CCA has a core philosophy of preserving our sport for future generations.”

The two charities will make good use of the donations made possible by the One-Boat Challenge by continuing to work for the sport of fishing and the habitats that support the fisheries enjoyed by so many anglers.

“We are stoked to find out Captains for Clean Water is a benefiting organization from the One-Boat Challenge. The prize will go to fund our critical outreach and educational programs,” said Capt. Chris Wittman, co-founder of Captains for Clean Water. “Thank you to Minn Kota, Humminbird and Charlie Breitenbach for your generosity and support.”

Much like Captains for Clean Water, the CCA will use money donated to it through the One-Boat Challenge to continue its important mission of preserving fishing opportunities in some of the country’s most important fisheries.

“It is great partners like Humminbird and Minn Kota that move our conservation and habitat efforts forward. Without strong corporate partners, we would not be able to accomplish the vital mission of marine conservation,” said Coastal Conservation Association President Pat Murray. “We congratulate and thank Seth Funt for designating CCA as his charity recipient. Beyond his expert angling skill, his vision for conservation puts him in an elite class.”

The entire One-Boat Challenge series is currently available to stream on OneBoatChallenge.com and Minn Kota’s YouTube channel. The series highlights the ups and downs of the competition as well as key features and benefits of the One-Boat Network.

The teams were outfitted with gear from fishing’s most esteemed brands, including AFTCO, Abu Garcia, Berkley, Gerber, Old Town Kayak, Rapala, Plano, Shimano, St. Croix Rods, StrikeKing and VMC. Vexus Boats, rigged with the One-Boat Network, were towed by Toyota USA trucks and SUVs throughout the competition. The entire show was filmed on location at Angler’s Inn on Lake El Salto.

For more information visit www.humminbird.com or www.minnkotamotors.com.

About Humminbird and Minn Kota
JOHNSON OUTDOORS FISHING is comprised of the Minn Kota®, Humminbird® and Cannon® brands. Minn Kota is the world’s leading manufacturer of electric trolling motors, as well as a complete line of shallow water anchors, battery chargers and marine accessories. Humminbird is a leading global innovator and manufacturer of marine electronics products including fish finders, multifunction displays, autopilots, ice flashers, and premium cartography products. Cannon is the leader in controlled-depth fishing and includes a full line of downrigger products and accessories.
Visit Humminbird at www.humminbird.com
Visit Minn Kota at www.minnkotamotors.com

JOHNSON OUTDOORS is a leading global outdoor recreation company that inspires more people to experience the awe of the great outdoors with innovative, top-quality products. The company designs, manufactures and markets a portfolio of winning, consumer-preferred brands across four categories: Watercraft, Fishing, Diving and Camping.
Visit Johnson Outdoors at www.johnsonoutdoors.com

by AnglersChannel

VanDam talks Favorite lures, lakes and recipe

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

Kevin VanDam clearly understands the stress, sadness and long-termeconomic threats of the times we’re living in. But in true superstar fashion, he’s made it a point to stay engaged with fans through a number of social media Live stream interactions, and he’s working hard to find the goodness in each day until we’re back to better days ahead.

Q: Fishing has been a favorable way for a lot of Americans to maintain sanity and safe distancing the past few weeks. Let’s start with you recommending two lures every bass angler should consider fishing with right now.

KVD: I’ll choose a Strike King 1.5 squarebill crankbait, and a KVD 300 suspending jerkbait. Both are great choices throughout the country during springtime.

The squarebill is like a 4-wheeler. I can take it anywhere – especially in off colored or dirty water. Through shoreline rocks, laydowns, stumps, whatever. It hunts that shallow zone where most bass want to be right now.

In clear clean water, the jerkbait will suspend as deep as 6 feet on 12-pound line to pull bass up to bite that may be a little deeper before heading ultra shallow to spawn.

Q: Amid the Live sessions you’ve done on social media lately, a lot of fans asked about your all time favorite places to fish. Give us your top two of all time.

KVD: Man, it’s nearly impossible to only choose two, but I’d say St. Clair, Michigan because I love to catch smallmouth bass, and they eat there from now through November. It’s full of big ones – and it’s not one of those places where they only bite a couple months a year.

Secondly, I’d say Table Rock Lake, MO. It’s sort of a sentimental pick because I’ve had such an awesome relationship with Bass Pro Shops and Nitro my whole career – and their headquarters are near Table Rock. I’ve shared so many cool experiences on Table Rock and at Big Cedar Lodge. Plus, it’s a great fishery – it holds quality sizes of all three species of bass – smallmouth, spotted and largemouth. And they’ll dang sure eat a squarebill and jerkbait there.

Q: Lastly, tell us two things or experiences that have served as really positive compensation to the tough times we’re moving through right now.

KVD: Well, my twins boys and I have been pretty inseparable the past couple of weeks. So when we haven’t been raking lawns for my in-laws, or mulching around our house – my two favorite things have been fishing with them, and grilling with them.

When I was growing up in the 70s and 80s, we ate every meal as a family, and the challenges of recent weeks have brought us back to that.

My son Jackson is actually in a culinary arts institute in Grand Rapids, but one of our all time favorite recipes is a grilled wings recipe from Davy Hite’s wife Natalie that includes teriyaki marinade, hot sauce and brown sugar. It takes about 2.5 hours to smoke them on the grill – and they’re world class awesome!

I really believe these tough times have made us all think about what matters most in life. And mostly, that’s time with family in the outdoors. Whether it’s raking a lawn, chasing big smallmouth, watching gobblers strut, hunting wild mushrooms, or grilling – it’s about time in the outdoorswith family.

So my hope is one of the greatest things that will come forth from all these challenging times is way more people will reconnect to the outdoors.

by AnglersChannel

FLW AOY Leader Nelson Relaxed, Productive During Downtime

Vance McCullough - Photo Courtesy of FLWFishing.com

Some guys flat out know how to catch fish. Ron Nelson is one of them. He followed up his strong 2019 rookie season by leading the 2020 FLW Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Angler of the Year race after the completion of three events, placing 5^th, 11^thand 2^nd on Rayburn, Harris Chain and Lake Martin, respectively.

Then the motor fell off the boat of the tournament fishing world - as it has for the larger world, in general - leaving it dead in the water just as the Pro Circuit was winding its way into Nelson’s wheelhouse. “I am a huge believer in momentum. I’m also a huge believer in knowing your personal strengths. My personal strength, and my history, is that during that spawning season, prespawn, postspawn and closely thereafter, I really excel so, yes, I was looking forward to that streak of tournaments.”

The springtime tournaments, during which he planned to separate himself from the field, have now all been rescheduled to take place later in the season when conditions will differ from those that had Nelson chomping at the bit last month. He expected Lake Martin to be a high hurdle. Instead, it was a high finish - a bonus that Nelson now enjoys even more, given the cloud of uncertainty that hangs over the remainder of the schedule. “I was like, ‘well, Martin is going to be the hard one for me’. It’s not my style of lake. I had no history there. Once I got past Martin, I figured it would be pretty good from Cherokee to South Carolina.

“I’m still looking forward to that stretch but now things have changed, and I’m fine with that. I’ve got zero anxiety about it. The only thing I’m anxious about, in reality, is I’m looking forward to getting back to the balanced life we had before the virus. This is a new thing for everybody, not being in the workforce, everything coming to a halt.”

Most pros are enjoying the break, hanging out with family and generally taking things as they come. By nature, fishermen possess more patience than the average person, but as we enter the 2^nd month of relative solitude many are getting antsy because, by nature, professional anglers also possess a stronger competitive drive than the average person. Nelson tempers that drive by doing things now that he would have done this summer, as he will be fishing this summer when he had planned to be home. “I’ve been real busy taking care of the chores around the house, things that I could have done in June and July, getting them done now. That’s nice - getting the home front taken care because the home front, to me, is always first.

“It is nice to spend more time at home and not be on the road. That being said, we’re very competitive as fishermen. We enjoy the challenge, the adventure, the new lakes.”

Nelson will embrace the new challenges when the time comes. One big challenge will be to reestablish the momentum he carried home from Lake Martin. “I’m looking at hitting that reset button like we have to do a lot of times in tournament fishing, whether you’re getting through a tough patch or you’ve got to reset, mentally, just to figure out what’s going on. If they change the dates on a couple more tournaments, I’m fine with it.

“I am glad that we did fish Martin, not just because of how I finished, but because we were already there. As fishermen we’re already self-quarantined as it is. In the boat by yourself. In the truck by yourself. I’m glad they didn’t say ‘go home’ and not fish.”

When FLW made the decision to fish the Martin tournament they also decided to not have marshals in the boats, social distancing being the big consideration. Nelson is a friendly conversationalist. Due to his performance he didn’t lack company for long. “I think I was in the Top 5 on Day 3 and Day 4 so two of the days I had a camera guy so it was kind of like having a marshal because we talked all day as he was in the back of the boat.”

If you watch Nelson, or most any pro, on FLW Live and he’s not talking, you can bet he’s dialed-in on a fish or looking hard for one. “When I’m bird-dogging it, looking for any little sign, then I’m kind of quiet but when I’m in dead water or not in my sweet stuff, I’ll have a conversation but when I’m in the juice, I don’t talk much. I kind of get on point because any little sign - I don’t want to miss it.”

Nelson didn’t miss many signs on Martin where he displayed the type of decision-making prowess needed to make a run at the AOY title on a major tour. “I knew they were dropping the water. On days 2, 3 and 4 I fished all new water. I started off fishing down lake where the water was clear. I knew those deeper fish, I could still see them when the water was high. And they would get pressured, whereas up the lake it was dirtier in practice and the water was still higher but when it dropped, those fish became visible and a lot of guys had already fished those areas and didn’t catch those fish because they couldn’t see them.”

Nelson says sight fishing isn’t his favorite way to do business, though he’s figured out that he’s good at it. “I love punching and flipping. That’s one of my favorite ways of fishing, fishing Florida style in the heavy stuff. Give me braid and a one-or-two-ounce weight and let me go to work. That’s combat fishing. I don’t do that a lot, so I make a lot of mistakes, but to me that’s a blast!”

Nelson gained a lot of experience in his rookie year on Tour, but his cross-country education began back when he decided to travel out of his comfort zone during his AAA days. He grew up with the spinning rod but knew there was a world of diverse waters and techniques to explore. “That’s what drove me to go fish the Toyota Series. I wanted to fish the Southeast Division down in Florida and South Carolina and fish different bodies of water and fish a shad spawn and fish for big fish and stuff,” Nelson rattles off in his quick paced Michigan accent. “It’s been a neat adventure. But if you look at my track record, as far as wins, the win on Champlain, the win on Smith Mountain Lake, yeah, it’s clear water, it’s around the sight fishing time. I think I know how to manage my time well and catch those fish faster than a lot of guys know how to catch them maybe.”

The versatility that Nelson has sought is starting to pay dividends and will likely serve him well during the most unpredictable tournament season we’ve ever seen. “I’m ready for any situation whether it’s a deep brush pile bite with shaky heads or a topwater bite, beating the bank with a buzzbait, I’m ready to do it all. I don’t have any fear about something not being in my wheelhouse. I’m rounded enough, seasoned enough now, comfortable now.”

As we all pass the time during the COVID-19 quarantine, are there constructive ways use the time, to prepare? Or should we just relax, spend time with the family and recharge the proverbial batteries? “Well, I think by recharging the batteries and spending time with the family you are being constructive. I feel like I live a double life as far as having a wife at home and being on the road. When things at home are taken care of, it’s a lot easier to stay focused while on the road. Now I feel like ‘let’s take care of the home life and when it’s time, we’ll get the ball rolling again and get back to fishing’. It’ll be a lot easier to just put my head down and not have to worry about things I should be doing at home because they are already done.

“It’s not going to be constructive as far as - I’m not wasting my time retying baits and restringing rods, not even trying to focus on one given tournament until we actually get the ok to go. I’m just going to keep fishing on the back burner and then approach it like it’s the first tournament all over. The next one’s our first tournament, in my mind.”

That’s not to say Nelson isn’t wetting a line with his wife, Karla. “We’ve had really nice weather the last three days, so we went out and did some crappie fishing and some bass fishing together.”

Aside from fun fishing, Nelson is staying in something of a routine by maintaining a regular sleep schedule and getting exercise by hiking with Karla and their two dogs in the wooded areas near their Berrien Springs, Michigan home. “I don’t go to the gym, don’t exercise like I should, but hiking is something I enjoy, and it builds endurance. When you stand, like the last tournament we fished, when you made the cut it was seven days straight. There was no off day. There was no break. On the last day my legs were getting a little tired,” shares the 45-year-old. “Instead of sitting on the couch and watching movies we try to stay active.”

Many people across the country are off their normal sleep schedule these days for a variety of reasons related to the pandemic. When Nelson’s head hits the pillow, he is sleeping well. If he has concerns, tournament fishing isn’t a major one right now. “The pressure is only what you create for yourself. I just don’t create any pressure for myself like that. It doesn’t even cross my mind as far as the anxiety of it. I recognize that it’s not happening, so I don’t have to worry about it until it does.”

Nelson is calmly focused on the job to come, whenever, wherever it comes. “(The schedule) has shifted. I’m still in the hunt to do well and I expect to do well, one check at a time, one fish at a time. You can’t get ahead of yourself. The points race is never decided until the last tournament. Makes it fun.”

by AnglersChannel

KVD’s 3 Favorite Crankbaits for Spring Bass

Courtesy of Luke Stoner - Dynamic Sponsorships

While we are all doing our best to stay close to home and quarantine ourselves due to COVID-19 protocol, bass are in different stages of the spawn. Whether they are pre-spawn for those up north, post-spawn for folks deep in the south, or in the process of spawning one thing is certain; there are bass to be caught up near the bank.While many anglers reach for soft plastics or their favorite bottom-bouncing bait, Team Toyota’s Kevin VanDam loves covering water with crankbaits this time of year. VanDam’s knowledge and prowess with crankbaits of all varieties is unparalleled. Fortunately “Dr. Crankenstein” wants you to catch more bass and offered his top three spring crankbaits you need to have tied on right now.

1. Strike King KVD HC Squarebill 1.5

If VanDam were forced to choose a single crankbait for springtime fishing, it would hands down be the Strike King KVD 1.5 squarebill. VanDam has employed this little plug to win literal millions of dollars in competitions and says this is the time of year it really shines. 

“There is no place in the country I go without a 1.5 tied on in the spring,” VanDam admitted. “From Michigan to Texas to California and everywhere in between, you can catch fish on this crankbait while they are in relatively shallow water.”

What VanDam likes most about this crankbait is its versatility. The KVD 1.5 is a player around a myriad of cover types. Whether you are hunting around laydowns, bouncing off rocks, or ticking the top of deeper grass lines the 1.5 performs flawlessly. KVD decides which color(s) to employ based upon the forage he believes bass are feeding in on.

And by varying the line size he throws this squarebill on VanDam efficiently and effectively covers a wide depth range with this single crankbait. The shallower he needs the bait to dive, the heavier line he’ll use, up to 20-lb Bass Pro Shops XPS KVD 100% Fluorocarbon. If he needs to dive a little deeper, KVD will drop his line size down until his bait is digging at the opportune depth.

2. Strike King KVD HC Shallow Squarebill 1.5

When bass are in super skinny water and on the cusp of performing their spawning ritual, VanDam favors the KVD 1.5 Shallow sqaurebill. While this crankbait is similar in name to his first choice, these are very different tools for VanDam based on diving depth. 

“The 1.5 Shallow only runs about twelve inches below the surface and is the perfect bait to cover water when bass get dirt shallow,” VanDam explained. “I throw it on heavy 17-lb. line and fish it close to shallow cover or around docks. If you keep your rod tip high on your retrieve this crankbait practically doubles as a wakebait and will draw some aggressive strikes.”

VanDam almost exclusively chooses bluegill or sunfish color patterns when fishing the 1.5 Shallow. He knows bass are thinking about spawning and bluegills are one of their primary targets this time of year whether they are feeding or protecting their spawning beds.

Whether it’s due to green slime moss, a bad bottom, or extremely shallow water – the 1.5 Shallow is VanDam’s player when he needs a crankbait to hunt in the top of the water column.

3. Strike King Series 5 Crankbait

As the bass in your area finish spawning and start sliding from the shallows to their deeper offshore haunts, VanDam’s go-to crankbait becomes a Strike King Series 5 crankbait in Sexy Shad. As soon as bass finish spawning they will often gorge on shad and the Series 5 consummately matches the hatch.

“Simply put, the Series 5 dives in the depth zone the bass are in during this transitional period,” VanDam said. “Bass don’t go extremely deep immediately after spawning. When they finish spawning they work their way out of the shallows; stopping at secondary points, road beds, shallow ledges, or main lake points.

“That 8-10 foot depth range and these type of stopping points are where a Series 5 does its best work.”

Many bass anglers want to pull out their favorite deep diving crankbaits as soon as they get the inkling bass are moving off the bank. VanDam’s experience has shown meeting them in the middle with a slightly less intrusive Series 5 will produce better than more aggressive deep diving plugs when bass are freshly post-spawn.

Take it from The Man himself; one of these crankbaits, or a combination of the three will help you catch bass on your local fishery right now. Stay close to home and use these plugs to cover water and catch some fish in the weeks to come. As KVD often says, “It’s all about the attitude.”

by AnglersChannel

Zaldain Gives Starter Tips on using Big Swimbaits

Courtesy of Luke Stoner - Dynamic Sponsorships

Bassmaster Elite Series pro Chris Zaldain is well known in the bass fishing world for being a swimbait aficionado. Whether he is looking for five big bites in a tournament or enjoying his local Texas fisheries during our current COVID-19 quarantine, you can bet the Zaldaingerous one has a big swimbait or two at the ready.

Large swimbaits intimidate anglers of all skill levels. It’s a presentation that requires a lot confidence, as you may not get a bunch of bites with a big swimmer, but you could catch the bass of a lifetime. Fortunately, Zaldain graciously offered a pair of tips to help the learning curve associated with swimbaits. Zaldain emphasizes now is the perfect time to try an oversized swimbait at your local fishery.

1.Replace your spinnerbait

 Spinnerbaits are a springtime staple in bass fishing. They are almost as reliable as Zaldain’s Yamaha Outboard and are something most anglers have some experience with. Zaldain’s first tip for swimbait greenhorns is to replace your 3/8-ounce spinnerbait with a big swimbait.

“All the conditions and clues you’d look for to throw a spinnerbait also apply for big swimbaits,” Zaldain explained. “Perfect conditions would be a little bit of cloud cover and a fair bit of wind. Target windy points, isolated laydowns, bridges, or any other obvious pieces of isolated shallow cover. Another thing a lot of people don’t realize is off-colored water is a good thing for swimbaits.”

The Carhartt pro mainly employs two sizes of the Megabass Magdraft Swimbait, the 6-inch and 8-inch versions. And he isn’t embellishing when he says he throws these lures in the same scenarios most anglers would reach for spinnerbait, chatterbait, or other more traditional offerings.

 This one little tip takes a lot of the intimidation factor out of swimbaiting. By thinking of a beefy swimbait as a replacement for your spinnerbait you now know where to throw it and what conditions improve the bite.

2. Fish it ‘uphill’

 Zaldain’s second tip to help you gain confidence with a big swimbait is to fish it uphill. More specifically, nose your boat as if you are fishing from the bank, cast the swimbait out towards deeper, open water and reel it towards the shore.

 This tactic takes a little positioning if you are in a boat, but is great news for the bank fishermen and women out there. Fishing off the shore is a perfect place to try one of these swimbaits for the first time. Just remember to bring your swim trunks with you, as big swimbaits can be relatively expensive and you’d hate to loose one to a snag!

 If Zaldain had to resort to one single swimbait he’d choose a 6-inch Magdraft in Albino Pearl Shad color and throw it on 15-pound Seaguar InvisX fluorocarbon. The right rod is another integral part of the setup and Zaldain throws 95% of his swimbaits on a 7’2” Heavy Megabass Orichi XX (Perfect Pitch) rod.

While Zaldain has his swimbait equipment down to a science, he emphasizes that most traditional jig rods will work great for a big swimbait. A seven-foot plus heavy action rod that is relatively stiff will get the job done. For more detailed tips on swimbaits and other techniques – follow Chris on Facebook, Instagram, or checkout his new YouTube channel.

Get outside, be safe, #FishSmart, and give a big swimbait a shot this spring whether you are trying to learn a new technique or you are after your new personal best bass.

by AnglersChannel

Tinkerer Terry Scroggins designs a bass catching original

Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships 

Toyota pro Terry Scroggins has long been nicknamed “Big Show” – a name given to him by a boat mechanic near his home waters of the St. Johns River, when Scroggins was winning darn near every derby held on the famous Northeast Florida waterway.

Just as fitting however, might be the nickname “Terry the Tinkerer.” The highly likeable pro can’t stand not using his mechanically talented mind and hands to improve an existing lure, or better yet, build an original of his own.

Scroggins’ fast growing in popularity “Kicker Tail” worm – created in a side room of his garage with the help of a mold maker from Michigan -- provides fascinating proof of Scroggins’ talents.

“My buddy from Michigan is a mold maker, and I guess you could say I’m a mold tinkerer,” says Scroggins. “He came down to visit me, and one evening after taking him fishing, I got to experimenting with two worms I melted together. We saw how good the action looked in my swimming pool, so he went home to Michigan, cut me a mold for the 5.5” Kicker Tail, and I caught 25 pounds of bass using the very first round of prototypes -- that’s how the Big Show Kicker Tail was born.”

Not only has Scroggins done well with the creation, but other anglers are now posting their Kicker Tail tournament catches on social media too, and thanks to a retail distribution agreement with Stanford Baits, the “Big Show Kicker Tail Worm” is now widely available at retail.

Available in three sizes and a dozen colors, Scroggins says if he had to pick only two colors, he’d use green pumpkin in clear water and red bug in heavily stained water. But the versatility of the lure is what makes it such a great creation.

“I can flip it in lily pads rigged Texas style with a ¼-ounce weight, drag the 9” version on a deep ledge in summertime, use it Neko style, or probably most popular, is simply throwing it on a shaky head,” says Scroggins.

Versatility and proven success will obviously continue to spur retail sales, but the fun and soulful rewards Scroggins has already experienced thanks to his creation are very strong too.

Through cooperation with Toyota, he supplied 12,000 free worms to all participants at the 2018 Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners tournament on Table Rock.

If that wasn’t generous enough, again with support from Toyota, Scroggins and highly decorated soldier Dakota Meyer gave all active and former military members a free bag of “Kicker Tail” worms at the 2019 Bassmaster Classic in Knoxville.

To know Scroggins is to realize his unbelievably generous heart. So while his tinkering hands created a big bass catching piece of soft plastic that will put more fish in your boat, and perhaps a few more dollars in his pocket– trust me, “Big Show” will always be more focused on making people smile, more so than making the next buck for his bank account.

by AnglersChannel