Last tournament of the 2013 year
The last event of the year took us north to Pool 8 on the Mississippi River in Lacrosse, Wisconsin. Neither one of us had ever fished this stretch of the river in the fall of the year. We did some homework, and had some areas that we wanted to focus on. A few areas were a complete bust, but some panned out to pretty good. We found some bass close to the main river, and we found some bass back in the backwaters too. We had some variety and we were feeling pretty good about things that night.
Saturday night brought in the first big cold-front of the fall. In fact, frost covered the boat in the morning, and we knew that would change things.
Sunday brought cold temperatures, and a lot less fish biting. We caught a few fish in several areas, and managed 3 keepers. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and Hot Rod Baits tubes caught the keepers. We finished in the middle of pack, and were disappointed. We fished six Cedar Valley Bassmaster club tournaments throughout the year, and the last one ended up being the worst one. Not what we had planned. We were also in the running for Anglers of the Year too. With the standings so close, Jason Eastman, and the team of Andy Sommerfelt and Mike Everett had great seasons too. We left the event and no one knew who would end up on top of the standings. The long drive home only stirred the emotions and thoughts for the entire year. Tournament fishing can really test you physically and this drive was testing me mentally too! Not just about the mediocre tournament finish, or the close angler of the year race, but one again, a good friend and I were going in opposite directions once again.
My partner, Trent Beier and I entered the weekend of October 12th knowing that this would be the last time we would see each other for quite a while. Trent lives just outside of Chicago, that puts him over 300 miles away, and 5 hours of road time. Although we might act like brothers when we are together, we rarely see each other away from the Mississippi River. Fishing is not only a fun thing to do, but it brings a couple high school friends together that would probably only talk on the phone a few times a year without the quest of chasing bass.
Saturday night brought in the first big cold-front of the fall. In fact, frost covered the boat in the morning, and we knew that would change things.
Sunday brought cold temperatures, and a lot less fish biting. We caught a few fish in several areas, and managed 3 keepers. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and Hot Rod Baits tubes caught the keepers. We finished in the middle of pack, and were disappointed. We fished six Cedar Valley Bassmaster club tournaments throughout the year, and the last one ended up being the worst one. Not what we had planned. We were also in the running for Anglers of the Year too. With the standings so close, Jason Eastman, and the team of Andy Sommerfelt and Mike Everett had great seasons too. We left the event and no one knew who would end up on top of the standings. The long drive home only stirred the emotions and thoughts for the entire year. Tournament fishing can really test you physically and this drive was testing me mentally too! Not just about the mediocre tournament finish, or the close angler of the year race, but one again, a good friend and I were going in opposite directions once again.
My partner, Trent Beier and I entered the weekend of October 12th knowing that this would be the last time we would see each other for quite a while. Trent lives just outside of Chicago, that puts him over 300 miles away, and 5 hours of road time. Although we might act like brothers when we are together, we rarely see each other away from the Mississippi River. Fishing is not only a fun thing to do, but it brings a couple high school friends together that would probably only talk on the phone a few times a year without the quest of chasing bass.
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| This picture was at the first tournament of the year, the first step of a year-long journey. |
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