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Another Winning Non-Boater's Perspective
When One More Bite Matters
Story by Rod Yoder

ESPN Outdoors 2007 Bassmaster Series Championship
January 25-27, 2007
Lake Guntersville, Guntersville, Ala

Editor's Note: Co-angler Rod Yoder has done it again! This time he has come in second place on the non-boater side of ESPN's national championship held on Lake Guntersville for weekend anglers.

It’s one thing to think you know something, but until it is knowledge put to experience, you don’t really know it.

I traveled to Guntersville, Alabama to fish the Bassmaster Series Championship as a co-angler knowing that the worst case scenario was to come home with a last place check for $650. I was happy with that, especially after winning $25,000 at the regional last November. With my trip expenses covered by my winnings, I could sit back, relax and enjoy the opportunity to fish the “Big G”.

My first day at the hotel, I realized I was someplace special. I walked down to the hotel cafe that first morning to have breakfast. The large round table next to me was filled with Monday morning businessmen. I don’t remember what shirt I had on, or maybe it was the fact I sat at my table still wearing my fishing hat, but one friendly gentleman struck up a conversation with me. “You one of the bass fishermen? We sure do appreciate y’all coming to our town,” said he.

I always knew there was something called southern hospitality, but being from Indiana, I had never experienced it first hand. He handed me his card, introduced himself as Mr. Williams, and as I was getting ready to leave, he grabbed the check off the corner of my table. Eight gentlemen in crisp white shirts and dapper ties all wished me good luck as I finished my coffee and stood up to leave. Thank you, Mr. Williams.

I spent the day with fellow Indiana angler, Eric Johnson. We hit a few local tackle shops for those last minute purchases before the tournament registration. After the registration meeting, we would no longer be able to receive information or make any additional purchases of bait or tackle, except from a fellow competitor. At the very last minute, I received a call from a friend. “Do not put the lipless crankbait down!” That was it, a couple new must-have purchases before the cut-off, and one final furtive bit of advice from a fellow competitor.

It was great to see an old friend from Indiana as our tournament director. Danny and Sandy Simmons had run the Indiana BASS Federation Invitational tournaments before relocating to Alabama a few years back where they work full time with BASS. Pretty standard meeting and boat pairing stuff. I was ready to fish!

Practice Days

Boaters and non-boaters were paired up for the 2 official practice days and practice hours were run just like the tournament days. All boats were identical Tritons towed by Toyota trucks. We’d meet our partners at the boat yard before being towed to the ramp and dropped in the water. I spent the two practice days doing a lot more fiddling in my tackle box than I should have. But I really wanted to be able to eliminate tactics that did not work or didn't feel right. What did work for my boaters and myself between the two days were: lipless cranks, jerks, regular crankbaits and one solid fish on a jig. Pretty much what I thought I knew... but I needed to be sure I knew.

Tournament Day One

I had my best day on tournament day one. Water temps were between 46 and 50. Air temps from 26 to 54. Most all fish came from grass, 3 to 6 ft deep. All my bites came on a old 1/2 oz Jimmy Houston Super Spot. I was paired with John Schlee, from Minnesota. John was a real pleasure to fish with. He made it plain to me that we were going to work together to figure out the bite. One thing John did that caught my eye was to put MegaStrike on his lipless crankbait. I usually like to put MegaStrike on my soft plastics but I had never thought to put it on hard baits. I chuckled to myself because the night before, I had put a partial tube of MegaStrike in the right hand cargo pocket of my new Cabela's Guidewear bibs. I grabbed it and smeared a bit onto my Super Spot crankbait.

We were fishing a marina area with small islands. The breeze created slack water behind the islands. Most of our bites that day came at the edges of the slack water. We both had our limits by 10:00 AM and I ended up gaining 4 ounces with a cull later in the day. I finished day one with 3 fish weighing 9-11, ranking third place in the standings and well within striking distance of first! I was thrilled.

Tournament Day Two

Day two started by giving me a 5 pounder on a Suspending Rogue jerkbait in the first 15 minutes before the bright sun came over the trees.

An angler from back home had drilled it into me that when the water is cold, you have to fish a jerkbait slow. And when you think its slow enough, go half that speed! I had tried to fish the jerk slow in practice... thought I was... but it wasn't until I got bit that morning I really learned how slow it had to be! I found out on the second practice day when I was a little laid back and had started chatting with my partner. I don't know exactly how long I had let my jerkbait sit motionless, but it was quite a while before it got hit. The importance of the slowness factor was driven home again that evening when I overheard another angler complaining about how the only bite he had gotten was when his jerkbait was hit while he was digging in his pockets for a cigarette. I thought I knew “slow”... but now I know!

Day two, there were no clouds in the sky, and no breeze to speak of. I was paired with Brady Farrell. a fellow  northern angler from Wisconsin. He was quite keen on this particular flat. I knew he had caught a 12 pounder the first day of practice, but this flat had also produced a 10 pounder for his co-angler that same day! We fished it slow, the lack of wind and minimal trolling motor activity enabled me to practice what I “knew” I needed to do with my jerkbait. It didn't take long. I was casting to just inside the edge of shade created by the morning sun rising over the tree line. Snap, snap, snap to get it down, then point the rod back towards the bait to give it slack.

What happened next was the coolest bite I’ve ever had. The squiggly coils of stiff, cold fluorocarbon line laying on the water began to straightened out! I don’t have any idea what went through my mind in that split second of recognition, but obviously I knew I had a fish because my whole body reacted and set the fight in motion! No net allowed, 3 sets of trebles, freezing cold hands and one big fish - a five pounder - makes a man stop to take a pause as soon as she’s safely stowed in the livewell! That's when it hit me... I just made it to the final day cut-off with that one fish!

After that, I was more relaxed the rest of day two than I should have been. I had to believe that that one fish would keep me in the top twelve and that I would make the cut. I even took a few minutes off from fishing to eat the Subway sandwich the tournament crew placed in the boat for each of us. Out on Lake Guntersville, in one of the biggest and best tournament situations I've ever been in, that Subway sandwich tasted sweeter than any sandwich I can recall.

After starting the day at 26 degrees, the sun made for a pleasant day. We made the move to a riprap bank that had been warmed by the sun all day. Water temp was climbing toward 50. After making a few casts at a small drain that was built into the riprap, my partner confessed that that was the location he had caught his 12 pounder in practice. There was a depression where the drain emptied. I appreciated the info. With about 45 minutes of fishing left for day two, this helped to heighten my concentration level for one more bite. Just knowing there was the possibility of the big bite made for a slight increase in heart rate. I was happy with my catch for the day but I knew one more keeper could make a big difference.

I was throwing a 3/8 oz black blue jig with a #11 pork chunk. My partner needed more than his one keeper to make the cut. He was fishing a small shaky head worm. Three or four times he swung on what he thought was a tap, but fanned. He was getting a little frazzled. I was wondering if he was dreaming or just wishing he was getting tapped. Then he swung again. A three pounder surfaced and threw his worm! YIKES! They ARE here!

A quick flashback to practice day one of the regional at Neely Henry: My practice partner was having trouble connecting with the shaky head worm and I switched to 8# test with a 1/8 oz Little Pek jig head and a Zoom Ultravibe Speed Craw. Bang bang bang... seven keepers and my partner still hadn’t connected. I knew this because I had experienced it: the exposed Gamakatsu hook on that little jig translates into fewer missed strikes.

So I grabbed my Quantum finesse rod with the little jig and craw. Just one more bite, I thought, just one more bite. With under fifteen minutes of fishing left, my partner finally boats his second keeper of the day. They’re here! They’re here! I’m waiting and watching... Finally I feel that faint little “tink” I’d been waiting for...

This part always scares me. Historically, I have not been a light line fisherman. To me, 90 percent of the fun of fishing is in the hook set! But now I am faced with the possibility of a huge fish on thread-thin line. If I swing hard, I risk  breaking off on the hook set. If I don’t swing hard enough I risk losing the fish before the hook barb has a chance to do its thing. But then again, maybe that tap was simply my jig head bouncing off a rock? The mind is an amazing thing, because all these thoughts raced through my head in the few milliseconds between the time I sensed the tap and when I reeled down to swing.

A slight buzz of drag sounds as I drive the hook home on a solid keeper. Trying to hurry and take your time all at once is not an easy thing to do. “Lord have mercy!”  Two in the live well and ten minutes left to get one more bite. My partner and I were both short of breath with hearts pounding...

But time ran out.

Because I had a reliable scale (I thought), I knew I had a 5 and a 2.5 for about 7.5 pounds. So while standing in line at the weigh in, I tallied up the leader board and reckoned I should end day two in second place. Outstanding!

When I made it to the stage I watched the official scales, and I stood absolutely stunned... 8 pounds 13 ounces. I was in the lead! I didn’t make the usual fists-clenched-in-the-air or inane hollerin’ like Ike. I was completely baffled. I had weighed the big fish and Knew it was 4-14, practically five. There was something wrong! There was no way a 2.5 pounder added to that would make 8-13? I walked off the stage in a daze.

Finally, my senses came clear as the tournament director explained again that they had reset the scales, at some point, without the weight of the bag. So all weights for the day included the weight of the bag. Whew! I was relieved.

I was not especially thrilled to be leading. I don’t know why, but I felt I’d much rather chase than run. I spent the evening readying tackle, updating friends and family and sitting by myself at a table by Waffle House restaurant. Mr. Williams was not there to pick up my check again. I ate alone, lingered over coffee and I spent a fair amount of time in prayer. Not asking that I would win, but expressing my thankfulness for His blessings and asking why I have been provided this wonderful opportunity? I still do not know, but at some point, I’m sure His answer will come.

Tournament Day Three

Day three, as far as co-angling goes, was miserable for me. My boater, in a last ditch act of desperation, spent the whole day with his boat's nose positioned four or five feet from a riprap bank with his trolling motor on constant high bypass. He could cast directly ahead, but I was basically screwed. This angler had a reputation to uphold, I reckon, but that did little to help me maintain my first place lead. When he finally got this out of his system after several hours (either that or he drained all the juice for the trolling motor), we got back to the grass beds, where I was finally able to chunk and wind with the lipless crankbait.

I am not an athletic guy. I sit at a computer doing a desk job most days. The fifth day in a row of casting was taking its toll. Add to that the mental and emotional stress. A number of times I had to literally buckle over on the deck, my shoulder blades aching. I’d wait a few seconds and then remind myself what was at stake, before continuing with long casts and gentle but steady winding, popping the 1/2 oz lipless crank from the weed tops. I can’t fully explain the mental and physical exhaustion. All I wanted was one keeper. And it wasn’t happening. I knew three pounds would at the very least keep me in the top five. Every cast I stood braced for that thump that never came. Relentlessly, the clock ticked by.

When I walked to the weigh-in line empty handed, I felt sick to my stomach. The look on weighmaster Sandy Simmons’ face when she saw me without a bag nearly broke my heart. I cannot recall ever feeling this dejected. I was the second co-angler on stage. I don’t recall what I said, but I do remember the warm reaction of the audience. I stepped outside the weigh-in pavilion. I couldn’t watch as my dream slipped away. I was greeted by Lisa, the Regional tournament director and then by Roy the divisional tournament director. They obviously have dealt with a lot of anglers in my current state of mind. Their kind words somehow helped and were much appreciated.

I paced around the BASS trailers for a few minutes before heading back inside. I was amazed to see the leader board still had me in second place with only 2 co-anglers left to weigh... and they were down a ways. Before long it was obvious that 2nd place was mine.

It is a wonderful, crazy life. When I came up with a slogan for RedShad.com, little did I know how prophetic it would be: "When One More Bite Matters"  Now I have experienced it and now I know: One more bite ALWAYS matters.

A replay of the 2006 tournament year shot through my mind.

• 4 divisional tournaments, each with a paycheck.
• Finished 2nd overall in the division and qualified for the regional.
• Won $25,000 at the Neely Henry regional.
• Qualified for the National.
• Made the cut, leading into the final day.
• Second place co-angler finish at the Bassmaster Series National Championship and $9,500!

Thanks to my family, my wife, Verna, and my two daughters, Sam and Erin, to my friends, my fellow anglers from Indiana, especially Stu Moyer (“Mr. Indiana Jerkbait”) and Carl Wooton - my long time mentor.

I'd also like to thank all of you who have supported me. Thank you to BASS for running a great circuit for weekend anglers this past year, such as: Bobby with MegaStrike; Chris with Quantum Fishing; Konrad with Power Pro; and Tony with Hooked Up Bait Co.

And a very big thank you to John Schlee and Brady Farrell, my day one and day two partners, true gentlemen and sportsmen both. What the hay, I'd like to thank my third day partner too! After all, he did take me fishing. which I appreciate. Without him, I'd be on the bank. True, he didn't exactly help me, but as things turned out, he didn't hurt either.

Notes on What I Learned

• If you are around grass and fishing a lipless crank, PowerPro braid is the way to go.
• If the weather is cold, its worth the investment to get the best - Under Armour.
• No matter what bait you are throwing, smear a dab of MegaStrike on it. In a week of hearing complaints of missed fish or barely hooked fish; with MegaStrike on every lure I threw, I did not lose or miss one fish. Every bite I had came to the boat with the bait fully in the mouth.

Tackle Used

Caught 4 keepers and 1 non-keeper (Day 1 in 2-4' grass):

• 1/2 oz Excalibur Jimmy Houston Super Spot, Texas Red (discontinued model)
• 7' PRM All Star Rod  (discontinued model)
• Quantum Tour Edition PT 6.3:1 Baitcasting Reel
• 50# Power Pro

Caught 1 keeper (Day 2 on 5-6' flat w/grass):

• 1/3 oz Suspending Rogue, Threadfin Shad
• Quantum PTC664FGS Medium 6'6" Gerald Swindle “Poppin” Rod
• Quantum Tour Edition PT 6.3:1 Baitcasting Reel
• 12# Seaguar Carbon Pro fluorocarbon line

Caught 1 keeper. (Day 2 off 8' riprap) and caught 1 non-keeper. (Day 3 off 8' riprap)

• 1/8 oz Little Pek Jig
• Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw, Green Pumpkin
• Quantum PTS6105FSG Medium 6'10" Shaw Grigsby Finesse Rod
• Quantum Energy PTi E30PTi-A Spinning Reel
• 8# Seaguar Carbon Pro fluorocarbon line

Rod Yoder
RedShad.com
ryoder@redshad.com
http://tackle.redshad.com/
“When One More Bite Matters”