"In the Boat" presented by Jewel Bait Company |
Tournament: Mr. Bass of Arkansas-Dumas AR
July 18, 2010
Story by Andy Case (Co Angler)
Background and Practice:
I fished a Dumas Bass Club tournament on the river, I did okay weighing in a decent limit and
finding some additional areas to fish. At the pairings, I waited and waited finally there was only one
angler and myself so I knew that we would be paired, oh yea the very last boat to leave…..was this
a sign???
BLAST OFF:
I meet up with Mr. Bill West early that morning to get loaded up and talk about the game plan.
Being the last boat, there was no major rush. As we rounded the corner to spot #1 another
competitor was already there, oh well he was there first, so we started on the outer edge and
worked our way in and around. With zero bites on this point and the early cloud cover breaking, we
decided to fish the area where I had caught them yesterday. Well as luck would have it, there
seemed to be no 15” plus fish in there, all shorts. After working this area hard, I was a little sad
about no keepers for either of us. We move a short distance to another area, and it has some flow
in the water, and I immediately hook up with what looked like a decent fish, unfortunately he did not
stay on my bug. Mr. Bill is throwing a shallow running crank bait around and he hooks up with a
short fish. Well it seems like there may be a few fish here. We fish down almost to the end and Mr.
Bill’s rod doubles over, a nice 3 lb’er comes up and gets air born and throws his crankbait. Mr. Bill
was a little shook up, “Doggone that Ronnie Everett!” I was unsure what/who this fellow was, so I
did not question. Just as Mr. Bill seems to calm down, I hook up with my first keeper on a red bug T-
Mac, a 16” Black…I’m on the Board. We decide to leave and go hit some river spots, hoping to
come back later. Well on the first cast, Mr. Bill’s reel has a professional overrun, again “that Gosh
Darn Ronnie!” well by now I figured this Ronnie dude works on reels and did not do something quite
right. Well Mr. Bill got it lined out, and I don’t remember how many casts he actually made, but I was
netting keeper after keeper. Wow-with one move, Bill is on the board with five keepers, “How you
like that RONNIE,” I was thinking, man Bill must really not like this guy. As we fish this point pattern,
I finally catch my #2 keeper. As the river bite started to die, we decided to run back to the first spot
and see if the fish had pulled in. Right off the bat I catch a short fish then another and then
another, all short. With time almost gone we decided to run back to the magic point and hope for
the best. Well neither one of us connects with a keeper, only time will tell.
Final Thoughts:
Once in line, at weigh-in, here is this Ronnie Everett guy that Mr. Bill has been hammering all day.
Man I was a little nervous about even having to talk with him, but he was doing the weigh in! Once
on stage I then find out that Bill and Ronnie are buddies and traveling partners, WOW!!! If these
two are buddies, I did not want to be someone they did not like. All in all, it was a great day on the
water for me, another great draw; we caught lots of fish (not all keepers) and had a heck of a good
time. Bill West is a “heck of a fisherman, a fierce competitor, and an all around great guy” Due to
the cash money bribe; I had to include that last statement. HA! HA!
Keep Chunking..Luck Counts
Andy Case
July 18, 2010
Story by Andy Case (Co Angler)
Background and Practice:
I fished a Dumas Bass Club tournament on the river, I did okay weighing in a decent limit and
finding some additional areas to fish. At the pairings, I waited and waited finally there was only one
angler and myself so I knew that we would be paired, oh yea the very last boat to leave…..was this
a sign???
BLAST OFF:
I meet up with Mr. Bill West early that morning to get loaded up and talk about the game plan.
Being the last boat, there was no major rush. As we rounded the corner to spot #1 another
competitor was already there, oh well he was there first, so we started on the outer edge and
worked our way in and around. With zero bites on this point and the early cloud cover breaking, we
decided to fish the area where I had caught them yesterday. Well as luck would have it, there
seemed to be no 15” plus fish in there, all shorts. After working this area hard, I was a little sad
about no keepers for either of us. We move a short distance to another area, and it has some flow
in the water, and I immediately hook up with what looked like a decent fish, unfortunately he did not
stay on my bug. Mr. Bill is throwing a shallow running crank bait around and he hooks up with a
short fish. Well it seems like there may be a few fish here. We fish down almost to the end and Mr.
Bill’s rod doubles over, a nice 3 lb’er comes up and gets air born and throws his crankbait. Mr. Bill
was a little shook up, “Doggone that Ronnie Everett!” I was unsure what/who this fellow was, so I
did not question. Just as Mr. Bill seems to calm down, I hook up with my first keeper on a red bug T-
Mac, a 16” Black…I’m on the Board. We decide to leave and go hit some river spots, hoping to
come back later. Well on the first cast, Mr. Bill’s reel has a professional overrun, again “that Gosh
Darn Ronnie!” well by now I figured this Ronnie dude works on reels and did not do something quite
right. Well Mr. Bill got it lined out, and I don’t remember how many casts he actually made, but I was
netting keeper after keeper. Wow-with one move, Bill is on the board with five keepers, “How you
like that RONNIE,” I was thinking, man Bill must really not like this guy. As we fish this point pattern,
I finally catch my #2 keeper. As the river bite started to die, we decided to run back to the first spot
and see if the fish had pulled in. Right off the bat I catch a short fish then another and then
another, all short. With time almost gone we decided to run back to the magic point and hope for
the best. Well neither one of us connects with a keeper, only time will tell.
Final Thoughts:
Once in line, at weigh-in, here is this Ronnie Everett guy that Mr. Bill has been hammering all day.
Man I was a little nervous about even having to talk with him, but he was doing the weigh in! Once
on stage I then find out that Bill and Ronnie are buddies and traveling partners, WOW!!! If these
two are buddies, I did not want to be someone they did not like. All in all, it was a great day on the
water for me, another great draw; we caught lots of fish (not all keepers) and had a heck of a good
time. Bill West is a “heck of a fisherman, a fierce competitor, and an all around great guy” Due to
the cash money bribe; I had to include that last statement. HA! HA!
Keep Chunking..Luck Counts
Andy Case