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Open Charity Bass Tournament
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Posted Monday, March 25th, 2002 to The Bass Pro Diary
Cold rainy weather dominate the day, but the fish can't go hungry and there's plenty of action to keep the blood pumping!
March 25, 2002
I woke up to a cold and wet 4:00 am, as I got myself prepared for a local charity tournament located on Okauchee Lake in my home state of Wisconsin. Watching the weather on television just made me shiver as it was supposed to rain the entire day, as well as hold temperatures in the low 50’s. Brrrrrrrr.
The tournament was called the “Open Gate Open,” a tournament that was designed to be a fund raiser for a shelter located in Milwaukee. The Open Gate, as the shelter is called, works to take homeless people off the streets, and give them a place to stay while they get some basic training, jobs, and housing. It also has a food pantry for those who need it. Granted, it was difficult for me to face a day of cold and wet fishing - but when you really think about it, there are homeless people all over the country who face terrible weather day after day. Doing the tournament was just something I needed to do. Not to show off, not to be the “hero to the homeless,” but to get down to the basics of life and take one cold morning to be thankful for all that I am so fortunate to have in my own life.
It was a team tournament, and I was joined by my brother Scott (or as he was nick-named following the tournament - “Mr. Crappie”), for a day full of fishing and a hopeful victory.
The participants set off to fish at 6:00 am, and right off the bat we had some engine trouble. I had had the boat out all day on Friday with no problems - but Murphy’s Law would have set in, of course. We did get the engine started, though, and headed to the northern part of the lake.
To start off, on the cold and wet day, we were throwing crankbaits. Scott chose a smaller deep diver, and I threw a larger variety. No bass, but Scott did manage to hook three decent sized Crappie (one was the size of my hand) and one small bluegill. By 8:30 we decided that we were taking a wrong approach as I spotted smaller shad swimming in small schools. I decided to tie on a small, white colored spinnerbait and see what happened. It only took three casts, and by 8:45 I had landed a 14.5" largemouth for our livewell - in the exact same area Scott was nailing the crappie. At that point, we decided to use spinnerbaits - and it would prove to be a smart move. The assortment contained spinnerbaits made by various manufacturers - and the ones that were the most successful were the smaller ones with either a white or chartreuse colored skirt and tandem blades. I also had spooled up my Gold Island rods and reels with a camouflage line made by a company known as Hi-Seas. This line (the Black Widow Series) is a multi-colored line that alters between red, black, and white, and is almost invisible to the bass. The Black Widow line is the only one I use, and I have nothing but positive comments to make on the quality level it possesses.
We then found ourselves drifting out to the middle area of the lake - off of one of the Northern areas we had planned to originally fish. Then we faced a new problem - the outboard engine completely stopped firing up and we were stranded in the middle of the lake. The engine would turn over with no problem - but it would not fire up. Well, I guess it goes back to the shop! We were forced to spend the 10:00 to 11:00 time frame trolling our way back to the weigh-in area so we could be close by when the tournament ended.
The lunar calendar stated that the best fishing time would be between the 12:00 and 2:30 time - and it was true. At almost noon, I managed to hook on another largemouth bass - but it was a bit short and we threw it back. A few minutes later - I managed to land another keeper in the same vicinity as the short fish. Keeping near the marina, we decided to throw spinnerbaits around the boat docks and piers nearby. In doing this, we turned up no bass, but I did land a 22” Muskie (on an 1/8 oz. spinnerbait, and with only 12 lb. Black Widow Mono) and Scott reeled in a Northern of similar size on a much larger spinnerbait. They both put up good fights - but were not what we were wanted on the hooks. On a day of “fun fishing,” these fish would have been the trophy catches of the day - but during bass tournament fishing, they are nothing more than junk fish. Too bad!
Well, our two fish (two seemed to be an average number for the tournament) got us an 18th place finish, and no bragging rights or cash. I did have the benefit, once again, to spend another unforgettable day with my brother, who is still in the process of trying to dry his jeans out (no rainsuit)! We still had a fun time and were able to spend our Saturday helping out the Open Gate. Of course, the rain did manage to stop just in time for the tournament to end - isn’t that how it always goes?
Curt S. Strutz
The “Bassmeister”
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