I just have to wonder, how many more nails can be put in the coffin of B.A.S.S. before ESPN is done tearing down the “grass roots” values B.A.S.S. was built upon by Ray Scott so long ago. I would imagine even Ray thinks some of these changes are ridiculous at times. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t understand the Elite angler position. Elite Anglers are fishing as a job, they face hurdles everyday out there; they have hopes of cashing a check, earning points and staying in the upper tiers of the bass fishing spot light. Who could blame them, they worked hard to get there and they earned their place as an Elite.

Now I admit, a co-angler can certainly have an impact on an “Elite Anglers” day on the water but, the co-angler is not your competitor. Quite frankly, you’re the “Elite Angler” (in the front of the boat) and if you missed that LM Bass that your co-angler caught, you had your chance, too bad! Things like that happen and that is why it’s called “Fishing”.

In the above ESPN blog, there are quite a few quotes from anglers and manufacturers that I would like to share with my personal opinions below them.

Greg Hackney was quoted as saying, “It’s the greatest thing to ever happen to the sport of bass fishing”

I personally find that really hard to digest when I think about the co-anglers and some of their dreams to maybe rub shoulders with the Elite by fishing as a co-angler some day. Am I to assume he (Greg Hackney) never fished as a co-angler climbing the ranks, I couldn’t really tell you. Does he forget that he was just an angler nobody knew at one time to?

“I certainly understand how the pros feel,” said Eric Naig of Pure Fishing, who has competed as co-angler. “But as a manufacturer it’s a little disappointing, because it’s been a great way for us to grow our pyramid of influence. I do understand, though.”

Not only will co-anglers feel the brunt of this decision but, manufacturers will also suffer from this imo. Most all the tackle companies rely on anglers for promotion, product visibility and education about their products at these tournaments through personal interaction. Let’s face it, without your aspiring bass angler buying their products, where would you and they be. Most of these same co-anglers are the bass fisherman that; cover the cost of your ELITE SPONSORS PAYCHECK, these same anglers are working with children and the public to ensure this great sport for future generations in their hometowns, while you fly or drive around to appear for a commercial or special event that revolves around sales.

“This is our job, though,” said Kevin Short, an Elite Series competitor who has been outspoken in his blogs on ESPNOutdoors.com about the role co-anglers play in the outcome of these events. “None of those guys are showing up trying to make their house payment or take care of their bills. They get to fish, possibly win, and go home. But in the process they can also change the outcome of one of our tournaments and impact a pro’s career.”

This is the one quote that I feel is really insensitive, careless & just plain ridiculous. What color are the clouds where you come from Kevin? Fact is, everyone is fishing in the competition to win, because they are competitive. I would also venture to say that most of the co-anglers face more of a financial burden to fish these tournaments than you and the other Elite Anglers dollar for dollar. Your entry fee might be more but, you have contributing sponsors helping you along. Most of the co-anglers are doing it all out of pocket and I’m sure there has been quite a few that have gone so far as to re-mortgage a house just to fish tournaments at this level and get a chance to fish with you Elite Bass Anglers. Don’t think for a minute that just because your an Elite, that you have it that much worse than the other guy that is supporting your sponsors and paying his own way.

“You’ve got to be careful with what you’re doing here,” said Elite Series angler Peter Thliveros. “Co-anglers are the guys that have perpetuated the myth of a lot of the top guys.

“Their word of mouth is how a lot of this industry was built to this point. Maybe so many of the stories don’t get out the way they used to and it turns into NASCAR where everybody knows you, but they don’t know you.”

Well said Peter! This decision will just add to the list of ways ESPN/Disney is loosing sight of what B.A.S.S. was once made of.

In Closing

As much as I would like to start adding quotes from the responses to this article and comment about them, I will leave that up to you to read and think about.

I would hope that someday soon, the bass fishing public can find out just where each of these ELITE ANGLERS stood concerning this decision. Maybe some of their sponsors should think about what kind of guy they are sponsoring and the possible snow-balling effect may have on them. As for the major B.A.S.S. sponsors, I hope it’s all worth it in the end without a following of anglers. It may be a good time to stock up on FLW Anglers. It is no wonder so many anglers have gone to FLW and I imagine many more will be making the switch soon enough.

If you would like to comment on this decision here, feel free. This is one topic that people should talk about.

Related Posts

• The Advantage Of Choosing A Custom Fishing Rod!
• Tackle Makes News
• Bass, Senkos & The Fishing Games Anglers Play!
• The Angling Center – All Fishing and a Whole Lot More.
• Best Terminal Tackle 2008

You can read more about the contest here and see pictures of the participants catches here.
http://theanglingcenter.com/index.php/board,79.0.html

Related Posts

• Bass, Senkos & The Fishing Games Anglers Play!
• Best Soft Plastic Bass Baits – Top Tackle 2008
• First Keeper LM Bass 2008
• Cold Water Fishing – In Search Of Smallmouth Bass
• The Advantage Of Choosing A Custom Fishing Rod!

This bait has a great action when fished texas-rigged, the fall is nice and it can easily double as a soft jerkbait with its “walk the dog” action. For all the Wacky Riggers out there, the BLR Bomber has an amazing wiggle on it’s way to the bottom and will put a meal in front of that big bass you have been targeting.

I got my first order of them yesterday and went to my favorite lake to see them up close and personal. I Texas rigged the bomber with an 11/0 Owner hook and used a large Parasite Clip to keep the bomber from sliding down the hook and threw it on a heavy action rod. If you are gonna texas rig this bait, big hooks, Parasite clips and a heavy action rod is what I suggest. Here is a picture of another average bass I caught yesterday.

JDC Baits offers this great bait in green pumpkin only for now but, with any luck, we will see a few more great fish catching colors in the coming months. For more information and to order some BLR Bombers, please visit:http://www.jdcbaits.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=49&osCsid=6809da239730d74e4b60976c52896f8c
You can order Large Parasite clips here: http://www.parasiteweights.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=28

Related Posts

• JDC Baits “Bomber” Lands 6lb/10oz Bass In PA – New Personal Best!
• Best Terminal Tackle 2008
• Best Soft Plastic Bass Baits – Top Tackle 2008
• ESPN News – Elite Series Co-Anglers – Shattered Dreams
• Online Bass Tournament Progress

We headed out on Hidden Lake for awhile.
Wind was blowing hard and temps for the day ran between 35-40 degrees in the morning. I threw jigs, tubes, sus jerkbaits and finally managed to pick up my first keeper LM of 2008 on a crankbait with a stop-n-go retrieve, thrown on a JB Custom “Huntin’ Stick” rod. First LM to be boated with this new JB Custom rod and man it was sweet to finally get that out of the way.

This was actually me second LM of the season so far. A day or two earlier, I managed a dink.Mrs.M threw all kinds of things also and managed this pickeral on her megabass crank.

Related Posts

• Online Bass Tournament Progress
• The Advantage Of Choosing A Custom Fishing Rod!
• Some Rage Tail Fun – Fans Fishing RageTail Baits.
• Tackle Makes News
• Best Soft Plastic Bass Baits – Top Tackle 2008