By: David A. Brown
Fall is championship season in much of the bass-fishing world. FLW’s Forrest Wood Cup has come and gone, but many regional and open events are ramping up. Plus, club anglers across the country are preparing for their annual classics.
If you’re lucky enough to have qualified for a championship in any tournament circuit, there’s a good chance you’ll be faced with visiting a new lake. Competing on a foreign fishery is alluring with potential, but the unknown can just as easily confuse, confound and frustrate. Intrinsic to a successful debut is the angler’s skill at searching new waters and identifying the opportunities therein.
For tips on this objective, we turn to accomplished Walmart FLW Tour pros:
Dave Lefebre – Plan for the Season
The Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes pro from Erie, Pa., says effective searching starts with understanding seasonal patterns. Whatever the season, Lefebre says decisiveness is your ally. Rarely is a lake’s bounty tied to one particular spot. A plethora of similar scenarios is more often the case. Pick one and go looking.
“Limit yourself in the amount of water you try to search,” Lefebre said. “Realize you could have success in that creek, in that creek, in that creek, but choose one area that fits the seasonal pattern.”
Experience level and physical abilities will determine how broad an area you can realistically attack, but the principle remains constant. It’s all about what you learn by getting bit, and as he points out, you can’t solve an equation without data. Fish, and once a pattern emerges, you can from there endlessly, he said.
Jacob Wheeler – Consider Current Conditions
The former Forrest Wood Cup champion and Walmart BFL All-American winner from Indianapolis, Ind., banks much of his new-lake searching on weather study, which he’ll marry with seasonal analysis to dial in where the fish are likely to be holding.
“Weather plays a huge role in how the fish are going to position, so I will study it for weeks in advance,” Wheeler said. “Water temperature is another big thing because that tells me if I need to be going shallow or deep.”
Four or five days of cool weather could trigger a major move toward the shallows. If weather forecasts indicate stable conditions lasting throughout a tournament, Wheeler will devote all of his practice time to the bank. Conversely, a front in the forecast compels him to also practice a little deeper to find those pull-back spots he might need.
Recent rains also provide important clues.
“Rainfall will dictate how clear the water is,” Wheeler pointed out. “So, before I even get to the lake, if I know that the water is going to be stained, I can assume it’s going to be more dirty-water techniques that will come into play.
“That’ll give you an idea of what you’re going to do. You can eliminate a lot of stuff and sort of have an idea before you even get to the lake.”
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