Washington Qualifier

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Mark Maderos on June 30, 2013 at 5:07pm

It was a real grind for all but one angler.  John McHenry had them figured out and came in with 15+ lbs.....  the rest of the field not so much.  couple of 11lb bags,  a few 10lb bags, and quickly down from that.  I felt very fortunate to get my 8.91 lbs as I lost 2 fish right off the bat, knowning that the bite has been really tough.  The fish are really finicky right now, and not fully on there summer area's and bite.  Only a few largies were weighed, with big fish a 4.8 lb largemouth. 

  I fished two area's for largies without a bite, and managed to catch 4 of my bag in the last 40 minutes on a stretch of 10 docks.

  Caught alot of short fish, (15+)  but keepers even in the 12 to 13" range were tough to come by.

Dropshotting docks and cranks accounted for my fish.

Permalink Reply by Jeremy Cheever on June 30, 2013 at 10:30pm

Well John should have done well, he only let his back seater have the front for a total of 45 mins...

Permalink Reply by Jordan Doucet on July 1, 2013 at 10:33am

Jeremy,

I filled in for a drop out this weekend and I had 0 minutes in the front of the boat, but like other non boaters still managed to catch fish. I am willing to guess I am not the only non-boater that had no time at the front either. In the years I have done qualifiers as a boater I have never had a non-boater request any time, let alone half the day. But if they did I would certainly oblige.

I certainly don’t buy that John only did well because he had all the time on the front except 45 minutes. He is a stick out on Lake Washington year around. I do have a few more questions for you:

Was he positioning the boat in such a way that you could not effectively fish?

Did you request the front for half the day?

Did you prefish and have water you wanted to fish?

If so did you tell him that?

Did he ask you to move out of the way so he could fish?

If the answer to the questions above is Yes, then maybe something should be said.

Personally, if I drew John on out Lake Washington, I would be happy to fish out of the back all day, knowing that he has some great water and I am going to be around fish all day… I have known and fished against John for about 8 years now and I just don’t buy that he was putting you in a bad position to catch fish or being rude on the boat.

Maybe some other non-boaters can weigh in on where they stand with time up front as this was my first time doing it. It does seem like a bit of a grey area.  

Permalink Reply by John McHenry on July 1, 2013 at 12:49pm

Jeremy,

I knew you were upset, but I thought it was due to frustration over not getting bit and the boat ride back more than anything else. If you want to talk about it you can reach me at (206) 601-9871.

John

Permalink Reply by Jeremy Cheever on July 1, 2013 at 12:55pm

You will have to forgive me john, that comment was just out of frustration, and too many coronas...haha, it was nothing you really did I just wasnt getting the bites...my apologies again.

Permalink Reply by Mark Maderos on July 1, 2013 at 5:29pm

unfortunately this particular tournement was going to be really tough on back seaters with the finicky bite to begin with and then most guys dock fishing.  What active fish is around the dock usually is grabbing the first thing thrown in there.  The next point would be if a backseater has water they want to fish.  I know at Roosevelt, my backseater stated early on he had some water he wanted to fish.  As the day progressed, he was happy with fishing the water I was on, and I did my very best to help him get a limit.  With Washington fishing so tough, I can easily see a backseater getting frustrated.  But also, backseaters, if you draw some one who knows a body of water and is doing there best to be around fish,  sometimes it's just the way the bite happens.

  It is always tough to watch your dreams of making a state team slip away.  I get it.  It has happened to me in the past and will happen to me again.  That being said, backseaters, ask your boater why he is fishing an area.  How is the spot set up to fish.  Is it ok to cast ahead of the boat.  Where is the rock pile located,  etc  so that you can increase your chances.  I wont speak for every boater, but I will always do my best to help my backseater by answering questions, showing them why it is that I'm in an area, and how it sets up.  And if you have water you want to fish, then let's go hit the spot and see if it's producing.

  Finally, we as boaters have invested LARGE sums of money into our boats.  I always try to make sure that everything on my boat is tourney ready.  Livewells work, trolling motor charged, plenty of gas and oil, good electronics and a game plan that I will gladly explain...

Mark

Permalink Reply by Jeremy Cheever on July 1, 2013 at 9:17pm

Again my apologies, I wasnt thinking clearly and more mad at myself than anything, john gave me every oppurtunity I needed I just didnt capitalize on them. I have learned so much in these few short years of tournament fishing I dont handle failure well and that is something I need to learn. I thank all of the boaters for there help and guidance while in competetion.

Permalink Reply by Jake Anderson on July 2, 2013 at 9:52am

This all starts with good communication as soon as you draw your boater.  I could write a novel here, but as a non boater, you can't expect equal time on the front or really any at all, when 95% of the time the boater has a vastly greater investment in virtually every facet of the tourney, from time away from family to practice, from cost to practice, hotel to practice, travel to practice, wear and tear on boat, gas/oil, bigger entry fee etc.....the list is a mile long compared to the non boater in almost every instance regarding investment.  If the rule states you get half time, then so be it, but if not, then you would have to have been very transparent in what you know, what you caught in practice, and where it is.   Pictures on a camera phone shown the night before with a little background will go a long way in your boater trusting that you have some place you can put the BOTH of you on fish.  

You can't hold your cards tight the night before, and then expect when you need to salvage the day, that your boater is going to believe you have anything to contribute.  

Things get less gray if the rules state you are given half day on the TM.  If thats the case then you either sit back and fish, or you demand your time, and protest if you they don't give it up.  If the boater isn't required to give you any time, then you had better not expect it, but you definately should do anything you can to build the perception that have something dialed in the NIGHT BEFORE the tourney.

I will say, I'm impressed Jeremy that you owned your mistake.  A couple things, I will leave you with...

1. The most dominant anglers in tournament fishing today took their lumps for their first several years of tournament fishing.   My uncle once told me:  "YOU AREN'T GOOD ENOUGH TO GET MAD".   It's extremely applicable in bass fishing for the inexperienced.

2.  If you are drinking too many Coronas....then there's more than one adjustment you should consider.

Jordan Doucet said:

Maybe some other non-boaters can weigh in on where they stand with time up front as this was my first time doing it. It does seem like a bit of a grey area.  

Permalink Reply by Mark Maderos on July 2, 2013 at 1:45pm

Jake,  very well spoken.  Thanks for your input.  I personally know Jeremy and fished with him last year on Washington, when I had a horrible day and didn't even catch a fish that day. 

  Jeremy, way to step up and own a ill placed comment.  I get that it can be very frustrating when things don't go an anglers way.  We all get it.

  I know that when I fish the tri cities area, that I always ask for input from my backseater on when and where to fish.  It just makes sense to me, that since I don't know the river well enough to humble myself and say " where have you been catching them".  It's a tough thing, both anglers are trying to make a limited number of spots on a team.  Working together will always help both angers achieve their goals hopefully.

  Mark

 

Permalink Reply by Travis Archer on July 6, 2013 at 12:41pm

we blew through all of my spots where we had solid fish during prefish and if we basicly stayed in one spot all day for two 12 inchers but oh well still had fun