Lynchburg, VA – The Blue Ridge Brawl – the sixth stop on the Elite Series trail – has been looming on the series’ calendar like a
trip to a new dentist. The majority of the field lacks
little if any history on the lake at all. This is only the
third time a Bassmaster tour-level event has been held at the mountain fishery – with the first being an Open in 2004 where Virginia native Dave Dudley was crowned the winner.
There’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that the 20,000-acre pond is capable of coughing up some nice limits, but again it’s the relative unknown that has many in the field concerned heading into Thursday’s opener. Much of the lake’s 500 miles of shoreline is heavily developed offering anglers a multitude of targets and the bass endless possibility for cover.
When Dudley won the Open event in 2004, he did so with an 11-pound daily average; however, the tournament was held in mid-October were the bass population were on their fall binge preparing for winter. 11 pounds a day this week would be strong, but it’s possible that you will see the winner average over 12.
This week’s event should be a typical summertime tournament where patterns are the mainstay and deep-water specialists could have a distinct advantage. However, with the dock-lined banks Smith Mountain offers, guys who are noted “junk” fisherman may have an upper hand.
Consider too the fact that Smith Mountain boasts a sizeable smallmouth population, so the bronze-backed cousin to the largemouth could be a weigh-in bag staple for many in the 108-angler field. Guys who are able to capitalize on the abundant brown fish could hold an advantage this week as well.
That being said, it’s really anyone’s guess as to how or by whom the tournament will be won, but in keeping with tradition and to make things even more interesting, The BASS ZONE’s roving (or roaming) reporters Mark Jeffreys and Matt Pangrac caught up with a handful of pros for some insight into how the tournament will likely unfold.
Randy Howell
“Practice went pretty well. I fished a lot of docks this week. The key is going to be sustaining your weight throughout the entire tournament. I think the first day you will see a lot of guys catch limits and then the second day I think it’s going to fall off and the third day it will fall off even more.
“I’ve got a couple pretty good little patterns going on. I grew up about three hours from here and I used to fish this lake when I was a teenager. I actually won my first Redman tournament ever here when I was 18 years old. The lake fishes tough and that’s the way I like it. I’m looking to catch a limit every day. I usually don’t say that but I feel like I can do that. I don’t really know about the big fish bite. I haven’t jerked much of anything all week so I really don’t know the size of the fish.
“The weekend could be really tough with all the boat traffic. I think it could really affect any shallow bite that is going on. Most of the fish seem to be a little deeper so hopefully it won’t affect anything much. I really have high expectations.”
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Mike
Wurm
“I caught a lot more fish in practice
than I thought I would. I had a really
good day yesterday and today I just kind
of ran around looking but still managed to
catch a limit. I don’t know if there’s
going to be a lot of big fish caught but
there seems to be a lot of fish in this
lake and I think there will be a lot of
limits.
“I’m impressed with the lake even
though I’ve never been here before. It
reminds me a lot of Hamilton, where I
live. This lake fishes big with 500 miles
of shoreline and every inch of it could
hold a fish.
“I’m just going to go out and catch as many as I can and hope for the best. I’ve been using a spinning reel all the way and I’d love to start with 10 pounds and work my way up.”
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Dave Wolak
“My practice was fair. I think it’s an in between stage for the fish. This is a place that doesn’t have giant populations of fish in one spot so you have to do a lot of moving around and try to catch some active fish.
“This will be a run and gun event. The shad spawn is going on so the top water bite is good in the morning and I think that’s going to be critical to try and get a couple quality ones in the boat before it gets too bright and sunny.
“I think it will take between 11 and 12 pounds a day to make the top 50 cut and 14 pounds a day will get you in the top 12.”
Mike McClelland
“I’m not getting a lot of bites but I feel like the quality that I’m catching might be a little bit better than the shallow bite. It sounds like there’s a lot of good fish shallow, too. It’s one of those deals where you have to fish the way you feel confident fishing and I’m definitely more confident fishing out deep than I am in shallow.
“The Grand Lake event is in the back of my mind but I’m trying to take it one tournament at a time. I’m excited about going over there but this is the tournament that’s on my mind now. I would be happy to catch 12 to 14 pounds a day. The opportunity does look like it exists to catch a 15 to 18 pound bag out there.”
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Gerald Swindle
“There are two or three different patterns working. You can’t really stay in one area and fish. I think that it will take 11 or 12 pounds a day just to get a check. I’ll know more tomorrow but I’m pretty excited about tomorrow, I can tell you that.
“I like fishing here. It’s hard to predict what’s going to happen. The key is that we need some wind to break that clear water up to make those fish feed. I think a good day would be 15 or 16 pounds.
“There are a few techniques to catch some of those suspended fish that everyone is seeing but not many are catching. That’s the difference maker.”
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Dean Rojas
“I had probably five or six keepers a day and I’m just looking forward to this thing getting started. This is a brand new lake for me and that’s usually when I do my best. You don’t have any preconceived notions and you just fish the moment.
“I burned some fuel this week. I went from one end of the lake to the other and then back again trying to see everything and be prepared for this week. I think that a good first day would be anywhere between 13 to 15 pounds. The trick is to do it every day. I’ve had over 13 pounds every day in practice so I feel pretty confident in what I’m doing.”
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As with each Elite Series event, The BASS ZONE will be On Location all week with our up-to-the-minute “On the Water
Blog,” “Reel-time Chat,” and post-day
interviews.
NOTE:Harold
Allen will not be at Smith Mountain due
to..........HE'S FISHING IN TEXAS! Harold
will return for all three of the events in New
York in July. We miss you Harold.
STAY
TUNED!!!!!!
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