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Broken Arrow, Okla. – BASS ZONE caught up with Bassmaster American winner Fred Roumbanis while he racing the stork to the delivery of his first child. Roumbanis and his wife Julie are expecting their first child, a boy, any day now.
Roumbanis spent the better part of 60 miles talking to BASS ZONE [He was tracking them on a new Lowrance iWay 600 that he had installed in his Toyota Tundra to test for Lowrance]. In that time, Roumbanis talked about meeting his wife, details of his winning pattern as well as personal reflections from the tournament.
Already well publicized is the fact that Julie was scheduled to be induced on Monday, May 21, 2007, the day after Roumbanis finished off his victory at the American; what hasn’t been covered is the fact that Roumbanis did not expect the schedule to be this tight. Following his first day weight of 11 pounds, 9 ounces, Roumbanis actually packed up the room to prepare to leave after day two, the fish had different ideas, and a story was born.
The American
The 28-year-old from Auburn, Calif. smashed four fish for 16 pounds, 11 ounces and moved to 10th place after day two, with a chance to fish for $250,000. “The whole thing was kind of weird,” said Roumbanis. “I was all ready to go back to Oklahoma to be with Julie and the baby, and I’m now moving on to the top 12; it was different.”
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High Rock – Rounds 1 and 2
“I started out throwing a jig on High Rock,” Roumbanis related. “I was catching them as deep as 25-feet, and that bite just went away.” Being faced with the demise of the jig bite, Roumbanis picked up a Reaction Innovations’ Screwed up Jighead and a seven-inch Oxblood w/ red Flake Robo Worm for the second day. “The first fish I caught on the Screwed up Jighead was a
six-pounder, and it just continued up from there, I just kept fishing it.”
After the he heavy second day, Roumbanis loaded his boat with rods and prepared for the move to Lake Townsend. “I didn’t know what to expect, so I started the day with about 20 rods on the deck,” Roumbanis said. “I had talked to Edwin Evers [Evers finished tied for 7th place] and he said from what he was hearing, one fish a day would win the tournament, so I loaded up my arsenal.” |
The Finals – Lake Townsend
Roumbanis found out a few moments after talking to Evers that a pile of rods on the deck could be a cumbersome thing. “I passed Edwin, and made a cast with my drop-shot rig to a retaining wall when I got a bite, it was a little tick,” Roumbanis reported. “I set the hook with that little hook, and my six-pound P Line Fluorocarbon and rolled this five pounder to the surface.” Roumbanis said that he spent the next couple of minutes fighting the fish around the boat while navigating through his maze of rods. “I did the same thing a few minutes later with the four pounder I caught next.”
Later that day, Roumbanis used the happy hour portion of the day to return to the wall [Anglers get to pick any of the areas on the six hole course they want to fish during “happy hour”]. When he returned to his spot, Arizona pro John Murray was perched atop his boat sight fishing. “I immediately though to myself that the fish I had been catching were bed fish, and moved a little further away from John, found a six pounder and caught her.” This last fish gave Roumbanis 14 pounds, 10 ounces, and more than a five pound lead on Brian Snowden.
Roumbanis said that he was actually a little nervous on the morning of the final day, but he caught a three pounder that calmed him down and just let him go fishing. “I actually got to just enjoy a day of fishing during a tournament,” Roumbanis remarked. “I suppose it was thinking about the baby coming that calmed me down, and I was able to notice things going on around me.” |
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He said that at blast off that morning, a flock of geese flew down above him and paced between his boat and the helicopter. He told fellow Elite Series pro Marty Stone from North Carolina, who served as BASS ZONE’s correspondent during the American, that several aquatic animals came up and wished him well on the final day. “I had a crappie swim to the surface and look at me, when I put my hand in the water and he swam right through it,” he continued. “I had a snake swim up to the boat and watch me for a little while, and a turtle did the same thing; I called him Jackson’ [the name he and Julie picked for their new addition].
Roumbanis was able to catch three more keepers for a total weight of 7 pounds, 4 ounces, giving him a two-day total of 21 pounds, 14 ounces and more than a 4-pound margin of victory over Snowden.
Roumbanis said he started driving almost immediately, and that he called Julie from the road to tell her of the victory. “She was very proud of me, she was talking to me through tears, it was great.”
When Freddy met Julie
Roumbanis met Julie at a Lowrance Electronics’ company picnic last year when Roumbanis attended the event after missing the cut at the Bassmaster Elite Series tournament on Grand Lake in Oklahoma. Julie’s father, Steve Swisher, is employed at Lowrance, and in fact the father – daughter team won the fishing tournament that Lowrance holds at the picnic.
“I went to get an ice cream at the ice cream truck when I met Julie,” Roumbanis said. “I bought her an ice cream and we talked for a while, we stayed in contact after that.” It was during a scouting trip for the Bassmaster Elite Series event at Table Rock that Roumbanis completely impressed his new friend. “It was really hot by 10:00 a.m. so I asked her if she could swim, when she said yes, I threw her in the water,” he continued. “I jumped in after her, and we didn’t stop laughing from then on; it was awesome.”
Roumbanis said he gave her an autographed hat to commemorate the occasion that said ‘Thanks for letting me buy you an ice cream’ and she returned the favor with a card letting him know how much fun she had.
After that she traveled with him to Lake Champlain for an FLW Tour Event, and then to his brother’s wedding at home in Auburn, Calif. IT was on that trip that the couple found out that they were going to have the baby, so they made it official, but Roumbanis decided to ask her parents first. “She didn’t even let her dad answer, she said yes first, so we got married in February.”
Now the couple is on the eve of Jackson being born, and planning to buy a home in Oklahoma.
On his Father-in-Law
Roumbanis said that his father-in-law has become a great friend. “Steve is very creative,” Roumbanis said. “He helps me tinker with lures, in fact he helped me with my swimbait [the Poseidon, from Reaction Strike lures, www.reactionstrike.com] and he owns the patent on the Zebco 33 Classic spin cast reel; he invented it.”
Roumbanis said that he feels his relationship with Julie was a foregone conclusion, 20-years ago. “My grandfather gave me my first rod and reel when I was eight years old, a Zebco 33 Classic” Roumbanis said its ironic that now he is married to the daughter of the inventor. “That combo taught me to love fishing, and my career brought me to the love of my life; I think it was meant to be.”
Financially Speaking
“I’m sure that tax time is going to be a bit scary,” Roumbanis said. “But, this will help in a big way.” He said that while his year has been a successful one, he has been mainly counting on winnings to keep fishing. “I’ve got great sponsors, they are behind me 100% and I couldn’t do this without them,” he said. “But, they are fishing industry companies and can only afford so much, so this [the $250,000] will make a big difference for the season and my family.”
The other thing that the win in North Carolina did was relieving a little pressure off of him from having to sell his boat from last year. “I was having to sell that boat as a part of funding my year this year, now, if anybody wants a great boat, make me an offer,” he said giggling.
(Editor’s Note: Roumbanis purchased his own tournament boat last year, a Ranger Z-20 with a Yamaha outboard on it. Prior to this year, Roumbanis joined the Triton Boats and Mercury Outboards teams and is running a Triton Tr20X with Mercury 225XS, with Lowrance Electronics, of course.)
The Future
BASS ZONE asked Roumbanis what his plans for the future are in regards to he and Julie adding to the family. “Well, it’s a little bit early to start thinking about a second baby, without even having met the first one,” Roumbanis said. “But, if Julie being this close to giving birth has brought me this much luck on the water, we just might have to plan for her to get pregnant about nine months before the 2009 Bassmaster Classic; since we’re too close for it to be the 2008 Classic.”
(Roumbanis’ jokingly referring to the Bassmaster “Baby Pattern.” Where several Bassmaster pros have won tournaments during the week their wives were due to give birth).
He was giggling of course, as only Fred Roumbanis can do. Check
out the Marty Stone interview with Fred,
which was taped right after his
victory. It's only on The BASS ZONE
- >Click
Here
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