Birmingham, AL – After a year of wait and speculation, Day One of the 2010 Bassmaster Classic on Alabama’s famed Lay Lake is in the books. Warmer air and a bright sky proved to be a great combination as what was an incredibly stingy bite during practice turned into a pretty solid day for most of the field.
It goes without saying that the group assembled in Birmingham for this week’s festivities are the absolute best bass fishermen in the world. It’s not too terribly surprising to learn that they too are among the best sandbaggers as well.
After a chilly start to the official practice period this week, where snow was a factor throughout much of Monday, the warming trend that has settled into the area has certainly heated the fishing, and there is no doubt that as the weekend unfolds the upswing will continue.
Photos
by Mark Jeffreys & Matt Pangrac
Kevin VanDam, the fan favorite and pundit’s pick to win is, well, in his normal form. VanDam crossed the Day One stage with a five-bass limit weighing 19-8, and was all smiles knowing that while you can’t necessarily win this tournament on the first day, you can surely lose it.
While KVD is, at the moment, the man to beat, Todd Faircloth, who after the 2007 AOY race knows what being neck-and-neck with fishing immortality is all about, was still all smiles after weighing the day’s second heaviest bag, which went 18-2.
Jeff Kriet, who noted that he’d been able to “figure a little something out” on Wednesday’s final day of practice, appeared much like the cat who’d just eaten the canary as he set his 16 pound, 7 ounce limit of Lay bass on the scales to claim third place heading into the second morning.
Quiet Cliff Pace let his fishing do most of the talking as his 16 pound, 3 ounce limit was good enough to put him in fourth place, well within reach of the top spot, heading to Saturday.
Takahiro Omori, who stormed up the AOY standings during the latter half of the ’09 season to qualify for this year’s Classic ended his day in fifth with 15-7, while Rookie of the Year Billy McCaghren rounded out the Super Six with 15-4.
VanDam in Control
Fishing his 20th Classic this week at Lay Lake, and having been in contention in at least 15 of them, VanDam knows what this week is all about. So with the hype and attention all but commonplace for “the most dangerous man in fishing,” it all comes down to the first day.
“After last year, I really wanted to come here and have a good first day,” he said. “Last year, I really let myself get behind that first day, and I swore to myself that I wouldn’t do that this week.”
VanDam pointed out that, unlike the Red River – where the locks prevented much movement – Lay Lake allows him to spread his choices and “move around” a lot more. Still, with numerous options around the lake, he pointed out that in the Classic you have to “knock it out of the park each and every day.”
“You can’t sit back and manage your spots like you might in a normal tournament, because in this one all that matters is the win. If you have the opportunity to catch them, you’d better because in this deal you can bet that someone else is.”
That said, he’s not planning to hold anything back Saturday as he knows that with the forecast calling for more warmth – and more spectator boats - the potential exists for a stalking horse to ruin his plans.
“There’s going to be a million people on the water tomorrow, so it’s going to be challenging,” he said. “I spent a lot of time during practice looking for some pretty obscure stuff, so I was pretty confident coming into the week that I had an area with a lot of fish in it. It’s not going to be easy though because there are some guys behind me who want (the win) just as bad as I do.”
Faircloth is Thankful for the Sun
After a less-than-stellar practice, Todd Faircloth admitted that he wasn’t too optimistic that by day’s end he’d be vying for a shot at bass-fishing immortality. Like most, the warming trend helped his areas turn into productive waters.
“The sun was a big benefit for me today,” he said. “The water temperature warming up was a big help too. It wasn’t fast and furious out there today, but I had enough bites throughout the day to really help me clue in to what I needed to be doing.”
Todd explained that his starting spot was one that he’d felt sure that he could catch a limit on, but only managed one keeper. “Fortunately, I had three other areas that produced pretty well for me,” he said.
“Pretty much, that’s how it happened for me today – the areas that I didn’t have a whole lot of confidence in produced while my ‘best spot’ only gave up one bite.”
Faircloth isn’t one to question the good graces of a productive fishing day, and he’s hopeful that tomorrow’s fortunes shine as brightly as they did on this first day. “I think tomorrow, based on what I saw today, I’ll start where I ended up today and just go from there,” he said.
“I definitely think it’s a spot that will replenish, but all the traffic that’s going to be around it definitely won’t help things. I’m really hoping for the best.”
Kriet Confident in the Cold Water
After waiting all winter for a shot at Lay Lake in February, Jeff Kriet got everything he could’ve hoped for – save one bite. “I lost one today that’s probably the difference between third place and first place,” he said.
“I really though that if I could catch 10 keepers today, one of them would be a giant. I could tell as soon as I set the hook on him that he didn’t have the bait good, and just pulled off.”
Jeff estimated that he caught “15 or 16 keepers over the course of the day, with the majority coming from one key area. “Every time I’d leave it and come back I’d catch three or four more,” he said. “They just want to be there, that’s all I know.”
The unfortunate thing about his key area is that he has company. “There are some players right there nearby,” he said. “Fortunately, I’ve got a jig deal going on the other end of the lake, but I really feel like in order to win I need to be right there doing what I’m doing.”
For now at least, that’s his game plan. “I’m just going to fish this deal until it peters out and then go to my jig deal,” Kriet revealed. “All the boat traffic we’re going to have out there isn’t going to help things for sure, but I’m going to ride it as long as I can.”
Pace on Pace for Redemption
After finishing second to Alton Jones in the 2008 Classic, and missing the ’09 event altogether, Cliff Pace is looking for redemption in Birmingham, and things seem to be heading in the right direction.
“Today was one of those days that I was real fortunate because I didn’t get a lot of bites, but was able to capitalize on every one of them,” he said. “In fact, I sort of got a freebie when I was able to flip in and catch a fish that I’d just missed.”
Pace credits that to the warming trend that going on right now. “It does make it a lot easier for guys to get bites pretty easily, but at the same time I don’t think it’s going to warm enough for it to turn into a slug fest,” he pointed out.
Pace explained that it took him most of the day to put a limit together, but once he did he was able to spend some more time scouting for additional water that might give up a largemouth.
“My bag is entirely full of spotted bass,” he said. “A guy could win it with a bag of spotted bass and two really good largemouth in there. The problem is, I’ve just never been able to find anything that gave me confidence that I could do that.”
Omori Surprised by the Day
Takahiro Omori proved to be the spoiler in route to his 2004 Classic title through his last-minute heroics on the final day. He’d just as soon save the drama and put this one away early.
While today wasn’t that kind of day, he explained that it was much better than he’d hoped for. “It was surprisingly good day,” Tak said. “I started the day fishing for spotted bass, and managed to catch five that were all about the same size by 1:00.
“I was feeling pretty good, but went into a creek and was able to catch two more big spots that helped me out.”
Based on his results from practice, Tak explained that today’s results were really the last thing he’d have imagined. “I didn’t have a very good practice at all,” he said. “With the weather warming up all week, I think it’s only going to get better now.
“I hope to be able to continue with what I’ve started now.”
McCaghren Looking for Largemouth
Like most of the 51 anglers in the Classic field, Bill McCaghren’s practice was anything but spectacular. Still, the sophomore pro explained that he was able to have just enough success each day to keep him focused on the changes that the weatherman promised.
“I struggled all week, but I didn’t get too discouraged because each day we’d get a little more sunshine,” he said. “I kept thinking that if it’d ever warm up enough, this place could just get wild.”
Like in practice, where each bite would fuel his confidence, McCaghren explained that an early-morning bite proved to be the catalyst for a very successful Day One. “It clued me in on what I needed to be doing,” he said.
“With that one bite, I was able to get dialed in and put a limit in the boat pretty quick, considering the time of year we’re in. I think I had a limit by around 9:00, or so.”
While he may not be high on anyone’s Fantasy Fishing list, McCaghren pointed out that Lay Lake really sets up well for his style of fishing. “I grew up fishing a river system that could muddy up overnight, so I was able to do something that I learned back then,” he said.
“I’m focusing on largemouth because I came to the Classic to win it. That’s what I’m going to do again tomorrow.”
Here are some quotes from the rest of the field:
Russ Lane (9th Place)
“It started off pretty tough for me. I made an adjustment around 10 AM and caught four or five. Really, it was a slow day and I hope it gets better tomorrow. The home field advantage helped with a few fish but most of the ways that I caught them today were doing things that I had never even done on this lake before.
“I knew coming in that I would be seeing new conditions so I took the approach like I had never been to the lake before.”
James Niggemeyer (10th Place)
“This morning, I started out trying to catch spotted bass and I was able to get a limit pretty quick. I left that pattern and went after bigger largemouth and was able to get two good bites.
“I feel like if I can go out tomorrow and get a limit of spots and do the same thing I’d be really happy. I was pleasantly surprised with the day. I didn’t get a full day of practice before I got sick so I was only able to practice Wednesday and got one bite. To be able to go out and catch a limit today, I’m really excited about it. I’m looking forward to getting out there tomorrow.”
Gerald Swindle (13th Place)
“I caught them better than I thought I would catch them. I got up to around 10 pounds and thought that I was in the hunt but they caught them. I didn’t get my first bite until 9:30 and then caught five pretty quick.
“Where I started, the water is coming down from practice. There are changes and the water is warming up so the fish seem to be getting shallower. I’m not going to panic tomorrow. I’m going to try and get four or five bites really quick and then crank grass the rest of the day.”
Randy Howell (20th Place)
“It was a lot better day as far as activity. I caught 24 fish today and culled quite a few times but I just didn’t have any big bites so hopefully I can make some adjustments and get a big bite tomorrow.”
Pam Martin-Wells (30th Place)
“My initial plan was to go out and try to catch a limit because I always fish better when I have a limit in the boat. The good Lord smiled on me and I was able to do that by 8 this morning. The rest of my plan just didn’t work out.
“The rest of my plan didn’t work out but hey, I got a limit, I’m tickled. It could be a totally different ball game tomorrow. You just have to keep moving and changing and keep an open mind because it could bust wide open at any minute.”
Jason Quinn (35th Place)
“Hackney, Short, Brauer and I were pretty much in the same area and those bass just didn’t pull up today. I went through the area in practice on Wednesday and had nine bites. They’re there, they just didn’t bite today.
“I pulled up to one mat and had three bites and those are the only three bites that I had all day. I think these bass are in shock.”
Jami Fralick (45th Place)
“My whole practice, I keyed on the current focusing on spotted bass because I thought they would be more dependable. Today, they didn’t pull current and the fish didn’t set up on those areas.
“In the last 20 minutes, there was a school of bass that came up and started busting shad but I couldn’t catch them. I’ll be read tomorrow and I’m going to go back there and catch those fish.”
Kevin Short (46th Place)
“I spent about two hours this morning on a little point that I just knew that I could catch some nice fish on and never had a stinking bite. After that, I gambled and picked up a flipping stick and flipped for five hours without a stinking bite.
“I ran into a little pocket and there were two stupid ones that were eating dying shad and I caught both of them. I picked flipping stick back up and never had another bite. I’ll probably go out tomorrow and do the same thing.”
Boyd Duckett (48th Place)
“It was a bad day. I ran all the way up the river and caught only one fish up there. Running back my motor blew up and I spent some time trying to figure out what to do. I ended up borrowing a loaner boat and just started flipping trying to catch a few big ones and never did.
“I have to go for big bites tomorrow. I’ll put the big stick in my hands and run all the best stuff that I know.”
Denny Brauer (T49th Place)
“I really don’t know. I was bewildered today. The third practice day, I really could have popped a big bag. I knew that the afternoon bite would be better. On Wednesday’s practice day, I tried to duplicate what I had found and never got a bite. I figured that it was a fluke.
“Well, I slowed down and fished my good areas today and tried everything. It was like the fish totally left the area. When you’re making adjustments and still can’t get bit, you really don’t know what to do. Without a doubt, it was one of the most frustrating Classic days that I’ve ever had.”
