Starting to Steer Toward Red River

Frosted Flakes pro Dave Lefebre doing a little final packing for the Forrest Wood Cup, adding some Terminator spinnerbaits he thinks he might need for the Red River. Photo courtesy of Dave Lefebre.

Practice begins Sunday.

In only four days, 46 of the nation's top pros will begin trying to find the right fish and the proper pattern to win the Forrest Wood Cup. A week later, one of those pros will hoist the world champion's trophy and a check for $500,000.

The competition begins a week from tomorrow (August 15) and lasts four days. The venue is Louisiana's Red River, at Shreveport, Louisiana. Competition waters include three pools, 150 miles of water and an extensive network of backwaters. The weather is supposed to be sizzling hot, with high humidity.  Fishing will be good, most pros agree. The challenge will be finding enough quality fish that are willing to cooperate. Decision making and execution when opportunities do arise are apt to be critical to the outcome.

For now, most competitors are most likely doing final packing or home preparation -- studying maps one more time, double checking essentials like their insurance evidence, and tossing in a few more baits they don't want to be without. A few, no doubt, are already en route, either because of the long distance they live from the Red River or because of other stops they need to make along the way.

Jay Yelas of Corvallis, Oregon lives the farthest from the Cup venue at 1787 miles. Christopher Brasher of Hallsville, Texas lives the closest and is only 47 miles away when he is at home.

Dave Lefebre of Erie, PA said he's starting south tomorrow morning. Lefebre, who will be making his 11th consecutive Forrest Wood Cup appearance, said the only real difference in his packing for the Cup from other tournaments is that he carries far more autograph cards and such than normal because of the huge amount of interaction with bass fishing fans.

Three of the competitors -- Jason Christie, Ish Monroe and Zell Rowland -- had to do all their Cup planning well ahead of times and actually must have their minds on a totally different fishery right now. All three also fish the B.A.S.S. Elite Series, which begins a tournament tomorrow on the St. Lawrence River in upstate New York. Depending on how they fare and whether they make Saturday and Sunday cuts, they'll be traveling from New York to Louisiana some time over the weekend. For now, they need to be thinking about St. Lawrence smallmouths. Next week, they'll think about Red River largemouths.

Yelas Yielded Water to Wheeler

"Jacob, go win this thing for me," Jay Yelas told Jacob Wheeler before blast off on the final morning of the Forrest Wood Cup. Yelas had resolved to explore new water up the Chestatee arm of Lake Lanier and to leave the familiar and productive Chattahoochee to Wheeler, who was leading the event by 6 pounds going into the final day of competition. Yelas didn't want to take fish from Wheeler and to take any opportunity away from the 21-year-old pro with whom he'd been sharing water throughout the tournament.

Yelas, a former Bassmaster Classic champion, B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year and two-time FLW Anger of the year, was 8 pounds behind Wheeler and probably didn't feel like he had a realistic chance to win the event. That said, second through tenth were only separated by a couple of pounds, and Yelas was knowingly lessening his chances for the best possible finish. And while its true that the Forrest Wood Cup is a championship event that most anglers approach with and "all or nothing" mentality, the difference between the second and tenth place prize is $75,000, so Yelas opting to abandon his best waters was no small sacrifice. He still caught a quality bag on the final day and ended up finishing sixth.

Wheeler expressed humble appreciative of Yelas' consideration on the final day as he spoke from the stage just after the weigh-in. He likewise talked about David Dudley's encouragement throughout the event and expressed respect he had for the entire field. He also was eager to acknowledge God's blessings and to steer the focus away from himself. Wheeler's obvious gratitude for the opportunity to stand on the stage as champion and desire to glorify God was refreshing, and I look forward to seeing much more from in the future.

FLW Pros & Vendors Georgia Bound

FLW pros I follow are tweeting up a storm about preparation, travel and anticipation, with the Forrest Wood Cup only eight days away. A 46-man world championship event with a 1/2 million dollar first prize, the Cup begins next Thursday on Georgia's Lake Lanier.
Events begin sooner, though. Chevy Pro Day is on Saturday, so top pros from the Chevrolet team, including Jimmie Houston, Larry Nixon and Jay Yelas, will be meeting fans and signing autographs from 4-10 at Rick Hendricks Chevrolet in Duluth.
The competitors will be on the water next week looking for patterns and groups of fish and trying to figure out winning strategies.
For now pros are Georgia bound. Soon to follow will be the many venders who will be displaying at a huge outdoors expo that accompanies the Cup and will be held at Gwinnett Center, which will also host daily weigh-ins.