Crappie on Ice & a Cold Classic Start

We won't quite need augers to fish for crappie tomorrow, but the banks of Oklahoma's Lake Eufaula might be snowy, and the foul-weather gear might play an important part for warding off an icy rain. That's OK. I'm glad to have my long drive to Fort Smith behind me, with no problems caused by the fairly heavy snow I drove through for the last couple of hours.

Of course, from the photos I've seen that pros have posted, the snow I drove in was light compared to what the 53 Bassmaster Classic contenders fished in during today's final practice day. Looks like it snowed pretty much the whole time. Given the snow that fell today, the wintery mix that continues to fall and a forecast low in the low 20s on Friday morning (when the competition starts), it would seem the fish might be in true winter mode to start the tournament. However, by Sunday afternoon, the temperature is supposed to climb into the 60s, so I'm really curious how the fishing will change over the course of the tournament.

That's getting ahead of things, though. The cold crappie come first!