Vintage Rogue, Low-Flow Plan The Keys For VanDam

The Bassmaster Classic is like no other tournament in the world. It's the Super Bowl of bass fishing. The Big Show. The one everyone wants to win. And the rules are different.

About a month before the event begins, anglers have 5 days of "pre-practice." Then, there's a short practice day the week of competition. Each competitor is limited to 10 rods and reels, 2 tackle bags, plus two backup reels. There's all the pressure of the most important event in professional fishing, and the winner is decided by heaviest 3-day combined weight.

This year's Classic at the Three Rivers in Pittsburgh, Pa. was the toughest bite in Classic history. Smallmouths of the 12-inch variety dominated weigh-in, and angler after angler returned to the stage with harrowing tales of zeroes, lost fish and shorts.

Not Kevin VanDam. Sure, he lost fish. In fact, he lost so many fish that he was sure he'd blown the Classic. But when it mattered most, he caught one of only two limits and narrowly edged out Aaron Martens by a super-thin 6 ounces.

It was his second Classic win and his third consecutive tour-level victory. He's untouchable, unstoppable and the undisputed king of professional bass fishing.

Here's how he won.

Three Rivers Overview

Excepting those who've hid below ground the past 2 weeks, every BassFan knows the Three Rivers dealt out the most brutal bite in Classic history. In fact, VanDam's 3-day, 12-15 total set a new record for the all-time lowest Classic-winning weight. A number of factors contributed to the harsh bite.

For one, the tournament took place in the peak of summer, when river fishing is at it's toughest. A lot of fish were suspended, chasing bait, and very difficult to target.

Also, the Three Rivers system just doesn't have a lot of keeper-size fish. Anglers regularly caught 20 to 30 fish a day, but only a keeper or two above the 12-inch minimum size.

Plus, the river was warm, low and clearer than normal. Anglers who banked on a current-based pattern struggled, then struggled even more when the current disappeared on day 3.

Then there was the big decision: to lock or not? The field could fish three rivers – the Monongahela (Mon), Ohio and Allegheny. The launch was in the Pittsburgh pool, which provided access to all three rivers, but to get further up or down the waterways, anglers had to lock.

VanDam chose not to lock and concentrated on the Pittsburgh pool. It was a crucial decision that proved to be the right one. He had access to more water, more bridges and more fish than those who plied the upper or lower reaches.

Practice

During the official pre-practice, VanDam established his gameplan.

"I learned (during pre-practice) about a month ago that, when the current stopped, the bass basically dispersed. When the current was running, they were real tight to the bridges and the up-current side of points. When the water hit, there was a slack spot in front and they'd sit there and wait for the balls of shad."

He also found he could get bit on other cover and structure. "When the current was running, there were fish on little flats and rocky areas with a little current sweeping over. When it wasn't running, I'd fish bridge pilings."

Competition

> Day 1: 3, 4-11
> Day 2: 3, 3-07 (6, 8-02)
> Day 3: 5, 4-13 (11, 12-15)

Armed with that gameplan – and the confidence he could catch fish whether there was current or not – he launched into the Pittsburgh pool.

"The first 2 days, there was a lot of current," he said. (On day 3) I was smiling. There was no current. I happened to see (in pre-practice) how the fish got away from cover (when there was no current). Any bridges, flats or breaks out in the middle of the river with a little current – I'd fish around it with a jerkbait in the top of the water column.

"Most guys were fishing plastics and things down on the bottom," he noted. "I was targeting the top of the water column."

He spent the entire tournament in the Pittsburgh pool. "Basically, I fished from about the take-off point, all the way to the first lock and dam. I never locked through. I concentrated on mostly main-river structure that had current either directly hitting it, or when (current) was lower, the more subtle points, and bridges and seawalls – anything that had current.

"That's what the fish were staging up on."

Problem was, the bridges got beat up. He said a key was to wait for each bridge to calm down. "Aaron's a great fisherman," he said of 2nd-place finisher Martens. "And he's super-good at catching schooling fish. I saw Aaron running some of the same stretches as I was. I knew he could catch them. The difference is he can throw the dropshot with 5-pound line. He has the patience to shake it. I have to fish faster.

"My idea was to keep a close eye on the other anglers, and let each of those bridges rest a little. I'd let them calm down for 20 or 30 minutes, and you could usually go in and catch one off some of those areas. The first 2 days it was hard – every bridge had a boat."

Vintage Winner

Predictions said the tournament would be dominated by a finesse-style bite. In other words, running from spot to spot, then fishing plastics painfully slow at each stop. But VanDam said he's not a patient fisherman.

"I caught the majority of my fish on a real old Smithwick Rogue (jerkbait)," he said. "They don't make them anymore. They're a lot different than the ones now. It's super-buoyant, with a shallow lip. The key is you could jerk it real hard and it wouldn't angle up, and it wouldn't go deep. It's super-erratic – when the rod jumped forward it would jump back.

"I was throwing it to the up-current side of points and bridge pilings."

He noted other elements that make the bait different from its modern cousins. "Back in the day, they built them out of different plastic. And they used to put lead BBs in them. Now they use stainless steel or brass. So the baits now have a whole different feel to them. They don't run real well.

"It's a bait I used a lot growing up – before I was 16 years old even. I used to catch a lot of fish on it. I haven't thrown it for years."

He picked the bait up again at this year's Wissota Bassmaster Elite 50 – an event he won. "I got on a pattern at Lake Wissota. I was catching smallies up there really shallow. I needed a bait I could fish real fast, and jerk real hard, but (not) run deep."

He used a gold Rogue at Wissota, but a chrome one here. "There was lots of shad on the bridges, feeding on algae. That's really what the bait was imitating."

He noted: "The jerkbait is a real strong suit for me. I grew up doing it in clear water in Michigan and it's a real confidence choice. And smallmouths are real suckers for jerkbaits. The key is you really have to jerk them hard. Some other guys were throwing a lot of suspending baits, but (suspending baits) don't have that lively action. (The old Rogue) was really buoyant. It really made a big difference."

He designed a Wild Shiner jerkbait for his sponsor, Strike King, but noted it wasn't right for this bite.
"That bait is designed to run real deep. You can't jerk it as hard as this one. I wish they'd produce them again. You can't find them. I've searched the Internet. The old ones really had the right build. There'll probably be a lot of people looking for them now."

On lost fish, he had this to say: "It's a tough fishery. I lost some quality fish every single day. They're hard to keep on. You're jerking that jerkbait real hard, and they rarely get it in their mouth. I was foul-hooking a lot – catching them in the gill, or their chin. And a lot would pull off."

On stamina: "I've jerked a jerkbait so long, and for so many days in a row, my forearm is in pretty good shape. It's doesn't bother me. I'm physically tired, but more mentally tired. (You have to) focus on the right decisions, and be aware of all conditions and things that change."

Winning Gear Notes

> Jerkbait gear: 6'6" medium-action Quantum Tour Edition spinning rod, Quantum Energy 400 series spinning reel, 8-pound Bass Pro Shops XPS Fluorocarbon line, vintage Smithwick Rogue (chrome).

He said the reel had "a real large capacity, which really helps."

In addition, casting distance was key. "I used Kevin VanDam's Line and Lure spray. Seriously, for fluorocarbon, there's no other line treatment that really helps it work. There's other treatment that sticks (to fluorocarbon). It actually bonds to the line and makes it relax. It eliminates twist and gets you more casting distance. It was real important to throw the full length of the bridges."

When asked the single thing that made the most difference in the tournament, he said it was his Biosonix unit. "One of the things I attribute (this win to), is a unit I've been using now throughout the Tour season, called the Biosonix unit. You can program different fish or baitfish-type sounds.

"The one I used here was bass attacking shad. These fish were keying on shad around bridges. This unit basically has a transducer that's a speaker under the water. It emits the sound of bass attacking shad. Smallies are real competitive.

"I can't tell you – story after story this season – how many times I had fish schooling around me. Not 50 yards down the bank, but (40 feet) away. I'm seeing them always schooling within casting distance. A lot of pros are starting to look at it. We've seen a lot of gimmicks, like the helicopter lure. But seriously, this is something I started using at the end of the Tour season. It took me quite a while to gain confidence in it. I've used it in every single practice and competition since Table Rock.

"It's one of those things now – I won't fish without it."

Notable

> Main factor in his success – "My Biosonix unit really made a difference. (The last day) especially, when the water turned off. The fish suspended a lot, and roamed around bridge pilings."

> He's one of the best ever in low-weight tournaments. "I prefer tournaments like this over whack-fests," he said. "I've always excelled in tough events. I can usually figure something out. If it's a tough bite, one or two bites can really clue you in. I really focus on, and look at all the little details when I come in contact with a fish. If I see one follow, or short-strike, it tells me a story. You have to think a lot."

> He suffered a dead-fish penalty on day 2. "I feel really bad about that," he said. "It was one of the few that got a jerkbait all the way in its mouth. It had a treble hook through its gills. I lifted him in and he was gushing blood. I tried my best, but there was nothing I could do."

> Of course, he had his lucky cookies at the event. "I absolutely had them. It's one of those things. I'm not really superstitious, but it's fun and I really enjoy eating them. And I have lucky rocks in my pockets my kids gave me – three rocks and a lucky coin."

> Can he win three Classics? "I'm ready for another one in 6 months."

> On Pittsburgh: "The enthusiasm of the fans is unlike any Classic I've been to. The stadium was packed. My wife, of course, is the consummate power-shopper. She's been to all the malls, and you go into any gas station in the whole vicinity, and everybody knows that the Classic's here. The city of Pittsburgh and ESPN did a phenomenal job."

> He broke a few precious Rogues on bridge pilings.