(This is part 1 of a 2-part story with Florida tour pro Bobby Lane. Part 1 covers his thoughts on the upcoming Bassmaster Classic. In part 2, he talks about next year – his first in the Bassmaster Elite Series.)
Last year, Boyd Duckett's reputation as a bass fisherman wasn't known very far outside Alabama. When he decided the time was right to
try fishing full-time, like the businessman he is, he planned his work and worked his plan. He fished the Bassmaster Southern Opens, qualified for the Elite Series and the Bassmaster Classic, and then won the Classic.
This year, now-former FLW Tour pro Bobby Lane opted for the same route as Duckett, and so far is following the same path. He finished 3rd in the Open points and made the Classic and the Elite Series, which he'll fish in 2008.
Now, about that Classic win.
Nothing Else on His Mind
BassFan caught up with Lane just after Thanksgiving. It was the last day of November, but the first day of his Classic practice at Lake Hartwell in South Carolina.
"Knowing I'll be fishing in the Classic in a few months is real exciting," he said. "Having fished FLW so long I thought maybe I'd never fish the Classic. Then I fished the Opens just to try to make it, and I qualified for the Elite Series and I made the Classic. I was going against Mark Davis (for the final Classic spot) so it was tense. I hadn't been that nervous in a long time."
Adding to his exuberance is that his brother Chris also qualified, through the Elite Series points. "We're excited," Bobby said. "(Chris) will be up here at Hartwell in a couple weeks. We couldn't get up here together because we both had various things going on."
They're both still celebrating the fact they made the Classic. "It's funny, I'll call (Chris) and ask "Are you going to the Classic?" and he'll do the same thing to me.
"It's the first Classic for both of us," Bobby added. "But I don't think I'll be nervous. I've been in some pretty heavy positions before."
So what does Lane think of Lake Hartwell after 1 day of fishing?
"I caught a 4 1/2-pound spot today," he said. "It's the biggest I've ever caught. They tell me the lake record is 5 1/4. If I can get a few of those each day I'll have a great Classic.
"This lake is deep and clear with a lot of stripers. It's an interesting lake. It's not real good today, but I know there's potential for big stringers. We'll be here when they're fat and pre-spawn and should be starting to eat.
"I'll probably get off the flipping bite for this one," he added. "If I stay in less than 5 feet I'll probably zero. Being real deep and clear, it's not my style, but I'm going into this to have a lot of fun. And having been forced to learn to fish with a spinning rod in FLW, I'm ready to use it if I have to."
A key change in his fishing, in terms of spinning, is he's now got the confidence that big fish will hit "that stuff," and he's learned to play the big bites on light line.
Keys to the Classic
BassFan asked Lane if he thought his first-day big bag at Wheeler Lake, the final event of the Southern Opens, was a key to securing his Classic berth. He sacked almost 20 pounds to lead day 1.
"I had a good feeling I could catch that much the first day," he said. "I had 16 pounds the first day at the Stren Championship there last year from the same spot. It's a 1-day thing. I've never caught them the next day out of it."
He said in the fall, as the water cools and is drawn down to winter pool, the fish move out of the shallows and they'll stop at the first drop. "They pile up in this small ditch on the flats that I don't think anyone knows is there," he noted. "It's not a real big area, but I caught a 9-01 in practice there. That's a monster for that lake.
"The last day was the big day, though. I was in 6th place with the pressure of trying to make the Classic. On my third cast a 4-11 hit my topwater frog. If I'd have missed that one I wouldn't have made the Classic."
Off-Season Tweaks
Obviously, Lane's focus until February will be on things that he hopes will help him at the Classic. But he hasn't been idle in getting his gear in order for the Elite Series either. One thing he's been doing with his brother is crafting some customized baits.
"I've been working on some topwater frogs and plugs," he said. "We're trying to improve hookup ratios, tweak the colors, and just get a little more out of them. Chris and I are working on some new topwater plugs. We got in some big ones and we put our own hooks and props on them. I think big fish at Amistad and places like that will crush them.
"And Berkley is coming out with a new swimbait next year," he added. "I haven't got any yet, and I haven't used swimbaits much. But they said they're going to have a ton of them at the Classic and I'll be trying to see what they can do for me."
Notable
> "I wanted options at the end of the year and I got it," Lane said of why he fished the Opens. "And I made the Classic on top of that. My dad was there at the last tournament, and he doesn't get to come to very many of these. That made it even more special."
> Last year Berkley introduced the Chigger Craw at the Classic, and Duckett won in part by using that lure. It became an instant hit like any other Classic-winning bait, but Berkley was ready to go into full-rate production due to its pre-positioning with the lure at the Classic. Will the swimbait Lane mentioned do the same for the company this year? Lake Hartwell is probably a great place to try it, since the bass are said to follow schools of blueback herring throughout the lake.
– End of part 1 (of 2) –
