(Editor's note: This is part 2 of a 2-parter on the bass fishing Silly Season, focusing on tour pros and the major boat and outboard companies.)

Ranger Without Hackney

In a year with comparatively few pro-staff changes, Ranger was dealt perhaps the biggest loss of all when Greg Hackney departed for Triton (see Part 1). Aside from that, the Ranger Staff enters 2005

intact. "We don't anticipate any changes," said Steve Smith, promotions director for Ranger Boats. "We're pretty happy with the crew we've got."

Even though Ranger sponsors FLW Outdoors, Smith said the company doesn't prefer that its anglers fish the FLW Tour. "We don't make a distinction on BASS vs. FLW. We leave it up to the anglers. Both circuits bring a lot to the table and Ranger supports people on both (tours). Whenever we sponsor someone, we're looking for somebody who can represent the company professionally both as an angler and representative promoting our product."

He also said some anglers will be fishing from the new Z boats. "There will be a mix of boats. Some guys will still be running the 500 series, but I'd say half of the top guys will be running Z boats."

Skeeter Signs Rookies

"We do have some new entry-level guys," said Skeeter Boats marketing manager Daren Cole. "We now have Russ Lane out of Alabama, who qualified for the (Bassmaster) Classic from the Federation Championship. He will fish the Tour next year. Also, Cliff Pace will fish the Tour and we signed him to a larger deal."

Skeeter also made a few mid-season changes in 2004. "James Charlesworth came in mid-season," Cole said. "He's got some sponsorships through Underarmor sports clothing, which will be a great cross-promotion."

Another mid-season change was Terry Baksay. "He never got his due in switching," Cole said. "It was a real quiet change when he went from Ranger to Skeeter."

Skeeter became aggressive enough last year to lure Mark Davis away from Bass Cat, but Cole said Skeeter really isn't looking for any more "marquee" names. "It's not necessary," he said. "We had an outstanding year last year and there's no reason to go out and spend any more money to get another marquee name.

"There are only a couple of guys who, if we heard there was an opportunity, we'd make something happen for them. Other than that, we're very happy with the team we've got."

Mercury Same But Engines Change

Mercury's massive pro staff, with some of the most dominating anglers in fishing, also remains intact. "We are not adding anybody right now, and no one is leaving," said Kevin Luebke, Mercury's manager of freshwater endorsements. "There's really nothing to report there. As you know we have a very large team. So to add someone, it takes quite a bit."

But some interesting news out of Mercury surrounds who will be running four-stroke Verados on the tours. "We don't have all the boat orders put together yet, but right now, Kevin VanDam, Gerald Swindle, Skeet Reese, Gary Klein, Shaw Grigsby, Roland Martin, David Fritts and Byron Velvick will all be running Verados. They have the most attention drawn to them, and those are the guys we want for the Verado."

However, Luebke said those pros won't be wearing any Verado-specific signage. "It's going to be Mercury signage for now," he noted. "But we're working on a change – something that if everything goes right, we might have a new team look by the Classic."

In addition, some of those anglers who don't run a Verado will run another new engine instead. "Everybody else will be running Optis (Optimax). But some will have the new 225 Pro XS that was designed and engineered by our racing division," he said. "It's a 3-liter with a Mercury Torque Master gear-case and heavy-duty propshaft. It has a lot of mid-range punch and is about 2 mph faster than the standard 225 Opti.

"Some guys who have shown a lot of interest in this engine are Lee Bailey, Jr., Tommy Biffle, Randy Howell, Marty Stone, Mike Reynolds and Homer Humphreys. Right now we're juggling availability versus getting the standard 225s out the door. We want to make sure everyone's in a boat before the start of the tour season."

Mercury is a Bassmaster sponsor and places its priority there. "We tell our anglers, if they have to choose, we'd rather have them fish Bassmaster because of the extra exposure. At the same time, we don't ask them not to fish FLW – we still need exposure there. But the majority are fishing at least something on the BASS side."

> Brunswick, parent company of Mercury, also owns MotorGuide and there's news to report on that side. "Skeet Reese is now a part of MotorGuide," Luebke said. (Reese was previously with Minn Kota.) "The (Minn Kota) guys who make the (Bassmaster) cuts have been using MotorGuides with the digital technology, and they really like them. We're working on signing more people up."

Yamaha Wants Wins

"In terms of our pro staff, first and foremost, we're not the largest, nor do we think we'll ever will be," said David Simmons, field promotions coordinator for the Yamaha Marine Group. "Our positioning and strength is not from the standpoint of more pros – it's from the standpoint of wins. We want the best."

There are no additions or drops for Yamaha at the present time and he said there's no need, considering the team's success over recent years.

"We've been really been blessed with having the last three Classic champs, FLW Anglers of the Year and (FLW Tour) Championship winners," he said. "Statistically, at any tour-level event, we're about 25 percent of the field, but 50 percent or above in the final cuts. We're running lean, mean and efficient, which is an incredible testament to our staff."

Yamaha divested itself of BASS sponsorship but retained its sponsorship of the FLW Tour. He said Yamaha likes to keep a balance of both BASS and FLW pros. "There is a definite exposure opportunity from guys who compete in both," he said. "It certainly increases our cost responsibility when someone becomes a two-tour angler. But the more events they fish, the more impressions we get, so we take that into account too.

"We never have, and never plan to, push anglers to go one direction or the other. It's very important to us to have representation in both BASS and FLW. We let the anglers make those decisions for themselves and the chips fall pretty even on the table."

He hinted at two deals in the works, but could not comment on them at press time.

Notable

> Tim Price, Minn Kota pro staff coordinator, on losing Skeet Reese: "It's a disappointment for Minn Kota. You hate to lose people." Price did point out that "probably every Minn Kota team member will use the new Maxxum Pro with hydraulic lift assist."

> Stratos added Ray Sheide right before the FLW Tour Championship who, according to marketing director Teresa Johnson, "will be a Poulan pro next year."

> Luebke said right now, it looks like the Bassmaster finals boats will be rigged with standard Mercury OptiMax engines. "We don't know about the Classic though – whether they'll run Verados or 225 Pro XSs."

> Evinrude had sponsored Scott Martin in the past, but moved him up to Team Evinrude. Krista Heidgerken, BRP (Johnson/Evinrude) field staff coordinator, said Team Evinrude is "the elite of our elite." She also said the entire team will be running 225 HO E-TECS.

- End of part 2 (of 2) -