By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor
“You never know until you get there.”
During a 20-minute or so chat with Wesley Strader on Monday morning, the FLW Tour angler uttered that phrase on more than one occasion. He invoked it when talking about his distaste for gathering information from local sources about upcoming tournaments. He also brought it up while opining about how Lake Eufaula and the Potomac River are the two FLW Tour events he’s a little uneasy about.
It’s a fitting thought, too, when considering Strader’s place in the Angler of the Year standings after two events and his reluctance to take anything for granted. A third of the way through the season, he holds a one-point lead over Luke Clausen and is two points ahead of third-place Zack Birge. He’s right when he says the season is far from over, but there’s definitely a sense that he’d love to find out what “getting there” feels like.
“It feels really good,” he says when asked about his fast start. “I’ve always been a guy that tends to finish in the 20s and I’ve told people that if I can get over that hump and get out of the 20s, I could make a run at this thing. You always have those deals where you turn left and come to find out, that’s what you were supposed to be doing. There’s still a lot of the season left and I know there’s only one way to go when you’re at the top.”
Strader’s surge this spring is nothing new. Between 2009 and 2014, he finished no lower than 23rd in the AOY standings and he’s missed just two checks since June 2011, a span of 29 regular-season Tour events.
“It’s just getting back to doing what you do best and focusing on your strengths,” he said. “I do anything, but I’m more comfortable fishing shallow. It’s just one of those deals I can’t explain. It’s like when you’re driving down the lake and you look over and see a treetop you’ve been by 50 times and you decide to pull over this one time and you catch a big one there. It’s just something that clicks in your head, or it’s the Good Lord in your head saying, ‘Stop there and fish.’”
He says it’s premature to start planning an AOY parade for Rhea County, Tenn., where he resides along with two-time defending FLW Tour AOY Andy Morgan and fellow Tour pro Michael Neal, but with 3rd- and 14th-place finishes so far this season, Strader hopes to be in the mix up until the end.
“It’s too early in the year to be predicting how it’s going to go,” he added. “There are a lot of good fishermen out there and I know I’d much rather be leading at the end of the last tournament. I’m off to a good start as far as making the Cup goes, so that’s a relief. I like where we’re going.”
Less Stress
Last December, Strader was among the anglers who had to scramble to find additional sponsors after his Walmart team deal through FLW was not renewed. At the time, he admits he was “mad and hurt,” but he’s since channeled those emotions in a way that benefits him. He secured other sponsorship support and is fishing more stress-free this season.
“The only guys to make the (the Forrest Wood Cup) more times than me are Andy (Morgan), (David) Dudley and Clark (Wendlandt),” Strader said. “It was like, ‘What more can I do?’ Then I realized I was looking at it the wrong way. It really opened up some doors for me. I’ve been a loyal guy. It’s just the way I am. If I’m with you, I’m not talking to anybody else. That happening opened doors for me that wouldn’t have opened otherwise. I don’t have any hurt feelings about it. I didn’t have to tell anybody, ‘No.’ Everything came together and it’s been the best thing to happen to me in a long time.”
He said wearing the Walmart logo brought with it added pressure to perform, but very little security after the season was over. Now that he’s moved on from FLW’s team angler program, he’s able to have a better feel for where he stands with his primary sponsors.
“I’m not worried about a lot of that stuff,” he said. “I’m a lot more at ease as far as fishing goes. I’m not putting any stress on myself as far as making the championship because Walmart is sponsoring me and all of that. With those team deals, you’d get stressed out every fall worrying if I have a deal or don’t have a deal. They can call you the next day and tell you you don’t have one. You have no time to prepare for it.
“Now, if my deal doesn’t work out, it’s on me. I have direct relationships with my sponsors now and I’m able to let them know what I’m trying to do and I don’t have to deal with a middle man.”
Surprised By Smith
The more relaxed mindset has carried over to the water for Strader, who rode a lipless crankbait to a Top-5 showing at Lake Toho before targeting spawning spotted bass at Smith Lake.
“At Smith, all three days of practice were great,” he said. “I caught some schoolers on day 1. I spent a good bit of time up river on day 2 and then on day 3, I tried to elaborate on those spawners more. I found some deeper spawners in the 5- to 10-foot range and ran with that because it was so good and more were coming in. I figured out a deal that got them to bite real quick.”
He was among the competitors who left Smith impressed and surprised at how well the lake fished.
“It was one I really misjudged,” he said. “I thought 14 pounds a day would give you a chance to win. It wasn’t the Smith I knew from years past.”
He’s fared well at Beaver Lake in the past and will be among the favorites when the Tour stops at Lake Chickamauga in June, but it’s the events at Lake Eufaula and the season finale at the Potomac River that have him a bit concerned.
“Eufaula is probably going to be a deep deal,” he said. “When they get on those ledges, it’s not like on they are on the Tennessee River. It just fishes different. With the Potomac, they’ve had fish kills and the grass isn’t what it used to be. It’ll be one of those where you won’t know until you get there.”
