Attitude Key To Overcoming Hurdles

By Jonathan LePera
Special to BassFan

(Editor’s note: This is part 2 of a 2-part series on how pro bass anglers manage the mental aspects of the sport. To read part 1, click here.)

Attitude is Everything

Research led Kevin VanDam to a prime area for the 2011 Bassmaster Classic at the Louisiana Delta. But despite numerous visits during practice, there were few indications that it would produce the winning fish – other than his instincts.

He didn’t give up on the area, and his return to the spot during the last hour of practice removed all doubt. He triggered three bites, including a 10-pounder. While he had no clue that he had located the fish that would win him the tournament, he refused to abandon his intuition and went on to win his third Classic.

“If I can’t win at it, I don’t want to be doing it,” VanDam said. “Some people are wired differently as far as their attitude. Some people are glass-half-full; it’s how you look at things, how competitive you are, and how bad you want to win. I started playing Little League at 7 years old and we won our league championship every year but one through age 14. I started high school ball and kind of got away from it because the coach and I didn’t see eye to eye on fishing.”

Attitude ultimately determines success; the needle can never move into the negative. VanDam credits his mom for his competitive drive and his wife, Sherry, for his formidable mindset. Sherry keeps him extremely organized, allowing him to focus on keeping his equipment, tackle, and garage in order.

“You have to have everything right to be able to focus on the other side,” he said. “‘It’s all about the attitude’ is a mentality that we’ve lived by since day 1. Don’t matter how today went, don’t matter what it looks like, don’t matter if the weather forecast is horrible – you must make the most of it.”

Not qualifying for the 2015 Classic put an end to his streak of 25 straight appearances in that event, but he didn’t revamp how he goes about his business in the wake of the disappointment.

“You are going to lose a lot more than you are going to win,” he said. “I thought about it a lot. As it was happening, the season was winding down and I knew I had to perform. It’s not like I could have done anything different because I was making mistakes or that I have a bad formula for how I do things. I know my system wasn’t broken, it’s just inevitable.”

He knows that experience can be his bane and his boon, both providing him with valuable insights and making him closed-minded on other occasions.

“I’ve been cognizant when I’ve had tough tournaments where I’ve fished the past,” he said. “Having past experience and knowledge is invaluable when you use it properly.”

One thing VanDam doesn’t do is let negative vibes creep into his mindset.

“You worry about variables you can control and put the ones out that you can’t,” he said. “When you lose a fish, there’s nothing you can do to bring it back. Learn from what it took to get that one to bite to try to get another one. It’s no different whether you have a bad tournament or a bad season; you have to have a short memory. You can’t let it hurt you.”

VanDam believes no opportunity should be shrugged off. A bad first day might take him out of contention to win, but he knows he could still climb to 20th place. Bouncing back from failure is something he learned from watching his mentor Denny Brauer during the formative years of his career.

“The year Bryan Kerchal won the Classic, Denny finished dead last,” he said. “The next year, he won, but he fished with the same mentality on both days – leave it all out there.”

On day 3 at his recent win on Toledo Bend, VanDam had three fish in the livewell with 2 hours to go and four fish with 15 minutes to go. He eventually filled out his limit and it weighed 25 pounds.

“I knew that I had to stick with my game plan and get those quality bites,” he said. “That time, it worked out and times in the past, it hasn’t. You have to trust your gut instinct on a deal like that. I had a lot of confidence in what I was doing and that eventually I would run into them. That’s what you have to tell yourself. Toledo Bend is one of the best lakes in the country, so if you fish the right pattern and be persistent, and it’s got to turn.”

No amount of mental preparation can prepare one for an emergency summons from home, especially the day before an event. It was 19 years ago that VanDam’s children were born prematurely as the Top 100 event at Lake Sinclair approached.

An early prognosis of good health gave VanDam the green light to go fish, but his mind was certainly scattered.

“That was the most challenging time of my whole career,” he said. “You can’t miss an event and qualify for the Classic. I called home and found out my boys had to have the Patent Ductus Litigation procedure – minor heart surgery.”

He hypothesized that his 8th-place finish was nothing more than luck. His sons graduated from high school this past spring and have designs on fishing competitively in college.

Survival Mode

JT Kenney was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

“I grew up in a trailer with my parents. We didn’t come from any money,” he said. “When I got into this, I didn’t care about being rich. The drive for me to win was not to be in the poor house.”

In 2004, he sold everything and moved from Maryland to Florida. He’d caught the tournament bug. He’s won five national-level tournaments in his career, two of which came while he was in dire straits financially.

“I still had to fish – it’s all I had,” Kenney said.

The 2002 Lake Okeechobee FLW Tour was his introduction to tour-level competition. He won the event and pocketed the $100,000 winner’s share.

“The morning that tournament started, I had $38 to my name,” he revealed. “I had enough money to pay the deposit and balance for the first event of the Tour and cover my gas for practice.”

If he hadn’t won, he’d have fished one tournament to the next until the well ran dry. Soon after his parents retired to Florida, his dad quickly took ill and faced mounting medical expenses. Kenney did his best to help cover those costs, and his parents’ trailer, to stave off creditors. When his Dad passed in 2012, the bank foreclosed.

“What little money they’d saved was spent on medical bills,” he said. “My mom lives with me. Family is family.”

Prior to the 2014 season, Kenney was among a group of anglers who lost team deals through FLW. He had been associated with StraightTalk Wireless, but they withdrew as a sponsor, leaving Kenney to scramble to find a tow vehicle and to cover entry fees, both of which were provided/covered under the team deal program. Tournament winnings still helped pay the bills.

He kicked off the 2015 season with another win in the Sunshine State, at Lake Toho, following two lackluster seasons that had taken their toll financially.

“When I was pre-fishing for Toho, which is about an hour from my house, I sold my saltwater boat, the patio furniture off my back deck and my dad’s tools – all sold on Craigslist – just to put gas in the boat to practice, but, I won,” Kenney said. “Was that God helping me out or some intellectual part of my brain that you can only access when you need it?”

Kenney hasn’t quite found the answer, but he’s wondering if his newly acquired sponsorships that have given him some financial stability are the culprit.

“Is it because I’m not worried about the bills getting paid as much as before,” he wondered. “Growing up my whole life, hearing my parents worrying about if they are going to be able to keep the heat on for the next month. It is special to me to know that I have enough money to pay the bills.”

With such pressure, one might think he’d be wound tight.

“I don’t think that my mind allows me to be nervous,” he said. “I don’t have time for that. If I’m anxious, it’s another variable that can affect the outcome. I don’t need any negativity. I like to have fun. The tournaments that get under my skin are when I don’t feel like I learned anything after a poor finish. If I learned from it, then I’m good.”

Breaking Down (Mental) Barriers

Wrestling was a major part of Brandon Palaniuk’s childhood. He started when he was 8 years old and continued to wrestle through high school – he won two state championships – and at the College of Northern Idaho. Coaches and the people he met, who understood the importance of the mental side of sports, instilled a strong worth ethic in him.

“In wrestling, there is a wall that you hit at a certain point of fatigue,” he recalled. “You could either mentally quit or you could push through. There’s no feeling that compares to the adrenaline rush when you psychologically get over that wall. You’re no longer tired. They knew it carried over into everyday life and part of it is just the way I’m wired.”

Palaniuk’s mom was 19 when she gave birth to him. Two years later, his sister arrived. His parents divorced when he was 5.

“Dad wasn’t around a bunch early on, but he is now, which is awesome,” Palaniuk said. “We did all kinds of stuff – backpacking mountain lakes and snowboarding. That’s how I got into the outdoors. (Mom) never let her guard down. I haven’t seen her cry very often unless it’s a movie. In life, she’s pretty dang tough – that’s where a lot my strength comes from. I learned to have a positive mental attitude as much as you can. Your decision-making is better if you are thinking positive all the time.”

Palaniuk’s sunny outlook was challenged after his disqualification from the 2013 Mississippi River Elite Series following day 2. A victim of an archaic culling rule, he kept his cool during the fallout, which likely cost him a shot at a win.

“There was absolutely no reason to fly off the hook. It was my fault,” he said. “I was brought up that when you do something wrong, just own up to it.”

Redemption came not long after as he made 2 1/2-hour runs – one way – to Lake Ontario to win the St. Lawrence River Elite Series and earn the automatic Bassmaster Classic berth that went with it.

“You need the mindset to make those long runs, believe that your equipment and body are going to hold up, and what you found will produce,” he said.

He fished 2 days of practice, leaving the third to drive his route while getting ready mentally and physically and taking all variables into account.

“I knew where I was going to get gas, how much gas I was going to burn to get there, how much I was going to burn to get back to the gas station, and I knew the guy’s name at the gas station,” he said. “I knew how long it was going to take to pump. I knew all the scenarios so that all I had to do was focus on fishing. I calculated that if I had 45 minutes to an hour to fish, I could catch 20 pounds.”

When talking to Palaniuk, it’s best not to mention his place in the AOY standings. He likes competing with a clear mind.

“I believe you don't fish to your full potential,” he said. “Not having any idea makes you fish to catch as much as possible.”

Having girlfriend, Tiffanie McCall, on the road with him the past 3 seasons has aided him in his quest for consistency. Once known as a hero-or-zero type, he’s become a regular check-casher and is frequently in the mix for Top-12 cuts.

“Every year she’s travelled with me, I‘ve fished increasingly better,” he said. “I know 100 percent that it helps.”

He pointed to the recent BASSFest at Lake Texoma, when a storm had rolled in.

“She came back to the house and covered my boat to keep it perfectly dry beneath the cover,” he said. “I never asked her. It’s those little things that allow me to selfishly – unfortunately – be able to just concentrate on fishing and the business side.”

End Part 2 (of 2)