EVERYTHING YOU'LL EVER NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FISHING AS A NON-BOATER (Well, Almost Everything)
OK, perhaps the title of this article is somewhat pretentious but I believe the tips included below will help anytime that you find yourself fishing from the rear deck of a “pro's” boat as a non-boater.
First, there is nothing wrong with, and much is very right about, fishing as a non-boater. Often it is the best way to learn new lakes and techniques, not to mention win money with considerably less investment than the boater. Additionally, on some circuits it is very possible to fish with the world's top pros such as was the case for me last year when I served as an observer in a Bassmaster E-50 event on StateArkansas's placePlaceTypeLake PlaceNameDardanelle (OK, since as an observer I didn't actually fish but you get the idea). During that event I fished with Roland Martin on day one and with George Cochran on day two. Coincidently, Roland retired shortly after this tournament so that was special and George won $500,000 a few weeks later, which was very cool - especially for him. Regardless, you can't help but learn a lot when you are in the boat with fishermen of this caliber. Even if you don't draw up with pros of quite that stature, it's a sure bet that if you keep your eyes and ears open, you'll end the day a better fisherman or woman.
Next, try not to screw up. Some of the more common mistakes made by non-boaters include:
Failure to offer to help pay expenses (gas, oil, etc.). This is something that can and will catch up with you - typically sooner rather than later, if you fish multiple events. Believe me, word gets around and as the boaters typically have spent a tremendous amount of money trying to get on fish, it's the least you can do to offer to help pay for the day's expenses. Even if you never start the big motor, you should offer up at least $20. Even if the pro refuses to accept your contribution you will likely earn a measure of respect for offering. Of course, as is almost always the case, you are likely to be running quite a bit during the course of a day and at today's prices for gas and oil, $20 isn't going to cut it anymore (if it ever did). For a typical outing I recommend being prepared to contribute at least $40 and perhaps more. One more point worthy mentioning on this topic is that whether or not you offer to help pay expenses and how much should not be dependent on whether or not you caught fish. Except for possibly very rare exceptions, your pro didn't intentionally impede your ability to catch fish and most likely they tried to help you do so. Show them the respect they (hopefully) deserve and cough up a few bucks - enough said.
Never, ever, ever (you get the idea) bring another day's partner to a fishing spot shown to you by someone that you fished with on a previous tournament day (or in practice if you are lucky enough to be able to prefish with a pro participating in the tournament). Not only is this strictly forbidden by standard tournament rules and can get you and your new partner disqualified and perhaps banned, it is about the best way to get blackballed that I know of. I've heard stories guys that did this in previous tournaments only to get left on the bank by their boaters at some future tournament - presumably to send a message. Of course the pro wouldn't be able to fish either in that situation but if they were already so far behind after the first or second day that they felt it was more important to send a strong message than to fish they just might not care. Of course they would never admit to a tournament official that they didn't fish because of you. They may however call the tournament director an hour after takeoff and tell him/her about how they couldn't fish because of a bad case food poisoning. Theoretically speaking, this could also happen to individuals that never help pay expenses as described above so don't do that either.
Miscellaneous “don'ts”. Now that we've covered the two most egregious non-boaters make, let's cover some of the other common mistakes to avoid:
Don't carry too much tackle. Often a conversation with your next-day's pro (these pairings almost always occur the day or night before the tournament) will help you determine how much of what to bring. Even if your partner says to bring whatever you want, too much stuff actually hurts your ability to fish effectively as invariably too many rods will result in your having to continually untangle them from each other. Additionally, too much tackle will make it difficult for you to find what you really need as well as making it difficult for you to move around in the boat.
Try not to make a lot of noise when fishing or approaching a spot as this can spook fish, especially in shallow water. While some noise may be unavoidable, things like limiting how much equipment you bring can help limit unintentional noise. Other good habits to get into to cut back on noise that include:
Don't slam compartment lids
Ensure any compartment lids that you open are completely shut so they don't get closed by someone stepping on them.
If you do drop something or do something else that creates intentional vibration in the boat and thus the water, apologize. While simple courtesy, this will go a long way in ingratiating yourself with your partner as well as communicating the fact that you know that noise is a bad thing when fishing.
Try not to mishandle the net. While some pros will tell you up front that they don't want net assistance, others will ask how you are with one. Be honest here, if you're not really sure which end is which, tell them. Your boater shouldn't expect you to be a pro, but they will expect you to be honest, so if you are not confident with a net, let them know. Often they will help you by talking you through the process thus helping you and them.
Try not to wreck your boater's equipment by “helping” to back up their boat or trailer if you aren't practiced and skilled at doing so. Again, be honest here and let your partner know if you aren't comfortable backing up a strange vehicle. There is no shame in this but that might not be the case after you've jackknifed a $50,000 boat into a $40,000 truck - a very bad thing.
Now that we've covered some of the more basic “don'ts” of fishing as a non-boater here are some “dos” to keep in mind.
Always respect your partner's water. This doesn't just mean that you shouldn't tell another boater about the spot(s) or not to bring another boater back to it during the tournament, it also means not to cast too far forward into water that your boater may still intend to cast as well as not making absurdly long casts across narrow coves or channels when it is likely your partner may intend to fish that side once they're done with the side you're on. Not only do these long types of casts run the risk of irritating your boater, they often result in you getting hung up or, even if you get and can detect a strike, it will be much more difficult for you set the hook properly resulting in neither you or your partner being able to catch that fish.
If you happen to know something relating to safety about the lake you are fishing that your boater may not (this actually happens a lot), let your partner know! As obvious as this may sound, many are the lower units on the bottoms of lakes due to a non-boater's reluctance to share their knowledge. Whether out of respect or a feeling that any input might not be appreciated, the end result can still be disastrous. “I thought that you knew something I didn't” isn't very comforting once a boat has been seriously damaged. In this type of situation, it's always better to be safe rather than sorry.
If you see your boater about to break a rule, point it out BEFORE they do. Almost always it will be a case of them forgetting or not thinking about the rule (e.g. failure to put on their life jacket) or about the conditions that are about to lead to a violation (e.g. the no-wake area you are approaching). Again, you risk the chance that they weren't going to break a rule after all but it will be too late once the violation has occurred. A trick that I've learned over the years is to ask a question to make the point, such as: is a life jacket required if we are just idling?
Although the lists of non-boater dos and don'ts above are by no means all-inclusive, they do provide some specific points to ponder. Perhaps the most important thing to remember when you are fishing as a non-boater is not to leave your common sense behind just because that's your position in the boat.
Fishing Tips:
Now that we've covered the basic non-boater dos and don'ts, let's talk a little about how to catch more fish from the back of the boat. Most of these points will apply any time you find yourself fishing from the rear deck, but they especially apply if you don't have an option.
Try to get on the water to prefish. As obvious as this sounds, most non-boaters can't, so if you do you're likely to help yourself. Typically you are not really looking for spots to fish during the tournament, rather you are looking for baits that might work, determining what size line and types of rods that you might need, etc. If you are fishing out of your own boat, however, finding a few spots holding fish isn't a bad idea and, if you find one or more that are fairly close to the landing you have a decent chance to get to fish them at some time during the tournament, especially at the end of the day if your partner runs out of ideas or has a few minutes to kill before your check-in time. If you don't have your own boat or choose not to bring it, the best way to get some prefish time in is to try to team up with someone fishing the tournament as a boater. Often this will have the added advantage of reducing your travel cost since you can usually share a room with that individual and, if you're lucky, you can travel to the tournament with them. If you don't know any boaters fishing the tournament that aren't already hooked up with a non-boater, try going to the circuit's web site and looking for any boaters fishing your tournament circuit that may have posted a note that they are looking for a non-boater to team up with for traveling and or prefishing. You can also post your own note that you'd like to hook up with a boater and how a boater can contact you if they are interested. As many pro-am circuits give priority to boaters and non-boaters that are signed up together, you may want to try to find a partner that is looking for someone to sign up with in addition to someone to travel and prefish with. If you don't have any luck hooking up with a boater, at the least, you may even be able to hook up with another non-boater to share a ride and/or a room with if neither of you has access to a boat.
Try to get a clue as to how and with what types of baits your boater plans on fishing. Often the boater will provide this information freely and without prompting at the partner pairings but if not, don't be afraid to ask. Some boaters won't tell you, presumably for fear that you'll share that information, which by the way you should never do, but most will, especially if you phrase your request for information something like: “I'd like to lighten the load as much as possible, can you give me any hints as to what I may need?” or “I haven't had a chance to prefish, can you give me an idea of the types of lures and rods I should bring?”.
Be flexible in how you fish. Often your best chance is to fish something different than your boater. One key is to select baits that can be fished effectively at the speed that the boat is moving. This is especially important if your boater is Speedy Gonzales, which will pretty much require that you fish some type of reaction bait. Even if you are able to fish any type of bait effectively, you may want to try something at least a little different, for example if you are both fishing spinner baits you might try fishing one that is heavier, smaller, a different color or blade combination, etc. Of course if the bite is wide open or if there is plenty of “new” water to cast to, this is less critical and possibly not even desirable. Again, be flexible when making this decision.
Relax! Don't let yourself get rattled just because your boater is catching more than you are. That's normal, so be patient and remember to be flexible. Often the best thing that can happen if for your boater to get their limit, after which they are often more generous towards you and will share the bait that's working, give you pointers on how to work the bait differently, etc.
And last but not least, have fun and try to learn something. I've often learned the most on days when I didn't do well personally - simply by observing.
Dwayne Luby's sponsors include:
Skeeter Boats: http://www.skeeterboats.com/" http://www.skeeterboats.com/
Lewis Engines, St. Charles, MO: http://lewisboat.com/" http://lewisboat.com/
Minn Kota Trolling Motors (http://www.minnkotamotors.com/index_flash.asp" http://www.minnkotamotors.com/index_flash.asp)
Humminbird Electronics (http://www.humminbird.com/flashHome.asp?ID=2" http://www.humminbird.com/flashHome.asp?ID=2)
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