I'm Really Not the Least Bit Envious

As anyone who regularly follows my blog already knows, I haven't been getting a lot of time on the water in the last couple of weeks. While that reality doesn't sit very well with me, I certainly didn't experience any feelings of "wish I were in your shoes" when I talked to my good buddy, Wayne, yesterday afternoon.

You see, he was telling me he'd be headed to Kerr Reservoir early this morning, with plans to prefish today and Friday for a tournament on Saturday and Sunday. That's a lot of time in the great outdoors when the weather during that stretch promises to be anything but great. Let's just say I sincerely hope he, nor any of the other boaters, have trouble with their bilge pumps, 'cause they undoubtedly will get a real workout during the next four days.

Just the thought of what Wayne, his partner, and all those other competitors will endure as they chase limits of bass sends chills up my spine... and I'm not talking about the good kind. Even though it hasn't happened to me recently, I still remember my early days of bass fishing when I tried to cut a few corners and make "second best" work for me. I'm talking, of course, about cheap rainsuits.

Anyone who ever has sat through one rainy day of fishing, much less four in a row, with a "leaky Lucy" rainsuit covering you, knows what it feels like to have a streak of shriveled skin that extends all the way from the nape of your neck to your nether regions. Granted, I would venture to say the vast majority, if not all the contestants in this weekend tournament, will have top-of-the-line rain gear at their disposal, so they should dodge that "shriveled skin." However, they'll still have to deal with those raindrops that just keep falling on their heads throughout much of the practice and competition.

When asked what kind of grand prize was attached to this tournament, Wayne quickly responded, "A new, fully rigged bass boat." At this point, I understood exactly why he wasn't about to let the weather interfere with his chances of winning this thing. After all, he has delivered the goods and come home with a new bass boat on two other occasions--and that was while fishing as a back-seater. This time, he'll be in the front seat, so there's every reason to believe he might be able to pull off another victory and win a third boat.

While I wish Wayne the very best in what likely will be an extremely soggy affair, I will maintain my post here at home, trying to sort through all the necessary details to ensure a successful Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Classic Tournament on Oct. 17th and 18th. And, should an opportunity present itself to get in a warm-up trip or two before then, I'll be prepared to do that as well. With a coastal storm  and perhaps part of Hurricane Joaquin to deal with first, though, I'm not making any kind of bets just yet on my chances of getting to the river.

Our Classic, incidentally, is shaping up to be a pretty decent event. To this point in time, I have 24 confirmed participants and 3 planned no-shows. Of the 7 I haven't heard from yet, I anticipate at least 2 more planned no-shows. Bottom line: It appears we'll have about 16 boats and 29 anglers on hand for the two-day event, provided there are no cancellations between now and the weekend of the 17th and 18th.

In the meantime, if you're out and about this weekend, I would urge you to be watching for standing water on the roadways. And if you have some rain gear, you likely would do well to wear it. Just make sure it doesn't leak. If there's even one pinhole, I assure you those raindrops will find it.