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I have always Loved Bass Fishing..... Growning up I was fortunate enough to live near three ponds stocked with Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass and have a friend that shared my passion of Bass Fishing to fish with. Since I can remember I have loved Bass Fishing and fished regularly, just not competitivly. I fished for other species as well, but there was something about the "little green fish" that just kept me coming back for more. I played many organized sports growning up, and all through high school, and I am very competitive still to this day. Nothing compares to Bass Fishing in tournaments. Mental determination is the key element to being successful, not like other sports where physique, speed, and strength seem to be the big factors. Last year was my first "real" year of competitive Bass Fishing with no other distractions. I dedicated myself to seeing how good I was and I was very successful. I can tell you what i learned was that concentration, confidence, and mental awareness are by far the most important aspects of this sport. It is so easy to be distracted, lose concentration and before you know it, it's noon and you missed 3 fish, and have an empty livewell. Rick Clunn is the pioneer of the mental aspect of fishing, and until this year I had no idea how powerful it was until I was made aware of this from a fellow angler. I tried it and read alot of his material (link to his site, directly to the right), practiced it, and believe me when I say it works. To anybody that does not take into account the mental aspect of this sport is not performing to there full potential. Just as important as the mental aspect is EXECUTION. Execution is performing at a high level and making as few mistakes as you posssibly can. I can go over and over in my head (and still do)about some of the mistakes I made during the 2001 season, but the bottom line is I cannot change that and learn, move on, and not make the same mistake again. Just think if I had not lost that fish, or if I had not stayed where I knew there were fish, but couldn't get them to bite, and moved to another area. It's funny how much confidence we have in certain areas. We'll stay on a particular weedline, or another form of cover where we once caught fish, and sit there all day, and not get bit.... We are Stubburn people as Bass Fisherman. I hope anyone reading this realizes that anyone can catch fish. It's the anglers that catch the fish consistantly, fish smart, and spend the most time on the water that are going to be the most successful.
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