Wrapping Up the Off-Season

We are coming down to the wire now that the month of January is almost past. We plan on heading down to New Orleans on February 6th. I still have a whole lot left to do before then, so this entire next week is going to be super busy. Let's see now, a couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to head out to western Kansas with some friends and neighbors of mine to do some pheasant hunting. I grew up pheasant hunting, so it was really a treat to get out and spend time with good friends and shoot a few birds. It wasn't a spectacular hunt by any means, but that is typical of a late season rooster hunt. I took off last weekend to the farm to take my tree stands down, and decided last minute that I would try and fill my last deer tag. Shot a nice fat, mature doe at about 4 p.m. last Sunday. It sure is gratifying to have filled all of my tags this season, even though I didn't shoot a buck.

During my spare time lately I have been organizing tackle and doing whatever kind of preparation I can do before we head south for the classic. I received all of my new rods and reels from Wright & McGill, and I am pumped to use them this season. I am also really excited to now have Rick Clunn on our W&M team! He will definitely bring a boat load of notoriety and experience to the table.

I also got my new truck this past month, and got it wrapped. It is a new Toyota Tundra, and Fulton really stepped it up and got it wrapped for me. It looks great, and will match the boat perfectly! Fulton worked with Tightlines, my boat wrap sponsor, to put together a wrap that would compliment the boat. I am really excited about it.

I have been doing my homework for the classic, and I am really pumped and am motivated to do well again this year. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the conditions will set up right for me. As long as there are no major weather changes, or heavy rains the fishing should be great. I am expecting/hoping the bite will be a pre-spawn slug fest. I plan on spending a day or 2 on the Atchafalaya Basin to get my groove back, because unlike alot of the other anglers on tour, I haven't had the opportunity to get on the water everyday or a few times a week. All the water around me is covered in ice right now, and still will be when I leave for the classic next week! So getting out ahead of time down there will definitely help me shake the dust off and get back into the groove of things.

That's all for now, but I will definitely plan on checking back in before I leave for New Orleans!

Closing One Chapter, Starting A New Chapter

Well, this deer season has been a real cat and mouse type of season. I never got my buck tag filled, which is alright I guess. I consider myself a good hunter, and don't need to put a buck on the ground every season. I took a few good does this season, and that is fine. I got to hunt the entire season, and feel fortunate to have been able to spend as much time in the stand as I did. Just the other night I was out to try and shoot a doe, and had a nice shooter buck come in within bow range! I guess that's just the way it goes sometimes though! Last Saturday I went out for the first day of doe season and got set up by 3:15, and had a doe dead on the ground at 3:45. I still have 2 more tags to fill, so I am going to do my best to get that taken care of this weekend.

Next weekend I am going out to Hill City with some friends to do a little pheasant hunting. I have been looking forward to this for a while. If we are lucky there will be some snow on the ground, and those late season pheasants will be holed up nice and tight in the grass. I'll definitely try and get some pictures of the hunt!

Right now I am starting to think about fishing a whole lot more. Production will start on my new boat this week, and my truck wrap will be all done next week. I am really excited about the way the weather is shaping up for the Classic. Right now New Orleans is on the dry side, which is going to make the fishing that much better. Right now the worst thing that could happen for the fishing down there is if a huge rainstorm blew through and dumped a bunch of rain into the delta. I think if it stays dry, we will be in for some good fishing.

We leave for New Orleans on February 6th, which is really coming up fast. There is still alot left to do, but I can't wait to get down there and get after my 10th Classic!