Hunt Complete, Classic Prep Begins

The white tail “rut” has come and gone here in Kansas and I was able to harvest a decent size buck. (Photo below left) My goal before the season was to get a Boone and Crocket white tail. That’s over 170 inches and I’ve still yet to get one that big. I’ve gotten close with my largest being 169 and 3/8, but this year wasn’t the year.


Taking that shot is bittersweet. On one hand, I was able to harvest a quality animal and can turn my focus back to fishing in time to pre-practice for the Bassmaster Classic in Shreveport. On the other hand the hunt is over for the year and I’ll have to wait until next year to get a bigger buck than my personal best.

This is my time of year to work with sponsors in preparation for next year. I feel good that I have my boat ordered and I have tied up all the loose ends from this year. Everything is in place order-wise and contract-wise with sponsors for next year.


A few weeks ago, my son Mason caught a giant crappie. (photo on left) It was a Sunday afternoon and the weather was getting ready to really cool down for the winter. I had a prior commitment that cancelled on me, which made it a perfect opportunity to take Mason and my dad fishing. You know, we got out there and caught a big mess of crappie and that one was definitely a bonus one for sure!


My only regret is, I wish we had weighed it. I’m guessing it was close to three pounds. We actually took it to Cabella’s and put it in their fish tank, we went and visited it already once since the day we put it in there. It was pretty cool, Mason was proud of that fish. Hopefully, the Crappie was happy with the result of ending up in the tank, instead of the alternative. I think it’s in the safest water it can possibly swim in.

I did finish my last FBI Citizens Academy Class a few weeks ago. When I went to college for a few semesters, law enforcement was what I was looking at majoring in. So it was probably a good thing I didn’t take this class when I was 19 or 20; who knows, maybe I’d be an FBI Agent today or instead of a professional angler.

Here is a quick rundown of what it was all about. It was 10 weeks long and we got to learn all about the FBI and the different departments of the FBI and the things that they do and don’t do. We also learned a lot about some of the kind of false rumors about what the FBI does.

I mentioned it in my last blog, but during the class there is a day called “range day.” On “range day” we were able to watch their SWAT Team do a demo. First, a shooting demo and then a second demo where they breached a house. That was really cool. Then, at the end of the day, we got to shoot a bunch of guns and anybody that knows me knows that I love to shoot guns. Needless to say, that was a blast.


I guess that leads into one other thing to discuss, something our family is really excited about. A few weeks ago we jumped into a retail gun business. The store is officially open for business and the grand opening went fantastic. (Photo of Grand Opening on Right)

The website is soon to launch as well so stay tuned for more on that. The store is called UT Arms and online it can be found at
www.UTArms.com. If you are in Kansas City be sure to stop by and check it out at 3003 Power Drive and that is in Kansas City, Kansas 66106.

Next I am off to do some pre-practicing for the Bassmaster Classic in Shreveport on the Red River. I will be doing some video blogging and short video updates to what’s going on. You’ll be able to view those right here. I’ll be sure to include some fishing tips as well.

Also, make sure you like my Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/BrentChapmanFishing. I will be doing a “Twelve days of Christmas” list on that page. It’s a Christmas gift suggestion for the angler on your Christmas list and if you are an angler, you can share my list with your friends and family on Facebook to make sure they get you something that you can actually use.

Chapman Checking in

There is so much going on where should I start?

I happy to report I am continuing to work out hard with they guys from FelixFishing.com. I feel I am already in the better shape than I have been in a long time, and we are really just getting started. I think being in top shape by the Bassmaster Classic will be a huge advantage to me on tour next year.

It's a neat thing to go to your own state fair. The Kansas Wildlife and Parks had a fish tank set up out there. Teaching the community about the fish in Kansas. It was a working vacation. The family - I encourage anybody, no matter what state you are in, to go experience your state fair. It helps you appreciate your state and you get to eat all kinds of goodies. You know, the crazy and unique foods that you only need to eat once a year.

I guess taking over in the Chapman footsteps my son Mason has been fascinated with fly tying. He just finished a four week class on fly tying. When he took the class, he was still seven years old. The flies he's tying already are way more advanced than anything I have tried tying. He did excellent and I am sure that it won't be our last fly tying class.

Something else I am really excited about is a class I am taking called the FBI Citizen's Academy. I have always been fascinated with Law Enforcement. They bring people in that have a presence in the community for this class. The FBI doesn't really do any marketing or even defending of themselves when people bash them. Instead, they have citizen's they have trained through classes like these that can educate the rest of the citizens on what the FBI does and how they do it.

They have already taken us through violent crime with crime scene photos and bits and pieces of evidence they used to solve the case. Other things we have studied is domestic terrorism, drugs and gangs and it has opened my eyes to how amazing our law enforcement in this country is. I will be more vigilant and aware of my surroundings, especially traveling the country.

It's an eight-week course and, near the end, we get to visit the FBI Training facility. We'll get to see how they train including the FBI swat team in live fire drills. We'll also get to shoot their guns, how cool is it to get to play with the FBI's guns and stuff.

For example, recently here in Kansas there was a kidnapping of a10 month old little girl. She was nabbed right out of her bedroom. Just a few days before the kidnapping we had a class about kidnapping. The gentlemen who ran the class happens to be the agent in charge of this case. After that class and hearing the facts of this case through the media, it has made me see it in a different light than I would have prior to that class. As for the case, we are hoping for the best for the little girl and her family, they are in our thoughts and prayers daily.

My son just turned eight and we had an unusual birthday party. He wanted to go down to my parents' farm and have fun. We kind of had a "red neck" birthday party. We went down and road four wheelers, shot guns, built a fire, cooked hot dogs on the fire. It was a great to spend the day with the family outdoors.

Fishing wise, I have had a couple Crappie trips. I love to bass fish, but when it comes to just fun fishing I really love Crappie fishing. A couple nights ago my daughter's-teacher's-husband, my son Mason and I fished for about an hour and a half and we caught 45 Crappie. Which brings to mind, a little something I like to stress to people about fishing. That is, even though you may be a hard core tournament angler, any kind of fishing can teach you something. It could be something as simple as maintaining boat position or reading your electronics. You still need to find out what they want to bite and how they want it presented.

I just got back from the Missouri Federation tournament at Truman Lake. I was happy to welcome the anglers to the event on behalf of Triton and Mercury.

I am at the point now where I am just itching to get hunting with the bow. Maybe I can find a free morning or two to get out there and shoot a few bows. The serious 'rut hunting' is coming up in just a few weeks!

One last cool thing, we have a few bass that live near our dock. One of which we call 'sore mouth' because we've caught him twenty or thirty times over the years. After we finished cleaning the Crappie, my daughter fed 'sore mouth' by hand. Here's the video.

Triathlons, Bouys and Doves

9-8-2011

Last weekend I got my competitive juices flowing when I participated in my first Triathlon. The race included a 500 meter swim, a nine mile bike ride and a 3 mile run. I enjoyed it quite a bit and was able to finish it in one hour and sixteen minutes. If you haven't done one of these, I highly suggest it. Sure its a lot of work, but when you finish one you'll feel great, I know I did.

Before the event I figured I'd get a little practice in and went for a swim. I set out to swim across our cove here on Lake Quivira. I was about half way accrossed when I realized I was in trouble, I was done, I couldn't go any further, it took all I had to make it to a buoy. Although, it was a scary situation to be in, it is quite humorous looking back. I had to scream for help clinging to a buoy in the middle of the lake. Eventually I made it back to shore so I could write this blog.

My near drowning experience taught me a lesson and hopefully I can share that lesson with some of you. I spend a lot of time on the water and from time to time I think, "if something happened I could just swim to shore from here." Let me be the first to tell you it's not easy, unless you swim more than short distances often. Keep in mind, I was prepared to swim, in a swimsuit and the water was warm. I could only imagine trying to do that in full clothing and/or in cold water or after a fall from the boat or worse. The whole thing was definitely an eye opener for me.

Back to the triathlon, next year I am going to shoot for under an hour. Plus, this year, after my near drowning, I wore a flotation belt to keep me on top of the water. It was tougher to swim with it on, but it was quite a bit safer. Safe was important, I have a Bassmaster Classic or two yet to win and I am pretty sure Bobbi and the kids would miss me, so I opted for safety first. Plus, from now on I will be wearing my life jacket quite a bit more on the water.

Other than that, I have finished getting all my deer stands set for the hunting season this year. Only a few more weeks and I'll be up there looking for the biggest Kansas white tail I can find. In the meantime, I'll try to get some work done around the house.

The kids are back in school now, so Bobbi and I had the chance to go hunting. Opening day for Dove season was Thursday September 1st and Bobbi and I hit the woods and did some shooting. I think this was the first time since 2002 that Bobbi had the chance to go hunting with me and she shot really well after such a long time off and we had a good time.

Another thing that has happened since my last blog is Bassmaster released the 2012 schedule. It's an exciting schedule.

Heading back to the St. John's river where I had a solid finish last season will be good. It's also exciting to have a mystery lake on the schedule. I just hope it's truly a mystery lake, but I think its going to be hard for them to keep it a mystery.

It takes a lot of hard work from a lot of people to put on an event of this caliber. All those people need to know about it well in advance including sponsors, the local chamber of commerce, etc. It's back to back with our Wisconsin events you know it'll have to be within a 4 or 5 hour drive from there. That narrows it down a bit. Overall, its a great concept and if they can keep it a mystery I think it'll be a hit with the fisherman and the fans alike.

Busy Summer – Time to Catch Up

Blog 8-23-2011

I thought this summer was going to be a take it easy, relaxing summer. Instead, I have something going on pretty much every weekend and lots of projects around the houses.

I visited one of my sponsors, Cequent/Fulton Performance. They held their 100 year anniversary celebration and get together in Wisconsin. It was nice to hear about Cequent and Fulton’s business. Fulton was the originator of the coupler system that connects trucks and trailers and to hear about that was pretty neat. What really intrigued me was to hear how a company survives over 100 years. When you think about how hard that must be to do, and the relatively few other companies that have lasted that long, it speaks volumes about them as a business. The evolution of their innovative product lines, their level of performance and customer service are key reasons they have made it 100 years. Congratulations to the company and all the talented employees that have made that happen. I am thrilled to be a part of the Cequent and Fulton Performance Team.

Part of the event was a visit to Lambeau field and took some photos of the Triton/Mercury, Tight Lines UV and Futon boat and truck in front of the stadium. We got a full tour of the stadium and a Green Bay Packers history lesson. They love their 2011 Super Bowl Champion Packers in Wisconsin!

Another thing I learned in Wisconsin, you know they are known for their cheese, was what a cheese curd was. I love cheese and they introduced me to cheese curds. Now I am hooked. If any of you get to Wisconsin, make sure you give cheese curds a try.

Cequent held a raffle drawing for their employees. The winner got a day of fishing with me the following day. I fished with a nice guy named Shane and his son at a small lake in Wisconsin. We had a good time catching a decent amount of fish and sharing stories.

I just wrapped up a seminar series I have been working with my Church on. We did a five-week seminar on going fishing. During the five-weeks, I held seminars after each church service where we discussed lots of aspects of fishing. We've had a heat wave here in Kansas so it was pleasant to be inside talking about fishing rather than out in the heat actually fishing.

Recently there was an article in In-Fisherman magazine by a gentleman by the name of Ned Kehde titled Pain Free Fishing. The focus of the article was about a guy by the name of Travis Perret of FelixFishing.com and what he has done for anglers. He has worked with Stacey King and Takahiro Omori, who he really helped with his wrist injury. I got in touch with him after hearing he was also in Kansas.

Prior to getting started with Travis, I actually thought I was in pretty decent shape. Although I’ll admit that I hadn’t been working out much. I have been working out with Travis three or four times a week for an hour. I am finding out just how out of shape I really am. Looking ahead to the Bassmaster Classic in February, I know I’ll be ready to go by then. Those nasty cold days early in the season with lots of gear on and even into the summer where the weather can actually take a lot of energy out of you, well I will be ready for it. I’ll keep you posted wuth this blog. I may even include some photos of my flexibility improvement and more as we move towards the Bassmaster Classic.

We just got back from a pretty fun trip. Back in January I donated a fishing trip to my kids school to help out a fundraiser. A local friend here in town invited me down to his 25-acure farm pond to go fishing. It’s kind of sad, here I am a professional bass fisherman and the last bass over 4 pounds I caught was back on Toledo Bend in April. I was looking forward to going down there and getting some quality fish. We caught over 100 bass as a group. I did get at least one 5-pounder and a 6-pounder. The kids rode four wheelers and explored the farm while we fished. It was a fun weekend. I didn’t need a day of fishing what I seriously needed was a day of catching like that.

Looking ahead it’s time to put the rods and reels down for a while and get ready for bow hunting season. Bow hunting is one of my favorite things to do, it’s a lot like tournament fishing in that the details are key, if you cut corners in any aspect of the hunt you are going to pay for it. Every year I am out to beat get a bigger white tail, which isn’t easy. It’s a lot like those California trophy bass anglers they get a 14 or 15-pound bass and its pretty hard to go up from there. Plus, it’s time to get the kids a ramped up a little more with the hunting.

This weekend coming up I am headed down to one of my sponsors, Labette County Kansas. They are hosting a large year-end tournament for the ABA circuit on Big Hill Reservoir. I am headed down and will spend the weekend talking fishing and sign autographs. It’s always enjoyable meeting and talking fishing with other anglers and fans.

Next weekend I am truly stepping out of my comfort zone. Our community here, Lake Quivira, is having a sprint triathlon. I am pretty competitive and I like new challenges, so I am competing in that this year. It includes a 500-Meter swim, and I am not a swimmer. After the swim comes a 9-mile bike ride, and I am not much of a biker either, I do have my mountain bike, but most of the competitors will have fancy road bikes. Then it ends with a 3-mile run. I haven’t done anything like this before other than a few 5k’s that I have done with Bobbi the last couple years. It’s going to be an interesting challenge for me. I am not out to win, but more just to say I did it.

I am tired just thinking about all that. I’ll start getting my food plots out for the hunting season next week.

Lastly, I would like to thank Ben Fuchs who has helped me with my blogs over the last few years. He was a big help and I really appreciate it. Now we will be working with True Image Promotions my new PR company moving forward. I am excited about the idea of the True Image helping me gain exposure for my sponsors and helping me educate anglers through articles and videos and keeping my fans informed on what I am up to. We’ll be blogging often so be sure to check the website http://BrentsBassLine.com and like us and follow us on Facebook at http://Facebook.com/BrentChapmanFishing.

ICAST Was Hot, but Kansas is Hotter!

First off, I want to say thanks to everyone who voted for me for the Bassmaster post season event. It wasn't enough to get me in, but I do appreciate everybody who tried to get me there. The way I see it, not making it down there has enabled me to do more at home. I am working hard with my church doing promotions and seminars with them, and if I had left to go to Alabama I wouldn't have been able to help out as much.

We got back from ICAST last week, and had a great time. I always enjoy myself there, and enjoy catching up with friends that I don't get to see as often as I would like. Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw had their annual Texas Hold 'Em tournament, which is always a ball. However, my poker game does leave something to be desired. It's more about the camaraderie though (at least that's what I tell myself!) There were some awesome products introduced at ICAST and I was proud to be there representing Wright & McGill, Lazer Trokar, and Tightlines Tackle. Wright & McGill introduced their new Rick Clunn series cranking rods, which I am really excited about. These rods are going to be awesome. I am definitely going to have one of the most colorful boat decks on tour next season with my yellow Skeet rods and my aqua Rick Clunn cranking sticks! I am also super excited that Trokar released their new treble hooks. We all know that Trokar revolutionized the fishing hook industry when they came out a couple years ago, but these trebles will take them to the next level. Also pumped about the new baits that Tightlines unveiled at ICAST. It was a very cool show, and I am proud to be a part of these great companies and can't wait to put all of these awesome products to work next season!

One other cool thing that went down at ICAST, was that I penned myself a new sponsor in a company called Bassminder. They make convenient stickers for your fishing reels, that allow you differentiate between the different line types, the pound test, and the date that each reel was spooled with that line. Pretty neat idea, and sure beats writing on all of my reels with a sharpie! They also are selling convenient fishing conditions and presentation charts that are marketed more for the beginning bass fisherman. Pretty cool new company!

Now back at home, like I said earlier, I have been working a lot with my church doing some fishing seminars and activities. It is really special to be a part of something like this, as I am getting to work with people who really don't get to fish very often, and maybe don't know as much about the sport as they would like to. The last seminar I did, I had a question about why a fisherman like me has so many rods. I think the best way to explain that is to compare bass fishing to golf. A golfer can go out with only one club and play golf, but he isn't going to be nearly as successful as he would be if he had an entire arsenal of clubs to use in the many different scenarios you come across on the golf course. In fishing, I could go out and fish with a spinning rod all day, but I would be limited in how I could go about catching fish with just a spinning rod.

This morning, we did a family fishing day and had a cook out after wards and it was a great time. And later on today and again tomorrow I will be working with parents on teaching their kids how to fish. It really is a privilege to be able to do this, and introduce more people to the sport of fishing!

As always, I am working on ironing out sponsorship deals for next season. And, I find myself thinking of deer season, and the Classic too. I feel like I am going to blink and then it will be time for the Classic, everything is moving along so quickly. I can't wait for deer season, and I need to get out there and start doing some scouting so I can be ready. But, for right now, I am concentrating on just surviving this extremely hot weather, and you all should do the same!

July - Work Hard, Play Hard!

It is sure nice to be home. I have been able to spend a lot of quality time with family and friends, and not have to worry about the pressures of competition. Spent the 4th of July here at home with the family, and watched the fireworks show. It was a nice and relaxing weekend. I have been able to get out on Lake Quivira to do some fun fishing, which is always nice. We also just got a fish feeder for my parent's dock, which has been a real treat. The bluegills are already getting bigger and fatter, and you should see the giant carp that the feeder brings in! They're also pretty darn fun to catch too! You are probably saying, "What is a bass fisherman doing catching carp?" Well, I will tell you. It is fun for the kids, and it is easy, but more importantly I can use that time to learn how to fight fish better. Those carp are the ultimate fighters, and I can downscale my line and tackle and not get worried about breaking them off and become more adept at landing big fish on finesse tackle. At least that is what I am claiming anyway!

Next week is ICAST, and we are excited to get out to Vegas for a week. It is always fun to see all of the new products, and all of our old industry friends that we don't get to see as often as we would like. After ICAST, it will be time to start working on sponsorship details, and getting things ironed out for the next year.

This weekend I will be working a promo out at Roger's Sporting Goods for Tightlines and Trokar, which should be a good time. And, starting on the 17th, our church is starting a 5-sermon series on fishing, and will be utilizing me to help with the presentation of it all. So this month is shaping up to be a pretty exciting, and event filled month.

Vote for Me!!!

What a relief! The cards fell just right, and I got lucky and made it back to the Classic. I worked hard to get to where I am now, but I am still not pleased with my performance. I left too many doors open, and left too much to chance at the end. I ended up 24th at Wheeler, but going into the final day there were 2 potential scenarios to put me into the Classic, and 2 potential scenarios to block me from earning a Classic invite. Like I said, the cards fell right for me. I feel bad for the guys who didn't make it, or for the ones that are now banking on making it through the Northern Opens, but that's the way that this type of competition is.

At Wheeler, I was absolutely floored by the weights. In practice I never got on anything huge like what we saw at weigh-in, and going into the event I figured it would be a deal where 5 keepers kept you in the hunt. I totally underestimated Wheeler, and that whole underestimation deal was kind of a theme throughout my season that I am going to try and work on and overcome for next season.

The fish I caught during the tournament I literally found during the last 2 hours of the last day of practice! I had found what I thought would be a primary spot, but it was covered up with boats when I got there the first morning of competition. I ran to this back up place, and the fish were piled up there. It was on the Decatur Flats, but it was a very specific spot. What killed me though, and kept me from competing on the final day was the fact that I couldn't catch a fish over 2 pounds on the third day. There were loads of fish there, but there wasn't much size swimming around down there.

The last two weeks have been a roller coaster for me. Like I said earlier, I am not happy with my season, but I am happy about making the Classic. During the summer months I plan on taking some time and reflecting on some of the negative aspects of my season, and trying to correct them so that I can have a strong 2012 campaign. Now that the season is over, it is kind of sad, relieving but sad! I had all of these grand plans to fish all over and do all of these awesome things this summer, but now looking at my calendar I am pretty wrapped up in promotional events about every other weekend. I was going to try and sneak down to Falcon, but I'm not sure if I will even be able to do that! The season is never really over for a Bass Pro, we always have stuff to do. And, knowing me, I will find plenty of time to get out and fish.

One more thing I wanted to add is that you can get on-line and vote for me as your fan favorite, and hopefully send me to the post-season event! The website is vote.bassmaster.com. Please vote for me! It would be a very pleasant surprise if I was able to fish down there, and I would greatly appreciate your votes. Oh yeah, if I don't make it to post-season, Bobbi and I are going to participate in a "Warrior Dash". It's an extreme running deal with obstacles and crazy stuff. I think I would be better at fishing in the post-season! Please vote! Thanks guys!