Points leader Remitz a fan favorite

NICE, Calif. — Looking for Derek Remitz is a cinch in Angler Alley. Just keep your eyes peeled for the two black-on-yellow balloons and the two standing boards touting the angler's current leads in both the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year and the Rookie of the Year races.

Angler Alley has become a fan-favorite at Bassmaster Elite Series stops from California to New York and points in between. The event gives fans the opportunity to meet their favorite pros in an informal setting.

It's a slow and steady line of people clamoring for the rookie's signature after his first two tournaments ended with a win and a second-place finish. Adults ask for him to sign the backs of their T-shirts, co-anglers tell him they hope they get to fish with him, folks of all ages lean in for photographs.

No calmer, less pretentious points leader could you hope to find. The attention has yet to go to his head, but Remitz admits he's enjoying the spotlight while he has it.

"It's pretty cool," Remitz says as he arranges his rods on the deck of his boat. "This is the first time in my life when people I don't know have known who I am. It's pretty cool to go into the bait shop and people already know who you are.

"I'm going to ride it as long as I can."

As he talks, kids come asking for autographs, and he offers them trading cards. One woman encourages her kids to approach him: "He's a rookie. He'll be somebody some day."

Nice call. She's just a little slow on the draw.

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