Bass blog: Day One
2009 Toyota Trucks Championship Week live BASS blog
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Saturday
4:12 p.m. ET
The scuttlebutt heading in is that KVD brought in a 4-pounder late, which could be a tremendous help for him to keep his lead in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings.
Our crew is headed to the weigh-in. Watch it live soon and keep up with the Real-Time leaderboard. Weigh-in on ESPN360 
Real-time leaderboard
4:10 p.m. ET
Everybody's in and all is well. The dozen pros are headed for the weigh-in; some happier than others. Stay tuned for the leaderboard postings. There's going to be some surprises.
3:45 p.m. ET
Fishing his way back in, Skeet stops along a shoreline being swept by current. It's hit it a lick or two and move on. We move ... back to the barn and day's end.
3:25 p.m. ET
How many rods and reels does a pro use in an average day's fishing?
"As many as I need," is Skeet Reese's short answer, but there's more to it than that. "Sometimes I only use one rod, or maybe two. On days like that, look out, because I've got the fish figured out."
Today the casting deck of his boat looks like a fishing tackle flea market; not a good sign. Skeet has a limit, but still hasn't found the right combination of lure, place and presentation to boat a couple of lunkers. It's getting close to quitting time, and he's still fishing as if the next cast will produce the kind of bass that so far have eluded him today.
2:52 p.m. ET
Kevin VanDam has a limit no matter what BASSTrakk is telling you. Zona was with him when he ran into a flurry of activity. They weren't huge but we have the majority of the catches, including a biology lesson from Zona on BASSCam.
He estimates KVD's weight as of an hour ago at around 9 pounds.
Rumors are flying around about them running water in 10 minutes , so Zona and Sanders are heading to the top of the dam to see how many of the anglers congregate there. Weights could change drastically in the next hour or they might not move at all (if no water gets pulled).
We'll know for sure soon enough when Zona and Sanders get back.
2:50p.m. ET
Skeet is fishing and talking. He says one of the recent fires that raced across southern California came within a mile of his home in Auburn.
"The wind moved the fire in another direction finally, but we were all packed up and ready to evacuate."
What do you do if you know that a raging blaze is on the way?
"First we had some neighbors come by because they saw the smoke behind our house and they thought we might be in trouble," Skeet said. "Then we got an evacuation notice from the sheriff's office telling us to get ready to leave. So we packed up some stuff and just watched and waited until it was all clear. But it was definitely no fun."
2:25 p.m. ET
Skeet nails a good one that walks him around the boat a couple of times, except it's a striper hybrid of about 5 pounds.
"I hate these things," he says.
At least it's not a big drum; he probably wouldn't have gotten his lure back.
KVD shows up with his travelling fan club. Though they're not fishing that close, all the onlooker boats make it a bit tight. After a couple of casts, Kevin leaves. Skeet still circles his spot. Out of the blue, I ask Skeet if he ever entertained the notion of moving from his home state of California back east to Tournament Central in the South.
"Nope," he says, "I like California; it's home. There's no humidity."
Lest you think otherwise, Skeet doesn't trailer his boat from California every time he fishes a tournament in the fly-over states. He brings his boat over at the start of the season and more or less parks it over here. "I'll be taking it home after this event," he says.
2:05 p.m. ET
Russow and Overstreet have switched over to Mark Menendez and, like Biffle, he's not been able to catch anything in the last three hours.
The only action has been a blow up on a frog, but Menendez was unable to connect.
Judging by the action on BassTrakk, the action has been slow for everyone.
Best we can tell this has been an early morning event so far.
Turbine schedule has been shifted to come on at 2 p.m. local time, which could give everyone a few minutes for some literal last-second heroics.
1:45 p.m. ET
Skeet is fishing in water 23 feet deep, with nary a bump. So far, his best stuff has come in the lower end of the lake. We move, keep hunting and pecking. Skeet figures he still needs a couple of 3-pounders to stay in the chase today. Skeet always has a lot of boats around him, but he stays focused. No bites here; we're off again.
1:40 p.m. ET
Russow and Overstreet have been on Biffle's tail all afternoon. He's been running from spot to spot, but he hasn't caught a fish in the last three hours.
Either way, we're are still calling him in the lead. We came to that conclusion based on the reports we received earlier, mixed in with a little BassTrakk and topped off with a little mojo.
No real movement on the catch rates, even though it is believed that some current is being let loose.
Time is running out fast. Everyone has a limit except Kelly Jordon and KVD, and realistically the weights seem to be pretty tight through most of the top 8, at least for the moment.
It will be interesting to see how it shakes out at the end of the day, more interesting to see how the points will shift and move around.
1:15 p.m. ET
The heat and the sun have showed up right on time. Though a deluge is forecast for this evening, the front is taking its sweet time getting here.
So far, according to the on-the-water rumor mill, Alton Jones, Mike Iaconelli, Gerald Swindle and Skeet Reese, who we're with, have good bags. The guys have about three hours to plump up their stringers and then it's showtime at the civic center in Wetumpka. Keith waves us over and we swap places. Skeet will load the boat now, no doubt.
12:54 p.m. ET
Overstreet's off the water and he's got highlights from the anglers' day thus far. Check it out right here.
12:30 p.m. ET
According to our eyes and ears everybody seems to be out on the main lake or moving that way.
Russow and Overstreet have a full view of almost half the field at the moment.
They just watched Gary Klein pull up on some off-shore structure and catch a 2-pounder. He was able to cull with that one, moving him up just a bit.
While watching Klein, they could also see Jordon. He seemed to be a little scattered, moving fast and hitting a lot of places really quick.
Faircloth and Jones are within sight of them as well. Jones is on the bank fishing shallow, while Faircloth is fishing vertically in deep water.
The anglers seem to be getting into position for the hoped for push of current. According to the Dam Master, at 1 p.m. EST, they will begin generating with one turbine. At 4 p.m., they will turn on two generators.
Problem is, the anglers check in at 4 p.m.
Jones just caught a 3 1/2 pounder and with his small limit he's moved up to 9 1/2 pounds.
12:30 p.m. ET
Time for some amendments. Zona just came in; he spent a little time with Swindle and we will have a video up soon of some of his action.
But the big thing is Zona wanted to verify Swindle's weight at around 16 pounds.
Swindle's observer had him at that weight. But Swindle said "no way."
He even asked Zona to look at his stringer. Zona being Zona, he jumped into the boat and came out with the impression that he had about 12 pounds. Much lower than the reported 16 pounds.
According to Zona, the biggest stringer is owned by Biffle.
12:25 p.m. ET
Skeet Reese has moved to a big point wrapped in a seawall and is wearing the paint off his lures. You never know when a spot is going to roll up for a snack, so it's a lot of being in the right place at the right time.
Apparently, this is neither for the California lad, outfitted smartly in a yellow-and-black Champion boat that, in full flight, looks for all the world like a giant yellowjacket skimming across the surface. And it packs quite a sting, as many an aspiring pro can attest. Skeet moves back out and we follow, our jocular leader Keith Alan having ensconced himself in Skeet's boat. Skeet is taking it all in stride, in the laid-back manner of a guy who has a pretty good stringer, and is just trying to catch a hefty kicker. Suddenly, Skeet runs back to his best hole, and immediately catches another keeper. That blows my theory that Keith Alan is a jinx.
11:55 a.m. ET
Skeet Reese makes a run toward the dam and sets up on another hump on the edge of the old river bank. The weather is quite nice, with a moderate southeast wind blowing up the lake. Skeet is just sort of drifting with the wind. Keith Alan is in the back of Skeet's boat, looking a bit forlorn as Skeet is catching no more bass at present. He switches rods and gives 'em a new look. One cast and he switches back, though.
This is Saturday, isn't it? Perhaps that and the 4 a.m. wakeup call, and the water sloshing against the side of our gently rocking boat explains the drowsiness. Back in a moment... or not.
11:25 a.m. ET
Guys in the 22 boats surrounding Skeet Reese watch him catch three keepers in the span of about 10 minutes, and he chunks them all back in. Kyle reckons that the way Skeet is tossing keepers, he must have at least 11 pounds or so.
Keith Alan has bailed on us temporarily and jumped in Skeet's boat to do some video for Bassmaster.com. Be looking for it in a bit. Skeet leaves with our intrepid reporter, but they don't go far. Apparently Skeet found a few good humps in the mouth of Swayback and is milking them thoroughly. Maybe he'll make Keith Alan get out of his boat. Keith got in with Mike Iaconelli a while back and Ike instantly stopped catching fish.
11:10 a.m. ET
After a short timeout, during which the fine folks at Lake Jodan Marina load us down with popcorn, snacks and other assorted goodies, we're back on the water.
Skeet Reese is in the middle of a scrum of local boats at the mouth of Swayback, and pulls in a small keeper as we pull up. As noted earlier, Skeet is staying loyal to the offshore spots in hopes that a wad of big spotted bass will reward his persistence.
Somebody in the crowd says that Gerald Swindle is whacking 'em and stacking 'em around some docks somewhere, so we might go hunting for him. So far, the dock slingers are running the show, but Skeet just caught a 2-pounder and culled it. Hmmm.
If you get the chance, stop by Lake Jordan this afternoon and get some free goodies. Tell 'em you're Trip Weldon and they'll load you down. He's a god hereabouts.
11:05 a.m. ET
Cliff Pace is fishing a long point on the main lake within a mile of the take off.
A few minutes ago, he broke off a fish. No word on how good of a fish Pace broke off. But BassTrakk has him with a limit at about 7 1/2 pounds.
He needs to start putting together some quality.
Sitting on the lonely point at Lake Jordan Marina, we see a lot of moving around.
In the last 10 minutes, KVD has roared by, then Skeet, the Ike, then Alton.
Makes us think there is a lot of jockeying go on, with guys looking for those shallow situated fish and waiting for the current to start.
10:40 a.m. ET
Swindle seems to be dialed in, at least for the moment.
He's taken the early lead with a limit of more than 16 pounds.
After a shaky start, he's rolling.
Those numbers are BassTrakk numbers. We're trying to get some info on the specifics.
Prior to that fish, he had almost 11 pounds with four fish. He's culled at least once, which means he's definitely on a quality bite and possibly has a thumper in the well.
He knows this Coosa chain as well as anyone. With that kind of weight already, once or if, they ever start pulling current Swindle could be a force.
10:33 a.m. ET
Kelly Jordon is struggling. He's spent the last 15 minutes sitting in the bottom of the boat re-tying and looking for new baits.
He's probably thrown 10 different baits in that time.
He's right next to the Bouldin Dam waiting for the current to start.
According to the schedule, he may have a long wait. It's expected to hit in about 5 or 6 hours.
When that happens that will be a key element for everyone. Current has been a factor for Jordon and Iaconelli, both of which are not showing out to say the least.
All of these Coosa River lakes are like that. It's almost like all of us are sitting around like Jordon, just waiting for the good stuff.
10:27 a.m. ET
Check out BASSCam to see VanDam miss a 4 pounder. Tough. He doesn't have a fish although he said all his bites have come between 11 and 3 in practice.
Zona: "I'm glad I cut the video when I did, or it would have been unusable."
10:20 a.m. ET
Now we're on Alton Jones and he's doing pretty much what Mike Iaconelli is doing: fishing docks. Skeet Reese just ran by. He was fishing offshore structure, the first guy we've seen not beating the banks. One of the locals following Alton says he just saw KVD lose a good bass fishing deep structure. Alton says he's two for two, with a couple of small keepers.
10:07 a.m. ET
Russow said there's no current running on the south end of the lake and it's hurting Kelly Jordon. They started pulling water about this time yesterday, according to Todd Faircloth.
Speaking of Faircloth, his camera guy said he has 12.5 pounds, not the 36 BASSTrakk has him at right now. If this current starts moving, the weights should all start picking up. If it doesn't, it's going to be a grind.
Skeet Reese is within view of our point, surrounded by at least 13 spectator boats. He's fishing well offshore, just like he practiced, but doesn't seem to be catching much. I was on this point most the day Friday and didn't see him, so this must be a spot he found on Thursday.
According to BASSTrakk and the people we have out on the water, everybody has a keeper except for VanDam. He's seemed a little scattered all week.
Alton Jones just pulled up into the cove about 200 yards from us and is fishing weeds. He's being followed by six or seven boats (they're trickling in behind him).
10:00 a.m. ET
Just as we get on Mike Iaconelli again, he pulls in a 3-pound spot from under a dock. It's his first keeper. A couple of casts later, and he idles farther back into the pocket he's fishing. There are scattered docks. Ike makes a couple of pitches back into a boathouse then takes apart the outside of the structure. Then it's back out toward the mouth of the cove, where the water under the docks is a bit deeper. Ike makes one cast after stopping and reels in another 3-pounder. This pocket has been very good for Mike, even if he doesn't catch another bass. Oops, spoke too soon. He just swings another bass into the boat."That's 7 or 8 pounds," Mike says as he deposits the spot in his livewell. Keith Alan jumps in his boat; he knows a good thing when he sees it. Mike misses a fish, but he's got a lot of good-looking water to go.
9:53 a.m. ET
BassTrakk is starting to heat up.
Right now it shows Todd Faircloth in the lead with two fish that weigh 36 pounds. We're calling BS on that one. Plus we know there's been a hiccup in the system. We'll have that corrected soon.
Unofficially, Biffle is in the lead with more than 13 pounds. That's a pretty good start. Swindle is right behind him with 12 pounds.
Mark Menendez is third with 7 pounds.
KVD and Iaconelli are the only two anglers not on the board. Don't know how Ike is faring, but we do know KVD is struggling.
9:45 a.m. ET
The seas are really starting to build now; not from the wind, mind you, but from the wakes of all the local boats following their favorites around. It's a good thing there are only 12 guys in this tournament, otherwise we would have run out of lake or locals.
Surprisingly, it seems that most of the pros are staying in the lower lake, though some awesome spotted bass stringers have come from up the lake where it is more riverine. The 27-pound, five-bass limit that Danny Wiley of Birmingham caught in a local tournament here a few years back is still talked about in these parts, as is the 40-pound, 10-fish limit that Billy Chambliss of Montgomery caught back when tournaments still allowed 10-bass limits. Those were humongous spotted bass, and there are still a lot of fish like that left here. If one of these pros gets on them, there will be some ooohing and aaahing at the weigh-ins.
9:35 a.m. ET
These guys only had two days to find fish on this lake. While some of them knew they would be here and took advantage of a pre-fish period, others weren't so sure or didn't have the time.
Iaconelli was one of those who probably fit in both catagories.
He said he found an area yesterday. We don't know if he's gone to it yet or not. Our guess is he's still practicing and looking.
The reason we guess that is Russow and Overstreet just spent some time with him and he's "churning and burning" down a bank.
"He's going so fast on his trolling motor that the spectators are having to run their big motors to keep up with him,'' Russow said.
9:25 a.m. ET
Kyle "MacGyver," as Keith Alan calls him, actually gets the trolling motor taped back together and in working order.
We run down the canal and come across Mike Iaconelli and his minions. He's fishing bridge pilings. Who do we spot but ESPN Outdoors stalwarts James Overstreet and Rob Russow. I ask James if Ike has caught any and he says not while he's been watching. Guess not, because just now Mike takes off for parts unknown.
9:10 a.m. ET
Still stranded with a busted trolling motor. Kyle and Keith Alan have gotten out the duct tape and are going to work on putting the loose parts back together. Anybody got a paddle?
9:03 a.m. ET
Swindle keeps making changes, and it keeps paying off. With the last change, he's boated his best keeper of the day. He now has four keepers for about 9 1/2 pounds in the well.
Swindle is becoming the master at fighting off hardships and making things work. He's got a good start.
Not much else is happening on the BassTrakk front.
Russow and Overstreet are moving on to other anglers. Should have more soon.
9:00 a.m. ET
We bid Randy Howell adieu and go check on Kelly Jordon, who's also working a stretch of bank at a fairly fast clip. Then he leaves, with one small keeper in his livewell. We follow, and he swaps sides. The water is a lot deeper here, and KJ starts pulling rods out of his locker. It's overcast and a cool wind is blowing. KJ is still fishing the bank at a fairly fast clip, just looking for a runner or two.
The only current is being supplied by the wind at the surface. Kyle, our boat driver, says Bouldin Dam is supposed to pull water around 2 p.m. KJ just lands another small keeper. Our trolling motor conks out. Gosh, that's never happened before — ever. Hah!
8:55 a.m. ET
VanDam just ran by our lonely little point at the marina where they took off followed by at least 20 boats; all kinds of different makes and models. Some of them are going to be lucky to catch up.
But boat pressure is nothing new for VanDam.
8:48 a.m. ET
Gerald Swindle has started turning up his own heat. He made a switch in baits and quickly added two more keepers to his well.
He now has about 6 1/2 pounds.
That gives him a good start. But there are other pros in the area, including Rndy Howell and Iaconelli.
8:40 a.m. ET
As quick as that last post was made, we start seeing movement on BassTrakk. Cliff Pace, as he does so well, has quietly put two keepers in the boat weighing 3-2 total.
Kelly Jordon has one for 1-14 and Skeet has added a 1-0 to his well.
The bite has started.
8:35 a.m. ET
Randy Howell is still looking for that one good fish that will start his day off right. He hasn't had another hit, though. In the distance, we again hear the KVD road show cranking up and running.
"It sounds like Pearl Harbor being attacked by dive bombers," Keith Alan says of the receding roar.
Apparently, KVD is leaving the new lake for now. Randy might be on his way out in a minute, too. He's going to try the fish he missed earlier again. Nothing, but that's a spotted bass reaction bite for you; just one per customer.
8:30 a.m. ET
Biffle is pouring on the heat — at least a semi-warm heat. BassTrakk has him with two in the well at 5 pounds, 4 ounces total.
Currently, with what we know, that has him running away with this thing.
But BassTrakk info could be sketchy at best on this lake. There are just a few places where cell service is good, making the info we get certainly unpredictable.
That's why we like having our eyes and ears on the water. What hasn't showed up is how Swindle is doing.
His troubles continue. The guy who was fishing behind him, moved in front of him, cutting him off.
While Swindle was watching him, obviously wondering what the heck the guy was doing, a fish loaded up on Swindle's bait. He swung and missed that one because he was distracted.
Things did start getting better, though. Swindle has since boated a 3-pounder and is now on the board.
8:20 a.m. ET
Tommy Biffle is the first of our 12 to get on the board this morning. According to BassTrakk, he has a 3 pound, 8 ounce fish in the well.
No word yet, if that fish came shallow, deep or on the surface.
8:15 a.m. ET
Russow and Overstreet are watching Gerald Swindle in the same area that KVD started in.
They saw him there yesterday and watched as Swindle tossed a buzzbait near a piling on a dock and had a huge fish blow up and wallow all over the bait.
Swindle didn't set the hook.
This morning on the same dock, same piling, Swindle pitched a jig and immediately set the hook. The fish shot out over a beam and broke him off.
"He was whipping his line around pretty hard after that," Russow said, "obviously upset. But it didn't last long. Within a couple seconds he was back joking around."
That's not the way you want to start an event like this. If Swindle could have boated that one that would have put him in great position to move from his last-place standing and up in the mix to make a move.
At the same time, though, who knows? Maybe that fish is aggressive enough to bite again sometime today or tomorrow.
Right now, Swindle is still working over the area. Besides the lost fish, he's picked up about 12 spectator boats. One of which started fishing behind him.
8:12 a.m. EDT
Randy Howell had a couple of spotted bass blow up on his topwater lure, but he misses them. Still looking for reaction bites, he changes lures. No luck, so he goes back to his first choice. In the distance, a flotilla of boats takes off, indicating KVD and his posse are moving. Randy has six local boats on him, and they maintain a respectable distance from him as he works the shoreline. Randy yells to us that he caught a 4-pound spotted bass along this stretch of bank in practice, but it's a no-show now. He must have hurt its feelings.
7:55 a.m. ET
The Bass Blog is being handled this morning in a variety of ways.
We have three boats on the water gathering video, photos and reports that we will be consistently bringing to you throughout the day.
James Overstreet and Rob Russow are spinning around shooting photos and keeping us posted on the anglers in front of them.
Then there's Colin Moore and Keith Alan. Colin will be posting info on the lake and the anglers, while Alan will be occasionally jumping into the anglers boats and recording live video segments.
And in the third boat, Mark Zona is doing the same with live video.
On a short, lonely point at Lake Jordan Marina, Kyle Carter and I will be watching BassTrakk and gathering as much of the info as we can from anybody we can and bringing that to you.
You can catch all the reports right here, with updates coming every few minutes. Overstreets photos will show up here and Alan and Zonašs video reports will show up here.
Stay with us. There should be plenty of information to keep you as up to date as possible all day. On this page, just hit the refresh button a few times to keep up.
And if you have questions post them on the comment line at the bottom of the page.
— Steve Bowman
7:50 a.m. ET
The new lake is getting a lot of attention this morning, as there are several pros zigzagging back and forth checking spots. The current is dead as a hammer and there's no reason to think that Bouldin Dam will be pulling water. We watch Randy Howell for awhile. "That's the fourth rod he's picked up since we started watching," says boat buddy Keith Alan after about 10 minutes. Oh, well.
7:40 a.m. ET
Rob Russow reports that Kevin VanDam didn't go far from the take off, hitting a nearby canal.
He's throwing a topwater bait and has already caught a non-keeper. As always, he is fishing fast and covering water.
He has about 25 boats following him.
One of our reporters, Mark Zona, is in the boat with KVD and we should have some BASSCam footage for you soon. You can check that out here.
7:38 a.m. ET
No surprise; as the day begins, there are 25 boats around Kevin VanDam. Maybe he'll put on a show for all the locals. Keith Alan and I are sharing a boat with Kyle Tindol. We're looking for folks catching fish today. Stay tuned.
7:25 a.m. ET
The first Berkley Powerbait Trophy Chase is officially underway.
One thing to note: It doesn't take long to get 12 boats underway. It only takes less than a minute for Keith Alan to mention all the names and get them started.
What seemed to take forever was those 12 picking and weaving their way around the spectator boats sitting outside and around Jordan Marina.
— Steve Bowman
Welcome
Welcome to the Toyota Trucks Championship Week version of the live BASS blog (which will look suspiciously like the live blog we ran during the Classic.)
Our crew is in Montgomery and we're not leaving until the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the year is crowned next Friday night. Over the next 10 days, you can expect frequent posts on this live blog, especially during tournament hours, as we follow the guys on BASSTrakk.
We'll have end-to-end coverage on Bassmaster.com from the moment these guys pull their boats into the boatyard (which has already happened), to when they drive off at the end of next week. You can expect news, features, photos, and the BASS trifecta: BASSCast, BASSTrakk and the new BASSCam.
We experimented with BASSCam at the final event in Syracuse (we called it Kyte then), but it's going to be an entirely new beast this week. It will launch tomorrow (Thursday) morning, so be sure and check that out (along with our new design).
That's the overview.
Thursday is the first day of practice. We'll be on the water, trying to find all 12 and reporting back with photos, blogs and BASSCam video all day.
Let the madness begin.
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