Danny Peckham of Winchendon Massachusetts will be representing the New
Hampshire B.A.S.S. Federation at the upcoming Citgo B.A.S.S. National
Championship set for April 19 * 24, 2004 on Keystone Lake in Mannford
Oklahoma. In support of Danny's trip to Nationals, the NH Federation
will be keeping a journal of Danny's week at the Championship. Look
for nightly updates during Championship week. The journal will include
information on his tournament strategy, standings, patterns and general
observations.
Danny has just returned from a week of pre-practice which saw him drive
over 3400 miles round trip towing his Skeeter Bass Boat across the
country. Danny drove out and practiced with his Father. The drive
took roughly 26 hours each way! Upon arrival, Danny found Keystone Lake to
be completely flooded. The lake was 18 feet above normal pool and he
described the clarity as similar to tomato soup. Water temps ranged
from 52 to 57 degrees. Keystone Lake is essentially featureless with
the predominate structure being rock or rip-rap. There are no weeds in
the lake. Danny and his Dad spent 4 long days on the water looking for
places that might hold pre-spawn fish upon his return in April.
Practicing under such adverse conditions can be tough, but Danny
remains upbeat about some locations that he found in practice and described as
classic staging areas.
As for the fishing? Well that wasn't too good. He did manage one
2-lb.largemouth for his 40 hours of effort. The only bite he had was on a
spinnerbait. Most of his fellow competitors reported similar dismal
results. The good news is that with the lake level dropping and the
water temperature rising, the chances are excellent that fishing should
dramatically improve and could peak just in time for the tournament.
Danny is really looking forward to this event and has graciously agreed
to take time during his busy week to keep us updated on his progress as
he takes his shot at making the BassMasters Classic.
The NH B.A.S.S. Federation wishes Danny the best of luck. Remember to
check this website for nightly updates during Championship week.
Practice Day 1
Not a big fan of flying, Danny completed the 26-hour drive to Keystone Lake in Oklahoma over this past weekend. His first official practice day is complete and Danny is upbeat and excited about his chances to finish well at the 2004 B.A.S.S. Federation National Championship. The lake level has dropped about 4 feet since he left in March. It is still very muddy. Danny was assigned a brand new Skeeter ZX225 and Yamaha 225 HPDI. He started his first practice day by checking some of the water that he liked in pre-practice. He found water temps to generally be in the 62 to 65 degree range. The weather was sunny and beautiful with high temperatures in the mid-eighties and strong south winds in the 20-25 MPH range.
Danny flipped a black/blue ½ oz. Denny Brauer Pro Model jig to rocky areas for most of the day. He had 4 bites, which resulted in two keeper largemouth and two shorts. His best fish was over 3 lbs. He worked a spinnerbait in some back pockets, but had no success. Danny thinks the fish are in pre-spawn to spawn phase, but the water is so dirty that he really can't be sure. For certain, there will be no sight-fishing done in this event. Dock talk has the fishing very tough with most competitors struggling to find fish. The size limit for this Championship event is 14 inches and 5 fish limits will be very valuable.
Danny was very impressed with the way the host city of Tulsa has rolled out the red carpet for the anglers. The National Championship is a first class event and Danny is in for the week of his life. Danny had to wait to phone in his report as funnel clouds interrupted the kickoff Banquet while Tornado warnings forced the building to be evacuated. Sirens wailed as the competitors took refuge in shelters. By 8:00 p.m. the danger had passed without incident.
Practice Day 2
Danny finished up his second and final practice day without boating a keeper. He spent most of a short day looking at new water and trying to gain some confidence for the start of the tournament. Danny worked the backs of pockets and also fished some points. He caught a 2 lb. Hybrid early in the morning and had an estimated 4 lb. Largemouth crush his spinnerbait. The fish charged the bait near the boat and did not get hooked. Those were the only 2 bites he had today. Danny flipped the ½ oz. Denny Brauer Pro Model Jig some today, but mainly covered water with a double willow white spinnerbait with white blades.
While on the water, the weather was pleasant with temperatures again in the mid 80’s, sunny skies and calm winds. Lowrance sponsored the banquet on Wednesday night. Outside the weather had taken a turn for the worse. More tornado warnings were posted and a deluge of rain pounded the Tulsa area. With the severe weather, the water color on Keystone Lake would certainly become even muddier for the start of the Tournament.
A few of the competitors claimed to be on fish, but overall, most are struggling to catch any at all. Danny was having the time of his life and anxious to get the tournament started. His game plan involved working through his best areas with the jig and covering water in between with the spinnerbait.
Tournament Day 1
Like many of the competitors, Danny had a tough day on Thursday. Danny, along with 24 other anglers failed to weigh-in a keeper during the first round of competition on Keystone Lake. Danny worked his black/blue Strike King Jig tight to shoreline rock for much of the day and spent a good portion of time power fishing with the tandem white spinnerbait.
He only had one bite on the jig, but did not connect. As expected, the nightly torrential downpours and hail that have pelted the region since the week began caused the water to be extremely muddy.
The daytime weather for Thursday was pleasant with highs in the low 80’s and light winds.
Following the weigh-in, sirens wailed again signaling more tornados in the area.
George Accord from Pennsylvania had one of three 5 bass limits on Day 1 and his 10-10 catch has him high atop the Eastern Division standings.
Eight of the fourteen anglers in the Eastern Division failed to weigh a fish on Day 1, so Danny still has a chance to climb back into contention. Alabama’s Russ Lane had a 5 fish limit for 13-11 and leads the tournament. Danny’s plan for the second day is to slow down and go back through his best water with more finesse-oriented tactics. He plans to flip a black tube tight to the shoreline to try to coax a few bass into biting. With all the muddy water, the Lake is fishing very small. The backs of the creeks have the clearest water and they are very popular with competitors.
Danny had an ESPN camera boat on him for over an hour, but could not produce a fish for the BASS Master TV show. On a rather humorous note, Danny did land a full can of Budweiser beer that he hooked through the ring-tab from the bottom of the lake.
The beer reportedly hit a jig and pig and the audience at weigh-in got quite a kick out of Danny’s story, especially when he informed Fish Fishburne that he thought he could duplicate his one beer a day pattern for the remainder of the tournament.
Fish reminded Danny that Busch, not Budweiser, sponsors the Tournament.
Tournament Day 2
Hard to believe, but conditions got even worse for Day 2 on Keystone Lake. Only 2 limits were checked in today and overall fewer bass were caught for less weight then Day 1. Danny slowed down and worked through his rocky, pre-spawn areas with the jig and pig and a black tube bait, but no keepers would find their way into his livewell. The water continued to muddy up and with the nightly cold rain, water temps actually dropped a few degrees overnight.
George Acord, from Pennsylvania added 2 keepers to his total and moved into first place overall and holds a commanding 10 lb. Lead over the next closest Eastern Division competitor. He appears a lock to advance to the BASSMasters Classic. Danny sounded a bit beaten down over his lack of success in the difficult conditions, but plans to go down swinging on the final day. Danny will look at some new water on Friday and hope to find a few bites while staying out of the way of the top anglers. It’s been a whirlwind week for Danny, but he is anxious to get back to New Hampshire where he is sure to have a new found appreciation for the fantastic fishing that many of us take for granted.
Tournament Day 3
NHBF spoke with Danny Sunday evening following the completion of the National Championship. He’d been driving since 6 a.m. that morning and made it as far as Ohio. The last day of the tournament found Danny returning to his familiar water. He decided not to go exploring and simply slow down some more and work through his favorite areas. Day 3 finally brought him some action as he boated several short fish and one 2-1 lb Largemouth to take to the scales. He also lost an estimated 5 lb. Bass at the boat. All of these bites came on a split shot rig with light line and a Zoom baby brush hog in watermelon color. The water was back up 3 feet from all the rain so Danny started the day with a buzzbait in the back of a pocket and had 4 blowups, but did not connect with any fish. The pattern that started to emerge on Day 3 involved finesse fishing to pre-spawn bass that were holding in shallow buck brush.
Thad Takes (Iowa) boated the largest limit of the tournament on Day 3 and finished with 27-0 lbs. to easily take the victory. George Acord from Pennsylvania slipped to third place overall but easily won the Classic birth from the Eastern Division. Danny learned a lot about muddy water fishing during his week in Oklahoma. The overall experience was nothing short of fantastic claimed Danny. He met several of the sports biggest names during the week including Ray Scott, Mike Iaconelli, Gerald Swindle, Marty Stone, and Earl Benz. He’ll never forget finally crossing the stage on Day 3 with a fish to weigh in front of 4500 fans.
Danny most enjoyed getting to know his fellow competitors in this very unique Championship Tournament. He made many new friends and claimed that all of the anglers openly shared information. Amazing, with so much at stake! Sadly, The anglers fished Day 3 with a heavy heart as the Vermont Champion, Ray Sprano passed away on Friday night. The final day was dedicated in his honor and all of the fishermen were shocked and saddened by his passing as were all of us that knew Ray. The anglers and sponsors all chipped in to help his family and raised over $6500.
Danny is anxious to get home and catch some fish in his home state. He returns a better angler for his experience in Oklahoma and can’t wait to get on Cobbassee this September and attempt to get back one day to Nationals.
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