For me more than any other sport, tournament bass fishing has always been a continual series of highs and lows. My first tournaments date back to 1986 when I got my first small aluminum bass boat. Being humbled early on was par for the course but a couple of high finishes the following year kept me playing the game.

My first major win didn't come until 1994 when we won the GM Pro Bass event on Lake Simcoe but the elation of beating legendslike Bob Izumi and Rocky Crawford were short lived when we bombed in the very next tournament! Since then I've had hundreds of mediocre finishes, plenty of top ten's and even a few more wins along the way. Fortunately, to maintain some level of sanity, I've come to accept this roller coaster ride of tournament fishing and still love participating.

Bass season so far in 2008 has not been the greatest but I am quick to focus on the positives and put the negatives behind me. As of the beginning of August Bassmania tournament partner Gerry Heels and find ourselves in 18th position in the Western Division Only the top 25 teams in each division qualify for the CSFL Classic on Labor Day weekend. In the Aurora Bassmaster club series, I sit in 4th place overall in our club standings. Other events I will fish this season include the Ontario BASS Federation Nation's Hank Gibson Provincial Qualifier Tournament on August 23/24th as well as the Eastern Division Federation Nation Championship in New Hampshire in mid-September.

Let's have a look at one club tournament that started off the season and then we'll have an overview of fishing during the month of July this year, followed by a special feature on one of this countries' top smallmouth bass specialists Mark Kulik.

2008 Aurora Bassmasters Club Classic
On Saturday July 5th the Aurora Bassmasters held their first club tournament of the year.  This event was something completely new for the group in more ways than one.  First of all, it would be our Club Championship Tournament ... or Classic if you will, which normally would be held at the end of the tournament season instead of the beginning. Secondly, it would be on completely new waters for ALL the anglers and no pre fishing was permitted. Finally this, the only team tournament for club members, would actually be worth points for the coming season and offers a 100% payback.
 That morning the fog lifted in time for the 7am blastoff and the ten teams headed off to find fishing areas that would be completely new to them.  Deciphering a new body of water is always a challenge but seldom is that task accompanied with the added pressure of doing so quickly and effectively during a championship competition. With this in mind, some had predicted that the event may well see a few skunks or very few limits. As it turned out though the skilful anglers were indeed able to figure out the Lake and for the first time in our 13 year history our first tournament of the year not only saw limits all the way around but most teams reported catching large numbers of fish and had a terrific time on this new body of water.

Dan Fuligni with one of several nice bass he and Wil caught during the 2008 Aurora Bassmasters Club Classic Photo by Wil Wegman

As locals gathered around the docks to watch the weigh-in ceremony, many were awe struck at the number of big bass being weighed in by the Aurora Bassmasters. Many had fished the same waters for decades and had no clue that so many four and five pound largemouth were swimming in ‘their' waters. Not really known as a popular fishing destination, cottagers around "The Lake" were very friendly towards the equally amicable anglers. It is for this reason that I have chosen not to mention the name of this waterbody, but rest assured it was within a couple of hours driver for club members and did have public access.

Long time club member Brian Ogden and partner Lidio Godino one of our newest members, came to the scales with a good looking bag that eventually weighed 14.66 pounds for their five heaviest bass.    They held the lead for the duration of the afternoon weigh-in.  Rumor had it however that club founder Des Barnes and partner Angela Mitchell an ESPN Women's Bassmaster Tour angler, had a good sack of largemouth and they were the next to weigh in. The scales revealed a 11.42 pound group of bass maintaining  Ogden and  Godino's lead. Barnes and Mitchell moved into 2nd but they claimed the days Big Fish Honors to this point with a nice five pound largemouth. "We got that bass under a boathouse with minutes to spare before we had to zip back in", Barnes said.  

Des Barnes (left) and tournament partner Angela Mitchell show off four of their five bass Photo by Wil Wegman

When tournament director Tom Tsatkas asked if that was it ... "Have all the teams weighed in", Dan Fuligni and myself sheepishly stepped forward with our decent-looking bag of fish. " Ah they were sandbagging - waiting until the very end", someone joked from amongst the crowd. To both of our surprise the total weight of 16.88 pounds was better than we anticipated so we ended up winning the tournament. To add icing onto the cake we even barely managed to take the Big Fish division away from Barnes and Mitchell with a 5.06 pound largemouth. We also entered the club's separate and voluntary "Aurora Bassmasters Greedy Bucks Pot" - where anglers can contribute $10 over and above the entry fee - to donate to the highest place Greedy Bucks entrants.   At some tournaments, that goes to the winners, others it may be down to 2nd, 3rd or even 4th place- depending on who paid up beforehand.

As has been tradition of the Aurora Bassmasters since their inception in 1995, the top three anglers (or teams in this case) are obliged to share how they caught their fish revealing  techniques, lures, depths and patterns but not actual locations. This sharing has greatly accelerated the learning curve for all club members. Generally the top three teams caught plenty of bass and had to continually upgrade.  Effective lures used by the top teams included tube jigs, senko-type baits and plastic worms. Fuligni and I used these techniques as well but also included the use of Rapala Ratlin Raps, Husky Jerks, Gulp! Sinking Minnows and even a drop shot rigged with a Berkley Gulp! Alive 4inch minnow.

Fuligni told his club mates "We were using quite the variety of baits and found good action until around 11 am on open weed patches - mixed with some rock - in about 5-8 feet of water.  Later on we got some fish off of docks and actually found one amazing dock where ... I think we pulled a good limit from ... eh Wil ... including that five pounder?" He looked over to his tournament partner for some type of reaction ... but I was silent for a change and could only manage a grin and obedient nod of my head ... and replied that we sure had a great day of bass fishing on the Lake.

Lake Simcoe July Fishing Rap-Up:
So far this summer it has been difficult to focus on fishing without keeping an ever watchful eye out for passing storms. In some of the smaller lakes further north where I have fished this year, it could just mean a quick jaunt to shore to seek cover but when Lake Simcoe anglers and boaters are out in the main lake, that quick jaunt to shore can be easier said than done.  And, as so often is the case with a lake the size of Simcoe, those 745 square kilometres of open water can blow up and become nasty in a big hurry so all boaters need to be up-to speed with the latest marine weather forecasts before they head out. Environment Canada has a marine weather forecast for Simcoe. that can be accessed at: http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/marine/forecast_e.html?mapID=11&siteID=08300

Whether it has been because of the weather or not, fishing during the month of July was not the most productive July ever for the majority of Fish On Line readers… at least that's what I'm hearing. Many believe that natural features affected by weather such as weed growth were still showing signs of being two weeks behind at the end of the month.  The cool wet spring was followed by a record setting amount of rain in July combined with crazy fluctuations in barometer and of course several storms. Most species of fish prefer steady weather patterns to stimulate feeding and are often thrown off by frequent storms and unsettled weather.   Combine this with unseasonably high water levels during a season that typically sees low water - and you can throw in another excuse for anglers to use when they are trying to explain just why they aren't getting bit! 

Wil's son Izaak caught this gorgeous six pound smallmouth on a Rapala Husky Jerk while prefishing with his dad Wil on Lake Simcoe Photo by Wil Wegman

But as all anglers know - especially tournament competitors whose results are tabulated and recorded … "Someone always figures them out". Such has been the case for Lake Simcoe's tournaments and the latest big event there that was won by Lake Simcoe area resident and accomplished bass specialist Mark Kulik and his partner is a case in point.

Profile: Mark Kulik: Innisfil Ontario

Photo courtesy of Lures and Tours

Age: 46 (as of Aug 12/08)
Years Tournament Fishing:  8
Number of Tournament Wins:  6
Top ten finishes:   35+
Angler of the Year Titles: 2
Team of the Year:   1
Favorite Technique: Drop Shotting with a Strikezone Slammer
Dropshot Rod Choice: 6.9' St Croix, Blue Tournament Legend - light, extra fast tapered rod
Dropshot Line Choice: A 20' leader of 8lb Gamma Florocarbon tied with a Seagar knot to braid.
Dropshot Hook: Owner downshot in 2/0 and Owner, Octopus size 2
Web site: www.strikezonetournamentbaits.com

Kulik's Victory at Orillia's 2008 Bassmania Western Tour Event:

"Drop shotting and nothing but," is how Mark Kulik of Innisfil Ontario caught all of his 24.88 pounds of bass (five fish limit) during this prestigious event in mid July where anglers could fish either Simcoe or Lake Couchiching. His tournament partner Joe Cutajar had no tournament experience but played a pivotal role in the team's victory. "I asked Joe to drag a drop shot rig early-on and he caught a nice four pounder right at the start. That helped us establish a pattern for the day where we eventually caught 15 of Simcoe's finest smallmouth bass. There aren't many lakes where you can expect to cull 4 ½ pound bass, but Simcoe definitely is one of them" - Kulik said.

Drop shotting for smallmouth is becoming an-ever popular technique on Lake Simcoe and few do it better than Mark Kulik who runs his own all Canadian tackle manufacturing company specializing in goby-look-alike plastic baits. Kulik's Strikezone Tournament Baits are ideal for drop shot presentations and his signature Slammer Series has already become a poorly kept-hot secret bait on several tournament trails. Even though gobies are not widespread yet throughout Simcoe, the native sculpin definitely is and so closely resembles the goby that many anglers ... and likely bass, have difficulty telling the two species apart.

During the tournament, Kulik and Cutajar were fishing 8-10 feet of water off of breaks and ledges in Lake Simcoe. Their drop shot rig, consisted of a cylindrical shape weight on the bottom and a #2 hook tied with a Palomar knot about 12-15 inches above the weight. A smoke shiner and copper smoke colored Strike Zone Slammer was used for bait.

Mark Kulik with the winning cheque at the Bassmania Western Tour Stop in Orillia Photo Courtesy of Lures and Tours

Kulik believes that during tough fishing conditions combined with an ever changing lake ... that anglers have to adjust their fishing presentations in order to maximize their productivity. "Lures like spinnerbaits just don't seem to be as productive as they once were on Lake Simcoe. It's as if the ultra clear waters - especially on calm days makes the bass less willing to chase a lure", says Kulik. This plays well into his style of a slow methodical approach to bass fishing. Kulik suggests that the drop shot rig is definitely not just highly effective for experienced tournament anglers but can also help the average weekend angler up his odds when conditions are tough.

Wil Wegman