Qualifier #2 of the Texas Bassmaster Team Trail is set for Saturday, March 17th on beautiful Possum Kingdom Lake. Headquarters for the event will be The Hide-Away Inn, FM 2951, Graford (PK) TX. The phone# is 940-779-2333. They have reserved 10 rooms for us and will hold them until Monday the week of the tournament. Just mention that you are with the Texas BASS Nation. We will be going out of South D&D Boat Ramp (located 1 mile from hotel). There will be no off limits for this tournament but there are 2 official practice days Thursday and Friday prior to the tournament. If you want to participate in official practice days you entry fee must be received by Monday, March 12th. There will also be sign-ups on Friday from 4:00pm to 6:00pm and again on Saturday 5:00am to 6:00am at the ramp.
Boaters must provide proof of liability insurance with a minimum of $300,000 coverage to be eligible to fish. Paper copies only (no cell phone pictures). No exceptions!
The water temp on Saturday was 54 degrees and has warmed up almost five degrees over the last two weeks. Some good fish are being caught and the big fish should be on the move! So grab yourself a partner and come on out and fish. For entry forms and rules click on the Team Trail heading of the Texas BASS Nation website or call West Region Director Kelley Hudson at 940-550-5638, email khudson@texasbass.org. Hope to see you there!
Texas Boat World BASSMASTER Team Trail – Qualifier #1 – Lake LBJ
February 18, 2018
Texas Boat World BASSMASTER Team Trail – Qualifier #1 – Lake LBJ, Granite Shoals, Texas
The Texas Boat World Team Trail (TBTT) held its 2018 Qualifier #1 at beautiful Lake LBJ on February 18, 2018. The stakes were high, as the competitors were seeking to qualify the Texas year-end championship to be held on Lake Belton – October 27-28, 2018, where team(s) will earn the right to compete in the National Toyota Bonus Bucks BASSMASTER Team Championship to be held at Lake TBD in December 2018. Qualifier #1 was held from Bluebriar Park – Granite Shoals, Texas, where the stage was set for an exciting finish with the fish being mostly in the classic pre-spawn mode. Lake LBJ is surrounded by boat docks and beautiful lakeside homes, and has an abundance of shoreline cover, brush-piles, and ledges where those big fish reside. The lake activity peaks in the summer months, but in early February the lake was virtually left to the Anglers competing at this tournament.
The weather was pleasant, no fog, overcast skies, mid 50s and just a beautiful morning for a great day of fishing. The anglers all retuned to the weigh-in at 3:00 p.m., and the crowd was excited to see some heavy bags come to the scales. One team topped the scales with a bag of fish weighing an impressive 29.53. The team of David Stidnum and Gerald Poboril have fished together for many years, but did not get to practice for this event, and just went to a spot where they have caught them before, and had the bag by 8:30 a.m. They did not cull any fish later and just moved around the lake looking for other prime areas to fish for the remainder of the day. Second place went to a local team – Lee Beurshausen and Randy Grounds, with a five-fish limit weighing 18.60 lbs. Third place went to the team – David Miller and Keanu Brady, with a bag weighing 17.36 lbs. The overall big bass of the tournament weighed in at 7.53 lbs, and was caught by the team of Mike Grounds and Ken Everet.
The top 10 teams at this event earned a qualification into the Texas Boat World Team Championship, which will be held on October 27-28, 2018 at Lake Belton. It is not too late for YOU, to sign up and compete for your opportunity to fish at the BASSMASTER Elites Classic in 2019. There are four (4) more qualifier events scheduled around Texas – Qualifier #2 – March 17, 2018 @ Lake Possum Kingdom, Qualifier #3 – April 22, 2018 @ Lake Conroe, Qualifier #4 – May 5, 2019 @ Lake Coleto Creek, and Qualifier #5 – September 22, 2018 @ Lake Cedar Creek.
Someone will compete at the BASSMASTER CLASSIC – why not you? Come on out this next year, and I believe you will find that these events are competitive, but also conducted amongst friends. If you are on the fence about the new and exciting Texas BassMaster Team Trail (TBTT), go to the webpage and check it out. What a great way to enjoy competing, with a good friend in the boat!
Elton D. Brock
Director
Texas BASSMASTER Team Trail
Conservation priorities in Texas
January 10, 2018 by Robert Montgomery (BASS Staff Writer)
MCQUEENEY, Texas – For new B.A.S.S. Nation (BN) state conservation directors who worry about whether they can handle the job, long-time Texas Conservation Director Tim Cook has some reassuring advice: Relax and go with the flow.
“It takes several years of service to really get on your feet,” said the owner of Cook Industrial Tool Inc. and father of two. “Learning what your priorities are is the first step.”
For Cook, a member of the Canyon Bass Club of San Marcos since 1988, a top priority is fish care above and beyond catch-and-release.
“Educating anglers about ways they can prevent delayed mortality is important,” he explained. “Catch-and-release is for nothing if the fish later dies after the tournament, so teaching livewell management, weigh-in procedures and live release management are all important.”
Other priorities for the Texas angler who has been conservation director since 2003 include habitat, aquatic invasive species and management of aquatic vegetation and fisheries.
Aquatic invasive species is heating up as an issue, mostly because of concerns about the spread of zebra mussels and giant salvinia, recently discovered on Lake Fork and other fisheries.
“By far, this is the number one issue I deal with in Texas,” Cook said. “Some invasive species like hydrilla can be tremendously beneficial to habitat. But when there are conflicts with other users, such as shoreline property owners, it’s important for anglers to have a voice in how management is implemented.”
A state conservation director must have a good working relationship with his or her state fisheries agency to have a voice in how the government deals with invasives, he added.
“Overreaction, such as lake closures and burdensome over-regulation, is a real threat to access,” he said, adding that educating anglers about exotic threats and the importance of “clean, drain and dry” also are important.
The most beneficial thing that he has done for the Texas BN, Cook believes, is to team up with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). “Developing trust and personal relationships is critical to being effective,” he added.
Cook serves on the Inland Fisheries advisory board, which the agency uses to get public input on proposals and programs. He also in on the TPWD Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame selection committee.
“Beyond these appointments, I have working relationships with key TPWD personnel statewide,” Cook said. “They know they can depend on and come to me when they have needs, and I can depend on them for honesty and answers.”
In 2013, that teamwork resulted in the TPWD and the Seven Coves Bass Club (SCBC) receiving the Texas Environmental Excellence Award for habitat work on Lake Conroe.
“This prestigious award was the result of the collaboration of many different organizations and the accomplishments of the Lake Conroe Aquatic Habitat Partnership,” explained the conservation director.
Ron Gunter, an SCBC member and assistant state conservation director, played a key leadership role in the project. “Ron has been a huge asset and helps me represent the B.A.S.S. Nation,” Cook said.
In 2014, meanwhile, the U.S. Department of the Interior awarded the Partners in Conservation Award to the Texas BN for its contributions to drafting the Edwards Aquifer Habitat Conservation Plan. The aquifer is the primary source of drinking water for more than 2 million people, and the aquatic habitat associated with it is home for eight endangered species.
“In Texas, water is more valuable than gold,” Cook said. “We had to represent a very diverse group of people.”
Along with continued emphasis on habitat, fish care and preventing the spread of invasive species, Cook wants to develop a conservation team.
“Texas is a big state and we need each club to have a conservation director, as well as each region,” he said. “I also plan to increase the use of social media to raise awareness of issues in our states and recognize clubs and individuals who do outstanding work.”
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