Fishing News - 5/5/00
Topwater Worm Sends Amateur Bass Angler to World Championship
KNOXVILLE, Tenn., May 1, 2000 -- An ordinary artificial lure rigged an uncommon way was the ticket to bass fishing's world championship for a 52-year-old tire builder from Alabama who won the B.A.S.S. Federation National Championship.
Rickie Harp won the tournament held April 27-29 on east Tennessee's Fort Loudoun and Tellico lakes with a catch weighing 27 pounds, 4 ounces. He is one of five anglers who won their respective geographical titles in this tournament of 51 state and international champions.
The plastic worm is one of the most common lures associated with bass fishing. In fact, the worm used by Harp has been around for five decades, and the most common way to rig it is "Texas" style with a hook and slip sinker. Harp's invention included all components but the sinker, giving him an edge over the competition, both finned and human.
"This time of year I like to fish a floating worm," he said. "Not many people fish a floating worm in springtime because other lures are just more popular. Mine's different, and that's the key."
Harp used an 8-inch Crème Scoundrel (school bus yellow) rigged to a 6/0 Gamakatsu hook. He used 30/6-pound-test SpiderWire line with 6-foot All Star and Berkley Series One rods and Shimano Calcutta reels. Like the worm itself, the oversized hook preferred by Harp is obscure for this rig. "It's a big, heavy hook that acts like a sinker," he added.
Harp fished small pockets of water inside Loudoun's Lackey Creek, where ironically this same national championship was won in 1998. The area featured a sloping bank with water visibly clear enough for Harp to see the silhouettes of bass suspended over the shallow, rocky bottom. A key, he said, was the water temperature, which continued to rise during the tournament.
With the conditions ideal for the floating worm, Harp's unique rig was ideally suited for a wary bass population getting pressure from local tournament anglers and the national championship contenders. While his peers used noisy baits, the subtle, yet tantalizing action of the topwater worm was irresistible to the bass caught by Harp.
The federation tournament format is comprised of five geographical divisions (Central, Southern, Northern, Eastern, Western). Harp will represent the Southern Division at the Classic. Joining him is Montana's Stan Fisher, who caught 25 pounds, 12 ounces, to win the Western Division. Oklahoman Dean Matts won the Central Division with 23 pounds, 12 ounces. The Eastern Division was taken with the 17 pounds, 8 ounces, caught by Russell Smarr from Charleston, W.Va. Phillip Jones will represent the Northern Division after catching 16 pounds, 15 ounces.
Joining the five federation qualifiers at the Classic are 10 aspiring youths that advanced from the BASSMASTER CastingKids Semifinals held during the national championship. The grass-roots casting contest is held nationwide with more than 170,000 youths ages 7-14 participating in 1,700 events. The program is divided into two age groups, 7-10 and 11-14. The youths will represent the five geographic divisions of the federation.
The 7-10 age division includes Illinois' Nathaniel Mayberry (Northern), Benjamin Frazier of North Carolina (Southern), Maryland's Jessey Flowers (Eastern), Riley Hoyer from Montana (Western), and Oklahoma's Dylan Ezell (Central).
From the 11-14 age division are Ohio's John Fabian (Northern), Floridian Andrew Bowen (Southern), Pennsylvania's Joel Wischner (Eastern), Utah's Kyler Edgehouse (Western), and Louisiana's Brock Begnaud (Central).
Complete scores from the 2000 B.A.S.S. National Championship can be viewed on bassmaster.com.
Sponsors of the 2000 B.A.S.S. National Championship are: Ranger Boats, RangerTrail Trailers, Mercury Marine, Chevrolet Trucks, BIG Kmart, Humminbird/Zercom Electronics, Pennzoil Marine, ACDelco Batteries, Flowmaster Exhaust Systems, MotorGuide Trolling Motors, Quantum Rods and Reels, Berkley Trilene, Berkley Power Bait, Eagle Claw Fishhooks, worldwaters.com and Knoxville Sports Corporation.
MarJean Corkran
Media Relations Coordinator B.A.S.S., Inc.
Communications Dept.
5845 Carmichael Road, Montgomery, AL 36117
phone: (334) 272-9530 ext. 375 fax: (334) 270-8549
