All posts by jkincy

NSKA

2021 Beaver South Recap / Heavy Hitters / AOY Race

Water levels in May on Beaver Lake have been following a familiar pattern in 2021, carrying on a year over year over year tradition. High water along with a week of rain for the four straight time prior to an NSKA event made for daily changing water conditions. If you look at the past three years on Beaver Lake in May, you should prepare to fish in high water – which is a good thing on the Dead Sea.

Beaver Lake in May means water levels between 1,126 and 1,129. Source: uslakes.info

The past two tournaments I’ve had to work really hard to understand what’s going on with the lakes. After a terrible start to the year I needed to ensure a decent finish. This meant a lot of driving around of Beaver Lake the week prior to the event, and the weekend prior I hit two of my go-to areas on Beaver Lake South with horrifically bad pre-fishing results. This told me I needed to do something else…that the river area felt like it was dead for the most part and the action would be down lake toward the Hwy 12 bridge. The results I think showed this to be mostly true at the top.

Beaver Lake South Tournament Results

We had a really strong field for this one, including some top anglers who came in from NSKA Central and RVKA. Love the fact they came up! May is a great month to fish Beaver Lake because of the elevated water levels, still some spawning or fry guarders present, and with some color in the water – it gives an angler a better chance of getting them shallow. Of the 53, a really strong 70% turned in a limit for the day, and I suspect that everyone who got on the water turned in at least one keeper.

I was fortunate to catch enough to take the win with 87.75″, followed by Christa Hibbs with 84.25″, and then Justin Brewer with 82.75″ for third place. Big Bass was a good battle, where Christa and Justin both caught a 21.75″ and Christa won the tiebreaker to take the prize. (Justin beat me in a tiebreaker for third place on Table Rock, so he’ll be OK. Ha!)

Here is your top ten from Beaver Lake South:

  1. Jason Kincy – 87.75
  2. Christa Hibbs – 84.25 (RVKA)
  3. Justin Brewer – 82.75
  4. Jeriamy Vann – 81.00
  5. Chris Jones – 79.75 (RVKA)
  6. Garrett Morgan – 76.00 (NSKA Central)
  7. Josh Goforth – 75.75
  8. Roy Roberts – 75.50
  9. Michael Burgess – 75.25
  10. Jeff Malott – 75.00
Christa Hibbs’ 21.75″ Big Bass had a gigantic head and a skinny body! Source: TourneyX

Angler Roundtable

So how’d the top finishers for the event do it and what are their thoughts on Beaver Lake? I joined Christa Hibbs, Justin Brewer and Jeriamy Vann in this recap discussion. Here’s the scoop:

What part of the lake did you fish and why?

Jason – After doing a lot of looking around, I decided that dirty water was going to be the key to a chance to win. Monte Ne gets really dirty when it rains hard in Rogers, and I’ve fished it quite a bit because it is the closest part of the lake to my house. Took a chance and it paid off.

Christa – I fished the Horseshoe Bend area for the event. I decided on this area because in the past it’s always fished well for me and held good fish each time I’ve fished it.

Justin – I put in at the War Eagle Marina and fished pockets on the main channel swing. That was my pattern at Table Rock so I tried to duplicate it at Beaver. Only difference was that I didn’t get the dirty water I was hoping for.

Jeriamy – I went just south of the HWY 12 bridge Saturday. Really wanted to fish a stretch that I had never fished before and this area looked really nice on the maps that I had studied all week.

Describe how you caught your biggest bass of the day, and what on?

Jason – After catching several keepers early on a spinnerbait, the bite started to slow as the rain cleared off. Wanted to keep throwing a moving bait so chose a white chatterbait. On a long cast that landed right next to a bush, it immediately got heavy and could tell that she was wrapped up in a bush so I just tried to keep some pressure on and she eventually came out. Second 20″ fish that morning, only the second time that’s happened to me in a tournament. Was very lucky.

Christa – My biggest bass of the day was the 21.75 that came around 7 am. I’d missed a bunch of fish just swatting at the buzzbait that morning, so I decided to put a trailer hook on. Three casts later, that big one hit it. Once in the net I noticed it was only hooked by that trailer hook. I luckily adjusted just at the right time.

Justin – My biggest bass came on a wacky rigged Yum Dinger. I pretty much kept it in my hand all day with the hope that eventually I would come across a big female or some decent males still on beds. It took me all day but I eventually found the big female and then a bonus male with her.

Jeriamy – I caught a 19.25″ which was my biggest of the day on a Santone Rattling Jig Black, Blue and Purple with a (CRAWL) trailer. I eased up real quiet to some floating debris and submerged trees in the back of a pocket and had just enough room to make a pitch across to the bank and work the bait along big root ball. I twitched the jig a few times and she came out from under the wood and crushed it.

Was seeing 20 / 20 on tournament Saturday. Source: kayakfishingfocus.com

Beaver Lake showed out a bit on Saturday, what are your thoughts on the lake as a fishery?

Jason – My grandfather, dad and his brothers fished Beaver Lake from when it was formed, and took me there when I was a kid so I will always have soft spot for this lake because of that. It’s a tough place at times but I really like the challenge of a changing lake rather than when people can just hit their honey holes. I joke about it being the Dead Sea, but it’s all in fun, you can catch’em there! For NWA it is our premier fishery and a beautiful place that we are lucky to have nearby.

Christa – I’ve always enjoyed fishing Beaver Lake. It may not always kick out the 20+ inch fish like a lot of other lakes, but I’ve had some awesome fun fishing days out there. In this tournament it produced some nice ones. I think with the heat of the summer not quite here yet, the higher water level, and cloud cover we had on tournament day helped keep those big ones out roaming and more vulnerable. Congratulations to all the top finishers!

Justin – I know many people call it the Dead Sea but other than a couple of trips I’ve always enjoyed the lake. Especially if I can find some dirtier water it’s always put up good limits for me.

Jeriamy – I’m pretty biased about Beaver lake. It’s my favorite with Lake Ouachita being a close second. I was a little surprised at the number of fish caught Saturday, but then I realized that I shouldn’t be with all the sticks in this NSKA group.

Video recap of my day on Beaver Lake, including baits my best five were caught on:

Heavy Hitters Standings

The Heavy Hitters pool is starting to take shape as we’re now four events in. As a reminder, anglers take their top fish from five events, so there’s a long way to go. This week was a real plus for me and Jeriamy getting some big ones on the board to make up some ground. Kyle Long still leads and is in a good spot, with Roy Roberts and Josh Howard on his tail. Again, don’t sleep on those with 20s on the board like James Haeberle, Tyler Zengerle and Cole Sikes. They are still in great shape.

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NSKA Classic / AOY Race

The top 25 finishers in AOY will make the end of season Classic Championship. It’s too early to tell much, but let’s take a look at who’s “in” as of today. Keep in mind it’s the top six events with two drops, so a lot is going to change. Everyone has a chance to get in at this point. For overall AOY – Dwain, Michael and Roy are still in the best position, but any angler with two scores above 95 is likely still a threat to close the gap.

Next Up – Pumpback

We’ll do a preview for Pumpback next week – it’s a really weird and cool little lake (More formally known as Chimney Rock Lake). If you haven’t been there, be sure to mark your calendar for June 5 to experience this pool of giant smallmouth and largemouth bass.

NSKA

NSKA Table Rock Recap / Heavy Hitters Update

The latest battle on the water for NSKA NWA took place on a section of Table Rock Lake, from the Shell Knob area up into the Kings and White River arms. It was a great opportunity for anglers to try out some new water and to catch a lot of fish on a great fishery.

Bass on Table Rock were biting for the NSKA gang.

A week and a half before the event there was significant rain and flooding which were going to affect the water for tournament day. Although Table Rock was a complete muddy mess a week out, when Beaver Lake and Table Rock both were running water through their respective dams, it really flushed a lot of the mud and debris down lake. This resulted in evolving conditions leading up to the event, meaning anglers had to find the water they were most comfortable with.

Table Rock Tournament Results

There were 53 anglers entered in the event and they accounted for a lot of fish caught. A strong 87% of anglers turned in a limit, about 20% higher than the average event. Timing worked out well for the event with bass in all phases of spawn in the lake, meaning there were many good fish to be had.

Michael Burgess won Big Bass with this 20″ Largemouth

Dwain Batey took 1st place with 89.75″, Michael Burgess was second with 88.25″ and Justin Brewer third with 85.50″ on the day. Brewer beat me out on a tiebreaker putting me in 4th on the day, also with an 85.50″ total. Big Bass was also won by Michael Burgess with a 20″ largemouth.

Here are the top 10 finishers:

  1. Dwain Batey 89.75″
  2. Michael Burgess 88.25″
  3. Justin Brewer 85.50″
  4. Jason Kincy 85.50″
  5. Carson McBride 85.00″
  6. Kyle Long 84.50″
  7. Devon Esry 84.00″
  8. Justin Phillips 84.00″
  9. Josh Landreth 82.75″
  10. Jason Coleman 82.25″

The complete tournament results are available on TourneyX.

Video recap and highlights from my day on Table Rock with 85.5″

Table Rock Angler Recaps

Here are some thoughts and insight from the top five anglers from the NSKA NWA Table Rock event. Dwain Batey, Michael Burgess, Justin Brewer, myself and Carson McBride share how things went down on the water and some other thoughts.

In general what area did you go and why?

Dwain – I fished the Kings River hoping it would have more color in the water than the White River did.

Michael – I fished on the white river side. I didn’t have time to practice so I just went to the same area as my previous tournament for MOYAK.

Justin – I chose to put in at Viola. I figured that section would still be the dirties water and dirty water is my strength.

Jason – Fished a creek arm around the Big M section of the White River area. Had fished there previously in the Moyak event and the water looked like the color I wanted to fish.

Carson – I fished the Kings River arm, mainly because I wanted to get as far away from Beaver Town as I could because I don’t like fishing that area

Overall what was the key bite for your day’s success, any specific baits you want to call out?

Dwain – I found fish in debris mats which had shad spawning on them. I used a Big Bite Baits BFE with a Trokar TK130 flipping hook and a 3/8 oz weight Texas rigged to punch into those mats.

Michael – My day started off slow with no bites in my first 1.5 hrs. I connected my first fish on a jig in the bushes but it was a small one. I continued to try to repeat the pattern but only came up with three small fish. I switched to the other side which was shallower and picked up a spinner bait. Within 10 casts I had caught three, one being a 18″ fish. It dialed me into what I needed to throw and where to fish.

Justin – I started early with a spinnerbait and flipping a big creature bait to catch my small limit. I threw a wacky rigged dinger and got bit twice which keyed me in to my main pattern of flipping a Texas rigged black and blue Yum Dinger with the smallest weight I could get away with and still penetrate the and the trash on the bank.

Jason – Unlike a lot of others, seems like my fish came on more variety of baits. Early on caught them on a War Eagle buzzbait and late morning got my 18″ and a 17″ on a Booyah Covert spinnerbait. As the day wore on still caught several on the spinnerbait but did some late culls on skipping a football jig with a YUM Spine Craw at bushes and sawdust areas.

Carson – My key bait was a half ounce flipping jig with a Rage Menace trailer, I was flipping it around isolated buck brush and bushes and punching through the debris mats, and any time I came to a spot where someone’s yard was flooded, a white spinnerbait with gold willow leaf blades always produced a bite.

First NSKA on Table Rock, how did you feel about it and do you like events outside of Arkansas, why?

Dwain – I always like to fish new bodies of water, or be forced into fishing areas of familiar lakes that I’ve never been to, so I always like when we have diversity of venues.

Michael – I enjoyed fishing Table Rock, it’s a fantastic fishery with some big fish. I’m not much of a fan fishing small lakes, it just seems to easy and I want a challenge.

Justin – I feel like I have done pretty good at Table Rock events in the past so I was excited about this event. I like venturing out to different states and different waters. It helps you as an angler to travel and figure out different bodies of water.

Jason – I’d never fished Table Rock before the Moyak tournament a couple of weeks ago and now have fished it a few times. It’s a great lake and clearly has a better fish population than what we encounter on Beaver Lake. Hope we go back next year.

Carson – I liked having and NSKA event on table rock I just wish we could’ve went all over the entire lake.

If you could only have one rod / reel / line setup to fish with, what would it be and why?

Dwain – I would have to go with a 7′ 2” medium heavy baitcaster with an 8.3:1 reel, I am not brand loyal just anything that will get the job done. I picked this because it would cover a variety of different baits/techniques.

Michael – My main set up I would take would be my jig set up with 15# Invizx line. I personally love fishing a jig but I can also easily switch to a Texas rig or any bottom bumping bait.

Justin – I would have to go with a baitcast setup. 7:5:1 reel and 7’ medium heavy rod and 15 pound fluorocarbon line. That will cover with just about anything. Jig, cranking, spinnerbait and even a wacky rig.

Jason – My most flexible setup is a medium heavy jig / Texas rig rod with a Shimano Curado 7:4:1 reel with 12 lb floro. With this I can fish a jig, Texas rig, spinnerbait, fluke, or about any single hook style bait.

Carson – If I could only have one rod reel setup to fish with it would be a 7 foot 3 heavy fast with a jackhammer chatterbait, that’s about my all time favorite setup to throw when I can get away with it

Heavy Hitters Update

Three weeks into Heavy Hitters and Kyle Long is in the driver’s seat for now, with Josh Howard, Cole Sikes and Brian Lookadoo right behind him.

With five events left, everyone is still in it since it is the best five fish total. Things are going to tighten up and shake up quite a bit. Keep your eye on Tyler Zengerle and James Haeberle who both have a 20 in their list, they will close the gap quickly in coming events.

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Next Up – Beaver Lake South, May 22

The next tournament for NSKA will be the Ozark Kayak Beaver Lake South event, which depending on the water level could be a smash-fest or a dink-fest. Get signed up now on TourneyX for this battle royale on the Dead Sea. The highlight of the day will be the post-tourney weigh-in at Las Fajitas in Lowell. See you there!

NSKA

King of the String Recap / Video / Heavy Hitters

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Whew boy! That was quite the shootout for the recent NSKA NWA King of the String tournament. As the old saying goes, you gotta beat the King to be the King. Who came close? Who came out on top? How did the King stay on top? Read on…

Well the pre-tournament predictions by many were too low, by a lot, for the most part. Here on KFF I predicted the winner would have 25-27 fish total (not far off) with a total of 335″ in length (not close). The real shocker was how far down the standings people were with fish totals that would have been top 10 last year! In retrospect, those of us bemoaning the tough fishing were just sucking, apparently the fish were there to be caught.

Tyler Zengerle’s best five was a huge total of 90+” and deserves a shout-out. Maybe it was good karma for his smiley face on the identifier?

KOS Results

There were 62 anglers registered for the event, who accounted for 541 bass, an average of 8.7 fish per angler, up almost one BPA from last year. Tenth place in 2021 caught 20/253.75″ compared to 16/210 in 2020, and 20th place in 2021 was 12/167″ compared to 10/138.25″ in 2020. Performance was up in 2021 over 2020.

Roy Roberts has ended any debate (if any existed) on who is the King of the String with his third straight win of this event. That’s insane, unbelievable, and phenomenal. He’s definitely set the mark as his 2021 total was 28/373″ while his 2020 win total was 28/375.75″. Wow! Talk about consistency. That’s the number. You want to win next time, beat 28 fish and break 380″ and that might get you there.

Josh Howard took 2nd place with 27/358.25″ while Craig Wood took 3rd place with a 23/304.50″ total. Kyle Long took Big Bass with a 20.50″ hog with a magical spinnerbait landing. The rest of the Top 10 were: Dwain Batey, Cole Sikes, Devon Esry, Michael Burgess, Tyler Zengerle, Jason Coleman and Jason Adams.

My day on the water could have used some improvement, making some adjustments after a really bad start to salvage a few fish. Overall though it was my standard MLF performance, plus an early morning call to wake up my wife, lol. Here’s the video should you want to watch the recap:

Angler Roundtable

As usual, one of the awesome things about kayak fishing is how we are willing to share our experiences. The top anglers shared a lot of great details about their day and how they caught them. Lots of great stuff in here from Roy Roberts and Josh Howard!

What area of the lake did you go to and why?

Roy – I fished the clear water on the north end of the lake. I knew the water would be warmer up in the rivers and fish would be more committed to the spawn so I was a little nervous about my decision. However, in this format I wanted to fish my strengths and stick to the area of the lake I am most comfortable. I didn’t get a chance to practice so I just closely watched the conditions leading up and had a pretty good feeling where the fish would be. Another reason I chose this area was the strong population of all three species of bass. Being able to quickly change techniques and target different groups of fish was a key to get consistent bites all day.

Josh – I went up the river arm. Honestly, I wrestled with that decision all week. Based on history, research and the MLF format, I originally I had narrowed it down to 2 areas around the mid-lake area. The day before the tournament, I completely changed my game plan.

Craig – I chose Natural Walk as my spot for the tourney because it has several creeks coming in and there are a lot of spawning areas as well. One creek/cove gave me ten fish and the motivation to carry on.

Did you change anything or what was your mindset to try to catch numbers?

Roy – My game plan was to power fish shallow for the early bite on some steeper banks. This part went well…I had 10 fish by 8:30 on a crankbait / jerkbait / swimbait just covering water. That bite tapered off and I was working some pockets out of the wind with little success. The cold front had pushed the fish down to 18-20 foot range and they were holding tight to the bottom. Because of the wind I couldn’t use my normal finesse techniques to target these fish so I tied on a Carolina rig with a heavy sinker and a Zoom Centipede. The wind was brutal but bites were consistent. Because of the wind I had trouble feeling the bites and lost several nice fish. I just kept my head down and fished this pattern as efficiently as I could for the rest of the day.

Josh – My approach was to keep moving and cover water. I usually tend to target a small area and then work to get all I can out of that spot, but for this event I felt I needed to cover as much water as possible and keep my bait in front of new fish. Every time I felt myself slowing down or spending too much time in one area, I had to remind myself to keep moving.

Craig – I thought I would throw a spinnerbait and pick up fish, but just 15 minutes in I lost confidence in it, so I started pitching a jig and it produced bites. The storm may have caused them to hold them a little tighter to their spots and the jig gets in tight to those small strike zones.

We have a lot of new anglers this year, any advice for them in tournaments?

Roy – Man there are so many cliches and everybody has their opinion. It’s exciting to see new anglers getting involved and asking good questions. If I had to say one piece of advice I would just say be yourself. Understand what your good at and use that during competition. The hardest thing in bass fishing is chasing dock talk or someone else’s fish. I think people put too much pressure on “practice”. Me included. Just go out have fun, try new things, and learn the lake. Apply what you learn, block out some of the noise, and have fun. I’ve probably read as many articles and watched as many videos as anybody, but the knowledge I have gained firsthand far outweighs anything else.

Josh – Fish your strengths and control the controllable. Identify your strengths or the way you prefer to fish and then seek water that fits your style. I’m not saying “don’t try new baits or be reluctant to adapt to conditions”. I changed my area and plan the day before the tournament because I did not have 100% confidence in it. Win or lose, I want to spend the day fishing the way I want to fish. Control the controllable. This Club is absolutely stacked full of hammers it’s critical to me that I minimize wasted time. A couple minutes here or there can really add up throughout the day and I need every minute, every cast I can get. Organization, maintenance, ATTITUDE are all things that can cost you fish.

Craig – My advice is be patient. Its taken years for me to recognize subtle changes in a bass’s willingness to bite.

What’s your boat/kayak setup/type?

Roy – I have a Hobie PA12 with the 180 drive. I love this kayak. I got it about this time last year and it was a gigantic upgrade for me. I don’t have any fancy motors or electronics but it gets the job done!

Josh – I fish an Old Town Predator PDL. I’ve had it for 2 years now and love it. It’s been very reliable and gives me the confidence to fish any water or weather condition I encounter. Last year I installed a Power Pole Micro Anchor and I cannot say enough about it. Other than my pedal drive, my Power Pole is my #1-can’t fish without accessory.

Craig – I fish out of a Hobie Pro Angler 12 and it gives me the ability to carry a lot of gear and be comfortable in all conditions. I will always fish from a Pro Angler. Also the addition of great sidescan imaging has helped immensely. Congratulations to Roy, the shear amount of fish he caught and upload successfully was incredible.

Kyle Long’s Big Bass was caught on a spinnerbait. I was curious how Kyle’s fish count record keeping would change for MLF. looks like he was marking them off!

Heavy Hitters Update

Oh we have a horserace here in the Heavy Hitters pool. (Still time to enter…) Kyle Long is off to a great start, with two solid bass to get things going, but there are several right behind him. Right now those with at least one 20 are a threat. The good news is nobody is out of it yet, we’re taking the top five best fish, so anyone can make a run!

Table Rock is next up, an interesting curveball to the schedule. Should be some huge totals caught there during the ongoing spawn. Get ready to roll!

NSKA

NSKA NWA King of the String Preview – Dinkapalooza

The King of the String is back! This MLF-style catch all you can tournament event is back for 2021 is without a doubt my least favorite and most dreaded event. Not because it isn’t a cool concept, it really is! It’s because I STINK at this format. But should be a fun time for everyone else on the water!

I’m a big fan of the MLF television show where they do the ‘every fish counts format’ and like it much better than the super confusing MLF tournament trail series. (I mean, you need a flowchart to track which day is what…) Catching as many fish as you can is fun and lessens the dependency on size of bass which puts more anglers in play to compete. My problem is in these tourneys I can’t seem to catch fish. In the two past NSKA King of the String (KOS) events, I have a combined TOTAL of 7 fish. Seven! That’s not even good enough for 25th place in the last KOS event. yikes.

Wofford’s Big Bass from 2020 KOS event. Pic for attention.

Predicting 2021 Based on Past Results

Everyone enjoys trying to project what it will take to win or finish in the top 10 for these events. Often, KFF gets pretty close by looking at past data. This one is a bit tougher because we only have two data sets and neither was from this body of water specifically, nor this time of year.

One thing I do know, for someone to win, they are going to have to dethrone Roy Roberts who has twice now been the King (of the string).

In 2017, anglers could fan out across a 60 mile radius on a July day to find whatever water would work best for them to catch as many 11″ bass as possible. The field of 46 anglers caught 326 bass, an average of 7.08 bass per angler. Roy Roberts crushed the field with 27 bass for 344.25″ on the day. Christa Hibbs was second with 25/306.25″ and Nathan Henthorn did his river magic for 24/294.50″ in bass. Of the 46 anglers, 26 of them (57%) turned in at least five fish. Cole Sikes took Big Bass with a 22.50″ Lincoln Lake giant.

Where will the winning KOS catch come from in 2021? One of these areas…or out of the map further south? Hmm..

The KOS returned in May 2020 with a vengeance. The 72 anglers accounted for 567 fish, for an average of 7.80 bass per angler. Now that’s interesting…a bit of a jump in bass per angler (BPA), but pretty darn close. This event had a smaller radius of 40 miles, but still included a lot of small water. Rains the week of ruined many of the rivers for this one, making it more lake focused. Roy Roberts did it again, breaking his mark from 2017 by posting 28 fish for 375.75″ to win. John Wofford 25/346″ took second and Jason Coleman 25/321.75″ took third. Of the 72 anglers, 41 (57%) turned in at least five fish…interesting, just like in 2017. Big Bass for the event was a nice 20.75″ catch by John Wofford.

Now, this event is on the Dead Sea (a.k.a. Beaver Lake) in April. What does that mean? From past data, it seems that we’ll have an average of eight fish per angler, and, most likely 57% of the field will catch at least five bass, and Big Bass will be in the usual range of 19-22″ in length. We’ve also seen that 10th place is about half of first place on average.

What will happen?

A few things are working against big totals for 2021. Even though Roy Roberts has been on Beaver before and won both times, and many others have done well, for many anglers Beaver Lake is just not friendly for numbers of catches. Secondly, after the ice age we went through, things seem to be just a bit behind with the fish activity. Water is heating up all over the lake, which could change things on a dime…or make them more unpredictable.

The river area is a logical choice for a good day, with the water already near or above 60, it should be where spawn is happening first. The clear water in the lower end of the lake (lower meaning nearest the dam, not geographically) is full of smallmouth and spotted bass which could be key for a KOS event, but water temps are still stuck in the low-mid 50s. Then you have the mid-lake areas which are a bit of both worlds, little warmer water, but fewer spots and smallies.

My belief is the winner will be in the 25-27 range for about 335″ in total. Which would make 10th place around 13-14 for about 168″ in total.

Heavy Hitters – Still Time to Enter!

There is still plenty of time to enter the Heavy Hitters side pot for 2021! Check out the rules and how to enter from the previous post. You only need five big fish and there are seven events left. Don’t miss out and sign up today.

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Thanks for reading and good luck! If you haven’t seen it, check out the video from Bull Shoals a couple of weeks ago. If you like, hit subscribe.

NSKA

NSKA NWA Road Runner Recap / Roundtable / Heavy Hitters

The first tournament of 2021 had some familiar and some new names in the top 10 as anglers to the road, seeking out the best water they could for this event. Shogun (thanks!) was the sponsor of the Road Runner and the radius for the event was 50 miles from the Shogun restaurant in Fayetteville.

A warming trend during the week were capped off by a serious round of thunderstorms and heavy rain in the northern part of the radius on Friday night. This made for some tough decisions on where to go. Because of the storms and rain, el presidente Taylor Frizzell wisely moved the start back an hour that morning.

Road Runner Results

With the event coming early in the season combined with rainy and stormy weather, participation was a respectable 73 anglers. Overall, 35 of 73 (48%) anglers turned in a limit, while 63 of 73 (86%) turned in at least one bass. This is on par with the last two Road Runners held in March, and in fact a bit up from last year.

Once again, one lake showed up as usual in the Road Runner. Siloam City Lake produced the win again. In five of the last six NWA Road Runners, Siloam City Lake has been the winning lake – 2018, 2019, 2020 (2nd RR) and 2021. Additionally, in these same six events Siloam City Lake has put NINE anglers in the top four spots.

Sam McClish’s 20.25″ bass looks like its downed some beer and wings right before this pic. It won Sam a NSKA 20+ sticker. Dwain Batey and Cole Sikes got’em too!

Event favorite, Dwain Batey, took first place with 93.25″ and Big Bass of 21.5″ to take home some good $$. Sam McClish took 2nd place with a strong 86.50″ while Carson McBride jumped back into things with 86.25″ for third place. The rest of the Top 10 were Michael Burgess, Roy Roberts, Ian Howard, Heath Berner, Cole Sikes, Justin Wright and Michael Sandlin. See the full results on the TourneyX tournament page.

My day was a disaster, marked by poor site selection followed by poor judgment and poor execution. If you haven’t seen the video of the debacle, check it out on YouTube.

Angler Recaps

Good news for those of us who didn’t do as well, the top four anglers sat down to share their secrets for finishing in the money! Kayak anglers are a different breed and one of the awesome things about our club is the willingness to share and help others. Here’s what Dwain, Sam, Carson and Michael had to say:

1. Where did you go and why?

Dwain – I chose Siloam Springs City lake, there were a lot of good options within the radius, but having just came from fishing the Hobie event in Broken Bow I didn’t have much time to pre-fish, so picking some random place especially this time of year didn’t feel right. I was able to fish a couple hours on Tuesday and Wednesday and just checked a few baits. As soon as I would catch a fish I’d put that bait up and switch to something else. I got bit on 3 baits in practice.

Sam – I pre-fished 3 other lakes the last couple weeks, but with the shad kill I was skunked each outing. I went to Lake Atalanta for a couple hours the weekend before the tournament and caught a few 14s on a jig and chatterbait.

Carson – I went to Lake Sequoyah, I have a lot of time on the water there and feel very confident during a road runner style event.

Michael – I started off at Mills Creek on Table Rock. My research for spring time screamed this would be a good cove to fish and catch some big girls. It had a channel creek running into it. Deep banks and a feeder creek.

2. Did the big rain the night before affect your fishing area?

Dwain – Yes, but in a positive way. This time of year City Lake gets a lot of floating slime that really hampers fishing with moving baits. Well Tuesday pre-fishing it wasn’t that bad, and I caught a few fish on a crankbait, but the very next day it was so bad I couldn’t throw a crankbait at all. So the rain actually pushed some of that stuff on through with the current and let me actually fish a crankbait during the event.

Sam – With the rain I had planned for it to really help push the fish to the banks, I was wrong. I paddled around trying to figure out my next move and kept graphing fish in the 25-30ft range on steep drops.

Carson – The big rain the night before majorly affected the whole lake, with the white rivers running into it, the lake progressively got muddier throughout the day, so I tried to stay away from the mud line by fishing the very north end of the lake all day.

3. General approach that worked for you, techniques, etc,?

Dwain – I started out by demoralizing Kyle and Cole by catching 4 fish in the first 16 minutes within sight of them throwing the new Skirmish Baits AIM7 jerkbait in my Batey Shad color. You have to set the tone for the day, you know? In all seriousness, I couldn’t believe those fish were in that spot, much less eating the jerk bait on command, but it really did help me mentally the rest of the day to pull up and look like I knew they’d be there. Then that stopped working, and I didn’t catch the 5th fish for a while, finally figuring out what I mentioned above that the slime wasn’t as heavy and I could throw my crankbait. Well I caught one pretty quickly on that for my limit fish. I culled all of those early fish starting with a 17” on a ned rig at 10:33 am, and then one about every half hour up to an hour, to cull to my final total at 1:06 pm. The last 4 culls were all on the flat sided crankbait, wasn’t one of mine, didn’t even have custom paint on it. The fish were off the edges of spawning flats feeding up as they waited on “go time” which isn’t far off if these warm temperatures hold up at least for these smaller lakes anyway.

Sam – The only option I had at that point battling the crosswind was to tie on an A-Rig.

Carson – I threw a jig all day long around lay downs and rock and that is what I threw all day long basically, never even had a ned rig tied on.

Michael – After 5 hours and only 1 good fish to show for it that creek wasn’t producing for me. When I arrived at my 2nd location the rain pretty much blew out every spot I fished the week before. I found a bank wall with the same setup and started to throw a jig. My 3rd cast and I got bumped, was the only thing I needed to know I was in the right area and throwing the right color. I also caught them early on a jerkbait and on a craw colored crankbait.

4. What was your key fish and anything special about the catch?

Dwain – After my jerk bait bite stopped working, I picked up the ned and caught a17” fish that was in my final bag, but that didn’t produce anything else, and I had just stopped running that down a full bank to give it a legitimate shot to work, and when I pulled off that bank I picked up the flat sided crankbait and hurled it out in a slightly deeper spot where fish have been known to stage and caught the 21.50″ which gave me confidence to keep throwing that flat side. From there I caught one almost an hour later that was a good cull, then about 30 minutes later again with a good cull, then another hour and my final cull all on that same flat sided bait. The main key was just believing that they’d show up as the day went on, and having the confidence to wait them out.

Carson – I had 2 key fish actually, very late in the day I decided to do something big, I have a spot I can go to and normally feel good about catching a good one or two but wasn’t confident because of the rain, I said screw it and made the move anyways, that’s where I caught a 19.75″ and a 17.75″ in the last hour of the whole thing, bumped me from 74 inches to 86.25″ total.

Sam – I’d like to say my key fish was catching my 20.25″ but it had to be the first fish I caught that was a 16” it helped confirm (1) Those were definitely bass at 30ft and (2) they were hungry. That bite was hot from 10:15 ’till about 12:30. I caught about 11 fish in that timeframe doing that. I didn’t get a single bite before then or after that.

Michael – Highlights of my day was watching a coyote swim across the cove chasing a deer and getting checked by the game warden for the first time ever.

Dwain Batey’s Big Bass, I like how the top fins are at full attention!

Heavy Hitters Update

Well, I’m off to a bad start on this one. Need to get a good fish in the Road Runner to get things going. Here are the current standings, with Cole and Brian and Jason off to a great start! Who will be crowned this year’s Heavy Hitter? Still time to enter since you have 7 events left and only need best 5, check out the rules and how to sign up.

Next Up – MLF on Beaver Lake

How many “Beaver Lake Specials” can you catch? Those 12-inchers can win this one for you if there are enough of them. Get ready and see you on the water.

NSKA

2021 Heavy Hitters Pool – Roster and Rules

Welcome to the 2021 NSKA Heavy Hitters – a tournament season long Big Bass showdown combining your best five bass from the 2021 NSKA NWA tournament season.

GET SIGNED UP NOW – Only takes a few moments with Paypal.

Get ready to catch some of these in 2021!

Heard a story about someone who didn’t enter last year who might have won…but I didn’t do the math. hehe Don’t be that angler, get signed up!

How to join the Roster of Competitors to WIN Bragging Rights and $$

  1. Enter the Heavy Hitter competition by sending your entry of $10 to commissioner Roy Roberts. The sooner you enter, the sooner you can start counting your big fish. Visit the Heavy Hitters PayPal pool site to register and pay your entry. Sign up at any point in the season, but you MUST sign up before counting a bass from an NSKA NWA event. Don’t miss out on the Roadrunner, which always has some tanks caught.
  2. Your name goes on the Roster of competitors below once registered. Results and rankings will be kept and displayed on Kayakfishingfocus.com all season long.
  3. Compete in NSKA NWA regular season AOY events and catch some big bass. Your biggest fish from each regular season event can count toward your limit. There are EIGHT eligible events and you take the best fish from five of them to create your largest limit.
  4. Winner takes all the $$, the glory and the title of NSKA NWA Heavy Hitter Champion.

2021 NWA NSKA Heavy Hitters

Roy Roberts

Cole Sikes

Jason Kincy

Terril Lawton

Ryan Paskiewicz

Jonathan Swann

Josh Howard

Nathan Henthorn

Vince Minnick

Chris Needham

Josh Meyers

James Haberle

Jeriamy Vann

Taylor Frizzell

Jason Coleman

Brian Lookadoo

Baron Meek

Trevor Snider

Kyle Long

Devon Esry

Danny Dutton

Uncategorized

New Tackle? I Forgot What I Ordered! – Video

When the winter storm hit I spent some time shopping for tackle online. Two weeks later when the box arrived, I had completely forgotten what I ordered! So, thought it might be fun to open it up on camera and talk about whatever pre-spawn baits were in the box. Check it out!

Video

Beaver Lake Kayak Fishing Recap – Video

This is a recap of how I caught my keepers in the end of season NSKA NWA Classic in September. See every bait and hear how they were used to catch some bass on Beaver Lake in September.

Video

Kayak Fishing on Lake Fork – Video

Kayak Fishing on Lake Fork is some of the most fun I’ve had on the water. It can be an intimidating place until you get used to it and get your bearings. There are many options for kayak anglers to launch from and to get almost anywhere you want on the lake. This video is from 2017 when I was there for the Tournament of Champions in November. In all, I’ve been kayak fishing on Lake Fork for five tournaments, with my best finish as 6th in the Hobie BOS Lake Fork in 2019.

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Hope you enjoy the video!

Check out more content by visiting the Kayak Fishing Focus main site.

Kayak fishing on Lake Fork in Texas! kayakfishingfocus.com
Catching bass at Lake Fork in Texas! Source: kayakfishingfocus.com

NSKA

2021 NSKA NWA Schedule Preview and Pre-Season Top 25

It’s about one month out from the season opener for Natural State Kayak Anglers in NW Arkansas. The schedule-makers this year put together an interesting run of tournaments which should provide something for everyone – whether you are just having fun or are trying to win.

What can we expect from the coming schedule? What are anglers saying? Going into the season who is in the top 25 angler list for NWA? Read on and find out!

2021 Schedule Breakdown

This will be my sixth season fishing events in NWA and I think this is the best and most diverse schedule yet. The board did some surveying of anglers after last year and took their feedback to craft this gauntlet of events that will be fun, but will also ensure the Angler Of the Year will have earned it!

NWA Road Runner – March 13

Don’t miss out on the Road Runner.

Road Runners are always a wildcard, this time of year finding the right spot within the 50-mile radius may mean more than how good an angler is at catching fish. With the freezing weather in February it will be interesting to see where things stand on tournament day. Historically the first event gets some big totals, someone will catch ’em but it could be tough for a lot of folks. Don’t over think this one, go somewhere you feel most confident and see what happens. Last year this was won on Oklahoma water, will it happen again? Shout out to Shogun for sponsoring this event!

MLF Beaver Lake – April 10

Very excited to take on an MLF event where everyone is on same water – Beaver Lake. The Dead Sea is no longer dead in recent years, it should be rocking in April and over a zillion bass may be caught on this day. For those who don’t know, an MLF event means you catch as many keepers as possible, not just your best five. Just keep catching and submitting fish. It’s going to be fascinating to see if shallow largemouth or deeper smallmouth will be the key to this one. (Don’t forget those feisty spotted bass!) Size doesn’t matter as much in this one, everybody has a chance if they can generate enough bites. This is the one event this year that there will be a 11″ minimum. Thanks Wasabi of Fayetteville for sponsoring this one!

Table Rock Lake – May 8

This is a new one, an event on Table Rock Lake, considered a much better fishery than Beaver. Anglers will be able to choose from the Beavertown area all the way down covering a good portion of Table Rock. Having an ‘away’ tournament like this should really help even the playing field and as someone who loves to fish new places, I’m really looking forward to this one. Table Rock is known for a great fish population, there should be LOTS of limits turned in. Custom Tees and Graphics is sponsoring this one, thank you!

Beaver Lake South – May 22

Back to Beaver for this late-may slugfest. Bass should be in spawn or post-spawn mode all over the lake so there will be plenty of fish caught. This section of the lake is the most diverse, with skinny water fishing in the War Eagle or White River areas all the way down to the deeper and usually clearer water of Horseshoe to Beaver Shores. In this event you should literally be able to catch bass with almost any technique you prefer. Thank you to Ozark Kayak for their support of this event!

Don’t touch the tail this year, body groping only. That red Ketch board looks hot!

Pumpback – June 5

If you have never caught a smallmouth, especially a giant smallmouth, this is the tournament to enter. Pumpback is a really interesting place and holds a lot of fish and some BIG smallies. Don’t sleep on the largemouth though, there are some real tanks in this lake. It was really cool, yet bizarre, to have this lake drop several feet in a couple of hours during the tournament last year. We may see some Oklahoma Kayak Anglers entering this one, it should be a lot of fun! Ginger Rice and Noodle Bar is the presenting sponsor of this one.

North Beaver Lake – June 26

Ah, my jet-ski and wakeboat friends…we meet again. Beaver Lake will be party central by late June and the fishing is going to start to get tougher. This time we’re up North in the big water. Unlike the South end, there are almost unlimited places to put in and fish, giving everyone plenty of room and options. Smallmouth may be a factor down by the dam, or you might chase bigger largemouth in Prairie Creek. Turn in a limit and you’ve had a good day. A big kicker will be needed though to be in the money.

Nice jet-ski bro. Thanks for showing it to me fifty times.

River Road Runner – July 17

A River Road Runner is back on the schedule for the first time since 2017, and immediately controversy began. What’s a river? What’s not a river? Is this drainage pipe a river? That’s not a river, it’s a lake! And so is that one! To clean up the debates, boundaries have been set for sections of the White River between Twin Bridges to Blue Springs, White River from Beaver Dam to the Beaver Bridge, Elk River from Pineville to Mt Shira, and the Illinois from some random place I can’t identify on the map to Siloam Springs. July is a great time for a river event, glad to see it back on the schedule.

Beaver Lake – August 14

Beaver Lake in August is the crucible that tests an angler’s patience, spins some out, and can break your confidence in two. And I LOVE it! Going on the Dead Sea in the dog days of summer and catching a limit is a rewarding achievement. And our friends the jet-skiers and wake boarders? Yes, they will be there as well. Will anglers find their winning bag dirt-deep in the rivers, or in the cooler blue waters near the dam? This one will be key for those on the edge of making the NSKA Classic 25 angler field.

End of Season Classic

The 25 anglers who finish highest in the AOY will get to compete in this end of year, two day Championship event. Making the Classic is an achievement in itself and culminates a successful season. This season the Classic is going to be amazing! One day on the wild waters of Lake Fort Smith (a.k.a. – Snake Fort Smith) and one day up by the Missouri line around Holiday Island. If you win this one, you’ve done something! We are also hearing there may be more rewards in store for Classic anglers this season…

Wild and mysterious Lake Fort Smith is back this year for the Classic!

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Season Preview Angler Roundtable

We asked veteran NSKA NWA anglers Billy Bowden, Kyle Long, and Tim Hotchkin to join me in sharing some thoughts on the season and advice for new tournament anglers:

What event are you looking forward to the most and why?

Billy – I am for sure looking forward to our Table Rock event due to the fact that I’ve never fished there. From what I have heard, Table Rock fishes much better than Beaver but also sets up a lot like Beaver which is what everyone in our group is used to.

Tim – This one is a tough one for me. I am looking forward to both the MLF Event on Beaver and then the Pumpback Event in Oklahoma the most. The MLF Event on Beaver because I love the format and I think it will create some excitement. The Pumpback event because its just a unique lake and has the potential of catching some trophy sized Smallmouth like John Wofford caught last year.

Kyle – Usually I’m always looking forward to the first event because I’m so anxious to get going, but this year I think I’ve thought more about the MLF than any other event. Where can I go on Beaver and catch 40 fish? Also Pumpback again just because…tank smallies.

Jason – The River Road Runner, because it is going to be the most unpredictable one due to the different options. The flowing rivers of the Elk and Illinois versus the lesser current sections of the White River offer good contrasts. No matter where I wind up, it will be water I’m not as familiar with, which is always fun to explore somewhere new.

Best advice for someone new to tournaments?

Billy – Best advice for new anglers…Make sure your fish is legal before submitting it to TourneyX and make sure the place you plan on launching from is public and accessible according to the rules. Navionics and Google maps sometimes run right into people’s back yards so watch for that.

Tim – Take your time reviewing the rules and if you have questions reach out to someone for clarification. Also, while on the water take your time and not get into a rush while taking pictures. Make sure and ask plenty of questions, everyone was new at one point. Also don’t get upset if you get a fish DQ’d or a deduction. It has happened to all of us when we are learning how to submit correct photos. Anyone that is new is welcome to reach out to me directly if they have questions. If I don’t know the answer I can probably help point them in the right direction.

Tim in the hot tub in Gentry.

Kyle – Best advice is watch some tournament videos (Shameless plug: Kyle Long Fishing) and just familiarize yourself with everything that doesn’t have to do with actually the catching of the fish. Fishing is fishing. Kayak fishing is just fishing but from a kayak. Learning the rules, how to measure a fish, how to photo, TourneyX…that’s the part that every newcomer needs to get familiar with and practice. Also have a good organization system that fits what you do and what you like.

Jason – If you are new to tournaments overall or kayak tournaments, most importantly just go have a good time. Tournaments make you better, but they are supposed to be fun. You don’t have to win to meet personal goals. Don’t get frustrated if you lose a fish off the board or mess up a photo submission. We’ve ALL done it and it’s a part of the sport. Finally, ask questions of others – kayak anglers are friendly and willing to help out!

Do you have a personal goal for the season?

Billy – Personal goal for this season is to win an event. I feel I’ve been so close for a while now. Just looking forward to getting it done!

Tim – Just to fish all of the NSKA NWA Events. The last couple of years have been really difficult for me to fish and now that things are somewhat settling down I am really looking forward to fishing with everyone more. My stretch goal is to do well enough to finish in the Top 10 for AOY, but I know that will be incredibly difficult with the quality of anglers we have in this club.

Kyle – I’d love to break PB’s, love to win ’em all, love to make a ton of money…but I guess if I had to narrow it down, my goal is this…at the end of each tournament, I wanna feel like I have a chance to place/win with what I have in my bag regardless of what anyone else has. If I don’t then I don’t but I wanna know my bag has a legit shot when 3:00 hits. If someone else wins then hats off for beating me…but you had to earn it.

Jason – Really want to improve in a couple of type of events. I always stink early in the year, so want to do better in the pre-spawn timeframe. The MLF-style events have been disasters for me with a total of eight fish in two tournaments. Really am hoping to improve upon that one in particular!

Pre-Season NSKA NWA Top 25 Anglers

This list means nothing and is done just for fun! It really means nothing once it is lines in for the first tournament – the fish will do the talking then. Until then, thought it would be fun (and controversial) to list out a pre-season Top 25 for NSKA NWA.

This is NOT the Angler of the Year ranking and will not be a recurring list. Every year new anglers jump in and win events and do very well. For this list I took the 2020 regular season finish, Classic finish and State Tournament finish averages. Then I did a bit of nudging up and down in a few places to get the list right. It’s not perfect.

But as of today…this is the list.

RankAngler
1Dwain Batey
2Justin Brewer
3Ryan Paskiewicz
4Cole Sikes
5Roy Roberts
6Jason Kincy
7Kyle Long
8Tyler Zengerle
9Chris Needham
10Jeriamy Vann
11Devon Esry
12Michael Burgess
13James Shumate
14Jason Coleman
15Justin Phillips
16Jeff Malott
17Andrew Newsom
18Billy Bowden
19Josh Howard
20Craig Wood
21Danny Dutton
22Jon Swann
23Chad Warford
24Wayne Johnson
25Jason Cowell

Not on the list? Don’t worry, it’s not a real list and doesn’t matter when the first tournament starts! There are some anglers who didn’t fish much last year such as Tim Hotchkin, Bo Sarratt, Brandon Prince and Taylor Frizzell that easily could be in this list with a full season.

John and Hope Wofford are not on the list because they will be competing in NSKA Central this year (we’re going to miss you!). A few anglers such as Chris Needham, Andrew Newsom and Jason Coleman got bumped up because they couldn’t fish either the Classic or State but deserved to be ranked higher. Finally I just moved a few around based on gut feel.

Dwain deserves to be number one based on winning the State Championship, but honestly take the top five and you can put them in any order!

GLHF

It’s almost go-time! If you are a new kayak angler or an old-school yakker, hope to see you on the water and have some fun fishing with you this year. Tournaments aren’t everything, let’s get out and do some fun fishing as well! Good Luck, Have Fun!

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