COLUMN : NEWELL ’ S NOTES
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
As a freelance writer and photographer , Rob Newell has been reporting on fishing tournaments for 20 years , finding the stories between fish and angler to be a stretched line of heroes , heartache , triumph , torture , inspiration and exasperation . tool time
It pays for professional bass anglers to think like a Boy Scout when it comes to repairs
W hen it comes to the tools professional bass anglers use to do their job , there ’ s a lot of attention given to rods , reels , line , lures and electronics . However , there ’ s an entire class of other tools that pros use that are rarely talked about . These tools are used to fix anything from tires to wires . After all , tournament fishing is fertile ground for good old Murphy ’ s Law : Whatever can go wrong , will go wrong . So , you might as well have some tools around for insurance . MLF pros David Walker and Alex Davis have fished tournaments across the country for a combined total of some 40 years . Between the two of them , they ’ ve experienced just about every kind of marine malfunction or inadvertent incident imaginable . Their advice for such mishaps ? Carry plenty of tools . “ Carrying tools provides self-sufficiency ,” Walker says . “ When you ’ re traveling thousands of miles with a truck , trailer , boat and a camper , things will go wrong ; that ’ s just a fact . By carrying a few extra things , you ’ re in a position to fix stuff so you ’ re not left stranded on the water or on the road .” Davis strongly agrees . “ Just having a few tools and a handful of spare parts can go a long way in salvaging a tournament or practice day ,” Davis says . “ It takes just a few minutes to fix things , if you have the right stuff to do it .”
your basic boat tools
Both Walker and Davis carry far more tools in their trucks than in their boats . Expensive tools and the marine environment don ’ t mix well . Plus , given the amount of tackle pros must carry these days , room
18 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | JUNE-JULY 2022