Preparing for the Bassmaster Classic with Chris Lane

The 2019 Bassmaster Classic is set to fire up in Knoxville, Tennessee, March 15 to 17, and this year, anglers will be plying the varied riverbanks and back eddies of the Tennessee River. In stark contrast to the usual placid lake waters of the competition, dynamic water flows here will offer new challenges, and anglers will need to alter their strategies to confront the conditions. Without spilling too many secrets, Power-Pole Pro-Team member Chris Lane discusses how he’s preparing his game plan.

“Right now, the main thing is that I’ll be watching the weather,” Lane said. “There’s been a ton of rain and a lot of flooding. River waters are really high and muddy, and I’m just hoping they clean up a bit before we start. Everything depends on the flow, how much they let out.”

Power-Pole products factor big time into Lane’s preparation.

“River waters are inherently moving faster than lakes, and both Power-Poles and the Drift Paddles are built for this kind of environment,” Lane said. “First thing I’ll figure out is to gauge the current according to the amount of water they let out, then I’ll adjust my approach with the Power-Pole Drift Paddles when working over the banks.”

Off-color water conditions combined with cold air temps means Lane suspects reaction baits will get most of the attention.

“I’m loaded with the Luck-E Strike RC baits. The plan is to burn banks trying to find fish,” Lane said.

When Lane encounters the rocky points and steep banks, a steady platform is essential.

“In the shallows, it’s easy to power-pole shallow water anchors down, park on the steep banks, and stay off the rocks to cast,” he said.

Lane also knows that in the early season, when you find one fish, you’re bound to find more — thus the ability to stick to a spot with the pole down is of immense importance.

“All said and done, when I’m on the Tennessee River my Power-Pole shallow water anchors allow for total boat control over the swift drifts and let me stay on a piece longer to work over,” Lane remarked. “Other than that, the last of my prep is to dial in all my electronics to the local area to coincide with the conditions.”

And as always, in the Bassmaster Classic, a little luck helps.