Drew Gregory Susquehanna Smallmouth Tournament Day 1

I followed ‪@RiverBasserDrew‬ for two days of competing in the ‪@BassmasterOfficial‬ Kayak Series Tournament on the Susquehanna River. This is his day 1. He managed three smallmouth 19 inches or better, and ended with a five fish total of 90 inches fishing out of his Torqeedo Ultralight powered ‪@crescent-kayaks‬ Shoalie. Be sure to watch his day 2 video!

[@markbradford1700]

Fantastic video. Thanks for doing this guys.

[@johnwhite993]

Awesome video. Drew is a person to pattern after with the positive attitude and truly happy for others. A real true gentleman of the sport and his commentary is top notch and easy to follow

[@TheLittleStuff]

He is…. good for the sport.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Thanks @johnwhite993 !! I try to stay positive but those fish are always testing me...especially when I lose the ones that coulda really made a difference like on this day...but don't worry, I get 'em back on day 2! ;-)

[@shawnwhalen8314]

Topwater... especially Whopper Plopper are my favorite for warm weather Smallies! Sooo aggressive!

[@TheLittleStuff]

Yes, it’s fun. Super aggressive take downs. But, the hook up and landing percentage is not great. Per Jake, round bend hooks have better hookup percentage. Per Bill, the Ryugi Quad spin hooks have a much improved landing percentage.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Same here and you live and die by those baits! I use a fresh one for every tournament with super sticky sharp hooks and they hit with such force that you often do miss some....BUT it calls them up and BIG ONES so its like a drug I can't quit sometimes and its cashed a lot of checks and won tournaments for me so this day was one of those I just have to chalk up to just being a little unlucky oddswise.

[@jasonvenesky2438]

So refined in everything he does.

[@TheLittleStuff]

Drew has done this a long time at a high intensity level.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Just a lot of practice I guess...have I ever told you I was single until 35 years old when I met my wife...guess what I did nearly every weekend...FISH! Haha😁

[@jasonvenesky2438]

I remember those days fondly…

[@nicholasmaiers4221]

Great video Jeff , really enjoyed seeing how Drew handles his tournament day a lot to be learned thanks

[@TheLittleStuff]

He narrated well.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Thanks @nicholasmaiers4221 !! It's not easy but TourneyX never shows how pretty or ugly it was, just numbers so keep grinding through the ups, downs until the last minute. It's like my golf game...scorecard never knows how ugly my bogey or pars really were...haha

[@georgetollefsen994]

Great Stuff Jeff ,Drew is a cool guy. Love the work of a good fisherman 👍and Cameraman. Thanks for sharing.

[@TheLittleStuff]

It was a fun thing to film. Wait until day 2!!

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Thanks George! I'm gonna copy this for one day when my kids no longer think I'm cool and be like "hey, George thinks I'm cool and I can prove it" haha 🙂

[@georgetollefsen994]

@@RiverBasserDrew no problem Drew my kids don’t think I’m cool at all! Lol 😂 Best of luck in your future tournaments, I will be following 👍

[@timothythompson6549]

Positive mental attitude. Drew haz it.

[@TheLittleStuff]

Yep!

[@RiverBasserDrew]

100% You gotta have it! Trust me its even harder to lose them when being filmed but there's nothing you can really do except realize that you know you're in the right area and imagine how many people in the event aren't even getting the big bites at all.

[@rjmfishtales]

It was nice to come along for the ride with you and Greg. I am going to be on the road myself next year to compete. It’s my turn to try and see how I do,. Been sitting on the back burner for way to long. We will see…..

[@TheLittleStuff]

Drew was generous to share many of his tactics to be efficient with his time. Good luck next season Ryan!

[@rjmfishtales]

@@TheLittleStuff yes he was. Thank you Jeff I will need it!! We appreciate you in the Kayak community.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

@@rjmfishtales Bring it Ryan!!! It'll be fun if nothing else!

[@rjmfishtales]

@@RiverBasserDrew this almost sounds like a personal challenge from you Mr. Gregory! 😳Already trying to get under my skin. Lol.

[@brandonyoder5517]

With the last name of Yoder i always start at the bottom of the leaderboard. 😅

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Haha, dude but theres only one way for you to go after it starts! UP!

[@nicholasmaiers4221]

We’ve been struggling this season to find those big girls in the upper Potomac

[@TheLittleStuff]

It’s not as strong of a fishery as the Susquehanna. There are bigs, but relatively few.

[@meyouknow1226]

Power fishing baby👌

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Fishing seriously mimics your personality and I'm too energetic to fish any other way! haha😆

[@perfectleveladventurefishi619]

tree fish. LOL

[@TheLittleStuff]

I average about two per trip! 😂

[@caseyhepler2806]

What rod works best for topwater?

[@TheLittleStuff]

Maybe Drew will sound off here, but I like a moderate or moderate fast rod. A fast rod is better for jigs.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

Jeff's on same page with me. For me it really depends on if its a treble topwater or a single hook like a buzzbait. However, I basically use the same MH action for both just because I use straight braid and can really "feel" how the hook has penetrated the fish and on a Choppo like in this video you notice I basically play them by the reel and don't use my drag. I prefer that and I know it looks odd often like there isn't much pressure or bend on my rod when I'm fighting them but that's because I am controlling the exact amount of pressure given there is no stretch on braid and I've learned how much is too much to where the hook will pull and am guarding against that more than anything when they're barely hooked. But in general MH w/ moderate taper or a M action is fine (if you're still using straight braid). It also comes down to how well you can cast your particular lure because the M will cast some of the lighter topwaters a little better.

[@Noneya-z8j]

Curious, do you have a rule of thumb for how deep to set the torqeedo? As in how many inches to have the prop from the top of the water.

[@TheLittleStuff]

We actually worked on this with his. In a shallow water fishery, you can bring the top swing of that prop within an inch of the surface and it still grabs well. In deeper water fisheries, it makes sense to adjust the prop downward. That’s why I put the quick release hardware on the steering triangle. Quick adjust based on how shallow I go.

[@Noneya-z8j]

I like the new opening music

[@TheLittleStuff]

Glad you liked the choice. It’s available on Music Vine.

[@RiverBasserDrew]

I loved that part too!