Many of the anglers said it was a grind, even the guys who caught fish mirrored that comment. Surprisingly, it was not real cold for January on Don Pedro however it was foggy in the morning requiring me postpone blast off for the safety of our anglers.  Once the fog lifted the tournament was under way.  The sun came out around 11:45 a.m. we sill had some high clouds making it a great day. The bite was reported to be anywhere from 25-60 ft, drop shotting baits like a   Berkley Gulp Shakey Worm or using lead heads rigged with baits like a Havoc Bottom Hopper.  The anglers that ventured away from the worm bite caught bigger fish, the event was won on jigs.  Big Fish of the event was also caught on a jig.  No one reported doing well on swim baits. The main lake river was not producing according to most guys.   Interviews with the top 3 are below.  

Kevin Cheek,

BBT Tournament Director 

Thanks everyone who came out to the first event in the Central Division.  This was a great turn out and I am looking forward to the next event February 7, 2015 on Pine Flat.  You can register now!

Central Division Pine Flat February 7, 2015  (sign up now)

Mother Load Don Pedro January 24, 2015 (sign up now)

Full Story of the Day 

LET'S GO FISHING!!!!

The Central Valley 2015 season of the Best Bass Tournaments Circuit held their first tournament for the season at Don Pedro Lake on Saturday, January 17th.  The weather was cold and the water was low but the spirits of all the anglers were high and enthusiastic.  We had a total of 49 boats, one small boat and forty eight large boats.  There was a team from four out of the five regions of the Best Bass Tournament Circuit.  What a great turnout. We arrived at the parking lot of Barrett Cove around 3:45 a.m.  The trailer doors were opened and the staff helped setup tables, pop-ups, lights, paperwork, coffee and homemade treats.   After setting up the registration area the staff took their equipment and setup for the boat checks.  Boat checks were done down by the restrooms. The anglers started showing up around 4:00 a.m.   There were a lot of familiar faces and several new faces.   There was a lot of excitement and it was great to see all of the returning anglers and new anglers.  There was so much going on that it was hard to believe that it was time for Kevin to head down for the blast off.  Boat number 9 was drawn as the first boat out.  There were three flights scheduled for the weigh-in.  Boat numbers 9 thru 23 were to return at 3:00p.m., boat numbers 24 thru 40 at 3:15p.m.  and boat numbers 41 thru 49 and 1 thru 8 at 3:30p.m.  Kevin took his bullhorn and headed down to the water. While the boats were sent out for a full day of fishing the registration area was taken down and put back into the trailer.  The paperwork was gathered and safely placed into the pickup.  Next the boat check area was taken down and packed up.  Because of the water levels we were unable to bring our camper to the lake so we rented a cabin at Lake McClure.  After blast off we headed back to the cabin to complete the paperwork, have some breakfast, take showers and then pack up and head back down to Don Pedro. We arrived at Don Pedro around noon and started all over again.  Pop-ups were raised, tables setup and sponsor banners hung-up.   Our helper Christopher Orange stayed at the staging area while the rest of us headed down to the Marina for the weigh-in.  The scale and display unit was setup and the weigh tables and bump tanks were put into place.  The fish slide was also setup and the water turned on.  We were ready for the first flight of anglers to arrive.  The weight-in went fast and Kevin called the scales closed at 3:45p.m. Now back to the staging area for the awards.  It took about fifteen minutes to get the paperwork together and the money envelopes ready for the anglers.  Trophies were set out and we were ready to give away the money.  The team of Dennis Bingham from Madera and Daniel Hernandez from Fresno took 1st place.  This teams five fish weighted in at 13.27 pounds for $1,725.00.  With their five fish the 1st place big fish was also weighed-in at 6.32 pounds.  First place big fish was good for $490.00, giving them a total of $2,215.00 for a good day of fishing.  Dennis and Daniel used jigs and worms while fishing the main lake.  The methods used were dart, jigs and swim baits.  They would like to thank Bray's Baits for sponsoring them.  Good job guys. 2nd place was taken by the team of Robert Mansor of Don Pedro and Mike Goncalves of Modesto.  These two anglers brought in 12.31 pounds of fish for a pay check worth $1,005.00.  Robert and Mike were fishing the main lake and used plastics and fished deep.  Great job fishing. Mike Sanders of Hughson and Ron Selk of Ceres took 3rd place in the tournament with their five fish weighting-in at 12.82 pounds.  Mike and Ron took home a check in the amount of $635.00.  These two anglers used drop shots and pro worms and fished the main lake.  They would like to than there sponsor Pro Worms for their support.  Keep up the good work guys. 2nd place big fish went to the team of Petie Rodriguez and Carlos Araiza for their big fish of 4.88 pounds, giving them a check for $295.00.  3rd place big fish went to the team of Matthew Hudson and Casey Taylor.  Their big fish weighted-in at 4.37 pounds and landed them $195.00.  Matthew and Casey also took 5th place in the tournament.  Great jog anglers. Something new that we are doing this year is videos to put up on the web page.  Right now we are interviewing and videoing the first three place winners.  It is also our plans to interview some of the anglers as they come up to register in the morning.  We hope you will take the time to watch the videos and feel some of the excitement that the anglers are feeling while fishing the BBT Circuit. We would like to thank our weigh master David Orange , his friend Beth, our staff boats Brian Orange and Mark Giuski, and Rich Hale and Jim Henry.  Also a big thank you to Christopher Orange, Chelby Cheek and Mom for all their help and hard work.  Without our dedicated staff and helpers we would not be able to put on the tournament that we do. The second tournament for the Central Valley Region will be held at Pine Flat Lake on Saturday, February 7, 2015.  We hope to see all of you anglers there and any new anglers to join us for a day of excitement and good fishing.