Bassmaster Elite pro Michael Iaconelli – Ike to his legions of fans – surprised the 49 international competitors of Hobie Fishing Worlds 6 when he showed up at the welcome dinner. Ike, always pumped full of enthusiasm, was taking in the scene as the anglers prepped for their two days of pre-fishing.
RELATED: Hobie Fishing Worlds 6 Competitors Hit the Water
“It’s awesome. The camaraderie is impressive. People from different countries are coming together. There are lot of tournament circuits but nothing like this,” he said of the Hobie Fishing World Championship. “It’s the beauty of kayak fishing – helping grow the sport worldwide.”
After he’d had a chance to check out the local fishing conditions, Hobie Fishing asked Ike how he’d approach the three-species Catch, Photograph, Release world title competition.
“In the bass world, we try to get enough pieces of info to steer in the right direction. Here I saw that the bigger fish are in back ponds and the numbers of fish were in deeper main channel. I’d put those two pieces of info together to formulate a game plan, using different elements,” he said.
How does the competition stack up? Ike said kayak fishing poses a challenging test. “With kayak fishing there is more strategy involved because you have to pedal over as opposed to racing over in a motorized boat,” he said. “To be the champion, you can’t ever give up.”
