Put All the Odds in Your Favor for Bass Fishing Success: Could Karma Help?

One simple idea that may have a huge impact on your fishing success.

A unique keepsake: The tournament trophy paired with the old Coors Light can, a symbol of karma at work during the author’s memorable victory. / Kurt Mazurek

“Karma is the great equalizer. It gives everyone what they truly deserve.” – Unknown

A BFL Bass Tournament Day to Remember: The Perfect “Zone"

It was the day of my first BFL victory--the season opener of the Greats Lakes division on the Mississippi River at LaCrosse, Wisconsin. It was just one of those days we dream of as tournament anglers. Everything seemed to be "clicking." I felt like I was in the "zone" way more often than most tournament days--calling my shot on many casts.

How a Rusty Beer Can Became a Symbol of Bass Fishing Karma

By mid-morning, I had three good fish in the live well totaling approximately 12-pounds–a really solid start for this fishery. Between casts, I spotted a beer can in the current just ahead of my boat, bobbing its way toward me.

Why Environmental Responsibility Matters in Bass Fishing

As an avid outdoorsman, I've always taken a good deal of environmental responsibility in fishing. Actually, whether I’m fishing, hunting or just hiking, picking up trash has become second nature to me.

I'm not trying to be all self-righteous here or judging anyone, but it confuses me when people who use these lakes and rivers for their recreation, unthinkingly leave trash behind. That includes your used soft plastic baits, but let's save that for another story.

If you'd like to see a relatively unceremonious bagging of the winning catch from yesterday's WalMart BFL tournament at La Crosse, check it out here.

Posted by Kurt Mazurek on Sunday, May 18, 2014

No Big Deal, Just Do the Right Thing

So, here comes that beer can. It would have been pretty easy to let it go by, and instead get one more cast in. No one would blame me for staying focused on my fishing on a day when it looked like I had a good shot at a strong finish. Honestly, I didn’t really give it too much conscious thought. It felt like the right thing to do, almost instinctively, so I did it. I set my rod down, knelt on the edge of the deck, waited patiently for it to reach my boat, and grabbed the rusty Coors Light from the water.

I was a little surprised to see that although this old can that had clearly been in the water for a long time, maybe more than a year, it was unopened and still full of beer. I showed it to my co-angler, tossed it in a storage compartment and got back to fishing. In fact, I completely forgot about it until I was cleaning out my boat the next day.

A day to remember: The author celebrates his first BFL victory on stage, proudly holding the first-place trophy. / Kurt Mazurek

Positive Actions, Positive Outcomes

Still buzzing from my first BFL win, I smiled and inspected the rusty, dented can. This may sound corny to people who’ve never felt it, but I remembered how in the zone I felt during that tournament day–how connected I felt to everything in the universe, to nature. And then I wondered, is this stupid, old can I cleaned out of the river a little bit of karma? I took care of the river, so the river took care of me? Is that a thing? Or, maybe, positive thoughts create positive actions which creates positive results, like a tournament victory? Interesting. I’m not sure I have an answer or exactly what I believe. Obviously, it could easily be coincidence and I’m making way too much of it.

But here’s what I do know. Even if it is completely unrelated to winning a bass tournament, doing what I can to keep my favorite environments as nice as they can be, is exactly what I’m always going to do.

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