They Just Want to Eat – By Bruce Callis – May 4,2017
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The FLW Tour presented by General Tire at Beaver Lake was a wild event with lake levels rising more then 12 feet. Anglers had to endure wind, rain (more than 9 inches Saturday alone), debris, muddy water, and moving bass as then attempted to land a 5 fish limit each day and dreams of getting to hoist the winner’s trophy high on the final day. Johnny McCombs managed to stay just a little bit ahead of his competitors and winning $100,200 as he lived a dream.
Jason Reyes finished 2nd with 44 pounds 11 ounces, Bryan Thrift finished 3rd with 43 pounds 3 ounces, Keith Bryan finished 4th with 42 pounds 14 ounces and Cody Meyer rounded out the top 5 with 40 pounds 10 ounces. Out of the top 5, only Thrift and Bryan caught a 20 fish limit, Meyer and Reyes caught 18 fish and McCombs only had 17 bass over the four days.
Rising water, especially a rise of 12 feet makes fishing tough, but it is what we do! We go out no matter what to enjoy the sport we love, to live our passion. Bass don’t care who we are. They don’t care if we are standing on a bank, in a cheap kayak, on a barely floatable jon boat, or in a $70,000 bass boat. They don’t care if we are male or female, tall or short, young or old. They don’t care about our skin color, how much we make, if we are using old lures we have had for years or new ones, whether we are using the cheapest models or the most expensive. They only care about what is available to eat.
Fishing can be humbling on one day, and the best day ever the next. We live the highs and lows, sometimes all in one day. But it is our passion, it is who we are. We come back over and over, because of the thrill, the relaxation, the oneness, or what ever feeling or emotion each of us get by being there.
We live our dreams usually without any fan fare. We celebrate our highs and lows only with select friends, because they are just like us. But sometimes, we dip into the dark to help us get through, thinking it will make us better. If we are lucky, we have that friend that will help us overcome the demon. But sometimes, the demon grabs us and holds on so strongly, we can’t see the way out. Fishing doesn’t care if we faced demons and walked away or if we slipped. Fishing is about enjoyment. The bass don’t care, they just want to eat.
Johnny McCombs fished the FLW tour, faced the demon and lost, found the way out of the darkness and once again has risen to fish on the FLW Tour. He has reached 2 big pinnacles of life, he has made a choice to be clean and now has a tour victory to his name. Only time will tell if he continues to stare down the demons. But if his passion stays strong, I believe he will win. I pray it will be. Life is short, too short, make the most of it, be that friend we all need. We can do it!
The bass don’t care, they just want to eat.