The spotlights on Janet Parker: As the first woman with a rock-solid chance at qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series, Janet Parker of Little Elm, Texas, is garnering a lot of media attention.
“Its amazing,” she said. “Im trying to handle it with grace.”
Fishing-related print and digital media have been especially attentive. One webcast dubbed her bid “the story of the year.”
“I cant get over how the fishing community is responding,” she said.
Parkers chance at the Elite Series will happen at the Oct. 20-22 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Central Open on Table Rock Lake out of Branson, Mo. As the third of three Central Opens of the 2011 season, the Missouri event will mark the finish line of the points race. Elite Series berths will be offered to the Top 5 anglers in overall points. Parker owns the No. 2 spot in points going into Table Rock, the product of a sixth-place and a 10th-place finish in the first two Central Opens of 2011.
To get where she is in points, Parker had to out-fish most of the Central Open field – twice. While several other women compete in the Central Open circuit, the field is male-dominated.
At Table Rock, shell have to turn in a decent performance to seal an Elite Series berth. She estimated that to stay within the Top 5 in points, she needs to finish at Table Rock in 50th place or better.
If she qualifies, Parker said she wont let the opportunity slide to turn Elite, to make fishing history as the first woman to compete at the top level of Bassmaster competition.
Shes thought only briefly about the media spotlight that is likely to come with such an accomplishment. She witnessed the media microscope trained on Kim Bain-Moore in 2009 when Bain-Moore was the first woman to compete in a Bassmaster Classic; both fished the now-disbanded Womens Bassmaster Tour through which Bain-Moore won her Classic qualification.
Like Bain-Moore, Parker has already shown she can handle media attention. A second-year Open competitor, who also has the experience of several other circuits since 2005, she is used to being interviewed. She makes scores of appearances each year for the charities she supports and on behalf of her sponsors, like her annual appearance at a Talladega Superspeedway event to lead the NASCAR parade with her Aarons Dream Machine, a Ranger-Evinrude E-TEC rig wrapped by Aarons, the rent-to-own retailer thats one of her major sponsors.
The Bassmaster website will closely follow Parkers quest to be Elite. During the Table Rock event, the website will post reports and extensive photo galleries dedicated to her bid.
Elite Series Marshal registration opens next week: Anglers who want to be a Marshal in a 2012 Bassmaster Elite Series event can sign on as early as Oct. 10.
Oct. 10 at 9 a.m. EST will mark the start of priority registration at Bassmaster.com for B.A.S.S. Federation Nation and B.A.S.S. Life members.
Starting Oct. 17 at 9 a.m. EST, Marshal registration on the Bassmaster website will be available to all B.A.S.S. members.
A Marshal in the Elite Series rides along in a competitors boat to serve as that anglers official observer for the day. Its the Marshals job to ensure all rules are adhered to. On the eve of the event, Marshals are randomly assigned to Elite Series anglers – to one pro for the first day, then to another for the second day of competition.
The Marshal experience is a front-row seat to watch a tournament. As observers, they not only meet pros and spend a day on the water with them, they can pick up techniques and tackle tips just by watching and asking questions (Marshals do not fish).
The cost of Marshal participation is still $100 per tournament. Details are available at the registration page on Bassmaster.com.
Shryock almost quit: Fletcher Shryock was downright discouraged at the start of the 2011 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open season.
He considered quitting. Few would have blamed him. He finished 161st in his first event, the 2011 Southern Open on Floridas Kissimmee Chain of Lakes.
“I originally signed up just for that first tournament,” said the 26-year-old from Newcomerstown, Ohio. “When I finished 161st, I wasnt going to continue. I said to myself, ‘You are definitely just a normal Joe, and you need to quit wasting your money.
“Then one of my buddies talked me into doing Lake Norman – which I won,” he said.
His prizes were cash, a boat rig he used the rest of the season, and a 2012 Bassmaster Classic berth.
So encouraged, Shryock decided to dive into the Northern Open division with the goal of qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series by being among the Top 5 in points after three events.
“I went into it 14th in the points. I knew it would be a long shot,” said Shryock, who raced dirt bikes from age 12 until an accident when he was 22 convinced him it was time to get out. Thats when he turned back to bass fishing, a hobby of his since he was a young kid.
After three Northern events, he had climbed into fifth place in points, exactly enough to get an invitation to join the Elite Series in 2012.
“To go from where I was in January to now – getting into the Classic and the Elite Series – is completely a dream come true,” he said.
He said he intends to join the 2012 Elite Series field, and hes already working on making it happen. He has upgraded his boat to a bigger rig, a Ranger Z520 with a 250-hp Mercury OptiMax Pro XS. Hes working on a boat wrap deal. Hes also planning scouting trips; first on his list is the Classic fishery, the Red River out of Shreveport, La. Hes also lining up scouting trips to fisheries on the 2012 Elite Series schedule.
First up on the Elite Series trail for 2012 is a place he intends to get the best of this time around: Florida.
“I havent done well in Florida,” he said. “But since I was last there, Ive become more well-rounded, learned a lot, and my confidence is high. But I know that Ill still be learning, that there will be some ups, some downs. Ill have to step up and do it.”
Shryock said he aims to live by something Elite Series pro Gerald Swindle once said, a comment Shryock picked up on in an online video Swindle was in.
“Id never heard anything like it before,” Shryock said. “In my words, what he (Swindle) said was this: There are a lot of people out there who say they tried to do something. The bottom line is, a lot of people dont know what trying is. Trying is going so hard and running yourself broke, even sleeping on the ground. Thats when youve tried.”
Who will win the Mercury Films Fest?: After 15 weeks of viewing fun and interesting videos submitted to the Mercury Films Festival, anglers can look forward to finding out soon who won the contest, which closed Sept. 30.
The maker of the winning video can choose as his or her prize either a Mercury engine or a fishing trip with one of the festivals judges.
An Alaskan fishing trip will be awarded via a sweepstakes to one lucky voter who registered and voted for his or her favorite video.
About B.A.S.S.
For more than 40 years, B.A.S.S. has served as the authority on bass fishing. The organization advances the sport through advocacy, outreach and an expansive tournament structure while connecting directly with the passionate community of bass anglers through its Bassmaster media vehicles.
The Bassmaster brand and its multimedia platforms are guided by a mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications – Bassmaster Magazine and B.A.S.S. Times – comprehensive Bassmaster website, ESPN2 and Outdoor Channel television programming, Bassmaster provides rich, leading-edge content true to the lifestyle.
The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, B.A.S.S. Federation Nation events presented by Yamaha and Skeeter Boats and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bassmaster Classic.
B.A.S.S. offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members and remains focused on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.By: B.A.S.S. News
