“You didn’t qualify for the Classic. Canada qualified for the Classic.”
That’s what Canadians have told Charles Sim, Canada’s first ever representative to the Classic through the B.A.S.S. Nation and only the second Canadian ever in the Classic.
“I’m so humbled by how much the Canadian anglers and the Nation anglers are behind me,” said Sim today at the Classic’s Media Day. Sim is expecting 40 to 50 people to drive all the way from Canada to cheer him on.
Sim is one of six anglers who qualified for the Classic via the B.A.S.S. Nation, a difficult path to the Classic that involves winning tournaments from the club level to the state level to the regionals and then to the national championship.
The other five are Albert Collins of Texas, John Proctor of South Carolina, Levi McNeill of Utah, Fabian Rodriguez of the Delaware B.A.S.S. Nation, and Greg Vance of Iowa.
All six are looking forward to tomorrow, where most of them are predicting the leading weight to be in the low 20-pound range.
Collins is the exception on the weight prediction.
“It could as easily be 12 pounds as it could be 25 pounds,” he said.
The bite has been off, Collins said, and sadly, he expects to see lots of zeroes tomorrow.
“I just hope I’m not one of them.”
Collins added that he’s got a spot he’s counting on. If he can get there before anyone else, it could be really good.
Proctor is also optimistic.
“I had a decent practice,” said the South Carolina angler. “For me, this is a dream. Now that I’ve achieved it, I’ll just want to do it again!”
Likewise for Vance, who, at 21 years old, is one of the youngest in the field.
“It means everything to be here,” he said. “This is the coolest thing I’ve ever done. I’ll be fishing against the guys I’ve grown up watching on TV. And they’ve all been so welcoming.”
McNeill is hoping to find some of the quality bites he found in practice.
“I didn’t catch many,” said McNeill, “but the ones I did were good. I can catch keepers, but I want the big ones. I’m going for broke tomorrow.”
So is Sim, who is proudly displaying his Canadian ties on his boat, which is wrapped in a maple leaf design.
“I’m going to enjoy the week,” said Sim, “and the fishing will work itself out.”
Keep up all weekend at Bassmaster.com.
