Mike Iaconelli has been a polarizing character in the world of bass fishing his entire Hall of Fame career. Most love him, some love to hate him, but regardless it is indisputable that the man is purely entertaining to watch fish. This notion was on full display on day one of the 2024 Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Elite on Lake Champlain.
Iaconelli had a live camera in his boat that documented his strong effort on the water, which produced a mixed bag of bass that weighed just under 19 pounds, along with a few classic “Going IKE” fish catches that will leave you laughing, smiling, and wanting to go wet a line.
“I actually had a homeowner come out and check on me today because he heard my screams and thought I was dying,” Iaconelli said with a laugh. “I assured him I am just a crazy person, and I was perfectly fine. Couldn’t have been better, in fact.”
This Champlain homeowner wasn’t the first and won’t be the last person to be thrown off by Ike’s wild celebrations on the water, but his antics are 100% authentic and his pure passion for fishing is infectious. After an uncharacteristically tough season, it’s great to see the fan-favorite Iaconelli having fun and in his element on one of his favorite bodies of water.
“This is a lake I have always liked because of the duality of the fishery,” Iaconelli explained. “The first time I fished this lake was in 1990. I was 18 years old, and I loved it then like I love it now. You can fish your strengths here, whether that’s 30-feet of water chasing brown ones or on the bank flipping up green ones. That’s what I did today, and I had a lot of fun doing it.”
The Team Toyota pro mixed in old-school pattern fishing along with some new age technology and techniques to catch his day one weight, perfectly exemplifying the wide array of opportunities Champlain has to offer.
Iaconelli has openly struggled with mastering forward-facing sonar, joking that he can see and catch fish with it, but he’s not yet able differentiate between a bass, catfish, carp, or Jimmy Hoffa on his electronics screen as efficiently as some of his competitors.
Still, Iaconelli used FFS to catch a limit, including a few jumbo smallmouth, before heading shallow to fish in much the same way he did 25-years ago en route to his first professional tournament win right here on Lake Champlain in a Bassmaster Top 150 event.
Ike made several culls running this shallow water pattern and as the viewer, you could watch his confidence and enthusiasm grow with each catch. After a surprisingly bumpy ride back to the day one weigh-in that had Iaconelli grateful he had a Yamaha 250 SHO Outboard at his back to rely on, he was greeted at the docks by his wife Becky, son Vegas and daughter Stella. Putting the cherry on top to a day that has Ike eager to get back on the water.
“Man, what a fun day,” Iaconelli grinned. “Even after all these years, I still love it. The old-school in me would have loved to go today (referencing day two being postponed to inclement weather), but the old man in me is OK with it and will be ready to go tomorrow.”
Iaconelli has had an indelible impression on bass fishing and no matter what you think of him, it’s hard to argue against tournaments being more entertaining when he is in the mix.
