Who Will be Crowned the Best?

No more Pre-fishing… No more logging coordinates in the GPS looking for the next “Secret Spot”… No more studying maps… No more restless nights… No more 2am alarms… Just 8 more hours to catch 5 fish and attain 1 final goal.

With the hype over, the trash talking silent, only the sound of the radio crackling… ”Official Time is 5:29am, would boats number 55-65 please move forward”

One last quick rundown of the mental checklist…Knots are good, hooks are sharp, drags are set, live well running. Water temp looks good, how’s the clarity? Not going to be any changes to the plan now. The 1st hours of the event will be fluid based on what the fish are doing. We have discussed every scenario, and possible reactions. But all said and done we are just going fishing. You cannot control how they will react on any given day, no matter how much preparation or planning.

RADIO CRACKLES…

The official start.

“We would like to welcome all of you to the Inaugural “Fishin’ the Mission 2008. Boat number 55 please pass on my right. Boats number 66-75 please move forward”

In all the boats you can sense the hands gripping the steering wheels a little tighter as moisture forms between the palm and the throttle. In our boat, the ceremonial High 5, a nod, and the exchange 2 words “Good Luck”, as our number is called and we pass under the bridge.

Maybe it’s a bit corny, maybe a bit superstitious, maybe deep down we believe there is a little magic in it, but for the last 14 years it’s the same ceremony as our number is called for takeoff. It started long before we fished with each other, is started when we competed against each other. Out of reverence, out of respect, we would meet in the parking lot with a high 5, a nod, and a “Good Luck”.

That day last year, on Mission Bay , there was a bit magic on our side. There have been very few events we have fished together, that meant so much, where everything went so right. There was a calm confidence in the boat all day. There was no indecision, there were no ifs, there was no hoping, and there were no maybes. Every cast was made without 2nd guessing, every hook set was true, every fish we hooked made it too the net. That day we had a good idea of when, where and how, and took it to the live well all day.

A 2nd place finish gave us 5 more points than we needed to win the 2008 SWBA AOTY. We wanted to win the event, but the understanding that we had completed something personally greater made that day one of the most fulfilling of our careers.

As we look at 2009, as we look at the top teams, remember what you are fishing for. You see many can be the best on any given Saturday, but the SWBA AOTY is about being the best all year. The AOTY title will not be won with 1 fortunate cast, but with 10,000 repeated casts. It’s not about 1 Hot GPS coordinate, but about 100’s of key timely decisions. It’s not about 1/100th of a pound, but about 1000’s of 1/100’s compiling many pounds. You can’t lose it by missing 1 fish at the net, but you can win it with 100’s of great shots with the net. We build up 1 final event for the AOTY title, but the foundation and the structure for winning it all were built over the 5 preceding events.

When looking at one tournament, we have always said “Your skill will get you in the top 10, but from there you are going to need a little luck”. When speaking about the 6-event marathon, we call AOTY, the luck is stripped away, both good and bad. The individual moments, the wide-open spots, the secret lure, the lost 5lb’er, have all been blended into 1 final report card of skill. And to measure who has the most, you can put away the scale, because it’s no longer about pounds and ounces. It’s solely about points. Having the most pounds in any event is a significant accomplishment, but to walk out of the parking lot in September with the most points means you are the best. There are no asterisks next to an AOTY, it cannot be faked, it cannot be stolen, it can only be pursued by many, and won by so few.

As we all fish this last event of 2009, we are all going to make it to the top of this mountain we started to climb back in February. Many achieving personal goals they set for themselves. Some coming up short, but already looking to 2010 for some payback. We can tell you this, as with every tournament we enter our goal is to win, and it is possible that may happen in this last event. A significant accomplishment for sure, but even as we would be on that stage we know we would be under the shadow of an ever greater accomplishment by a team that day.

Fishin’ the Mission 2009, SWBA will name a new team as AOTY. Unlike our president our politicians who are elected solely on promises, our 2009 AOTY will be awarded based on actual performance. Whatever team wins, understand you fished against the very best this sport has to offer, and understand you beat them all.

Congratulations to the 2009 SWBA Anglers of the Year and from Scott and myself, a high 5, a nod, and 2 final words, “Good Luck”.

Matt Kobzeff,

Team Killswitch, 2008 Anglers Of The Year