B.A.S.S. started their fan balloting for their July All Star event. The top 8 anglers in AOY points will get the automatic invite, then the fans will vote on 4 more. They also are going to match up fans that enter with an angler, if you are lucky enough to get drawn, and if the pro you were matched with wins, you get a new boat, motor, trailer. You have to sign up on the BASS site and you can vote once per day. You vote for anglers in 4 regions. Consequently, you may not be able to vote for all your favorites, if they are in the same region.
I am lobbying for your Skeet Reese vote. Yea, if you're a Michigander, he's sometimes in the KVD vs. Skeet battle been like the archangel, but I had a chance to spend the day in the boat with him at the recent Dixie Duel Elite Series Event on Lake Wheeler. I had a preconceived idea of the guy when I started the day, but by the end of the day, I found him to be one of the most personable and likeable pros that I have ridden with, and I have ridden with 16 different pros so far as a Marshal.
I also think that Skeet's performance last year was remarkable, and for BASS ESPN to change the AOY format like they did really made it a raw deal for Skeet.
I guess I'm old school when it comes to things like that, you have to have your AOY winner be the guy that fished the best over the whole season. Not come up with some convoluted post season deal which opens the door to other scenarios. Not taking anything away from KVD's win. He played by BASS ESPN rules and won it fair and square. I just like how the current owners have changed it.
The AOY is determined by how you did over the course of the year and the post season becomes an all star event. I like the change. All sports have an all star event, and I like being able to vote to put people in.
KVD, at the Wheeler event, was asking people to put Skeet in. He too feels that he deserves to be in it. Also, because you vote for anglers in geographical regions, you can still vote for Skeet and our local guys as well. So, one of my four votes is going to be for Skeet. I really think he deserves it.
PS I have been having trouble with the B.A.S.S. site responding correctly today. Hopefully they don't have a computer glitch. All I can pull up are the anglers in the first region.
Check out my Saturday, June 18 Daily Blog on my teardropbass.com website to read about my day with Skeet and to check out more pics.
Unfortunately, they put Ryan Said and Jonathon VanDam in the same region - region 2 - making it harder on us up here to pick a local guy.
http://vote.bassmaster.com/toyota/fanfavorites/promo
You can vote once per day and alternate.
That's one option. They put your boy Nate in with them too. Apparently the regions are literally by their home state I assume.
Jerry McKinnis just came out today with an article on Bassmaster to encourage folks to vote for Skeet.
http://www.bassmaster.com/blog/bass-fishing-needs-skeet-reese
Seems like a pretty popular guy... He was pretty funny at D & R Sports Center last spring. He really had a bullseye on Kevin. And the guy who made the mistake of answering his phone during the seminar!! ;D