I've been invited to fish a club tourney as a guest on the back of a boat with a guy from church.  I've always fished out of my boat and have everything with me in my tackle storage.  I get what I want, when I want it and then put it all away.  Now I need to be organized and a little more mythotical let alone thoughtful of not overloading my invite.  How and what would you scale down to to have what you need but not overkill?

BTW, I dont own a tackle box anymore.  Everything is in individual plastic bags, or falcon boxes or carriers.

Thanks Rod

Rod,

Welcome to the great delima that we all face when we are nonboaters.

First, I always check with the boater to see what he is going to throw or how we are going to fish.

It is not good to have a Zoom finesse worm on your line while the boater is moving fast throwing a crankbait or a spinnerbait.

It is not good to have a Carolina rig on your setup when he is fishing the creeks and beaver huts or wood or shallow water.

Regarding baits, I take a few of each catagory and hope they suffice and will produce strikes.

I always take Shad Raps and Ugly Ducklings; some Bandit 200s; two or three spinnerbaits with different skirt colors; Senkos to fish wacky; Zoom finessse worms depending on the water clarity; and a few bullet weights and hooks, mainly weedless 2/0 and 3/0 hooks that are all purpose.

For topwaters I take buzzbaits; a Pop-R or my RICO; one or two frogs; and the dreaded trick worm in pink and white.

Dead Ringers seem to do well in Virginia and I like Mocassin Blue. watermealon, pumpkinseed and red shad.

I like to throw crankbaits from the back of the boat but will always have a Senko and a finesse worm ready to go.

Will also take a few tubes and creature baits.

Remember your pliers and sissors.

I stuff everything into an old gym bag along with drinks, lunch and snacks.

I try to take only four (4) rods with me but I pack two extra baitcasters to switch out for backlashes and two extra spinning reels so I have four rods and four (4) baitcasters and four (4) spinning reels.

It is very important for you to do your homework and have an idea of what you are going to throw and what the boater is going to throw and work as a team with one throwing, for example, a Pop-R or a Spook and the other throwing a buzzbait or a chugbug to see what the fish want.

The most difficult part of packing your baits is to leave some behind.  It is heartbreaking to leave some plastics or crankbait colors or Cavitron buzzbaits home.

Working with the boater is the key but be ready to get upset that you do not have that "one" bait that would have worked.

Good luck and I hope you choose your baits wisely!!!  

You can scale down slightly ie switch from a brush hug to the baby, from a 6" lizard to a 4" from a 3/8 buzz to a 1/8oz some of these can be fished on the same tackle. Alot of times downsizing tackle means downsizing bass. I would concentrate on casting at different angles and using similar but different tactics.

My .02

You guys quit giving RW advice - he's going to be fishing against me ;D