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FEATURED PRODUCT
Hometown: Arroyo Grande, CA
Birth date: 09-05-1973
Classic Appearances: 2
BASS Tournaments Won: 1
Career Highlights: 10 Top 10 Finishes. $550,000+ Career Winnings.
Total BM Entries: 64
Primary Fishing Strength: Shallow Water - Grass/Wood
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JOURNAL
May 2011
My top tournament experience so far this season was finishing 4th in the recent Pride of Georgia event. It was one of those tournaments where everything worked out well. It was one of those deals where I didn’t really have a plan. I was just running to a bunch of different water each day, just hoping to get bit. Fortunately, it worked out well for me.
Much of my success came on topwater baits and floating worms. I was catching all of my fish out of fallen trees. This is a technique where good underwater vision is a must. You have to see the structure, you have to see the fish, and you have to make the best possible presentation. My polarized Wiley X Hydro sunglasses with smoke green lenses always play a vital role in my fishing — but especially with this technique. On 90% of the bites I’ve had, I’ve seen the fish get enticed by the bait. For sure, I wouldn’t have caught some of my best fish without my Wiley X glasses. I could see them coming out of the trees and had to “play with them” a bit to get them to bite.
It’s been a fun season for me, so far, and I’m really looking forward to the rest of it. I’m going to go out there and have fun every day, and hopefully catch some fish. That’s been my attitude this season. I’m in a really good spot right now, and just have to keep it up.
That’s some of the best advice I can relate to anglers — remember to have fun. As professionals, that’s why we started doing this in the first place. If you’re not having fun while fishing, you won’t be successful. If you keep it simple, go with what works, and have fun — you can’t help but become a better angler.
September 2010
This season started off strangely for me, and it profoundly affected the way I approach not only fishing, but also life in general. On the road to Clear Lake at the beginning of the season I was involved in a major accident. Both my boat and my truck were totaled. Fortunately, my son and I both came out of it without a scratch.
I had to borrow a boat and a truck, and with the help of my sponsors (including Wiley X), I was able to get to the next tournament with all the gear I needed. Still, the accident was a very dramatic experience that had lasting effects. I’ve never been involved in something like that, so it was a hard thing to deal with mentally. This experience played up for me the mental aspect of bass fishing. You really have to have your head in the game. Fishing ultimately comes down to decision making. That’s how you learn and get better. Fortunately, I was able to learn from this experience and move on.
With a start like this, I never would have expected that I’d end up having a pretty solid season. Much of my angling success came from flipping and throwing swim baits. Because I’m from California, I feel very confident using these techniques and that helped me put together some good catches.
Whenever I’m on the water, I wear my Wiley X Airborne glasses. They provide the best fit for the shape of my face, and are comfortable and secure throughout the day whether I’m fishing, running or moving around the boat. I’m most impressed by the clarity of Wiley X’s lenses. I can fish hard all day without any strain on my eyes, and I never have to think about my glasses whether I’m looking for fish or driving my boat. Sometimes I forget they’re there — which is the greatest compliment I can think of.
I’m feeling good about the past season (especially with the ‘rocky’ start) and I’m looking forward to getting back out there next year.
March 2009
During the 2009 season I plan on using what have been pretty standard fishing techniques for me — flipping and shallow-water power fishing, both of which worked well for me at the first tour stop at Lake Amistad, TX. I found a pod of fish that stayed in place and was able to finish 3rd place overall. It was definitely a great way to start of the season, and I’m looking forward to our next tour stop at Lake Dardanelle in Arkansas, as it should be a good tournament with spawning. My favorite lake on the tour is the last stop at Oneida in New York… I just love that place.
Fewer tournaments this year means a much closer field, because there’s not a whole lot of time to get things done. Time is really flying by, so I just look forward to taking every opportunity I can to get out and fish. I’ll be fishing a few additional events in California, along with the US Open at Lake Mead, because whenever I’m not in the water, I just feel like I should be fishing. I just love to fish. I’m most looking forward to the March Outdoors event, it’s just really fun to hang out and fish. There are about 500 boats in the water, complete with eager anglers.
I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again, the clarity of Wiley X lenses is just so amazing that it’s almost as if you’re not even wearing sunglasses. At Lake Amistad I was able to see branches in the water and fish from so far away that I couldn’t believe it.
It’s been a great season already, so stay tuned.
2008 Updates
I had a very productive year swimming jigs and pulling fish out of water. My biggest fish this season was an 8.9 pounder, but my most memorable came during the event at Lake Amistad. On the first day of the tournament I hooked a small keeper fish, and with my Wiley X’s, I could see straight through the weeds and glare as I reeled him in. All of a sudden a giant ten pounder came out of the weeds and chomped the fish I had on my line. Unfortunately, he didn’t get hooked, so he swam away, but it was quite a sight to watch.
This was only my third season, but it was by far my most promising, as I finished 47th overall in the final standings. My favorite tournament stop this season was Falcon, Texas. I had a lot of real good opportunities, and there were a large amount of fish that were greater than average in size. I took a few risks to try to win, and when they didn’t pay off, it was difficult to climb back out of the hole I had created.
I used a lot of different sunglasses over the year. I used to get real bad headaches at the end of the day, especially when sight-fishing. The ambient light and squinting made for very strenuous fishing sessions, but Wiley X’s Climate Control Series helped protect my eyes when I needed it most. They are by far the clearest and most comfortable set of sunglasses I have used, and they provide optimal clarity while on the water.
Bassmaster Classic:
The biggest fish I caught during the Classic would have to be the two I got on the second day, right at 3.5 pounds each. I was so thrilled to have made the cut the third day, and did it doing I what I love to do, flippin’ jigs in shallow, stained water.
The most memorable experience of the tournament was having my family and friends there — that was really cool, my parents were there, my wife and kids, and lots of very close friends flew out to watch the tournament. For them to come all the way across the country was really special, even my sponsors, like Wiley X were in the house supporting us, it’s so cool when people go the extremes to support you.
I remember flying down the lake the first day, I left my helmet in my truck, and the only thing I had were my Wiley X glasses to protect my face and eyes from the driving rain, When you go 70 mph in the rain, believe me, you feel the impact of every drop!
I caught really well the second day, with the polarized lenses, I could see key targets in the really stained water, locate pieces of wood, brush piles, or rocks.
Sunshine Showdown:
All in all I was pretty happy with the way things turned out…lost two big fish at the end of the day… but I was just happy that I caught fish at all in Florida! Florida fishing is a lot different, really weather dependent. Seems like 90 percent of the fish are in 10 percent of the water. Some days I fished my butt off and didn’t get bites, everything looks good, the fish don’t live in a lot of these areas, and not knowing the water, and it only being my second time here, I didn’t have a whole lot of experience to draw on.
The last day the weather was horrible, winds up to 40 mph, first two days, breezy, cold, not typical Florida weather at all! It caught us by surprise.
The biggest one I caught was 4.9, and the most productive technique I used was flippin’ and pitchin’.
Probably the most vivid memory I have of the tournament was fishing on the third day, with the wind and the weather, I’ll never forget that. We were trying to hold our boat in the 40 ph winds, nowhere to hide, where I was fishing.
When I’m up flipping in shallow clean water, or looking for things that the average person might not see, you’d miss fish, if you didn’t have the right polarized lenses for sure. I was going down the bank, and then on the little tiny end of a log, 3-4 inches in the water I was able to see and catch that 4.9.
BIO
“I almost feel like I’m naked without sunglasses,” says Jared. Well,
Wiley X Eyewear knew how distracting that could be, and has recently
been supplying this young superstar angler with the best looking and
most effective eye protection in the market since he joined the team in
2007. “Quality eyewear is one of the most crucial tools we use in the tournament — it makes all the difference in the world, from sight fishing,
to finding bedding bass to identifying objects in the water.”
No matter what bait he’s throwing, when it comes to consistency and skill,
it’s hard to beat this young pro, now in his third year on the national circuit. Perhaps its because he started as a child, when his parents owned a fishing resort in Minnesota, or maybe it’s because he continues to look at fishing as a work in progress.
“On a daily basis, this sport is constantly changing — you’ll never be able to master it for more than a few hours,” says Jared. “It’s really a constant quest to be on top of your game, to almost be better than the fish, but realizing that you’ll never get to be.”
One of the California resident’s favorite techniques to “be smarter than the fish” is shallow water jigging, and one of his favorite places to do it is Clearlake, CA. “Nowhere can touch it!” he reports. “I’d rather drive six hours to that premier lake than drive 15 minutes to local ones.”
Why Wiley X? “The company is so well respected, and they make great products,” says Jared, who is especially enthused about the company’s signature removable gaskets. “They’re incredibly effective for stopping the distraction of the wind and minimizing light penetrating through, both of which are crucial.”
Jared is already a force to be reckoned with, early in his career, with 8 B.A.S.S Top Ten Finishes, is currently ranked 17th in the world, 2nd place for Rookie of the Year Bassmaster Elite Series in 2006, Bass Fan’s Rookie of the Year in 2006, Bassmaster Classic Qualifier in Rookie Year, 2006, BASS Western Open and was the Clear Lake Champion in 2005.
When he’s not breaking records and shaking up the old guard in the competition, he spends time with his wife and three children, hunting and fishing.
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