New fishery Could Produce Good Results for McClelland in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (Aug. 5) — A long break in the Bassmaster Elite Series has pro angler Mike McClelland more than ready to hit the water again for the Aug. 7-10 tournament at Delaware River.

 

However, unaccustomed to the Delaware River, the Cabela’s/GEICO For Your Boat Elite angler knows how important this entire week of practice is going to be for his success in this tournament.

 

“Usually when we come off of this long break we go to a fishery that a lot of us are familiar with, where we know the fishing is really good,” McClelland said. “We’re definitely all going to be challenged this week. None of us really know a whole lot about the Delaware River to begin with, and based on the way practice has gone so far, it’s going to be a real grind for everyone.

 

“There’s so much water, but in this situation it’s really unpredictable where the fish really live. That’s what we’re going to be faced with this week, the unfamiliarity of the area. Truthfully, I don’t know if there is even a big population of largemouth bass.”

 

After practicing this week, McClelland will look toward using his knew knowledge of the Delaware River when he and the rest of the Elite Series anglers launch from Frankford Arsenal Boat at 6:15 a.m. each day and weigh in at 3:15 p.m. at Great Plaza-Penn’s Landing.

 

“It’s going to be a scenario where we’re just not familiar with it enough to say, ‘This is where I’m going to catch the big one,’ ” McClelland said. “It’s one of those situations where it’s going to be a grind just to catch a decent bag of fish, let alone try to pinpoint bigger fish.

 

“It is an interesting environment due to the fact that we are right in the middle of New Jersey and Philadelphia, so there is a lot of industry surrounding us. You really don’t know if some of the things coming into the water are keeping fish away from some of the places that would normally be encouraging to fish. All I know is it’s going to be a grind and a challenge this entire weekend.”

 

Cabela’s/GEICO For Your Boat angler Mike McClelland has practiced extensively to prepare for this weekend’s Bassmaster Elite Series event at Delaware River.