By the time Daily Journal readers get to this blog, I will be dodging speed traps on U.S. 78 on the way to Birmingham for the Classic.
I was fortunate enough to be in a position to cover the 2001 and 2003 Classics, which were both held in New Orleans. Kevin Van Dam finally broke through in 2001 to win the Classic, then in 2003, “BASS Bad Boy” Michael Iaconelli turned bass fishing on its ears with his victory.
Actually, he turned himself on his ears when he started break-dancing at the weigh-in stage. And the ESPN television coverage showed him whooping and hollering after every big bass. And he caught more than a few of them.
For ESPN, Ike was a godsend. He gave the network a different demographic for its outdoors shows. Watching bass fishing wasn’t limited to the Bill Dances or Roland Martins. Iaconelli elevated crickets and cane poles to the X-Games.
