Being a tournament fisherman, one thing I have learned over the years are the Do's and Don'ts of proper back of the boat etiquette. Hopefully, By sharing a little knowledge with you I can help you avoid some awkward moments.

If there is one thing, above all, that I have to stress,It is this one simple fact. Remember; It's their boat, and their rules.Treat them with the same respect you would want to be shown is the role were reversed.When you find out who your partner will be for the tournament, meet with him. If he is not there, call him. Find out if he has any certain rules, such as no smoking, use of scents, etc. I drew once with a guy who wouldn't let me use Scents. not good, since I am sponsored by a Scent company. But that's the breaks, I had to adapt and go on.

Bring your own life jacket. This may seem obvious, but it is not always the case. Sure, boater usually have extras, but it is a courtesy to bring your own.Most boaters will ask you to help launch the boat by backing it into the water. PLEASE, If you are inexperienced at this, or otherwise uncomfortable with it, talk to the guy driving the boat about it. Chances are, he would rather do it himself than risk damage to his property. And in most cases, you would be responsible for damages you ensure to it. I did this at first, and there was never any hard feelings or anger shown towards me at any time.

Don't take all your tackle.As a Co-Angler, you really have to choose wisely. This is where communication with your partner comes into play. Find out what style of fishing is going to take place, then bring the appropriate gear.

For instance, you don't want to be skiing a worm behind the boat while the boater has it wide open burning Crankbaits or spinnerbaits.If you are not going to be fishing plastics, only take a few.
Nothing will irritate a boater faster than a Co-Angler to show up carrying the entire Wal-Mart fishing dept with him.When I fish from the back of the boat, I take the following with me. I take a large Upright soft sided bag, such as a Tackle Logic or a Okeechobie Flats for all my tackle, and a smaller bag for my lunch, raingear and sunscreen. This is the best amount, due to storage space.

Limit youreslf to only a few rods. Most boaters prefer no more than 5 or 6, and 6 is really pushing it. I generally take the following, unless I expect a particular technique to be used.Plus, these rods fit my style of fishing.

1 7'6" Flipping Stick
2 7' MH Composite Cranking Rods, 1 for Deep Cranks, and 1 for Lip less cranks.
1 6'6" M Composite Cranking Rod, for smaller cranks.
1 6' M Casting rod, for Spinnerbaits or jerkbaits.

I will substitute, if say, less cranking and more worming. but otherwise, these are my choices.

Unless the boater specifically says you can, do not fish their water. A good rule is from mid boat back.I recently fished a tourney, and because of the fact that the only way to fish the bank was to parallel it, the boater told me to cast toward the front of the boat. He cast ahead of the boat. Had he not said to, I would never have done it, regardless of whether I got to cast far or not. As a Co- Angler you have to adjust to what the boater does. They pick the water to fish.

Offer to net their fish, IF you are good with a net. you might get blessed out real good if you are inexperienced with a net and cost him a big one.

No matter what, Don't complain. Remember, you signed up for it. If you take a beating on a long rough boat run, well, welcome to the world of competitive fishing.If you don't like the place you are fishing, that;s just goes with the territory. Adapt.Don't complain. If you complain too much you will get a bad reputation and nobody will want to draw with you, and if they do, they will not treat you as well.Don't complain about not catching fish. That also is part of it. Even the best blank sometimes.

Don't be a tightwad. Running and maintaining a boat isn't cheap. always offer to at least pitch in on running expenses. I generally offer 20.00. I will offer more if we do a lot of running. If you don't offer, you could get a bad reputation real quick. I had one tell me "No.Keep it. I'm ok." I made him take it to at least go out to eat on. It's just a nice jesture.Once its over, and the weigh in completed, don't just grab your gear and get. Ask if you can help with anything. Wiping the hull down, cleaning out the boat, ETC. It's little things like this that can either get you the reputation of, " Hey, I got him. He's a good guy", or "OH CRAP! Not him."

Hope you have a good experience from the back of the boat.You will have good one, and not so good ones. As a back seat angler, go out to learn just as much as to compete.

Good Fishing,

Charles