Fishing Lake Norman with Brian Thrift
your obsession has met its enabler
www.motorguide.com
written by ben kudla
In the second episode of Sweetwater’s fifth season, the boys Miles “Sonar” Burghoff and Joey Nania are joined by Bryan Thrift, a veteran on the FLW tour, on Lake Norman in Charlotte, North Carolina. Miles has a tournament coming up and in this episode, we get a chance to see Miles and Bryan practicing together on Lake Norman, as well as getting real and personal advice from a pro tour fisherman. The guys are targeting spotted and largemouth bass in spawning areas. “Any time you go to a body of water when you’re practicing for a tournament, you definitely want to get the most out of that practice. Going with somebody who knows the lake better than anyone is a pot of gold. And Bryan Thrift and Lake Norman are synonymous names. Going out and fishing with him was a once in a lifetime opportunity” Miles says to Joey. This was a very cool episode and Bryan Thrift had some amazing insight into fishing Lake Norman.
@ SE Multimedia 2019
The Legendary Bryan Thrift
Bryan Thrift is a 12 year veteran on the FLW tour, including 6 major wins and 2 of those major wins were won here on Lake Norman in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was also the angler of the year his rookie season on the FLW tour. Generating over 3 million in career earnings over 171 professional events, Bryan Thrift has proven to be a legendary fisherman and provides incredible knowledge of the sport. “Bryan is arguably the best angler on the FLW tour”, says Miles adding that “Bryan approaches Norman and a lot of lake city fisheries by fishing what looks good. On Norman, that proved to be a key factor in my success in the tournament.” Sometimes the greatest advice is often the most simple advice. Bryan shows credence to that theory in his simple advice of fishing what looks good.
“I cut my teeth here on Lake Norman, this is where I learned everything I know about bass fishing”
Fishing with Spawning Tactics
Miles and Bryan spend a lot of the day on Lake Norman near the docks. Even more specifically docs that are a little longer and extend out further into the lake. “We started targeting docks that are 14 or 15 feet long and closer to the lake. They (the fish) want to be out here spawning. The last weekend in March is prime time for them to be spawning” says Bryan as he and Miles have their boat trolling powered by the Motorguide trolling motor, near the end of a dock. These fishing spots that they are covering will most definitely change as the days go on nearing the start of summer. Just as the legend Bryan Thrift says, you need to fish what looks good. The “looks good” part of that advice will absolutely depend on the time of year and structures on the body of water. Fishing smart will always be your best bet.
“Just because the weather says so, doesn’t mean there will be fish.”
Check Out Episode 2 of Season 5
This unique and very interesting episode was one for the books with the wise wisdom of Bryan Thrift. We wish Miles “Sonar” Burghoff the best of luck in his tournament on Lake Norman! With the help of a Motorguide trolling motor, there are endless opportunities to take the advice of Bryan Thrift and “fish what looks good.” Check out episode 2 below!
