Inside Elite Boats: Brandon Card

Brandon Card takes us on a tour of his Bass Cat, starting with his Suzuki 250 SS.

He says he loves the fuel economy and reliability of his engine.

Dual Power-Poles and a Bob’s Machine Shop jackplate are also sponsors that he is glad to have.

Brandon chooses to use the Scorpion prop.

Brandon’s Bass Cat Lynx features a ladder on the back, which could be very helpful if you need to get back in the boat in rough water.

A very important thing to remember.

Brandon’s boat has a neat vent that gets some air back in the fuel compartment when he’s running. It also looks cool.

Another look at the jackplate.

Two 36 volt Lithium Pros batteries sit next to his fuel tank. The lithium batteries save him 190 pounds on the back of the boat.

The other back compartment features more fuel capacity, jumper cables and miscellaneous tools.

He makes sure and tightens his bolts, and on big water he may even do it midway through the day.

A tow rope is never a bad thing to have.

Heavy baits and more tools, and some sunscreen …

Before he applies sunscreen, he puts on disposable gloves because he doesn’t want it to get it all over his equipment. He says this is a big pet peeve of his and he found this as a solution.

I wouldn’t call Card a clean freak, but it is the first time I’ve seen baby wipes on a bass boat.

They aren’t a sponsor, but he does like his Weego jumpstarter in case his trolling motor battery needs it. His brother borrowed it one time during a tournament and used it 12 times in one day!

Bass Cat has cool triangular livewell lids.

They are pretty deep.

Another compartment full of baits is behind the passenger seat.

Some Duel Hardcore Crank 3+ he’s eager to try out.

… and a ton of other swimbaits, deep crankbaits, frogs. This was shot at the Lake Fork event, and the bass were biting all the way from 1-foot to out deep. That meant Card brought a little bit of everything.

Bass Cat boats have a distinctive steering wheel. Brandon says it actually makes it easier to drive the boat.

He says it has a cool looking console, and he loves his Suzuki digital gauge that gives him real time feedback on his engine.

Dual Lowrance HDS Live 12s give him a very clear view of the playing field. He loves how responsive they are and he says this year they’ve made a big jump in quality of images.

Card’s office. When he’s idling he has side scan on 3/4 of the screen, 1/4 downscan. On the other one, it’s half map, half sonar.

Under his seat, more tools.

Block for changing his prop, washers, and everything he could ever need for changing one.

Culling kit is under the center console.

And a cooler. Card always eats two sandwiches and a couple of Clif bars every day. He thinks its important to make sure he fuels up.

No superstition about bananas on this boat.

Card likes using his FishSens SondeCam HD camera to see what’s going on. He can pull up the video on his smartphone.

Got to have a spare prop!

And a spare trolling motor prop.

This small storage area has dyes and the largest sharpie I’ve ever seen.

This line cutting tool is always handy.

And you gotta have some pliers easy to reach.

He keeps his rod locker full, especially on Lake Fork where he has a lot of options.

Here’s one that has done some work for him this week- 7 foot Abu Garcia Veritas medium action rod with a Revo MGX high speed reel spooled with 40-pound camo colored Duel Hardcore Super 8 braid. Tied on is his favorite topwater bait of all time, the Yo-Zuri 3DB Pencil. He says he’s made a lot of money with that one. In the warm months, he’s throwing it everywhere he goes.

It’s on to the large center compartment, which could be for more rods but as you can see he is using it for significant tackle storage. Card is a confessed tackle hoarder, if you can’t tell.

No surprise there’s a big box of Senkos. Card keeps the silicate gel packs in the trays.

In this “big” box is a Yo-Zuri 3DB square-bill in the sexy shad color.

Topwater is full of stuff, but he likes these two a lot. Yo-Zuri 3DB craw and popper. The pencil is his favorite, but these two definitely have a time and place.

Gotta have a backup hat.

Here’s a big box of the Yo-Zuri Zakko. He uses these as a trailer on his vibrating jigs.

One more bait he loves, the Duel Hardcore Crank 4+. It’s a 14- to 16-foot medium-to-deep crankbait. He says he can cast it very far.

Another compartment of stuff that has a little bit of everything in it. Spools of line for leaders, more swimbaits and soft baits.

Including a back brace. Card has chronic neck issues and his chiropractor suggested that on the long trips on big water that this is a good idea. Card says it helps him a lot.

Last box to check out is life vests and what looks like a Gary Yamamoto display at your local tackle shop.

And of course, who doesn’t have a hacksaw with them on the water, right? He loves getting in water that nobody else is fishing, and sometimes that means doing a little forestry.