Entry 197-4
Inside the Mind of Kevin VanDam
Part 4: What Fuels Kevin VanDam During a Tournament
Editor’s Note: Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Michigan, one of the hottest professional fishermen on the pro-fishing circuit, has grown-up in tournament bass fishing. He’s been fishing professionally for more years than he hasn’t. Before he was a Strike King Pro, he fished against legends of bass fishing. Since he’s been a Strike King Pro, he’s fished with them. This week, we look inside the mind of one of America’s best bass fishermen. We learn how he evaluates his competition, what he thinks about other Strike King Pros, what drives him to fish as hard and as fast as he does, and how he maintains such a high intensity of fishing and one of the highest number of casts per day of any other tournament fisherman. In this week of studying Kevin VanDam, we find out what makes him run, and I think you’ll be surprised when you learn some of the secrets of Kevin VanDam.
Question: Kevin, what foods fuel your fire on a tournament day?
VanDam: It’s always important to eat breakfast to get your mind working properly and your body up to speed quickly. I usually eat a cinnamon roll, a chocolate muffin with some chocolate milk, a sausage biscuit or something I can eat quickly like a muffin and a banana, or a Diet Coke, or just something to get my day started. I don’t go to the Waffle House and sit down and eat three eggs, grits and sausage with toast and coffee. But I’ll have something in my furnace before I fire off my engine.
During the day, I’ll usually eat a sandwich or two, a Snickers candy bar and some peanuts. I eat foods that have huge amounts of energy and protein in them, when I’m fishing a tournament. On practice days, I really chow-down. I always make at least two sandwiches on practice days. I don’t go out and buy that $0.99 package of ham and cheap cheese, when I’m making sandwiches for practice days, or for a tournament. I buy good high-quality whole-wheat bread, Colby cheese and go to the deli and have them slice up some really-high-quality ham, turkey or chicken.
When I build my sandwich, it won’t be one of those wimpy one or two pieces of meat sandwiches that you often get when someone’s trying to skimp on the meat. I’ll have 1/2-inches of meat on my sandwich and a good thick slice of cheese. I put a little mayonnaise and some spicy mustard on the sandwich to give it a little bit of flavor. Sometimes, I’ll splurge and put a handful of banana peppers to top it off. I build a good sandwich. On tournament day, I’ll eat two big sandwiches like this.
Another thing I’ll usually carry is several cans of white albacore tuna with some packs of crackers. Tuna is easy to eat in the boat, and it’s high in protein. I also carry fruit like bananas and apples. Fruit is good for you and gives you quick energy. I’ll also have several packs of crackers like cheese crackers with peanut butter, or crackers with cheese. I like different types of crackers. But once again, crackers are easy to open, you can eat them quickly, and they’ll give you those bursts of energy you need to fish hard.
Question: When you eat a Snickers bar, is it a mini-, a standard- or a king-size bar?
VanDam: I have to have the king-size bar. I usually eat two king-size Snickers bars in one day. I also eat nutrition bars. I keep a variety of bars and candy with me because I don’t like to eat the same kind of candy bar or power bar every day. I mix up my food to give myself some variety. I have a high metabolism, and I have to fuel it to continue to fish at a high level. I’ve found that it’s critical I eat while I fish.
Question: What type drink do you have?
VanDam: I probably drink more Gatorade than anything else. But I also drink quite a bit of water, especially during the hot summer months. I’ll also drink Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi.
