Angier's Altman to compete for tour title

Monica Altman has been bass fishing for 27 years and fishing competitively for six. Today, on Lake Hamilton, near Hot Springs, Ark., Altman will fish in the Women's Bassmaster Tour Championship.

"It's a dream come true," said Altman, 37, from her home in Angier on Friday. "I'm really excited about it."

Altman will be fishing in the co-angler division, which means she'll be fishing from the back deck of the boat, following a pro angler's lead around the lake.

Altman started her career on the local Powers-Swain Chevrolet tournament trail, partnering with her husband, Max Altman. She fished her first Women's Bassmaster Tour on Lake Norman in July 2006, where she won the co-angler division, earning a new Ranger boat, motor and trailer. It's been up and down since, and she finished this year seventh on the co-angler side in a field of over 100 anglers.

In competitive bass fishing, anglers often specialize, preferring either shallow water or deep water. Depth can be relative, but Altman cited anything more than 10 feet deep as deep. Being a co-angler puts the co-angler at the whim of the pro, and if the pro prefers, say, dragging Carolina-rigged plastics over deep points and the co-angler likes flipping jigs to docks, it can be a long day. Experience has been key in her improvement.

"I've tried to pre-fish [practice before the tournament] with someone different at every tournament," said Altman, who is a patient accounts representative at WakeMed Raleigh Campus when not on the water. "I've learned to adapt so much better when fishing deep water."

Altman has also picked up some local sponsors since her start, including JB Custom Rods in Dunn and CB's Hawg Sauce (a scent maker) in Olivia. Altman said her biggest supporter is her husband, a local tournament veteran.

"He's everything," she said. "He gets my equipment ready. He's my confidence-builder. The main thing in this sport is support at home. If you don't have it you tend to struggle."

Altman pocketed $2,100 this year, but today the stakes are much higher. In addition to the co-angler champion title, the 20 co-anglers will be vying for a $37,500 Skeeter boat-Yamaha outboard rig and $3,250 in cash. Regardless of her finish this weekend, Altman has been pleased with WBT experience.

"The best thing is the people you get to meet and the friends you make," she said. "It's a great experience if you like being outside and you like to fish."

Certainly, and the Skeeter rig wouldn't be so bad, either.