With a warmer than normal spring, many anglers have fishing on their mind and are getting their boats in the water much sooner than before. This is a good thing, as this year's fishing should be outstanding, but with this early beginning to the boating season, many anglers are over looking important things before they drop their boat in the water. Before you even go pull your boat of storage or take it on that first road trip to you favorite fishing hole, make sure that your tow vehicle is in good condition. Check your trailering harness on the vehicle for any rust or damage, this is also a good time to make sure your boat and trailer lights are working at the same time. I'll take my truck in for a complete service inspection since I put so many miles on my vehicle over the summer months and Jeff Belzer Chevy in Lakeville, keeps my towing needs in mind when looking at my vehicle, since this puts additional amounts of stress on your vehicle. The next thing to pay attention to is your boat batteries. After a winter, yes even though it was short and mild, your batteries could have deteriorated and now be low on a charge or dead. So before you get to the landing and realize you are unable to get your motor started, check those batteries to see if they'll hold a charge, if they can, put them on the charger, if not, you'll need to get some new batteries. Proper battery maintenance is so important during the summer months, because you want to spend more time fishing with charged batteries and less time sitting on shore waiting for them to charge. This year, I'll be using one of the new Minn Kota Digital Battery Chargers to keep me charged up all day long. The technology in these chargers will keep your batteries in top notch shape all summer long and inform you of any issues with them ahead of time. Even though this spring has been gorgeous, it is still spring in Minnesota, so weather conditions can change quickly and drastically. This is why being prepared and informed of the upcoming day is not only important to staying comfortable, but could keep you from having a miserable day on the water. I have found one of the coolest app's for my Droid phone this year. It is the ScoutLook Weather app and this app provides me with detailed weather information no matter where I'm fishing. What also sets this app apart from others is the new Fish Log app, which will help you track your catches, with the current weather information for that location included! Lastly, make sure you life jackets are in good condition and in your boat before you hit the water. You do not want to start the year off with a ticket for not having your life jackets or throwable cushion in your boat. Before my boat leaves the garage, I'll be sure to inspect and make sure my Onyx Inflatable Life Jacket is in working condition. I look forward to keeping everyone up to date of my tournaments and fishing video's this year!