Category Archives: BASS Tour

Bass Fishing Podcasts, BASS Tour, Fantasy Bass Fishing Corner

Sooner Run Fantasy Picks?

Well here is a great interview with Mark Zona about Sooner Run Bassmaster elite series picks for Arkansas river.

Hope you enjoyed the listen, as just a few hours ago, BASS moved this event to Fort Gibson lake just up the road because of high dangerous waters.  So 1 day of practice on Fort Gibson and it’s go time!
So now I go with:
Skeet & KVD because nobody fishes faster, better and reads conditions better than these two
Edwin Evers has some BFL experience here and some good finishes, plus he is fishing hot
Biffle because he lives across the street
Butcher, same reasons as Evers

Well, good luck to all the Elites and your fantasy rosters, but I think the best pure fishermen will rise to the top on this one!

Bass Fishing Podcasts, BASS Tour, Fantasy Bass Fishing Corner, Multimedia

Love the alliteration of Pickwick Picks

Well, just finish a long night of garage cleaning.  My boat will be spoiled this season with how good the garage is looking!  Not a lot of time to the deadline, but here are my Fantasy Picks for Pickwick:
KVD
Skeet
Horton
Kriet
Greg Vinson

To hear the how and why behind each pick and hear Greg Huff’s picks (use these as guidelines of who not to pick….  )  Take a listen to the following Podcast!

We have hit 111 email subscribers on the Bassin” Blog and several hundred to the Twin City Limit podcasts, most on iTunes!  Well that is about it for now!

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Bass Fishing Podcasts, BASS Tour, Fantasy Bass Fishing Corner, Fun Fishing

Smith Mountain Fantasy Picks and Mark Zona Interview

Too much time between blog these days, lot of things going on.  Our Smith Mountain Fantasy Fishing picks for Bassmaster Elite Series have been on our podcast site for about a week, but if you did not catch it, listen below.  We break down how we think KVD starts his comeback and who else we like in this tourney.  In short, I went KvD, Skeet, Kriet, HIte and Crews this week, take a listen below to understand why…..

Also, earlier this week, we caught up with ESPN and World’s Greatest Fishing Show’s Mark Zona.  We broke down a bunch of topics, football, Fantasy Fishing, WGFS, Elite Series, KVD and much more; We talk about what happened to KVD in Cali, Smith Mountain and what we expect from anglers like KVD, Kriet, Hack and many others.  I know the begining of this podcast sounds like previous show, but just a few minutes in Z-Train joins the conversation and things heat up!

Other than that, I did get out and do about 4 hours of fishing down in Red Wing on Saturday.  The boat caught 4 chunky smallmouths, we each dropped a good smallie and Paul tangled with a river slaunch of a largemouth and was left with his tail between his legs.  Not the greatest outing for fish catch, but an awesome day weather wise and it just felt good to be in the boat again.

Above is my first chunky smallmouth of the current season, duped on a 4″ Green Pumpkin/Blue tube on a light Tru-Tungsten sinker!

Until next time!
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Bass Fishing Podcasts, BASS Tour, Fantasy Bass Fishing Corner

Clear Lake BASS Fantasy Fishing Picks

I am sticking with Skeet & KVD for my A Group this week, Skeet should do great on Clear and KVD had a pretty mediocre showing, so he should be good to go on Clear.  Looking for Velvcik to have a solid tourney as well and I am officially on the Squirrel train, let’s go Jeff Kriet.  Lastly I’m going with Jared Linter as well, I know he had a close call on the interstate and wrecked his boat, but I look for him to rise like a Phoenix from the flames!

Catch the rest of the detail from our live radio show this past Saturday on the Podast below.   Reviewing the Delta and previewing Clear Lake!  Even a fishing story about Derek Remitz….

Drop me a note in my comments if you like what you hear!


Announcements, BASS Tour, Product Reviews, Sponsors

Bass Tackle Depot News Letter Delta Edition

John Crews Cranks and Flips to Win Elite Series Duel in the Delta

Bassmaster Elite Series John Crews from Salem, VA rode two areas of the South Delta to victory over what could be called one of the most stacked Elite 12 in Elite Series competition. The victory in the Duel in the Delta; Crews’ first in Elite Series competition, earned him $101,000, pushing his career earnings to nearly $550,000 in 93 career BASS entries.

Following a lackluster practice, Crews decided to stay in the only areas he had found he could generate bites. One of those areas on the south end of the California Delta, proved to be the winning area. While the field struggled to produce giant stringers overall due to less than seasonable weather, Crews managed to bag 18 Delta bass that tipped the scales at 72 pounds, 6 ounces; good enough to best California’s Skeet Reese by one ounce.

Crews used three baits throughout the Duel in the Delta, a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver, a Gambler BB Cricket as flip baits, and a SPRO Little John crankbait in Blood Craw. He used the Sweet Beaver early in the competition, but switched to the BB Cricket as the event wore on due to fishing pressure in the narrow, confined area. The Little John was used to cover water between matted grass mats, and was responsible for several key bites as well.

He paired his flip baits with Gamakatsu built Punch Hooks and tungsten punch sinkers with 65-pound test braided line by Vicious Fishing, while his Little John was thrown on 15-pound-test Vicious Fishing Ultimate co-polymer.

Bass Tackle Depot is a licensed dealer for all of these products, and wishes to congratulate Crews on a great victory in our backyard. All of the products mentioned here are available at www.basstackledepot.com; where the pros shop.


Thinking Outside The Box

Each and every year a new lure is brought to the forefront as a touring pro uses it on his way to victory in a major event. Whether it was the Sebile Magic Swimmer, BassTrix Paddle Tail Tube or even the Yamamoto Senko that went ignored for years. These lures all have one thing in common; they were relatively obscure prior to making headlines.

Success on these unknown baits can go hidden for years at local and regional levels until the cat is finally let out of the bag. The trick to real success is to be open minded, think outside the box and identify these lures on your own. Fish can get conditioned to seeing the same offering over and over. If you can present something they haven’t seen you may just find that edge, then others will have to wait until the cat is out of the bag. Here are just a few ideas for you to consider.

The 10 inch P-Stix or as we like to call it “The Big Stick” has DRAWING POWER like no bait you have ever thrown. In clear water you will see fish rushing from depths of 20ft “Big Fish” to inhale this bait and they don’t let go.

Most stick baits have a quiver on the fall but the 10 inch P-Stix “Wiggles and Wobbles” like no other. Although we haven’t used this bait on big bedding females yet we can’t wait to try.

We are excited about this bait and believe it will be winning events as soon as it hits tackle boxes. This bait is loaded with salt and anise and as we said fish hang on and do not let go. Rig this bait with 7/0 hook or larger if you are Texas rigging. For wacky rig applications use and O-ring with a 2/0 or larger hook. Pencil weights can be used to increase the fall rate and we recommend using them. You can make this bait do crazy things with pencil weights and with a body diameter of 1/2 of an inch they insert and work great.

This isn’t a small fish bait it weighs 1.4 ounces and is 10 inches in length. Be sure to watch the video

CBT Big Hair Jig; This isn’t your daddies’ hair jig. The Hair Jig has been around for years but CBT has created a new modern twist on the hair jig. This large profile hair jig works great for suspended fish and fish relating to offshore structure.

This premium hair jig sports a 4/0 Mustad black nickel hook in the 3/8oz and a 5/0 in the 5/8oz that has a good bite for both freshwater and saltwater fish. The head has been custom painted to match the colors in the jig which include deer hair, mylar, and feathers. After tying is complete, the tying threads are sealed and cleared for extreme durability.

The rate of fall for this jig is about 1 foot per second for the 3/8oz and 2 feet per second for the 5/8oz. Be sure to watch the video.

The V&M Hula Shad is the most versatile soft plastic bait on the market! The Hula Shad has combined the head and body of a soft plastic jerkbait with the skirt of a tube. Fish have never seen anything like it. The V&M Hula Shad can be used as a jerkbait, flipping bait, drop shot bait, Carolina or Texas rig. It darts like a soft plastic jerkbait, but EXPLODES when the bait stops!

QQEURDTZC38Z

Bass Fishing Podcasts, BASS Tour, Fantasy Bass Fishing Corner

My California Delta Fantasy Fishing Picks

It is late, I am tired, so we will keep this short and sweet!
I am going with Skeet, KVD, Boom Boom Roumbanis, Bobby Lane & ISH!!! 

If you want my logic and the details, take a listen to these Man v Bass podcasts,

Part 1 – Great interview with Ish Monroe and first half of picks

Part 2 end of picks plus get Jeff Kriet’s thoughts on the DELTA! 

Drop a comment and let m know what you think of the podcasts.
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BASS Tour

Final Lay Lake Bassmaster Classic Summary

Better late then never, if you want to read my first gut take on the Classic, you can read it on the Versus Network here.   For this entry, I kind of wanted to wait and a day and digest the TV shows and articles.


From BassZone.com

The more I think about it, we should not be that surprised, lipless rattle baits and Alabama in February are like 2 peas in a pod….

You heard quite a bit that Jeff Kriet had the sweetest spot, but I think ultimately his area was too small for 3 days.  KVD has a much larger ares to himself that he could rotate through his sweetspots.  I think the dropping water opened a window on Saturday, but when it started to come up on Sunday, that brought the big ones bag into biting position and it was all over for everyone not named KVD.  Too bad, even though Kriet was not on my Fantasy Fishing team, by the end of day 1 I was really pulling for him.

The winning details and gear:

> RedEye Shad gear: 7′ medium-action Quantum Tour KVD cranking rod, Quantum Tour KVD casting reel (5:1), 17- and 20-pound Bass Pro Shops XPS fluorocarbon, 1/2-ounce Strike King RedEye Shad (gold and gold/sexy-shad).

> KVD switched out the stock hooks for #2 Mustad KVD Elite Triple Grip trebles.

On a side not, we will should have interviews with Jeff Kriet, KVD & Zona for our bass fishing podcast in the near future!

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BASS Tour

Day 3 Bassmaster Classic Mid-Day report

Jeff Kriet topped Day 2’s leaderboard but was in a virtual tie with KVD & Faircloth.  He went from 3rd to first by catching the biggest bag of the day.  What does this mean?

Jeff Kriet

James Overstreet – Jeff Kriet jumps on stage showing some confidence.

It means KVD is going Squirrel hunting today and Jeff Kriet is the Squirrel.  KVD did just that this morning catch a pretty decent limit of 2lb bass this morning, while Kriet struggled to get bites.  Recently Kriet made tackle adjustments and has started catching fish as well.  Slightly off the radar, Russ Lane is making a big move, have a reported 18lb plus limit with a 6lbr already today.  Looks like it will be an exciting finish and weigh just like last year.

One interesting note is that while it seems KVD, Fairlcoth and most others are fishing shad colored lipless crankbaits, Kriet has been sticking with a red crawfish colored bait the first 2 days. 

Bassmaster Classic

If you have not been, make sure you are tuning into BASSCam, Live BASS Blog, BassTrakk and all the other great coverage, plus keep an eye on BassZone.com coverage as well.


Bass Fishing Podcasts, BASS Tour

Bassmaster Classic Day 1 Summary

All in all, the fishing for the top 30% of the field was pretty good, much better then pre-practice reports would lead you to believe.  To keep it simple, seems jigs & lipless cranks were the main deal on day 1.  Many of the leaders fished in Beeswax creek.  The online interenet coverage has been very good again this year.  KVD is still the man, we should not be suprised that he whacked nearly 20lbs!

Big bass of Day 1 was a 6-9 behmoth boated by Ike, that is really the only thing that kept him in contention, lets see if he can do it again.  Even though I did not pick Jeff Kriet, I am excited to see him near the top, I am officially pulling for him now.   Kriet seems to be catching them again today, so should be another fun weigh-in today.

Check out these podcasts from a Special Bassmaster Classic Edition of Twin City Limits.
Segment 1

Segment 2

Also, below is the top 15 anglers, I think once you drop below 13lbs, those anglers are kind of out of the race, but we will see.  My gues somewhere between 16-17lbs to make Day 3 cut.

Day 1 Standings

1. Kevin VanDam — Kalamazoo, Mich. — 5, 19-08
Day 1: 5, 19-08

2. Todd Faircloth — Jasper, Texas — 5, 18-02
Day 1: 5, 18-02

3. Jeff Kriet — Ardmore, Okla. — 5, 16-07
Day 1: 5, 16-07

4. Cliff Pace — Petal, Miss. — 5, 16-03
Day 1: 5, 16-03

5. Takahiro Omori — Emory, Texas — 5, 15-07
Day 1: 5, 15-07

6. Billy McCaghren — Mayflower, Ark. — 5, 15-04
Day 1: 5, 15-04

7. Michael Iaconelli — Pittsgrove, N.J. — 5, 14-09
Day 1: 5, 14-09

8. Tommy Biffle — Wagoner, Okla. — 5, 14-03
Day 1: 5, 14-03

9. Russ Lane — Prattville, Ala. — 5, 14-01
Day 1: 5, 14-01

10. James Niggemeyer — Van, Texas — 5, 13-03
Day 1: 5, 13-03

11. Brent Chapman — Lake Quivira, Kan. — 5, 13-00
Day 1: 5, 13-00

11. Terry Scroggins — San Mateo, Fla. — 5, 13-00
Day 1: 5, 13-00

13. Gerald Swindle — Warrior, Ala. — 5, 10-08
Day 1: 5, 10-08

14. Kotaro Kiriyama — Moody, Ala. — 5, 10-03
Day 1: 5, 10-03

15. Byron Velvick — Del Rio, Texas — 5, 10-00
Day 1: 5, 10-00


BASS Tour

Bassmasters Classic TV Schedule for this weekend

For those of you like me that do not have access to ESPN360 set your DVRs

Time schedule for the Bassmaster Classic shows on ESPN.

2010 BASSMASTER CLASSIC TV SCHEDULE
2/20/2010 SAT 10:00A 11:00A BASSMASTER ESPN2
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day One
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL
2/20/2010 SAT 10:00P 12:00A BASSMASTER ESPN2
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day Two
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL
2/21/2010 SUN 6:00A 7:00A BASSMASTER ESPN2
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day One
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL
2/21/2010 SUN 7:00A 8:00A BASSMASTER ESPN2
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day One
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL
2/21/2010 SUN 8:00A 10:00A BASSMASTER ESPN2
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day Two
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL
2/21/2010 SUN 2:30P 4:30P BASSMASTER ESPN
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day Two
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL
2/21/2010 SUN 10:00P 12:00A BASSMASTER ESPN2
2010 Bassmaster Classic Day Three
Lay Lake – Birmingham, AL

ESPN CLASSIC MINI-MARATHON
2/21/2010 SUN 5:00P 6:00P BASSMASTER ESPN CLASSIC
2003 Bassmaster Classic
Louisiana Delta – New Orleans, LA
2/21/2010 SUN 6:00P 7:00P BASSMASTER ESPN CLASSIC
2004 Bassmaster Classic
Lake Wylie – Charlotte, NC
2/21/2010 SUN 7:00P 8:00P BASSMASTER ESPN CLASSIC
2005 Bassmaster Classic
Three Rivers – Pittsburgh, PA
2/21/2010 SUN 8:00P 9:00P BASSMASTER ESPN CLASSIC
2008 Bassmaster Classic
Lake Hartwell – Greenville, NC
2/21/2010 SUN 9:00P 10:00P BASSMASTER ESPN CLASSIC
2009 Bassmaster Classic
Red River – Shreveport, LA