Every year as a competitive angler and blog writer comes with new challenges, tournaments and opportunities. I am excited to bring forward KrugerFarms.com and Dobyns Rods from last year and excited to welcome both Evolve Baits and BassTEK to brands that I am excited to be working with.
Evolve has one of the softest & toughest floating hollow body frogs (Nervous Walker only $7) on the market and they continue to bring some great soft plastics to the market. The Kompak craw was clutch for me last year and I am excited to tap into the potential of both their Mad Mouse and Darkstar Swimmers as I fish many tournaments on the Mississippi River this year in the Great Lakes BFL division. As far as BassTEK, I am heavily involved with them from the start. BassTEK is a new company in 2013 that is bringing a Premium Tungsten Flipping Jig to all of us bass anglers at a competitive price. Most of us have all found what a benefit Tungsten can be for worm and flipping weights, now its time to see what it can do for your jig fishing!
1/2oz Okeechobee Craw Tungsten Flipping Jig
So if you have a moment, check out the links to these products and if so inclined, support the brands that support me and this blog!
So stay tuned, you will be hearing much more from all these companies in the coming months as my tournament season ramps up!
From my experience guiding this
winter and into the pre-spawn period on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, in East Texas, I
was able to repeatedly observe the ways in which bass transitioned back and
forth from deep water to key, shallower holding areas in preparation for the
spawn. This information is valuable and worth storing in your memory vault
regardless of where in the country you are chasing fish. Timing may be
different, but the patterns can certainly be duplicated.
During late winter, one of the best
pieces of advice I can give is to follow the bait. This makes it relatively
easy to stay on fish. Find the bait, and generally, you can stay on a good
school of bass for some time. Use your imaging unit to locate schools of shad,
and once you do, probe around the school to get bit. In this late winter,“not-quite-pre-spawn” phase, the temperature
fluctuations that accompanied cold fronts would create 2 distinct situations as
far as where the bait was: 1- on the warmer, stable successive days, the shad
were almost always holding near bottom in 20’ – 25’, and 2- on days after a
cold front, the shad would congregate in suspending balls around the 30’ – 40’
mark. Point being, the bait went from shallower holding zones to deeper
suspending patterns with temperature changes. In these offshore scenarios, once
the bait was located, I’d drag big football head jigs near any bottom structure
close to bait, or throw an A-rig loaded with EVOLVE VibraGRUBS in 3’’ white
shadow. You can really do some damage in this scenario. I’d suggest Seaguar
Kanzen in a heavier test for tossing these big offerings.
As winter
started to taper off, and slowly warming, longer days made finding fish on bait
a bit harder, it was time to start looking at secondary points and channel
bends near obvious potential spawning flats. These areas can be common in a
lake, so you may have to spend some time probing these locations until you
locate a wad of fish. I particularly like when I find grass in these areas. If
you can find vegetation near these sharp channel bends and running along and up
points near traditional spawning flats, it’s absolutely worth spending time
here. This time period in East Texas is where you’ll see a red/orange lipless
crank on almost every boat- and my boat is no exception. After getting on fish,
I set my lipless rod down and start slow rolling an orange/red/craw patterned
swim jig with my EVOLVE DarkStar swimmer in pumpkin oil through both deep and
shallow grass. Popping this offering through deeper grass clumps and letting it
fall down the backside just always seemed to put kicker fish in the boat. You
can get into BIG fish on this pattern, and because you are also fishing around
vegetation or grass, you need to be prepared. I am running 40LB. braid (Seaguar
Kanzen has never let me down in knot strength and power), on a Dobyns extreme744. This would allow me to rip the swimjig through grass when I needed to, and
secure a hookset on long casts down deep. Keep these patterns in mind, and get
out there and shake the winter blues!
In bass fishing’s biggest event, labeled as the Super Bowl of bass fishing, Cliff Pace, Bassmaster Elite Series Pro from Petal, MS, looked like
he was in position to blow away the Bassmaster Classic field at the end
of the day two weigh-in. Back to back days of surpassing BassTrakks
best estimations with over 21lbs each day gave him what seemed a quite
comfortable 7lb margin over Brandon Palanuik who was in second place. It was strange watching Bassmaster.com coverage as closely as I did and see most of the fields weights be pretty close, but then be so off on Cliff Pace’s BassTrakk weight every day. After watching footage, I lend it two things, Cliff is a pretty big guy, so 3lb bass might look like 2lbrs when he is holding them to some, but more likely, when he would catch a fish, he would yank them in the boat, unhook and stuff into the livewells in a blink of an eye. I don’t think his Marshalls ever had a chance to really eye up these fish, then they probably asked him how big and he low balled them.
Cliff Pace 2013 Bassmaster Classic Champion!!!
Pace worked a two bait pattern all week, he would target deeper bottom hugging fish with a 3/4oz V&M Football Jig
and then look for fish higher in the water column with a suspending
jerkbait. The tough thing about his pattern, he was fishing for about 6-7 bites per day, but they were the right ones, as shown on day 2 when he had two 7lbrs. Some reports suggest his jerkbait of choice was a Jackall Squad Minnow, but Mark Zone reported that he fished a more traditional and larger Smithwick Rogue jerkbait rather then diminutive Squad Minnow. The Rogue actually
makes more sense, as it is a well known producer on Grand Lake, and
with the bigger fish keying on jumbo Gizzard Shad, the Rogues larger
profile does a much better job of matching the forage for this event.
V&M 3/4oz Football Jig – Image from BassZone.com
As far as the football jig itself,
Pace trimmed a few strands from the weedguard to help with the deep
water hook up ratio and he also dipped the ends of his V&M Twin Tail trailer
with orange dye to help generate a few extra strikes in the dingy Grand
Lake waters. And it was the jig that Pace utilized to catch his last
two fish, giving him 4 fish for 11lbs that held off a hard charging
Brandon Palaniuk and went on to win by about 3 pounds.
This Bassmaster Classic win solidifies Cliff Pace as one of the great
up and coming bass pros and the $500,000 in his bank account should
help him fish more comfortably for years to come! Even though he didn’t show much for emotion when he won, I am sure Cliff is intensely satisfied and excited on the inside! Catch some videos of the moment here.
Even though I was pretty much glued to my laptop all weekend, it will still be cool to see the coverage next weekend on ESPN2 to see more of the fish catching footage from all 3 days.
I recently signed up for three months of Mystery Tackle Box. Similar concept as Tackle Grab, or as I said before Fruit of the Month Club for Bass Fisherman. For roughly about $15 a month, depending on your subscription plan, you get a box of bass fishing lures sent to you door every month.
The idea is you get to try new stuff and the box is guaranteed to be worth more then your $15 investment, plus your shipping is included. They also have an online store where you can buy more of the products you go in your box, so if you like them and catch fish, you can buy more.
All in all I feel like my box was decent value. I was most excited for the Ish Monroe Biggie Square Bill crankbait, that clearly is worth about $9 alone. The other stuff was a Stanley Jig, which is a decent jig but not for me, I pretty much only use tungsten jigs. Then I got a couple partial packs of plastics, the Twin Menace seems like a cool bait, the other creature bait was fairly ordinary in my mind. The box also came with quite a few coupons, so if it happens to be stuff you are in the market for, it could save you some nice change! If you have not tried the Rod Glove products, give them a whirl, I love them and use them to protect all my Dobyns Fishing Rods!
Stay tuned, more videos in the next two months about my other boxes!
This week marks the official unofficial start to major tournament bass fishing for the year; yes we have had some Everstarts & Bassmaster Open events, but the real show starts with the Classic.
Like most years, I will be glued to the coverage all weekend long, so feel free to follow me on Twitter or on my FB page and I will make sure you are kept up to date on the high points.
Fantasy Fishing continues to grow and so do the prizes, so make sure to join up, couple of good leagues with free prizes, including those presented by BassTEK & Bass Utopia. If you need some help making your picks, make sure to check out the Fantasy Fishing Insider Podcast that I help out with. The high points of my picks are Jason Christie, Alton Jones, Brandon Card, Casey Scanlon, & Jared Knuth, to here the details and my co-hosts picks, catch the podcast. Also, the Bassmaster Classic always gets me in the mood to buy lots of new tackle & gear, which means I will be listing stuff on ebay this week to make room for new stuff, catch yourself some deals!
All, tournament season is now kicking into full swing, there have been a couple Opens and Everstarts in Florida already and now the FLW Tour kicks of tomorrow on Lake Okeechobee.
Along with the Tours starting, big time Fantasy Fishing is starting as well. You still got time to set your lineups at www.FantasyFishing.com to play. Rosters lock for the Big O at midnight eastern tonight. Look this for being a flippers shootout with a little sight fishing mixed in and a few small swimbaits.
If you don’t think you can beat me or don’t like free prizes, then don’t sign up. If you need a little help with your team, here is my lineup. Copy it, steal an angler or two or use it as who to avoid, but this is what I got.
Here is a quick break down on each angler: John Cox – Florida local, great track record, proven he can win on the tour level. David Dudley – Stud, catches them every where, reigning AOY. Chad Grigsby – Northern angler that understands Florida grass fishing Koby Krieger – Perennial contender in Florida Scott Martin – You shouldn’t have to ask, its in his blood Brandon McMillan – Rising star, local, past winner Brandon Medlock – He will make those Big O Bass eat his Medlock Jig Jacob Powroznik – Solid track record in Florida, redemption tour after AOY runner up Randall Tharp – He practically lives on Okeechobee with McMillan, last year’s winner Barry Wilson – Sneaky dark horse pick, Bass Rankings suggests he is good bet on Big O from his Triple A level tournaments on Okeechobee.
Good Luck all, subscribe or stop back for more picks for BASS & FLW all year long!
Between the big St. Paul and Minneapolis sport shows is this weekend’s MN Anglers Expo in Blaine. Last year in April the same group put on a very good 1st year Bass Expo, to get better traction, they have changed it to the Anglers Expo and moved it up to February.
If you have the fishing bug like I do, I encourage you to take in this show this weekend. I plan to be there all day on Saturday, when I am not walking around taking in the expo you will likely find me hanging around the KrugerFarms.com booth.
Kruger Farms is sure to have a wide selection of fishing gear and if you have been thinking about checking out a Dobyns Rod, Kruger Farms is sure to have a wide selection to check out, plus many other show specials! Either way, make sure to stop & say hello.
Also, below is a $1 Off Admission coupon I came across to share with you.
I recently had the opportunity to try Tackle Grab for a month. The basic principle behind Tackle Grab is you sign up for a monthly membership ranging from $12-16 depending on how long you sign up and you get new baits in the mail every month. Kind of like fruit of the month club, but for fishing. Interesting thing about Tackle Grab is that you fill out a profile, which asks you questions about the species, type and location of fishing you do most often to help tailor your tackle pack to your needs and wants. Check out the following video to see what I got in my box.
All in all, I think the value that I received in my initial January box was worth more then the $15 box of single box membership. I got a sample pack of two drop shot weights from Road Hog Baits, a Kahara Yajirobee 3 Blade ($15 value), some Optimum drop shot baits, and some Evolve Kompak Craws ($5) & a Yo-Zuri Pin Minnow jerkbait ($8). So 5 things with a retail value around $30-$35. It is all stuff I could use, not sure if I would have bought it all if I was shopping, but that can be a good thing as well. The Optimum Baits Wacky Shads are solid, as I have used them before (comparable to Jackall pintail or cross tail shads) and I love the Evolve Kompak craws, I have actually caught smallies on the ones in Tackle Grab between filming video and posting this blog.
I guess the other unique thing, is you earn points every month for being enrolled, you also can earn points by doing reviews, referring friends and other activities, those points can be used to shop in the Tackle Grab store of additional items, either new stuff you want to try or if you want more of the stuff you already received in your box.
Overall, if you are into trying new baits, and wanting to build your bait arsenal, this can be a pretty cool service for anglers.
Looking for a new destination to experience a
fishing trip of a lifetime?Well, look
no further than the Mississippi
Gulf Coast.The
Mississippi Gulf Coast hosts the most abundant and diverse species of salt
water fish within the Gulf of Mexico. Whether you’re a freshwater, saltwater, fly fishing, or deep sea angler,
the Mississippi Gulf Coast has it all for you. Not to mention the abundance of things there are to do along the Gulf Coast (take a look at this) making it a no-brainer fishing location for dedicated anglers out there.
With
a national average of about 68 degrees, Gulf Coastfishing is every angler’s dream.The
numerous bays, bayous, and other shallow inshore waters will help ensure all
day non-stop fishing action filled with catching species such as flounder,
grouper, tarpon, barracuda, red snapper, and bonita.Charter trips are always a great idea.The guide will be able to show you the
region’s hot spots where you can spend half the day or the entire catching fish
for sport or for dinner!It’s a great
way to spend time with your family or with a few of you best buddies.Nothing feels better than that adrenaline
rush of sitting around on the boat to strapping in and reeling in a monster
fish!
If
saltwater or deep sea fishing isn’t your cup of tea, don’t fret.Choosing to fish inland is a great option as
well due to Mississippi’s rich lakes, rivers, and streams that are home to
largemouth bass, catfish, and trout.You
may also want to enlist the help of a guide as well for these fresh bodies of
waters.Many of the guides also are
professional or semi-professional anglers who compete in the Bass Master
tournaments.If you chose to enlist the
help of these professional anglers, not only will you be shown the best fishing
spots in the area, but you will probably receive some tips and techniques from
a pro!So if you’re looking for great
fishing in a great part of the world, be sure to check out the Mississippi Gulf
Coast!
So recently a fishing buddy and I were going back and forth on top jig colors for a side project we are working on. We spent quite a bit of time going back and forth, so I decided it may be easier to poll a larger audience to confirm or debunk our assumptions on what colors bass anglers across the US favor for their flipping jigs.
It started out as a simple survey I put together, but responses came in rater quickly and exceeded the limit of the free Survey Monkey account. So I am writing this post to share the results from the first 100 responses which only took a few hours to get and now we have hundreds of responses I cannot access until I pay to upgrade. So my thought, is to share the initial results here on my blog and invite more of you to participate.
Once I hit a larger threshold of responses, I will pay the fee and then sharer the larger results with all of you. So please take this survey, if it takes more then 60 seconds you are probably over thinking it. Also, consider emailing, sharing, this blog post and results with your fishing friends so we can gather as much data as possible.
So below are the 1st 100 response result summary and below that the chart that was posted to survey.
Jig Skirt Color Chart for Reference
If you could only pick 5 of these colors to stock your flipping jig box with, which 5 would you pick? Take the quick survey – http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/69ZQ5YR
If nothing else, I hope this helps new anglers spend their money wisely on picking jig colors!
