Welcome to the BassBlaster, your daily email about all things bassin’. Forward the Blaster to a bassin’ bud!

*|FACEBOOK:LIKE|*

Today’s Top 3

1. Sean Stafford wins U.S. Open on Mead.

Who? Well, not a national scene dude, but obviously a heck of a stick. Won the whole deal by moving up an amazing 8 places (!!) on the final day. How did he do it? Fishing what now seems to be an old-school bait: a tube.

> Stafford said he used a two pronged approach to the U.S. Open depending upon the conditions the day presented him. On days one and two, he focused primarily on using a variety of topwater baits, but turned to a Canyon Plastics tube when the conditions slicked off.

> “I really targeted isolated grass clumps with either approach,” Stafford said. “The topwater baits were used around the clumps, and the tube helped me fish tighter when the sun was high.”

Bassin’Fan said: “Of the 15 fish he brought to the scale, seven inhaled a tube (including all five today), four took a spinnerbait and four came on topwater plugs.”

I didn’t find a “tube” on the Canyon Plastics website, probably because they make the original Gitzits, which I’m assiming Stafford used. No word on color or length, so here’s a pic of a generic Gitzit:

2. I can guarantee you everybody will be throwing an Alabama Rig.

– FLW pro Justin Lucas talking about fishing the upcoming Wheeler FLW. He also said:

“The weather is getting cooler at night, and that’s really going to help the bite. The fish are starting to school up, and with the Alabama Rig really hitting the scene last year combined with the fact that there hasn’t been a major tournament on Wheeler could make for some decent fishing.

“I think guys will catch them all over, especially in the bottom end of the lake where fish go out and suspend over deeper points.”

3. Is Clear Lake the best in the country?

Do your derbies average 3.5 lbs per fish? Pretty stout….

> Last year, the average size per fish [FL-strain largies] caught in a tournament was more than 3 1/2 pounds. Few lakes in the country can match that. In fact, even in the well-publicized lakes of Florida there are none that can boast a 3-pound-plus average per fish.

> To win a bass tournament at Clear Lake takes at least a 5-pound average per fish. There are very few major lakes in the country that can come even close to matching that.

*|FACEBOOK:LIKE|*

News

1. Shimano will handle Jackall baits, bass focus.

> Shimano and its rep agencies will take on sales and marketing responsibilities for all Jackall baits in the U.S. and Canada as of Jan. 1, 2013.

> “We look forward to bringing the strengths of Team Shimano to help Jackall become the leading player in the premium bass lure market,” notes Pfeiffer.Dave Pfeiffer, president of Shimano American Corp

> “Our challenge is growing the Jackall brand and product presence among key bass tackle retailers, and expanding our rod-reel-line-lure tackle system approach to bass fishing techniques.” said Carey Graves, VP of Shimano fishing.

> Jackall is known for fish catching lures such as its Squad Minnow jerkbaits and ASKA crankbaits, and its tournament winning Flick Shake soft baits. It has an extensive lure development and testing process, including a test tank to simulate action, a larger tank to see how live bass react to the lures, plus on-the-water testing at the Jackall R&D Center located on the shores of Japan’s Lake Biwa.

> Jackall’s parent company shares a partnership with Shimano Inc. on the development of bass fishing rods for the Japan domestic market.

 

Tip of the Day

Chad Griffin: Fishing Great Lakes humps.

Good piece on Bassin’Fan, worth a full read, some tidbits:

> Some of the [humps] are sprawling, while others are tiny in comparison, but seemingly all of them hold fish.

> Finding those areas isn’t difficult…. Figuring out where the actively feeding fish are holding on said structure is the challenge though.

> “What I’ve found is that the more active or smaller fish tend to be on the front side of the shoal,” he said, “while the more lazy and sometimes bigger fish hang out on the back side of the hump. They’re just sitting there waiting for something to float by.”

> Another element that Griffin is convinced got some of the fish fired up was his use of the HyrdoWave unit off the bow. He had it turned to the continuous frenzy (shad) setting all day with the volume cranked to the max.

> Griffin’s dropshot setup was pretty standard stuff – a 3/8- or 1/4-ounce Eco Pro Tungsten dropshot weight about 6-8″ below a #1 Owner dropshot hook. Griffin likes to rig his dropshot on a 7’ medium-heavy spinning rod or a similar-action rod that has a nice bend in the middle.

*|FACEBOOK:LIKE|*

Quote of the Day

Sure, the money is nice to win, but for me tournament fishing is all about the respect.

– Lake Shelbyville, IL stick Mike Black on winning the BFL Super Tourney there last weekend.

 

Shot of the Day

Looks like Gerald Swindle’s fishin’ secret is out – it’s his wife! Check it:

*|FACEBOOK:LIKE|*

Comment on any of these items here.