Hope you and yer fams have a happy T-bird Day! When we go around the , gonna say I’m thankful for all of you readin’ the BassBlaster — right after I say I’m grateful no one in my wife’s family cooked the turkey…lol. Expect a Black Friday-ish BB comin’ at ya — don’t spend your whole wallet afore you read it!!
If you’re getting the BassBlaster for the first time it’s cuz a bud signed you up!
Today’s Top 4
> I felt the fish inhale my bait with pressure still there so I set the hook [TX-rigged lizard in 9-10′]. Landed the fish. We were so fired up. Weighed 13.2-13.3 on my handheld scale. Took her to the barge [on the lake], 13.5 on his scale. But it’s not certified.
> …the nice people at Wholesale Live Bait in Lewisville were kind enough to pick the fish up at the barge and take it to their property to hold it. They have several large tanks that are well-aerated. They weighed her on their scale…she weighed 14.1.
> TPWD finally made it out…he weighed her on their certified scale at 12.80. I was bummed out about that. Felt bad that I had TPWD drive out for no reason.
> …released her. She was so strong…swam straight for the bottom. I waited 20 minutes to see if she would come back up and she didn’t. So I left and felt better that I didn’t kill a giant.
#stout! Now check Kevin Cheng Moua’s new PB, an 11.08 from Eastman Lake, CA. Dragged a 1/2-oz War Eagle Heavy Finesse Jig with a 4″ Yamamoto Double Tail Grub (gp):
> For his double win, Lavigne earned two prize packages worth a combined $131,820.
> As the overall winner, he was invited to compete on the 2017 Elite Series with part of his entry fees paid.
> As one of the top 3 anglers, he earned…the use of a Toyota Tundra truck and a fully rigged Phoenix boat for one year, as well as paid entry into the Opens…and a berth in the 2017 Classic.
> As the non-boater champion, he won paid entry into the Opens division of his choice, a Skeeter/Yamaha boat package with a Minn Kota trolling motor and Humminbird electronics, and a spot as a marshal in the 2017 Classic.
!!!!! So if I’m reading that right, he can fish two Open divisions for free using one of two boats, could compete on the Elites, and can be a marshal in his own boat at the Classic??? Here’s how he caught ’em:
> Flipped docks with a 1/4-oz standup jighead with a Trick Worm or Missile Baits Tomahawk Worm (lovebug).
> Cranked stumps and a key hump (top in 6′ in 13′) and stumps with a Strike King 5XD (color didn’t matter).
Can I connect these dots:
- Evers won the Classic by a ton
- This guy wins the Nation Championship by a ton…on Conroe
- Next year’s Classic is on Conroe
Couple things for the bad apples or the guys having a bad day:
- Chill the heck out yo! You want to be a chest-puffer-outer, leave it on shore. Bassin’ is fun, not life and death. Catch your fish, take your pics, go home happy. Or why even launch? If you need to get something outta yer system, kick the nearest tree as hard as you can….
- How ’bout respecting the Elites. They work hard, earn every penny, do the job you’d love to have, and are directly or indirectly responsible for the boat you drive and everything in it, and for most of the stuff you read and watch about bassin’. Plus they’re also regular bass-heads.
To put some punctuation on this, here’s a guy talkin’ who fished the Nation Champeenship after almost dying — donny barone did a heck of a post about him:
> “If some of these guys came here only for the competition, they are missing half the reason for being here.”
Word, man, thank you.
Okay I made that up…but it’s a good idea yo!
News
1. SC: Flip phone saves basser.
2. Alton Jones Jr gets Zoneloc hooks.
Ever heard of ’em? Me neither but looks like Jay Yelas is endorsing them too. Deal appears to be that bend:
> “Alabama is like the Holy Grail of crayfishes.”
Okay? Wonder what Reaction Innovations will call that color. Keep it PG boys!
5. CA: George Kramer calls it a day.
Well-known bassin’ scribbler apparently shutting down his blog. What up George?
- May 13 – Little Sturgeon Bay, WI
- June 17 – Lake Vermilion, MN
- July 29 – Bays de Noc, Escanaba, MI
- Aug 19 – Mille Lacs, MN
- Sept 9-10 – NABC Open/Tournament of Champions – TBA
Even though these hungry, desperate fish can be caught on bare hooks, the trail requires that lures are used. Northern bass-heads are like:
Butch is the (or “a”) guru of swimbaitin’ out west. Here he’s talkin’ ’bout the new Optimum Thumper Tail, which he says you can fish fast and cover water with, which is interesting. Says, “I like to get down and find the fish quick….”
Interesting and could be very smart:
> Frank Hyla, who has been active in high school bass fishing scene in Illinois since its inception in 2008, will lead Shimano’s efforts.
> “Through Frank and our team’s efforts, we’ve designed our high school and college angling program to be much more than just have having these student anglers use our tackle. Our plans include not only helping them pursue their passion for competitive fishing, but also guide and mentor them as they navigate their way to potential careers in the sportfishing, outdoors or natural resources fields.”
9. TX: Lake Travis HS students win two in a row.
On Lake Travis. #stout
10. FL: SUV burglarized at Okeechobee ramp.
$2K in stuff, gone. Dang.
11. Most efficient flip bait yet?
New Buddha Baits Baby Momma — that’s the claim, you tell me:
> “…GOES-R will be similar to going from a black-and-white TV to super-high-definition TV… that will mean faster, more accurate weather forecasts….”
Sweet, tho weird how they named it after that evil ghost in the Ghostbusters movie. All will be cool with the satellite til the aliens from Independence Day come back again:
Headline o’ the Day
Mag-size the Ned Rig for bigger bass
Wait: a bigger jighead and bigger plastic…ain’t that just a plain ol’ jig?
Tip of the Day
Why Shaw Grigsby uses a shakey head with swimbaits.
The Elites are all about bite to hookup ratio. That’s why he does it:
Quote of the Day
Although fish brains are small, to assume that this means they are stupid is…’like arguing that balloons cannot fly because they don’t have wings.’
– Uh…no. Quote from an article about a “fish sentience” nut at the Humane Society, who I guess can’t tell the difference between a balloon and a bird. Maybe it’s more like:
Shot of the Day
Random
Seabird poop clouds could keep the Arctic cool and help combat climate change
Oh heck yeah they could! Scientists at it again…. Have to reiterate: Stop serving chili and smoked bologna at bassin’ meetin’s/weigh-ins, and problem solved.
If you’re forwarding every Blaster to other bass crackheads, tx much — or you can email me the addys and we’ll take care of it! We’ll never send spam, sell the list or anything else crazy….
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