BassBlaster

What happened to Martens, Jig in the face, Top dropshot mistakes

Fishin’ biz peeps: Lmk if interested in getting some Blaster love next year. Know you’re readin’ it….

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Today’s Top 3

What happened to A-Mart?

The dropshot was all over the Elites this year, nowhere more so than the last fruit-jar of the season: Mille Lacs. If you didn’t have a wimp-stick with a noodle rig on your deck, you weren’t fishing. So what happened to Aaron?

Why do I ask? Because no one — NO ONE — is better than he is with a dropshot. He’s been fishing it for about as long as Jordan Lee has been alive on this planet. And he’s fished it a lot: For a few years most people thought that’s all he did!

And there’s a lot that goes along with that, like being an electronics whiz. So: How did he finish 41st out of 50 guys in what basically was a dropshot derby? I had to know so I called him. Full interview on BassBlaster.rocks, but here’s some excerpts:

> “Everybody was on everything. I spent 3 days just graphing…looking, finding stuff. Even little stupid spots I found on bare flats, half a mile from the edge of the flat, every spot I found had boats on it in the tournament.

> “I went to all my waypoints for the boulders. I found 8 or 10 of the best spots in the lake. But I couldn’t move in on Takahiro, Lefebre…Keith Combs was on one of my best spots, Brandon was on one of my best spots. I couldn’t get on anything.

> [When he approaches the spots, other anglers think] “it’s just Aaron. He won’t come in here. I have to change that a little bit. I found all these waypoints [and can’t fish them]. I’m still mad about it I could’ve caught them as good as anyone, or better, but didn’t go in there and bump boats. That’s about as mad as I’ve ever been.

> “I wasn’t mad at the anglers — I was mad at myself. I found the spots the top 3 guys were on, but didn’t go in there. If I did, I probably could’ve gotten a top 5. And they probably still would have caught them, there were so many stupid fish there.

> “I found that waypoint with my own gas, money and time. I don’t think I’m going to do that anymore. I think I’ll have to get more pushy. It’s happened to me 100s of times, and cost me dearly.”

Here’s an illustration of the former and upcoming A-Marts:

Hahahaha love ya brother!

96 shows out again.
Is every bass-head’s favorite D end, Brian Robison, gettin’ the most media attention of any basser on the planet? Could be…cuz the Vikes continue to roll, and 96 sho-nuff is lettin’ his bassness be known at every opportunity. Here he throws down a vicious hookset after throwing down one Cameron Jerrell Newton:

Weird how Superman’s dad was named Jor-El and Cam likes to do his Superman thang…

…except, you know, when Robison’s got him jammed into the turf.

FLWer Matt Arey was at the game, asked to arm-wrestle B-Rob then spent some time in the training room…. Lesson learned, mang!

Quick story about Matt: He was a boat driver on Lake Wylie for me and Zona when we filmed the old ESPN show Loudmouth Bass down in NC. Should ask him what his fave memory is of that nuttiness.

Jig in the face.
Dude named Hunter Goad got a swim-jig to the honker:

Hookset looks pretty stout there man! Lol he was okay. For you horror movie fans, here’s the vid of it getting removed at the ER.

News

1. Ish is in el Classico.

Because the recent Open winner only fished two Opens.

2. KVD’s dropshot rig.

Here tis:

That’s a new Strike King Half Shell (bold bluegill) on a #2 Mustad Ultra Point Drop Shot hook and a Strike King Tour Grade Tungsten weight. I asked Kevin if he actually used a dropshot on a wimp stick and he said, “Nah, it’s just for show.”

I’m kidding…because I didn’t ask him. Yet.

3. Elites on Stray Casts show tomorrow.

Tomorrow, 7 pm CST, straycasts.net and YouTube Channel Stray Casts Outdoor Cartoon Television: Aaron Martens, Gerald Swindle and Seth Feider.

4. Zell didn’t just shave the Pop-R’s face.

Thought that was it but nope:

> …Zell would sand the bait down to create a unique sound, a “spit” as Zell calls it. He’d shave the lure millimeter by millimeter until it had just the right look — a more oval head, a more pointed tall, a smaller bait overall.

Huh. This too:

> …what some might be less familiar with is the story of BOOYAH’s Boss Pop — a lure carried over from the Excalibur brand…. “The Boss Pop started as an accident. I accidentally shaved too much off of the face of a Pop-R, and it made the mouth of the bait flatter than I wanted it to be. But I tried it out anyway, and I found that the bass ate it just as good, if not better, than the Pop-R. That’s how the Boss Pop was born.”

Here’s a Pop-R on top and the Boss Pop on the bottom:

5. Russ Lane outs new SPRO squarebill.

Posted: “Just approved this prototype FatPapa squarebill for production! Coming in 70mm/3.0 and 55mm/1.5 sizes. Kicks like balsa, durable like plastic.”

Btw all you Elitists, note that Russ is killin’ it with the vids on his page.

6. B.A.S.S. will allow 10′ rods.

Guess the 60-year-old fear that guys would dabble ain’t a fear no mo? I’m a-guessin’ the biggest impact will be on crankin’…length of cast. But what do I know.

7. More $ up-front now for FLW Tour.

FLW Tour rules/dates here. New Costa Series info here.

8. NV: Wild West championship this weekend on Mead.

9. MN: Mille Lacs folks hope bassin’ will help…

…fill the tourism hole created by the MN DNR’s atrocious management of the lake’s walleye fishery…which may or may not have anything wrong with it.

10. TX ShareLunker program making a few changes.

Read one report that they will breed only Floridas, another that they will only breed fish caught in the first part of the year. So they’re doing something.

11. 6th Sense Cloud 9 Series.

New for 2017. Sweet cloud-like pic:

If you’re curious, here’s the 6th Sense stuff that’s on TW.

12. Lew’s on board with MLF.

13. KY: Hydrilla found in Cave Run Lake.

That lake is fixin’ to get good.

14. Omega has new owners.

Now owned by Brad and Michele Fuller from MO:

> Brad retired from the military after 20 years of active duty service in the Air Force and currently works overseas for a U.S.-based company on a rotational basis.

> Omega Custom Tackle specializes in the production of high-grade premium jigs. Omega jigs are credited with more wins in the famed Big Bass Bash held on Lake of the Ozarks than any other bait. They have accounted for 50% of the wins in the last 3 years and have accumulated a staggering $385,000 in prize money.

> Omega already has several new designs for new innovative baits and will finish up the final rounds of testing this fall.

Here’s the Omega stuff TW carries.

Tip of the Day

Aaron Martens: Top 3 dropshot mistakes.

He had more, but I limited him to three:

1. “Too heavy a weight can hamper the action of the bait — they don’t eat it nearly as good. Sometimes you can get away with it, but…. Guys are fishing a 3/8 or 1/2, but should be fishing 1/8 or 3/16. It changes action of the bait a ton.

2. “You have to shake the bait, not the weight. It’s like a Texas rig — one of the secrets is you shake the bait, not the weight. It makes a huge difference in how many fish you catch. A dropshot the same way. Shake it really light. It’s hard to do. A lot of people don’t do it, but works really well.

3. “People don’t use a slip knot. On a dropshot the knot tends to get frayed badly because it’s the first thing that comes into contact with fish’s teeth — and you usually use light line. Fish tend to hit the knot and line a lot, and it causes breakoffs. Definitely tie a slip knot that has more wraps so the knot is stronger. I use a Uni, but there’s a bunch, like the jam knot.”

Here’s his standard dropshot gear: 4.5″ straight-tail Roboworm on a Gamakatsu A-Mart dropshot hook, 10-lb Sunline SX1 braid with a 10-14′ 7-lb Sunline FC Sniper leader joined with an FG knot, and a 6′ 10″ medium light Enigma Aaron’s Edge spinning rod.

Quote of the Day


I’ve got to be more conscious of what’s in my livewell.

Aussie Elitist Carl Jocumsen talkin‘ at the recent Champlain Open, when he mistakenly had six in the well and called it in. Dude is having a tough year.

Only seen something in my tank one time that scared me:

Had to squeeze that in somehow, too funny….

Shot of the Day

How ’bout this beautimus shot of a fallie smallie:


Random

Couple things about the boating accident that killed the MLB player and two friends the other night:
1. Last time a MLB player died in a boat accident was in a bass boat in FL, in 1993. Also at night. Hit an unlit pier.

2. The NY Times, which I’m not a fan of, had this in paragraph in its story on the accident. Notice it’s not a quote — it’s a statement…by people who I’m sure don’t have a clue about boats. Do not be surprised to see laws in the future restricting boating at night. All for our “benefit”….

> Driving a boat at night can be dangerous and difficult, particularly for inexperienced boaters. There are no lights, and distances are difficult to judge. Even the glow from a cellphone or a GPS instrument can impair vision. The men were headed south, presumably toward home or a nearby marina.
Use the best!
Git on these yo!
Jay Kumar is the guy who created BassFan.com, co-hosted Loudmouth Bass with Zona, was a B.A.S.S. senior writer and a whole lot more in bassin’. Jay Kumar’s BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup of the best in bassin’, and is the #2 daily read on any given day in the wide world o’ bass. Get the Jay Kumar’s BassBlaster app:

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