Welcome to the BassBlaster, your daily email about all things bassin’. Willya please forward this to a bassin’ bud!

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Today’s Top 3

Three interestin’ dropshot tips today:

1. John Murray: Use it as a search bait.

> As we approach the fall season, I like to use the dropshot as I would use a crankbait. It becomes a search bait to find active fish that have seen all the hard moving baits and are unaccustomed to seeing my presentation.

> I will line up on a structure that would normally be a crankbait situation, but instead make a long cast with the dropshot and work it slowly back to the boat. Forget the limitations of the depth of a crankbait – the drop shot can fish all depths.

> Another use of the dropshot in fall is for suspended fish that are chasing bait. A lot of times I’ll graph a group of bass eating bait fish deep – as deep as 50 feet – and I will use the dropshot to reach those fish.

2. Kota Kiriyama: Bait action and color.

> Many anglers seem to neglect how important the falling action of the bait is. The bait is often hit just as it touches the bottom so the bait must appear natural as it falls. If you look through your most productive baits, most of them are ones with subtle action because that is how the real forage moves most of the time.

> I find myself letting the bait sit still most of the time because as the water moves and as you naturally move, the bait will move very subtly and the tail will shake…. It doesn’t take much to make the bait wiggle and draw attention from any fish nearby.

> Color selection shouldn’t be overlooked, but if you were to use just one I would recommend the watermelon color as it has a general look of many forage fish.

3. Boyd Duckett: Fishing it and hookset.

> I fish it differently than a lot of other guys. For me, the key seems to be moving the bait very slowly across the bottom but giving it plenty of action by shaking the rod constantly on a limp line. I move the rod a lot, but the bait is just barely quivering because of the slack in the line.

> A lot of guys who are new to dropshotting have problems hooking fish. They’re probably setting the hook too hard…. Sticking a fish with a dropshot is not about the hook set. It’s about getting the point of the hook up against the fish’s mouth by taking up all the slack and reeling very fast. The hook points on quality hooks are so sharp that they’ll find a place…if you just keep the pressure on.

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News

1. Can Brent Chapman 3x qualify?

He’s fishing the Fort Gibson Central Open. Triple-qualifying for the Classic (Elite win + AOY + Open win)? Could happen!

2. VA releases tidal bass rivers study (pdf link).

Couple excerpts below – fish the Chick!

> Chickahominy: Characterized by high angler catch rates. Given years of strong recruitment and increasing catch rates, anglers should see continued high catch rates over the next several years. Has the highest largemouth catch rates and, thanks to exceptional recruitment of young bass, has surpassed the James in abundance of bass ≥ 15inches. This fishery should continue to produce ample bass for several years.

> It takes an unusually strong year-class to produce fish over 5 pounds in the tidal James. Previous to the 2009 and 2011 year-classes, 1998 was the last time such a year class was produced – those bass have succumbed to mortality and are no longer in the system. It will be several years before the 2009 and 2011 year-classes begin to show up as larger fish in angler catches.

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Quote of the Day

Since I’m 62 years old, I don’t spend as much time with new baits so I have to thank the kids for keeping me involved as much as possible.

– Larry Nixon talking about how younger pros keep him up to date on new fishin’ stuff.

 

Shot of the Day

Check out Tommy Biffle in the no-wrap/stealth boat at the Ft. Gibson Open today. Usually he’s in a Gene Larew wrap. Ya think he wants to be sorta incognito on a lake he knows ike the back of his hand?

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