Watched a little Olympics. Snow's not really my scene, but I love folks training hard and givin' it all they got. Got to thinkin': If bassin' was on TV only once every 4 years, would it be easy or hard for folks to understand? I'm going with: easy.
Here's why: It's just WEIGHT! Lots of Olympics events are messed up by "judges." Someone has the fastest time but did X, Y or Z and they're DQd, or they didn't have enough "style" or whatever, or the [pick a country] judge wants their athlete to win so.... But in bassin', the most weight wins it, end of story. 👊
Couple weird deals:
- Both big tourney winners this weekend own chocolate Labs. 🧐
- This weekend I washed the salt off my truck in a T-shirt. The next day it snowed.
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Reminder: If your email program cuts off the bottom of this email, click "View this email in your browser" up top to see the whole thing. Sorry bout that – email programs keep changing stuff.
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How John Crews won at the St Johns River.
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Did you see Johnny Crews sneakin' up on a St Johns win? You sure did because he finished 2nd there in 2020, 5th in 2019 – and 160th in 2008! 😁 Those are all real finishes so Crews was gettin' dialed in the last couple years fo sho. Here's some of how the blue trophy was grabbed by him, all the deets are on BassBlaster.rocks:
> "The first day of the tournament I caught 26 lbs or so on a dropshot fishing deeper [in Rodman], and then I ended up culling one on the river – like a 4.5-lber. That's what gave me 28 lbs.
> "The 2nd day I went and caught some on Rodman, but I felt like it was going away – that deeper bite. I wasn't seeing as many fish on LiveScope as I did before. I wasn't seeing those fish in those trees like I saw in practice and the 1st day of the tournament. So I ended up catching 3 of the 5 back on the river. That's what kind of saved my bacon the 2nd day, to where I could stay in the lead.
> "The 3rd day the river was sucking so I went up to Rodman. It was sucking deep, so I went to a shallow area where I'd caught some small ones late the last day of practice. ...my first flip was with the [Missile Baits] Quiver and I caught a 5-lber. ...filled up my limit, culled a couple times.... I knew it wouldn't be the deal, but at least it gave me a limit [around 13 lbs]....
> "Day 4 I knew we were getting different weather [rain, clouds, wind]. We had sunny and calm in the tournament up to that point. I went out on the river...the first 2 hours I ended up catching about 12 lbs.
> ...headed to Rodman. I made one stop real quick right before the lock and caught one about 4.75 and then started feeling really good.
> "I went on up to Rodman and nothing was working deep. I ended up going shallow...nothing over there either. So I went back towards the lock and stopped again because we were having some wind and rain. I picked up a spinnerbait and caught a 2.75 and culled 2-lber.... 5 minutes later the rain was done and it was sunny and slick for the rest of the day. What I caught the last day, all of them were on the river...pads."
Baits
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> "I had like 3 stretches of lily pads [in 2-3'] I was fishing – long stretches. I didn't know where they were going to be, I just covered water. I think they live in those pads on the St Johns – they've always lived in there, even when they had eelgrass [in the river]. Now with no eelgrass all they don't have anything else to live in.
> "I had 5-6 deeper places – they were all related to the creek channel or river channel, anywhere from 12' to 25'. If you could find one of those isolated trees that had fallen over right along the channel, that seemed to be the key."
> "...out of the elephant ears – bigger pads in 3-5'.
> "I was throwing a Zoom Fluke (watermelon red), my limit-getter [around] I call them 'shallow flat pads' – the pads that lay flat on the water – and pad stems. That's where they spawn. I could see old beds but no fish on them. Smaller fish were up on there cruising around."
More
> Electronics – "I utilized everything, all 3 brands. LiveScope definitely played a factor for the deeper bite on Rodman."
> Shout-out – "There's a ton of people I would like to thank but it was really cool to have my dad there with me when I won."
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5 Qs with the Missile Man.
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1. How much of a stud do you feel like winning an Elite on baits you designed?
> "It's pretty amazing to have helped other people win tournaments and it was very cool to win one on baits that I designed for sure."
So...do you or do you not feel like a stud because that was the question.
> "I had that [word] in numerous text congratulations so maybe I should!"
2. After this win are we gonna see some SPRO baits now called "Big Studly John" instead of just "Little John"?
> [Laughs] "I'm no taller so I think they're gonna stay with Little John."
3. Since "nice guys finish last," what does your win say about you now? 😁
> "I guess I can be a [jerk] too!" [Laughs]
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4. Who was more excited about the win, your dad or Dixie Fudge?
> "I would have to say dad, but my wife said that Dixie Fudge was very excited every time they said [John's name on TV] – she would run to the window every time."
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5. Your last win was on the Cali Delta [2010] – guess you like rivers?
> "I do like rivers. I think that the added element of the tide helps me because it's another factor and I feel like a lot of anglers don't know it or how to fish it. Obviously there's other good tidal-fishery anglers, and the ones that get it have a pretty good track record on tidal fisheries.
> "Just don't look at my finish on the Chesapeake Bay a couple years back – it screws up my whole theory." [He finished 88th there in 2015.]
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How Bradley Roy got his first Bass Pro Tour win.
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How 'bout them apples! Sounds kinda tough to win your first one in a deal that's on 3 different lakes with water temps in the HIGH 40s...in LA! 🤯 Props to him on his first Bass Pro Tour win, here's how he did it – more deets on the BB site:
D'Arbonne
> "At D'Arbonne I weighed pretty much every fish from the back section of a creek – one of the bigger creeks on that lake. The back of it had a lot of really good spawning cover around the banks, but out in the middle 3-4 ditches came through this flat scattered with cypress trees. They had 3-5' of water on them, and the best ones had about 4' on them. It seemed like a good place for those bass to hold while wintering or waiting to move up....
> "I was just basically pitching at 'em. ...seemed like the really consistent way to get a bite was simply a Trick Worm. I've done it in FL before, when the water is cold and the fish are real lethargic. [Water T was high 40s at D'Arbonne.]
> "...the majority of bites came on the fall. It wasn't as much trying to trick one into biting, it was just one would get set up in the way it needed to on those trees and when I came by...they'd usually bite it real quick.
> "I was fishing [shallow], those little ditches that came out of that flat were super key. I got bit on trees that weren't around [a ditch but]...could tell [with Lowrance ActiveTarget] before I got to a tree if it right on the edge of the ditch...could make a more high-percentage cast.
> "...blew me away. I was literally looking down almost as much as a dropshot tournament."
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Caney
> "It's a completely different lake than D'Arbonne – some deep structure and grass. My plan that day was to fish a jerkbait, a dropshot...and I spent a good bit of the 1st period doing that. I caught some non-scorables, then the wind started blowing from the south. [Water temp was 50-51.]
> "...couple banks I knew had some grass, so I jumped up on that grassline with a 1/2-oz gold lipless. I got a 3-10 and knew if I got another one to bite it would tell me something I could do. Then I caught a 5-lber and started running that.
> "I was using ActiveTarget the same way. Seemed to me you had to keep the bait coming right off the break of that grass. The water was 4-7' deep and the grass was about halfway up. It definitely did seem to help if you were at least ticking the grass."
Bussey Brake
> "A lot of flooded trees and bushes at various depths – I rigged a lot of flipping stuff up....
> "A lot of that lake was kind of the same depth and we didn't have a lot of mapping because it's pretty much a brand new lake. I found one area with a little ridge – it was a little shallower. Most of the lake was 8-10' and this was around 4'. It had a variety of stumps, bushes and trees with scattered grass mixed in...ended up being where I spent the entire day."
> "I normally [would flip that stuff with Seaguar AbrazX fluoro] but new for Seaguar this year is 22-lb Tatsu [and 17-lb]. I used it the week before and it seemed like really good line – a little stronger than 20 but not quite 25. I felt like it was in the sweet spot."
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1. Are you a believer in the new baby winning pattern deal now?
> "Yes, absolutely. I had heard about it. We had Lucas [his son] in Aug of last year, and the first tournament after that we went to St Clair – Timmy Horton comes right up to me and says, 'You're gonna win this week. You just had a baby and that's how it goes.'
> "I had a good tournament that week, but I didn't end up winning. But the next regular-season event [he won]."
2. Did Lucas help you pick out your tackle for this deal?
> "No but I'm sure he would've loved to have played with it. To be 6 months old, he's really interested in boats and tackle – it's kinda cool."
[I don't know man, it sure looks like Lucas helped:]
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3. Do you always like to "break in" your skeg before the first tourney of the season? 😁
> "No but now I think I need to do it every year."
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Sooooweee callin' up the howgs!
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1. Howell's record-settin' days
Didja know Randy Howell caught TWO DD FISH in one tourney?? And they were both MLF big-fish records? Here you go:
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What he caught 'em on:
I asked him WTHeck happened and he said, "No rhyme or reason for it other than God's favor!" I believe it, but I also believe it's true that if Randy doesn't fish a Senko in a tourney his wife Robin will give hip a whuppin'! 😆 Hahaha Howells!
2. Is Possum Kingdom in TX the new OH Ivie??
Not yet but these two 13+ hawgacious melons were caught the same day, Feb 12. First was Steven Davis' 13.20:
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Then Randy Palmer weighed this 13.38:
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Looks a little chilly there!
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Good! No-brainer. Congrats Gary!
Still has the old-school shorts, now has the bassin' 'stache:
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The '70s are back yo! Once you go bassin' Samson on the 'stache you can never go back....
On the St Johns. I was like, "Paul what was the owl's name?" He said, "Owl." Alrighty then....
Dang! 🤯
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Take him down James Hall!
8. More pro jersey auctions to help St Jude on eBay.
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> The first annual Brandon Belt 100K Grand Slam tournament was hosted by Brandon Belt Fishing with East TX Fishers of Men [on Rayburn]. The tournament was formed to help raise funding and awareness for The Fathers Heart, an orphanage located in Amazonas, Brazil that provides endangered children with refuge and a new hope for their futures.
...and conservation, part of the Infrastructure deal. Okay but who's paying for it?
> ...reported an all-time record year for 2021. ...the Finnish company's net sales for the year increased by 13%...with operating profit up 200%.
Called Decathlon, never heard of 'em but that name sure doesn't say fishing...might wanna start there:
> ...a real demand for products at affordable prices,...and that a mobile, cashless checkout system would prove popular with customers. That strategy has clearly failed....
> ...closed its 2 shops in San Francisco 4 years after they opened.
14. Keep an eye on....
So much completely wrong in that post (not all of it) but it's out there. Also claims that:
> ...a significant fraction of reservoirs emit copious amounts of methane, a particularly potent greenhouse gas....
Nothing like bass club weigh-in lines tho...🤣
> ...how more than 200 planned dams worldwide will alter river temperatures, potentially rendering waters too hot or too cold for native fish. "Somebody can just plug in the size of a dam, and then they can know, 'If my dam is this big and this wide and has this massive capacity, it will cause thermal change of this much range,'" Shahryar Ahmad, a NASA hydrologist....
Headline of the Day
> ...women are debating whether the ubiquitous fish photos are the next big catch on dating apps – or a symptom of toxic masculinity.
HAHAHA now we're toxic! I'll take it! And what about fishin' gals? Is that "toxic femininity"??
Doh!
1. Yep there IS an OK blade! Plum forgot....
2. Forgot that the pikeminnow is a native species in WA/OR and is just being caught 'n not released to try to help salmon survival.
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On BassBlaster.rocks right now...
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Short Bassmaster vid – big takeaway is that Clent experiments with glue. 😁 Okay that didn't sound right: He drills a hole in his Yo-Zuri Rattl'n Vibes and fills 'em with glue so he has a silent version, along with the regular and One Knock versions. He also says he sometimes breaks out the smaller Vibe, which is a 3/8-oz 2.25" bait:
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"It's the only thing I can think about. It's the only thing that interests me, figuring out the next move in how I catch a fish."
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Think you can't A-rig from the bank? Check @bassbum_ – YUM post says he committed to throwing a YUMbrella Flash Mob Jr for 2 days and got this 10-02! Love that he blotted out the background of that pond lol:
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Add that to the list of reasons to move there!
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Jay Kumar's BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup of the best and funniest (sometimes worst) stuff in bassin', picked by me – Jay Kumar. I started BassFan.com, co-hosted Loudmouth Bass with Zona, was a B.A.S.S. senior writer and a bunch more in bassin'. The Blaster is the #2 daily read on any given day in the wide world o' bass so thanks for readin'!
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