Hey what happened to the Elite Series? 😁 Feels like it's been months since those guys fished, so glad one's comin'! Hoping for normal weather for them and the MLFs – and for all of us when we get a day. Get On Em like Matty Robertson this weekend!
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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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Good tiddybits from a Butch Brown deal in the LA Times.
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Loooong article, cool to see that about one of our drywallin' bassin' brothers. Some random stuff that stood out to me:
> He calls up the lunar chart to make sure the moon isn't in the daytime sky. "If the moon is out, I have better things to do."
> "What I've done is gone to imitation bluegill baits. That's my own creation. Not on the market. You gotta match what they're eating. That's the best way to trick a trophy fish." [He pours his own to get the color that is working on any given day.]
> "I'd take the time to tweak my bait and make it look anatomically correct. I'd paint my hooks to match the baits. A stealth presentation is key."
> Brown has several boats, but his favorite...is a 14' Alumacraft he saw for sale...when he was 16. Cost: $400. Brown's 1966 model is leaky, scratched up, patched up and painted black numerous times over....
> "It doesn't spook the fish as it sits low in the water. That keeps me out of their sightline as they follow the bait back to the boat. They're not afraid of my boat. It looks like a beat-up log." [Believe the lakes he fishes are 'lectric-only? Or 9.9 hp or less?]
> "Butch has a complete understanding of the forage in his water and works with our production team to get the color perfect," [Deps CEO Kazumasa] Okumura says. "He will not substitute for perfection.
> "I truly respect his style of fishing for only trophy fish. He truly is the honmono [real deal] big fish hunter."
> "I go fishing a lot and I catch nothing. I go weeks...."
Did he ever have a world record on? Possibly:
> Over the years Brown has hooked and lost 3 fish he's confident were over 20 lbs. In 2005 Brown had an unprecedented 128 double-digit largemouth in 9 months' time, but it also included a gut punch....
> "The one I shouldn't have lost was on a Huddleston swimbait. I've seen 20-lb fish so I knew this was a big one. I could tell by the features, the big head, the size of the eyeballs, the big body. I had the heavy rod and I kept her coming." He had the fish ready to net "but giants like to dig down and – bam! – she snapped me right off. I was sick to my stomach."
I bet! I'd have to take a sec to chew on an aspirin and get the defib paddles ready! 😁
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Butch also was a pioneer in videoed catches of beeg melones:
> Matt Paino of Optimum Baits, who produces Brown's Thumper Tail bait..."He's the one that put cast-to-catch video on the map. It's right there in front of you. There's no deception."
In all these years in the bassin' universe, don't think I've ever spoken to Butch – kinda strange I haven't (maybe I did in the Loudmouth Bass days? 🤔). Then again SoCal is its own scene. Would love to talk to him – seems like a real humble down to earth guy. Here's the vid that goes with the article:
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My fave quote from it:
> "There's nothing that makes me feel close to my childhood again or growing up than to be able to go to the lake and go fishing."
Such a great way of putting it. One mo': The deal shouted-out Tackle Warehouse!
> Largemouth bass fishing is a $60 bil a year industry, and the obsession for taking a selfie with a double-digit will have anglers trying new baits, old baits, new fishing holes, old fishing holes, checking the weather app, checking the moon app and basically tossing every penny they have into the Tacklewarehouse.com wishing well.
Hahaha you know it mang! Good job to the scribbler, Steven E. Banks – don't think I know him but gotta think he's a bass fisherman. No one gets all that stuff right who isn't.
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Ever seen a frog this color?
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That's the new "disco ball" BOOYAH Pad Crasher, which explains Jason Christie's getup here:
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Warning: Jason and Chad are both Okies which means you know somethin' about 'em – they ain't right...🤣 OK peeps!
Serious for a sec: Why haven't we ever gotten a frog that color, which is kinda genius? The Bronzeye comes in like 50 colors and I don't see one like that? (Have we seen a frog that color-ish but I'm forgettin'? Maybe it's a semi-obscure Japanese one?)
Anyhow, that color is one of Jason's faves – his YUM Christie Craw comes in that color too, tho it's called "tin foil."
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LA teen caught a 12.63 – on a school day! 💪
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Mon, May 2 Parkview High junior Hunter H was on the water. He'd got his work done, he had permission, he was on Bussey Brake – LA Sportsman with the deets:
> Not long into the morning, [he] flipped his bait into a thick piece of brush on the 2,200-acre...lake and pulled out a 12.63-lb fish of a lifetime.
> He was flipping a Zematoma- color Missile D Bomb...tossed the bait into the heavy cover, lifted it and let it fall. He repeated the action and on the second lift, the huge fish nailed it.
> "...I felt something pulling back like I've never felt before. I had 65-lb braid and when I set the hook, the fish didn't even move. Oh my gosh. I thought I had a huge carp or something. Then it swam away, I could do nothing even with a heavy rod."
This is my fave part:
> "I was texting [his buds at school] and sending pictures to them right after I caught it.... They were like 'that's not fair' and so I know I'll have to watch out when I get back."
Hahaha tell me catching a DD and texting your buds while they're in school isn't way better than ketchin' it on the weekend! 👊
> He and fellow bass friends had watched online much of the Major League Fishing pro bass tournament on Bussey earlier this spring and he had been wanting to fish those waters.
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Was Bruce Lee talkin' 'bout you?
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Think about that the next time you see a guy with just 1-2 rods on his deck!
Startin' to be re-convinced that while versatility is important and does win tourneys, when conditions line up for a guy's strengths, that's mostly when wins happen. Let's call it "the Denny Brauer law." Or maybe the Denny law should be "no more than 1-2 rods on deck, and they better be for flippin'." 😁
Btw, Bruce Lee IS Jordan and Matt Lee's dad, just not that Bruce Lee.
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He reminded me Ray would push folks into the spotlight without warning sometimes – he was gonna enjoy it however it went!
> My favorite frog is the River2Sea Ish Monroe Phat Mat Daddy Frog, and I keep it pretty simple with my colors. I like something that looks like a bluegill when fishing around the bluegill spawn, a bright white or chartreuse for the middle of the day and when fishing clear water. Early in the morning or when fishing dirtier water, I like a black or brown-colored frog.
Insta vid ^ says a lot coming from him.
> You guys…I just got some of the 2023 Yo-Zuri 3DB line up! One of my absolute favorites is the new 3DR-X Pencil 75!
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I'm with him on that smaller size – I usually prefer a Jr walking size here in the Northeast.
I think the big swimbaits deal might have messed him up?
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😂
> "I've always considered myself a '5-fish' guy trying to target the big bites, but I haven't had to change my style and (the BPT) hasn't been as much about finesse fishing as I thought it would be."
Remember when we all thought/joked MLF would be about small baits, but it really hasn't been. They keep moving around the minimum size for scoreable bass too.
If you're a tourney angler at any level, give it a listen. The issues are current – canceled tourney days and final day weekends – and they have some great opinions on it.
Soooo much "podcast" stuff put out now, a lot of it good, this is one of 'em.
First time in 40 years it won't be held at Mead and still will be Oct 10-12:
> With boat-launching conditions at Mead currently rated as poor and with all predictions forecasting even more dire conditions coming this fall, WON Bass TD Billy Egan officially made the decision this week to move the prestigious event to Mohave.
10. NY has bills that would outlaw tourney fishing??
> Assembly bill A5746 (Senate bill S6643) would completely destroy NY's bass tournament industry, along with other fishing tourneys across the state. The host communities around Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Lake Chaplain, the Hudson River, and numerous other lakes and rivers would very quickly feel the crunch. These communities rely on the revenue produced by the professional and amateur anglers who participate in the contests these well-regulated contests.
BUT it's not clear to me from the bills (can't link 'em – at nysenate gov) that fishing tourneys are involved. The Assembly bill doesn't mention fishing at all, which means it probably could be included in a lawsuit, but the Senate bill specifically says:
> This excludes; contests for hunting white-tailed deer, turkey, and bear; field trial testing for dogs; fishing derbies, as fish are not wildlife under this law.
> ...it would not affect the continued lawful, regulated hunting of furbearer or game species, fishing contests and derbies, or dog field trials.
Few things:
- These bills are part of a multi-year, multi-state effort to get so-called "liberal" (government) states to ban "wildlife contests." They use pics of coyotes run over by snowmobiles – which, if those are real, ain't a "fair chase"/quick way to kill an animal in my 2c.
- It comes up in several states every year, and every time they try to overreach beyond coyotes.
- From my own reporting and research since the 1990s, I am satisfied that hardcore environmentalists, animal rightists, anti-2Aers and [insert the protest issue of the day here] are mostly the same folks – and these folks want to change American culture using legislation/lawfare...meaning it isn't really about any one issue. My 2c.
11. Rapala DT8 size comparison.
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Got that pic from Ike's blog – L to R that's the DT6, new DT8 and DT10. The DT8 is one of the baits I'm super stoked to fish, partly because Gerald Swindle and Ike think it's the shizzle, and partly cuz a smaller bait profile that gets deep I think will actually work on my crazy home lake!
...bringing back the wild chestnut tree to the US! Wow!
Okay not really – at GSM Outdoors, which just bought Bill Lewis, he's now the brand manager for fishing. Congrats! Sounds like he will now be under Crispin Powley who's a U TN fan so...😬
🤣 Crispin is a bud....
Couple articles liked to point at warming weather overall (tho not this winter!), but it's way more complex than that:
> ...warming lake waters, loss of habitat, starvation, larvae not reaching adulthood and chemicals.
> Based on some climate change models, Feiner and other researchers believe that walleye numbers will decline by 2060.
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Skeet Reese has a pair in yellow, and to my knowledge he has the only yella ones ever made – meaning you can't buy 'em!
...guess what:
> "Overall the most popular color is going to be a green pumpkin or a variant of that. All year round you can use green pumpkin."
Bettin' no professional angler is surprised by that!
Nikko Craw, bet smallmouth would hate it (in a good way):
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Fly feesh rig but so what:
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Supposed to help with nutrients coming out of Okeechobee, think it will be 10,000+ very bassy acres and 20+ feet deep. The rich get richer man....
> The USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service in MO signed a Record of Decision on May 11, 2022, supporting the installation of a multi-purpose reservoir in Sullivan County. The decision concludes extensive environmental analysis....
> The East Locust Creek Reservoir near Milan is designed to provide 7 mil gallons of water per day to over 100,000 people living in the surrounding 10-county region. The reservoir will also provide flood damage reduction and water-based recreation opportunities. An earthen dam 79 feet tall will impound a reservoir with a permanent pool of 2,328 acres.
> This project has a design life of 100 years and is estimated to cost $110 million to construct.
22. CA lake status stuff.
23. NM: Elephant Butte is at just 13.3% of capacity. 👀
Believe it or not that's a little better than last year. Can't link it, at kvia com.
Man we NEED more apparel 'n sunglasses in fishin'! 😁 I kinda dig the Kryptek stuff, have a rifle case in it....
In-house transfer.
> Treatments will occur from Mon, May 9 through Fri, May 20, depending on weather. The management area is in the northwest marsh...between Buckhead Ridge and the Indian Prairie Canal.
> Dense stands of this nonnative grass dominate large areas of the lake's marshes and outcompetes native, desirable vegetation.
Man I hope that doesn't happen here. Outdoor peace and drones don't go together in my 2c.
Line of the Day
- Guess the dude almost had his priorities in the right order...🤔...maybe not.
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On BassBlaster.rocks right now...
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Cool little spring Carolina rig tip from Alton Jones Sr.
From an older Western Bass post (sorry can't link it, it's at westernbass com):
> "Most fishermen think of using a Carolina rig in deeper water. It works there for sure, but I like to use it in the shallows in the springtime. I will catch a lot of fish up shallow on this rig.
> "It's ideal when your fish a row of docks. Put your flipping gear down and pick up the Carolina rig to fish in the stretch where there are no docks. Look for points or other hard bottom areas like seawalls.
> "Use a heavy weight like a 3/4 or a 1-oz. Since I'm fishing a good distance from the fish, I like the weight so it makes a splash in the shallows. This isn't pitching where the fish see you, so the natural instinct is to investigate the noise, the splash and then the heavy weight stirring up the bottom. It is a great big-fish option. So simple, but so effective."
Sold! Imma try it!
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"An endocrinologist...cites multiple studies proving that levels of cortisol – our 'stress hormone' – in the blood decrease during a day of fishing. 'This results in lower blood pressure, lower blood sugar, lower cholesterol levels and better cardiovascular outcomes.'"
- Addiction to baits
- Hoarding
- Obsessive-compulsive behavior
- Getting mad at innocent fish
- Getting mad at oneself or one's tourney partner
- Pain
- Marital stress
- etc.
😁 More on this whole deal soon....
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Cool Abu Garcia shot of Josh Bertrand, believe the pic was taken by an alligator...because a frog wouldn't be that high off the surface...😁
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Kinda genius but weird and sad/insane. What's next, some dude in a giant birdcage?? Someone sleepn' a big tank with crickets???
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Jay Kumar's BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup of the best (sometimes worst) and funniest 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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