Have ya a great long weekend! Quick safety reminder: Should be a zoo out there so keep your head on a swivel and keep yer cool!
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"The bass aren't deciding how many flakes there are in your lure as you drag it over their faces."
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But then he says:
> "They're generally not analyzing baits that closely."
"Generally not"? 🤔 So...sometimes they are? Couple more tiddybits:
> Elam's color choices are either pearl white, blue or red pearl. He always starts with white unless the bass are feeding on bluegill, then he'll use colors that resemble a bluegill.
> "I'll fish the swimbait on a jighead tied to a 12-lb Seaguar fluorocarbon line and use a 7.1 gear ratio casting reel. Occasionally, if I'm using a small swimbait, I'll use a spinning rod." [Yes, occasionally ONLY...😁]
> "If I'm out fishing deeper and the fish are related to structure, I'll make a long cast, give it various counts to count down, and find the magic depth. Remember your count and pay attention to what count you're on when you get bit. Don't forget the old principles, they really work."
Shoot James should know, all those days he spent in the "old principles" office with his bassin' team buds:
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Some of the latest from Japan.
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Love seein' what our bros over there are doin':
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Top row L to R:
Middle L to R:
Bottom row L to R:
7. Driftcrab – Shake it as it falls on a dropshot but don't let it go straight down:
> "...gradually lower the rod while shaking it, or loosen the line you have in your hand and let it fall little by little."
Says it will fool even a "genius bus [bass]" – lol that's the only kind I fish for!
> Cast and wait for a while until the ripples of water landing settle down. Lightly twitch once to dive. After the dive, the lure floats and moves, so wait until it settles down.... There is a bite at this time [or] collect [reel in and then repeat].
> Kimo says, "Don't move too hard."
When's the last time you did that with a walking bait around active fish??
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Is this Shimano carp reel the future of spin reels?
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Called the Aero Technium AgS:
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Basically, if a spinning reel can cast farther with less effort, is light, has a good/great drag, has something/anything to cut down on line twist, and you (or just me??) can cast hard without making it mess up on itself, yahoo – sounds like this reel might do all that, though it'll probly have to be down-sized for bassin'. Few highlights:
> ...claims to have re-imagined the future of ultra long-range reels by combining for the first time a radical new spool design with its world-renowned Super Slow 10 Oscillation. Add an AR-C spool lip and a parallel body design and a new 45mm Long Stroke Casting Spool that increases the spool's surface area by an amazing 30% when compared to previous models....
> ...latest Hi-Speed Drag. This can be changed from almost no resistance (freespool) to maximum power (fish-playing) with only one turn of the adjustment knob located on the front of the spool.... The drag also incorporates Cross Carbon Washers and a micro adjustable clicker, which provide a smooth release of line for full control over the fish when you need it most.
> ...because the line is laid so smoothly and closely together on the spool, there is minimal bedding in, which means it releases without the juddering of lesser quality big-spooled reels.
> A matching spare spool is supplied and...3 spool reducers are supplied in 3500, 6000 and 10000 sizes. These fit securely onto the spool, work perfectly with braid, mono and fluorocarbon lines and reduce the line capacity, enabling you to load exactly the correct amount of line required. An interesting fact is that the spool reducers are so light they actually weigh less than the line they compensate for.
At this size the reel costs 720 Euros = $850. Not a thing for all you high-end Daiwa folks but for the rest of us...😱
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Suspended fish are relating to structure?
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> ...even though bass may be suspended...they will still usually orient to some type of bottom structure: a long sloping point, a bend in a river channel or an old roadbed. "A typical scenario might be to have a submerged point or a channel swing that's 60' deep, and the shad and bass will be holding over it at 25' where the thermocline is located. So the important thing is to remember that while fish do suspend, they still typically relate to these bottom structure features. They just hold above them."
> "...simply idle over these bottom features and scan with your graph until you find them. I watch for schools of shad with bigger-bodied fish hanging around them...positioned beneath the shad."
> Hill's go-to bait for catching suspended bass is a Zoom Fat Albert grub in smoke or a similar shad color. He rigs this bait on a 1/4-oz bald [round] jig with a 3/0 or 4/0 hook. He fishes this grub with a long spinning rod and thin diameter line that facilitates long casts.
> "...I'll start casting in their vicinity. I'll count my bait down to a depth just above where they're holding...then I'll engage my reel and swim the grub steadily back to the boat. I try to find a retrieve rate that'll keep my bait in the prime strike zone for the longest time possible as it tracks back in."
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> Hill keeps two other rods rigged and ready as backups.... "It's not uncommon for bass to come up surface-feeding this time of year so I keep a casting spoon rigged up. I actually use it as a topwater bait, working it really fast to make it hop and skip."
> ...his second backup rod is rigged with a wacky worm hooked on a 1/8-oz jighead. "If I'm getting bites on the Fat Albert and the action slacks off, I'll work the same area with the wacky worm."
Amazing!
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Donnie was an NPFL competitor from TX who it seems passed on suddenly. Please pray for his family and friends. The NPFL stated:
> We never saw Donnie without a smile before, during, or after practice or competition. He lived for his family and fishing and he gave his all to anyone he could.
> To say he had a zest for life is an understatement. A professional bass angler is much more than 5 fish at the end of the day. It's about character and how you represent yourself and your family. Donnie encompassed all the values we were looking for in an angler and more.
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Bless you bassin' brother. 🙏 ✝️
Makes it sound like havin' a mullet is work, when it's really just ultra-savagely easy:
> Keeping hair this good-looking is not an easy task. After a day of making long runs at 70 mph, my hair gets wicked tangles. Pretty much every day I end up ripping a semi-dreadlock off the back of my head, but I'm willing to pay that price because I believe in the power of my hair.
> It's pretty much shampoo and conditioner, something simple like Pantene Pro-V or whatever, and I'm good to go.
This line is a 10 outta 10:
> Think about Kevin VanDam: He won 25 tournaments. If he'd had decent flow he might've won a hundred.
😂
...on a piece of structure you've marked. Helps keep 'em all straight. Quick IG vid.
Folks heard someone yelling on the lake, "NO! NO WE ARE ONLY FISHING FROGS!" or some such...😆
If you fish that lake, listen to his IG vid ^.
Lotta guys hunt for a break too. He also said this about his family, which I think is good?
> All four of us have developed the habit of eating.
🤔
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Looks like it's the top, so maybe it's so he can see it better?
Wednesdays at 8:30 pm ET.
Was a fundraiser for the DYRK1A Foundation, which I believe funds research on that medical condition. Funds from the Straight Bass Homie tees – short sleeve and long sleeve – also help.
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Gotta say it looks pretty stellar:
Feb 5-10 – Caney Creek Reservoir, Lake D'Arbonne & Bussey Brake, LA
Feb 19-24 – Lake Fork, TX
Mar 2-7 – Lewis Smith Lake, AL
Mar 23-27 – Redcrest Championship – Grand Lake, OK
Apr 9-14 – Heavy Hitters – Lake Palestine, TX
Apr 30-May 5 – Lake of the Ozarks, MO
Jun 4-9 – Watts Bar, TN
Aug 6-11 – Cayuga Lake, NY
Sep 10-15 – Mille Lacs, MN
I like that the end of the year ain't necessarily smallmouths only.
Classic Bass tournament on Pelican Lake. Sturgeon Bay guide Adam Rasmussen had 100 lbs in the first 2 hours of the day, then more than doubled that. 🤯
Because 8 years ago:
> The City of Austin, with permission from the State, dumped 56,700 sterile grass carp into the lake to eat the hydrilla. They ended up eating everything.
Few deals:
- Seems like just putting a small number in to test it first would have made more sense?
- Unless something has changed, "sterile" is basically always a guess because the way they do it there's no way to know with 100% certainty that all are sterile.
- Willing to bet that if there was ever an analysis done somehow, stocking carp – any kind – would be shown to have zero positive benefits over the long term.
Limited quantities – I'm diggin' the old skool Heddon Spit'N Image in "Ouachita shad" – when's the last time one of your feesh saw one o' those??
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One already sold out so jump on it!
15. New Berkley stuff.
Couldn't get to it all from ICAST so here's some links:
New MaxScent shapes, sizes 'n colors: Includes a new Tube (2.5" and 3.5") and this deal called the Lil' Trooper which is 2.5" long (TW says 2.75") and I wish it was offered in a bigger size too:
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Do NOT look at those colors on TW if you are on a budget! 😍
Reminder that Brunswick, a public company, owns Merc, MotorGuide, Lowrance and some boat brands. They seem to be gettin' after it!
IN company:
> "...an industry-leading supplier of stainless steel hardware, ladders, electronics, and plastics for recreational marine applications. As a standalone division of T-H Marine, Heartland will continue to operate at its current facility in Angola, IN."
Congrats to T-H owner Jeff Huntley who must use a special fertilizer for that money tree in his yard...😁
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🤯
Just 1 live mussel so far.
All these notices imply that boats are to blame. They might be, but wading birds and ducks might too since they spread other things...just sayin'....
> "The assumptions used in the report create the impression that the corps thinks this situation is not urgent. Well it is. We need action and we don't have 25 years to wait."
The Corps report is – wait for it – 10,000 pages. That right there is basically the problem....
Anyone remember the snail darter? Initially used to block finishing the Tellico Dam, but the dam was eventually finished and the darter is okay.
Fish big worms!
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On BassBlaster.rocks right now...
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Some random tippage I tripped over.
Different stuff:
> "I can take a bait like a Heddon Super Spook Jr – a decent-sized little bait – but go to a clear version of it with a feather (treble hook) on the end. It still looks like that smaller bait because all they really see is that little feather."
And now you can got even a lil bit smaller with the Heddon Spook Boyo, which TW already has in stock....
> His boat is positioned perfectly to enable him to methodically work each intersection of limbs along the trunk during the retrieve. If that effort goes unrewarded...begins to drop the jig along the outer portions of the shallow, submerged tree.
> "The most important thing to consider when fishing laydowns is to perfectly position your boat before making your very first cast. Proper positioning keeps your lure down the trunk of the laydown through the entire cast, from the very first cast. Remember, you only have one opportunity to catch a bass totally by surprise."
> "My best tip would be to experiment with different tails. A big worm is always going to produce fish when they're offshore in deep, warm water. I started out with your typical Zoom Ol Monster and Mag 2 ribbontails. I switched to a big hand-poured paddletail and started catching fish 5 to 1 over the ribbontail.
> "That's something you should keep in the back of your mind: Am I fishing exactly the right thing?"
> "That old man told me that when (the water is) cold, around 45-46, you have to let it sit there 5-6 seconds. I fished with him one time and saw that technique, so I slowed the jerkbait down and let it sit there about 5 seconds."
Better not have any coffee that mornin'!
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"I wanted to be a pro athlete, I wasn't going to let my circumstances define my life and what I was going to do."
> "I was like 'Okay, even though the NFL or Major League Baseball may not draft me, there is a sport I can take to the top level so I pursued fishing."
Awesome:
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Do big swimbaits work for smallmouths? Obviously not...😁 @lowdowncustomrods posted: @oli.nadeau setup custom Workshop 7' 9" | MH (1 - 5 oz). Swimbait 🇨🇦.
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A 4-legged WHALE?? O...kay...?
> Whales, it turns out, used to be "herbivorous, deer-like terrestrial mammals," the scientists write.
So...what did deer used to be? Fish?? Cracks me up man....
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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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