Been runnin’ and gunnin’ pro patterns ‘n pro tourneys…. Also “new for the (postponed) Classic and ICAST stuff” is starting to come out. A little in this’n, a little more comin’ Thursdee…. Hope all’s well bassin’ peeps!
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How Wes Logan Dirty-Jigged his way to a dirtY win on dirtY NeelY HenrY.
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That’s how it went down mang! Yep Wes grew up fishing Kneelin’ Hank and for sure knows it, but it got blown out and 90+ serious hammers were there too so did local knowledge really matter? Didn’t seem like it cuz he was just fishing regular ol’ baits around regular ol’ bank structure. Got him the win tho, and only his 2nd top 10 finish of his young Elite career (rookie in 2020). Here’s some of his fishing/pattern info, full deal is on the BB website: > “My main pattern was just running some shallow grass, shallow wood, any kid of shallow cover…bouncing back and forth between out of the current and in the current. In the current seemed to be a little better later in the day. Spawning fish [out of the current] are normally more active in the mornings….”
He caught all his fish on 4 baits:
> Hollow-belly frog (green with white bottom), 7′ 3″ Mag MH Ark Invoker Pro Rod, same reel, same line.
> 2 key day 3 fish were on a squarebill: Team Ark Squarebill (chart/black back) and “an old crankbait” (the old Xcalibur? hand-painted), 7′ 2″ M Ark Invoker Pro Rod, Lew’s Custom Pro Reel (6.8), 16-lb Sunline Shooter fluoro.
Electronics, other than mapping and Spot-Lock, were not a factor.
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Shout-out
> “The good Lord for sure. I wouldn’t have won without Him. Stuff happened all week that was out of my control, stuff that shouldn’t have happened but did happen. It was just a blessed week in general, and I just want to give all the glory to Him.”
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5 Qs with the first-time champ.
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Don’t know Wes, let’s see if he has a sense of humor:
1. How did you avoid the home lake jinx?
> “I don’t know. I think i just tried to go fishing. I ran some history stuff but really just tried to figure out what the fish were doing that particular day.
> “If I thought I figured out what they were setting up on, I just tried to run it that particular day…just tried to let the fish tell me what they were doing, not what was working in the past.”
2. When you saw the high water, were you like, Okay it’s on!
> “Heck no, not at all. I like high water better than I like low water for sure, but it got to a point where it was too friggin’ high. When it’s up in the trees, we got a problem. We were fishing around birdhouses and patio sets, all kinds of stuff.”
3. Did Paul Mueller threaten to harm you in any way while you were waiting to take off on day 4?
> “I think he said something about unscrewing the nut off my prop, but I went and checked and everything was good.”
[Paul is known to flip out and intimidate folks, especially the younger guys. Bahahahaha not! I could never see that happening…or could I? ]
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4. If the crankbait was key on day 3, why didn’t you fish it every day?
> “I don’t know…one of those just gut feelings.
> “I was actually struggling really bad…they sucked the bottom outta the lake on day 3. I’d been catching them on river banks, flipping the jig, but the water dropped about 2’….the bank got too shallow to flip.
> “I knew some fish were there…[needed a bait] that wouldn’t get hung up in the rocks so bad in the current.”
5. If Whataburger came out with a Logan Burger, what would it have on it?
> “It’s definitely gonna have cheese and bacon because you can’t have a cheeseburger without bacon on it.
> “I’m a simple person – I just like bacon, cheese, ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise. I think it’d be a good fan favorite…just an all-around common thing. Like me – I ain’t nothing special, but we get the job done.”
My conclusions:
– He does have a sense of humor = good!
– Like the guy, love the humility.
– Paul Mueller really has to be reined in by B.A.S.S. tournament staff…
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3rd-5th Travis BPT baits.
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Here’s the link to Jacob Wheeler’s and Bobby Lane’s again if you need ’em.
https://bassblaster.rocks/wheeler-and-lane-baits-too-much-rule-following-new-fish-holds
3rd: MDJ
He fished bluff walls, 10-30′:
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4th: The Chapmaniac
Fished 0-5′, rocks and some grass:
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5th: Is John Cox evidence of human cloning…I mean no one else is fishing 3 pro trails at once??
Fished docks:
> “The key all week was the PowerBait scent. The fish would eat it and I would have to open the reel and run the rod and reel under cables and parts of the docks to keep the line from breaking off. Then I would click the reel back over and set the hook. They definitely held on to it forever.”
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“I’d rather do that than eat.”
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– Paul “one bad dude” Mueller talkin’ ’bout ice fishing crankin’ at Neely Henry. More money quotes from him:
> “To win one of these, you can’t have one bad day.”
> “…if you can do what you like to do, you’re better off.”
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lol Paul! I love Paul, I’m just bustin’ his frijoles….
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“I guarantee you that Cotton would tell a lot of those guys that they have lace on their underwear.”
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> Dennis said [Cotton] was an old-school angler who fished by wits and intuition. He had no use for electronics and all the other toys that modern tournament anglers believe they require.
> “I guarantee you that Cotton would tell a lot of those guys that they have lace on their underwear. He was the last of the old, pure fishing people.”
> …he worked alongside his father, Cotton Cordell, in the fishing lure manufacturing business. From the time he could drive a truck and hook up a boat, he did it all – sales, marketing, catalog layout, sports shows, and of course fishing tournaments and A LOT of lure testing!
Amazing! Please pray for the Cordell family. ✝️
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1. Lew’s has some new pro rods comin’.
Greg Hackney: 7′ 3″ Frog, 7′ 6″ Pitching AND 7′ 11″ Flipping. Waiting to hear if one is called the Squatch Hammer…or maybe they all are?
Andy Montgomery’s skipping rod is coming too. If Lew’s doesn’t make a vid of Andy literally skipping thru a flower bed or whatever, they will have messed up an opportunity for bassin’ comedy gold mang! I mean, who wouldn’t tune in to see Andy TRY TO skip!
Believe it’s the jig he used to win at Eufaula, for offshore structure:
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Watch that IG vid and see if you agree. Warning: Those peeps know what they’re a-talkin’ about!
Price:
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Lol actually they’re $625 at the TW, payable in bitcoin, kidneys or 556 ammo… MO smallies are calling it “fake news” tho EMOJ:
> “The Meramec is the first major tributary downstream of where they have been found in the Mississippi, and it has a predominately gravel substrate that the gobies seem to prefer.”
This deal does not compute for me – talking about nesting, but it looks like the biologist has never heard of the St Lawrence River or the Great Lakes?
> “Smallmouth bass in the Meramec would be the game fish we’re most concerned about. Although males guard and defend their nests readily, any distraction or temporary displacement, if an angler catches and releases a smallmouth for example, could allow the gobies enough time to consume most of the smallmouth eggs.”
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Glad they’re doing something habitat-wise:
> “Over time algae will start growing on the reef balls, and macroinvertebrates will start to gravitate to them. That’s a food source for shad and smaller bait fish, which in turn will attract larger game fish.
> “…will be attractive to those species that normally gravitate to the Christmas trees, like largemouth bass and crappie….”
> …less risk of hook hang-ups due to the rounded shape of the holes.
Just 101 acres, had been handled by volunteers.
Humminbird and Minn Kota owner.
I have no idea but sounds pretty easy?
> To create plastic baits, they pour raw liquid plastic into a measuring cup and heat it in a microwave oven until it reaches 350 degrees, by which point it has turned from milky to clear. They add color along with speckles or flakes, inject it into metal molds, let it sit 5 minutes, then open the mold to reveal the baits, which are still a bit sticky.
Wonder if Berkley will sell us some liquid MaxScent….
Headlines of the Day
I would hope so Gussy? I would hope he entered every day?? Btw that was from Gussy’s hometown paper, where it says the air temp is SEVEN degrees, which I think in F is like -42.
I’d say especially REAL ones and artificial ones fished by pro anglers…?
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On BassBlaster.rocks right now…
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> …a M to ML spinning rod with fast action, a spinning rod loaded with 6- to 8-lb fluorocarbon line, a splitshot or Mojo-style sinker, a light wire hook, and thin 4-6″ worms….
> …tie your size 2 to 1/0 hook (depending on worm size) to the line, crimp your split shot sinker onto the line at the necessary length from the hook, then thread the worm on straight. make a cast and slowly work the rig back to you….
> …longer leaders are necessary, and in stained water a shorter one will be best. Either way, a 12″ to 36″ leader is probably plenty….
> …choosing [a hook] that is a fine wire with an extremely sharp point…is extremely important because most of the time a bite on a splitshot rig is going to feel much like stretching a rubber band between your thumb and forefinger. having a hook that penetrates quickly and easily is important.
Dang the next time out I might have to have 1 of these and a jighead/grub rigged up….
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“Batteries are everywhere, including your fishing boat. Deep cycle batteries are what you need to run your boat’s trolling motor and other accessories.”
– Sooooo – if we have a boat with batteries in it, wouldn’t we know that?? ( From here.) I read that to Dave Mercer and he was like:
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Headline from Christian and conservative humor folks The Babylon Bee which my bud Jim hipped me to. Believe they are on all major and some newer social….
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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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