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Slobber melons of the week!
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Gitcha drool towel ready!
Larry B caught this 13.51 mega-chunk on Lake Guerrero, MX with a 1/2-oz Rat-L-Trap (chrome/blue) that looks like a crappie-size bait on that thing’s jaw wow:
Was a time in the not too distant past when JT Kenney could make fish jump into his boat in FL. But now…looks like he needs Ish as a fishing guide? Hahaha! Ish didn’t say what bait JT caught this 12 on — his new PB — but not surprising cuz Ish is fishn this week (JT’s just all talk this week lol):
Telly K caught this 11-15 FL slobberlous yak melon flippin’ wood with a 9/16-oz Punisher Jig (black) with a Zoom Salty Pro Chunk (b/b). Said: “I hooked this pig and she came off. She bit the 2nd time 10-15 mins later and I stuck her that time. Talk about feeling the lowest low to the highest high. It was exhilarating!” I bet man!
John Reese, Skeet’s brother, caught this 11.5 (his new PB) at Clear Lake, CA on a Lucky Craft Pointer 128. Notice not a single yellow thing in that pic — a long story, so I’m told (heehee!):
@sarah_the_closer_parvin caught her 11.2-lb PB on a Yo-Zuri Rattl’n Vibe lipless (golden shiner):
This Lake Claiborne, LA 11-lber was caught by crappie fisherman Jeff Brown at night on a black/chart Bobby Garland crappie jig, 4.5′ Berkley rod and 8-lb Sufix line…not sure why he needed 8-lb line for crappies but guess it helped him land the bass. Gotta point out that big fish are regularly caught on crappie jigs:
MX bass-head Massimiliano P. caught these fat beauties and several more at Don Martin Lake, MX. Said he was Carolina-riggin a Zoom Mag Fluke (watermelon slice and watermelon magic), and fishin’ a Strike King 2.5 (chart gill) and wacky-rigged 6″ Big Bite Trick Stick (watermelon chart):
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Derp patrol, derp patrol what’s your 10-20?
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They’re all over the worrrrrld!!! Here we go derrrrrrrrrrrpin’!
@katsumi_strong_basser swimbaited up this solid bank derp — in Japan or FL:
MN ice guide @slab_seeker_fishing said: “I’ve got a room full of trophy fish. It smells of rick mahogany. But THIS is the pinnacle of my fishing career.” Word! Love it:
That fish plus this’n constitute definitive proof that derps do NOT hibernate for the winterin’ times. Here’s @fishin_in_nh‘s specimen captured on a crappie jig:
FLWer Terry Bolton wins the smallie derp derby with this nice KY Lake jut-jaw:
Check this crazy rhino derp from Smith Mntn Lake, VA ketched by Damien M on a Megabass Vision 110 — in the scrumptious Table Rock SP color which I had to put under the pic cuz it is all that:
While back Jeff A enhanced his skillz by wranglin’ up this smashmouth derp from
Lake Minnetonka, MN — on a 4″ YUM Dinger (morning dawn):
Here’s that fish’s bro from nearby WI caught by Steve N on a football jig:
Last one: Check Jamie H’s Chautauqua, NY squiggle derp from last summer, caught on 1 3.5″ YUM Pulse swimbait (ayu) on 1/4-oz jighead:
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Spearing and shooting largies???
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GWTHeck????? Insane — never heard anything like this before. Apparently happenin’ on the Pecos River in NM:
> Alberto Ornelas was horrified as he watched a group of people in the shallow waters of the Pecos River perched on a small canoe. They used a spear to bring up a bass weighing up to 6 lbs and measuring 20″ long…. The worst part, Ornelas said, was that it was completely legal.
LEGAL?? Gamefish can be speared?? Is that true NM peeps?
> Ornelas said he’s seen other large bass dead along the banks of the river in recent weeks, suffering from apparently spear or bullet wounds.
Here’s one supposed to have been speared:
> The lake was drained starting in Jan, as work commenced to replace the dam’s gates and boat docks, conduct erosion control and clean the riverbed. The work was expected to continue through April, with the water remaining shallow….
> …he and a group of bass fisherman banded to together to petition the NM Game Commission to temporarily designate the Pecos River from Lower Tansil Dam to the Carlsbad Flumes near Callaway Drive as “trophy waters” when the water is lowered for maintenance work. The group is calling on the Department to implement and enforce a catch and release policy while the water is low, or cease fishing completely.
> Bow- and spear-fishing is illegal in bass trophy waters, rivers and streams….
So hard to believe it makes me almost doubt it! Here’s the NM commissioners and here’s the folks who work in fisheries — click on the “Department Contacts” tab.
So messed up. Sounds like something that’d happen in China or somewhere like that. What a black eye for NM.
Hope it doesn’t have as bad an outcome as that Alien vs Predator pong tourney:
Okay I couldn’t resist but the NM thing ain’t funny a-tall.
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This week’s eye-catchin’ stuff.
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Is this the best lil feeshn invention we haven’t heard of?
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News
1. Few more Forrest Wood stories.
From an acquaintance:
…Ranger boats were the first boats ever built strictly for one type of sport fishing. They featured a large, fast engine to move anglers around huge impoundments, a forward deck with an electric “trolling” motor and the stability for anglers to safely fish standing up as well as many more bass fishing friendly accoutrements now standard….
Jimmy Houston on Bassin’Fan — great story:
“We had a lot of new lakes that had trees and stumps back then and running around in them, I’d knocked a couple of holes in [his first Ranger] and cracked the transom. I called Forrest and told him what had happened, and he told me to take the motor and the trolling motor off and bring the boat back to him. I told him I didn’t have the money to get that stuff taken off — it would’ve cost $50 or $100 — so he told me just to haul it over there and he’d call me when he got it repaired.
“He called me 2 or 3 weeks later and told me it was ready to go, so I went over there and we went out behind the plant and he told me to back my truck up to the boat that was sitting there. I told him that wasn’t my boat — mine was green and that one was white. He said no, he’d replaced the whole boat — he’d taken my motor, my trolling motor and my locator and put them on a brand new boat.
“He was struggling back then, too, and I’m sure he couldn’t afford it, but he just felt it was the right thing to do. That kind of sums up Forrest Wood and what he became.”
Hank Parker:
“He was the most compassionate, true gentleman. People say the fishing world is going to miss Forrest Wood. The whole world is going to miss Forrest Wood.”
Bob Cobb:
Ray Scott and Forrest Wood joined hands to revolutionize modern bass boats with Bassmaster Tournament Trail serving as the proving grounds. Credit goes to Forrest Wood for presenting Ray his trademark cowboy hat. His passing truly marks the end of an era.
2. How Paulie Mueller sees his St Johns win.
You kinda got the flave-uh already but:
> Those of us with faith often say that God shows His strength through our weaknesses. The truth in that statement was clearly demonstrated at this week’s 2020 AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at the St. Johns River. Let’s be honest: I have no real strengths that apply to a fishery like the St. Johns River.
Love the honesty. I mean…most of the time Paul doesn’t even fish for bass? Lol! Ain’t that true Paul??
3. Ott DeFoe gets Railblaza.
Sounds like a company that makes boat stuff, based in New Zealand where I don’t think they use outboards?
Got this pirate pic of some of the Railblaza dudes helping Ott probly build another soon-to-be-banned boat in his secret bassin’ laboratory:
4. FL: Meet n greet some MLF BPT pros THIS SUNDAY.
Bass Pro Shops in Port St. Lucie, 2-4 pm. Jordan “I catch ’em without really trying” Lee, Gary “It’s all in my head” Klein, Jeff “Emergency room” Kriet, Timmy “Not Tim never” Horton, Big Show “Terry” Scroggins, Shin “Ichi” Fukae.
5. Is BPTer Dave Lefebre disappearing?
Hang onto something man:
6. FLWer Braxton Setzer outed some new Yo-Zuri jerkbaits.
Here you go, coming out at ICAST — I’ve heard some great things, we’ll see:
7. Sounds like the NPFL has its first 10 guys.
Alex Heintze
Dylan Fulk
Garrett McDowell
Hensley Powell
Hunter Kenway Fishing
Jimmy Gayhart
Josh Ray
Pete Gluszek
Sheldon Collings
Todd Goade
I used to know a Pete Gluszek here in NJ? [chin scratch emoji]
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On BassBlaster.rocks right now…
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Tip of the Day
David Mullins gives the down-low on the Damiki Rig.
Rig’s not called that anymore but doesn’t matter, here’s some excerpts, full deal’s on the BB website:
> “It started on South Holston…. They were catching them 100′ deep at times. Friends showed me how to do it there, we took it to Cherokee and there you go. …by the time the Elite came to Cherokeee everybody knew about it. If the no-info rule was like it was now, me or Ott would’ve won it by 10 lbs.”
> “It’s a shad-type bait that you put on some sort of jighead — usually the jighead weights 1/4- to 3/8-oz. …spinning tackle and light line — 6-8 lb line, and it’s designed to be fished vertically.
> “…mostly fall-winter…when the water starts cooling down. It’s totally a shad-mimicking deal. In our lakes those shad in the wintertime get so lethargic, they’ll be lifeless — not much movement at all to ’em…. That’s what it’s mimicking. The bait has no action.
> “You want it to hang horizontal — you don’t have to have special jighead for it. You can take a ball head jighead, but just make sure your knot is where it makes the bait vertical.
> “I used a custom [jighead] for a long time. Now Scottsboro’s making it [the Hellfire Finesse Swimbait Head]. It’s a screw-lock ballhead with a 3/0 light wire hook in it. It’s just about perfect for what you need.
> “Some people are getting more natural, like painting it white and adding an eye to it. But you still catch ’em fine with a regular ballhead.
> “The Damiki Armor Shad is what we all used — it’s like a 3″ little shad that represented what the forage looked like at that time. Now the Doomsday C Shad — stands for “Cherokee Shad”…we made that lure from a picture of a shad….
> “Now it’s called ‘droppin’ to ’em’ — now that’s the term that’s used.
> “I like the [Doomsday] C-Shad. When the water’s colored I like ‘pearly white flash,’ and when it’s clear I use ‘pearl blue flash’ — it’s a little bit more natural.
> “Once you find cover, mark it and put your trolling motor down. Drop that bait and watch it on your graph the whole way til you get 2-5′ off the bottom. Stop it — you’re hovering that bait. Let the wind and/or trolling motor drift you over top of that hard cover or structure.”
A lot more at the link, worth a full read fo sho.
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Quote of the Day
“…private equity taking over several respected brands, resulting in a lot of non-anglers at the helm of these companies. I see this as detrimental to the fishing community and our fisheries.”
– AFTCO prez Casey Shedd talkin’ what in my experience has been mostly true IN ANY ENTHUSIAST AREA, meaning not just fishing. “Outsiders” to fishin’, huntin’, trucks, guitars, etc. ain’t evil or whatever, it’s just tough to be one and think like one if you ain’t one, if you know what I mean.
That’s why I always look at new guy/gal announcements in the biz to see if they’ve fished. If not, it’s usually — but not always — a tough road.
Believe AFTCO’s always been a family biz fyi….
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Random
Sturgeon eat frogs…
…at least one does, sucked ’em up from the sediment somehow. Probly been watching too many Dean Rojas vids….
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Ya got me
Jay Kumar’s BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup
of the best, worst and funniest in bassin’, as curated 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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Sign up another bass-head!
If you’re forwarding every Blaster to other bass crackheads, tx much — or you can email me the addys and we’ll take care of it! We’ll never send spam or sell the list or anything else crazy….
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Gitcha BassBlaster social at these links:
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Mike Hundley
February 28, 2020 at 9:17 am
Am old now, once fished with Rayo Breckenridge, Denny Braer what men and gentlemen, met Forrest Wood, damaged my Ranger on the Albemarle sound, Forrest fixed it for me, honorable man, old school honor. Ray Scott handed me a 10th plaque on Lake Gaston in 1979, 300 man field, broken trolling motor last half of the day, Paul Elias first win. 77 still buying bass tackle and excited to still fish at any level, support the Bassmasters from these experiences. Love this blog, thanks, Mike Hundley