Pros throw three colors? New smallmouth structure?? Rabbit dog water???

> “You’re not more manly for wearing a Vexus hoodie.”

That’s my better half talking, after I was explaining that my jeans ‘n hoodie look she was sad about seeing again (every dang day hahaha!) is because I’m manly and do manly things…and she should be glad she married a manly man. My response:

> “You’re right – it’s any bass fishing hoodie…and jeans.”

Ah gotta love living with someone for decades…. Let’s go!

Also, Gerald Swindle’s junk jigs last week were brown, B-Rad Hallman’s fave jig is the called the Little Brown Jig, Jewel makes a lotta browns and if I remember right the Cliff Pirch jigs he used to make were brown too, among many other brown thangs.

But in this-here vid, not a single guy – who was able to give another color (not all could) – said brown. Not sure why but innerestin’:

David posted an update on his FB page here, sounds like Woo is still in the hospital but doing better. Glad they are doing better fo sho.

2. Brandon iCard gets iRod.

3. Scott Suggs runnin’ a Bass Cat.

Guess what he use to run…yep, Ranger.

4. Chad Morgenthaler gets an RV/boat loan company.

Vantage Recreational Finance.

5. Skeeter ‘n Yammy-related pro changes.

Think I got this right – No link 🙁

Ish Monroe is running a Skeeter, was Ranger, same for Scott Martin. Also now running a Skeeter are Elitists: Bill Weidler, Takumi Ito, Shane LeHew, Pat Schlapper, Quentin Cappo.

Pros now running Yammies: Clark Wendlandt, Jason Christie, Carl Jocumsen, Clent Davis, Wes Logan.

Opens guys running 1 or the other: Andrew Upshaw, Luke Dunkin, and Todd Castledine.

6. John “I don’t fish enough” Cox’s tin boat walkthru (YT vid).

Crestliner MX 21. Tin’s making a comeback man!

7. Jake Whitaker will run a Phoenix.

Was Triton.

8. MLF Pro Circuit rookie Trevor Fitzgerald on BassEdge Radio.

9. “Kanada” Karl Kalonka has some new largie vids up.

On his YT channel ^. Karl’s good people man.

10. Now 2 practice days on MLFLW so guys can fish 2 trails.

From Bassin’Fan:

> …this year’s MLF Pro Circuit will be limited to 2 official practice days instead of the traditional 3…. According to an MLF communications official, reducing the number of practice days was the only way the organization could create a schedule that would allow anglers to fish both the Pro Circuit and the Bass Pro Tour and/or Toyota Series….

But in John Cox math that equals 5 trails lol.

11. New Bass Pro Shops trail/derby has a $1 mil prize.

Amazing $ no doubt, sounds like a mashup of a few different formats like big bass, team like several trails, Bass Pro-owned boat brands only. Called the US Open – wonder where they came up with that. I think Major League fishing will run it? Couple things that stuck out to me:

• Toyota is co-sponsor, finals on NBC
• 4,700 regional qualifiers, 2-person teams, various divisions
• Teams from Japan, Spain, Germany, Romania, Mexico, Holland and Antarctica will participate (okay not the last one)
• Final at Table Rock of course
• Entry fees are $450 per person, $250 ages 12-17 and free for kids under 12 (if all 4,500 paid $50 that’s $2.1 mil fwiw)
• Overall purse is $4.3 mil, “a minimum of $1 mil will be going toward improving fish habitat”

Couple deals:

– Not the first time there’s been $1 mil for 1st in bassin’. The other 3 times (I think?) were when Irwin Jacobs was running FLW: Scotty Suggs’ Forrest Wood Cup win in ’07, same win by CA’s Michael Bennett in ’08, and FLW Fantasy fishing winner in ’08. Believe the highest the Classic ever got was $500,000, which is what the 2 guys who win this new deal will each get – before taxes.

– People often misunderstand the TV thing, so just know that for the most part folks pay to get on TV. It is not a merit deal. If that makes you wonder whether it works the same way for “news,” you’re on the scent….

12. CA: Tournaments can’t happen but shopping can?

> They say the last tournament [at Shasta] was canceled because of a 120-mile state travel recommendation.

> “Somebody from Sacramento can’t come here [for a] fishing tournament, they can come up here and go to the big box stores, or whatever, or go shopping,” said Phil Mitsueda of Phil’s Propellers.

Lot of oddness still kicking around out there fo sho.

13 FL: Gainesville Sun editorial board wants Rodman gone.

Not sure that matters but here’s everything they wrote about bass fishing, then it’s 3 paragraphs about what environmental groups think:

> The reservoir is a weedy mess filled with submerged stumps but is still a draw for hardcore bass fishing….

Gonna guess the board doesn’t own a baitcaster….

14. AR’s got a new black bass mgmnt program leader.

Vic DiCenzo, has also worked in VA, AL and TX. Vic, I feel like I know you with that Jersey-style name man – here’s my 2 recommendations:

• Stop calling bass “black bass.” Literally no one does. It’s an 1874-ish term.

• Find ways to make more bigger bass in all your lakes, and you will hit a home run and solve any other issues including Steve Bowman calling you all the time. Okay maybe not that last one….

15. AR building a new ramp on Bayou Bartholomew.

At its intersection with Arkansas Highway 277 in Drew County. Believe that bayou is named after this well-known book:

16. Send in your fave feesh photo, maybe win some Seaguar.

Seaguar contest, best photo in the last 50 years 50 winners:

Very cool. EVERYONE in bass fishing, including me, “should” be doing something about these dang things. Not a fan of saying “should” but you know what I mean – those fish are the worst news for bassin’ there is.

18. PA has new online license portal.

19. DD26 buys Spool Stix.

20. 5 new Shimano reels.

All 5 are push-buttons…kidding.

Headline of the Day

We’re Seeing a Resurgence in Metal

Michael Neal talkin’ in that deal – who knew Neal was a metal-head! Looks like this is his fave album:

He doesn’t call it that but I like it – from the Bassin’masters:

> Rather than throw a Texas-rigged 10″ worm with a bullet weight or a skirted football jig, Howell…often throws a big worm on a bare football head jig. “The shape of the football head keeps the worm floating and makes it look like it’s feeding on the bottom. With a standard bullet weight, the worm has a tendency to drag flat along the bottom and not create as much commotion and action.”

> “You can sit way off of a point and cast a 3/8-ounce jighead into 4 feet of water and drag it all the way back to the boat. It allows you to cover the entire depth zone.”

> …Howell favors hard bottoms comprised of gravel and shell. The only time Howell won’t try the jig-and-worm combo is when he is fishing grass, where the shape of the football head jig catches and holds in the vegetation.

> …favors a 3/8-oz football head jig when targeting bass in the 5-10′ range and switches to a 1/2-oz head when fishing in water deeper than 10′. …will have 2 different types of 10″ worms rigged on football head jigs: a straight-tail and a ribbontail. “From day to day, I’ve seen one outproduce the other.

> “A lot of times the worm will be chewed up the most between the head of the jig and the hook point, so the good ones apparently see that head digging on the bottom and pounce on it.”

– One guess: Yep, Zona talkin’. From a dream he had – feels some weird dreams he’s having might have been started by Covid. Interesting thought…I’ve been havin’ em too.

A bass fishing dream I had this weekend was I was trying to get that chef guy Anthony Bourdain (who has passed) to get in the boat so we could fish in this lake that had this crazy boundary of what looked like park benches made of logs right by the ramp, and to fish ’em you had to get bounced around by guys rippin’ from the ramp out to the main lake. For some reason I kept forgetting to launch at the ramp that put you right in the froggin’ cove.

WTHeck any of that could mean I have no idea man, but I like Z’s dream better. Almost forgot – a pro sent this to me after he had a bad dream…can’t say who it was, can’t remember what it was about but I told him it was prolly heat stroke and old boat snacks:

Either way, geese and ducks freeze into ice all the time man come on…. What the chief said:

> “In the end, we can sleep well at night. A bird is not suffering.”

Sounds like the chief needs to wear more jeans ‘n hoodies….