Headin' to the Classic manana so back at ya next week peeps! Yer bassin' tank will be full from all the Classic stuff anyhow, and I'll probly put some tidbits on social. I think this is my 30th Classic or somewhere thereabouts. Shoot I ain't that old tho, am I??
Quick crazy story: Was talkin' to a neighborhood kid I hadn't seen in a while, walkin' his dog. He'd been living in CA, said he was working at a place called...TACKLE WAREHOUSE! What are the chances?? He ain't a fisherman – wonder if that's a requirement at TW, you know, to avoid what I'm sure would be insane bait temptations...🤔
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For the Classic fellers and for us reg'lar ol' bass-heads, check this tub-o-lard melon – posted by @swim_baiter on the IG:
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On second thought, that things looks tight! Like a bodybuilder...or shrink-wrapped brisket...or something....
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"...the big fish just stop it, there is no bite."
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Once asked John how he got into bassin' and he was like, "I was BBQing these donuts outside Vegas and I had this vision." I was like, "Wait – you can BBQ donuts??" 🤯
Just kiddin', haven't met him yet...but one of my wife's cousins is married to a Soukup so maybe soon? 🤔
> "I was punching a 1.5-oz weight with a Big Bite Baits BFE Creature and a Trick Stick [with] a 3/4-oz weight to hit the edges of the Kissimmee grass. I was using 25-lb Sunline Meter fluorocarbon and the big fish just stop it, there is no bite.
> "I was fishing around guys in Big Harris all week and the key to getting the bigger bites flipping was understanding the fish and bait. When it was calm, you have to have needlefish and bluegills. If there was some chop, you had to be in an area with balls of shad. That's where the electronics came in as I could see the baitfish."
Fascinatin'. Gotta shout out Alpha Angler prez/CEO/rod-builder/VP of biz development/head of component arguin' 😆/champ of mileage stackin' 'n know it allin' and some more stuff – Jake "here comes the" Boomer, who finished 2nd:
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> "They had sprayed most of the grass but I had located 2 smaller isolated patches that had not been sprayed. I would cast a crankbait around and check the grass that came back on the trebles. I could see how dense it was on the Humminbird 360 and there were some key fish there.
> "I knew that spot had them but it got harder and harder every day. On day 2, I got 3 bites and I had to change the Chatterbait or they wouldn't eat it. I got one on a Strike King Thunder Cricket, one on a JackHammer, and one on a Stealth JackHammer. I only could get 2-3 bites a day and you had to have the perfect cast. You could tell they were smart and used to pressure."
> Boomer also rotated through flipping grass and had isolated brushpiles as well. ...opted for a heavy weight and with lot of guys flipping Senkos, he opted for a smaller bait – a Jaboom Baits Beaver Ballz. "That smaller profile and bigger weight was key to getting some of those grass fish.
> "I threw the Chatterbaits on the Alpha Chatterbound 7' 2" rod with a 7.0:1 reel and 20-lb P-Line fluorocarbon. The flipping deal was an Alpha Mag Hitter, 7.5:1 reel, 50-lb Sufix Performance Braid and a 3/4-oz weight."
Dang he sounds like he knew what he was doin'! 🤣 Word is Boomer's hometown – Spokane, WA – will have a parade for him when he gets back, which should be late 2022....🤣 Lol big congrats buddy!
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"Some of the anglers I'll be competing against this week were in diapers back when I fished that first Classic."
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- Chad Morgenthaler talkin'...which means for Rick Clunn some of the anglers in this Classic weren't even thoughts in their parents' minds. Shoot, their parents maybe hadn't even met yet! To me that's one of the greatest things about bassin' – the fish don't care how old you are, what sex, color or whatever. Doesn't matter!
Chad also says in that deal that the Classic still scares him, just not as much as it used to. Not sure what to make of that...🤔
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Rick still lookin' like a baaaad dude man!
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"A no-fishing area is where you wanna be. It doesn't matter where you're at in the nation."
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Had this thought: If the devil really wanted to tempt Peter and the guys, he should've put up a "NO FISHING ALLOWED HERE" sign somewhere on Galilee – hahaha right?
If you've never thought about making a cast into a roped-off area or fishing an off-limits pond or reservoir or golf course that's full of dumb bass (because they all are), please disregard this item...😁
Lot of funny stories in the vid, but to me the best one was when Cox hooked a power line – click it to watch/listen to the whole deal:
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Btw looks like John missed the cut at the Chickamauga BPT so I guess he's fishing the Classic after all...with no practice?? Dude's an animal.
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What 1 rod/bait is stuffed waaay down in the pros' rod lockers?
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Got this done at the last Classic, figgered better git 'er out there before this'n lol! Innerestin' answers – can identify with ALMOST all of 'em:
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Said he wouldn't til he got closer to the end and he was still leading, which he is – and heading up to brown-fish territory after this weekend.... He also has what I think is the biggest lead all year: He's 48 points ahead of Jason Christie.
I'm pretty sure Seth would NOT be the first AOY with a mullet, but either way it should inspire the mullet nation and might lead to a mullet revival...?
Austin Felix DOES wear plaid PJ pants sometimes...and has a chronic Lyme condition (sorry to hear man). Here's his plaid current c-lection (for real) – said he's light on flannel for this deal:
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...and shouted out the MotorGuide Tour Pro's GPS Anchor Lock mode (IG vid ^). Looks like he's got 3 transducers on it?
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This says it all:
> He opened Tri-Lakes Tackle Town 3 months ago, a full-service bait-and-tackle shop complete with minnow and worms.
That's right, a single minnow and some worms makes any tackle store! 😂
> Heavy rains over the last 2 weeks have caused the water levels to rise significantly and water temperatures have been cooler than usual. Danny Golden of Justin has been a full-time guide on the lake for 20 years....
> "If water levels were normal, I would have said it would be won fishing deeper structure in 15-25' or using forward-facing sonar in the timber, but I'm not so sure about that now. With the lake high, there's a ton of flooded cover that's going be holding a bunch of fish shallow. Everyone should be able to fish their strengths."
> Golden predicts it will take 58-62 lbs to win, but he said he won't be surprised if...significantly more.
> The lake record largemouth is a 15.18-lber. Fish in the 8- to 10-lb range frequently show up at tournament weigh-ins. The lake also produces an occasional meanmouth bass in the 5- to 6-lb range.
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On Douglas Lake, won it by 2 lbs fishing offshore:
> ...fishing upriver targeting dropoffs near channel swings. ...boat often sitting in 40' of water while he cast his shad-colored Strike King 6XD to 15'....
> "I love fishing shallow. I consider myself a shallow-water angler. I fished shallow here for 2 weeks during the BFL and the first of the month and I never caught anything over 3 lbs, so I didn't feel like I could win on the bank. I committed my time offshore and it worked out."
Shout-outs
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He likes the Jewel Swim-It swim-jig, talks trailers for keeping the jig higher or lower in the water column. Best part is when he mimics the flappers...multiple times: 😂
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> ...Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia...earned the most cumulative points of any team in the nation for its 1st School of the Year honor. Last year's runner-up, UM beat 2-time defending national champion McKendree U of Lebanon, IL [plus] Tennessee, Auburn and East Carolina for the national crown.
Congrats! 💪 Word is the team blew off all studying except for maps and the finer points of 'lectronics....
Kidding...but I bet they wish!
> "With our proximity to Lake Hickory and North Carolina being a fishing hot-spot, the bass fishing program will be a great addition to our competitive club sport offerings at LR."
> ...Brian Travis as the first head coach in program history. Travis has been fishing professionally...since 2008.
👊
Sounds absolutely terrible. Don't even hook up the rig. 🤣
Questions asked include: Are electronics an appetite suppressant? Should Whopper Ploppers be outlawed? Okay not really:
> The research aims to determine the genetic profiles of bass found in the lake and determine whether any non-native genetics, like from the FL bass, appear in the reservoir.
I was like, "Trey what's next man – Lite Heavy Medium Heavy Fast action?" He was like, "I don't know, I can't make up my mind." And I was like, "You don't say?" 😆
Srsly tho a good idea. Heavy lots of times IS too heavy for many folks...who are not named Ish Monroe....
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Hahaha yes it does! Maybe that's its secret...along with the rattle. Bait was designed for mats:
> ...has an oversized rattle chamber secured to the front of the hook which helps keep [it] lying flat on the surface, and also makes it easier for bass to track the bait over thick mats.
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...#755 "young sunfish" (sounds like a name from an old Kung Fu movie lol), lookin' good – it's on the TW now:
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Probably said the same thing when the boat came along, then the trolling motor, then the spinnerbait, etc. They need to get out there in a boat with all that tech and see how they do...🤙
Sounds like a huge number? Says 20% of sales are in the US, aims to grow it.
> "Tilapia is omega 6 instead of omega 3, so you get a lot less benefits of health from tilapia."
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Headline of the Day
Bass fishing's premier event returns to Lake Ray Roberts
The Classic has never been held there before. Can't link it, at ntxe-news com.
Line of the Day
O...kay? I mean, fish gotta eat and they can't eat soundwaves??
PSA/Shout-out
Heard there's another 8-time BFL All-American competitor out there: Robert Walser from Lexington, NC – won in 2006, last one was 7th in 2019. Amazing! Thanks Daryl P. for the heads.
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On BassBlaster.rocks right now...
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NOT because of fish seeing the line but:
> "I want the most action out of that bait when the conditions are tough.
> "...allows all these fins, all this plastic to move naturally...equates to more bites....
> "...I continue to get more bites in crowds and behind people just simply by using the lightest, thinnest line material out there."
Biggest deal (for me) is CONFIDENCE in thin line. Chris digs the new-ish Seaguar Gold Label fluoro, which is specifically designed to be real thin and strong...and is becoming pretty dang popular. The pros don't use stuff in tourneys that don't help 'em....
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"If you want to catch bass, don't go fishing a brim pond."
- Duke football coach David Cutcliffe talkin' 'bout recruiting. He's an AL dude. Well coach, I'd say that if you don't want fat, dumb bass, you might skip the pond and head to a reservoir?? 😁 Little recruitin'/feesh tip for ya....
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Couple for ya:
Gotta say that was not a wise decision. But I do not agree with this statement – how would they know if it was never done before? 🤔 I mean, how would WE know about Cheetos if we never tried 'em??
> ...feeding the animals something they're never supposed to eat....
> Porcupine Plain RCMP responded to a theft complaint in a rural area. An individual had left some posts piled on a property they planned on fencing, only to find they'd gone missing.
> Officers began investigating...the caper was quickly revealed when the posts were spotted in a nearby waterway. "The stolen posts were located in a beaver dam"....
Canada gets more and more dangerous every year man, dang...🤣
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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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