Posted by Walker Smith on Wed, Mar 13, 2013 @ 07:40 AM
Hank Cherry goes against the grain by targeting shallow bass in cold water
Photos and Article by Walker Smith
When many of us think of bass fishing in cold water, we envision uncomfortable temperatures, finesse gear and deep water. While deep fishing techniques can certainly yield nice catches in the colder months, you won’t find Elite Series pro Hank Cherry doing it. In fact, cold water often means the exact opposite for him—shallow water fishing.
We had the opportunity to chronicle his impressive showing at the 2013 Classic on Grand Lake and his approach to the brutal conditions caught our eye. While a large number of competitors were congregated on deep water points and brush piles, he had the shallow water all to himself.
The biggest misconception
A Lake Norman native, Cherry has spent years perfecting his cold water fishing skills. Although many anglers expect cold water bass to suspend in deep water, his experience tells a different story.
“Like Grand Lake, Lake Norman is a deep lake,” Cherry said. “People tend to get confused and think that bass always suspend in depths of 30 to 40 feet in cold water—that’s not the case. The colder the water gets, the shallower the bass suspend.”
Throughout this year’s Classic, his theory held true. After experimenting with several different deep water areas in practice, he began focusing his efforts toward shallow water. The results were immediate.
“If I was marking bass on my Lowrance in 18 to 20 feet, I wouldn’t spend much time in that area,” Cherry said. “I knew they weren’t ready. It’s all about time management and being in the right place at the right time. When I returned to those areas later in the day without marking fish in deep water, I’d fire some casts shallow and really catch them.”
Although the late winter shallow bite gets better as the day progresses and the sun gets higher, don’t be afraid to hit some shallow areas first thing in the morning. The first hour of daylight can get these fish in some abnormally shallow water.
“In rocky lakes, bass will migrate from nearby deep water throughout the night to feed on shallow rocks,” Cherry said. “Even though the sun isn’t high yet, you can catch the tail-end of a major feeding period if you get to your shallow areas at the very beginning of the day. They’ll back off into deeper water soon after daylight, but you can bust ‘em again once the sun starts beaming.”
Clues to look for
Sun positioning and feeding periods are important to successful shallow fishing in cold water, but there is a particular biological phenomenon that makes it consistent. If you’re not paying close attention, you’ll probably miss it.
“When cold water causes a massive shad kill, I really believe that the majority of shad go toward shallow water to die off,” Cherry said. “It’s extremely important to keep an eye out for occasional flickering or other types of surface disturbance. Just because it’s cold doesn’t mean big bass won’t move shallow to take advantage of an easy meal.”
To detect a possible shad kill, Cherry makes sure to keep his head on a swivel at all times. As he’s working his bait, you’ll see him constantly scan the water’s surface, searching for any irregularities. Bass are very opportunistic predators, so if you find an area with dead or dying shad, big bass are never far behind.
Water temperature and bait selection
As anglers, we all have a tendency to make things more complicated than they should be—that’s what keeps us coming back for more. Throughout the late winter, however, Cherry makes a concerted effort to keep his bait selection and methodology as simple as possible.
“I have very simple guidelines throughout the late winter,” Cherry said. “When the water is in the 46- to 49-degree range, I keep a jerkbait in my hand religiously. When the water temperature gets in the 50-degree range, I tend to gradually stray from the jerkbait in favor of a jig. I’ve tried almost everything and this combination consistently produces.”
When conditions call for a jerkbait, Cherry opts for a Megabass Ito Vision 110+1. He’s not too particular on colors, but prefers a blue-colored back in cold water. To make the most of the bait’s enticing action, he recommends a 7-foot medium-heavy Denali Rosewood with 12-pound Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon line.
“I use fluorocarbon on everything except my topwater baits,” Cherry said. “I’m a big believer in jerkbait fishing with it during the late winter because all too often the bass just nip at the jerkbait. The low stretch and sensitivity of fluorocarbon lets me detect bites as soon as possible, translating into more fish catches this time of year.”
If the fish aren’t actively chasing a jerkbait, Cherry relies heavily on a 9/16-ounce E.R. Lures Jig on a beefed-up 7-foot, 3-inch extra-heavy Denali Noirwood with 20-pound Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon.
“Like jerkbait fishing, fluorocarbon line is very important to shallow jig fishing in cold water,” Cherry said. “Cold water tends to make bass a bit line shy, so you need a strong, low-visibility line that can withstand big hooksets.”
Areas to target
Cold water bass can quickly become wise to heavy fishing pressure, so Cherry tries to find areas that are off the beaten path.
“I don’t particularly like fishing obvious things that everyone can see or notice,” Cherry said. “I have a ton of success targeting sandy bends and gradual sandy points. I like to focus on areas with a softer drop to them that allows bass to easily move from deep to shallow water. Again, I can’t stress it enough—the presence of shad is everything in the late winter.”
If he’s got a jig in his hand, it might as well be springtime—Cherry specifically targets ultra-shallow floating docks.
“The black underbellies of floating docks hold heat in cold water,” Cherry said. “The water underneath them is often a full degree warmer than the surrounding water. It may not seem like that big of a deal but it makes an enormous difference. I’ll flip a 9/16-ounce jig around these docks as shallow as I can possibly get it. It’s a great way to catch some giants.”
As we grit our teeth and push through the last bit of this year’s winter, don’t be intimidated by the cold water temperatures. Resist the urge to fish deep water and give shallow fishing a shot. If you know what to look for, what techniques to use according to water temperature and the proper areas to target, you’ll wish you had tried it sooner.
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Posted by Walker Smith on Wed, Sep 26, 2012 @ 08:00 AM
Power generation lakes are notorious for tricky fishing, but a few key tips can maximize your success
By Walker Smith
Often times, we tend to view our local fisheries as just that—fisheries. Aside from the recreational activities our lakes provide, we fail to realize that many communities rely on their local lakes for power. These power generation lakes present anglers with several challenges—from fluctuating water levels to confusing generation schedules—that can be difficult to figure out. Once the puzzle is solved, however, these fisheries can provide some outstanding fishing for both novice and veteran anglers.
Chevy pro Jay Yelas has had great success on power generation lakes throughout his career, including a 2002 Bassmaster Classic win on Lay Lake. Yelas recently shared some great tips for fishing fluctuating water levels that are sure to increase your success on these fisheries.
Photo courtesy of B.A.S.S.
Generation schedules
I live on Georgia’s Lake Sinclair, which was built to be a power generation lake. There have been many instances when I’ve been waiting for blast-off the morning of a tournament and noticed all of my favorite shallow structure sitting high-and-dry. To combat frustrating situations like this, Yelas urges the importance of learning the lake’s generation schedules before you hit the water.
“The majority of dams have online generation schedules or provide a phone number you can call that will give you generation forecasts,” Yelas said. “It is imperative that you always know what the water levels are going to do in order to plan your fishing day around it. While the forecasts aren’t always accurate, it is still helpful to get an idea of the day’s water movement.”
Because some power generation lakes don’t have easily accessible generation forecasts, Yelas has developed a general rule-of-thumb. Throughout his career he has noticed that most of these lakes begin generating water in the afternoon, due to the increased electricity usage of nearby residents during the course of the day. It is also important, however, to pay close attention to recent weather patterns in order to have an accurate idea of the generation schedule.
“I always keep an eye on recent precipitation amounts, especially when I’m fishing a power generation lake,” Yelas said. “Following periods of heavy rain, a lot of dams will run wide-open all day long to prevent flooding. Conversely, during draught conditions the water may not move very much at all during the day.”
Regardless of the generation forecasts, Yelas stresses the importance of remaining flexible throughout the day. Since generation schedules are simply an approximation, there is always a chance that the dam will deviate from its timetable.
“There have been numerous times that I’ve been caught waiting for the water to move, and it didn’t move an inch,” Yelas said. “Those situations aren’t fun, so now I make sure that I have alternate game plans. Although my pattern in the 2002 Classic relied heavily on water movement, not having a backup plan can be a pretty big risk.”
Fish positioning
When fishing fluctuating water levels, Yelas believes that the biggest key to success is understanding the connection between water movement and fish positioning.
“Shallow fish move with the water, so when the dam pumps water into the lake, the fish get into a lot of very shallow cover,” Yelas said. “The same isn’t true for deeper fish, however. If a bass is sitting on a ledge, it’s not going to abandon that ledge when the water rises a few inches. They will, however, turn on and start feeding aggressively when that water starts to move.”
As the water movement stops and the water level begins to recede, Yelas has noticed that the shallow fish will move off of the bank and become difficult to catch. For this reason, he prefers targeting deep fish in low-water situations.
“I wish I knew where the shallow fish always go when the water drops, but nobody really knows,” Yelas said. “I do know, however, that they are pretty tough to catch. A lot of times they will suspend on break lines, and suspended fish are some of the hardest to catch. Deep fish are a better bet in low water because they remained positioned on channel ledges and points. You may have to slow it down with soft plastics, but they’re still there.”
Where to find them
In high-water situations, Yelas doesn’t spend much time targeting deep fish. Instead, he will fish his favorite high-water cover— shoreline grass. When the tips of the grass are barely out of the water, that’s when he knows that things are right.
“You can definitely catch some big ones flipping and frogging shallow grass with about 1- to 2-feet of water in it,” Yelas said. “But if there’s less than 8-inches of water in the grass and I can see the stalks swaying in the wind, there’s generally not any fish in it. You may be able to catch some smaller ones, but nothing tournament-caliber. You have to remember, 12-inches of water is an enormous difference when you’re talking about shallow, shoreline grass.”
Shoreline grass isn’t the only cover that Yelas likes to target in high-water conditions. Rising water levels can push bass into all types of shallow cover, such as boat docks, seawalls and laydowns, where Yelas loves to flip a Berkley Gripper Jay’s Flipping Jig for unsuspecting big bass.
When the water drops on power generation lakes, shallow bass move towards deeper water. As the fish largely vacate shallow cover during low-water conditions, it becomes harder to pinpoint their location. Yelas has learned, however, that the bass don’t move far.
“When the water’s low, I’ve seen a bunch of bass just cruising in front of the cover—about 10- to 20-feet in front of it,” Yelas said. “You can still catch these fish, but it takes time to figure out the right technique. I will still pitch my bait to the edge of the shallow cover, but I make sure to work it all the way back to the boat, because that’s where I’ll get most of my bites.”
In these situations, Yelas looks for places that have great shoreline cover accompanied by isolated pieces of cover in front of it, such as big stumps. When the water is sucked out of the lake, the bass will position on the isolated cover, providing an opportunity to make pinpoint casts to likely big bass hiding spots.
“It’s important to have a good pair of sunglasses when you’re dealing with low water levels,” Yelas said. “My Typhoons let me locate isolated cover before I get too close—if the fish see you first, you won’t catch them. When I find good-looking cover, I’ll fire a Berkley Frenzy Rattl’r or a big buzzbait towards it and get some really big bites.”
The right mindset
While power generation lakes can be difficult to fish, attitude is everything. Yelas believes that patience and a good mindset can lead to some really great days on these fisheries.
“Every fish doesn’t do the same thing,” Yelas said. “There’s always some fish that don’t follow the crowd—kind of like people in that regard. When the water is down, don’t be afraid to try different things, whether it’s the outside edge of shallow cover, adjacent hard cover or nearby ledges. There’s no science to it, so just have a good time with it.”
Open-mindedness is an invaluable trait for an angler who frequents power generation lakes. The bass aren’t always going to be where you think they are, so trying different techniques can pay huge dividends. If you caught them using a certain bait in the morning, don’t be easily frustrated when they don’t eat the same thing in the afternoon.
“No matter what, you’ve always got to have an open mind,” Yelas said. “One of the biggest mistakes people make is running all over the lake to history spots when the fishing gets tough. If you know the fish are there, stay put and try some different stuff. They didn’t just pack up and leave.”
Yelas believes that nothing can compensate for time on the water. Spending a lot of time on the trolling motor is a great way to find those key areas where shallow fish relocate towards during low-water conditions.
“Pros fish a lot of lakes where we don’t have many honey holes,” Yelas said. “I’ve had to learn to catch all of the fish in my specific area, and running all around the lake isn’t always helpful. If you hunker down, read the conditions and figure out where the fish go during the water fluctuations, you will figure it out rather quickly.”
If you have the chance to fish a power generation lake this year, I strongly suggest it. Learning to fish in fluctuating water conditions is an outstanding way to improve your angling skills. With some basic knowledge of how bass respond to water generation and a good attitude, you can really put a hurting on some bass this year.
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Tue, Jul 03, 2012 @ 08:00 AM
By Ronell Smith
I used to use Sticky Notes to keep track of the things I needed to get done over the course of a week. Now, instead of small bits of paper, my desk is littered with notepads of all shapes and sizes, and in each I scribble details from interviews, jot down random thoughts and keep track of tidbits of information that can be shared via Facebook or Twitter.
At the end of each week, I take inventory of all the important information from interviews, perusing it for any similarities, hints, clues, signs of things I missed or could have done better.
More important, I look for common threads, things that kept coming up, whether in conversations, thoughts, emails, texts or in-person interactions. When I looked over last week’s notes, the commonality slapped me across the face: We can do better.
I’m not picking on just the pros here, either. As a matter of fact, much of the reporting I do on a daily or weekly basis has little to do with professional bass fishing. But usually in the course of conversation folks will share a complaint or voice a pet peeve that I might totally miss at the time, only to recognize it after it’s said for the third time by someone else.
For example, last week, while writing a piece for the newsletter, I came across a quote from Jeff Pierce, head of sales for Mustad, where he singled-out the relationship with his pro staffers as invaluable to creating new products. “It’s critical to have the right guys,” he says, “and I’m not just talking about national guys, like Denny (Brauer) and Kevin (VanDam). The regional guys are important, too.”
The truth of the matter is that most of us, despite our desire to will it, might never be the household name we imagine ourselves as, but we can still make an impact. Here’s a simple checklist of things to think about whether you’re trying to join a staff or already enjoy such privilege:
1. There’s a fine line between persistence and annoyance. It’s OK to reach out to a contact and gently ask if they received the email you sent or the voicemail you left; It is not cool, however, to pester someone to the point of continuously emailing or calling them. If you sense the level of contact is excessive, then it is excessive. It’s likely better to connect through a mutual friend or acquaintance anyway. Remember, most people in this industry hold the opinion that if you’re worth their time, they should already know who you are.
2. Social media is now part of your resume. Spend anytime around Facebook and Twitter and you quickly wonder “What were these guys thinking?!” Whether it’s offensive language, vulgar images or derogatory comments about nothing in particular, all of this stuff lives on and is out their for sponsors and potential sponsors to see. Believe me, they are looking. And before you think you have your Facebook page all sewed up so no one can view your posts or images, remember that it’s easy for your friends to “share” them.
3. Understand that it’s not about you. Even if you win every tournament you enter, your sponsors won’t be satisfied. What they really want to know is how willing you are to work shows, travel to film TV spots or stay after hours to meet with media and fans.
“What makes KVD so great isnt’t just that he’s won everything,” said one of his longtime sponsors. “The guy is tireless at staying late to do interviews with our staff for the web and he’s always willing to be a part of events that we sponsor. He doesn’t pull out his contract and say ‘You know, that’s not part of the deal.’ ”
4. Your ego will starve you to death. I hope by now we’ve all come to realize the farce that is “You just need to catch ‘em.” Even if you hook every bass that swims, if you are difficult to deal with, your career will be shorter and far less fruitful than it could be. The way companies see it, there are enough good guys out there that they don’t have to put up with jerks who blow off interviews, use foul language at events, never hang around to sign autographs or who frequently get testy for no apparent reason.
More and more, this behavior is being tied to character, and you would not believe how many times a blow up, whether on stage or on the water, has cost a pro sponsorship from a company that was looking to bring him aboard. Words travels fast. Instead of good sticks, companies are looking first and foremost at good people.
5. Be accessible. Simply put: if you make an appointment, keep it; Return calls in a timely fashion; If you cannot return calls in a timely fashion, don’t make excuses when you do return calls; If you don’t have anywhere to be, stick around for a few minutes after tournaments to greet fans, thank tournament staff and talk shop with anglers. You do not want to be the guy who has a rep for being the first to leave the scene of a tournament.
A great example involves a now-well-known pro who, a few years back, was coming off a rough few years. One of his major sponsors was looking to boot him, but right before he did, he mentioned to a media member that the angler was on the way out.
The media member shared these thoughts:
“I can’t speak for anyone else, but I know that no one—and I mean no one—sticks around longer to talk to fans or is more willing to do interviews or is quicker to pick up his phone when I need him.”
Nearly six years later, that pro is still on the staff and totally unaware of what was about to transpire.
Remember, I’m not just talking to pros or potential pros. I’m talking to the entire industry, even myself.
Ronell Smith is widely considered as one of the top industry, tackle and business insiders for the sport fishing industry. His paid-subscriber newsletter, The Tackle insider, is available at RonellSmith.com. Follow him on Twitter and FaceBook.
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Fri, Mar 09, 2012 @ 09:08 AM
Got your attention, didn't we? Bass react to crankbaits much the same way you probably are right now to that statement... "What was that?" You hear or see something and then you get curious and come in for a closer look. Sometimes it's just annoying, sometimes it's really good and you want more. You pounce on the stuff that looks good. Sometimes you pounce on the stuff that just annoys you too. Same with the bass on a favorite crankbait.
We were thinking about crankbaits recently and discussing with some pros how they can be very regional. On the Tennessee River system, a Bomber Fat Free Shad and Strike King 6XD have become legends on the ledges. On the Ozark White River Lakes in Missouri and Arkansas, the Storm Wiggle Wart has carved out a niche for itself. In the Carolina's, the Poe's Cedar crankbaits made a name for themselves, thanks to the prowess of guys like David Fritts and David "Smiley" Wright. Flat sided crankbaits in East Tennessee have been guarded secrets of the pros for years
But after covering the Bassmaster Classic in Shreveport last month and a recent trip or two in Kentucky, we've seen how effective one particular crankbait is in cold water, regardless of where you are in the country. The Rapala Shad Rap.
The Rapala Shad Rap has been around for several decades and yet it's ability to catch big fish has stood the test of time. It's a simple shape and size that mimics a wide variety of forage. It comes in four different sizes so you can effectively cover water from 1 foot to 14 feet or so. It comes in about every color imaginable but most anglers will keep it to 2 - 4 colors usually.
Over the last couple of decades, it's really carved its niche with bass fishermen hunting bass in cold waters. The fact that many fisheries clear up in the winter, and the very natural styling and subtle side to side rolling action of the crankbait make it tremendously appealing visually to the fish.
No Boundaries
Ott Defoe used a Rapala Shad Rap to post a top-five finish in his first Bassmaster Classic on a fishery where a Shad Rap probably wasn't even considered an option by most locals or the rest of the Classic field for that matter. In practice he was able to come through areas behind other competitors and catch some big bass. That's another key attribute: it's diminutive profile makes it a great follow up crankbait in crowded waters.
Northern anglers have long used the Shad Rap to tempt bass all seasons of the year and it's equally deadly on other game fish, like walleye up north. I've had some unbelievable days fishing a shad rap in Minnesota, Wisconsin, New York and other places on natural lakes. Again it's profile and size and color options give you the ability to match a lot of local forage in the northern climes.
In the Midwest, the Shad Rap has proved to be effective for not only largemouth but also big smallmouths and spotted bass too. Several recent outings have proved that to us in water ranging from slightly muddy to slightly stained. Again color options and the larger No. 8 and No. 9 lures give you a lot of options and flexibility.
Terry Bolton was fishing with me recently and we both pulled out the same crankbait to start attacking the bass in 52 degree water -- a Rapala Shad Rap. I grabbed my favorite No. 8 Shad Rap in the original Crawdad color. It's got a distinct orange belly and darker brown back. Bolton reached for a No. 5 Shad Rap in the original Shad color.
Our first point yielded a small keeper and a couple non-keepers. The second point yielded a 6-plus-pound bass that fell for the No. 8 Crawdad Shad rap. Our next couple of banks weren't productive, so we jumped to another bay. It wasn't long before Bolton had a chunky 4-pounder take his Shad Rap after a slight change. he picked up a No. 8 in the new Dark Brown Craw. A few casts later and Bolton boated one weighing more than 6-pounds as well.
It wasn't the first time either of us had thrown the Shad Rap this year, but it was the first time they had been that productive this season.
Taking the Rap
In the prespawn, fish will begin migrating from their main lake and deep water haunts and start matriculating back into bays, pockets and creek arms feeding up, staging and eventually moving shallow to spawn. Staging is nothing more than when bass group up in schools, usually in a little deeper water, to forage and wait for conditions to get optimal to move shallow, spread out to start making nests and pair up for the spawn. Fish will group on channel swings, points, ditches and channels near adjacent flats and bays where they will spawn.
Often Bolton will start on the main lake and work into pockets and the mouths of bigger bays and cast the Shad Rap around to the bank and bring it out into the deeper water. If there have been several warming days in a row, the fish will often get shallower and up on the banks more. Wind and water color can also move them a lot shallower so he likes to have a variety of sizes and colors available to him.
Bolton will fish the baits on two basic setups. A Denali medium action spinning rod with a Lew's spinning reel or the Denali Michael Murphy jerkbait baitcasting rod with a Lew's Tournament Pro reel. With both setups he uses Sufix Tritanium 10-pound line. He likes that line size so he can land bigger bass with some confidence and also because that size and smoothness of the Tritanium line casts well on either a baitcaster or spinning reel.
"That line is so smooth and it has some stretch, which is extremely handy with Shad Raps because their narrow wobble and profile will enable them to get into some crevices and you're going to have to be good at popping them free," Bolton said. "But with this mono it's got some stretch but not as much as most other mono which makes it really good at pulling slack and popping a hung Shad Rap free without having to go up and get it. I've caught some big bass popping it off a stump like that too."
Bolton keeps a variety of sizes and colors on his deck and will alternate depending on depth and water clarity.
"Day in and day out, that orange one [crawdad] is hard to beat," he said. "That color works when it's real muddy as well as it does when it's real clear in the water."
Target Zone
Bolton really pays close attention to the banks, size of the rock, available cover when searching with a Shad Rap. He also is constantly searching for those subtle transition places where bass can move up from deeper water to a shallow flat quickly. The bass will often move up and feed on those small flats right next to deep water and then slide back off into deeper water and wait for the water to warm up.
As far as fishing the Shad Rap, slow and steady is the norm.
"I really don't do anything fancy with a Shad Rap," Bolton said. "It seems to me over there years that the fish just prefer that slow steady craw where you're just occassionally ticking the bottom and the bait is just easing along really unassuming."
Most of the times the bites are just going to feel like a little more pressure on the rod. That's why it's so important to use a rod that gives you great feel and a forgiving tip. Not only can you feel bites and subtle changes better but a whippy tip will allow the small bait to load harder and let you really catapult the bait out there on a hard whip of the rod.
So it works from Canada to Louisiana and everywhere in between. It's subtle wobble makes it perfect for lethargic bass just getting back to feeding. That natural profile, action and colors of the bait make it a great follow up lure in pressured waters. The range of sizes enable an angler to cover depth zones from the bank out to 12-14 feet. Difficulty casting in the wind can be overcome with a larger size or more finesse spinning tackle and lighter line. It truly has no boundaries and that's why we think it's the best coldwater crankbait ever.
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Tue, Feb 28, 2012 @ 12:57 PM
We talked with several of the anglers the last day about their tournament and what they were doing in the event. Here is what each of the guys had to say about their tournament and the fishing. We didn't get to talk to every guy but here is what a handful of them said about the fishing.
Greg Vinson (2nd, $45,000)
"I locked down on a long run down to Pool 4 and fishing Little Jungle. I was making a big run but it really paid off for me with that little area I was fishing. Today I caught those fish and saddle up to run and had a tear coming down my cheek behind my mask as I was running because it hit me finally what this all means. So I'm just excited.
"I caught fish on a lot of different baits this week but pitching soft plastics and deadsticking them around matted vegetation got most of my fish the last two days. I caught a lot of fish on a spinnerbait on the first day when it was so windy, but also caught some fish on a Bandit 100 crankbait. That was early but the final day I was just casting and pitching plastics to target fish moving up to spawn."
Alton Jones (4th, $30,000)
"I fished all week with a Yum Vibra King Tube and a Yum Dinger 6-inch watermelon with purple gold flake. If you're fishing on the Red River and you're not using a Yum Dinger, you're missing a lot of bites.
"All you can hope for is to be in contention for the win on the final day. I came close. But I've had a blessed week. BASS's motto is every catch is big. And that's true. I'm just so excited to have this opportunity. Everyone thinks I'm some great fisherman but the Lord provides for me. That's all. It's all my Lord and Savior. "
Ott Defoe (5th, $25,000)
"I was fishing two primary areas. One was in McDade and the other area was a smaller one I don't know the name of. The McDade fish were prespawn the first day and I was catching them on a No. 5 Shad Rap when it was windy. It was custom painted in a rootbeer color. The second day when it cleared and got calm, I was fishing a Rapala X-Rap in a Tennessee Shad color. I was fishing it around on the edges of the coontail and little breaks off those coontail flats. The other fish came flipping a 1/4 ounce Reins tungsten weight and a Berkley Havoc Pit Boss and a 5/0 VMC flipping hook.
"The weights are pretty close to what I expected them to be. I never got a big bite yesterday. That surprised me a little bit. I never caught a fish over 3 pounds yesterday. I worked mats in 8 inches to 2 feet of water. I caught two 3 pounders and 5 pounder the first day in the McDade area and then I had a 6 and a few 3-pounders today in there. I don't know there was many more big fish in there.
"It was an incredible experience. This is my first Classic and I've been dreaming about it since I was 10 years old. You think about it and dream about it a lot but walking out on that stage here with that big bag of bass was an incredible experience. "
Timmy Horton (6th, $22,000)
"I was fishing a mixture of stumps and lily pad stems. Nothing really surprised me this week. The water was a little more stained up and muddy than we’re used to here. I fished a Booyah 1/2 ounce spinnerbait. The shallow stumps and pad stems in white house is where I fished all week. I was getting a reaction bite in that stained to clear water. I spent my whole tournament in Whitehouse. "
Edwin Evers (8th, $21,000)
"It's such an honor to be here. Maybe one day I can win one of these. I don't know what to say really, but I'll just keep trying and maybe one of these days I will win one of these.
"I fished down in Little Jungle all week. There was a lot of fish in my area, but I missed a lot of them on the swim jig and that cost me. They just weren’t eating really well on that second day, just running it off like guarding a nest. I had a chance at a monster bag that second day and it just didn’t happen. I would use the swimjig to imitate bream around the beds and then when I saw a fish on the bed I would pitch a Yum Wooly Hawg Craw and a drop shot to catch them.
Todd Faircloth (9th, $20,500)
"The main thing for me in pre-practice and during the tournament was water clarity. When those fish are moving up trying to spawn, you want to find the cleanest water you can and that’s where they pull up first or do it first. These are the very first fish moving up to spawn. There will be a huge wave of fish coming into the bigger bays and such and fishing is about to be really good here.
"Nothing really surprised me about the fishing this week. It fished small. I figured the fish would be prespawn and spawn and that was pretty much the deal. I feel like I lost the tournament on the first day. I made a bad decision to leave an area. And I went to another area and one of the guys that was either going to win this or come in second was in that spot and if I had been able to go there or stayed in my original area it might have worked out in my favor.
"I caught my fish on an All-Terrain Tackle Swim Jig, Sebile Small finesse spinnerbait and Yamamoto Flapping Hog were my primary baits this week. I threw the spinnerbait on the first day when it was windy and the swim jig and flipped the Flapping hog when it got calm and cleared."
Bill Lowen (10th, $20,000)
"I used a black and red Tightline UV tube and a Black and Blue Reins Ax Craw. I caught some fish on an Ima square bill and a spinnerbait. I fished all week down in the Sullivan area of Pool 4. I was basically just junk fishing all week but flipping caught a lot of my bigger bass. I was trying to concentrate on banks with deeper water on them because I didn't know we'd have this warm up like this. In practice during the cold days there was a bunch of fish on my banks in that area. But as it warmed up I started having less and less fish using my area and that's what cost me."
Kevin VanDam (11th, $15,000)
"I tried to step it up the second and third days. I had the opportunities the first day and I just didn't get em in the boat. The last two years in the Classic I’ve got those key fish and they stayed buttoned up. I've made good decisions the last day and had a good day but I expected to have a monster day. I had three good ones but couldn't get two more good bites but I caught everything that bit. You get those key bites and get them in the boat when things are going your way.
"You got to take the good with the bad. You always need to learn what you missed. For me it was real important to make that third day because I know we'll be back to Shreveport because we've had two awesome Classics here. So I wanted to learn for the next time.
"I learned when they dropped the water 6 inches and they were only in a foot of water, they leave. So I had to make adjustments. I found a spot that didn't have some deeper water around it so I had to change locations. My best bait this week was a Strike King Rodent. I threw a Strike King Pure Poison, a KVD Spinnerbait, and a KVD Black and Blue jig. I had 12 rods on my deck shallow power fishing."
David Walker (14th, $13,250)
"I fished a good event and it’s not like I have all these stories about big fish lost. I lost a few fish the first day but after that I caught about everything after that. It started off in really cold water in mid 50 degree temperatures and for some reason these fish went all the way up into sight-fishing mode over the course of two frosty nights. No one could have predicted that. Whoever said they did is just blowing smoke up their own rear ends.
"It just sort of came to them. They were like, ‘look that’s a fish on a bed.’ The warmest water I saw was 60 degrees and guys were talking about catching them off of beds. I don’t like sight fishing. I want prespawn or post spawn. There just seemed to be a bunch of fish in this tournament that moved up.
"I caught most of my fish on a jig and a few on a Live Target Square Bill. I used a Chatterbait some. Those three lures accounted for all my fish. I fished down there in Pool 4 in Sullivans the first two days and I fished the last day in the Bobo Hole.
"But I feel good about the event. Anytime you can get yourself in contention. My goal two years ago was standing working a show, I said, ‘I’ve got to make it back to the Classic.’ So I fished the Bassmaster Opens then I fished the Elite Series and now here I am. So I got back as quickly as I could, but it took me that long. So I’m happy with how it went.
"I love how the Elites shake out for me. I love the fact that there are no co-anglers. I love that there are smaller fields. I like the fact that the fans know who you are. The fans come to watch B.A.S.S. and Elite guys. It just really fits me."
Kevin Wirth (14, $14,000)
"To live through day two was tough. It was very emotional for me. I broke down a few times thinking it could be the last day. So to survive that was hard. It was a lot easier today. I got real emotional a few times running down the river. We fished a good Classic though. "
"I fished right there next to the ramp where I had shook one off near a stump. I fished that stump all three days, and Sunday I pulled in there and a caught a 4-15. She finally bit. I made my run and went on down. I went into my main area and the water had dropped so I had to move around and make adjustments and I figured out a pattern about 10:30 and I went to catching them pretty good. I lost one great big one then caught a 4 pounder and a couple 3-pounders.
"The water dropped and they moved out a little further and I found out I could catch them winding a little Strike King KVD square-billed crankbait. "
Editor's note: This was Wirth's final tournament. He's retiring from fishing.
Keith Combs (16th, $13,000)
"I threw a frog a lot the final day trying to catch a big one. I had two real quick on day two as I was leaving my primary area and I thought I smoke them on it the final day. I gave it three hours. I like to fish a frog. I think I would have been better off just blind flipping the last day and not really sight fishing for them.
"Faircloth and I fished fairly close to each other. I had no problem with it. He’s a class pro and he catches them. That gives you confidence in an area and it lets you know what’s going on around you when you have another good angler around you. So it was more beneficial than harmful in my opinion.
"I caught them flipping and I caught three sight fishing on day two and three sight fishing the final day. I caught all my fish the first day on a spinnerbait and a ¼ ounce swim jig. And on day two I had two on a frog and three on a Strike King Game Hog. The final day I had one on a spinnerbait, one on a senko and the rest flipping the Game Hog.
"There were stumps in my area but patchy milfoil and sand is what made it perfect for spawning fish moving up to spawn. I fished in Little Jungle all week. You couldn’t just fish stumps or pad stems or milfoil. You had to fish it all to catch your fish and it changed day to day. "
Greg Hackney (22nd, $12,300)
"I've been making a long boat ride, but I had the water all to myself. I had a great practice, but the water fell out of my area about 2 feet during the tournament and that really hurt my fishing. It's been a great week. It's all about going for the win here, so I made the gamble and it didn't pay off. But I wouldn't change a thing.
"I was making such a long run I figured I fished 8 hours in three days. I cut myself down on time because I felt like I had an area that had better potential to win. But when you do that, you don’t have any time to adjust. That water was falling out of there and I never could slow down. I felt like I was in a flurry the whole time with no chance to slow down and figure out the changes. I felt like it was a worthwhile gamble.
"I wouldn’t change a thing. There were some variables I didn’t have any control over. This is one Classic I didn’t feel like I made mistakes. I fished real clean all week."
Stephen Browning (24th, $12,100)
"The first day I ran down to the Coushatta area. I had a good area for the tournament, but I just didn't fish well. I had a 10 on my strategy and a 4 on my execution. It was a big stump field with a ditch running through it. I was fishing it the first day with a Live Target Red Crawfish Sub Surface crankbait. I caught 25-30 bass that first day but they were all buck bass. The second day, the wind laid down and the water got real clear and the crankbait bite went away, and I caught all my fish on a ZinkerZ soft plastic stickbait.
"You pick up a flipping hook you are supposed to fish on fluorocarbon line and you're using it on braid and you bend it out and lose a 6-pounder. That's just not using your head. I had a good area with big fish but I lost a key fish or two. On the crankbait I lost a couple but it's not like the hooks were bad. They would bite, you'd reel it two or three turns and they would come off. They just didn't always get it good and they didn't stay hooked up. "
More Photos:
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Tue, Feb 28, 2012 @ 10:25 AM
A look back at Chris Lane's winning moment and the emotional victory shared with his brother, family, friends and fans. It was another great Bassmaster Classic moment.
Photos by Dustin King
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Sun, Feb 26, 2012 @ 01:38 PM
Todd, Dustin and Terry spent a good bit of time in the Expo the last couple of days, here's just some of what they saw over there that they liked! Going to the Classic Expo and looking at new tackle and equipment always gets us excited about going fishing.
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Sun, Feb 26, 2012 @ 09:28 AM
We ran out to the launch this morning one more time to see the top 25 anglers off for one more day of fishing in the 2012 Bassmaster Classic on the Red River. Here a few more photos from the launch this morning.
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Sat, Feb 25, 2012 @ 11:27 PM
A few photos from the day two weigh-in at the Bassmaster Classic in Shreveport, La.
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Posted by Jason Sealock on Fri, Feb 24, 2012 @ 11:51 PM
Just a few random shots from today's Bassmaster Classic bass fishing championship weigh-in we thought we would share from a bit different perspective.
Photos by Dustin King
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