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 BASS photo
By Terry Brown
I attended the Bass University January 23-24 in Nashville with Jason Sealock from Wired2Fish. A good friend from Illinois, James Hurt, also attended with us. Prior to the Bass University, I had attended several Bassmaster University Seminars and have always thought they were organized and well worth attending. I also thought they were a bit vanilla. Most seminars touched on topics of interest to me but never got into the nitty gritty. It was like watching an entire movie but not seeing the end. Something was missing.
The "new" Bass University is different. More details, more one-on-one and definitely more interaction with the participants. That was the best part. Any attendee could ask their question and have it answered honestly. I thought it was interesting that several pros requested the other seminar speakers leave the room. They didn't want those they compete against to hear the little things they do, but they did want to share them with the attendees. To me, that was big and clearly a different approach to what had been done previously in other seminars.
I served as the MC for this session at Nashville, and even though I have the opportunity on a daily basis to speak to Dave Wolak, Mike Iaconelli, Randy Howell, Gerald Swindle, Pete Gluzsek and John Crews, I learned several things that I had not heard from them before and several things that will help me in my fishing. The details provided were what kept me interested as well as the beauty of this session as it fit both the novice and the die-hard. That can be hard to do, but it worked well in Nashville.
Gluzsek went into detail about depth finders and map reading. One attendee brought a map of his local lake, and Pete used that map to explain how he would approach that body of water. He included seasonal patterns and talked on the importance of paper maps and electronics used in conjunction. He detailed the little things that can make a difference on a channel break or a flat. Good stuff.
Dave Wolak's presentation was superb. He used video to illustrate different vegetation types and explained those differences and how each should be fished. The underwater video explained a lot, and Dave detailed both boat position and baits for each type. A step up from holding a rod and talking about a specific tournament.
John Crews talked crankbaits. John loves fishing them, and it was apparent, he has a special knowledge about them. He talked about the differences in hooks, line ties, subtle versus loud rattles and what equipment works best by application. He spoke about shallow and deep cranking, and his dry wit was a highlight of the presentation. John knows this topic, and he knows crankbaits.
G-Man was G-Man. He touched on the mental approach to fishing. He started with focus, spoke about using a mind coach, and to say he was entertaining would be an understatement. He had us with tears in our eyes one minute and laughing until our sides hurt the other. His 2009 season was a testament to how much the mental game enters into the sport. He started slow, took a positive, focused approach and finished the season strong. This session will be a "can't be missed" one in future Bass Universities.
Randy Howell was exceptional. He is one funny guy and knows the little things. He spoke about swimming a jig Alabama style, and many of his tips surprised the crowd. He spoke about different styles of jigs used for this technique and gave intimate details of weights, cover where they are effective and trailer considerations.
Iaconelli knows finesse, and he shared the little things anglers need to do when the bite is tough. He too is one funny dude, and his love for fishing runs deep. From line, heads, equipment and baits, he covered the little things that make finesse a go-to tactic at the pro level. He spoke in detail about drop shots, the wet noodle, and shaky heads. This session was one that anglers walked away from saying "I didn't know that" or "that is something I can use". He spoke, power-walked, and got down and dirty on the little things. That was huge to those who attended.
The round table question and answer sessions were lively and precise. Attendee's asked questions ranging from bait selection by season to hook and line details. Round tables were done twice a day and were the glue to the presentations.
The Bass University is a fine tuned machine, and I was honored to be a part of it. Funny, detail oriented, focused and very well run. Those who we spoke to would not hesitate to return.
The next session is in Dallas February 6 and 7 and I recommend those in the Dallas area to attend. You can sign up by clicking here. |
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Kapiton
wins co-angler title, Ranger 177TR Boat and Motor
John
Cox of Debary, Fla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 14 pounds, 2 ounces
Friday to maintain his lead in the FLW Series Eastern Division tournament on
Lake Okeechobee. With a three-day catch of 15 bass weighing 62-1, he holds a
10-pound, 11-ounce lead over his closest competitor, National Guard pro Scott
Martin of Clewiston, Fla., heading into the final day of competition.
“Today was the first day I actually saw fish and didn’t catch them,” said Cox,
who is fishing in his first FLW Series tournament. “I think that’s because they
were new fish. It was just rough. The first day they all ate it the first time
they hit it. Yesterday they would hit it three or four times before they
actually ate it and swam off the bed. Today they wouldn’t pick it up at all.”
Cox relied heavily on sight fishing the first three days of competition and
thinks the fish he saw Friday were new fish on beds and were generally more
hesitant to bite.
“I’m not a biologist,” Cox said. “That’s just what I like to think.
“Tomorrow I’m going to change it up. I’ve found an area that’s got a ton of big
fish cruising and I’m going to go in there and cast to them. If it’s right, I
might load the boat in a couple of hours.”
Martin caught a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 51-6 to advance to the
final round as the No. 2 seed.
“My pattern right off the bat was to get the Lake Fork Trophy Lures ‘Live’ Magic Shad in the grass,” said Martin,
who has won more than $1 million in FLW Outdoors competition. “It was just a
disastrous morning. I feel like I’m doing it right, but I missed so many fish
today.”
Martin’s topwater presentation was a source of frustration Friday as he missed
15 fish and caught three. He didn’t weigh any of his three topwater fish.
“Half of them would just totally miss the bait and blow it out of the water
like they were hitting with their mouth closed almost,” Martin said. “I think
it’s the progression of the spawn they’re in. They’re a little ‘chasy’ right
now and not really wanting to feed. I’m getting the strikes around beds.”
The remaining top-5 pros who will fish the final day at Lake Okeechobee are:
3rd: Team Chevy pro Anthony Gagliardi,
Prosperity, S.C., 49-8
4th: J. Todd Tucker, Moultrie, Ga., 48-1
5th: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., 47-13
Overall there were 721 bass weighing 1,630 pounds, 12 ounces caught by 155 pros
Friday. The catch included 127 five-bass limits.
In FLW Series competition, pros are competing for a top award of $50,000 plus
valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the 2011 Forrest Wood
Cup, the world championship of bass fishing.
George Kapiton of Inverness, Fla., won the Co-angler Division and a Ranger
177TR with a 90 horsepower engine and an additional $2,038 in the optional pot
Friday with a three-day total of 35 pounds followed by Marlon Crowder of Tampa,
Fla., in second place with 33-13 worth $5,000. Kapiton also was the Ranger Cup
program winner of $1,500, while Marlon won a $1,000 Cabela’s gift card for
being the highest-finishing co-angler to meet Cabela’s Angler Cash guidelines.
Kapiton opened the tournament in fourth place Wednesday with five bass weighing
11-6 while fishing with Tharp. On Thursday he slipped to 10th place with a
five-bass catch weighing 6-6 while fishing with pro Clint Brownlee of Tifton,
Ga. He wrapped up the win Friday with a five-bass catch weighing 17-4 while
fishing with pro Derrick Snavely of Rogersville, Tenn.
“This is surreal, man,” said Kapiton, who notched his first win. “It’s awesome,
just awesome. I’ve fished a bunch and finally (won) one.”
Kapiton said he wasn’t very familiar with Lake Okeechobee, but that didn’t
derail his first win. Kapiton said his pro anglers were key to his victory.
“Derrick put me on the six-pounder and let me catch it,” Kapiton said. “It took
about 20 minutes. I caught it, and I was ready to go to the house. I couldn’t
stand up any more after that.”
Kapiton said he caught his baits on “everything”. He said he fished a
chatterbait in dirty water and tried different baits all day with eight rods on
the deck.
Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Jeff Cummins, Marion, Ohio, 32-13,
$4,429
4th: Larry Mullikin, Lauderhill, Fla.,
29-3, $2,500
5th: Anthony Goggins, Sylacauga, Ala.,
27-0, $2,000
Co-anglers are also competing for valuable points that could help them qualify
for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.
Overall there were 483 bass weighing 798 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 136
co-anglers Friday. The catch included 58 five-bass limits.
The remaining five pros will take off at 7 Saturday morning from C. Scott
Driver Park located at 10100 W. Hwy. 78 in Okeechobee. Saturday’s final
weigh-in will be held at the Gilbert Chevrolet Company located at 3550 Hwy. 441
S. in Okeechobee at 4 p.m.
Fans will be treated to a Family Fun Zone at Gilbert Chevrolet prior to
Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. There will be a drawing for a $300
Cabela’s gift card and drawings for rod and reel combos will be held every 30
minutes during the event. Activities in the Family Fun Zone include a Ranger
boat simulator and assorted fishing-themed games. All activities are free and
open to the public.
Coverage of the Lake Okeechobee tournament will be broadcast in high-definition
(HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors”, will air May 2 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW
Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million
households worldwide.
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 Dutton photo
Wired2Fish and Elite Series icon Denny Brauer has a great video up on Bass Tackle Depot talking about the best rods for flipping and pitching. To watch click here. |
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Alabama's Russ Lane talks on Wired Radio with Terry Brown today about maturing as an angler, his new sponsors Big Bite Baits and Buckeye Lres and the upcoming Bassmaster Classic.
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Today on Wired Radio with Terry Brown funnyman Dave Mercer of Facts of Fishing talks about "dumb" smallies, living in Canada, skiing and life in the fast lane.
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We just spoke to Wired angler Mike McClelland and he said there have been several rumors that he had inked a new boat deal with another company. That is not the case and he will be running Champion at this years Bassmaster Classic.
Depending on the outcome of the Platinum Equity purchase could determine if a change is in the offing but Mike assured us his first choice is Champion and he loyal to that brand. McClelland has been with Champion a majority of his career and has even been a rep for them.
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Plano Molding, the builders of the world best tackle organization products, has joined Wired2Fish as the presenting sponsor of the Next Generation Tackle Box Section of Wired2Fish for 2010.
"Straight up, Plano is the perfect advertiser for the Next Generation Tackle Box," said Wired2Fish and Get Outside Media President Terry Brown. "They are always generations ahead in design, waterproof characteristics, and tackle organization boxes for the angler to keep all kinds of different baits and tackle properly stored. We are excited to have them with us at Wired2Fish."
Wired readers will be able to take advantage of tips, news, and how the pro's use Plano Tackle products throughout 2010. They have the best in tackle organization systems and we want you to know as much as possible about them. Look for some great contests from Plano as well.
Welcome Plano Molding!
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Two first-time FLW Series anglers at top of leaderboards
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. (Jan. 28, 2010) – John Cox of Debary, Fla., caught a five-bass
limit weighing 22 pounds, 14 ounces Thursday to retain the lead in the FLW
Series Eastern Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee with a two-day catch of
10 bass weighing 47-15.
“I was just running and moving around a lot and catching a good one here and
there,” said Cox, who is fishing in his first FLW Series event. “I figured I
caught 15 (pounds) early in the morning and figured that was pretty good.”
Cox said his technique of moving around and searching for fish produced 12
keepers Thursday. He said he is mainly focusing on fish he can see and picks
the fish he thinks will bite. The longest he targeted one fish Thursday was 20
minutes.
“I’m kind of just standing around and waiting to see them,” Cox said.
Cox said he fished new water on the second day of competition and will continue
to do the same Friday. Cox also said he is looking forward to the forecast of
rain for Saturday.
“I’ve got a flipping spot and I’ve been dying to go to it,” Cox said. “These
flipping fish are on beds; you just can’t see them.”
Cox now holds a commanding 8-pound, 13-ounce lead over second place pro
National Guard team pro Scott Martin of Clewiston, Fla., who managed to haul in
a total of 10 bass weighing 39-2 during the first two days of competition.
“The neat thing about Lake Okeechobee is that it’s never the same year after
year,” said Martin, who has won more than $1 million in FLW Outdoors events.
“As big as this lake is, it’s always different based on water levels and the
amount of grass. I’ve never really gone out and caught fish in the exact same
spot year after year.”
Rounding out the top-10 pros at Lake Okeechobee are:
3rd: Team Chevy pro Anthony Gagliardi,
Prosperity, S.C., 10 bass, 35-11
4th: Bob Izumi, Milton, Ontario, 10 bass,
34-6
5th: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., 10 bass,
34-0
6th: Craig Dowling, Grant, Ala., 10 bass,
33-5
7th: Scott Canterbury, Springville, Ala.,
10 bass, 33-2
8th: Ray Scheide, Dover, Ark., 10 bass,
32-0
9th: Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., 10 bass,
31-8
10th: Trevor Fitzgerald, Ocklawaha, Fla., 10
bass, 31-3
Overall there were 671 bass weighing 1,459 pounds, 3 ounces caught by 153 pros
Thursday. The catch included 113 five-bass limits. In FLW Series
competition, pros are competing for a top award of $50,000 plus valuable points
in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup, the world
championship of bass fishing.
Jeff Cummins of Marion, Ohio, leads the Co-angler Division with a two-day total
of 10 bass weighing 25-2 followed by Larry Mullikin of Lauderhill, Fla., in
second place with nine bass weighing 24-6.
“We were throwing everything,” said Cummins, who is fishing in his first FLW
Series event. “The bite was tough, but we worked at it all day long and finally
got a limit.”
Cummins said he caught six fish during the course of the day on Reaction
Innovations Skinny Dippers and flukes. Cummins said his largest fish, an
estimated six-pounder, was his second fish of the day and fell for a Senko.
Cummins caught five bass weighing 10-14 while fishing with pro Robert Sherry of
Saint Charles, Ill., Wednesday and five bass weighing 14-4 while fishing with
pro Pat Kelly Sr. of Guntersville, Ala.,Thursday.
Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Larry Butler, New Haven, Vt., 10 bass,
19-13
4th: Richard Rhodes, Calvert City, Ky., six
bass, 19-12
5th: Philip Jarabeck, Lynchburg, Va., 10
bass, 19-2
6th: Marlon Crowder, Tampa, Fla., 10 bass,
18-13
7th: Eugene Lewis, Saint Petersburg, Fla.,
10 bass, 18-9
8th: Robert Eid, Key West, Fla., nine bass,
18-4
9th: Anthony Goggins, Sylacauga, Ala., nine
bass, 17-14
10th: George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., 10 bass,
17-12
Overall there were 355 bass weighing 591 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 130
co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 29 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are competing this week for a Ranger 177TR with 90 horsepower engine
as well as valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2011 Forrest
Wood Cup.
Anglers will take off from C. Scott Driver Park located at 10100 W. Hwy. 78 in
Okeechobee at 7 each morning. Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina
beginning at 3 p.m. The final weigh-in on Saturday will be held at Gilbert
Chevrolet Company located at 3550 Hwy. 441 S. in Okeechobee at 4 p.m.
Fans will be treated to a Family Fun Zone at Gilbert Chevrolet prior to
Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. There will be a drawing for a $300
Cabela’s gift card and drawings for rod and reel combos will be held every 30
minutes during the event. Activities in the Family Fun Zone include a Ranger boat
simulator and assorted fishing-themed games. All activities are free and open
to the public.
For More information see Rob Newell's coverage here.
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Texas angler and Strike King pro staff member Debra Hengst will be fishing the Central Opens this year. Hengst said "I signed up this past fall and was going to fish the WBT and the Opens on 2010. It was part of my plan as I felt I needed to move on in my career. I had fished the Bass'nGals, the Womens Bass Fishing Association and the WBT and felt to get better I needed to step it up. I was losing my enthusiasm and felt fishing this was a way to get it back."
"I think there is a need for a womens trail for ladies who are starting out in the sport and are looking at it as a career but I want to move on and see if I can compete" added Hengst. "Bass fishing is not a gender specific sport. Its not a physical sport like football and basketball. It more mental and I think it may be one that men and women can compete equally."
Pam Martin-Wells, Judy Wong and Diana Clark also have signed up to fish on the pro side on the Central Opens.
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John Cox of Debary, Fla. extended his lead on day two of the FLW Series Eastern Division event on Lake Okeechobee. Cox caught another 22 pounds, 14 ounces of bass to take a commanding 8 pound, 13 ounce lead over Scott Martin and the rest of the field. Cox's two-day total of 47-15 bettered Martin's 39-02. Rounding out the top five was Anthony Gagliardi in third with 35-11, Bob Izumi (of Ontario, Canada) in fourth with 34-06 and Tom Mann, Jr. in fifth with 34-00. More news later.
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FLW Outdoors, the world’s leading tournament fishing organization, announced Thursday that Minn Kota has extended their sponsorship as the official trolling motor of FLW Outdoors. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Trisha Blake, Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice-President stated, "We're proud of our long-term partnership with Minn Kota and their decision to continue their alignment with FLW Outdoors."
As part of the sponsorship, Minn Kota will receive exposure across all platforms of FLW Outdoors, including its 189 tournaments, FLW Outdoors’ multiple websites, FLW Outdoors Magazine and various FLW Outdoors events.
“Minn Kota is proud to continue its long-standing relationship with FLW Outdoors,” said Judy Douglas, Business Director of Minn Kota. “We are committed to supporting tournament anglers by offering leading-edge trolling motor technology and partnering with FLW Outdoors, one of the most respected tournament organizations in the industry.”
Minn Kota, which marked its 75th anniversary in 2009, has led the way in product innovation and cutting-edge technology since being founded in 1934. Minn Kota’s legacy in the fishing world speaks for itself and their products continue to be at the forefront. For more information regarding Minn Kota, visit MinnKotaMotors.com.
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Years of educating the fishing public through countless programs and promotions wasn’t enough for the likes of Frabill sponsored, The Next Bite Pros Gary Parsons, Keith Kavajecz and Pete Maina. Their continued drive and passion for the sport of fishing has once again motivated them to help you stay ahead of the learning curve and “step it up a notch”. This drive, and wanting to bring you the most current and relevant information for the fish they love – Fish with Teeth – spawned the concept of a hosting a premium fishing experience and learning session. So, now enter the era of “Your Next Bite”!
A series of cutting edge schools, Your Next Bite, was designed to share with students an unprecedented accumulation of knowledge, both by learning in a classroom setting and a hands-on approach on the water, with one goal in mind, to make you a better angler. To help accomplish this goal, top fishing venues were handpicked and cutting edge curriculums developed with consideration for the hottest techniques and fishing industry trends. And the best part; Your Next Bite schools have an atmosphere that will help anyone to become a better angler, newcomers to the sport or seasoned veterans.
For 2010, Your Next Bite will be hosting three schools, covering both walleye and musky fishing. All are three day schools, starting on a Friday and ending Sunday. They are all inclusive as well. That’s right; everything is taken care of for you: meals and lodging along, along with a nice sponsors’ gift bag.
Starting April 16th and running through the 18th, Your Next Bite will be teaching the ways of the Great Lakes and River Walleyes. Our host site is the famed waters of Green Bay and the Fox River. If there was ever a time and place to catch big walleyes, this is it. Gary Parsons, Keith Kavajecz, and Chase Parsons will be your instructors for this first of its kind learning experience.
The summer venue lets anglers experience musky fishing in the heart of big muskellunge country, Leech Lake, Minn. The 100,000-plus acre lake is both beautiful and full of big toothy critters. Jot down and remember August 27th through the 29th for this amazing school. Pete Maina and Jim Hudson will be on hand to share their insights into finding and catching trophy fish.
Our last school of the year brings us back to the amazing fishery of Green Bay. But this time, students will experience the thrill of stalking Green Bay muskies. Green Bay is an autumn hotspot, as huge numbers of big spotted musky file into the shallows. The dates for Green Bay are October 8th through the 10th. Pete Maina and Jim Hudson will be on hand to teach this school.
For more information and to sign-up for any of the schools, find us at http://lrn2fish.com or http://www.thenextbite.com.
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Northland Fishing Tackle founder and President John Peterson along with his brother and longtime business partner Duane Peterson were named NPAA Honorary Lifetime Members for their continued service and commitment to the future of fishing. “This is a great honor. I was one of the charter members of this organization and Northland was the first supporting partner,” said Peterson at the NPAA’s recent conference in Bloomington, MN. “I feel the NPAA has done more to professionalize fishing than any other organization.” Brother Duane urged the anglers present, “Think about being a pro every day, but don’t forget the grassroots – the youngsters and families – recruit them and take them fishing.”
John Peterson had fished the pro-side of the Professional Walleye Tour (PWT) for 15 years, but was forced to tend to business that was “growing by leaps and bounds.” Always intent on making a living doing what he enjoyed, Peterson described his 140-employee company and how he expects double and triple digit growth in the next three to five years.
He said, “Our terminal tackle is the nuts and bolts of what customers need. Our business has been recession-proof because more people are fishing.” He may get back into tournaments, but the immediate future will include new product direction, including “field” work.
New senior marketing and promotion manager Eric Naig spoke at the same conference, saying “Promotional anglers are the backbone in our sphere of influence and they drive our business. The route is from your boats to the grassroots.” He cited sales tie-ins at the retail level as a key to success. He said the marketing team needs two-way communication and requires accountability. “We want to know what pro team members are doing, because their input is very valuable.”
In closing, he advocated, “Take a new person fishing this year.”
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This past weekend we had the opportunity to attend the Bass University in Nashville and to say it was good would be an understatement. Well organized, detail oriented and the fishing content was top notch was our take away. Dave Wolak, John Crews, Pete Gluzsek, Randy Howell, Gerald Swindle, and Mike Iaconelli did an exceptional job outlining the little things that can help anglers catch more fish. The interaction with the students and the pro's was refreshing. Seeing professional anglers provide secret details of how to fish baits, read maps and electronics, and how to tweak equipment was unmatched to any previous seminar we have attended. There was a genuine concern from each of the anglers to give the students more than a broad overview and we all learned a lot.
February 6 and 7 the Bass University is heading to Dallas and rest assured the same great attitude and information dissemination will be there. Ish Monroe, Fred Roumbanis, Peter "T" Thliveros, Pete Gluzsek, Mike Iaconelli and Byron Velvick will headline this session. And to kick off the event will be Mark Jeffreys from Basszone.com to serve as Master of Ceremonies!
Topics for this session will be:
Fred Roumbanis – All about wake baits and putting together a solid tournament game plan with an abc approach. In his first class, Fred will talk about the new category of wake baits. He will discuss why these sub-surface baits are true bass killers. In his second seminar, Freddy will turn to how to put together a tournament strategy with a very simple
a, b, c, approach. He will also let you in on his top secret boom-boom knock out big fish technique. This is something you won’t want to miss!
Peter Thliveros – Beyond basic soft plastics, key Texas rig and Carolina rig techniques and tournament practice and preparation. In his first class, Pete will talk about the different types of soft plastics. He will specifically key in on modern Texas and Carolina rigging methods. In his second secession, Pete will cover the correct ways to practice and prepare for a day of fishing. Peter will explain how to make every day on the water more productive!
Byron Velvick – Evolution and development of Swimbaits and swimbaits 101. Byron is known as one of the forefathers of the swimbait technique. In his first secession, Byron will talk about how the swimbaits turned from a big bass west coast only technique into one of the hottest bass fishing trends anywhere! In his second class, Byron will break down everything you need to know about swimbaits including: rigging, retrieve, shapes, colors, and sizes, equipment and much more!
Ish Monroe –Punching and flipping and advanced frog fishing techniques. In his first class, Ish will talk about “punching and flipping.” Ish will cover all of the fine points on using a big weight to get to underneath cover to those unpressured lunkers. In his second class, Ish will go over advanced frog fishing techniques for catching and landing monster bass! Find out all of the tricks and tactics that make frog fishing one of the hottest techniques on tour!
Mike Iaconelli - Advanced finesse fishing strategies and creating reaction strikes. Mike will go into detail on what do when fishing is “tuff as nails.” He will cover the ins and outs of light line finesse fishing and specifically talk about some of the hottest new finesse techniques around today. Including techniques like the flick shake, shaky head, tail weighted french fry, and the wet noodle rig. In his second class, Mike will switch gears and talk about how to trigger a reaction strikes from inactive bass. Mike will specifically cover the 2 baits and techniques that have helped him rack up over $200,000 in tournament wins over the last few years. Mike will examine the football head jig and the crankbait.
You will be glad you attended.
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Claude “Fish” Fishburne will return to the Bassmaster Classic to share hosting duties for the Feb. 19-21 event based in Birmingham, Ala., with longtime Bassmaster Elite Series emcee Keith Alan.
Fishburne, known to everyone as “Fish,” began his long association with BASS in 1986 as a professional bass angler. Throughout his 12-year career, he competed in 108 BASS tournaments, won two and qualified for the Classic four times: 1987, 1993 (in Birmingham), 1994 and 1995.
He began hosting BASS tournament weigh-ins in 1998. His fishing background combined with his ability to have fun with a microphone in hand and his instant rapport with an audience quickly made him a popular stage personality. But Fishburne eventually moved on to pursue other opportunities in TV and event hosting.
Now he and his high-energy approach are back to entertain the thousands of fans expected to pack the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex in downtown Birmingham. Fishburne will be on hand for three days of weigh-ins at the 40th Classic, in which 51 anglers will compete on Lay Lake in Shelby County for a $500,000 top prize.
Fishburne will work alongside Alan, the quick-witted and able anchor of Bassmaster Classic shows and Elite weigh-ins since 2006. Why two emcees?
“We are always striving to heighten the fan experience,” said Jamie Wilkinson, BASS senior director, events & business development. “Fish brings a unique presence to the Classic and we are confident in his ability to entertain what promises to be a tremendous crowd.”
Fishburne said he can’t wait to again be part of the biggest event in sportfishing.
“I’m very, very excited about it,” he said. “I hosted in 2002 when the Classic was on Lay Lake, and the weigh-ins were in Birmingham, so it will feel like a homecoming in more than one way.”
His role likely will change from day to day, but his focus always will be on creating interactive fun for the fans, he said.
“I want to make it happy and fun and exciting — I want to help create a good time for everyone there — whether I’m, say, in the stands talking with fans or backstage interviewing an angler waiting to weigh in, or on the Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo floor,” Fishburne said.
His off-site interviews will be presented on video screens inside the arena of the BJCC for the daily weigh-ins, so fans can catch every minute. He said he also could host some segments on a secondary stage on the main floor of the BJCC.
While the daily weigh-ins are the big draw of any Classic, fans can look forward to other activities, all free and open to the public. Highlights include concerts by two top country music artists preceding Friday and Saturday’s weigh-ins: Darryl Worley will appear at 3:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 19, and Chris Young will perform at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 20.
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Big Bite Baits has partnered with the BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship Series.
"This is a great step to ensure that the future of fishing will be strengthened for years to come. These anglers are being provided a platform to demonstrate that fishing has a place in college sports and Big Bite is excited to be a part of these events. Several of our employees attended college while competing in weekend tournaments, so we know the challenges collegiate anglers face," said Mike Valster of Big Bite Baits.
Due to the BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship Series gaining popularity throughout the country, it's easier for students who have a passion for fishing to come together, and participate in the sport of bass fishing at the collegiate level.
The economy is on everybody's mind - including college students who are on a tight budget. Big Bite Baits are priced competitively for collegiate anglers and still give them the competitive edge that they are looking for to put tournament winning bass in their livewells.
In the near future, Big Bite Baits will announce some exciting programs designed exclusively for collegiate bass anglers to help them take their fishing and sport to the next level.
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Sight-fishing
dominant pattern early
OKEECHOBEE,
Fla. (Jan. 27,
2010) – John Cox of Debary, Fla., landed five
bass weighing 25 pounds, 1 ounce Wednesday to lead day one of the FLW Series
Eastern Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee. He holds a 3-pound, 10-ounce
lead in the tournament.
“I started on one fish in the
morning and it ate my first pitch,” said Cox, who is fishing in his first FLW
Series event. “I caught two other 3-pounders and a few other nice ones about 11
o’clock. After that, I just went around and tried to find new areas.”
Cox said he was sight fishing
for larger bass and attributes his success on the first day of competition to
being in the right place at the right time.
“I’m going to do the same
thing on Thursday, but I’m going to start in a different area and try to put 15
or 20 pounds together,” Cox said.
Cox said his 3-pound, 10-ounce
lead isn’t enough to make him comfortable after just one day of fishing on Lake
Okeechobee.
“That’s nothing out here,” Cox
said. “You need a 10-pound lead out here to have any kind of cushion.”
Anthony Gagliardi of Prosperity, S.C., trails Cox
in the No. 2 spot with five bass weighing 21-7.
Rounding out the remainder of the top-10 pros after
day one at Lake Okeechobee are:
3RD: Chad Grigsby, Maple Grove, Minn.,
five bass, 21-6
4TH: Scott Martin,
Clewiston, Fla., five bass, 21-4
5TH: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., five
bass, 20-1
6TH: Robert Behrle, Hoover, Ala., five
bass, 19-11
7TH: Koby Kreiger, Okeechobee, Fla.,
five bass, 18-11
8TH: Tony Chachere, Opelousas, La., five
bass, 16-12
9TH: Randall Tharp, Gardendale, Ala.,
five bass, 16-8
10TH: Scott Canterbury, Springville,
Ala., five bass, 16-7
Overall there were 664 bass weighing 1,486 pounds,
12 ounces caught by 154 pros Wednesday. The catch included 110 five-bass
limits.
In FLW Series competition, pros are competing for a top award of $50,000 plus valuable points in the
hope of qualifying for a shot at the
2011 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing.
Scott Kerslake of Henderson, N.C., leads the
Co-angler Division with four bass weighing 12-0 followed by Philip Jarabeck of
Lynchburg, Va., in second place with five bass weighing 11-8.
The remainder of the top-10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Dale Walker, Miami, Fla., five
bass, 11-7
4th: George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla.,
five bass, 11-6
5th: Greg Schultz, Wayzata, Minn., five
bass, 11-3
6th: Robert Eid, Key West, Fla., five
bass, 11-1
7th: Frank Mackin, New Port Richey,
Fla., five bass, 11-0
8th: Jeff Cummins, Marion, Ohio, five
bass, 10-14
9th: Eugene Lewis, Saint Petersburg,
Fla., five bass, 10-6
10th: James Sharp, Leesburg, Ga., five
bass, 10-5
Overall there were 371 bass weighing 607 pounds, 5
ounces caught by 117 co-anglers Wednesday. The catch included 32 five-bass
limits.
Co-anglers are competing this week for a Ranger
177TR with 90 horsepower engine as well as valuable
points that could help them qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.
Anglers will take off from C. Scott Driver Park
located at 10100 W. Hwy. 78 in Okeechobee at 7 each morning. Thursday’s and
Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m.
Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Gilbert Chevrolet Company located at
3550 Hwy. 441 S. in Okeechobee beginning at 4 p.m.
Fans will be treated to a
Family Fun Zone at Gilbert Chevrolet prior to Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m.
There will be a drawing for a $500 Cabela’s gift card and drawings for rod and
reel combos will be held every 30 minutes during the event. Activities in the
Family Fun Zone include a Ranger boat simulator and assorted fishing-themed
games. All activities are free and open to the public.
Coverage of the Lake Okeechobee tournament will be
broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors”, will air May 2
from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to
approximately 500 million households worldwide.
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The Fishing Wire's Alan Clemons is reporting that Claude "Fish" Fishburne will be returning to BASS as part emcee, part analyst, part goofball at this year's Classic...To read Alan's article click here.
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Elite Series pro Bill Lowen attended the SHOT show for Buck Knives and Feather Flage apparel and his new jersey was a big hit. The crossover between fishing and shooting is a natural and Bill reports the SHOT show was a big success. Looking good Bill!
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John Cox, of Debary, Fla., leads the opening day of the FLW Series Eastern Division event on Lake Okeechobee with a five-bass limit weighing 25-pounds, 1 ounce. Following his lead is Chevy Pro Anthony Gagliardi with 21-07. Goodwill pro Chad Grigsby holds down the third spot with a limit weighing 21-06 while National Guard pro Scott Martin is fourth with 21-04. Rounding out the top 5 is Tom Mann, Jr. with 20-01. More details later.
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 Wired2Fish and FLW Outdoors teamed up to send a little joy to some deployed soldiers who also happen to be avid anglers. Many Wired2Fish fans have taken a liking to Sgt. Jason Redding and asked that if their entry was selected in a contest to send him the prize.
So we thought it fitting to send them some of home to keep their mind on fishing when they have some down time. Here are Sgt Redding's comments:
Man that had to be the best care package I’ve opened since I’ve been here. I have some pics that are being uploaded of me and my buddy that works with me. I will send them as soon as they hit my email. Like a kid at Christmas was what it was like.
The hats are great. The reading material will serve for hours of “me-not-being-there time.” The DVDs will be “front porch” therapy. I would like to thank you all so very much and please send my thanks to the folks at FLW.
This is true troop support at its finest. I think the biggest worry I will have now is keeping up with all the magazines and DVDs that all the troops will borrow. This is a team effort, and there is no better therapy for being home sick than a mental trip back to your favorite fishing hole.
I am speechless, which for me is an awkward moment. Ask all my friends and coworkers. I will talk their heads off about fishing, hunting, sweet tea and home cooking. I just got the pictures, so I will send them with this email. Thanks so much; we needed this.
Humbled Once Again,
Ole Sarge and Friends
Jason A Redding
SGT USF-I 1083rd TC Alt. IMO/Communication
(Pictured above: SGT Jason Redding left, SSG Jason Turner on Right)
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Thanks to everyone for entering the Rapala Contest. We had some amazing stories and some great reasons why Wired readers love Rapala. As promised we have 4 winners of the contest but....we also have a small surprise from the contest that we will announce on Monday. Stay tuned for a special announcement Monday February 1.
The four winners of the Rapala Contest are:
Daniel Daskus
Minersville,PA
Nick Simon
Caledonia, MS
Aaron Carlson
LaVista, NE
Joseph Zuzevich
Rockford, IL
Congrats to all and check back on Monday.
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Northland Tackle is about catching fish. They are not just a company that sells fishing gear but rather a company of anglers who have a passion for building products that help anglers catch more fish. They have thousands of products aimed at walleye, smallmouth, largemouth, crappie, panfish and big toothy critters and are also experts at components and terminal tackle.
One of the neat product catagories that we like is their rattle systems. They have 5 different Buck Shot Rattler products all designed to add a little sound to your baits. They have the Buck Shot Rattle Shell, a plastic single barrel rattle with a snap perfect for hooking to the shoulder of a jig, spinnerbait, buzzbait or spoon. They also have the Buckshot Rattle Shell, a tandem rattle combo also used for baits mentioned above.
The Buck Shot Rattle Strap is a single barrel rattle attached to a rubber strap that drags the bottom to add sound to your jigs. The Buck Shot Rattle Craw is a tandem rattle system with a harness in the center that adds life to the rattle and has a claw like appearance.
They also have a brass Buck Shot Worm rattle for inserting into plastic worms and creature baits.
Northland Tackle has the rattle business cornered. To learn more click here. |
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BASS Senior Writer and Wired contributor John Neporadny of Missouri has a great piece on Unplugged today about Gene Gilliland, Oklahoma fisheries biologist, and his undying efforts on behalf of bass fishing. To read click here. |
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It seems like whenever the Oklahoma
BASS Federation Nation needs help, Gene Gilliland is there to lend a hand.
When a devastating tornado hit
Oklahoma City, the North Oklahoma City Bassmasters president lost his house,
boat and about everything else and had to drop his club responsibilities. Gilliland
volunteered to take over as club president.
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Big Bite Baits announced today that Alabama's Randall Tharp and Russ Lane have joined to their pro staff for 2010. They join Dean Rojas and Jeff Kriet.
To learn more click here.
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American Bass Anglers expanded its national staff today, adding two new positions and filling two open positions. Below are those additions and what duties they will be performing.
Alton Storm is ABA’s new Southern Bassmaster Weekend Series Tournament Manager. He is a graduate of Auburn University who studied fisheries biology. An avid bass angler for many years, he previously worked for the Alabama Department of Natural Resources. His team will operate the Alabama North division, the Tennessee Central division and both the East Kentucky and the East Missouri divisions.
William (Billy) Benedetti is ABA’s Southeastern Bassmaster Weekend Series Tournament Manager. He has a lot of experience in operating bass tournaments at the regional level. Benedetti and his team will operate the Alabama South division, Florida, Georgia and the South Carolina divisions.
Troy Jens of Guntersville, Ala., is joining ABA as a Media Support Specialist. Jens is a well-known writer and has guided anglers for many years on Lake Guntersville. He will be working with all forms of media for ABA, including the Web site, the ABA magazine and special media events.
Ken Garner of Decatur, Ala., is ABA’s Event Coordination Specialist. He will work with sponsors, host communities and tournament crews in preparation for events. His special pre-event and post-event duties will include dealing with the Bassmaster Weekend Series, the American Fishing Tour Series National Championship, the annual Military Team tournament, the American Couple Series Championship and other special events, including the Early Times Kentucky Whisky Barbeque Cook-offs.
“These are some quality individuals who will increase our overall ability to operate, market and communicate bass tournaments,” said David Hagood, vice president of American Bass Anglers. “Each one of these gentlemen possesses their own special talents in specialized areas and that is why we sought out and have placed them into these positions. A company like ABA requires a lot of personal commitment and hard work from individuals that want to see the company succeed and these are that caliber of individuals.”
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The Bass Federation(TBF) announced today that the Tennessee Valley Authority and Roane County, Tenn., will host the 2010 The Bass Federation National Championship presented by the National Guard. The event will be held April 22-24 on Watts Bar Lake. It’s the culmination of more than two years of qualifiers for most of the 30,000 anglers that are members of TBF in the United States and Canada. To learn more click here.
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The Professional Anglers Association has announced their schedule for 2010.
The schedule is as follows:
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| July 8-10, 2010 |
Lake Cherokee |
Morristown, Tennessee |
| August 12-14, 2010* |
Lake Norman |
Charlotte, North Carolina |
| September 9-11, 2010 |
Lake Tawakoni |
Garland, Texas |
| October 14-16, 2010 |
Table Rock Lake |
Branson, Missouri |
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 EGreene photo
Versatile pro Aaron Martens talks to Terry Brown at Wired Radio about his preparations for the upcoming Bassmaster Classic on Lay Lake in Alabama near his home. To listen click here. |
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Mercury Marine today announced the release of new
versions of the 20, 21 and 22.5 pitch front propellers in Mercury's
Bravo Three propeller lineup. Click here to read more.
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The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has granted U.S. Patent No. 7,652,952 to Johnson Outdoors Inc. for the Humminbird® Side Imaging® technology. The approved patent protects Humminbird’s Side Imaging sonar systems from unauthorized copying.
“Our Side Imaging sonar technology is one of the most heralded innovations in the marine electronics industry in decades,” said Kelly Grindle, Group Vice President of Johnson Outdoors Marine Electronics & Watercraft. “It is a game changer for anglers who demand the best equipment available to help locate and catch more fish.”
Humminbird first introduced Side Imaging sonar in 2005 in two of its 900-Series fishfinder models. Spurred by consumer demand, Humminbird expanded its offering of Side Imaging models to its 700-, 800-, and 1100-Series™ product lines.
Side Imaging sonar produces dramatically detailed and recognizable images of underwater objects and the bottom. These images allow anglers to pinpoint habitat, structure and drop-offs, which are prime holding areas for fish. With a coverage area of up to 480 feet side-to-side, anglers can search more water in less time to find the most promising areas to fish.
“Humminbird has created an entirely new sonar category in Side Imaging technology, and we have been thorough in our product development and patent process to assure that our technology is sound,” said Grindle. “We continue our efforts to enhance Side Imaging technology and will offer more features in the near future.”
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Dave Mercer is at it again. We wonder where he comes up with this stuff. In YouTube Facts of Fishing Episode 3 he talks Jay Leno, Giant Catfish, Fantasy Fishing and 272,000,000 anglers. To view this weeks show click here. |
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Reigning Bassmaster Classic Champion Skeet Reese of Auburn,
Calif., will run not one title sponsor wrap but two title sponsors will share
both his boat's and truck's feature wrap as well as split real estate on his
trademark yellow and black jersey. The two sponsors are his long time partners
Lucky Craft and Berkley PowerBait.
“Lucky Craft has been
my title sponsor for many years, and they have always been like family to me,” Reese
said. “Berkley has also been a longtime partner,
and I’m excited to be able to prominently display their brands as well. Berkley
Powerbait and Lucky Craft are brands that I trust and products that I use every
day in competition. I’m proud to wear and promote these brands.”
“Skeet is great for our Berkley team,” said Chris Derrick,
Berkley Brand Manager. “He competes at
the highest level, and his tireless work ethic shines throughout the fishing
industry. He is a great promoter for Berkley brands and the sport of fishing,
and he is heavily involved in the design of Berkley products.”
In other news, Reese also announced a newly updated personal
website at www.skeetreeseinc.com. The site, which has become one of the more
popular and highly trafficked professional angler websites, features a new
splash page with a striking photo of Reese taken by renowned fashion
photographer Enzo Minardi and newly upgraded graphic interface.
For more information, please click here.
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FLW Outdoors will again have Fantasy Fishing, front and center, for the FLW Tour in 2010. Sign ups begin today. To read more about getting involved click here. |
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The bass fishing tournament and fan event that rocked Canadian competitive bass fishing in 2009 is back,
bigger and better for 2010. Oct. 2-3, the second
edition of the Berkley B1 Canadian Bass Open, will blast-off from the pristine waters of Lake
St.Francis in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec. The Berkley B1 is a two
day, team format competition, pitting the best anglers in Canada
against one another for the ultimate bragging rights.
Who will challenge the 30.35-pound monster limit brought to the scales by
Nigel Touhey and Charles Sim at a tournament on this same body of water
last fall? Tournament anglers, weekend fisherman and fishing
enthusiasts don't want to miss this event. This
October, come enjoy the fun and witness who will be crowned the next B1 Champion.
Registration opens a week from Saturday on Feb. 6 at 6 a.m. Cost per team is $500. There will only be 150 two-person teams allowed so sign up early or miss out on the chance to be the next Berkley B1 champion and the more than $75,000 in cash and prizes available. For more information on the Berkley B1, click here.
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The new Pinnacle Vision® Slyder™ Baitcaster ushers in a new era of finesse-fishing
ease, precision and control. Featuring
Pinnacle’s exclusive “Finesse Wheel,” the Vision Slyder lets you work a lure along
the bottom in exacting increments, effortlessly, using just one hand.
The Finesse Wheel operates just like the scrolling wheel on
a computer mouse, allowing you to create the ultimate finesse presentations. Simply advance the wheel with your thumb to move
a plastic worm or creature bait slowly and enticingly over structure. Even sluggish bass will find this kind of
tantalizing action hard to resist. Faster,
continuous pushes of the wheel let you pick up slack line quickly and easily. When the fish are more active, you’ll also
have the Vision Slyder’s blazing 7:1 gear ratio at your fingertips. Use this speedy retrieve for ripping reaction
baits back to the boat and covering large areas of water in a hurry.
Regardless of the situation or presentation, you can count
on the Vision Slyder for outstanding durability and quality performance. Six stainless steel bearings housed within
the Slyder’s lightweight, yet rugged, graphite frame ensure smooth operation
under all conditions. There’s also an
externally adjustable anti-backlash system for long, trouble-free casts, plus
an ultra-consistent multi-disc drag for putting the brakes on determined
adversaries.
Additional Vision Slyder features include a machined
aluminum spool, precision-cut brass gears, and Unlimited Anti-Reverse™. The reel weighs 8.1 ounces and has a line capacity of 120
yards of 12-pound line.
With an MSRP of just $69.99, the Vision Slyder is not only
an innovative, versatile fishing machine, it’s also an exceptional value. To learn more about Pinnacle’s Vision Slyder,
or the complete lineup of quality Pinnacle Fishing products, click here.
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FLW Tour and Series pro JT
Kenney of Palm Bay, Fla., just signed an agreement with Secret Lures of
Columbus, Ind. Kenny has more than $728,000 in tournament winnings with FLW Outdoors,
including two tour-level wins and nine tour-level top tens. Add to that an
Ultimate Match Fishing Championship, and it’s easy to see why Kenney is considered
one of the sport’s top pros.
“I’m looking forward to
working with a group of people who pay attention to the subtle details in a
bait,” Kenney said.
Secret Lures is an
innovative new tackle company and they plan to leverage Kenney’s years of
experience on a variety of different fisheries to continue to produce
leading-edge products.
“We are thankful JT chose
to represent our products at the tour level and look forward to working with such
a great fisherman," said Nathan Gray of Secret Lures. "Our lures are designed, through careful attention to detail,
to increase the fishermen’s hookup and landing percentages. We want our
customers to have the competitive advantage to win and cash more checks in
their tournaments.”
Secret Lures signature
line of tackle includes The Chubby Frog, MVP Jigs, Meat Hooks, and Tailshaker
jigheads. For more information on Secret Lures, click here.
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Elite Series pro joins Marty Stone and Pete Ponds at Bandit...
Bandit Lures announced today that BASS Elite Series pro Matt Herren has joined Bandit’s National Pro Staff for 2010.
Herren started his pro career with the FLW Tour in 2003. He has collected seven top-10 performances in FLW Tour and FLW Series competition, including a FLW Series win at Lake Dardanelle in 2007.
In 2008 he switched tours to the BASS Southern Opens and won the points title, which simultaneously qualified him for the 2009 Bassmaster Classic and the 2009 BASS Elite Series. In his rookie season on the BASS Elite Series, Herren recorded two top-10’s and qualified for the 2010 Bassmaster Classic coming up on Lay Lake, near Herren’s home in Trussville, Ala.
“It’s been quite a rookie season on the BASS Elite Series and to cap it off with an invitation to join the Bandit Lures Pro Staff is truly an honor,” Herren said. “I’ve been using Bandit crankbaits since I started fishing Red Man tournaments back in the early 1990’s. I’ve got boxes full of Bandits – I love them. The Bandit 200 Series is like a screwdriver in a toolbox – it’s a basic fishing tool that I take everywhere I go.”
In 2010 Herren will be fishing the BASS Elite Series, the PAA and perhaps a couple of FLW Series events in the fall.
“I’m looking forward to the 2010 season and I’m particularly pumped about being backed by Bandit Lures, a product that I have a tremendous amount of confidence in,” Herren added.
One of the first to welcome Herren to the Bandit Lures Pro Staff was the company’s Sales and Marketing Manager, Chris Armstrong.
“I’ve watched Matt’s career take flight in the last few years,” Armstrong said. “His tournament track records at both FLW and BASS speak for themselves. He is an excellent fisherman who is always on top of his game. When I found out how many of our lures he owns and how reliant he has been on our products over the years, he became a natural fit for our company. We are thrilled to have Matt on board.”
Herren will be fishing the 2010 Bassmaster Classic on Lay Lake in Alabama, February 19-21. He can be reached for comment at 205-529-1901.
For more information on Bandit Lures click here contact Chris Armstrong at 662-563-8450 or carmstrong@banditlures.com
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Bandit Lures is known for top quality crankbaits in the bass fishing world. Most don’t know, however, Bandit is also the No. 1 trolled crankbait for crappie. Bandit Lures is now the hard bait sponsor for Crappie Masters, which is the No. 1 crappie tournament trail from Iowa to Florida. Bandit has been working closely with their crappie pro-staff and B&M Poles pro-staff manager Kent Driscoll on the colors since the early fall of 2009. The colors will be available in the spring of 2010 in the popular 300 series, the size most commonly trolled on the crappie tour.
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The Lindner dynasty may dispute this assertion, but anyone who was on Falcon Lake this past Sunday knows that no one in the entire fishing industry was cheering for the Minnesota Vikings any louder than Kelly Jones, head worm wiggler and lizard dunker at Kicker Fish Bait Company.
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The Lindner dynasty may dispute this assertion, but anyone who was on Falcon Lake this past Sunday knows that no one in the entire fishing industry was cheering for the Minnesota Vikings any louder than Kelly Jones, head worm wiggler and lizard dunker at Kicker Fish Bait Company.
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The Berkley Experience Trailer will be at Bass Pro Shops in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., to start the 2010 tour beginning on January 22nd – 24th. The 60-foot trailer of fun and activities brings fishing education to all skill levels of anglers.
The trailer has new videos and interactive demonstrations on line and bait. The Berkley Experience Team will have seminars scheduled throughout the day to cover the four main components of fishing:
Line Selection
Rigging Techniques for Bait
Reel Maintenance
Rod Selection
Each stop has special retail promotions only available while the trailer is at the location. These include line, bait, rods, reels and combos.
“We are excited about having the Experience Trailer on the road in 2010 and stopping at many new locations across the country,” said Andrew Marks, Sr. Marketing Manager. "Our Experience Trailer staff is ready to help anglers of all ages and skill levels learn about fishing, our products and how best to use them to catch more fish.”
Other exciting elements include a knot tying contest and demonstration, where you can learn new knots and even win a prize. Under the tent, we will have racks filled with the latest products and big screen videos that help you experience the adventure with Berkley. The Berkley Experience staff is always on hand to help answer any questions that you have about our innovative products.
UPCOMING BERKLEY EXPERIENCE STOPS
January 22nd – 24th
Bass Pro
5156 International Dr.
Orlando, FL 32819
Phone: 407-563-5200
February 5th – 7th
Bass Pro
10040 Gulf Center Drive
Ft. Myers, FL 33913
Phone: 239-461-7800
February 11th – 13th
Gander Mountain
3750 Flagg Lane
Lake Mary, FL, 32746,
Phone: 407-804-0514
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Jason Quinn has signed a new agreement with Rapala, Trigger X soft plastics and Sufix brand lines for 2010.
He will also be highlighted on a new Rapala Wii fishing game that is coming out very soon. Quinn said "I am extremely excited to be with Rapala. There is not an angler out there that doesn't have a Rapala crankbait in their tackle box. Everyone fishes the Rapala baits. My grandfather, my dad and I have all fished Rapala baits. From shallow to deep Rapala has it covered."
Quinn also signed an agreement with Mountain Khaki apparel. They will be the official pants of Jason Quinn and he will be wearing their slacks on the Elite Series this year!
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BASS Elite Series Pro Marty Stone of Linden, N.C., joined the Bandit Lures National Pro Staff. The personable 15-year pro has long been known for his prowess with a crankbait and was excited about the opportunity to join the team.
“To become a part of Bandit Lures at this stage of my career is the ultimate compliment,” Stone said. “Bandit Lures is rich in history and tradition. Their 100, 200 and 300 Series have been staples in the world of professional bass fishing for more than 30 years, and the Flat Maxx is one of the best kept secrets on the tour.”
As a member of the Bandit Lures Pro Staff, Stone looks forward to working with Chris Armstrong who has assumed the role of Sales and Marketing Manager for Bandit Lures.
 “I worked with Chris on projects in the past, and he is the best when it comes to growing a brand in the fishing industry,” Stone said. “When I found out there was an opportunity to work for Chris at Bandit, it was a no-brainer.”
As part of his role with the Pro Staff, Stone will provide input on the design and construction of lures, an assignment that he welcomes.
“I cut my fishing teeth in the Carolinas winding a crankbait – it’s one of my favorite ways to fish. Over the years, I’ve used dozens and dozens of different designs in plastic plugs. I know the critical elements that make a crankbait right, and Bandit’s current line of baits are perfect. My input will be applied as Bandit moves forward and plows fresh ground with new products.”
Armstrong echoed Stone’s sentiments.
“We’re tickled to death to have Marty flying the raccoon flag with Bandit Lures,” Armstrong said. “I’ve worked with Marty and have come to know him, not only as a great fisherman, but as a true professional and tireless promoter as well. Our company certainly looks forward to good things to come with Marty on board.”
For more information on Bandit Lures contact Chris Armstrong at 662-563-8450 or carmstrong@banditlures.com or click here.
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One of the great bi-products of Wired2fish Contests is feedback. Just about every time we have one we learn something and rest assured industry leaders get to hear about it too. We send many of the responses directly to them.
We believe it is very important for them to know what products you use and why. Part of our job here is to let you know what's hot and it is also critically important to know what you think. Its vital to all companies to have feedback on products. They get that from Wired readers and Wired2Fish.com...that is for sure!
We recently ran a contest called "Are You Wired?" and the response was staggering. The Wired2Fish readers are a special group and boy did you give us some feedback. We asked what bait was your go-to lure and if you only had one what would it be? The answers were both educational and informative.
Below are a few of the answers we received:
"If I only had 1 bait to use it would be a War Eagle Spinnerbait.I can use this bait all year long and put fish in the boat. I keep on hand around 15-20 but mostly use 1 size and 2 colors. The first is a 1/2 oz.white/chartreuse with a #2 red shaft blade for dirty or off colored water and the second is the same size but the color Firecracker for clear water.Thanks!"
Richard Fitzwater
Parsons,KS
"This contest made me think a lot! My go to presentation is a Jackall Lures Flick Shake Worm. I use the 4.8 inch in Pumpkin Pepper, and I fish it on a 1/32 oz gamakatsu Wacky Head Hook (I think the best on the market for action). I have 3 bags in this color and size and I also own Pumpkin Pepper in the other two sizes that Jackall owns. When the fishing gets tough this is the setup that I always reach for!"
Joseph Zuzevich
Rockford, IL
"If I had to choose only 1 lure it would be a 3/8 oz. Booyah Spinnerbait in Glimmershad. I keep 2 dozen of them on hand all year long."
Nathan Ezell
Toney, AL
"My to-to bait is a Texas Rigged “Zoom Brush Hog”. Full sized, Watermelon Red flake. I have boxes full of plastic and I am sure that I have 2 or 3 packages of the watermelon red flake at all times."
Kevin Waldrop
Fountain Run, Kentucky
"If i could have one lure it would be 3/16 black Buckeye Spot Remover with a 6" green pumpkin Exodus straight tail worm, with the tail diped in chartruese Spiked-It garlic dip. I would be using a 7' St.Crox Avid spinning rod with a Abu Garcia Soron STX spinning reel spooled with 8 lbs Seagur red label fluorcarbon line. I keep 30 to 40 Spot Removers in my box, with 60 to 70 6" worms also in my box."
Bill Bullard
Bartlett TN.
"My favorite lure is the 7/16 Jewel Eakins Jig in pbj. The jig is my favorite type of lure in general. But the Jewel Eakins jig in 7/16 PBJ is definitely the one to have in the arsenal. I love these jigs. They are so versatile and can catch all sizes of fish. Most people think they are only open water and dock jigs. I have proven this wrong many time. I have fished these jigs in the thickest cover and still caught fish. I have caught fish in open shallow water, open deep, docks, riprap, and thick cover. Add a zoom chunck in PBJ just to top it off and you have a deadly lure. Right now I have 2 of these jigs in my tackle box. I have lost the others while fishing. I'm actually about to be making a Tackle Warehouse order for more!"
Andrew Peacock
Warner Robins, GA
"If I had to choose one bait it would be the Zoom Trick worm. I use mostly the green pumpkin but also like the june bug, cherry seed (when you can find them) and watermelon seed. I fish it Texas rigged, on a shakey head or a Carolina rig. I keep 8 to 10 bags of these worms on board most of the time. This is my “go to” bait when I want to put fish in the boat. Thanks!"
Ken Harless
Bluff City, TN.
"My one lure would be a ½ ounce Strike King Denny Brauer Premier Jig in chameleon craw color.
Why?...................
Weedless. This jig not only fished well in open water and brush, but comes through weeds as well.
Irresistible. Bass love this jig because it mimics their forage to a T.
Rock. You can fish rocky bottoms, soft bottoms and everything in between with this bait.
Endurance. The premier jig stands up to everything you put it through, including multiple fish catches!
Dependable. When the chips are on the line, you can depend on this jig to produce fish.
2”. From 2” of water to 30 feet of water, the premier jig produces at all depths.
Flip it. Pitch it. Cast it. This jig can get to the target in every way possible.
Ideal. From 35 degrees to 85 degrees, this is the ideal jig to fish in all water temperatures.
Swim it. Drag it. Hop it. Rip it. The presentations are endless.
Hard to beat. The Denny Brauer Premier Jig is flat out HARD TO BEAT!
I own probably about 15-20 of these jigs in various colors, but the chameleon craw is my favorite color."
Christopher M. Shore
Lenexa, KS.
"If had only one bait it would be the 10 inch Berkley Power Worm in Chameleon color. This bait has always been good to me. When I need to catch one more fish to fill my sack, I put the chameleon worm on. Bad thing about this worm it isn't made anymore. I have about 200 worms left. I know there will be a very sad day in my fishing career when I run out of this worm. I am always on the internet looking and calling old fishing tackle stores to see if they have any of the worms. I have recently found some in a store in Tennessee that was going out of business. They had one little bag of 10 inch worms and 75 count of the 7 inch worms. I bought them all.
Rollie Sheppard
Lubbock TX.
Keep them coming gang! We love to hear what you have to say and we know the manufacturers do too.
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Bandit Lures of Sardis, Miss., has joined Wired2Fish as an advertiser for 2010. Bandit is a major crankbait manufacturer who builds quality crankbaits at an affordable price.
"We are thrilled to be adding Bandit Lures to the Wired2Fish family," said Wired2Fish President Terry Brown. "Chris Ross and Chris Armstrong are stand-up people and build products that not only catch fish but also are built to last. We are excited to bring information and contests to Wired2Fish readers. Look for information on their pro-staff and products throughout 2010."
"Coming to Wired2fish is important to our marketing plan," said Chris Armstrong, Sales and Marketing Manager for Bandit Lures. "They are the number one source for fishing information and genuinely care about anglers and the sport. They are positive, forward thinking, and work with manufacturers to get the correct information out there about products.
"Bandit does not advertise a lot and we wanted the best place to tell the angling community about Bandit," Armstrong added. "Wired2Fish is that place."
For more information about Bandit Lures click here.
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Jason Sealock has joined Wired2Fish and hits the floor running with his article on Texas angler Keith Combs. Combs knows Texas Lakes Amistad and Falcon as well as anyone. His recent catch of 41-01 at Falcon broke the FLW record for a 5 fish limit held by Greg Hackney by 1 pound 6 ounces. The record was broken during last weeks FLW American Series event there.
Sealock recounts a day on the water with Combs and speaks to him about his record setting catch at Falcon in his first article for Wired. To read click here. |
Goals are good. We apply goals to everything in life and celebrate when we achieve them. One of my goals last year was to fish Lake Falcon before the “hey day” was over down south. I did. I fished with Keith Combs. The weather was brutal. Strong wind, higher than ever water levels and cold fronts put the fish in unfamiliar places.
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Palatka, Florida angler Preston Clark has signed a sponsorship deal with Secret Weapon Lures for 2010. Clark, who broke the single tournament weight record at Santee Cooper as an Elite angler will help Secret Weapon with design and promotion.
Clark was selected as one of five professional anglers to compete in February at the 2010 EURO Bass Cup, a bass tournament associated with the International Fair of Lisbon. He and his American teammates will also be giving demonstrations and fishing seminars at that event. Clark said, “Secret Weapon’s innovative designs and creative engineering are going to create a sensation over there and will help me stay one step ahead of my competition.”
To learn more about Secret Weapon Lures click here.
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California based Brent Ehrler is on Wired Radio with Terry Brown today talking about his recent FLW Series win at Lake Shasta and what he will be fishing in 2010. Brent has won over 1.2 million dollars fishing as a pro, has won the FLW Championship, 4 other events and is one of the most humble anglers on tour. To listen click here.
Brent will be at Beford Sales in Morris, Illinois this weekend attending their annual boat show.
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Thanks to everyone who participated in the Are You Wired contest on Wired2Fish. We learned a lot about your favorite baits and let the manufacturers know as well. Your contributions were invaluable.
Two lucky anglers will certainly be Wired now! Looking good in their new Wired2Fish apparel!
They are:
Allen Jackson
Bristol TN
Mike Entile
Aurora, IL
Don't forget to enter the current contest for Rapala that is up on Wired right now and look for more great contests coming very soon.
Check out our great selection of Wired merchandise on the Wired Store.
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Two of the world’s top competitive bass anglers – Terry Scroggins and Kelly Jordon – have joined Duckett Fishing’s 2010 professional staff, company founder and owner Boyd Duckett announced today.
Scroggins and Jordon have each earned the elite status known as BASS “millionaires” because they have earned more than $1 million in Bass Angler Sportsman Society competition. They will join Elite Series anglers Byron Velvick, Jason Williamson, Pete Ponds and former Classic champion and company owner Duckett on the Duckett Fishing team. The anglers will compete this season with Duckett Fishing’s MICROMagic rods, fishing rods that utilize microguide technology.
“I don’t think you could find anyone in our business who wouldn’t say that Terry Scroggins and Kelly Jordon are among the top 10, maybe even top five, pro anglers today. There’s not a place we go with the Classic or during our Elite Series season that Terry and KJ aren’t a threat to win, so I’m extremely proud and excited to know that they will be part of our professional staff. In my opinion, with Terry and KJ, we’ve assembled a dream team,” Duckett said.
“What’s even better is that in addition to being to catch fish like few people in the world, Terry and KJ are class individuals and terrific representatives of our sport.”
Scroggins, of Palatka, Florida, is one of the top names on the BASS Elite Series tour. In 109 starts, Scroggins has earned five victories, with five second place and two third place finishes. He has had 26 top 10 and 42 top 20 finishes. He has finished in the top 50 on 80 occasions.
“Basically, Terry has finished in the top 10 in one out of every four events he’s fished,” Duckett said. “That’s so good it’s hard to imagine.”
Jordon, who is from Minieola, Texas, offers similar numbers. In his 128 starts in BASS competition, Jordon has four victories, five second place, three third place and 28 Top 10 finishes. Perhaps even more amazing, He has 51 Top 20 finishes and has finished among the top 50 in 86 of his 128 starts. Jordon was fourth in the 2009 Elite Series Angler-of-the-Year standings.
“It’s amazing that KJ actually flies a little under the radar. He’s one of the top anglers I’ve ever been around. I’ve watched him work, and he almost never makes mistakes,” Duckett said.
Duckett, the 2007 Classic champion and a highly successful businessman, announced the formation of Duckett Fishing in late November. Scroggins and Jordon will be competing with Duckett Fishing’s premier product: a lightweight rod known as MICROMagic that utilizes microguide technology.
“I’m really excited to be a part of what’s happening at Duckett Fishing,” Scroggins said. “Boyd is a top-notch angler, and he’s got great business sense. He saw an opportunity to put together something special with the new rods. I’ve never fished with anything this good, so I’m really looking forward to this season.”
Jordon said his trust in Duckett’s experience and business instincts were strong factors in his decision to join the company’s pro staff.
“I’m really glad to have this chance to join Boyd at Duckett Fishing. Boyd talked to me a while back about what he’s doing, and I knew when he told me about it that I wanted to be a part of it,” Jordon said. “I think it’s going to be an excellent company, and I can tell you this. Duckett Fishing has created one heck of a rod, and it will be a pleasure using them this year.”
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Northland Tackle Limber Legs Skirts are a very unique breed of skirt. They combine a durable silicone skirt matched with seventeen "limber-leg" tails to not only add lifelike action but a unique presentation as well. It looks alive in the package. The Northland Limber Legs Skirt comes two to a package and retails for $2.50. You can also buy skirts in bulk. They come in 20 plus colors.
To learn more about Northland Limber Legs Skirts and their other great products click here.
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World-renowned outdoorsmen Babe Winkelman filmed an episode of his nationally syndicated television show, Babe Winkelman's Good Fishing, at the 2009 IHSA Bass Fishing State Finals at Carlyle Lake in May, 2009. The IHSA show is scheduled to air for the first time on Saturday, February 6 and then again on Saturday, April 24. According to the show's website, the Saturday program airs at 6:30 a.m. on all of the Fox Sports Regional Networks. Fox Sports Midwest will air the show in Illinois. Check local listings for confirmation. |
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Wired2Fish reader and friend Joe Zaklan wrote a song about Wired2Fish and taking care of the bride. To listen click here.
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Mark Rose has a new rod company. This year he will be fishing Kistler Rods. "I want to first thank GLoomis. They have been a great rod company for me for 8 years but have chosen to go a new direction with their marketing strategy. When looking for a new company Kistler was important to me because they are a Christian company and they have publically stated that. They have a very high quality product and Trey Kistler is a great guy to deal with. He loves fishing and loves the Lord" said Rose.
"I am also very excited about the ZBone rod line at Kistler. You can build a custom rod and that is really exciting" added Rose.
Trey Kistler says "I have known Mark for 10 years and I am glad we are now able to put this together. He will be important for us to help design and support Kistler."
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Wacky Dave Mercer is at it again. Facts of Fishing #2 is ready for viewing. You get giant carp, Zell Rowland and Rosie O'Donnell...We are already scared. To watch click here.
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The Bassmaster Classic is just around the corner. Its on Lay Lake in Alabama February 18-21 and again it could change an anglers life. Check out this video about what the Bassmaster Classic is all about. To watch click here. |
The PAA Corporate Cup offers a one of a kind, televised, bass tournament format where professional anglers compete with corporate sponsor partners on corporate namesake teams in friendly competition. Teams will consist of a four man team comprised of a maximum of two PRO members of PAA and a minimum of one TOUR level PAA member with the remainder of the team made up of PAA GENERAL level members.
A PRO member consists of an ADVANTAGE or TOUR level member of PAA. An ADVANTAGE member is defined as any individual that has fished one or more FLW STREN, BASS OPEN, WON BASS, US OPEN, or WOMENS BASSMASTER event since January of 2008. A TOUR member is defined as any individual that currently fishes the FLW TOUR, FLW SERIES, BASS ELITES or a minimum of one BASS PRO SHOPS PAA TOURNAMENT SERIES events. The PRO members of each team will operate the boat for each team while on the water during competition days. All four anglers will be working together as a team during competition.
EVENT OVERVIEW
· The full field will compete in two days of competition consisting of two consecutive 8-hour days (Thursday, June 3rd & Friday, June 4th)
· On the third day the field will be cut to the Top 5 teams (Saturday, June 5th)
· 60 Teams maximum, teams signed up in order of registration
· Fishery: Pickwick Lake
· Locking to Wilson only will be allowed. Bay Springs also will be allowed to fish.
· Teams will be allowed to communicate via cell phone or two-way radio during practice days and the event. Only communication with team members will be allowed during competition days.
· No buying or bartering of information rule starts on May 3, 2010 (balance due date).
· Official Practice days are Tuesday, June 1, 2010 and Wednesday, June 2, 2010.
· Registration for the event will be held on Wednesday, June 2, 2010 – 4:00 to 5:30 PM at the Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa – Atrium
· All four members of the team will fish in two separate boats for eight hours of fishing per competition day. Each boat will consist of one PRO member and one General member with the PRO members of each team operating the boat while on the water during competition days.
· Each boat is allowed to bring in a maximum of 5 total fish to the scales for a total of 10 fish per day, per team.
· After the boats have checked in at the end of each day, each angler will verify and sign their weigh tickets.
· Weights will be tallied in pounds and ounces. Weights will be cumulative over all three days.
SILENT AUCTION BENEFIT BANQUET
· Friday, June 4, 2010
· Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa – Atrium & Ballroom
· Silent Auction fundraiser and banquet open to any PAA member participating in the PAA Corporate Cup fishing tournament or ticket holders.
· A keynote speaker will highlight the banquet. Speaker TBA.
· Tickets will be sold to the general public at $100 per person (angler family members are $65 per person) starting on March 1, 2010. Tickets will be sold in the order they are purchased. A limited amount of general public tickets will be sold.
· Ticket holders will be allowed to participate and bid on all auction items as well as partake in a dinner banquet where the auction items will be distributed to the highest bidders.
· Auction items will consist of autographed fishing memorabilia, Pro guided fishing trips throughout the USA, industry specific items, angler jerseys, and much more!
PAYOUT
*Payout based on 50 teams
Place Total Team Payout Pro Angler Total Payout Corporate Payout
1st $25,000 $15,000 $10,000
2nd $12,500 $7,500 $5,000
3rd $10,000 $6,000 $4,000
4th $8,000 $4,800 $3,200
5th $7,500 $4,500 $3,000
6th $7,000 $4,200 $2,800
7th $6,500 $3,900 $2,600
8th $6,000 $3,600 $2,400
9th $5,000 $3,000 $2,000
10th $5,000 $3,000 $2,000
11th $3,500 $2,100 $1,400
12th $3,500 $2,100 $1,400
13th $3,000 $1,800 $1,200
14th $3,000 $1,800 $1,200
15th $3,000 $1,800 $1,200
Big Bass Day 1 $500
Big Bass Day 2 $500
Big Bass Day 3 $500
TOTAL PAYOUT $110,000
2010 Registration Schedule
February 1, 2010
Priority Registration Open to all participants and companies that participated in the 2008 PAA Corporate Cup.
February 15, 2010
Registration Open to all companies and TOUR and ADVANTAGE level PAA members
Participation Fee $2,500 per team ($750 deposit)
Registration begins at 8:30am Central Time on the designated days.
All team entries will be accepted in the order they are received. Teams signed up in 2009 will still be honored.
Deposit of $750 is due at registration. Balance of $1750 due May 3, 2010.
Participation Fee of $2,500 per team includes $2200 going towards the payout for the event and $300 towards four tickets to the Silent Auction Benefit Banquet on Friday, June 4, 2010 for the team members. All Pro Anglers are required to possess or purchase a current Advantage Level Membership or Tour Level Membership, which can be obtained at registration. All Amateur anglers are required to possess or purchase a current General Level Membership which can be obtained at registration.
All members of each team must be a PAA member. Membership rates for one year are as follows (multi-year discounts are available):
Tour level Membership $400
Advantage level Membership $150
General level Membership $50
Payout will be determined by number of teams entered. The top 30% of the teams will be paid. See payout sample for details. The payout will increase or decrease proportionally to the field size. In addition to the monetary winnings, the winning team will also receive a complimentary standard size banner on the PAA website for one full year, (1) two-minute editorial piece on the televised program of the event and a Corporate Cup Trophy that can be displayed at their company in recognition of their achievement.
NOTE: Company winnings can be distributed at the company’s discretion. If the winnings are donated to a charity, PAA will provide a press release and website publicity to recognize the donation. Complimentary standard size banner on the PAA website should be furnished by the winning company.
Event will be televised. Dates and networks TBA.
*PAA Membership can be obtained at www.fishpaa.com or by contacting the PAA office at 270.527.2030.
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Strike King pros Debra Hengst and Mark Menendez decided to take a spring scouting trip to Falcon Lake and using a bluegill colored Strike King Spinnerbait and a Rage Craw caught these two giants, one over 10 and the other over 9 pounds, one on a fence row and another one in a bush.
All Debra could say when she saw the fish Mark hooked on a fence row was "Oh my God, that is a big one", Oh My God, Oh My God, what a fish." Mark laughed and told her she had more all OMG's than he had ever heard before. He told her to keep casting and with a cast to a hardwood tree later that morning with a Strike King Rage Craw, Pumpkin Green she hooked and landed the other giant!
We bet there are a bunch of OMG Bass in Falcon and more anglers will be shouting that this spring!
You will have to ask Debra who had the biggest bass. We told her we wouldn't tell.
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The Mustad KVD Elite Series Triple Grip Hooks were designed closely with 5-time BASS Angler-of-the-Year,Kevin VanDam, to deliver the ideal balance of hooking and holding power. The unique shape of the hook is intended to "lock" the fish into the elbow bend, making it harder for the fish to throw the lure. The design also widens the hook gap, and angles the hook points more toward the shank. This provides an optimal angle for maximum impact and penetration, while also making the hook less prone to snags.
They are now available at Tackle Warehouse and you can buy them by clicking here. |
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Check out this video with Elite Series pro John Crews and Charlie Ingram of Fishing University fishing the Spro Little John DD on Kentucky Lake. To watch click here.
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Trailer Boats magazine, one of North America’s most trusted resources for informed boat buyers and enthusiasts, recently named Ranger’s Z521 Comanche to its 2010 list of “Excellence in Design” award winners. In its January issue, the publication honors Ranger Boats and the new Z521 Comanche, identifying it as the premier award winner for the freshwater fish boat category. The accolade is Ranger’s second consecutive Excellence in Design award, recognizing the industry’s most exciting and innovative new craft.
Trailer Boats staff defined the freshwater fish boat category as “the most hotly contested (category) in the boating industry.” In their recap of the heralded Z521 Comanche, Trailer Boats commends Ranger’s commitment to innovation – “aggressively developing new models,” in an economy where many manufacturers are choosing to “sit back and wait for better times.”
Several key features on the Z521 are highlighted in the review. Redesigned consoles with room to flush mount large screen electronics directly above the steering wheel are recognized by Trailer Boats staff as “the best in a bass boat.” The consoles also feature a unique, concave beveling to protect and secure the tips of rods being stored on the front deck – a testament to Ranger’s attention to detail and a feature the editors praised.
Another key feature, the advanced hull design, is recognized for “maximizing performance with outboards of varying weight…especially critical as four-stroke outboards challenge the dominance of two-strokes in the bass market.” The editorial staff concludes by saying, “That makes the Z521 Comanche hull an excellent design not only for this year, but for years to come.”
Trailer Boats celebrates its annual Excellence in Design award program as a way to “identify, define and recognize this year’s most dynamic boats – models that epitomize Excellence in Design.”
For more information on the award-winning Z521 Comanche, please visit www.rangerboats.com or www.mydreamrig.com.
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Minn Kota Trolling Motors has joined Wired2Fish.com as an advertiser in 2010.
Minn Kota, owned by Johnson Outdoors, has a large range of charging and trolling motor products fit for anglers of all types. Whether you own a small boat or a big boat they have a trolling motor and/or charger to fit your needs.
Their flagship motor, the Minn Kota Fortrex is the go-to motor for pro's and weekend anglers. Its bullet proof design and signature quiet power is second to none. The Fortrex was introduced at the 2008 ICAST as the next generation of trolling motors and it has lived up to that that reputation. It includes a tighter lockdown, tighter tolerances throughout and a redesigned foot pedal, and its lighter. Joe Brown of Johnson Outdoors took us through the motor and said "this is the most excited I have ever been about a new Minn Kota product. The engineering that went into the Fortrex is second to none. Not only does it look great but its tougher, more functional, and full of features that anglers will love."
"We are very excited to be adding Minn Kota to an exciting list of premier advertisers at Wired2Fish.com. It is our goal to provide the best information on the best products to Wired readers and we are honored to include Minn Kota in that group. Having the long standing reputation in the industry for quiet, dependable power at an affordable price is what Minn Kota stands for and we are truly excited to have them here" said Wired2Fish.com President Terry Brown.
Go to http://www.johnsonoutdoors.com/fishing/ for more information.
Welcome Minn Kota to Wired2Fish!
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Poor Boys Baits and Honey Hole hook company have teamed up with their product offerings for 2010. Poor Boys hand poured Dixie Darter now comes with a package of Honey Hole Spring Hooks included. The one piece spring hook is formed with a spring just behind the line tie to allow anglers to securely position and hold plastic baits in place. They come in 3/0 to 10/0 sizes and lite and heavy wire versions.
The Poor Boys Dixie Darter is one of the mainstay in the Poor Boys arsenal and works super with the Honey Hole Hook. Both smallmouth and largemouth love the Dixie Darter and they are super effective on post-spawn bass.
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 Shaw Grigsby
Lazer Tro-Kar re-ups with Wired2Fish for 2010
The biggest splash at the 2009 ICAST was a new hook. Laser Trokar, a high carbon, cold forged, durably shanked, surgically sharpened hook that allows for quicker penetration and super holding power was born at this years show. Kept secret until its launch at ICAST, media and anglers alike were wowed at the presentation and the product.
Pro's like Brent Chapman, Gerald Swindle, Skeet Reese and Wired's Shaw Grigsby were involved with its development and testing so you know it has to be good. The SST(Surgically Sharpened Technology) not only makes the Lazer Tro-Kar one of the sharpest hooks on the market but also one of the most durable as well. Because it is so sharp the hook does a lot of the work and anglers will put more fish in the boat as a result.
"It is exciting to see a hook company get the accolades Lazer Tro-Kar did at ICAST. Usually a bait or a reel gets all of the press but this year Lazer Tro-Kar not only created a buzz but they also had the wherewithal to build a premium hook that both pro's and grassroots anglers were impressed with. We are excited to again work with them in 2010" said Wired President Terry Brown.
" Lazer Tro-Kar is very excited to be joining Wired2Fish again in 2010. Having the right product and then building the right programs are critical in the fishing market. We are ready to get the message out through Wired2Fish." said Doug Long of 5 Stone Advertising.
Look for some great contests and detailed information about how to use Lazer Tro-Kar this year on Wired2Fish.
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 FLW photo
The Fresno State team of Nicholas Thao of Clovis, Calif., and Che Yang of Fresno, Calif., won the National Guard FLW College Fishing Western Division tournament on Lake Shasta Saturday with six bass weighing 10 pounds, 7 ounces. The victory earned the team $10,000 to be split evenly between the school and the school’s bass-fishing club.
“Man, it was a tough bite,” said Thao, a senior public health major. “I caught the last one 10 seconds before we had to come in. Che was cleaning up the deck to come in. I was like, ‘Oh, man, I can’t give up. Last cast.’”
Thao said he and Yang targeted rocky walls 25 to 40 feet deep with drop-shot rigs. Theo said he tipped his rig with a Roboworm while Yang used a custom worm and said their first fish was boated about 8:30 a.m. The pair caught a total of nine fish throughout the course of the day.
“This feels great,” said Yang, a senior health science major. “It’s nice to be on the water fishing and doing something you love to do.
“We did our research and got prepared for this lake,” Yang continued. “We were ready.”
Rounding out the top five teams are Sonoma State University – Jared Biddle and Nate Shankles, both of Rohnert Park, Calif. (six bass, 9-9, $5,000); Arizona State University – Joseph Jarrell of Phoenix and Mark Walker of Tempe, Ariz., (six bass, 8-15, $4,000); Chico State – Parker Moran and Marshal Smith, both of Chico, Calif. (six bass, 8-11, $3,000); California Poly– Scott Hellesen and Damian Bean, both of San Luis Obispo, Calif. (six bass, 8-8, $2,000).
FLW Outdoors announced the College Fishing trail in May 2008. Full-time students enrolled in four year colleges or universities are eligible to participate in the events. Schools can send two-person teams to each of the four qualifying events in their division, with each event limited to a maximum of 40 teams. Each team has the opportunity to win $10,000 for first through $2,000 for fifth place. Prize money is split evenly between the winning team’s club and the school they represent. The tournaments are free to enter, boats and drivers are provided by FLW and all collegiate teams receive a travel allowance. The top five teams in each qualifying event advance to one of five televised three-day National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championships.
The top five teams from each regional championship will advance to the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship.
The National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship is a three-day televised event hosting the top five teams from each regional, 25 total teams. Teams will be provided shirts and wrapped Ranger boats towed by Chevy trucks for this competition.
The winning team will be declared the National Guard FLW Collegiate National Champion and will qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup. The winners will also receive use of a wrapped boat and Chevy truck for cup competition.
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Bass University is heading to Nashville, Tennessee January 23-24, 2010 with co-founders and speakers Mike Iaconelli and Pete Gluszek leading the way.
Nashville is located in the heart of bass fishing country. This area is where it all started and the bass fishing
enthusiasts in the Nashville area are hard core. Nashville fisherman live near some of the greatest, best known bass fishing lakes in the country such
as Kentucky Lake, Fort Loudon and Tellico Lakes, Percy Priest, Lake Pickwick and many more.
This Bass University has got an exciting line up. Pro-Anglers Dave Wolak, Gerald Swindle, John Crews and Randy Howell as well as your co-founders Mike Iaconelli & Pete Gluszek.
This is a extraordinary opportunity to listen, learn from and engage with some of today's most dynamic anglers on the tournament trail.
Serving as our Master of Ceremonies is none other than Wired2Fish's Terry Brown. For a brief bio of all our speakers and MC, visit our site www.thebassuniversity.com.
Registration is still open for all remaining cities. Special Group Rates are available. To learn more about BU's special offers, group rates or to register and find hotel accommodations, students should visit us at www.thebassuniversity.com. So anglers, bring your pen, notebook, and your questions. And get ready to learn from the best Bass University is the Institution for Advanced Anglers. Never Stop Learning.
We look forward to seeing you there!
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 FLW photo
Ehrler wins FLW Series on Lake Shasta
Redlands, California angler and Wired2Fish pro Brent Ehrler finished off a steady, strong tournament at Lake Shasta today and pulled off the victory at the FLW Western Series. His total weight was 42.12 pounds and caught his fish drop shotting a Roboworm. He was followed closely by Chris Zuldain with 41.04 and KC Harris with 40.00. We will have Brent on Wired2Fish Radio next week to talk about his win and how he did it. For the full tournament results click here.
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 Bass Photo
Fish a tournament in Florida, and there are three names to watch, no matter the lake, season or weather: Chris Lane, Bobby Lane and Terry Scroggins. True to form, they finished one, two, three at the Bassmaster Southern Open on Lake Okeechobee this week.
Chris Lane of Guntersville, Ala., picked up his second BASS tournament victory and second at the Big O with 41 pounds, 2 ounces over three days. He also won the Southern Open here four years ago. Not so ironically, Scroggins finished second. Bobby did not fish that one.
But Chris’ day didn’t start so well. He and brother Bobby were staying at the same place and had parked side by side. When Bobby left for launch, a few minutes before Chris, he accidentally hit the driver-side door of Chris’ truck with his boat trailer.
“My boat wasn’t going anywhere,” Bobby said, “so I stepped on the gas. Then I heard a terrible cracking sound.”
It was the sound of a truck door being nearly ripped from the frame. It had to seem a very bad omen to Chris. Fortunately, he didn’t let it get him down. Once on the water, things settled in, and he found a strong bite on a Gambler Cane Toad.
“I was making long casts with the Toad and my Double Trouble Toad hook,” Chris said. “A steady, medium retrieve seemed to get the most bites.”
In cool weather such as dominated this part of Florida for the past couple of weeks, topwater strikes on baits like the Cane Toad can result in lots of missed fish. Even a topwater guru like Chris Lane will miss some bass, and the final round was no exception.
“I missed an 8 pounder, a 6 pounder and two 5-pound fish,” Chris said, “but I didn’t let it get me down. You have to have mental toughness to be a tournament angler and to fish baits like these. Luckily, the right hook made a big difference, and I was able to land most of my strikes.”
Another key, according to Chris, is to have patterned enough bass that missing one or two doesn’t cost you the tournament. The winner was also quick to credit his Power Poles, which helped him to stay in the best areas without risking spooking the fish with an electric motor. His Legend boat, Mercury outboard and Atlas jackplate got him in and out of heavy vegetation without incident, where he found his bass.
Chris cast the Cane Toad on an All Star rod and Abu Garcia Revo baitcasting reel spooled with 50-pound-test Stren SuperBraid.
Bobby, also a Bassmaster Elite Series pro and Chris’ brother, caught his bass by flipping a black and blue Berkley Crazy Legs Chigger Craw or swimming a 3-inch Berkley Ripple Shad swimbait. He fished them on SpiderWire braid and SpiderWire Ultracast lines, respectively, spooled onto Abu Garcia Revos. Bobby finished with 38-1, three pounds and an ounce behind his brother.
Terry Scroggins used two patterns for his third-place finish (37-9). He flipped a Yum Big Show Craw in black and blue or cooter brown on 65-pound test High Seas braid and a 7 1/2-foot Duckett Fishing Micro Magic flipping stick. He also caught bass on the outside edge of eelgrass and hydrilla by Carolina rigging a junebug Yum Houdini Worm behind a 3/4-ounce Excalibur sinker rigged on 20-pound High Seas fluorocarbon line and a 7-foot Duckett Fishing Micro Magic rod.
Randall Tharp, who led the tournament going into the final round, fell to fourth with 32-8 after mechanical problems cost him part of his fishing day. Tharp won the two previous Bassmaster Opens he fished.
Elite Series pro Russ Lane had the big bass of Day 3 with a 6-0 lunker.
On the co-angler side, Blake Stewart brought three fishing weighing 4-9 to the scales in the final round to give him a total of 16-10. It was enough to beat second round leader Aaron Gengler by six ounces.
DAY 3 BASSMASTER SOUTHERN OPEN STANDINGS- LAKE OKEECHOBEE- PRO
2010 Bassmaster Southern Open Tour 1 - Okeechobee, FL 01/14-01/16 Lake Okeechobee, Okeechobee Fla.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Chris Lane Guntersville, Ala. 15 41-02 305 $51,171.00
Day 1: 5 8-12 Day 2: 5 17-12 Day 3: 5 14-10
2. Bobby Lane Lakeland, Fla. 15 38-01 295 $22,743.00
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 13-12 Day 3: 5 12-01
3. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, Fla. 15 37-09 290 $19,331.00
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 11-04 Day 3: 5 14-01
4. Randall Tharp Gardendale, Ala. 11 32-08 290 $14,214.00
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 5 18-14 Day 3: 1 1-11
5. Larry Cahan East Palatka, Fla. 10 30-03 280 $11,371.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 5 20-02 Day 3: 5 10-01
6. J T Kenney Palm Bay, Fla. 9 28-06 281 $10,234.00
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 1 5-04 Day 3: 3 7-05
7. Kyle Fox Lakeland, Fla. 10 28-02 272 $9,097.00
Day 1: 3 15-06 Day 2: 5 8-01 Day 3: 2 4-11
8. Russ Lane Prattville, Ala. 10 26-01 268 $7,960.00
Day 1: 5 14-06 Day 2: 2 2-10 Day 3: 3 9-01
9. Adam Brown Attalla, Ala. 15 25-00 264 $6,823.00
Day 1: 5 9-15 Day 2: 5 6-09 Day 3: 5 8-08
10. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, Ala. 13 25-00 260 $5,686.00
Day 1: 3 7-10 Day 2: 5 11-02 Day 3: 5 6-04
11. Mark Shepard Clewiston, Fla. 14 24-08 257 $4,549.00
Day 1: 4 6-00 Day 2: 5 7-04 Day 3: 5 11-04
12. Jason Knapp Uniontown, Pa. 14 24-07 254 $3,980.00
Day 1: 5 9-05 Day 2: 5 6-05 Day 3: 4 8-13
13. Ott Defoe Knoxville, Tenn. 15 23-03 251 $3,411.00
Day 1: 5 6-04 Day 2: 5 6-15 Day 3: 5 10-00
14. Derek Remitz Grant, Ala. 11 21-06 248 $2,843.00
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 4 7-05 Day 3: 2 3-10
15. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, S.C. 9 20-07 245 $2,559.00
Day 1: 4 11-11 Day 2: 3 4-12 Day 3: 2 4-00
16. Davy Hite Ninety Six, S.C. 11 20-02 243 $2,274.00
Day 1: 2 7-08 Day 2: 5 6-12 Day 3: 4 5-14
17. David Kilgore Jasper, Ala. 7 20-00 241 $2,217.00
Day 1: 4 13-12 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 3 6-04
18. Rich Patterson Windermere, Fla. 12 19-03 239 $2,161.00
Day 1: 2 2-12 Day 2: 5 9-08 Day 3: 5 6-15
19. Brad Staley Pleasant Garden, N.C. 8 19-00 237 $2,104.00
Day 1: 3 5-14 Day 2: 2 8-10 Day 3: 3 4-08
20. Shinichi Fukae Palestine, Texas 11 18-14 235 $2,047.00
Day 1: 5 6-04 Day 2: 4 9-00 Day 3: 2 3-10
21. Aaron Martens Leeds, Ala. 8 18-08 233 $1,990.00
Day 1: 2 3-06 Day 2: 3 9-01 Day 3: 3 6-01
22. Luke Gritter Kalamazoo, Mich. 6 18-04 231 $1,933.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 5 13-08 Day 3: 1 4-12
23. Jimmie Murphy Ocala, Fla. 8 17-08 229 $1,876.00
Day 1: 3 5-08 Day 2: 5 12-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
24. Trevor Fitzgerald Ocklawaha, Fla. 10 16-15 227 $1,819.00
Day 1: 2 6-00 Day 2: 5 7-03 Day 3: 3 3-12
25. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, Ill. 5 16-05 225 $1,763.00
Day 1: 2 11-13 Day 2: 1 2-05 Day 3: 2 2-03
26. Ben Todd Pierson, Fla. 9 16-03 223 $1,706.00
Day 1: 1 4-11 Day 2: 5 7-08 Day 3: 3 4-00
27. Terry Segraves Kissimmee, Fla. 8 15-15 221 $1,649.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 5 12-05 Day 3: 3 3-10
28. Alan Rae Columbia, S.C. 7 15-15 219 $1,592.00
Day 1: 1 0-15 Day 2: 5 13-03 Day 3: 1 1-13
29. Andy Chappell Warrior, Ala. 7 15-01 217 $1,535.00
Day 1: 4 6-02 Day 2: 3 8-15 Day 3: 0 0-00
30. Steve Fairtrace Okeechobee, Fla. 9 14-07 215 $1,478.00
Day 1: 3 4-09 Day 2: 5 8-05 Day 3: 1 1-09
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 17 311 610-05
2 34 363 674-08
3 9 91 180-15
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60 765 1465-12
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Mike Auten and team from Commonwealth Productions, the company who produces Classic Patterns on TV, has a great video about what you should do to prepare for that next trip with your boat, trailer and tow vehicle. To watch it click here. |
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You might say he played the numbers game, but Chris Zaldain wasn’t looking for a lot of hash marks on his score card for day three of the FLW Series National Guard Western Division tournament in Shasta Lake, Calif.
 FLW photo
“I’m only going for seven or eight bites a day,” the San Jose, Calif. angler said. “A lot of guys are getting caught up in the 30- to 40-fish days, but if you’re catching 30-40 fish a day, you’re not catching the right ones.”
Improving from second place, Zaldain moved into the lead with a limit catch of 11 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest of the third day – that boosted his 3-day total to 34 pounds that cemented his place in tomorrow’s top-5 finale. Taking over the top spot was neither quick, nor easy, but that’s what Zaldain expected from his strategy.
Zaldain mostly fished a Prism Craw Roboworm on a 1/4-ounce darter head and the ideal presentation was low and slow. “I’m literally counting rocks out there. It’s rock, rock, rock – there’s a fish.”
Later in the morning, when the shallows started to warm and a little Shasta wind began blowing, Zaldain moved up and threw a Pointer rip bait in Ghost Minnow. He caught a couple of his keepers this way, and the darter delivered three.
Zaldain scored big on day two by throwing a swimbait at a ledge with a perpendicular wind pushing bait in tight. He tried to replicate that success today, but it wasn’t happening.
“I threw the swimbait early and made maybe half a dozen casts with it, but it didn’t feel right,” he said. “The wind wasn’t blowing the way I wanted it to so I just fished conservatively with the dart head. Once I put three (keepers) in the boat I started running around, fishing wind-blown points with the rip bait.
Ehrler edges into second
 FLW photo
Sitting a pound and 8 ounces out of the lead is National Guard pro Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif. One of the most consistent anglers in the top 5, Ehrler added 11-7 to his first two scores of 11-5 and 9-12 for a total of 32-8. He caught his fish on various Yamamoto plastics on Picasso shaky heads and wacky rigged on Tru-Tungsten Flea Flickers.
After three days of heavy pressure, Ehrler said that few corners of Shasta remain unexplored. Knowing that finding something “new” was a feeble objective, he stuck it out on a piece of trusted real estate.
“I have one little area that I’ve been catching most of my fish on and I keep trying to expand on it, but I can’t find any more,” Ehrler said. “You’re constantly fishing behind other people, so I’m hoping that this one spot will hold out. It’s the kind of spot where a tournament can be won.”
Ehrler described his spot as a ledge with deep water in front of it. Catches were infrequent, but the area attracts enough fish to hold his interest.
Local pro Harris holds at third
K.C. Harris of Shasta Lake, Calif. turned in another strong performance and retained the third place spot with a total weight of 31-13. Working a depth range of 10-40 feet, he targeted a variety of habitat, including points, chunk rock and muddy banks. Harris fished slowly all day with tubes and worms on darter head jigs
With most of his fishing time spent in the Squaw and Backbone arms of Shasta Lake, the majority of Harris’ bites came early “When the wind died, my bite went away. I only caught one fish after noon.”
Bryan McDermott of Cottonwood, Calif. slipped three spots to fourth with a limit of 7-13 that gave him a 31-2 total. McDermott took the lead on day two after placing 104th on the first day with 6-13. His day two score of 16-8 included a 7-pound, 3-ounce spot.
Jeff Michels of Lakehead, Calif. finished fifth with 30-1.
Several chunky spotted bass showed up for the day three weigh-ins. Topping the show was the 6 ½-pounder caught by Colorado pro Brian Nixon.
Best of the rest
Rounding out the top-10 pro leaders at the FLW Series Shasta Lake event:
6th: Jim Riley of Shasta Lake, Calif., 29-14
7th: Chris Fancelli of Redding, Calif., 29-12
8th: Clifford Pirch of Payson, Ariz., 29-0
9th: Cody Meyer of Grass Valley, Calif., 28-10
10th: Sean Stafford of Fairfield, Calif., 28-7
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“It’s getting better all the time.” That’s what the Beatles sang in the 1960s, and it could have been written for the bass fishing on Lake Okeechobee this week. After a devastating cold front shut down the fishing on the massive “Big O,” the weather’s warming, and so is the fishing.
On Day 2 of the Bassmaster Southern Open, Randall Tharp of Gardendale, Ala., jumped from 7th place into the lead after his 18-pound, 14-ounce catch gave him a total of 30-13 for two days. Brothers Chris of Guntersville, Ala., and Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Fla., are second and third with 26-8 and 26-0, respectively. Terry Scroggins of San Mateo, Fla., moved up one place into fourth with 23-8 and Kyle Fox, also of Lakeland, moved down three places into fifth with 23-7. Four of the top five heading into the final day of competition are Bassmaster Elite Series anglers.
The productive patterns have changed very little since Day 1, but more anglers are catching.
Tharp’s big day came via the same flipping and pitching pattern used by the leaders in the first round.
“I was flipping mats with a Big Bite Baits Fighting Craw in black and blue,” Tharp said. “I was pegging a 1-ounce sinker to the bait and fishing it on 20-pound-test Gamma Fluorocarbon and a 7-foot, 6-inch Falcon Cara heavy action flipping stick.”
According to Tharp, the bites were hard to come by.
“The bass here are really sluggish right now,” he said. “When you put them in the boat, they’re like ice cubes. They’re really cold and don’t want to eat.”
Chris Lane vaulted from 16th place into second fishing a similar pattern. His 17-12 limit on Day 2 was one of the best catches of the day.
“I was flipping a Gambler B.B. Cricket behind a 1-ounce Gambler screw-lock sinker on a 7-foot, 2-inch All Star rod and Abu Garcia Revo reel spooled with 50-pound Stren SuperBraid.”
Chris Lane’s limit included the big bass of the day, a 6-15 lunker.
The heaviest catch of the day weighed 20-2 and was brought to the scales by Florida’s Larry Cahan. Despite zeroing the first day, Cahan is now in 7th place going into the final round.
“I fished scared on the first day,” Cahan admitted. “I was Carolina rigging and fishing a skaky head. But today I decided to get offshore and fish a 10-inch red shad worm really slowly. It paid off.”
On the co-angler side, Aaron Gengler, also from Lakeland, had a three-fish limit weighing 8-3 to move into first place. Though he only had a single bass on the first day, it was big fish of the day among the co-anglers (5-11) and enough to keep him in contention.
Only seven professionals and one co-angler managed to catch a limit both days. On the pro side of the ledger, there were 311 keeper bass weighed in on the first day and 363 on the second. The amateurs weighed in 94 bass on the first day and 180 on the second.
Everyone is expecting things to get even better on Saturday as the top 30 in each division prepare to do battle in the final day of competition. At stake in the Southern Open series is qualifying berths in the 2011 Bassmaster Classic and 2011 Bassmaster Elite Series. The winner in the pro division of the Okeechobee event will take home more than $45,000.
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Wright and MCGill Skeet Reese Tessara Rods has joined Wired2Fish as an advertiser for 2010.
"When Wright and McGill launched Skeet Reese's new line-up of rods at ICAST we knew they had something special. Getting the endorsement of the 2009 Bassmaster Classic Champion teamed with decades of building quality fishing products was the springboard for them. We are excited to have the chance to work with Wright and McGill to get more anglers excited about a quality product at an affordable price" said Wired President Terry Brown."Look for some great promotions and contests from Tessara in 2010."
" Wright and McGill is very excited to be joining Wired2Fish in 2010. We have some exciting new products and programs and are ready to get the message out through Wired2Fish. Skeet's Signature Tessara rods have been very well received with the angling community and they are high quality tools for the angler at an affordable price. We want to bring pertinent product information to anglers so they can make informed decisions. We feel that Wired2Fish is that place" said Doug Long of 5 Stone Advertising.
Welcome Wright and McGill!
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When you look at lure companies and are looking for a case study on how to be successful...look no further than Strike King Lure Company. Great products, great people, and the worlds best pro-staff are all part of the equation. Strike King has set the bar with topwaters, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, jigs, trailers, plastics and crankbaits over a lot of years. Although always at the top of their game, the inclusion of new products like the Perfect Plastics, Sexy everything, Redeye Shad, and the Rage Tails, to name a few, has elevated their position ever further up the chart. To be an industry leader in bass fishing tackle manufacturers have to work hard and always be creative. Strike King never rests. If you are looking for a bait for the bottom, middle or top Strike King is the place to look.
"Strike King started with Wired2Fish in the beginning and has been a big part of our growth. Here at Wired2Fish we call them family and their re-signing for 2010 is exciting. We are always excited to work with good companies but through it all you find a few that are special. Strike King is one of those company's. They not only build great products, but have great pro's and people at the plant who make it go. They are our customers but are also our friends. This industry is about partnerships and we are proud to be a partner of Strike King" said Wired President Terry Brown.
"We are excited to renew with Wired for 2010. We have seen the site grow and grow over the last couple of years and the impact it has made on the industry and we are very proud to be associated with all the folks at Wired2Fish and are looking forward to the upcoming improvements being made to the site" said Strike King Marketing Head Chris Brown.
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O. Mustad and Son has joined Wired2Fish.com as an advertiser for 2010.
"We are thrilled that Mustad has joined us" said Terry Brown, President of Wired2Fish. "They not only have a stellar line-up of trebles, worm and live bait hooks but with the new KVD Triple Grip Elite Trebles they have a new design that will help all anglers catch more fish when added to their favorite baits."
"We will be highlighting all of the hooks from Mustad but in particular the new Kevin VanDam Triple Grip Elite Series hooks through detailed content, Wired Radio and Wired TV but look for some great contests as well" noted Brown.
The KVD Elite Series Triple Grip hook has a ground breaking design that allows anglers to land more bass. Because of the shorter shank, hook angle, super sharp point and 1X stronger characteristics the fish will not come off and that means anglers won't have to worry about telling the story "about the one that got away." The Mustad KVD Elites have a hard black nickel finish that resists point-dulling and corrosion as well. The nickel finish makes the hook 20% stronger too.
Welcome aboard Mustad!
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The Strike King Pro Team Journal Television Show will air today at 1:00pm EST, 10:00pm EST and again on Sunday at 6:30am EST on the Outdoor Channel. Arkansas pro George Cochran will be the personality on this weeks show. Think we might learn more about shallow water fishing? Tune in to see.
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Lowrance and BASS, the worldwide authority on bass fishing, have announced that Lowrance will continue with BASS as a supporting sponsor of the organization and its prestigious tournament structure in 2010.
The agreement includes supporting sponsorship of the Bassmaster Elite Series and the Bassmaster Federation Nation presented by Yamaha Outboards and Skeeter Boats.
"As the undisputed leader for sonar/GPS systems on tour, Lowrance is proud to continue its long-standing relationship with BASS," said Gordon Sprouse, marketing director for Lowrance. "Our new High-Definition System and StructureScan sonar imaging set a new standard for excellence on the water, and we look forward to bringing even greater advantages to competitive anglers in the near future."
Lowrance designs, manufactures and markets sonar and GPS products, digital land- and marine-based cartography, handheld navigation solutions, groundbreaking radar systems and integrated weather capabilities.
As part of the agreement, Lowrance receives exhibit space at Bassmaster Elite Series events and opportunity for product demonstration. Lowrance will also air a mini-show in the ESPN2 Outdoors programming block.
Additionally, Lowrance will receive exposure across BASS' multimedia properties, including Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times, Fishing Tackle Retailer and Bassmaster.com and ESPNOutdoors.com.
"Lowrance continues to make great strides in advancements with competitive angling equipment and its reputation in the industry is excellent," said Tom Ricks, BASS and ESPN Outdoors general manager and vice president.
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With the 2010 season finally under way, FLW Outdoors and its sponsors have continued to raise the level of financial commitment in the form of new contingency awards for anglers who continue to compete across a broad spectrum of FLW Outdoors tournament trails.
During the upcoming season, Evinrude, Cabela’s and Ranger Boats have each committed to expanding the purses that anglers can net at a variety of FLW Outdoors events. Below is a summary of the contingency awards that will be offered during the 2010 season.
Evinrude Outboards contingency program
Anglers powering with Evinrude E-TEC outboard engines could be eligible for up to $15,000 in contingency money in the new 2010 Evinrude Contingency Program. The new program is an additional $425,000 investment into the overall tournament strategy for Evinrude.
Qualifying professional Walleye anglers who are a 2008 or newer, original registered Evinrude E-TEC owner, fishing the FLW Walleye Pro Tour and Championship are eligible for contingency awards under the new program. Evinrude will award $8,000 to the qualifying Evinrude winning pro in each qualifying FLW Walleye Tour event and $15,000 to the winning Evinrude pro angler at the 2010 FLW Walleye Tour Championship. Additional contingency money extends through 20th place in the Pro Division.
Co-anglers competing at the FLW Walleye Championship who are registered owners of a 2007 or newer Evinrude E-TEC engine are also eligible for contingency dollars. Evinrude will award $5,000 to the winning qualifying co-angler at the FLW Walleye Championship.
In addition, qualifying anglers participating in BFL tournaments and the BFL All-American are eligible for contingency monies. Evinrude will award $1,000 to the highest placing registered Evinrude owner at each BFL event in 2010. If a qualified Evinrude owner wins the BFL All-American, Evinrude will pay a bonus of $10,000.
All contingency payouts will be administered by FLW Outdoors, allowing for immediate payouts at each tournament. For additional details on the Evinrude contingency program and a complete list of official rules and eligibility requirements, visit www.evinrude.com or www.flwoutdoors.com.
Cabela’s Angler Cash program
During the 2010 season, FLW Outdoors anglers will have yet another way to dramatically increase their tournament winnings thanks to Cabela’s innovative "Angler Cash" contingency award program.
For starters, FLW Tour pros and co-anglers who successfully register for the program will be eligible to receive as much as $2,500 in bonus payouts for being the highest finishing Cabela’s qualified angler at any of the six FLW Tour events during the 2010 season.
At each of the aforementioned events, one pro and one co-angler will be guaranteed a contingency award payment of $2,500 – representing a total regular-season FLW Tour contingency purse of $30,000.
In addition, both the highest-finishing Cabela’s contingency qualified pro and co-angler will receive $5,000 at the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup – slated to take place in Atlanta, Ga., from Aug. 5-8.
However, FLW Tour pros aren’t the only anglers who will be able to benefit from the program. FLW Series anglers in both the Eastern and Western Divisions will also be eligible to receive a $1,000 Cabela’s gift card as the highest-finishing contingency-qualified pro and co-angler during each of the 2010 FLW Series regular-season events.
Finally, FLW College Fishing anglers will be able to get in on the action as well. At each of the five FLW College Regional events, the highest-finishing Cabela’s contingency qualified team will receive a $1,000 Cabela’s gift card for their collegiate bass club program. In addition, the winning team at the 2010 National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship will receive a $5,000 Cabela's gift card for their collegiate bass club program.
Ranger Cup awards
Ranger Boats will continue the lucrative Ranger Cup program in conjunction with FLW Outdoors tournament circuits in 2010, offering Ranger owners valuable contingency awards. Highlights of the program, available to anglers who are Ranger Cup qualified, are detailed below.
FLW Tour
6 qualifying events:
Pros: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, receives $25,000
Co-anglers: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, receives $5,000
Forrest Wood Cup
Pros: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, receives $100,000
Co-anglers: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, receives $10,000
American Fishing Series
12 qualifying events and invitational
Pros: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, awarded a boat certificate for a 198 VX Ranger with a 200-hp engine
Co-anglers: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, receives $5,000
Bass Fishing League (BFL)
120 qualifying events
Pros: If winner is Ranger Cup qualified, receives $2,000
BFL All-American
Pros: Up to $130,000 paid down the pro field for Ranger Cup qualifiers
Co-anglers: Up to $50,000 paid down the co-angler field for Ranger Cup qualifiers. For more click here.
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Pro Bryan McDermott of Cottonwood, Calif., caught a five-bass limit weighing 16 pounds, 8 ounces Thursday to soar in to first place at the FLW Series National Guard Western Division tournament on Lake Shasta with a two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 23-5. Wired2Fish pro Brent Ehrler is in 4th place.
“It’s awesome,” said McDermott, after catching one of the biggest spotted bass coming out of Lake Shasta, 7 pounds 3 ounces. “I caught it on my second cast this morning and my 4-pounder came about two casts later, they were both within 25 yards of each other.
“The fish are getting ready to start spawning, so I found a sunny spot in about 30 feet of water along a gravel bank hoping that it would push the fish up and I got lucky. I caught about 20 fish today all on worms.”
McDermott now holds a 1-pound, 4-ounce lead over second place pro Chris Zaldain of San Jose, Calif., who managed to haul in a total of 10 bass weighing 22-1 during the first two days of competition.
Fishing slow and deep seemed to be the key for many anglers today. The fish are still in their winter pattern so aren’t very active and they don’t want to eat. Having the patience to wait it out made all the difference for many anglers today.
“I am not getting a lot of bites, but I’m seeing a lot of fish,” said Gabe Bolivar who will enter tomorrow’s competition in fifth place. “I have two key spots where I am getting just enough bites to keep me confident that eventually they’ll bite, it’s just a matter of being patient.
Rounding out the top-10 pros after day two at Lake Shasta are:
3rd: KC Harris, Shasta Lake, Calif., 10 bass, 21-15
4th: National Guard pro Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., 10 bass, 21-1
5th: Gabe Bolivar, Ramona, Calif., 10 bass, 20-14
6th: Jeff Michels, Lakehead, Calif., 10 bass, 20-12
7th: Bret Gouvea, Redding, Calif., 10 bass, 20-9
8th: Jim Riley, Shasta Lake, Calif., 10 bass, 20-8
9th: Chris Fancelli, Redding, Calif., 10 bass, 20-2
10th: Kazuki Kodama, Torrence, Calif., 10 bass, 19-13
Overall there were 685 bass weighing 1062 pounds, 15 ounces caught by 140 pros Thursday. The catch included 130 five-bass limits.
National Guard team member Johnathan Walker of Tacoma, Wash., leads the co-angler division with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 20-5 ollowed by Max Bauer of San Diego, Calif., in second place with 10 bass weighing 19-9.
“The fish are still in a winter pattern and very lethargic,” said National Guard team member Walker. You really have to hit them before they will even bite. I fished the same way today as yesterday, using sinkos and the key was keeping the bait on the bottom; we were in some pretty deep water, about 42 feet.”
Walker caught 5 bass weighing 11-13 while fishing with pro Ronald Hobbs, Jr. of Orting, Wash., Wednesday and 5 bass weighing 8-8 while fishing with pro Craig Kraft of Redding, Calif., Thursday.
Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers are:
3rd: JR Wright, Truckee, Calif., 10 bass, 18-9
4th: Billy Dehart, Burlingame, Calif., 10 bass, 17-13
5th: Guy Williams, Menifee, Calif., 10 bass, 17-12
6th: Lori Wallace, Boise, Idaho, 10 bass, 17
7th: Mark Smith, Dana Point, Calif., 10 bass, 16-15
8th: Willie Church, Cottonwood, Calif., 10 bass, 16-12
9th: Joe Crawford, Laguna Niguel, Calif., 10 bass, 16-11
10th: Jimmy Zanotelli, Redding, Calif., 10 bass, 16-10
Overall there were 613 bass weighing 867 pounds, 4 ounces caught by 140 co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 102 five-bass limits.
Anglers will take off at 7:30 each morning from Bridge Bay Resort located at 10300 Bridge Bay Road in Redding, Calif. Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Mt. Shasta Mall located at 900 Dana Drive in Redding, Calif., beginning at 3 p.m.
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Flip, flip, flip. That’s the big word at Lake Okeechobee for the season-opening Bassmaster Southern Open. After two weeks of unseasonable low temperatures and lethargic largemouths, Day 1 kicked things off sunny, bright and warmer than in recent memory.
Still, the fish weren’t feeling it. The water is still cold, and the leaders used that knowledge to their best advantage by slowing down and pitching and flipping to bass that were entrenched in heavy vegetation.
J.T. Kenney of Palm Bay, Fla., took the first day lead with 15 pounds, 13 ounces of Florida largemouths. He caught them flipping a Gambler Ugly Otter to some of the thickest vegetation he could find.
“The grass and vegetation didn’t have to be matted to hold bass,” Kenney said, “but it had to be thick.”
 BASS photo
Bassmaster Elite Series pro and 2010 Bassmaster Classic qualifier Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Fla., echoed Kenney’s words.
“It’s tough out there,” Lane said. “I caught my fish (a five-fish limit weighing 12-4 – good enough for a tie for 5th place) flipping a Berkley Crazy Legs Chigger Craw and worked hard all day to catch just six bass.”
Lane admitted to fishing heavy cover and said he pinched the legs off his Chigger Craw so that it would slide through the surface vegetation more easily. Baits with numerous or lengthy appendages are notorious for hanging up near the surface and not reaching the open areas beneath the surface vegetation – where the bass live and feed.
The biggest bass of the day was caught by 21-year-old Kyle Fox. It weighed 10-3 and was caught flipping heavy vegetation. Fox was using a bait of his own design manufactured by Culprit. The “Foxy Craw” lured the lunker out from under matted vegetation that was about 2 1/2 feet deep.
Fox’s giant was one of just three keepers the young pro brought to the scales today. They totaled 15-6 – good enough for second place, but his position seems very tenuous. Being two fish short of a limit and with one of those bass weighing more than two-thirds of his total tally, Fox could trouble duplicating that weight on Day 2.
Other anglers in the top five include Bassmaster Elite Series Pro Alabama’s Russ Lane (14-6) and David Kilgore (13-12) and Florida’s Terry “Big Show” Scroggins, who is tied with Bobby Lane for fifth with 12-4.
Three of the top 10 anglers are Bassmaster Elite Series pros. After Day 2, the field will be cut to the top 30 anglers, who fish the final round on Saturday. Anglers fishing in the pro division can gain entry into the Bassmaster Classic and the Bassmaster Elite Series by virtue of their performance in the three-event series. The entire Open schedule can be found on Bassmaster.com
On the co-angler side, Rodney Glunt of Orlando, Fla., is pacing the field with three bass weighing 7-13. Michael Bradford and Aaron Gengler caught the big bass on the co-angler side in the first round. Each brought 5-11 lunkers to the scales, but nothing else. Their single bass were good enough to put them in a tie for 8th.
Sponsors of the 2009 Bassmaster Opens:Toyota Trucks, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Marine.
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Berkley has a strong reputation for bringing great new baits that launch at the Bassmaster Classic. Can you say Chigger Craw. This year is no exception and with the event in cold conditions possibly the finesse bite may be the ticket. A little brother Chigger Craw might be right down a spotted bass's alley and a new 3 inch finesse Crazy Legs Chigger Craw is ready for some chomping.
Also in this line-up are a new 3 and 4 inch Power Minnow perfect for a drop shot or a lead head. Largies and spots won't be able to resist these baby's.
Both are Power Baits so you know bass will love them. Below is a sneak peak of the new baits.
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Bass Tackle Depot has a new video that we think you will enjoy....Ike and his Ducks. To watch click here.
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European rod manufacturer Colmic announced today that they have signed Bassmaster Elite Series pro Matt Herren. With over 30 years experience building quality rods in Europe, Colmic announced today that they and their U.S. partner that is based out of Florida, SAMAL Fishing In The Future, Inc., will bring new technology in fishing rods to the U.S. bass market.
Colmic has partnered with the leading manufacturer of composite material in Japan in a project called U.L.A.F., short for ultra light aerospace fibers, that will be used exclusively in Colmic rods, to build rods that are lighter, stiffer, and better balanced, while maintaining slim blank diameters.
Throughout the fall of 2009 Samal Fishing in The Future, Inc., and Colmic have worked together with BASS pro Matt Herren to design their top of the line bass rod series, the "Matt Herren Signature Series" and "The Black Weapon Series". Samal Fishing in the Future, Inc., and Colmic are committed to bring new and better technology to bass market to meet high expectations of Bass Anglers through out the United States.
"I am super excited about my future with Colmic Rods. After spending the fall fishing with the new blanks and designing actions and accessories I cannot say enough good things about them. They are bad to the bone fishing rods. Cosmetically they are second to none and the quality of the blank exceeds any currently in the US market" said Herren.
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The Online Fisherman, the official publication of the PAA, is available now for viewing. Click here to read.
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Wired2Fish Radio recently visited with Kevin VanDam on how he organized his tackle for ultimate efficiency. He gave some super suggestions for streamlining the location process but some killer ideas about balancing the load in the boat and tournament day tackle management as well. Utilizing Plano 3700 utility boxes, spinnerbait boxes, and the new CDS boxes to be better prepared for each cast will help you put more fish in the boat.
During that program he also mentioned the use of a "deck box" that will keep specific lures that will be used for the day within arms reach without the normal "pro pile" at the end of the day. The Plano Pro Field 1435 box is the ticket for that application. Light weight, durable, and waterproof the 1435 is perfect for several Strike King Sexy Shad cranks, Perfect Plastic, Redeye Shads, and terminal tackle as well.
Another great product that will help you keep your tackle at your finger tips is the Cook's Go-To Tackle System. This system will work great for just about everything except crankbaits, mounts easily and is tough as nails. Three or four bags of Zoom Lizards, a couple of bags of Northland Brush Beavers, a few jigs and chunks and some Big Bite Kriet Tail worms all on the same rack.
These are great products and thanks KVD for the great tip!
To learn more about the Plano boxes mentioned about and too buy click here.
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Soundings Trade Only Today is reporting that the judge overseeing the Chapter 11 filing by Genmar has approved the auction results. To read click here.
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Ken Wick of Star, Idaho, landed 5 bass weighing 12 pounds, 6 ounces Wednesday to lead day one of the FLW Series National Guard Western Division tournament on Lake Shasta. He holds a narrow 2-ounce lead in a tournament where anything can happen, featuring 140 pros and 140 co-anglers from 13 states and Japan. Wired2Fish angler Brent Ehrler of Redlands, CA is in 5th.
“The wind was a huge factor for me today,” said Wick, who has an ever so slight advantage going in to day two. “The success of my fishing really evolved around the channel swings and when the wind came up it pushed the shad in to shallower water bringing the bigger bass with them.”
Unlike most of the more successful anglers today, Wick caught his fish in 8-9 feet of water. Many of today’s anglers were reporting greater success in water depths of 35 – 40 feet and some even deeper.
Right behind Wick is local angler Chris Fancelli of Redding, Calif., who trails in the No. 2 spot by just ounces with 5 bass weighing 12-4.
”That’s a good sack,” said Kazuki Kodama.
And indeed it was as he landed the number three spot with 5 bass weighing 12 pounds after all weights were tallied.
Rounding out the remainder of the top-10 pros after day one at Lake Shasta are:
4th: Bret Gouvea, Redding Calif., 5 bass, 11-11
5th: Team National Guard pro Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., 5 bass, 11-5
6th: Garrett Charter, Arbuckle, Calif., 5 bass, 11-1
7th: Chad Hulbert, Gilroy, Calif., 5 bass, 10-15
8th: Ronald Hobbs, Jr., Orting, Wash., 5 bass, 10-8
9th: Craig Kraft, Redding, Calif., 5 bass, 10-7
10th: Kevin Johnson, Valencia, Calif., 5 bass, 10-6
Overall there were 680 bass weighing 1087 pounds, 13 ounces caught by 140 pros Wednesday. The catch included 131 five-bass limits.
Team National Guard pro Johnathan Walker of Tacoma, Wash., leads the Co-angler Division with 5 bass weighing 11-13 followed by Max Bauer of San Diego, Calif., and JR Wright tied for second place with 5 bass each weighing 10-1.
“I had a great pre-fish,” said Walker, who has close to a 2 pound advantage in the co-angler division. “I knew the big ones were out there it was just a matter of finding them today. I was going for the big bite using large senkos, I started with 5 inches but kept increasing my size as the day went on. We were in about 40 feet of water and I was using 12 pound test line, there was no finesse today.”
Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers are:
4th: Billy Dehart, Burlingame, Calif., 5 bass, 9-9
5th: Mark Smith, Dana Point, Calif., 5 bass, 9-5
6th: Michael Rychard, Anderson, Calif., 5 bass, 9-1
7th: Tom Salo, Marysville, Calif., 5 bass, 9
8th: James Leachman, Kennewick, Wash., 5 bass, 8-14
8th: Tony Zanotelli, Redding, Calif., 5 bass, 8-14
10th: Larry Wilson, Poway, Calif., 5 bass, 8-13
Overall there were 602 bass weighing 878 pounds caught by 140 co-anglers Wednesday. The catch included 103 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are competing this week for a Ranger 177TR with a 90 horsepower engine as well as valuable points that could help them qualify for a shot at the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.
Anglers will take off at 7:30 each morning from Bridge Bay Resort located at 10300 Bridge Bay Road in Redding, Calif. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Mt. Shasta Mall located at 900 Dana Drive in Redding, Calif., beginning at 3 p.m.
Fans will also be treated to a Family Fun Zone at the mall prior to Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. There will be a drawing for a $500 mall gift card and drawings for rod and reel combos will be take place every 30 minutes during the event. Activities in the Family Fun Zone include a Ranger boat simulator and assorted fishing-themed games. All activities are free and open to the public.
Coverage of the Lake Shasta tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors” will air April 11 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide.
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Mark Zona and Mark Jeffreys will bring a new twist to the world of sports talk when, on January 14th, Z Sports Talk will debut live on the world wide web at www.ZSportsTalk.com.
The hour long show is being billed as “Sports…To the Power of Z” and will feature the popular co-host of The Bassmasters and host of The Worlds Greatest Fishing Show on ESPN2, Mark Zona, and the founder of Z3 Media, Mark Jeffreys.
While the two hosts currently make their careers out of analyzing and covering professional bass fishing, Z Sports Talk will exclusively focus on sports other than professional fishing.
“Many people know that Zona is fanatical about fishing. But what they might not realize is that he is just as passionate about other sports, particularly football,” said Jeffreys. “His enthusiasm is contagious and he’s not afraid to tell you how it is.”
“Jeffreys and myself are sports junkies...I mean we can't get enough....are we experts? NO, but I can promise listeners one thing, if it's great in sports, we'll talk about it,” said Zona. “And if it sucks, we'll say it. Nothing will be sugar coated.”
Viewers will be able to interact with Zona and Jeffreys in a variety of ways throughout the course of the live webcast which will be hosted by Livestream. In addition to watching the broadcast, viewers will have access to an Instant Feedback feature allowing them to interact and ask questions during the broadcast. There is a toll free number, 877-221-0025, for listeners to call and talk with the hosts.
The program will also feature live interviews with professional athletes and analysts from a number of sports including football, basketball, and hockey.
Z Sports Talk will debut on January 14th, 11:00AM EST at www.ZSportsTalk.com.
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U.S Angler’s Choice is pleased to announce the 2010 Eastern Pro-Am Tour. “We have a solid program that is going to give weekend tournament anglers the opportunity to fish some of the best lakes and rivers in the East during prime fishing times” noted U.S. Angler’s Choice Director of Operations Bill Hutcheson. “Best of all, anglers who fish all four of our events will qualify to compete for thousands in bonus cash at the final event of the season”. Dave Kilby, Region 4 Vice President and Tournament Director for these Eastern Pro-am shared weight events further added, “The selection of the bodies of water Angler’s Choice is fishing in 2010 will be a true test of the best anglers in the region. Whoever comes out on top of the Bonus Cash payday at the final event will have proven themselves as one of the top anglers in the this part of the country”.
The Angler’s Choice Pro-am events will benefit from having a highly experienced and professional tournament staff running each event. Consistency is key and having an experienced tournament staff is one of the areas where Angler’s Choice is head and shoulders above the competition. Led by Eastern Pro-Am Tournament Director Dave Kilby, the U.S.A.C. Eastern Pro-Am’s are staffed by seasoned USAC team directors including Tim Chadwick, AC Potomac River and Upper Chesapeake Bay, team director, Ricky Bodsford, USAC Bass East Virginia team director, and Dennis Deahl, assistant director. This staff has decades of tournaments under their belt and know how to run a seamless, quality event that will have you coming back for more.
Four events constitute the 2010 season with the opener occurring on April 17-18th at the Upper Chesapeake Bay. Anglers should be able to capitalize on the Upper Bay’s wide-open pre-spawn bite and will likely need about 18-20 lbs per day to lead the pack.
From there, the trail moves to The Potomac River on June 26-27th. The springtime bite on largemouth bass should be in full swing with limits aplenty hitting the scales each day.
Football sized smallies are the name of the game as the USAC trail heads north to Lake Erie in Buffalo August 7-8th. In the summer any cast can result in a chunky smallmouth and anglers will be plying the waters with a variety of baits for what are typically 20 pound plus bags of fish.
The final event of the 2010 season slated for October 9-10th on Oneida Lake in Syracuse. This is traditionally prime time for big smallmouth and/or hungry largemouth as they feed heavily in preparation for winter
The U.S. Anglers Choice payback is one of the best in the east. The Payback for 2010 exceeds 100% on the Pro angler side. Best of all, its’ what you the angler can use – straight up cash! Furthermore, our complete payback and options payback will be posted as soon at the partner pairing meetings start. No more guessing what the true numbers are and what you will be paid for your finish.
2010 Anglers Choice Pro-Am Payback*
* Based on 150 boat field – one in five payback
PAYBACK CHART DOES NOT INCLUDE OPTION PAYOUTS
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Place
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Pro Payback
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Bonus Cash Payback**
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Total Payback at fourth event
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1st
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$12,500
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$15,300
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$27,800
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2nd
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$7,000
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$10,200
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$17,900
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3rd
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$5,000
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$6,375
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$11,375
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4th
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$3,500
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$5,100
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$8,600
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5th
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$3,000
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$3,825
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$6,825
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6th
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$2,500
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$2,550
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$5,050
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7th
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$2,000
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$2,550
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$5,050
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8th
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$1,500
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$2,550
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$4,050
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9th
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$1,250
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$1,275
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$2,525
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10th
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$1,250
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$1,275
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$2,525
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11th
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$1,000
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$1,000
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12th
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$1,000
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$1,000
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13th
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$1,000
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$1,000
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14th
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$1,000
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$1,000
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15th
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$1,000
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$1,000
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16th
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$800
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$800
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17th
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$800
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$800
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18th
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$800
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$800
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19th
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$800
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$800
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20th
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$800
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$800
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21st
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$500
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$500
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22nd
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$500
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$500
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23rd
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$500
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|
$500
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24th
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$500
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$500
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25th
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$500
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$500
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26th
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$500
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$500
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27th
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$500
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|
$500
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28th
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$500
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$500
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29th
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$500
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$500
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30th
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$500
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$500
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Pro Payback
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$53,500
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$51,000
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$104,500
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BONUS CASH** - In addition to these great stand-alone paybacks, Angler’s Choice is holding in reserve 20% of the Pro entry money and 10% of the Am entry money for the final event of the year. This reserve will be awarded as Bonus Cash to the top 10 Pro and Am fishermen who participated in all four events over the course of the 2010 season. This is not a year end point’s race as the Bonus Cash paybacks are awarded based on participation, so everyone has a shot at winning regardless of how well you finish during the first three tournaments. Based upon full fields at all four AC Pro-Am’s, this would amount to $51,000 on the Pro side and $13,500 for the Am anglers. These numbers do not include 100% paid back option money or other winnings from the final tournament. The top finishing pro at the end of the year will more than likely walk away with a $30,000 payday – more cash than is available at any other weekend Pro-Am! You can only get in on the Bonus cash by fishing all four USAC Pro-Am events though, so sign up now!
Angler’s Choice Pro-am events use a shared weight formula in which each day’s Pro and Am angler effectively fish as a team to catch their best five fish limit. The Pro and Am angler “Share” the total weight, which carries over to the next day of fishing. Pro and Am anglers are paired up with different partners for the second and any subsequent days of fishing. Shared weight events are commonplace in the Western U.S. and many of the top anglers in the sport including the likes of Aaron Martens, Skeet Reese, Brent Erhler, and Ish Monroe all cut their teeth fishing shared weight events.
Entry fee for the 2010 season is $425 for Pro anglers and $225 for Am anglers. Pro and Am anglers who sign up together are given a guaranteed entry status. All other entries will be taken on a first come, first serve basis and paired accordingly.
All Options at Angler’s Choice Pro-Am events are paid back 100% and both the Pro and Am anglers have their own separate option pools. Options for the 2010 season will include a $50 Big Bass option that will pay out to the top two largest bass of each day. There is also a $50 Top 10 option that pays out to the top 10 Pro and top 10 Am anglers entered into this option pool at the end of the tournament.
Competitors may sign up for the U.S. Anglers Choice Pro-Am events by logging on to www.usanglerschoice.net and clicking the Pro-am events link home page. You may then click on the entry form, print a copy and mail it in with a check or credit card. You may also enter over the phone by calling (800) 360-7112 and speaking with the Angler’s Choice tournament coordinator Sonia. Specific event related questions should be directed to Tournament Director Dave Kilby at (443) 617-1850 or limitfinder@yahoo.com .
Deadline to enter prior to each tournament is the Wednesday prior to the start of the official pre-fish period.
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Duckett Fishing announced today that Elite Series anglers Byron Velvick, Jason Williamson and Pete Ponds have joined the company’s professional staff and will fish the 2010 season using Duckett’s new MICROMagic rods.
Velvick, a 17-year pro angler and one of the most popular figures on the ESPN Elite Series tour, is a Nevada native who now lives in Del Rio, Texas. A two-time winner on the BASS circuit and former commentator on ESPN, Velvick will be competing in February in his second consecutive Bassmaster Classic.
Williamson, champion of the 2009 Battle on the Border tournament at Lake Amistad, is from Aiken, S.C. and is considered one of the top young anglers on the Elite Series tour. In 47 professional tournaments, Williamson also has two second-place and seven top 10 finishes.
Ponds, from Madison, Miss., was the 2004 champion of the Alabama Citgo Open and has five top 10 finishes in BASS competition.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to bring these three outstanding anglers onto our Duckett Fishing team. From the first day I considered starting this company, I knew I wanted Byron Velvick to be part of our organization. Byron brings credibility and a great personality to our pro staff. He’s an asset to our sport,” said Duckett Fishing owner and CEO Boyd Duckett.
“Jason Williamson is a terrific young angler. In addition to being a solid angler, he’s a good guy. He’s a tough competitor, and he’s popular on the tour. And the same can be said for Pete Ponds. He’s a solid veteran and will be a great representative. I couldn’t be more pleased.”
Duckett Fishing is an Alabama-based company that is owned and managed by Duckett, the 2007 Bassmaster Classic champion. The company’s initial product, MICROMagic rods, are new lightweight fishing rods that utilize microguide technology.
“I’m tremendously excited to be part of what is happening at Duckett Fishing, and I’m really looking forward to competing this year with what I believe is an outstanding series of rods,” Velvick said. “I’m honored that Boyd Duckett wanted me to be a part of what he’s putting together, and I believe we’re going to have a great year.”
Williamson said he’s looking forward to competing with the microguide rods.
“I’m real happy to be associated with Duckett Fishing. I’ve got all the respect in the world for Boyd Duckett. I’ve never seen anything like the way these rods perform. You can cast a long way and the sensitivity is unbelievable,” Williamson said.
Ponds and Williamson stressed that they are impressed with the extreme “lightness” of the rods.
Ponds said, “The rods are not only light, they are sturdy and they’re durable. I can’t wait to wait to get on the water this season with these rods.”
To learn more about Duckett Fishing click here.
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Bemidji, Minnesota based Northland Tackle has joined Wired2Fish as an advertiser in 2010. "They own the walleye and multi-species market and have some excellent products for bass anglers as well. Products like the Jungle Jig, the Slurpies Brush Beaver, the Dip Stick, and the Mimic Minnow are already proven bass catchers. Their Crazy Legs skirts and sling shot weights are cutting edge and will help anglers put more fish in the boat too. Moving forward they are working diligently on new and innovative products for the bass fishing markets as well" said Wired2Fish President Terry Brown. "We are thrilled to have them with us and look forward to working together with them on great content and contests all aimed at educating Wired readers on what they have to offer."
"On behalf of the entire Team Northland™ Family, I’m pleased to announce our new partnership with Wired2Fish. At Northland Fishing Tackle® fishing is our passion and we believe it is a great way to share time and outdoor experiences with family and friends. The management team at Northland Fishing Tackle are dedicated hardcore anglers that design, test and perfect an innovative line of jigs, rigs, spinnerbaits, spoons and soft plastic baits. Terry Brown and the entire W2F staff shares our passion for fishing and the industry. Like at W2F, fishing isn’t just what we do, it’s who we are!" said Northland Marketing Manager Eric Naig.
"We are looking to expand beyond our market leading walleye, panfish and multi-species products and we feel that W2F is a great venue to create visibility and spread the word to our angling friends on our existing and future bass products" he added.
Check out all of Northland products by clicking here.
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Sgt Jason Redding is a loyal Wired2Fish reader. He is stationed in Iraq and here at Wired2Fish he has become part of the team. We were already on his team. We support the military so his new job as a reader of Wired means more than we can ever say back to him. More of us need to be on his team. He is counting the days when he can be back home in Louisiana and fishing the local watering holes. This picture is "another day in paradise" as he puts it but we know he is dreaming of his next bass. We look forward to he day when all of our folks are home.
He has told us in his emails that we are going on a fishing trip together when he gets home. He said he is counting on it. We are counting on that day too Sarge!
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Today on Unplugged presented by Berkley Wired2Fish President Terry Brown reflects on the state of fishing and asks anglers to support their sport. The new year is here and each of us need to do our part to drive the passion we have to others. To read click here.
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Rodney King said “Why can’t we all get along?” At no time did anyone believe he was looking for an answer, but it is clear maybe one is needed.
The sport of bass fishing needs to answer his question, and the clock is ticking. Anglers are frustrated, leagues are seeing downturns and boat and motor manufacturers are looking at creative sales pitches and seemingly un-ending warranties. We are looking for a finger to put in the dyke. Clearly we do not have a small leak any longer but rather a gaping hole, and many in the media seemingly want to write the headline "Bass Fishing is Dead." Am I wrong?
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Wooden frogs have been around for years and some of the best casting ones are wood. A combination plastic and wooden frog covers both of the best characteristics for castability and action and Poor Boys Bait Company has a beauty with their Wooden Frog. Colors include leopard, autumn, bullfrog and crackle and these dudes are sweet. They retail for around $16.
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Jerry Kelly and Dennis McGoan won the C&R Tournament at Wingate’s Lodge in Bainbridge, GA this past weekend. The team weighed in an incredible stringer of 5 fish that weighed in at 32.65 lbs. They also had the Big Fish of 8.3 lbs. They were all released back into a very frigid Lake Seminole to be caught another day. Jerry said they caught them on Jigs and Big Bite Chunks. Temps were as low as 23° weather when they left the dock and water temps were in the low 50's. Looks like Seminole could be the place to go. For more information go to Big Bite Baits by clicking here.
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Trade Only Today is reporting that the creditors, who are owed in excess of 100 million(estimated), are not happy with the auction results. They want them thrown out. To read the story click here.
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Today in the Next Generation Tackle Box we highlight Ardent Reels Reel Butter Lubricant. Made in the USA and slicker than a room full of ball bearings Reel Butter from Ardent is the "reel deal". To read click here.
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Today's sports are everywhere. Whether you turn on your radio or television, there always seems to be some bigmouth rattling on about what's happening in just about every sport. Except for maybe fishing - until now. We are pleased to announce that Facts of Fishing FYI goes live online today! This weekly online show will feature fishing funny-man, Dave Mercer, sharing or as some might call it, ranting about the latest happenings in the great sport of fishing. Whether its news, his views, or quite often info you can't use, Dave's off-the-wall sense of humor will definitely leave viewers entertained.
Facts of Fishing FYI will only be seen online. Why? Well, firstly, its quite possible that no television station would ever let this on the air! By placing Facts of Fishing FYI on YouTube, it will not only be available to the largest audience possible, but will be easily accessible to millions of today's anglers on their own timetable.
Mercer states, "It is our hope that Facts of Fishing FYI will spread virally throughout the angling community. Our major reason for choosing YouTube distribution was the ease in which FYI can be shared and embedded on websites. We not only hope that anglers share and embed our program, we encourage it! I'm excited about this opportunity and look forward to proving that my grade 6 teacher was wrong in saying that my big mouth will get me nowhere!"
The first episode of Facts of Fishing FYI can be seen @ http://www.youtube.com/user/factsoffishing.
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Today, North Carolina lure manufacturer, Custom Lures Unlimited (CLU), announced the addition of Bassmaster Elite Series Pros, Clark Reehm and Dave Wolak, to their 2010 CLU Pro Squad. Wolak and Reehm will join pro anglers Jeffrey Thomas, Randy Howell, and Mike Iaconelli on the 2010 CLU Pro Squad.
Located in Raleigh, North Carolina, CLU has become a leader in wooden crankbait production over the last few years and gained national notoriety when Mike Iaconelli won the 2008 Kerr Lake Northern Stren on a CLU crankbait (the IKON) that he and CLU owner Kelly Barefoot collectively designed.
CLU is best known for their old-school wooden crankbait designs that have the realism of high-end Japanese baits. Late last year they also introduced the first scale patterns to the wooden lure market.
“We’re excited to have Dave and Clark as part of the team for 2010,” Kelly Barefoot, owner of CLU, said. “We look forward to building the customized tools that will help them succeed on the tournament trail this year.”
Said Reehm: “As an up and coming Elite Series angler, I like having the opportunity to give feedback on research and development, which doesn’t come easy with large tackle companies that have super star pro staffs. In this economy with sponsorship deals coming few and far between, you might as well go with the best companies you can and those that you truly believe in. It’s easy for some to chase bigger money, but at the end of the day I’d rather get the best baits available. CLU fits my fishing style. Their hand crafted crankbaits are the highest quality and any angler that likes to run and gun won’t be able to find any better.”
Added Wolak: “I’ve used CLU’s baits in the past and love Kelly’s attention to detail. I know Ike has been using them for a few years and they’re a superior wooden bait, which is hard to find anywhere in the country. They’re a way beyond the one or two custom baits like they offered in the past. Year’s ago Kelly only did custom paint jobs and such but now he’s taken his popular colors and made them more available to the masses along with incorporating those colors in his new wood baits. The other thing is I live in Raleigh, the headquarters of CLU, and it makes it so easy for me and Kelly to bounce thoughts and concepts off each other. I can’t wait to work with Kelly and CLU in the future.”
CLU produces both wooden and plastic custom lures that are individually geared for specific tournament needs and water conditions. For more information go to www.customluresunlimited.com.
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The University of Oklahoma team of Mark Johnson and Chip Porche won the National Guard FLW College Fishing Texas Division event on Falcon Lake Saturday with six bass weighing 34 pounds, 8 ounces. The victory earned the team $10,000 to be split evenly between the university and the university’s bass-fishing club. The win also helped them advance to the Texas Division Regional Championship in Austin, Texas, Oct. 23-25, where they could ultimately win a Ranger 177TR with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard wrapped in school colors for their school’s club and $25,000 for the school they represent.
“This is amazing,” said Johnson. “Chip and I just had an incredible day, this is great a lake. We caught all our fish using a black angel with a football jig, we only had nine keepers all day, but they were the ones we needed.
“Chip and I have been fishing together for about two and a half years and this is our first victory together; we have been close a couple of times, but never won – it’s awesome!”
Despite the brutal cold conditions Johnson and Porche were able to maintain their composure, settle down and turn in a good sack of fish. They knocked one good fish off with the net, but were able to come back from that mistake and fish a nearly flawless day.
“It was just our day,” said Porche. “Like Mark said, we have been fishing together for over two years and I think the fact that we were able to work as a team made the big difference in our victory. FLW college tournaments are set up so that both anglers have to catch fish; that is different from a lot of other tournaments and some teams, especially the ones with young inexperienced anglers, aren’t able to make that adjustment.”
Rounding out the top five teams were Louisiana State University – Blake Carrier and Logan Mount (six bass 28-13, $5,000); Louisiana State University, Shreveport – Zach Caudle and Joe Landry (six bass, 23-13 $4,000); University of Louisiana – Cody McCrary and Neil Arnaud (six bass, 21-5, $3,000); Oklahoma State University – Nathan Gonsoulin and Tripp Elliott (five bass, 19-3, $2,000).
FLW Outdoors announced the College Fishing trail in May 2008. Full-time students enrolled in four year colleges or universities are eligible to participate in the events. Schools can send two-person teams to each of the four qualifying events in their division, with each event limited to a maximum of 40 teams. Each team has the opportunity to win $10,000 for first through $2,000 for fifth place. Prize money is split evenly between the winning team’s club and the school they represent. The tournaments are free to enter, boats and drivers are provided by FLW and all collegiate teams receive a travel allowance. The top five teams in each qualifying event advance to one of five televised three-day National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championships.
The top five teams from each regional championship will advance to the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship.
The National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship is a three-day televised event hosting the top five teams from each regional, 25 total teams. Teams will be provided shirts and wrapped Ranger boats towed by Chevy trucks for this competition.
The winning team will be declared the National Guard FLW Collegiate National Champion and will qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup. The winners will also receive use of a wrapped boat and Chevy truck for cup competition.
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Today on Unplugged presented by Berkley, professional angler Chad Brauer talks about when to use a jig and when to use plastic. To read click here.
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The jig is without a doubt my go to bait if I were given the choice. Conditions on the water however often dictate that the bass may prefer something different. Sometimes it needs to be a bit more subtle, or maybe a different color scheme, or even just a new action in the water. A jig and a soft plastic bait can be interchanged for each other in almost any fishing situation, and choosing the right one can make a big difference in your catch.
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Commonwealth Productions, Mike Auten and his crew, does a spectacular job of giving specific angling details on Classic Patterns TV. Check out this video with Elite Series pro Dave Wolak on modifying a jig for winter bassin'. To watch click here.
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Stay tuned this week for a spring bait assortment "contest" from Rapala. We will start the contest one day this week and will be giving 3 winners a chance at Shad Raps, Clackin Raps and much, much more. Bone up on your Rapala knowledge......this will be a good one.
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Pro Michael Yoder of Texarkana, Ark., caught a five-bass limit weighing 27 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to win the FLW American Fishing Series Texas Division tournament on Falcon Lake with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 93 pounds, 8 ounces. For his victory, Yoder earned $25,000 plus a Ranger boat, motor, and trailer.
Despite the worst weather Zapata has recorded in the past 20 years, Michael Yoder showed up ready to fish, made adjustments and earned the victory under what some called dangerous and treacherous conditions. Yoder’s amazing victory included not only battling Mother Nature, but battling the physical world too as he had to piece together his boat/motor after the first day when his boat hit a wave and was sent airborne 27-feet!
“It was scary tough,” said Yoder. “My boat was a mess when I came in, but I have to thank Ranger for staying up with me until 10:30 Thursday night making sure I would be ready to go Friday morning.”
“I stayed in one spot most of the week, fishing shallow,” he added. “ I knew the other guys were going to be burning it up fishing deep, but I couldn’t get a bite deep. I was using choice baits, mostly crankbaits and throwing a jig.I have to tell you the fish here are big, mean, and ugly, but it has been an incredible week and I am ready to go home!”
Rounding out the top five pros were Keith Combs of Del Rio, Texas (15 bass, 87-14, $8,500); David Mullins of Coppell, Texas (15 bass, 76-14, $6,000); Justin Morton of Etoile, Texas (15 bass, 70-5, $4,500); and Richard Cremo of Laredo, Texas (12 bass, 68-7, $4,500).
David Mullins caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Pro Division Thursday – an 11-pound, 12-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s Big Bass award of $600.
Steve Hope of Ovilla, Texas, won the Co-angler Division and $10,000 with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 61 pounds, 6 ounces.
“I had a good pre-fish,” said Hope. “So I fished my strengths. I caught my big one this morning about 10:30 and was very fortunate the rest of the day. I was mostly using brush hogs.”
Hope caught five bass weighing 16 pounds Thursday while fishing with pro Jeffery Bunch of Lebanon, Tenn., to open the tournament in eighth place. On Friday he added five more bass weighing 18-4 to make the top-10 cut in fourth place while fishing with pro Jim Milson of Odessa, Texas. Finally, on Saturday, he sealed the win with five bass weighing 27-2 while fishing with David Mullins.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers were Bo Standley of Silsbee, Texas (15 bass, 59-11, $4,000); John Ellender, Jr. of Hemphill, Texas (11 bass, 52-14, $2,000); Tom Jeser of El Paso, Texas (12 bass, 49-4, $1,750); and Ryan Parker of Kaufman, Texas (13 bass, 45-1, $1,500).
Barry Bennett of San Angelo, Texas, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division Thursday – a 9-pound, 3-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s Big Bass award of $400.
After three qualifying events are complete in each FLW American Series division – Central, Northern, Southeast, and Texas – the top 50 pros and 50 co-anglers based on the points standings from each division advance to the FLW American Fishing Series Invitational on Wheeler Lake, in Decatur Ala., Nov. 4-6. The highest-finishing pro and co-angler from each division at the American Fishing Series Championship also qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.
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Arkansas pro Michael Yoder continued his lead today at the FLW American at Falcon Lake in Zapata, Texas with a two day total of 65-15. He had 38-04 yesterday and 27-11 today. Richard Cremo of Laredo, Texas brought in a whopping 34-01 pounds today to take over second place with 58-10 and Randy White of Haslet Texas is in third with 53-08. For more info about this event click here.
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Soundings Trade Only Today continues to publish more information regarding the Genmar Auction and as previously reported former Genmar CEO Irwin Jacobs landed one of the companies in the auction.
From Trade Only Today:
California-based Platinum Equity has purchased "essentially all the assets" of Genmar Holding's assets for $70 million, chief restructuring officer Mark Sheffert confirmed to Soundings Trade Only.
Genmar founder Irwin Jacobs, who along with a partner purchased the Carver and Marquis brands, said he still hopes to own additional brands Platinum Equity purchased, but were not part of the group's original bid.
Platinum purchased a total of 11 brands, Sheffert said. These include: Ranger, Stratos, Champion, Wellcraft, Four Winns, Larson, Glastron and others.
Carver and Marquis were purchased for $6.05 million by J & D Acquisitions, LLC, which is a company created by Jacobs, along with John Paul DeJoria.
MCBC Hydra Boats, a subsidiary of Wayzata Investment Partners, purchased HydraSports for $1 million, Sheffert said.
More information will be forthcoming.
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Trade Only today just posted more on the Genmar sale. Irwin Jacobs did bid and received Carver and Marquis. To read more click here.
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Wired2Fish.com and Get Outside Media are pleased to announce that Jason Sealock has accepted an offer and will be joining Wired2Fish. Sealock recently served as editor of FLW Outdoors Magazine and is well respected within the fishing industry and his experience with FLW Outdoors will only serve to strengthen that relationship with them moving forward. He will bring a world of value to all of the properties at Gemini Sport Marketing and Wired2Fish.com and will be involved in all facets of the web and future initiatives.
Sealock graduated from Arkansas Tech University in 1994 with a degree in Business/Marketing Management and is both Cisco and Microsoft certified. He has been a photographer for 11 years and at FLW Outdoors for five, the last four as editor of FLW Outdoors magazines.
“I’m sad about leaving FLW Outdoors and the great folks I’ve worked with for the last five years, but I’m extremely excited to be headed to Wired2Fish. This is a new opportunity for me to expand and grow in the fishing industry as well as utilize my 10 years of IT experience and thorough knowledge of social networking to improve everything we do. Wired2Fish.com has had such phenomenal growth the last two years, and the way they do things with such a positive flare has always been attractive to me as a passionate angler and editor.
“I’m very happy to join their team. I continue to support FLW Outdoors and other professional fishing organizations including B.A.S.S. and PAA. Charlie Evans, Kathy Fennel and the rest of the crew have been wonderful to work with, and I look forward to furthering a great partnership between FLW Outdoors and Wired2Fish. I’m anxious to work with the B.A.S.S. anglers as well. I’m friends with many of the pros but haven’t had much opportunity to work with them. Finally it will be wonderful to support and work with all my friends in the fishing tackle industry in an expanded role. I’m excited about all these opportunities and more.”
“I am thrilled to have Jason on our team,” said Terry Brown, President of Get Outside Media. “He is a leader in social networking, is proven as a technologist, and has a passion for fishing and information dissemination about our sport that is unsurpassed. His responsibilities will include all of our technology based initiatives including our W2F approved products, product evaluations and enhancing the information we bring to readers of Wired2Fish. He will not only be a huge asset for content but how it is presented as well. Jason will wear many hats here and I am particularly proud of what the future will hold at Wired2Fish and Gemini Sport Marketing with Jason on the team. Wired2fish readers can now expect more exciting information based and creative programs all with them in mind. It is our goal to provide the best in all facets of this industry and Jason will be a big part of how we do that moving forward.
"We are proud of our partnership with FLW Outdoors, the PAA and BASS, as well as several grassroots organizations and fishing related companies. This new position will allow Jason to broaden his purview to all areas of the industry."
Todd Hammill, COO and Wired2Fish.com added, "We are very excited to have Jason as the newest part of the Wired2Fish team. Jason will be integral in bringing Wired2Fish forward in social media and innovative technologies that will enhance our content, all aimed at a better overall reader experience. His love of fishing and passion for the people and products in this industry and understanding of the importance of relationships is a perfect match for our readership family."
Welcome aboard Jason!
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Trade Only Today is reporting that the Genmar Auction is over and there is multiple buyers. More information will be available later today. To read click here.
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The World Record Largemouth caught by George Perry in 1932 at 22 pounds 4 ounces now has a brother. Manabu Kurita's 22.5 pound largemouth was certified today by the IGFA as tying that record. Since it was not two ounces heavier it is considered a tie. The tying fish was caught July 2 on Lake Biwi in Japan. Kurita is a 33 year old angler from Kasugi, Japan.
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Those from the north know that ice fishing is more than simply something to do in the winter....its a passion. With most of the country in the deep freeze that passion may be heading south. Take a look at this video from Frabill and you will see that passion runs deep. To watch click here.
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Phoenix Boats President Gary Clouse announced today that Elite Series Pro Greg Hackney has made the move to Phoenix Boats. “Greg is obviously one of the biggest names in the industry and will be a great asset in our marketing efforts”, states Clouse. Greg will be fishing in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic in Birmingham in a Phoenix 721 Pro XP as well as the 2010 Bassmaster Elite Series.
“ After a visit to the Phoenix factory and seeing how these boats are built and meeting the management team, I knew this was the place for me to be,” stated Hackney. “ It is well known that the Bassmaster Elite Series puts a boat to the ultimate test, and with the materials and workmanship that goes into a Phoenix and hearing about the companies plans for the future, the decision was easy, “ he adds.
“ Greg is the type person that we are very comfortable partnering with,” says Clouse. “ First of all, he is a threat to win anywhere he goes. Equally important is the type person he is. We are very focused on working with anglers with high standards on and off the water. We are very excited about this and look forward to a long-term relationship."
"I am very excited and never thought I would leave Triton. For me personally, it fits. Phoenix is a small company but they build a quality product at a reasonable price. Phoenix is very fair. I get to deal one on one with the boss and that is important to me. I grew up in small town and Phoenix gives me that small town feel. Very personable people and this was a nice match. I am glad to be here" said Hackney.
Hackney has qualified for 9 Bassmaster Classics, has 2 Elite Series wins and 34 top 10’s. He is one of only 2 anglers to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic and the FLW Cup in 2008 as well as FLW Angler of the Year in 2005. His most recent win was the FLW Championship in Pittsburgh, collecting 500,000 dollars for his efforts.
Phoenix Boats is a Tennessee corporation headquartered in Tullahoma, Tn. in a modern 50,000 square foot facility on 10 acres. For more information contact Phoenix Boats, 210 Industrial Blvd. Tullahoma, Tn. 37388 Web address phoenixbassboats.com, Phone 931-455-2014 Fax 931-455 2086 E mail gclouse@phoenixbassboats.com
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For the past three years, FLW Outdoors has commenced the tournament season on Falcon Lake, perhaps the best black bass fishery in the world. Anglers from across the United States travel to the Texas-Mexico border to avoid the cold weather and battle some trophy fish. Truly, Falcon is an event many look forward to for months. But this time around, there are more frowns than grins.
The long faces are a direct result of a powerful front that is making Zapata feel more like North Dakota than Texas. Sustained winds of 30 mph made the 40-degree weigh-in temperature feel much colder. Instead of shorts, long johns were the crucial garment on day one.
The weather was so bad fishing the main lake was nearly out of the question and most anglers were just happy to be back safe. Thankfully a cold front in south Texas doesn’t completely shut down the bite like it does in Florida.
 FLW photo/Yoder
Just ask pro leader Michael Yoder, who caught an impressive five-bass limit weighing 38 pounds, 4 ounces.
“I went about 18 miles south towards the dam,” said Yoder, the only pro to surpass the coveted 30-pound mark. “The bite was strong. I caught eight fish and I was done by 11 a.m. Then my co-angler caught a nice kicker and I decided it was time to head back. But it took about an hour and a half to get back in.”
In the process of returning to weigh-in, Yoder had his trolling motor and graph ripped off his boat by violent waves. In addition, he lost four rods to the bottom of the lake. Consider them victims to an angry Falcon. All in all, he said the rollercoaster ride was worth it.
“Practice was just mediocre for me,” added the Texarkana, Ark., native. “Today I decided to go a spot that didn’t produce the best in practice, but looked the best to me. I just thought if I could get down there I could catch them and I did.”
Yoder wasn’t the only person in his boat sticking fish. His co-angler partner, Matt Weaver, also caught a nice limit. Weaver’s weighed 18 pounds, 9 ounces. Clearly, the pro leader is on some quality bass.
Yoder believes the fish themselves have not been affected by the cold weather; it’s the anglers that can’t get to and stay on their fish. Since most of the bass are still prespawn, staying on precise migratory routes is crucial.
“Believe it or not, they’re close to moving up. We’ll see what this weather brings.”
Combs crushes 29 pounds in 30 minutes
In second place is Del Rio, Texas, pro Keith Combs. Combs calls Lake Amistad home, but he is no stranger to Falcon’s plentiful waters. He guides on both lakes, and lately Falcon has been out-producing its upstream neighbor.
“I had a good day, but I thought I’d catch more to be honest,” said Combs, who finished day one with five bass weighing 29 pounds, 1 ounce. “I had a really good practice.”
Combs was boat No. 9 this morning. After reaching his spot, he had all of his weight in his Ranger livewell within a half hour. That was crucial, because by 11 a.m. he was no longer able to hold his position in the main river channel.
“I’m flipping a lane between two trees. I’m using big worms and creatures baits on Power Tackle Rods. These fish are so strong you need to lean on them immediately to get them out of the trees. These flipping sticks have been crucial.”
After weigh-in, Combs was pleasantly surprised with his position on the leaderboard.
“They’ve been biting. I never would have expected to be in second with 29-1. To fish for the win, I’ve got to catch as much as I can tomorrow. I guy can stumble on 40 pounds fast on this lake.
Mullins third with Big Bass
In third place with five bass weighing 28 pounds, 13 ounces is David Mullins of Coppell, Texas. Like Yoder, Mullins finished early and weighed his catch early.
Anchoring his solid limit was the Pro Division Big Bass. The Falcon Lake giant weighed 11-pounds, 12-ounces and earned Mullin $600.
White fourth
Randy White succeeded his expectations on day one by catching five bass worth 28 pounds even.
“The bite was far better for me today than it has been,” said the Haslet, Texas, pro. “I must have culled at least six times. This weather has been a plus.”
Like most, White sought protection from the wind in nearby pockets. But unlike most, he caught his fish shallow.
“I think some of the bigger fish have already moved up and committed. Whether they are still there tomorrow remains to be seen.”
Reneau fifth
Tim Reneau, also of Del Rio, Texas, rounded out the top five in the Pro Division with a limit weighing 27 pounds, 3 ounces. Fishing fans may remember Reneau finished second at the first major tournament ever held on Falcon in 2008.
“I fished the main lake for as long as I could today,” he said. “I caught two big fish and lost another. But that was it. I have no batteries left – cranking or trolling. It was that rough.”
Reneau said he is working three small spots he found in practice. All three are in what he described as the mid-depth range.
“These are just little bitty spots. With this wind, you can’t make the right cast and you can’t stay on the spot. Tomorrow should be better.”
Rest of the best
Rounding out the top 10 pros after day one on Falcon Lake:
6th: Bill Glascock of Kingston, Okla., 25-15
7th: Justin Morton of Etoile, Texas, 25-8
8th: Michael Herron of Paris, Texas, 25-7
9th: Dave Parsons of Yantis, Texas, 25-3
10th: Billy Cline of Grapevine, Texas, 24-15
Bennett bags biggest co-angler sack
San Angelo, Texas, native Barry Bennett caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 12 ounces to lead day one of the tournament in the Co-angler Division.
Anchoring Bennett’s limit was the Co-angler Division Big Bass. His Falcon monster weighed 9 pounds, 3 ounces and was worth $400. Bennett caught his fish behind Tolar, Texas, pro Toby Wallace.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers after day one on Falcon Lake:
2nd: Bo Standley of Silsbee, Texas, 20-1
3rd: Tom Jeser of El Paso, Texas, 19-1
4th: Weaver of Sweetwater, Texas, 18-9
5th: Bob Grady of Denton, Texas, 17-7
6th: Donny Davis of Livingston, La., 17-2
7th: Jeff Turner of Lufkin, Texas, 16-7
8th: Steve Hope of Ovilla, Texas, 16-0
9th: Robert Shields of Graland, Texas, 15-13
10th: Michael Taylor of Sam Rayburn, Texas, 15-1
Day two of Texas Division competition on Falcon Lake begins today as the field took off from the Zapata County Boat Ramp at 7:30 a.m. Central time Friday. Following Friday’s weigh-in, the field will be cut to the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers.
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The off-season is filled with all kinds of off-the-water duties like tackle inventory, reel cleaning, and boat maintenance. The devil is definitely in the detail. One item that is often missed but one that is essential is the bump board. A misplaced step, normal wear and tear or an angry moment can made that old bump board inaccurate. The slightest bend and a 15 inch fish is really 14 and 3/4. Weighmasters do not like short fish so it is definitely an item that needs to be checked.
Gator Grip owner Brook Johnson, builder of professional grade bump boards, is critical about his boards being exact. "We make every effort to make sure our boards leave here precise but a couple of things can happen. During shipment they can get bent, anglers can bend them in the boat and its important that they get checked. Its easy to make sure they are square. Get a T-square or combination square from a local hardware store and place it against the bend in the board to assure it is a true 90 degree right angle. Do it on the back of the board."
"We have 7 different styles of board and each are different. We have 1/4 inch and 1/8 inch and of course the 1/8 inch board is more susceptable to bending. You can use a vice and a rubber mallet to straighten it. You may find that a new board is in your future" said Johnson.
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Gander Mountain announced that professional Bass angler Dean Rojas has become a member of the Gander Mountain Pro Staff. In his role, Rojas will appear on behalf of Gander Mountain on the Bassmaster Elite Series circuit, as well as at store and industry events.
As a young boy growing up in San Diego, Calif., Rojas spent many hours fishing for bluegill leading to his desire to become a professional angler. In 2001 Rojas won the Lake Toho 150 event in Kissimmee, Fla., with the highest single-day, five-fish weight ever recorded in a B.A.S.S. event. He set the total four-day world record with a 20 fish total of 108-12 lbs., beating the existing mark in just three days. By the end of the fourth day, he bettered his own record by 15 lbs. Besides his world record-setting effort in Kissimmee, Rojas is an eight-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier. In 2008 he exceeded $1 million in career earnings. Rojas is also the designer of a best-selling line of frog Bass lures that are available through Gander Mountain.
Dean Rojas welcomes Gander Mountain as a sponsor. He said, “Gander Mountain is a company that is committed to aggressively growing the outdoors market and their brand even in these challenging times. I appreciate the opportunity to help grow the sport and the industry that I love.”
The new partnership is a perfect fit with Gander Mountain's culture, according to Gander Mountain's senior vice president of marketing, Steve Uline, who said, “Gander Mountain shares Dean's incredible passion for fishing and the outdoors.” He continued, "Dean Rojas is widely known by fans on the Bassmaster Elite Series circuit. He understands Gander Mountain’s 'We Live Outdoors' culture and we think he is the perfect angler to showcase our fishing products and be an ambassador for our company.
For more on Dean Rojas and Gander Mountain visit www.deanrojas.com and www.GanderMountain.com
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2010 Bassmaster Season Kicks Off Jan. 14-16 on Florida’s Lake Okeechobee
Chris Lane has at least two reasons to love the “Big O.”
A Florida native now living on Alabama’s Lake Guntersville, the Bassmaster Elite Series pro has a good history on the “Big O” — Florida’s vast Lake Okeechobee. In 2004, he scored a fourth-place Bassmaster Open finish there, then returned in 2006 for a win in the Bassmaster Southern Open.
Lane is hoping the Jan. 14-16 Southern Open on Okeechobee will make it three reasons to love the lake. Fishing conditions are expected to be ideal, Lane said, for the event that will kick off the 2010 Bassmaster tournament season.
Launches will be at 7 a.m. ET Thursday-Saturday at C. Scott Driver Park, 2800 NE 20th Trail, Okeechobee, Fla. Weigh-ins are set for 3 p.m. ET at the park. All activities are free and open to the public.
BASS has conducted 18 previous pro-level events on Okeechobee. What’s on the line at the 2010 Southern Open season opener is a first-place pro prize of $45,000 and valuable points. An angler amasses points throughout the season in an attempt to win one of seven invitations to join the 2011 Elite Series, and to land one of two berths in the 2011 Bassmaster Classic awarded through the circuit.
“The lake is really in good shape right now,” said Lane, who won on Okeechobee in 2006 with 54 pounds, 12 ounces over three days on a frog pattern. His best guess on a 2010 winning weight was “right around 70 over three days,” or about 23 pounds a day.
“Since the hurricanes (2004-2005), the vegetation has grown back a lot, the water has good clarity, the fish are strong, and there are lots of them,” he said. “This cold front’s going to knock them down a good notch, and the outcome of the tournament will depend on the weather.”
The frigid air masses that have covered the South are expected to give way to warmer temperatures by tournament time.
“If the weather warms, we’ll see some really big bags of fish come in,” Lane said. “If it stays cold, it’s going to be tough.”
The nickname “Big O” stems from the way the fishery sprawls across southern Florida like a circular inland sea — albeit a very shallow one. Wind and water levels can quickly alter fishing and navigation conditions. Right now, the lake is about at full pool of 13 1/2 feet, Lane said, and one never can predict what the wind will do.
As the first of three tournaments of the Southern division of the Bassmaster Open circuit, the Okeechobee event has attracted extreme interest from competitors. The Big O can handle it, Lane said.
“In an Okeechobee tournament, you’ll have sections where there will be 50 boats, then 50 in another area, and 50 in another, and the other boats scattered,” Lane said. “But the lake’s big, so I don’t think it’s going to be crowded at all. There’s so much vegetation, you can get into areas where you’ll be by yourself.”
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Want to know more about fishing a Strike King Sexy Spoon...check out the video from Bass Tackle Depot with Mark Rose by clicking here. |
BASS photo
Renowned angler Michael Iaconelli and fishing industry leaders Abu Garcia, Spiderwire and Berkley entered into agreement for the upcoming 2010-tournament season. Beginning January 1, 2010, Iaconelli will fish Abu Garcia rods and reels, Berkley and Spiderwire line and Berkley PowerBait and Gulp! products exclusively.“We are very excited to have Mike join our Abu Garcia and Spiderwire Teams,” said Chris Derrick, Brand Manager. “He is one of the best athletes in the sport and this partnership will help us develop new and innovative products while helping Mike elevate his game.”
The Pittsgrove, NJ native has enjoyed an illustrious career on the fishing tournament trail wrapping up 6 first-place titles, 42 top-ten finishes, 67 top-twenty finishes and amassing over $1.6 million in career earnings. Iaconelli also claimed the 2006 Angler of the Year title and hosts City Limits Fishing that is featured on the Versus network.
“This partnership is huge,” said Iaconelli. “It is a privilege to be working with Abu Garcia, Spiderwire and Berkley. When you think about fishing these are the big names that everyone recognizes. The partnership with these major fishing brands is one that holds a lot of promise. Their technologically advanced products will be a tremendous asset to me on the competitive circuits. I look forward to continuing a very successful relationship with the folks at Pure Fishing."
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The second installment of Strike King's Pro Team Journal airs Friday on the Outdoor Channel at 1:00pm EST, the second airing will be at 10:00pm EST and Sunday it will air 6:30am EST. Mark Rose and Strike King Marketing Director Chris Brown get after some of the green guys in Arkansas. This should be a good one.
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BASS announced Thursday the field for the 2010 Bassmaster Elite Series, the most visible and prestigious tournament trail in fishing. The field of 95 of the world’s top anglers will visit 8 fisheries during the Elite Series regular season and will compete to advance to the Bassmaster Elite Series postseason.
The decorated field accounts for 15 Bassmaster Classic titles, 19 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year trophies and more than 200 BASS victories. The Elite circuit will kick off in more than two months with the March 11-14 Duel in the Delta on the California Delta out of Stockton, Calif.
“Once again, the Elite Series, through its difficult set of qualifying standards, has produced a collection of the most talented anglers in the sport,” said Jamie Wilkinson, BASS senior director of events and business development.
Please see the complete alphabetically ordered list of qualifying anglers and their hometowns below.
2010 Bassmaster Elite Series Anglers
- Casey Ashley Donalds, S.C.
- Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, Okla.
- Tommy Biffle Wagoner, Okla.
- Denny Brauer Camdenton, Mo.
- Brent Broderick Oregonia, Ohio
- Stephen Browning Hot Springs, Ark.
- Mark Burgess Norton, Mass.
- Terry Butcher Talala, Okla. .
- Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, Kan.
- Rick Clunn Ava, Mo.
- Jeff Connella Bentley, La.
- John Crews Salem, Va.
- Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, La.
- Mark Davis Mount Ida, Ark.
- Boyd Duckett Demopolis, Ala.
- Guy Eaker Cherryville, N.C.
- Paul Elias Laurel, Miss.
- Edwin Evers Talala, Okla.
- Todd Faircloth Jasper, Texas
- Jami Fralick Martin, S.D.
- Vince Fulks Purcell, Okla.
- Grant Goldbeck Boerne, Texas
- Pat Golden High Point, N.C.
- Matt Greenblatt Tequesta, Fla.
- Chad Griffin Cresson, Texas
- Shaw Grigsby Gainesville, Fla.
- Wade Grooms Bonneau Beach, S.C.
- Greg Hackney Gonzales, La.
- Bradley Hallman Norman, Okla.
- Charlie Hartley Grove City, Ohio
- Byron “B.J.” Haseotes Centerville, Mass.
- Matt Herren Trussville, Ala.
- Kenyon Hill Norman, Okla.
- Davy Hite Ninety Six, S.C.
- Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, Ala.
- Randy Howell Springville, Ala.
- Michael Iaconelli Pittsgrove, N.J.
- Alton Jones Woodway, Texas
- Kelly Jordon Mineola, Texas
- Steve Kennedy Auburn, Ala.
- Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, Ala.
- Gary Klein Weatherford, Texas
- Jeff Kriet Ardmore, Okla.
- Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL
- Chris Lane Guntersville, Alabama
- Russ Lane Prattville, Alabama
- Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, Calif.
- Bill Lowen North Bend, Ohio
- Aaron Martens Leeds, Ala.
- Billy McCaghren Mayflower, Ark.
- Mike McClelland Bella Vista, Ark.
- Mark Menendez Paducah, Ky.
- Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, Texas
- Ish Monroe Hughson, Calif.
- Rick Morris Lake Gaston, Va..
- John Murray Phoenix, Ariz.
- Britt Myers Lake Wylie, N.C.
- James Niggemeyer Van, Texas
- Takahiro Omori Emory, Texas
- Cliff Pace Petal, Miss.
- Keith Poche Troy, Ala.
- Pete Ponds Madison, Miss.
- Jason Quinn York, S.C.
- Matt Reed Madisonville, Texas
- Clark Reehm Russellville, Ark.
- Skeet Reese Auburn, Calif.
- Derek Remitz Grant, Ala.
- Marty Robinson Lyman, S.C.
- Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
- Scott Rook Little Rock, Ark.
- Fred Roumbanis Bixby, Okla.
- Zell Rowland Austin, Texas
- Bradley Roy Lancaster, Ky.
- Bernie Schultz Gainesville, Fla.
- Terry Scroggins San Mateo, Fla.
- Morizo Shimizu Suita, Japan
- Kevin Short Mayflower, Ark.
- David Smith Edmond, Okla.
- Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, Mo.
- Matthew Sphar Attica, N.Y.
- Jeremy Starks Charleston, W.Va.
- Marty Stone Fayetteville, N.C.
- Gerald Swindle Warrior, Ala.
- Peter Thliveros St. Augustine, Fla.
- Dennis Tietje Roanoke, La.
- J. Todd Tucker Moultrie, Ga.
- Mark Tucker Saint Louis, Mo.
- Mark Tyler Vian, Okla.
- Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich.
- Byron Velvick Del Rio, Texas
- Greg Vinson Wetumpka, Ala.
- Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, N.C.
- Jason Williamson Wagener, S.C.
- Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky.
- Dave Wolak Wake Forest, N.C.
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The Professional Anglers Association (PAA) is announcing their PAA Payday Program for 2010. The program is a continuation of the tournament bonus program from 2009. Potential bonuses range from $250 to $1,000! Bonuses are paid to winners of an even longer list of sanctioned bass tournaments when the anglers are PAA members.
John Crews, the PAA President, said that the organization is proud to continue such a beneficial program for their members. “This idea started as a way to pay money back to our members. The program grew our membership and we paid out over $15,000 in the first year. We hope our members keep winning and we keep growing.”
For 2010, the PAA Payday Program continues to have multiple levels. The Weekend Winners program includes Fishers of Men, Team Trails, BASS Weekend Series, ABA and many more events. Those events pay $250 to the winner of a regular season event as long as they are a PAA member before the event. The Advantage Winners program pays a $750 bonus to the winners of certain regular sanctioned events, which include WBT, BASS Opens, FLW Stren Series, and others. Advantage winners must be Advantage level members. Current dues are $50 for General, $150 for Advantage, and $400 for Tour level membership.
The list of sanctioned events will be continually updated on our website. The PAA is constantly considering tournament trails for the PAA Payday Program. For more information on the PAA Payday Program and interest in having a tournament trail included or for general information about the Professional Anglers Association, visit our website at www.fishpaa.com, or contact the PAA office at 270-527-2030.
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Thanks to everyone for participating in the Wired2Fish Holiday Potluck Contest. We broke all of our records for participation and will not let up on the gas going forward.
Stay tuned for some other great contests....we have some real doozeys up our sleeve.
Don't forget we have a cool Wired2Fish "Are You Wired Contest" going on right now where two lucky winners will get a full arsenal of Wired2Fish clothing and materials from Gemini Sport Marketing.
The winner of the Holiday Contest is......
Kyle Hagemann
Ft. Rucker, AL
Kyle, your package is on the way.
Thanks again to all of the great advertisers for all the great products!
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Today on Unplugged presented by Berkley Wired Contributor Pete Robbins writes about how we as anglers are watched and acting right is noticed. Chad Griffin, BASS Elite Angler, who recently won the Oneida event is that type of example. To read it click here.
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Cresson, Tex. (by way of Syracuse, New York) – Helen of Troy may have had the face that launched a thousand ships, but Bassmaster Elite Series pro Chad Griffin is one up on her. Not only did he pocket a check for a hundred grand, enough to stock a third world country with Ezee jigs and beat up Zell Pops, but apparently his mug, and his fishing, inspired the bards of the Great White North New York to put pen to paper.
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Winter is good for several things. Bugs die. Honey do lists are shortened. Anglers get to spend a ton of time surfing the net and tackle gets sorted. Not much good for fishing unless you like to ice fish but its a great time to do inventory and get tackle ready to go. Another thing we like to do is clean up our reels and check our boat equipment.
As with many Wired readers we have way too much stuff. Instead of looking for a specific spinnerbait, we bought more. Instead of building an inventory system with specific baits catagorized by type and color, we had boxes of goulash. Worms, beavers, tubes, grubs, and creature baits in Rubbermaid tubs. Some as old as Virgil Ward videos and many beyond repair. Not anymore. They are now inventoried, placed in Plano boxes by type and all are now in the computer. Twenty bags of Zoom Lizards...check. Strike King Sexy Shad cranks....check. Rapala DT6's...check. Terminal tackle and line....check. All in their proper location on shelving and all in a computerized inventory list by shelf and box. All are labeled with a waterproof label and all are ready. It truly is scary that it's this neat.
The fall out of all of this is what we call the "Greasy Box". A chaquita banana box that is a combination of old plastic, that may be a treasure to some, but to dig through it all you need a pair of rubber gloves and a shop towel. Honey Hole Lizards, Ditto Gatortail worms, Kalin Grubs, Mr. Twister Trailers, Culprit worms still on the pod, and all swimming in their respective goo. Hard to believe that each of these baits were packaged in their own respective secret ingredients and when mixed together are slicker than a pair of penny loafers on an ice skating rink. This treasure trove has seen a lot of sets of hands go through it. All giveaways and hopefully a few big fish will come of it for lucky club members. Once a heap of slimy plastic bags has now dwindled down to a small pile of oily plastic bags.
The past few weekends here at Wired2Fish World Headquarters in Illinois we have used this time to clean reels, listen to tunes and get everything ready for that first spring trip. The cleaning of reels takes preparation and the right tools. A crow bar and a hammer won't get the job done but on some reels we have definitely thought about using them. Cleaning reels should be an every year deal but like the plastics mess time gets away and "We'll get to it next year syndrome" happens more than we would like. With a little oil, a little grease, a few shop rags, and a box of Q-Tips you can take an old reel and make it perform like new again. This is also a good time to do reel repair if it is necessary.
Here is how we do it.
1. Remove all of the old line. Even the backing. This allows you to clean the entire reel and its not like fighting a nest of jelly fish with the line removed. The backing can be a knarled mess and can adversely impact the reels performance so it is always good to remove it each year.
2. If you didn't do it when you put them away......loosen all of the drags. Drag systems can lock up and a siezed drag puts that reel in the "Greasy Box".
3. Start on the outside of the reel first. We use the new Ardent Reel Kleen. A quick shot and the outside, a once over with a Q-Tip and a paper towel and they are ready to be broken down.
4. Take the reel apart. We always keep the reel boxes as they will have part lists, oil and a reel wrench in them. We start on the gear side of the reel cleaning each part that we take off as we go. A special white buffing towel holds all of the loose parts as we dismantle. White is very important as it allows old eyes to see parts much easier. Some parts get grease and some oil and our choice for oil is the new Reel Butter by Ardent. Our choice for grease is the Abu Garcia grease. Both are easy to apply and both will not gum up. A thorough cleaning of all parts before oiling/greasing is mandatory. After lubricating we hit all of the parts with Bow to Stern Protectant and put it back together again. The BTS keeps any varmits like microscopic microbes out of the reel and protects it even further. We take a rag and wipe the outer sides of the spool with silicone to keep if spinning freely. We oil the worm gear and the bars the level wind run on as well.
5. After the reel is put back together we wipe the entire reel down again and give it a top coat of BTS wiping the extra off. We then put each reel in a ziplock sandwich bag and they are ready for the spring. Leave the bag open a bit so any moisture can escape. Each reel is put on the shelf and added to the inventory. Reels that need parts are noted on the bag and parts are ordered from the manufacturer for replacement. They are put on a separate shelf until parts arrive. New parts are placed in the reel and a new ziplock bag is used.
Some of you make think this is way too anal and a hassle but rest assured we have some reels that are over 25 years old and work like the day we got them. A little time in the cold, dank days of winter and spring fishing will be a lot more fun.
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Wired2Fish friend Dan O'Sullivan, of Bass Tackle Depot, recently attended the Strike King writers event on Reel Foot Lake and shot some cool videos from the pro's there. You want to know something about crankbaits and "sexy"...talk to Kevin VanDam.
To take a look at the video's click here and then click on the video icon near the bottom of the page. |
 Cook's photo
Cook's Go-To Tackle System has joined Wired2Fish as an advertiser for 2010. The Cook's system is designed for bass boats and keeps most of your tackle organized and in place. "I have been in business 7 years and we have a very loyal following" said Darrell Cook, owner of Cook's. "We build a quality product that provides flexibility and convenience for your fishing tackle. Everything you need for your fishing...it’s your 'go-to" baits location for the essentials.” Cooks offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee and its American made.
To learn more click here.
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Powerhouse angler Jay Yelas will be teaching at the Sacramento Bass University, in place of Michael Bennett who had a scheduling conflict, and will be talking about swim baits and how they have impacted his fishing. He will also take about all types of jig fishing in his second session. Sign ups are still ongoing at www.thebassuniversity.com. Dinner with the pro's will also be a special feature as a contest at the event. Two students will be chosen for this experience.
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Kevin VanDam, the world's best bass angler, talks with Terry Brown on Wired Radio today about organizing the boat using Plano tackle boxes and systems. To listen click here. |
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Markel American Insurance Company, a leader in boating and powersports coverage, has partnered with the Professional Anglers Association and the 2010 Bass Pro Shops Tournament Series. Markel has specialized in boat coverage for over 30 years, and they understand the needs of both recreational and professional anglers alike. PAA member Shaw Grigsby is part of the Markel promotional staff, but he has been a customer for far longer than a spokesman. According to Shaw, “Markel understands the type of coverage fishermen need. It is by far the most affordable, most complete boat insurance on the water.”
Markel’s experience has allowed them to develop coverage tailored to today’s angler. Their expanded involvement in the tournament fishing community began in 2008, when Markel fielded a PAA Corporate Cup team consisting of Shaw Grigsby, Jim Murray, and two Markel Insurance associates.
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The team had a blast and Markel recognized a great fit with tournament fishermen. Since that first event, Markel has continued to get more involved by participating in the Toyota Texas Bass Classic, and becoming the official insurance provider of Fisher’s of Men.
There is a lot to like about a Markel American Insurance policy besides the competitive prices. An optional Fishing Equipment Package ensures that in the event of a covered loss, anglers receive replacement cost coverage of their gear, including: Rods, reels, lures, tackle boxes, depth finders, and trolling motors. In addition to this great coverage, Markel also offers a Tournament Fee Reimbursement program just in case a breakdown prevents you from competing in an event. For the professional anglers among us, Markel also offers a Professional Angler Liability coverage that adds a layer of protection for those that make their living on the water.
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Menendez and Niggemeyer sign with BioEdge Scents...
 
The Bassmaster Classic is the crown jewel of the Bassmaster Tournament Trail and again, in a little over a month, a new champion will be crowned for 2010 . Two of the 2010 contenders have received an edge. BioEdge an industry innovator has added Bassmaster Classic Qualifiers James Niggemeyer and Mark Menendez to their national prostaff.BioEdge produces scents in various forms. BioEdge Potions and Wands have been successfully tested in the field over four years. The scent has developed an enthusiastic following in both fresh and saltwater environments.BioEdge Potions are highly concentrated solutions of oils, pheromones, enzymes, amino acids and natural feeding stimulants. Each is available in a 2oz squirt bottle. Potions can be applied to live or cut baits, flies and soft plastic lures. Marinate soft plastics with a squirt of BioEdge Potion and they will absorb and slowly release powerful bait extracts for hours. BioEdge Wands are made with the same concentrated oils plus a solidifying agent. Wand applications are very similar to a glue stick in function. They are mess free and do not spill. You can quickly and easily coat your metal or hard plastic lures, sinkers, leaders and other terminal tackle with 100% natural long lasting fish attracting scent.
BioEdge President Peter Cowin said, “BioEdge is proud to associate with two outstanding individuals such as James and Mark. We will rely on the extensive knowledge these two anglers bring to our company. We wish them the best of luck at the 2010 Bassmaster Classic and Elite Series.”
"Presentation is a big key to triggering strikes and with BioEdge scents my lures will not only look the part, but they will actually smell like the forage I am trying to replicate. BioEdge offers a wide variety scents that are made from the creature itself. Now my baits can closely match the smell and taste of the particular forage bass are feeding on any given day! This will allow me to take my angling effectiveness to another level." James Niggemeyer - two time Bassmaster Classic Qualifier and Elite Series Pro. .
“The ease of application, powerful ingredients, and duration on my baits all add up to more opportunities to catch the next fish. As a tournament fisherman, BioEdge is the extra edge needed to hold the top prize at the end of the tournament.” Mark Menendez – five time Bassmaster Classic Qualifier and Elite Series Pro
BioEdge Potions or Wands may be found at the following locations: Bass Pro Shops, Cabela’s, and independent retailers across the country. For additional information or to request a media kit on the BioEdge line of products, go to www.BioEdgefishing.com, www.bioedgefishing.com/pb_html/pb07232008143446.php (media kit), and or call 1-800-783-7002.
Additional stories and fishing tips may be found at Mark Menendez’s website- www.markmenendez.com
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 Guck photo
By Alan McGuckin
Kevin VanDam and Tom Brady are champions of their respective sports, and a gracious demeanor grounded in relationships with family and friends ever-stabilizes the sea of their success.
No huge surprise, Kevin VanDam is a big fan of the Patriots’ star quarterback. Largely because when they shook hands nearly eight years ago, Brady and VanDam got along well and mutual respect was easily sensed.
VanDam met Brady at the 2002 ESPY Awards and became an instant fan of the 2-time Super Bowl MVP. “He and his teammates made me feel like they really, really respected the fact that I made a living as a professional bass fisherman,” said VanDam.
“Tom had a lot of his family there at the ESPY Awards and we got to spend a lot of time with them. He comes from a great family. While he could have a giant ego, he absolutely does not, he was actually kind of fascinated by the fact that I’m a professional fisherman,” said the reining Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year.
Brady will lead his team to the playoffs once again, despite a season that has had its share of challenges, including what appears to be a season ending injury for his star receiver Wes Welker.
Meanwhile, VanDam solidified his reputation as bass fishing’s best angler with a remarkable 5th Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title in 2009.
“I really started rooting for him while he was playing here for the Michigan Wolverines. I’ve admired the way he handles himself throughout his entire college and pro career. He’s always modest and quick to give credit to his offensive line, his receivers and his running backs,” explained VanDam.
Maintaining intensity is a trait we’ve come to know VanDam for, and not surprisingly, he sees the same in Brady. “Like me, Tom seems to only worry about the things he can control. He doesn’t seem to get rattled when he throws an interception and I don’t get rattled by bad weather. You can tell Tom isn’t fazed by the uncontrollables. He maintains intensity and I respect that,” said bass fishing’s Mr. Intensity.
“I wear a Patriots jersey because of Tom Brady. If he got traded to Team X then I’d be a fan of Team X,” concluded VanDam.
Tom Brady and Kevin VanDam. They are winners, and they treat those around them like winners too.
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FLW and Ranger pro Pete Gluszek talks with Terry Brown today on Wired Radio about the upcoming Bass University classes. To listen click here.
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Yamaha Marine Group announced today “The Sign and Save Sales Event,” a promotion that provides the consumer with a credit for goods and services from the dealer.
“We want to provide the greatest value possible for the consumer,” said Dale Barnes, Yamaha Marine Group division manager marketing.
The promotion provides the purchasing consumer a credit of up to $3,500 based on MSRP towards the purchase of goods and/or services available at the authorized participating Yamaha Outboard dealer that sold the outboard at no extra cost to the purchasing consumer.
It is available for eligible new outboards sold, delivered and warranty registered by authorized participating Yamaha dealers from January 1, 2010 through March 31, 2010.
The promotion supports an extensive range of new Yamaha outboards, including HPDI® and Carbureted Two Stroke outboards and 2.5 to 60 hp four- stroke outboards manufactured since April 2005 that are sold, warranty registered and delivered by March 31, 2010.
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Yamaha Marine Group announced today a new promotion that offers warranty protection up to the year 2016 on eligible outboards by providing the purchasing consumer a 3-year Y.E.S. Yamaha Extended Service contract at no extra cost.
“Adding a Y.E.S. contract to a new Yamaha outboard is a proven way to add value for the consumer,” said Dale Barnes, Yamaha Marine Group division manager marketing. “Many customers want the extra security of six years of coverage.”
The promotion is available on eligible, new outboards sold, delivered and warranty registered by authorized participating Yamaha dealers from January 1 through March 31, 2010.
The promotion supports an extensive range of new Yamaha outboards, including 75-150 hp four-stroke outboards, 200-250 3.3-liter four-stroke outboards and 300-350 hp four-stroke outboards manufactured since April 2005 that are sold, warranty registered and delivered by March 31, 2010. Additional terms, conditions and procedures apply.
Yamaha Marine products are marketed throughout the United States and around the world. Yamaha Marine Group, based in Kennesaw, Ga., supports its 2,000 U.S. dealers and OEM partners with marketing, training and parts for Yamaha’s full line of products and strives to be the industry leader in reliability, technology and customer service.
Yamaha Marine is the only outboard brand to have earned NMMA®’s C.S.I. Customer Satisfaction Index award every year since its inception. Visit www.yamahaoutboards.com.
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BASS Bulletin Today: BASS eliminated the Women's Bassmaster Tour from the Bassmaster Tournament Trail Monday. Despite BASS' best efforts to grow the WBT, participation levels have been declining significantly since the inception of the tour in 2005.
WBT anglers who already registered for 2010 WBT events will be provided a full refund, and interested WBT anglers will be given every opportunity to register for BASS events they are eligible for.
"This was a very tough decision and one that we didn't take lightly," said Tom Ricks, BASS general manager and vice president. "We made every effort to grow the WBT — even awarding WBT anglers a berth in the Classic — but ultimately it didn't resonate."
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Hook n' Look has started Season 3 and it looks like another great year. Kim and Danny Stricker have some of the best underwater filming on the planet. Click here to see the preview from episode 2 on Bull Shoals with Ranger's Keith Daffron. |
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FLW Magazine Editor Jason Sealock has a great blog and he recently did an article about tackle storage via Plano shelving and boxes. Good piece and gives a great option for keeping your tackle organized!
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Sgt Jason Redding sent us his resolutions for 2010. Seems many fit all of us. Here they are:
1. Take my son and daughter fishing more and find a good set of ear protectors so my son doesn't hook me with a rattle trap again.
2. Lose weight so that my boat will go faster and have a better hole shot
3. Find a job that does not involve carrying a weapon on my side.
4. Find joy in the little things for they are what you miss most when you are away from home.
5. Put together a Bass Club and hire a interpreter for when we have to travel up north.
6. Tell my wife that I love her more often because you never know when it will be your last chance.
7. Put together a program to take kids fishing that may not have the chance otherwise.
8. Tell people about how little things affect some people in a big way.
9. Figure out what all the buttons on my depth finder actually do.
10. Change my conversation effort from catch and put in the grease to catch and release. (See Resolution 2)
11. Find a way for me and my father to fish together again because he has MS and is in a wheel chair.
12. Thank my parents for putting up with me all these years.
13. Tell my mom to quit telling dad that it's your fault he fishes to much.
14. Thank the people who support the Military because with them there is no cause for action.
15. Meet the guys at Wired2Fish and put in a resume in case the cloneing doesn't work.
16. Take every day on the water as a learning experience and a blessing.
17. Figure out why the state bird in Louisiana is not the mosquito.
18. Call thermo cell and thank them for the bird abatement.
19. Slow down in life.
20. Be thankful for what I have and not what I want. (Very hard for a bass fisherman.)
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 BASS photo
Although most of the country is in a deep, frigid freeze, the fishing season is just around the corner. Anglers are preparing for both the BASS Southern Open on Lake Okeechobee and the FLW American Series on Falcon. Both harbor Florida strain largemouth and both can be very difficult during cold fronts. A warming trend on both lakes could be a bonanza for both destinations. FLW will be fishing this weekend while BASS will start in a little over a week.
Okeechobee is again full and although its been a while since the Opens were on the Big O it looks to be a good one. Elite Series pro Chris Lane won the last BASS Open on Okeechobee in 2006. This event is scheduled for January 14-16, 2010. BASS allows 175 boats in its field.
Words are hard to find to describe Falcon and its unbelievable numbers of bass. FLW anglers heading to the fabled fishery are looking at what could be another record breaking tournament. Big fish have been biting and the century mark could be in jeapardy in the 3 day event scheduled for January 7-9, 2010. FLW allows 150 boats in its field.
We are ready for 2010 fishing to begin and stay tuned to Wired2Fish for details from both events.
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