choosing the size of your jigs...

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, I know, boring. I understand that tech talk about fishing can get tedious and boring and it doesnt matter how much you read about something, it will not sink in until you get out and try it. So here is something yall can practice without much thought. I watch and see alot of cats using big heavy jigs in places that its not all that necessary. I giant 1/2 ounce jig has its place for sure but just because its heavy doesnt mean its going to catch bigger fish. Go to your tackle, look at a 1/2 ounce jig and compare it to a 3/16 ounce jig. Not much difference in the profile is there? Alot of bass fisherman make the mistake of confusing size with weight and when its time to choose a "big bass bait" you bypass the 3/16 and go for the 1/2. Mistake. Bass dont care how heavy something is, they may care how big it is but in profile, not weight. The weight should only really be considered when depth and cover are the main concerns. If you are fishing in 25 feet of water or you are fishing in really dense brush then a heavier jig might be necessary but if you are fishing shallow, riprap, edges of vegetation like cattails and grass, anything that you dont have to punch through, the lightest jig you can pitch will catch you more fish. I will elaborate.

What are jigs meant to mimic? Crayfish? Baitfish? Usually one or the other depending on your presentation and your color selection. A heavy jig goes straight to the bottom and digs into the ground, it gets hung more often and its sometimes harder to work. A light jig glides to the bottom, it skims across the ground and it is much easier to manipulate. Think about what a crayfish does, it glides along the bottom, it lightly tiptoes along the ground and when it takes off to get away from a predator, it doesnt hop up and down, it bolts away and then glides back to the bottom. Its hard to mimic that with a 1/2 once jig. Same thing goes if you are trying to mimic bait fish like bluegills, they dont lay on the bottom dragging a trail through the mud do they? You may need a 1/2 jig from time to time, they are great for fishing deep water because they allow you to feel the bottom, they are also great for fishing thick brush because they will get down through the muck but they have limitations and fishing in shallow rock (a place where bass hunt for crayfish) is absolutely one of those limitations.

When your deciding your jig size, use depth and cover to dictate weight and if your trying to get a kicker fish, mix up the size of your profile rather then the weight of your jigs. The trailer and skirt you choose to fish with can give you whatever profile you need to catch the big dogs but the weight of the jig will only effect your presentation and workability. Try downsizing, not size, just weight.

S.T.P.

A note that I may re-post from time to time...

Ive had a few comments here and there and I have replied to all of them from my email. To my dismay, those replies have not made it to the original sender. So to those that have made comments, I greatly appreciate it and I also am very thankful for those of you that have clicked the "follow" button. If and when I can figure a way to reply directly to those that have commented, I absolutely will.

S.T.P.

What would you do?

I'm a fierce competitor. I absolutely hate to lose. I hate losing jeopardy, I hate losing miniature golf, I hate losing bowling and I get extremely pissy when bass kick my butt. There is nothing worse to see your goals within reach only to have them snatched from you at the last second especially if its something out of your control.
I had a chance to meet and exchange numbers with Fletcher Shryock at a tournament a few weeks ago at Buckeye Lake. Fletcher is the guy that won the Lake Norman B.A.S.S. open last month. This guy is a great dude and I think he wants to succeed more then anyone Ive ever met. Anyway, after talking to him a bit, he told me that he is actually still on the waiting list for the Douglas tournament. For those of you who are not in the know. If you win a B.A.S.S. open, you are qualified to fish the Bassmaster Classic next season. The only stipulation is that you have to have fished all three tournaments in the division. So here Fletcher is, slot for the Bassmaster Classic locked up, all he has to do is get into the Douglas tournament and he is in, problem is, the field is full and there are three dudes ahead of him awaiting a slot in the Douglas tournament as well. That means 4 pros have to drop out in order for Fletcher to get his shot at Bassmaster Classic history. Is it unlikely? Prob not, but he still has that hanging over his head. That and actually staying alive long enough to make it to next year which may or may not seem like a daunting task, especially if you think about traffic, boating accidents, floods, tornadoes, tsunamis and the such.

So here is the question. Would you give up your spot in the open in order for Fletcher to be able to fish it, cementing his spot in the classic, barring loss of life? I obviously have a great shot at winning because I am so awesome but Fletcher has already secured his ticket, all he needs is for someone to punch it for him. Ive thought about it more then anyone could imagine and my conclusion is yes, I would give up my spot in the open in order for a great representative of my generation, my state, and my dreams to live out his because I would hope someone would do the same for me if I were in his position. Make us proud Fletcher.

S.T.P.

White Chic Rapping..

So, saw this on youtube, cracked me up. This chic has some skills, doesnt have anything to do with fishing but I dug it. If you are a fan of good music like I am (I dont care what genre it is, if its good, its good) then maybe you will dig this too. I always enjoy seeing somone break stereotypes and this chic definetaly does it. Just so you dont bail on it too early, it really kicks in about 1 minute into it.

S.T.P.

Two tournaments, two days of windy terror...

Ok, monkey is off the back, now I can get rolling. Managed to win a tournament this past weekend even though conditions were brutal. If wind never happens ever again, I wont miss it. I know most anglers will tell you that they love some wind but god almighty, it can be over done. Gusts of 50mph is a bit overboard. My personal preference is either a slight chop on the water or no wind at all. Why? Because I can work a bait much more effectively if I dont have to fight dam tornado like winds. Alum Creek twin rivers open on saturday was bad but it didnt keep my partner and I from wining ALL of the money considering nobody else had a fish. Seriously? Nobody else caught a fish. Its not like we burned up the water but a 5lb smallie is awesome in any tournament. Sunday didnt go quite as well considering  a costly error took us out of the money. I havent even seen the results yet so I have no idea where we finished, all I know is it took 10lbs to win and 7lbs to cash and I broke off a pig that was caught up under a dock. Since we finished the day with 5lbs on 4 keepers then Im pretty certain that fish would have put us above 8lbs or higher. Oh well, got a bit of a break for a few weeks, hopefully I can afford to fish (gas $ is sickening me) for fun.

S.T.P.

Buckeye Lake...

The season has started slow for me, the losses are mounting and the bank account is emptying. We managed to catch a limit at buckeye, at least thats what we thought. A misunderstanding in the boat, which is nobodys fault but my own, concluded with a short fish going to the scales. It wouldnt have mattered in the end as our bag prob would have only weighed 6lbs or so but it was still aggervating. In that particular tournament (rules vary from tournament to tournament depending on who is running it) a short fish results in a penalty of your biggest fish being removed from your bag. So not only did we lose the squeaker, we lost a 2lb+  fish. Like I said, it wouldnt have mattered, you had to have over 8lbs to get into the money and those two fish wouldnt have been much over 3lbs combined. We got bit most of the day but we just didnt find the quality that some guys are on. 3 tournaments in a row now without a check. Im due. Last year at one point I had won 3 tournaments in a row and really didnt fall out of the top 10 for most of the fishing season. Getting your butt kicked can get to you, im just glad my wife isnt keeping score.

S.T.P.

A new day...

The weather has taken a change for the better, warm air, warm water and warm rain equal good fishing. I have my first local tournament of the season tomorrow at Buckeye Lake. I did a minimal amount of pre-fishing last week and it was purposely done. Last year, my partner and I figured a few things out about fishing Buckeye Lake and pulled a 3rd place even though I broke off  3 nice fish on hooksets, since then I have changed line brands (who wouldnt) and made a few other minor adjustments that will hopefully equate to a paycheck. I have a few things that I know work well at this lake and burning fish during practice is a waste of time and fish. Not to mention, gasoline is approaching $4.00 a gallon! I hope we do well, I need to make some money to pay for the next B.A.S.S. event and it would be nice to start the local scene on a good note. Did I mention how awesome it is to have a tournament that I dont have to travel hundreds and hundreds of miles for? Buckeye Lake is 30 minutes from my house, its an awesome spring lake and I will be shocked if it takes less then 13lbs to win. Last year, even with only 3 fish, we weighed almost 10lbs. Averaging 3lbs per aint bad for an Ohio inland lake huh?

Late, S.T.P.

Winter Fishing...

Went out yesterday with a fella named Marshal Yarnell to wack some coldwater bass and prep a little for the first local tournament at Buckeye Lake next week. It was insanely cold, at least for ripping down the lake at 60 plus. You talk to alot of people around here and they would think you were nuts for going bass fishing with the water temps in the low 40s, air temps in the 30s and zero sunlight. Its not like your gonna lose count of your bites but the action is no different then alot of days in the middle of the summer. We got maybe 6 or 7 bites for the day, caught 4 nice chunky keepers and lost a 5th that would have given us around 7lbs for the day. I want to emphasize the fact that we did this in a LAKE, not a farm pond. The reason I bring that up is thats the way you catch bass in the winter. You can catch bass in a farm pond year around, you can catch bass in a lake year around as well, if you fish it like you would a pond. You have to find areas of the lake that have resident fish that dont leave for deep water. Essentially you are looking for "ponds" within the lake. Two presentations usually work, lipless crank baits that elicit a reaction bite or small, slowly moving baits like a shakyhead worm or a small jig that are in a fishs face long enough to make them decide to eat. Remember those things and you can break up your winter with some hot bass action.  lol, that sounded like a lame In Fisherman article.