Bass Utopia

2012-01-09T20:36:00.001-06:00

January/February Photo Contest

By now the tidal wave of Alabama Rig style baits have hit full force, yet somehow seem to remain tough to get a hold of...until now!

Close up of the Picasso School-E Rig

We are happy to announce our most recent Facebook photo contest, courtesy of Picasso Lure Company. Over the next two months email your entries to: jason@bassutopia.com.

The top three voted photo entries that are emailed in will each receive their very own Picasso School-E Rig! One look at the School-E Rig and you can see that they live up to the standard that Picasso has set for high quality materials and finish. Just look at the detail in the above picture!

School-E Rig set up with five swim baits

If you haven't heard about these baits, I'd like to be the first to welcome you back to earth. We're all glad that you made it back ok. Do yourself a favor and catch up on what has been the hottest and most controversial bait to hit the bass fishing world in years!

Regardless of what you think about these baits, or whether they should be tournament legal, there is no debating their effectiveness.

Remember, according to Facebook rules, we can not enter photos that are posted on our wall by users. Entries MUST be emailed.

Happy fishing!

2011-11-07T15:21:00.000-06:00

Cheating Chester

Brian Schram, "The Rockin' Fisherman"

By now the buzz surrounding the cheating scandal that rocked the bass fishing world has started to die off from it's frenzy of the past couple months. To be honest, I can't say I miss it. Nothing plays out as well as controversy in the blog-o-sphere, and it was a heck of a story.

Yesterday I was sent a link to this song, which I almost completely disregarded, but then gave it a listen. It's actually pretty good, and worth a laugh. I'm sure while the events on Lake Erie unfolded, our anti-hero did, at some point, envision his name in lights, but I'm pretty sure he didn't see a song being written about him. At least not like this.

Thanks to Brian Schram, who many may know from his appearances with Pete Mania on Mark Zona's "World's Greatest Fishing Show", for sharing his version. I just hope he was wearing his fuzzy pink hat when he wrote this. Enjoy...

The Negotiator
by Brian Schram

Hey now according to the good book, you choose your own heaven or hell
Well Chester didn't weigh his choices, so tangled up and mangled he fell
During his quest little minded, Chester opened up a wound that goes deep
He thought he had an ace right up his sleeve, until they kicked him right into next week

Hey, hey cheating Chester daddy's one egg nester, Oh the crying shame of a man
Hey, hey cheating Chester got to deal with the pressure and never be respected again

Chester he thought he had it all figured out, could taste the classic on his tongue
So he tried to seal the deal with a Benjamin meal, then cried that it was all in fun
Ya see reality TV cheatin' on your girl, yes it's the latest fashion
But their ain't no fame tree or fancy limousine, worth cheatin' on your passion

Hey, hey cheatin' Chester daddy's one egg nester, Oh the crying shame of a man
Hey, hey cheatin' Chester got to deal with the pressure, and never be respected again

You know that money talks but it don't sing and dance, and mostly tells us what to do
But as long as Chester can buy himself a bass, He'll still beat me and he'll still beat you

Hey, hey cheatin' Chester daddy's one egg nester, Oh the crying shame of a man
Hey, hey cheatin' Chester got to deal with the pressure, and never be respected again
Hey hey cheatin' Chester daddy's one egg nester, oh the crying shame of a man
Hey, hey cheatin' Chester he's the co-angling tester and never be a cheater again

Ya know their ain't nothing worse than cheating on your own passion
How could you ever feel like a winner? I couldn't

After all said and done dreams never came true,
Kicked out of the big time and in to the blues

Hey hey cheatin' Chester daddy's one egg nester, oh the crying shame of a man
Hey, hey cheatin' Chester he's the co-angling tester and never be a cheater again

2011-11-04T10:15:00.000-05:00

November Facebook Photo Contest

Here we are staring Thanksgiving down as we creep closer and closer to that snowy wonderland in many areas of the country. I don't know about you all, but here in MN, my season goes all year, and my boat stays out of storage until I can't break ice at the landing anymore!

Touchdown 2 Jig

The good news is that with another month comes another photo contest! This month we are excited to bring you a combo pack compliments of Outkast Tackle! This package from Outkast will include:

- One 1/2 ounce Touchdown 2 Football Jig
- Three 3/4 ounce Touchdown 2 Football Jigs

- Five Rod Slix Rod Covers

Rod Slix Rod Cover

Those of you who follow the site and our videos know that Bass Utopia TV host, Jason Holmer, is a huge believer in Football style jigs. In fact, one of our most popular videos features Outkast Pro Staffer, and Bass Utopia member, Brian Bengtson catching a 6 pound largemouth using the Touchdown 2 Jig! (Video Here)

For those who have used rod covers, you know how nice it is to have your investments protected, but also to keep your rods tangle free! Rod Slix are a great way to do both!

The rules are simple:

- Entries must be emailed to: jason@bassutopia.com. Photos posted on our page can not be entered into the contest per Facebook rules.
- Pictures may only be entered once
- You may enter as many different shots as you like
- All entries are the property of Bass Utopia
- Winner will be determined by a vote amongst Bass Utopia staff, sponsors of the contest, and other partners
- Bass Utopia has the right to cancel the contest for any reason

On a side note...

Check out who made an appearance on the packaging for the Touchdown 2 Jig...

It's Bass Utopian, and Bass Utopia TV guest Brian Bengtson!

Looking forward to your entries! Happy Fishing!

2011-10-28T13:04:00.000-05:00

The Alabama Rig: Bass Fishing's Latest Bandwagon

Welcome bass fishing aficionados to the latest and greatest installment (to date) of bass fishing "got-to-have's": The Alabama Rig. While I haven't put much thought into the origin of the name, I'm assuming it's because Alabama is one of the only states in the country to allow an angler to fish with 117 hooks at a time. Ok, that's a bit of an overstatement, and joking aside, what is this rig?

The Alabama rig will look pretty familiar to those who have fished stripers in salt water who know this rig by its other name: the Umbrella Rig. In both applications, a school of bait fish is mimicked to be chasing or following a larger bait fish. For obvious reasons, this method catches the attention of predator fish in the area. It's a healthy looking helping of suppertime, and the predator wants to take a bite!

The Alabama Rig. Why fish for one Bass
when you could fish for five?

There is an obvious huge buzz on the interwebs about this rigging technique after Paul Elias won a recent FLW event using the Alabama rig. Much like the chatterbait or the hollow body swim bait craze that preceeded it, the Alabama rig now is flying off the EBay auctions at costs double, triple, or higher than its retail value. While many anglers are busy trying to get their hands on this hot item, I'm left wondering why this is a legal tournament tactic. Let me explain.

For starters, this rig will be illegal in many states. I know that I can't use it here in Minnesota, and I'd recommend checking your state's regulations before plopping down the $80+ these things are selling for online. In the states where this sort of thing is illegal, obviously tournament rules will not allow them to be used based on this regulation. But what about the states that do allow them to be used? Should tournaments allow them?

In my opinion, no, they should not.

Maybe I'm being old fashioned, and maybe I'm resisting change. I could see that argument holding some water. However, there is one fact that I think separates this technique: It's ability to catch a limit on one cast.

As I've sat back and taken in some of the buzz going on around this technique I've heard many views for and against it. Most commonly I have heard that crank baits have the ability to catch more than one fish with their multiple treble hooks, and every so often we see the evidence of that. Remember Timmy Horton's magic day on Kentucky Lake? That image of two giant bass coming in at once is still burned into my memory.

Here is the key factor for me: The purpose of a crank bait is to target one fish.

If you happen to fire up a school could you catch more than one on a cast? Sure, but it's extremely rare due to the fact that if those bass don't hit that bait perfectly, the second fish is more likely to knock the first one off than it is to also get hooked.

With an Alabama rig there are five (5) individual hooks on individual baits, all rigged to catch their own fish. While catching your 5 fish limit on one cast is going to be extremely rare, it's not probably nearly as rare to catch two or three fish at once.

Doesn't anyone else think that this takes away from the concept of fishing a tournament? Sort of changes the meaning of the phrase "I'm fishing for five bites" since in this case it can mean "I'm fishing for five bites on every cast".

My other thought is simply that if the justification of this technique is that the state regulations allow for it, then why shouldn't anglers be allowed to fish with more than one rod at a time in states that allow anglers multiple lines in the water? Why not be able to cast a senko out and dead stick it in an area while also throwing a jig or drop shot?

The next question is: Where does it stop? Can I tie five hooks up my drop shot line? What about rigging an Alabama Rig for deep finesse fishing? Can I tie five drop shot lines off an Alabama rig? What about Texas rigging worms at different lengths onto the Alabama and dragging it along a deep weed edge? Yeah, that's right, I added a Texas Rig to an Alabama Rig, I'll call it a "Deep South Rig". Shoot, maybe I'll throw a weight four feet up the line, add a floating apparatus to the Alabama Rig section. Now I'm Carolina Rigging a Deep South Rig! Now I'm throwing the "Confederate Rig", and now I'm getting calls from Al Sharpton complaining about my potentially racist fishing rig. Not good.

I don't intend to lead the charge against state regulators to force them to change their laws, but I do think that this bait should not be allowed in tournaments. This seems like a pretty obvious decision for the tournaments to make now that the cat is out of the bag, but who knows.

Well, I've added my two cents. I'm off to start rigging those Confederate Rigs up for my weekend fishing trip!

2011-10-11T21:17:00.000-05:00

Using the Picasso Fantasy Football Jig and Lowrance HDS to Find Fish on a Local Lake During the Fall Transition (Part 2)

After a longer-than-normal wait, we are happy to post part 2 of our day on the water during the beginning of Fall transition using the Picasso Fantasy Football Jig!

Part 1 ended with a decent fish catch after a grinder of a morning. We had a really unstable weather pattern that went from a week of cold days and frosty nights, to a very warm calm day. The days preceding this shoot, the fish had started to slowly move from their deep water hang-outs to shallower weed lines. However, the sudden change in weather seemed to push them back out to their deep water structure. I late-in-the-game adjustment sent me out to those deeper fish just before the camera crew had to leave.

We got some great fish to end this shoot, and special thanks to my partner and producer, Danny Schmidt, for using the worst possible show wrap! (I can just imagine him hunkered down in his dark cutting room, clipping and editing away in Final Cut Pro on his Macintosh, wringing his hands together while muttering "You want this footage faster Jason, well then, enjoy the ending! Muhahahaha!")

The best/worst part about this day is that once the camera crew had to leave for another shoot, I went back out knowing that I had just figured the fish out and would pound on them. I proceeded to have the best day of fishing I have had in years. Literally. Over the next two hours I caught 22 fish. Six of those fish were between 5 and 6 pounds, 14 were between 4 and 5 pounds, and the rest were over 3! At one point I hit 14 fish on 14 straight casts! What a day!

Hope you enjoy the video, thanks for tuning in, and please be sure to subscribe to our channel on YouTube!

2011-10-01T16:00:00.001-05:00

October Facebook Photo Contest: Lazer Trokar Hooks!

We are very excited to announce the latest Facebook photo contest offering! Thanks so much to Lazer Trokar for this generous prize package. This package includes:

1 Package of 9/0 Swimbait Hooks (qty 2)
1 Package of 2/0 Finesse Wormt Hooks (qty 6)
1 Package of 3/0 Magworm Hooks (qty 6)
1 Package of 2/0 HD Worm Hooks (qty 6)
1 Package of 5/0 Magworm Hooks (qty 5)
1 Lazer Trokar Baseball Cap

This prize pack is valued at over $50!

For those of you who have used these hooks before, you know how good they are. For those who haven't, I'd do your best to win this contest or run out to your local shop and buy some! I was skeptical about these at first, but I rarely fish any tournaments without them now. With the surgically sharpened hooks, the fish are mush more easily hooked with much less pressure, meaning those fish that you just didn't quite get a hook in won't be so lucky this time around!

These hooks are no joke...they are the sharpest hook I have ever used by a long shot. So sharp in fact that you actually need to use some caution when handling your fish! Take one of these hooks out of the package and just look at the point and you will be amazed. Touch the point, and you might get scared! Now just imagine what the fish think!

Be sure to check out Lazer Trokar's website for more information about these amazing hooks!

Remember, in order for us to enter your photo into the contest you must email the photo to: jason@bassutopia.com. Facebook rules do not allow us to enter pictures that are posted on our wall.

http://www.lazertrokar.com/

TroKar 11 from 5 Stone Advertising on Vimeo.

2011-09-29T20:51:00.000-05:00

Chasing the Dream: Jason Dudek

This past week, Bassmaster concluded the final stop on the Northern Open circuit on Lake Oneida with Ish Monroe walking away with top honors. The bags that anglers brought to the scales were a heavy mix of largemouth and smallmouth bass, and the anglers did well with both types of black bass.

I have had a close personal connection with the Northern Opens the past few years as my main tournament partner from years past started his quest to qualify for the Elite Series. Jason Dudek, the first official Bass Utopia Pro Staffer, started his quest four years ago on the Central Opens, but quickly shifted his focus to the Northern Opens when BASS introduced the new circuit in 2009. It wouldn't do the road justice to say that Dudek has been met with extremely difficult challenges. Jason threw himself into the fire taking on lakes he had never fished, never studied, and never imagined he would fish in his life. As a Minnesota angler, Dudek doesn't have the opportunities to fish reserviors or tidal water systems. River fishing in general in Minnesota tournaments is more the exception than the norm, but knowing that this is what faced him at the highest levels, he took on the challenge.

Now, knowing Jay the way that I do, I can tell you that he is the most competitive person I have ever met, and that's saying something. With competitive drive comes an willingness to push yourself to the edge, but at times, it also can drive you off a cliff. With high expectations, comes big disappointment at times, and I have had more than one conversation with my friend trying to help pick him up off the ground after a tough trip out to a distant lake that didn't go quite as planned. Heck, we've had those moments in the middle of team tournaments that we have fished locally in Minnesota.

After couple tough tournaments to start the season, Dudek was a bit down, and I think, was starting to doubt whether or not this was the right thing to do. Let's face it, Minnesota is a long way from Lake Erie, Lake Oneida, and the James River, so the travel is grueling. Each tournament was a 10-12 day trip with travel, practice, and tournament, and that gets expensive, especially when you include the $1000 per event entry fee for the pro anglers.

With this last event, Dudek headed out with nothing to lose. He had to go for broke. He did...and it worked. Dudek found himself finishing 10th overall, his best finish in any BASS Open event to date, and with such a great finish, a renewed focus.

I chatted with Jason following the event:

How good does it feel both personally and professionally to get this one in the books and how much confidence does something like this give you going into next season?

It feels great but on the other side I know I could of done a lot better. I had the fish on to do even better, but when you fish for smallmouth losing fish is common. This drives me even more to fish a tournament that's clean, meaning not losing any fish. As far as confidence goes this gives me a boost for next year, and I can't wait for the James River.

When you look back at your year, it was pretty challenging, but you managed a 44th place overall rank in the AOY race. What can you do differently next year to hopefully get you over the hump?

I need to just go out and fish without any cares, take risks I've have not in the past. I think with me losing my title sponsor it really affected me at the James River because I had the anxiety of "do i have enough money for this trip and the next two that are only a month away". My wife really helped me get through a little rough patch with my confidence and having a supporting family is huge, without them it's pretty much impossible. Also I was thinking I really need to cash a check and that really puts a lot stress behind the scenes and I think I was pushing too hard and trying to make things happen rather then letting them come to me. In the Oneida tournament I was not having a good practice, and finally found my pattern on Monday that would turn out to be a great move. I tried the weeds and shoals that are over the lake and I was catching fish, but not enough quality fish to really think I was going to do well. I then thought lets try out deep and try to drag a tube, I found some deep water 20-25 ft. and started dragging and the first and only drag of the night because it got dark produced six smallmouth. This drag was about a 1/4 mile long so I new that this was a huge area that had fish all over. The next day I worked nothing but the 20-25 ft. zone and developed a bigger area then I realized I found the day before. This area had little rocky humps all over this big 20 ft. flat.

What is the most challenging part of fishing the Opens for you personally?

The most challenging is the travel, this trips are sometimes 25 hours long one way to these different lakes and rivers. The fishing and the tournament days are the easy part. I always felt that the tournament days are the easier then the practice days. Practice days for me are 12 -16 hours a day, dusk to dawn.

Looking specifically at Oneida, what was the key adjustment that you made that brought you from the middle of the pack to the forefront after Day 1?

I did not waste as much time in the morning looking for the schooling smallmouth, I tried for about 30 min. then left to fish deep all day. I had a long day and check in was at 4:45 compared to 2:30 on Thursday. The wind was really blowing and there was at least five footers all day. the bigger fish really bit and dragging a tube was the perfect technique for the conditions I had. The day before the wind was blowing in the morning and died later in the day, that's when the drop shot really took over but the wind never died on friday so the tube was the deal all day long. I stayed with that tube and stayed persistant despite the big waves, I must have made 40-50 drifts just on Friday. Big key was two drift socks I used and keeping that drift speed to .6-1 mph. any faster and you really did not get bit as well.

Being that your parents live near Lake Oneida, I hear you got some special treatment from Mom. Is your Mom's home cooking going to be your equivalent of Kevin an Dam's wife's cookies?

Cooking was awesome we had all kinds of good eats, chicken and rice, hot dogs(zwiegles) spaghetti, fresh walleye and one of my favorite Polish dishes Poor Man's Perogy. I think it was key to have a good dinner every night after a long day on the water and just to relax and have fun with my parents. I was very relaxed compared to the other two events and found that is going to be key for next year, just relax.

What is one take away that you got from your efforts this year on the Northern Opens?

Keep my mind open go with my gut, if I think try over there go there and don't second guess myself. "One Rung At A Time" has been my slogan since my high school and college football day's and that's my slogan for the Open's. I had one rung for Oneida so I need to get three rungs next year, one for each Open tournament.

What advice would you give someone who is thinking that they want to take that step into a national circuit like the Bassmaster Opens?

Start as co angler and see and learn how the pros attack and fish a body of water. I think I hurt myself fishing as a boater to early instead of fishing as a co angler. If you jump into on the professional side, then just be aware that these guys are good and you need to fish from dawn to dusk to compete against these pros. Hard work and research before you go is huge too, study a map, look on YouTube for video of a body of water. These videos may not pertain to fishing but you can get a feel for what it looks like if you have not been there before. Remember "Get Tired There's a lot of good on the other side of Tired"

2011-09-29T20:37:00.001-05:00

Product Review: Picasso Lures Shad Walker

** I'm happy to announce that Bass Utopia has worked out a deal with Picasso to offer any of their products through this site for a 10% discount! You must click through using this link and enter the coupon code "FALL2011"**

For those not already aware, or for those who have not read my previous post about Picasso Lures being re-acquired my it's former owner, fear not, the maker of some of the industry's finest jigs, shaky heads, and the inventor of the Tru Tungsten insert-free/fray-free tungsten weight system is back. This is good news for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is the continuation of those great tungsten weights! This post, however, is focusing on a different segment, and one in which Picasso is set to make a huge splash (pun intended)!

Some of you may be familiar with this bait, as it was released by Tru Tungsten shortly before the company went under. I was able to get my hands on a couple of these fantastic baits, courtesy of Picasso Lures, and after having a chance to throw them for a few hours recently, I felt compelled to do this write up.

Before I get started, I have to tell you that I was slightly skeptical of this bait. After speaking with my contact at Picasso, it sounded intriguing, but then again, so have any other number of baits over the years. Remember the Banjo Minnow and the Flying Lure? Both were can't miss secrets of the pros, right?

The first thing I will mention is that I think the bait itself is deceiving when you look at pictures of it online. We are used to seeing a bait fish style lure sitting up and down in the water column, like a crankbait or swimbait. This bait, however, lays on it's side on top of the water. Both the top and underside of the bait are fully finished, giving it a realistic look to the fish in the water. The hook is the same style that most soft frog baits use with two hooks that are kept weedless by the bulk of the body. Once a fish grabs the bait, the body collapses and the hooks are exposed. Just like a frog bait.

The size of the bait is also similar to a standard sized frog, however, as you can see in the pictures, in place of legs, the soft body of the bait extends to a tail section.

Now for the good stuff.

The action on this bait is incredible! In slop or heavy cover, the Shad Walker comes through with ease, just like you would expect from a soft bodied weedless frog. When the Shad Walker hits an opening the the weeds, a pocket, or the edge of the pads, etc, it comes alive! The walking action on this bait is enough to make any style of spook bait blush! Whether you want long slow sweeping action, or short fast twitches, the Shad Walker out performs it peers. Not only do you get an amazing action from the bait, but it makes a ruckus on the surface. Without being overly splashy, the Shad Walker moves a tremendous amount of surface water, which is sure to get any nearby fishes attention. This bait imitates a struggling bait fish as well as anything I have ever seen.

My test on the water took me to a local lake that has a mix of lily pads and thick weed edges. I only had a few hours to spend, and it was not by any means prime time for a top water bite. I hit the water shortly after 10:00 and fished until about 2:00. My first strike came on my third cast over some submerged weeds. The water I was fishing had a pretty decent green stain to it, so visibility was not great. That wasn't enough to keep this first fish away! I saw the wake from the fish start about 15 feet to the left of the bait, and it bee-lined right to it's target. I had no issues hooking the fish whatsoever, and boated the three pounder with ease! I was already hooked!

Now, you may have noticed that I said I only had a few hours, but my time frame actually ended up being four hours. There's a reason for that...I couldn't stop! I fished the Shad Walker over the weeds and in the pads with pretty good success, but with the high afternoon sun, I decided to take a shot at some docks. That's when things got really fun. The Shad Walker attracted fish out from under docks and boat lifts with regularity. I also found that the Shad Walker skips under docks and trees very well. My biggest fish of the day, a four pound nine ounce beauty, came after skipping the bait under a boat lift and walking it back out!

I guess it's safe to say that I'd recommend this bait! If you like top water fishing for bass, then get your hands on a few of these, I promise you, you won't be disappointed! I know I will have one tied on at least one rod in my boat every time I'm on the water this fall.

** I'm happy to announce that Bass Utopia has worked out a deal with Picasso to offer any of their products through this site for a 10% discount! You must click through using this link and enter the coupon code "FALL2011"**

2011-09-21T18:54:00.002-05:00

Wellman out of Bassmaster Open on Oneida and Classic

With controversy swirling around the previous Northern Open on Lake Erie, Nate Wellman and B.A.S.S. have mutually decided that Wellman will skip the final Northern Open event on New York's Oneida Lake. With this absence, Wellman is also deemed ineligible for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic. With the new Classic qualifying rules, an angler must fish all three events in order to qualify, a rule that also costs Tommy Biffle his automatic berth this season.

Mystery still continues to surround this story, however, as the media and web buzzes with their theories about what allegedly happened that fateful day on Lake Erie (story here) between Nate Wellman and his co-angler, Joe Stois. Whether this buzz has caused B.A.S.S. to encourage Wellman to voluntarily miss the Oneida event, which gets under way this Thursday, September 22nd, or if Wellman made this decision on his own and approached B.A.S.S. about it, has not been disclosed. A brief statement by B.A.S.S. is all we have to go on at this time,which I'm sure, will lead to more wild speculation, and throw more fuel on the fire.

As a life-long B.A.S.S. member, I am fully behind the organization, but I just do not understand their handling of this. I like that B.A.S.S. released the initial statement announcing the fine and probationary measures that they imposed on Wellman, but after that everything just becomes very cloudy, and the questions that are left become the issue more so than Wellman.

B.A.S.S. needs to recognize the full magnitude of this situation. Their "mutual agreement" does lead me to believe that they realize that something had to be done, but again, I think the organization dropped the ball. FLW recognized B.A.S.S's non-response in the face of public outrage, and immediately suspended Wellman from all competition for a period of one year. This move smacks of public relations genius as FLW saw a clear opportunity to position themselves as the leader in competitive bass fishing.

I feel like Will Ferrell in Zoolander who screams out "Am I taking crazy pills?" every time I think about how this has been approached. My opinion was echoed by Ray Scott himself when he called for B.A.S.S. to enact "Rule 3", which requires all anglers to submit to a polygraph if there is any question about a rules infraction. Surely the most recognized name in tournament bass fishing has the means to enforce such a rule. Why has Wellman and all three of his co-anglers not been asked to perform this test?

This half-hearted attempt to save some face by B.A.S.S., I believe, will only lead to more head scratching from fans who want answers, who want some closure on this thing. Until we have those answers, I don't think this is going to go away. While FLW takes the lead on enforcing their tournament rules of conduct, B.A.S.S. is leaving their fans asking questions about how many times this has happened, and why B.A.S.S. won't hold their anglers to the same standard.

Here's hoping we eventually have some clarity and closure on what has been one of the biggest black-eyes in the history of the sport.

2011-09-21T11:31:00.000-05:00

Using the Picasso Fantasy Football Jig and Lowrance HDS to Find Fish on a Local Lake During the Fall Transition

I headed out last week with my partner/producer, Danny Schmidt, to get some footage of fall transition bass. We started out on mid range rocks, headed shallow, then finally out deep. With the help of my Lowrance HDS Structure Scan I was able to pin point locations on structure that held good fish.

It's always interesting filming because you want to have an idea of what you are going to target/feature while out filming, but the fish don't really seem to care what those goals are for some reason. I guess they are a bit selfish. Be that as it may, we tried to target fish transitioning up to shallower water, but found that bite wasn't going, so we headed into the shallows. After throwing various topwater baits, reaction baits, and worm baits with little success, we decided to try out deep since the weather had taken a turn for the warmer, which had temporarily slowed down the water's temperature decline. Funny what happens when you let go of your preconceived and goals and just let the fish speak to you!

Using the Picasso Fantasy Football Jig, I was able to pick apart the deeper rocks with ease, and with some effort, eventually trigger the fish to start feeding out on what I would normally consider summer structure. Just goes to show that you need to keep your mind open to changes while on the water!

2011-09-17T12:46:00.001-05:00

Smallmouths...Big Appetite!

The Author with a 4 pound 15 ounce
trophy smallmouth bass

Has it really happened again? Has another summer slipped by? September is here, marking the first unofficial month of fall. The familiar drone of the school buses driving through the neighborhood in the morning echo on as we reminisce on which stick-impaled food was our favorite at the state fair. Are we really heading into another harsh Minnesota winter again? Already?

Fear not my fellow open water anglers! As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Why focus on the waning days of summer when some of the best bass fishing of the season is about to come on like a wave of hot summer heat? Each year I have a love/hate relationship with fall. I don’t look forward to the ice season, but fall fishing is probably my favorite time of the year!

Fall is a great time to target trophy fish of all sorts, but my favorite target in the fall is the smallmouth bass. The decreasing temperatures and shorter daylight periods result in falling water temps, which in turn brings the bronze backs up from their deep water summer areas into shallower, easier to target areas as they put on the feed bags in preparation for the winter.

Basic Tube Jig

What sort of baits the fish are eating will not only change from day-to-day, but at times, hour-to-hour, so be ready to make the appropriate adjustments as needed. I like to search fish out throwing top water baits such as prop style, spook baits, or slash baits like the Rapala X-Rap, but be ready with a smaller “follow up” bait such as a tube jigs or stick worm. Often times smallmouth will follow a bait to the boat and will appear to turn around. When this happens simply drop the follow up bait over the side of the boat and hang on! Other effective baits at this time of year are standard crank baits, lipless cranks, and spinnerbaits.

Rapala X Rap Slash Bait

Fishing jerk baits, or slash baits, can lead to some of the most exciting and knee buckling strikes you will get while fishing bass. For my money, the Rapala X Rap is the best in it’s class when it comes to slash baits. The X Rap can be fished in a number of different ways. The key, howver, is to find the right cadence for your retrieve. Somedays a jerk-pause, jerk-pause works. Other days, jerk-jerk-pause, jerk-jerk-jerk-pause is the key. The point is to play around with your cadence until you zero in on a speed and method that triggers the fish to bite, and boy do they hammer it! Smallmouth will often hit a bait fish twice: first to stun it, then to eat it. Usually that strike you get on that X Rap is the “stun hit”. Quite literally the bass is trying to deliver the knock out blow to your bait!

When fishing a spinnerbait be sure to use a trailer hook and work the bait very aggressively back to the boat by using a fast retrieve combined with a jerk/pause. I like to turn my trailer hook over and run it opposite of the bait’s standard hook. Generally the areas that smallmouth are found don’t have much in the way of weed cover, so hanging the trailer hook in the weeds really isn’t an issue. By having the hook facing down your chances of hooking up with a fish increases should they take a half hearted swipe, or try to knock the bait to stun it and hit only the skirt.

The structure bass will relate to can be unpredictable as well, but I always start with shallow rocky areas, especially reefs. A mid-lake reef can be a very popular hang out for large numbers of smallmouth bass. Look for fish to move up on the reefs and off the sides as they feed. Another good bet is a rocky shore line or point. Similar to their larger-mouthed cousins, smallmouth love eating crawdads and can often be seen moving from rock to rock in search of their next meal.

So as the lemons of winter start showing signs of making their annual appearance, start looking for your chance to make lemonade. Take advantage of the changing conditions to capitalize on what just might be the best fishing of the year! I know I’ll be out there every chance I get!

2011-09-14T21:24:00.000-05:00

Janet Parker's Shot at the B.A.S.S. Elites

By now most of the fishing industry has taken note that, wait for it, a...oh my goodness, a...gasp, a woman is in strong position to qualify for the 2012 Bassmaster Elites Series through the Central Opens. After finishing 6th on Lake Lewisville in the first event, and following up with a 10th place finish on the Arkansas River, Janet Parker finds herself in 2nd place in the Angler of the Year race in the Central Division of the Opens, 24 points ahead of her closest competitor. It certainly looks like, barring a collapse in the third event, that Ms. Parker will be facing the big boys next year on the Elite Series trail.

Initially, my reaction to this story was pretty even keeled. I read the various articles and blog posts on the topic with interest since this is, after all, technically a historic event. In case you have been living under a rock, or not following the sport at all, there has never been a woman competing on the Elite level. Pretty cool, right? Of course it is, but I have some concerns.

Kim Bain-Moore broke the barrier initially with the berth through the short-live women's side of the B.A.S.S. circuit. The media was buzzing with "A woman will fish the Classic!" stories and human interest pieces. Bain-Moore was on everything bass. Magazine covers, internet blogs and websites, interviews, you name it she was covered by it. The fishing media was falling all over itself trying to get their piece of Kim and make their predictions. Even TIME Magazine wrote an article about Bain-Moore called "The First Lady of Bass Fishing". Of course, it was set up from day 1 of the tournament season with an automatic berth, but that's besides the point...she is a woman!

So how did Kim Bain-Moore fare? After two days of competition, Kim weighed in 12.2 pounds, good for 47th out of 51 anglers. Pretty underwhelming. Obviously women can't compete at that level, right?

Of course that is ridiculous. Think about the pressure that the media put on Bain-Moore. Think about the non-stop interviews, the questions at the landing, the radio and TV spots, the new demands from her sponsors as the event neared. Why so much pressure? Because she is a woman. Essentially, the media that built her up and held her on the gender pedestal probably got so much in her way that she really couldn't do her job the way she would have liked. Skeet Reese won the event that year. Do you think Reese had even one tenth the media attention that Kim had going into the event? Not a chance.

Now back to Janet Parker.

A few women have ventured across the gender barrier in other sports. Michelle Wie did it in golf and Danica Patrick does it in racing, but both have struggled or have fallen on their faces. Most sports are based on an element of strength. It's not sexist to say that professional male golfers hit a golf ball farther than professional women do. Just look at the numbers. The same argument could be made in most other sports as well, and they would be correct, and in those cases, a woman competing would be pretty amazing.

Not in fishing.

Fishing, unlike most competitive sports, is played against a field of anglers trying to all best a common opponent: a living creature looking for a meal. There is no competitive advantage that a gender brings to fishing. Does anyone think that Kevin Van Dam is better because he is a male and might have a larger build of be physically stronger that a woman? No way. KVD is the best because of his understanding of his aquatic opponent, his decision making, and his mental toughness. So why is it so surprising to some people that a woman might qualify? Since the name of the game is brains and mental toughness, does that mean that women aren't as mentally capable as men? Trust me, if you met my wife and I you would know who the brains are in my house, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who would admit that. Of course women are as bright and mentally tough as men...in my experiences they might even have an edge on us guys in that category.

So why is it so surprising that a woman is set to qualify?

Parker is not getting an automatic berth through an all women's circuit. She is doing it by beating the boys. She is doing it on a level playing field. Parker is just straight up having a tremendous season! I've fished an Open event, and I have many friends and contacts who compete on them currently. These tournaments are no joke. They are a grind from the time you leave your driveway until the end of the long drive back home. Finishing as high as she has in the first two events is a testament to her abilities on the water as well as her mental toughness.

The point I'm trying to make is simple, let's focus on the fact that Janet Parker is a top notch angler who is kicking tail in one of the toughest circuits in the country. It doesn't matter if she is a woman, man, donkey, or lima bean, she's good. Period. I for one hope that she makes it to the Elites, not only because she is a woman, but because she will be a force to be reckoned with.

Sure, it's hard not to get caught up in a story like this. It's intriguing, and I find myself rooting for her to make it. Who doesn't like the "against all odds" story line? In the meantime, let's all sit back and let her do her job. Leave the media pressure on the sidelines until after the event, and then let's get our story and leave her to her job come Elite season should she make it.

Go Janet!

2011-09-12T21:44:00.000-05:00

Picasso Lures is Back in Business. Good News for Football Fans!

Picasso's Fantasy Football Jig

While most sports fans waited for the announcement that we were going to have a football season this year, some anglers found that headline had more than one meaning. Not only are we going to enjoy a full season from our favorite NFL teams, fans of the Picasso Lure Company were happy to find out that their favorite rock jig was back on the market! With Picasso being re-acquired by their original owner, we can look forward to many years of tossing the Fantasy Football Jig down to our favorite deep water rock piles!

The Fantasy Football Jig finds itself tied on the end of my line on at least one rod every time I'm on the water. With the ease of finding deep water structure thanks to my Lowrance Structure Scan, I can quickly locate those classic deep water spots perfect for tossing a football jig! Dragging or stroking a football jig is easily my most utilized technique once the bass have moved off their spawning grounds. Using this method will not only land you plenty of fish, but it also usually attracts bigger fish than many other deep water techniques!

4" Berkley Chigger Craw

3" Berkley Chigger Chunk

For those not familiar with the how to fish this type of bait, a football jig's basic design is to be resistant to hang ups in rocks. This allows an angler to drag the jig across rocky bottom structure, tipped with their favorite plastic trailer, very closely mimicking a crawdad as it moves along. For me, the Berkley Powerbait Chigger Craw or Chigger Chuck are the perfect trailer. Which I choose depends on the mood of the fish. I usually start with the 4" Chigger Craw, but will switch to the smaller 3" Chigger Chuck if the fish are grabbing at the claws or want a more compact presentation.

What I like about the Picasso Fantasy Football Jig in particular is in the details:

First, the line tie on the jig head is recessed into the lead mold. This does two things: it protects your knot from total exposure to the rocky elements it is dragging through, and with the eye of the hook being buried in the jig head, it keeps a true round shape to the head. With no bulky hook eye exposed, there is less tendency for the jig head to get wedged in small crevasses in the structure.

Second, the textured jig head allows the jig to "grab" the structure as it drags through it. This causes increased movement of the skirt and trailer, and also allows the jig to rock back and forth is it drags. This increased action will lead to more bites on a tough day!

Finally, and most importantly, Picasso utilizes a Gamakatsu hook to ensure that the angler gets a good hook into the fish for those deep water hook sets.

The author with a 6.5 pounder
fooled by a Fantasy Football Jig

The technique couldn't be more simple! My most successful approach for big fish on a football jig is to cast to the structure I am targeting and let the bait fall straight to the bottom on a slack line. Once on the bottom, I reel in the slack and slowly, and I mean slowly, start to drag the bait through the structure. With the right rod and reel set up, you should feel the jig as it bumps through any rocks. When I start to feel my jig hitting the structure, I slow down even more, which allows the jig to really use the rocks to it's advantage, especially with the Fantasy Football Jig's textured jig head.

The bite will vary greatly. As times the fish will all but rip the rod out of your hand when they pick up the jig, other times it's a more subtle, almost panfish-like knocking as the fish picks the jig off the bottom. Either way, or if in doubt, set the fire out of the fish! It is incredibly important to put a big hook set on the fish when in deep water since you are pulling a lot of line through a lot of water, and driving a single large hook into the fish's tough mouth. For my money, there is no better hook set in all of bass fishing than a big deep water bass on a jig! Talk about rod bending action!

What's the morale of this story? Get to your local tackle shop, or click on one of our advertiser's links, and grab some Fantasy Football Jigs! Trust me when I say, you will be glad you did!

2011-09-11T09:58:00.001-05:00

9/11 Ten Years Later

In some ways it is hard to believe that today marks the ten year anniversary of the most shocking day of my life, of many of our lives. There are very few things as I look back over these tens years that I remember more vividly. My wedding day and the birth of my two children are really the only events so ingrained in my memory. I know this site is a fishing site, but I can't help but step away from my normal subject matter for a few moments of reflection. For those of you who read this, it's probably not going to be the most informative article commemorating one of the darkest days in our nation's history, but my hope is to stir those memories up for the common man. I think we can all benefit from a few minutes of silent reminiscence today.

For me personally, I went to work like everyone else. A little early that day since I had my plate pretty full with projects that had deadlines approaching. As I sat groggily rubbing my eyes, staring at my computer screen in my cubicled corner of the office, thoughts of coffee ran through my mind as the only thing that could get me over the hump on this morning. If only that were the truth.

Determined to get my first item accomplished before leaving my cubicle, I set up the printer for a large scale schematic map for a television display wall that I had designed for a major retailer that most of us have been too more times than our wives would like. Yes, I was one of the reasons that you oogled those "new" plasma televisions that you could hang on your wall. Such a complex distribution of high definition signal required a well drawn map for the folks who would be installing them, and I had to get that map printed on a large scale and sent to about 200 stores. It was a large print job, one of the details of these projects that I loathed, but it was a necessary evil on this morning. I hit "print" and headed to the break room area to get coffee going, which would in turn, hopefully get my body and mind going as well.

The break room was empty since it was early, and I didn't mind at all. Just me an the coffee maker. Perfect. As I waited for the coffee, I sat down at the nearby table and mindlessly watched as the big screen TV across the room aired Good Morning America. Just a few more minutes and I'd be enjoying that hot coffee that I was dreaming of.

The door to the break room opened and in walked Bob. Bob was a nice enough guy, in fact, he sat kitty-corner from me on the opposite side of my cubicle. We were sort of neighbors who waved at each other as a courtesy, but never really got to know each other. We said our "good morning" to each other as Bob noted my efforts on the coffee and made a joke about how happy he was that it had been started. I stood in anticipation of the coffee being ready, and to speak with Bob for a few minutes.

Breaking new on Good Morning America.

Bob and I watched as the first images of the first tower showed up on the television. We were shocked and speechless. How on Earth did a plane fly into the World Trade Center? We started to comment on the situation. Was it another drunk pilot? Did someone fall asleep? Whatever it was, it was awful.

Then the second plane hit.

In looked at Bob who was ash white, which was at least partially from his shock. I didn't know what to say. I remember the news team just going momentarily silent. I think the whole country did. It became clear very quickly that we were under attack. All at once our impenetrable borders, our missile defense systems, and the world strongest military didn't matter. Someone figured out how to attack us from the inside using our own infrastructure against us. Using our collective trust against us.

My thoughts went to my fiance who was still in school at the University of Minnesota as speculative reports came in about what could be next. Major buildings in every city, large malls, schools and universities, corporate headquarters. Was my family safe? Were all my friends ok? What about my cousin who works near the towers?

I ran back to my office area and reported what i had just seen. Suddenly the large break room that had hosted many division luncheons and meetings was packed full of people trying to get a glimpse. People scrambling to get info. What had happened? Where else? Who did this? Why?

My group headed to the main corporate building and offered our services to distribute TV signal to as many TVs as we could. It was the only thing we could think of to help, and people were thankful for it. We ran cabling all over the place and wheeled TVs to every corner of the corporate campus that we could. The galvanization had started.

What I saw over the next few months was nothing short of amazing. The country got behind their leader. We stood together against a common enemy who had dared to attack us at home. We all had the same resolve: Do what's best for our country, and stand together. Our differences melted away as we worked together to rebuild our confidence as a nation and our sense of self. We were proud to be Americans again, and we felt, even for a short time, a unity that I had not felt before as an American.

As I share my story with you, simple as it may be, I hope that we all remember how it affected us on a personal level. Some where more affected than others, but we all felt that tower when it hit the ground. Now we find ourselves in some tough times as a nation. The economy is shaky, everyone knows someone who has lost a job, and we don't know what is going to happen. I know one thing for sure though: we can get through all of of this. American has shown through her history that she can get knocked down, but she doesn't stay down.

My hope as I close this out is that we remember this day not for the horror of what it was, but for the triumph that it can be. Like many who died serving this country before them, let's remember those who lost their lives and the heroes who emerged as the story unfolded, but let us also serve their memory proud by being the best we can be and rising above all challenges that we may face. Not alone, but as a nation.

God bless America.

2011-09-09T10:25:00.002-05:00

Ray Scott, Founder of BASS, weighs in on "Wellmangate"

BASS may have changed hands a few times since The Godfather of Bass Fishing, Ray Scott, has been in control of things, but his presence and legacy is always a factor. Many still see Scott as the figurehead of this storied organization, and his opinion carries a tremendous amount of weight. Thanks to the continued work of BassFan.com, we now have a statement from Mr. Scott, and I for one couldn't agree more with the ledgendary Bassmaster. In fact, if you read through these past blog posts, you will find a very similar call to action. Here is what Mr. Scott told our friends at BassFan.com:

"For those who have been around B.A.S.S. and know our history of tournaments, there is a process clearly identified in Rule 3 (B.A.S.S. Tournament Rules) that deals with infractions like this. When two anglers are in the middle of the lake and it becomes a question of who said what or what took place, you call on the polygraph. A polygraph is the only means at our disposal to clarify and resolve this matter.

"I would hope Mr. Wellman would recognize the criticality of what is at risk now – the perception of dishonesty in bass fishing tournaments and, more importantly, the integrity of every angler around the world. B.A.S.S. has rules that deal with sportsmanship and nothing stands to suffer more from this incident than the honor and veracity of all anglers. Even though B.A.S.S. opted for another course of action, they can still direct a polygraph.

"This isn't going to go away and the stigma will continue to hang over our heads until Mr. Wellman is either exonerated or held accountable. With all the speculation that is going on, the right thing for Mr. Wellman to do would be to contact B.A.S.S. and insist that they give him a polygraph. If he doesn't put this issue to rest beyond any reasonable doubt, B.A.S.S. and the bass-fishing community will forever hold him suspect in any tournament he attempts to enter."

Finally someone with an opinion that matters has called this to the forefront! Not only has Ray Scott stated that this is the only way to introduce any level of clarity into the discussion, he specifically outlines the Rule itself, Rule 3, in which the polygraph verbage reads like this:

"By his/her signature on the official tournament entry form, each competitor agrees to submit to a polygraph examination and abide by its conclusion should he/she be accused of any rule violation. The BASS Tournament Director, rules committee, or such person designated by the Tournament Director, shall have the discretion to determine the need for a polygraph examination. The BASS Tournament Director or his/her designee shall be responsible for selecting an independent expert to administer and interpret the results and establishing, in consultation with the expert administrator, the scope of the questions which may be asked during the polygraph examination. The BASS Tournament Director, or his/her designee, shall attempt to have the location of such polygraph examination as close in proximity to the angler’s permanent address, or such other mutually convenient location as possible. The competitor shall make himself/herself available at the location selected by the Tournament Director and shall cooperate in all respects with such examination. Anglers taking a polygraph examination may be responsible for any and all costs incurred"

So now we are left with a new question: Why isn't BASS pursuing this? Obviously this incident has become a huge black eye for BASS and its leadership. I personally have been a member of BASS since I was a boy, and will continue to be a member. I think the new leadership team, namely Jerry McKinnis, is a very capable unit, and I support them wholeheartedly. I just don't get this. It's time to step up. It's time to make a statement. It's time to clear this thing up! Rule 3 is in place for exactly this reason. If BASS isn't going to use this rule now, when will they? What sort of infraction are they looking for in order to enact Rule 3?

It has become clear to most of us that Nate Wellman is not going to volunteer to any sort of polygraph anytime soon, and in my opinion, that is a terrible idea if he is truly innocent. Now this issue rests solely on the shoulders of BASS as an organization. The fans of BASS are screaming out for closure on this mess one way or another! This is an angler competing on the highest level the sport has to offer, this needs to be handled and put to rest. The sooner the better for Nate Wellman, BASS, and all of the fans of bass fishing.

What do you say BASS? Your move.

2011-09-08T10:27:00.000-05:00

Joe Stois, Nate Wellman's Day 3 Co-Angler, Interviewed by BassFan.com

The nameless man behind the Nate Wellman controversy now has a name. Joe Stois, from Cleveland Ohio, has spoken with BassFan.com regarding his role in the events that transpired following the Day 3 weigh-in at the Bassmaster Northen Open on Lake Erie. Stois states to Bass Fan:

"I wish none of this would have happened and to be quite honest I feel bad for Nate, (but) I think he made a terrible mistake once he started thinking about not making the Classic. I don't know Nate, but aside from the offer, I enjoyed the beginning of the day with him. I told Nate that I would net my own fish so he could have more time to fish. I knew what was at stake for this young man and I didn't want to do anything to ruin his chances. I also know that when he said he 'would give me $1,000 for my fish' and that 'his dad walks around with $1,000 to $3,000 cash in his pocket' and 'we could meet up with his dad after the weigh in to take care of it,' and the fact that he said he 'would drive me out to the middle of the lake to transfer the fish to his livewell so that no one would see' it was not a joke."

Stois added: "I know some of you believe what Nate did was harmless and he was truly joking. That is your right and I'm just trying to let you know what really happened. I myself would never joke about something this important to a person I barely know. The people who know me have stood up for me as you would expect them to. I did what was right in my mind, period. Until you're in a similar situation, do you really know what you would do? As for me, I can wake up every morning and look in the mirror and know I did what was right, and I have."

Nate Wellman, or course, is maintaining his innocence by holding firm on his claim that his comments were made in jest. For those of you interested, Wellman will be interviewed on Tournament Fishing Radio on Monday, September 12th at 5:30 central. The interview will be available online Tuesday the 13th.

For more details on BASS's reaction and reasoning behind their decision, be sure to check out the full article on BassFan.com!

2011-09-07T18:18:00.003-05:00

Wellman Speaks, Will Anyone Listen?

In the wake of one of the most highly reacted to controversies in recent angling history, Nate Wellman has issued a statement regarding his alleged attempt to purchase one of his co-anlger's fish during the Bassmaster Northern Open on Lake Erie in late August. Wellman's statement goes like this:

"I regret the statements that I made to my co-angler during the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Northern Open on Lake Erie Aug. 25-27, 2011. While I never intended for my statements to be anything more than an expression of my envy for his performance that day, looking back I can understand now why my co-angler would have misinterpreted my statements. My statements were wrong and should never have been made.

"To be perfectly clear: I am not a cheater. I've never cheated in the past and will never do so in the future. I've dedicated my entire adult life to bass fishing – the sport that I love – and no amount of money in the world is worth jeopardizing my career that I've spent my life working for. I'm an accomplished angler and am confident about my future. Simply stated: I have no reason to cheat and would never tarnish my accomplishments nor compromise my future by cheating. I respect myself, my family, my sponsors and my sport way too much to bring it all down by cheating.

"I apologize to everyone for my mistake, including B.A.S.S. and my co-angler, for putting them in such an awkward position. Also a sincere apology to the fans of fishing for it was not my intention to tarnish the integrity of the sport."

I don't doubt for a second whether or not Wellman regrets his comments. Anyone would regret comments leading to their banning from one major circuit, and probation for another. Anyone making comments that could potentially destroy their career will have some regrets. What I think Wellman needs to address immediately is the fact that his comments were taken out of context. Were they? Only Nate knows for sure, but I can tell you the best way to erase most of the doubts about his intentions, and I've been screaming this since the announcement from BASS: Submit to a voluntary lie detector test, monitored by a BASS official.

Let's be honest, this thing has gotten out of control. With the age of instant Tweets and Status Updates, it doesn't take long before the phones start ringing, the blogs start buzzing, and the "Did you hear..." conversations start at the local landing. Wellman didn't do himself any favors by waiting almost four days to address the situation. His excuse was that a strong storm went through his area and knocked power out. Surely he still knew what was going on, and if my career was at risk I certainly wouldn't wait four days while the internet explodes with rumors, opinions, and "Ban Nate Wellman" Facebook pages complete with Elite Series Pros joining and posting. I would have gotten out in front of this thing, with the co-angler if possible, and address this issue in both print and video.

I want to be clear: I hope beyond hope that this thing is all a misunderstanding, but the evidence we are seeing doesn't really support that. If Wellman thinks his statement of "I'm a good angler who doesn't need to cheat" will counter balance the detailed statements outlining a plan to drive to a remote area, make a fish exchange, and have his $1,000-$3,000-in-cash-toting-dad pay up at the docks, I feel he is going to find out he is mistaken.

I personally fear for Nate and his family. I fear he is going to lose sponsorships, and I fear this thing is not over with BASS. I fear he will forever wear this scandal as an invisible patch on his tournament jersey. I, along with most people I have spoken with about this, hope that Wellman takes the steps to clear this up with more than a coached public relations statement. I hope that my next post on this announcing that Wellman is proven innocent. Until then, we all wait.

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2011-09-06T21:23:00.001-05:00

FLW Bans Nate Wellman for 1 Year.

Following his infraction in the Bassmaster Northern Open, Nate Wellman has been banned from competing in any FLW events for a period of one year. FLW also has the ability to deny his entry beyond that if they choose.

FLW Outdoors decided to conduct their own investigation with the parties involved to formulate an opinion about the incident. Ultimately, FLW is pointing to their governing rules, specifically Rule 9, which states:

9. Sportsmanship

All contestants are required to follow high standards of sportsmanship, courtesy and conservation and to conduct themselves in a manner that will be a credit to themselves, to FLW Outdoors, FLW Outdoors’ sponsors, the sport of fishing and FLW Outdoors’ efforts to promote the sport. Conduct not complying with these standards includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Violation of, or failure to comply with, any of the rules for the 2011 FLW Tour.
• Consumption and/or possession of alcoholic beverages or any kind of mind-altering substance during registration, the pretournament meeting or during tournament hours extending through the weigh-in procedure.
• Abuse of, or addiction to, mind-altering substances.
• Conviction of a felony within the past 36 months.
• Suspension/disqualification or ban from any tournament or fishing organization.
• Any other words, conduct or actions reflecting unfavorably upon efforts to promote safety, sportsmanship, fair competition and compliance with tournament rules, or which fail to comply with the standards set forth in the first sentence of paragraph 9.In case of any conduct not complying with the standards outlined above, FLW Outdoors shall have the right to refuse an application to compete, to deny a confirmed application to compete by returning the entry fee (minus deposit) or to disqualify a contestant.

Now, I came down pretty hard on Wellman in my previous post on this subject, and rightfully so. That said, I want to be clear that I really want Wellman to be innocent of this. It's not good for anyone in the sport, myself included. This is why I suggested the lie detector as a means of resolving this. I don't wish Wellman, or anyone else involved any hardship, but I do think if he is in fact guilty, then this sort of penalty should be enacted on all levels.

Wellman is expected to make a statement on this controversy tomorrow. Stay tuned for our coverage of this story as it develops.

2011-09-06T13:47:00.001-05:00

Bass Utopia Show 3, Part 2 Starring Brian Bengtson

For those of you who had the great pleasure of watchin Part 1 of our day on the water with Gander Mountain's Brian Bengtson, who is on the Outkast Tackle and Lowrance Pro Staff, here is the exciting conclusion to that edit.

This next cut is really fun to watch for me personally because I love it so much when I watch someone let their guard down and forget that there is a camera in the boat. I love watching real reactions to fish. What we want to convey through our show is the pure joy that fishing brings to people, and the pure unraveling that can happen on a bad day. Fishing can be a series of highs and lows, but there is nothing like those high moments, and for me personally, I love watching them happen in my boat whether it's coming from me or my guests!

Filming has really started to become a passion for me. My partner at Bass Utopia, Danny Schmidt (Fade to Black Productions) has made it both fun, and brought a very professional flare to what we are putting out there! We take a lot of pride in bringing a true reality approach to these shows, and the production value associated with the,. So far, we've been fortunate enough to have some great days, but I have to tell you, we've got one of the toughest days I've had on the water all season in production right now. It'll be interesting to see what comes of the cut because delirium hit after about 4 hours of fishing with only a few small fish in the boat. All I know is that Danny told me "I have plenty to work with" and then laughed. I am scared.

Hope you all enjoy the new video! Please be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel!

2011-09-05T21:24:00.002-05:00

September Facebook Contests

That's right fellow Utopians, I said contests with an "s"! We have two very cool contests this month that I want to share with you all.

First off we have our standard Photo/Video contest. Due to Facebook rules, all entries must be sent to me via email. I can not accept anything posted on the wall as an entry. We love to see those wall posts too, just know that they are not entered unless they are emailed. Please be sure to click on the photo contest link on he left side of our Facebook page for the rules. Email your entries to: jason@bassutopia.com

This month's contest is sponsored by Eco Pro Tungsten. Eco Pro has put together a prize package consisting of:

http://www.ecoprotungsten.com/eco-pro-beads/4 packs total:
6mm (2 packs) Brown,Watermelon

8mm (2 packs) Junebug, Green Pumpkin

http://www.ecoprotungsten.com/eco-pro-pegs/

6 packs total:

3 packs of the 3mm Pro pegs
3 packs of the 5mm Pro Pegs

Be sure to click the links to learn more about these products and watch videos from the pro staff to get their insights about these new products. B sure to check out Eco Pro Tungsten's Facebook page and join up to get the latest!

Our second contest this month revolves around the time of year we find ourselves in and one of the types of fishing that makes fall so much fun: top water!

Thanks to our friends at Picasso Lures, we are able to offer this bonus contest for the month of September! If catch a fish on a top water bait, any top water bait, you can enter it into both our normal photo contest as well as this bonus contest! Catch a big frog fish, enter it. Got a great fish on a spook? Email it in! Buzzbait? You bet! Any fish caught on any top water lure counts!

Picasso will be awarding five (5) of their new Shad Walker top water bait to our winners! Designed to mimic an injured bait fish, the Shad Walker can be walked through the thickest vegetation, or in open water to entice those feeding bass to break the surface!

he rules for this contest are exactly the same as our standard contest, accept that the fish must be caught using a top water bait to qualify. Email your entries to jason@bassutopia.com.

I want to thank both of our contest sponsors this month for the support and encourage all of you to check out their web sites!

Looking forward to seeing everyone's entries!

2011-09-05T17:35:00.003-05:00

A New Look for Bass Utopia/MinnesotaBass!

Oh the times they are a changin'

Some of you who follow the page probably have noticed some pretty big changes lately, and we hope you like what you see! Things have really taken off the past year for Bass Utopia, and it turns out, it was bigger than the old style and the old Minnesota Bass Blog. In an effort to keep things as seamless as possible, we have temporarily forwarded our bassutopia.com URL to this blog rather than our Facebook page.

The thought process behind this change is that we really didn't have a good outlet to post on Facebook since the "Discussions" tab is pretty limited, and really doesn't get used very often. With this format we will be able to add articles, videos, reviews, etc much easier until our full site is launched. Now, don't misunderstand us, our main driver is still social media! That format is such an amazing way to be as accessible as possible to all of our followers and members, and we want to be sure to use that as our driving force!

With this change you will notice a much higher level of integration with all of our sites. Facebook is streaming real time on the left of this page and our YouTube channel can be viewed on the top right. We have also added streaming news from the likes of Bassmaster, FLW, and Bass Fan to make sure that you all have a quick way to access all of the latest industry news while visiting our site!

We hope you all find this change to be useful, and will stop by often! Please be sure to sign up for all of our sites. The more people we have driving traffic to our sites, the better partnerships we are able to get with our contest sponsors, which means better prizes for you all!

Thank you to all of you who make this, and all of our sites, a success. We are gaining traction everyday, and we owe it to all of you! The members and fans of Bass Utopia make it what it is!

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Thoughts on the Nate Wellman Cheating Scandal

2011-09-04T11:58:00.000-05:00

By now you have probably heard the growing rumble surrounding the Nate Wellman controversy at the Bassmaster Northern Open on Lake Erie, in which Wellman walked away with a nice check for winning the event, as well as an automatic berth into next year's Bassmaster Classic. For those of your who haven't yet read the article on Bassmaster, here is a link: Fine levied at Northern Open

I want to say first and foremost that my thoughts on this issues are just that: my thoughts. The major word to be used here, as in any legal case, is "allegedly". That said, when you look at the info that is starting to emerge though the various social media sites, forums, etc, the story from Wellman starts to become very hard to believe.

To quickly recap the controversy, Nate Wellman's co-angler on day three of the Lake Erie event reported to BASS officials that Wellman offered to pay him for one of his fish. Wellman has since offered an apology saying that it was a joke, and that he should have known better than to make it. He claims he was trying to lighten the mood in the boat. BASS has fined Wellman $2,500 and placed him on one year probation.

At first glance it seems fair and reasonable. I'm sure thousands of anglers have made similar comments regarding cheating to win a tournament in jest.

Then the details start to float to the top of the internet outlets. Comments on Bassmaster's article from people who know the co-angler start to show up. Folks who spoke with the co-angler after the event and before he reported the incident begin to tell their versions of the events. Suddenly, the "jokes" don't seem so funny.

Multiple sources are stating that the co-angler told them personally about Wellman's multiple offers to buy a four pound smallmouth from him. Wellman offered to drive to an area where no one could see the exchange. He told the co-angler that his father would pay him $1,000 at the docks when they got in, and even mentioned that his father always carries $1,000-$3,000 in his wallet at all times, so he would be sure to have it for him when they checked in.

It's one thing to say, "Wow bud, I think if I don't get any better bites that I'm going to have to buy one of those fish from you!"

It's a completely different deal to lay out a detailed plan about where to do the swap, how much you will pay, and who will be handling the payment complete with an assurance that he will have the money.

This sort of infraction hurts tournament fishing on all levels. The basics of tournament fishing involves a tremendous amount of trust. It's a sport that is rarely directly officiated. To my knowledge, only the Elite Series has any sort of officiating with it's Marshal Program, and even that is based on a paying fan keeping an eye on things with an Elite Angler.

So how should BASS proceed? I've communicated with a few of the anglers on the Northern Tour and they are outraged, both at the incident and with the penalty. If I were in a position with BASS in which I had to levy a penalty on this issue here is how I would approach it:

First: Contact all of the anglers that Wellman fished with in the Lake Erie event. Let them know that they may be asked to take a polygraph to verify their answers. Make it clear that any lack of cooperation would result in a lifetime ban from any future BASS sanctioned events. Also, offer them immunity from any wrong doing in exchange for the information that they provide. Once this is understood, start discussing with them how Wellman handled himself on the days they fished with him. Find out if anything similar was discussed at any point, or if any fish were sold to Wellman.

Second: Contact Nate Wellman, let him know that his co-anglers have been contacted, and ask him to take a polygraph. Inform him that any unwillingness to do so would result in his banning from any BASS sanctioned event in the future. Also offer Wellman the opportunity to serve a short-term ban of 2-5 years if he admits wrong doing. Allow him the opportunity to re-qualify after that sentence is served.

Third: Begin to research Wellman's other BASS entries, namely events that he placed high in or won. His win on the Chesapeake Bay last season would be a good starting point. Contact his co-anglers and find out if anything transpired in that event or others.

Fourth: Administer a lie detector test starting with Wellman, and then, if necessary, moving onto his co-anglers.

As a community, I hope that the BASS pros on the Northern Tour, as well as other circuits, will be speaking out loudly about this. Open pros plop down $1,000 entry fees for each tournament, and pay countless dollars in travel, lodging, and meal expenses to participate in the Bassmaster Opens. In many cases, these expenses are not covered by sponsors like theay are with high level pros like Wellman; they are covered by the anglers themselves who work all year longs and save then funds to support their dream. By not looking deeper into this issue, BASS is showing a lack of respect to the other participants in their events.

If Wellman did attempt cheating, he should have been disqualified immediately. If he is DQ'ed you have a new winner, Jared Rhode. Rhode wins over $50,000 rather than $12,500, and more importantly, a Bassmaster Classic berth! Then there are the overall points standings. Wellman's DQ may only result in a single point increase for the field, but that can be the difference between qualifying for next year's Elite Series field or deciding whether you want to keep chasing the dream, and making the sacrifices necessary to do so.

If BASS does not take a more serious approach to this infraction, I think they are going to have a hard time maintaining their credibility. This, in turn, could potentially hurt the credibility of their tournaments and pros. I know that if I were the FLW tour I would be using this as an opportunity to promote the precautionary measures that your tournament trail uses to ensure this sort of thing never happens!

I want to personally thank Wellman's co-angler for his integrity. It's guys like him that keep this sport afloat! It takes a lot of courage to turn in a big name Elite Series pro like Wellman, but he did it anyways. It takes a lot of integrity to turn down a offer of $1,000 for a single fish that you know you could get away with very easily. While Nate Wellman now has to deal with the fall out from this controversy, I hope his co-angler is rewarded for his role in this!

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Don't Join 'Em...Beat 'Em!!

2011-08-27T18:54:00.006-05:00

It's so tempting to take information from any source you can before heading to a new lake as cold hard fact. In fact, often an angler is trying a new lake based on information offered up by another fisherman (or fisherwoman) who also offers up the "how to catch 'em" right along with their lake recommendation. How can you possibly ignore such advice? I'm here to tell you, sometimes the best advice you can get is the advice you give yourself when you approach a new lake.

I relearned this lesson today while fishing with North American Fishing Club Social Media Editor, "Web Guy" Gregg Huff. We ventured out mid morning to a lake that I had been meaning to try, but had not had the opportunity to get to due to my guiding and tournament schedule. When Greg called me Friday night asking if I was going out, I told him to hop in with me and we'd try out this new lake.

Now, going into our trip out, I had heard from a few people that this body of water was a big "dock and lay down lake". It was suggested to me by those people that I target docks near weed edges and lay downs in the very shallow water. Seemed reasonable to me at the time. Moderately stained water, cooling temps, and a very shoreline oriented weed line seemed to support their theories, and so we went at it. The first three docks we hit held three decent fish in the two pound range, so it seemed it would only be a matter of time before we were lipping giants into the boat!

5 lb 10 oz, best of the day!

As the next two hours passed we boated only a few fish as we hit the obvious weed edges, docks, and the occasional lily pad area. Greg and I scratched our heads as we wondered why we weren't fooling any bass into biting. With about an hour to go before we had to head back to the home front, I made the decision to take a different approach.

As we left a very inviting lily pad field, I explained to Greg that I was going to get back to how I like to break down a lake. I spent a few minutes looking at the contour map on my Lowrance HDS 8, and after finding a area that caught my interest, I put the Structure Scan to work. We idled along a deeper contour line in 12-15 feet of water until I spotted some rocks on a break line that dropped from about 12 to about 16 feet of water. It wasn't a big area, but it was different, and it was what I feel comfortable fishing. I continued to idle the rock vein, marking a few way points as I went, and then doubled back to try our luck at our new method.

Just another 4.5 lb

This area really didn't have much going on other than this rock edge. There wasn't really anything crazy that stuck out on the map. No major point or steep drop off. I don't know what compelled me to check the area out, but I can tell you with all honesty that without my Structure Scan from Lowrance, I would have never in a million years stopped on this area. There was no reason to!

It didn't take too many casts with my Football Jig/Chigger Chunk combo to start drawing some attention. I quickly boated a 2 pound largemouth, and my confidence got a much needed kick start!

Greg with three of his giants!

To say that we whacked 'em after that wouldn't do what we did justice. We pulverized them! We destroyed them! We owned the fish. To be honest, I have no idea how many three and four pound fish we caught from that point on. If I had to guess I'd put the number somewhere around 25-30. I do know that our two biggest were a 5 pound 3 ounce giant boated by Greg, and a 5 pound 10 ounce beast that fell for my jig!

Two more 4.5 lb + fish fooled by a jig

It was the kind of day that you live for as an angler. The sort of day that I will probably be talking about for years. "Man, one day I went to this new lake that I had never been on before..." But in all the excitement, there is a lesson to be learned in all of this: fish to your strength! Use the tools you have, both technological and mental, to dissect a lake. Sure, a little friendly advise is always nice to have, but sometimes the "local knowledge" isn't the best way to about things. Stick to what you do best first, and see if it works. You might be surprised what your unique approach to the water might yield!

Using Lowrance HDS to Find Deep Structure Part 1

2011-08-24T15:18:00.000-05:00

Shot this video with Brian Bengston recently on a west metro lake. We used my new Lowrance HDS with Structure Scan set up to pinpoint deep rock structure.

A Good Day Becomes a Great Day!

2011-08-21T09:59:00.002-05:00

Sometimes a fishing day seems like as good as it can get, then it gets better! That's what happened this past Friday on a west metro lake that I was guiding on. I met up with my clients at 6:00 AM and headed out for a 4 hour trip. This father and young son duo had little experience fishing, but had a will to both learn and do what it took to catch some nice bass!

I have to admit that the lake that I was taking them out on was relatively new water to me, but I had spent a few hours on this particular body of water the day prior, and was impressed with the lake's structure, and the quality of fish I had caught, so I decided to have a last minute change of plans and bring my clients out for a true learning experience for both them and myself.

Craddling his first 4 pounder!

The first thing we did was use my new Lowrance HDS 8's with Structure Scan technology to pin point some rock piles in 14-18 feet of water. My angling partners were very impressed with the level of technology available in these units, and quickly saw how much of an advantage we had by being able to pick these deep water points apart quickly before even making a cast. With the ease of adjusting settings on the fly and the ability to back scroll the screen, we were able to clearly see what we needed to see and mark some areas.

Within minutes we were boating fish using a rock jig tipped with a Berkley Powerbait Chigger Chunk. The bite was subtle, so the learning curve was a bit steeper than on most trips, but I had two anglers in the boat determined to learn the ropes, and declined my offers of easier tactics. We jumped from spot to spot finding new structure and catching more fish! It's hard to beat the smile you get from a young guy catching his first 4 pounder!

Doubling up on 3 pounders!

As the hours past quickly by, we found more schools of fish, often finding a quick paced bite that would go hot for 10-15 minutes before dying down. We read the queue and moved on as the bite slowed. I enjoyed the conversation as my clients asked questions about "Not sitting in one spot with the anchor out" and "what sort of colors do you use for different types of water".

With under an hour to go we found one last grouping of fish, which proved to hold good numbers of 2-3 pound class fish. While my clients were more than happy, I was silently hoping for a giant. The type of fish that makes someone say "Whoa"!

Well, the fish didn't quite give us the giant bite when the trip ended, but I dropped two very happy clients off at the dock. I enjoyed watching them walk back to their car with excitement in their voices as they relived some of the best catches of the day. As I climbed back into my boat I couldn't help but think I had left the trophy in the lake, and being the hog hunting addict that I am, this didn't sit well. It was time to head back out and take a second shot!

5 pound 6 ounce bass

My journey back onto the water had me again using my Lowrance HDS system to look for unique, subtle structure that may have that magic element to hold a giant. After about 30-40 minutes of looking, I found a small rock pile on the edge of a milfoil patch. When I say small, I mean probably not more than 6 or 8 feet square. The type of structure you might past past 1000 times before accidentally bumping into it, but on my HDS, it was clear as day. I moved my cursor over to the structure on the screen, marked the center of the pile, which placed a way point on my GPS map of the lake, and I stopped to make my first cast since heading back out.

I'd like to say my first cast was productive and landed the giant I was after, but that wouldn't be true...it was my second cast! I felt the rocks as my jig bounced over them, the sensitivity of my Denali Rods Noirwood Series rod allowing the vibration of the jig to transfer down the rod to my hand, then I felt that familiar "tick". I reared back and set into the fish and knew immediately that I was into a good one! After landing the fish I weighed it in a 5 pounds 6 ounces! Not bad, but I'm greedy when it comes to big bass, I wanted bigger!

Confident that I had found a key area, I re-positioned the boat and made a few more casts to the spot. Nothing. I decided to move my boat to cast at a different angle. As the bait hit the bottom I started to slowly drag it along the rock edge. Then it happened. The boat just stopped, and I mean dead in it's tracks. No bump or tick, no fish running with the bait, it just stopped and felt heavy. "When in doubt, set the hook", I always say, so I set and that rare feeling of the fish hardly moving immediately sent a signal to my brain that this was the fish I had come back out for!

6 pound 14 ounce giant!

There is something special about giant bass, they fight different, they look different, and they bring a level of adrenaline to a bass maniac like myself that can't be matched. Battling a giant bass is different too, it's a heavy-weight bout between the angler and the fish, and I'm happy to say that after a couple tough rounds, I won this battle!

After weighing the fish and snapping a few pictures, I released the fish back into the water and watched it swim away. I'm always amazed at how hard we as bass anglers work to find that moment, and then also take such pride in watching that trophy as it swims away, healthy, back into the depths from which is came. Every fish is a blessing, but those few moments that come with those special fish are what keep me going back to the water.

What's the lesson? Learn to use the technology available to us efficiently so you can find those specific areas that may hold those trophy fish. Mostly though, keeping that level of passion for these moments will no doubt drive you do what you need to to get the most of your time on the water, and will lead to more of those special moments that we all strive for!