Big Fish Rice

Scott is right on the money. For river smallies, current breaks are great targets. The biggest misconception though, is that they only sit in the slow moving water. Smallmouth have no problems with fast current. Those are great starting points though. Senkos, tubes and creature baits/jigs will get the job done. Once the water warms up, smallies love to hit topwater too. If you get an idea of what river you'll be fishing, let us know and we can look at Google maps with you.

My first two fish of 2014 - Moses Lake, Washington. Smallies eating crankbaits!

SpencerLittle, looks like you didn't mean to post in the smallmouth forum, but yes, they're great baits for smallmouth and largemouth. I like the 4.25" Quiver Bug from Warrior Baits. They're thick and durable, which is exactly what I like for flipping and pitching. I like the larger plastics because most anglers flip and pitch the smaller creatures. Adds something a little different.

Dropshot. None better.

Holy smokes, I love looking at new bodies of water. If the lake is relatively new, you need to focus on structure. Not so much cover at this point (because many new lakes lack available weed growth), but locations that have rocks and ditches. Here's how I would approach it. It's not the only way, but these are patterns I've used on my lakes and reservoirs. I'm looking at the lake on Google, along with your survey image for cross reference. 1. Prespawn mode means deeper breaks will often hold larger numbers of fish. You'll always have fish up shallow, but this time of year, I've found they come in and out quickly. If you haven't got bit up shallow, it may just be a timing issue. Wait until early afternoon to hit water in the 1-3' range. Say 2pm or 3pm. 2. There are several areas from your survey image that reveal "hot spots". Rocks, rocks, rocks. Regardless of species (smallmouth or largemouth) they're going to be targeting crayfish. Yes, you'll find them in the mud and all that, but rocks will always attract the smaller prey. 3. Look at the cluster of GPS points #2, #4, #5 up by the dam. They are outside of potential spawning coves and depending on the depth/temperature, this area would be one of my first stops. Jigs, red crankbaits and a dropshot would be on my deck. 4. All of the main points that reach out into the main body of water could hold fish this time of year. I would hit every single one if I had enough time. Don't spend much time on the points. If they're biting, a crankbait should cover the active fish. Mix up the speed of the bait - if you need help, there's no better teacher than Kevin VanDam on this topic. Youtube is great! 5.GPS point #9 is in the middle of War Eagle Cove. But guess what else will be there? A roadbed. Look at how the roads used to build the body of water would travel. Hotspot! If you find nothing on the roadbed, I would potentially search shallower into that particular cove.It's one of the largest and without knowing about weed growth, take this only as a suggestion. 6. Lastly, electronics are so valuable on new bodies of water. If you're like me, you need to increase your odds because I fish out of a small aluminum without side imaging. This type of thinking will help you get there, but nothing beats time on the water. Continue looking for these opportunities on the rest of the lake. Hope this helps a bit!

Lots of great jigs out there - What separates them are the quality of hooks (light wire or extra strong), type of skirt materials used (living rubber vs silicone for example) and head shape (football, flipping and swimming heads as examples). Don't make it too difficult. Buy a couple football head jigs in 1/2-ounce and a couple in 3/8-ounce. Keep the colors simple. If you're unsure, buy green pumpkin or black/blue. Football head around rocks, or swim jig heads around weeds. If you feel like burning money, buy some flipping/pitching jigs. For trailers, Strike King, Zoom and Net Bait make popular crawfish trailers. You can match your trailers with your jigs or buy a little different color to give the jig a different look. Swim jigs are killer - use 3-5" swimbaits and swim them around cover. As you can see, the sky is the limit. I use Warrior Baits' jigs, but they'll all attract attention. If you feel a "tick-tick" on your line, wait until you feel a little tension before setting the hook. Bass declaw crayfish which is why you may feel a couple bites before they take the jig. Other times, you'll feel like you're snagged...so set the hook. It will either be a fish or you'll lose the jig. If you're fishing them where you should be, you'll lose at least 2 or 3 a trip. It's just part of the game, but well worth the quality of fish you'll catch.

From someone who fished FLW College Fishing for a couple of years, I know what you and the club are going through. The hardest time for you and the other members are the first 2-3 years simply because of what you've stated: raising club funds. First thing is first - you should have a club contact with the college who will be able to help with applying for club allowances. These are budgets allocated to official member clubs through the school. Your "club counselor" or mentor should help you make contact with the appropriate person within the administration. There's no guarantee you and your team will receive any type of support from the school, but it can't hurt to ask or to expose the requirements. Second, you need to (and should have been) raising funds through raffles. Chances are, you might be struggling to attract new members. Offering prodcuts (lures, reels, rods, free pizza, anything) will help get new bodies to the meetings. The raffle prizes can be anything from a bag of soft plastics all the way up the line. The point is making the meetings fun for new prospects. Free pizza or sub sandwiches can be very helpful. It's one thing that college kids don't want to worry about. May I suggest that the Club President work on speaking with your nearest pizza company to help provide food on meeting nights? Depending on the size of your meetings, that's not a bad way to advertise for said company. Third, start your own "public relations" committee, or have it be a rotating responsibility between members. Handing out flyers on campus (if it's allowable), starting a Facebook fan page and engaging potential members with club details and future goals will help prospects feel like they're part of a team. Not everyone wants to start a club because it's a lot of work, but most people are willing to help with responsibilities once the organization is structured. Lastly, the inevitable.....sponsorships. Without knowing your team and what the members have accomplished, college fishing sponsors will show up if your results are evident. Strong finishes, consistent performance and members who speak professionally, look professional and are knowledgeable of the sport, will get approached. Sponsors are not a quick buck. They're not just discounted products. It's real work and it takes strong leadership to maintain those "sponsorships" for the entire club. Focus on the raffles and gaining new members, then with a little bit of luck and A LOT of hard work, the rest will fall in to place. Congrats on your new direction - it's a ton of fun

I'd second Paul Krew's Custom Baits. The only drawback is that he's weeks out on production, so you have to plan ahead to give him a few weeks.

There was a "very small" tournament here last week. Water temps high 30s and low 40s. Couple guys pulled in a 17-lb sack of smallmouth. Other guys had one or two bites. I say you have a good shot at catching a fish or two, especially if you're the only one tossing a line Good luck, just be safe. Carry water, food and an extra set of clothes if you can.

Jonnehboi, I'm assuming no wind could also mean blue bird skies? For me personally, finesse fishing (such as dropshot, shaky head, etc) will help me catch numbers. Jigs are a great choice too - they'll attract both quantity and quality. Without wind, I try and focus on cover oriented fish around lily pads, fallen trees and structure, such as rocks and humps. This just takes a little more map preparation when fishing from shore. Lastly, a 1/2-ounce swimbait jig head and a 4.5-inch bait, or 6-inch swimbait slow rolled can be pretty enticing on calm days.

Yeah absolutely..which is what I've read also. It just so happened that only 1 out of 5 on a particular study actually remained in an area without migrating. I'm sure the number varies, especially depending on whether the body of water is natural, man made or a reservoir system between dams.

Once you catch a smallie through the ice, you'll experience how fun it is to fish year round. Heck yes it will help you become a better angler. Bait choice, depth...and guess where they'll be when the ice thaws? You'll already have information that will help you early in the year.

Zewski, you're too shallow. Your Canadian waters can be similar to our water here in the Pacific Northwest. As soon as water temps drop into the 40s, we find them anywhere between 30-50 feet of water. Dropshot catches most of the fish, but tubes and jigs (fished painstakingly slow) can catch some of the larger bronzebacks. They're laying on the bottom around structure (rocks, humps, etc) so fish slow and target these high percentage areas.

Mainebass is absolutely right: Here in the Pacific Northwest, there was a study where five smallmouth were tagged; can you guess the farthest migration route? Nearly 38 miles in the Spring (Columbia River). Some will stay in the main river and some travel to sloughs and cuts. Not all travel to migrate though, one of the five smallmouth stayed in a home area the entire Spring. In Northwestern Wisconsin, tagged smallmouth traveled more than 45 miles to find suitable habitat. Unless you research the studies that have been published, I don't think an angler can truly understand how dynamic largemouth and smallmouth bass really are in their movements. While some bodies of water have habitual movements each year, there are other bodies of water that change and continue to change. Needless to say, to answer the original question, I would suggest researching migration patterns (of the particular body of water you are fishing) and seasonal changes, such as water temps, daylight duration and thermoclines. There's no doubt that all three are very important in an angler's quest to solve the ever-lasting question of, "Where did the fish go? They were here last week".

Very similar conditions as my home water here in Washington State. Believe it or not, up sizing my baits this year caught me more fish. Not just better quality, but more numbers as well. Instead of 4.5-inch Roboworms, using a 6-inch in Aarons Magic or Margarita Mutilator often resulted in fish (that weren't biting smaller baits). To be honest, we fish those depths from mid-October through Winter. My two biggest pieces of advice would be: shorten your dropshot leader length to about 6-inches and try to fish directly over the smallmouth if you have strong enough electronics. Seems to catch more fish.

Not a "read" but a "watch". I just received a few titles from Lindner Media and their coverage and knowledge continues to blow me away. Their DVDs are second to none.

After working retail in a fishing department, knowledge and bait selection are both key in brick and mortar locations. Grabbing the "tournament" crowd makes a significant impact. Like others have said, there also has to be an internet push simply because it's just the way of the world these days. You can reach far more customers in-store and online together. Web, hosting, commerce applications, all these need to be budgeted for. The margin on lures and equipment (knowing what these numbers are) means you can beat the big box stores if you're willing to reduce your overall revenue. Of course, these margins are severely dependent on your overhead costs. Everything from the rent/lease to electricity to traditional operating costs can start to eat away any potential revenue in the first three years. A simple analysis can tell you whether or not the business has a long-term benefit. If you can grab a share of the spending power from anglers in your area, growing that network of customers (and the referrals they bring) can make all the difference in the world. Expect long hours - the key is being open when the shoppers need to shop. By this I mean the hours of 5pm-8pm on weekdays and all day Saturday and Sunday. Lastly, as my own piece of advice, I would make sure you have a very strong relationship with your distributors/vendors, especially when it comes to returning equipment. A dissatisfied customer brings gear back only to learn that you're not willing to help with a defective lure, reel or rod - and he/she is gone for life. Trust plays a large part in becoming a mainstay.

A lot of the bigger brands have the budget for decals, like already stated. Most printing/design companies require thousands in each order, so small businesses are a bit more handcuffed with the expense unless they have it budgeted. The best thing is to just send a friendly email/phone call and ask if they have decals available for your truck and boat. Some may charge and others will be happy to ship them off.

Marysville is where my wife is from, and they have lots of great bass fishing around the area. As far as the original poster goes, Glenn has you on the right track. Our smallmouth are bruisers and scrappers. If I might suggest a few setups to make it easier with switching baits, I would have a medium powered dropshot rod, a 7' MH Jig/Plastics rod and another rod (preferable longer than 7') for throwing crankbaits. Go-to colors for plastics are green pumpkin, cinnamon, and smoke with black flake. My best colors for cranks include brown craw, chartreuse, sexy shad and perch Deep techniques such as the carolina rig are very effective, as are blade baits and spoons You can fish for anything in our neck of the woods - the only thing left to do is get to a spot and start fishing!

From one veteran to another, thank you for your service Jeff. The Army and Marine Corps? Way to go. To be quite honest, you don't need much help with your resume. You took a lot of time and put a lot of thought into your presentation. You hit all the important aspects and you know how to write. Very clean and simple.

Certainly was an impressive largemouth. Gotta check the date on that fishing license before you hit the water.

...jigs, tubes and goby-style lures work great. For finesse, nothing beats a dropshot for me. Tie on a Owner Shaky Worm or a Roboworm and work it slow.

First of all, we live in a country where "loans" are available to those who show and prove themselves as responsible debtors. The majority of society depends on loans for vehicles, houses, boats, and equipment, so if you want to get a boat loan and the responsibility is worth the expense, then don't listen to people who try and "sway" your interests. If you want a boat, it's going to come down to (1) paying for the boat, and (2) getting the insurance you need to protect the investment. Whoever said "boats depreciate more than cars do"...I urge them to looks at boat values again. Boats (if taken care of) will maintain impressive retail value over many, many years. First thing is first. Get the information for the boat. Year, condition, motor, etc and get it inspected by a marine mechanic, or a person whom you trust to help with identifying any issues. Hiring someone who knows about boats can be a few hundred dollars for a day, but if he or she can help you identify the boat's overall condition, it may save THOUSANDS later down the road. Second, if the boat checks out with a mechanic or marine inspector, get the info and head to your bank. Credit Unions are tough to beat. The more money you can put down, the better, but it's not necessary. When you apply for a "fun loan" as some call it, the bank will take into consideration the year of the boat, the overall condition, and the intended purpose. There is only one way to find out if you can get a loan for a boat...ask your bank and apply for a loan, which entails a credit check. If they say yes and you get the loan you need, congratulations on your new boat. If they say no, you can always check a second bank institution, but you don't want to "hop" around and keep applying for loans. A credit check tells a creditor you are applying for credit, but several "credit checks" make you look undesirable. If your first bank denies your application, you should identify "why" and work on the issue at hand. It may be a low credit score, or it may be an issue that you previously had with a creditor. Find out why. Other than that, boats require annual maintenance that can add up. One mistake can ruin your hull, such as hitting a log or rock. A lower unit can cost a few thousand if you accidentally hit something, and fiberglass is not cheap to repair. Add up electronics, fishing gear and tackle, and you have yourself a floating sink hole for cash. ...but to some, the costs are well worth the investment.

I have seen those comments too, but I was referring to some online auctions that did in fact have the trademarked name in the title. If you look at Ebay now, there are "creative" ways around selling a product with a trademark. As far as those comments are concerned, it's a grey area. For kids on YouTube who might not understand, a successful infringement plaintiff is usually awarded attorney fees, brand dilution damage and other monetary damages. YouTube would remove these videos long before this ever went to "case" though. I agree with your "copyright" explanation JFrancho, I merely got copyright and patent mixed up and went off on the wrong direction. You can rest your case

I think our views were different now that re-read your post. I'll just go ahead and agree to disagree. There has been trademark infringement since others are selling the rigs under their name, but I'm not a lawyer and will avoid the copyright questions because I may be incorrect. .