FIN-S-R

My two go-to lures: vibe and jig worm. I can feel a fish swirl in the near vicinity of either of these baits. Put any other lure in my hands and I cant tell nearly as much. I got to know these lures by fishing w/ my eyes closed...I was in the back of the boat and got accused of sleeping. Some times I do the same thing with a drop shot when the bite is real subtle...it really does help. I heard Van Dam say he could feel a fish swipe and miss his spinner bait... i didnt believe him until I really started concentrating on how the lure should feel.

This is open water bait runnin schoolers...fall pattern relating to main lake (impoundment) grass beds adjacent to ledges breaking into the main channel. Main forage- threadfin shad/ Ghost minnows. I ran into the same thing this weekend in a tourny. Caught a few of the smaller ones on red vibe, but still couldnt get em going. I guess I should mention these few things: Southern Oklahoma/ Super clear water/ Extreme angler pressure.

I work in the oil industry and the perception of "oil business" by the GP is way skewed thanks to some of the great news media we have out there. #1 thing to know is that we import a little over half the petro products we use in the US from neighbors (mexico and canada) and this is on the rise. Less and less oil is coming from the middle east and south america and so on into this country all the time. Oil ans gas prices were high and are on the fall, so this makes overseas oil more competative with domestic oil because its more costly to get the stuff out of the ground in the US thank you B. Clinton and EPA. We are in a catch 22 we can use our own and pay more, or we can use theirs and pay less until somthin' blows up and then pay more (a special thanks to the market speculators) and wait till it goes down and somthin' blows up and then pay more...and so on. Id like to see valero or devon or anadarko or even BP hook up with BASS. These are all "AMERICAN" oils companies (even though BP is British Petroleum its HQ'D in Houston). The reason I use quotes there is because oil is a globally exchanged commodity and it doenst matter if you buy it from citgo, exxon, phillips, valero, shell, or whoever, if it gets pulled out of the ground it will be sold and used somewhere. If you dont buy from a citgo station, the gas you didnt buy wiil end up in someones tank somewhere, and the crude it was produced from will go somewhere. Gas stations get gas from the most logistically feasable source, so it really doesnt matter about the marketers name, only the market share that company occupies. P.S. i dont like the whole foreign oil dependecy deal either, but better to use theirs up first and ours later...and you would be suprised at how much more there really is in US territory than in the rest of the world-LOTS.

All my feeder cam is gettin is pictures of cows

Im going to guess that it is a pH deal. Since you caught the fish out of an old mine site, the "stuff" that was exposed during the mining of rock out of the area is almost certainly got a higher concentration of basic cations (chemisrty term) available for binding H+ and subsequently cause the h2o in the area to be basic, or "soft". now this is just anacdotal speculation, but too I have noticed that as you guys have mentioned that fish in muddy water are less distinctly marked. Muddy water generally has Higher salt content and a subsequent higher pH due to the introduction of negatively charged soil particles into the system. The soil or salts from the soil bind all of the "free" H+ floating around in the water and it has a lower pH. Maybe its just mother natures way of helping the fish as was mentioned "chaemelionize " themselves, and this particular situation is an exception to the rule?

Im always tryin' to find research studies on bass wether it be general habits, feeding patterns, migration trends, physiology, specific behavior, or whatever. It seems there is very little of this runnin' around out there to the general public. Now when I say "research studies" I mean hardcore peer reviewed statistically analyzed research published in scientific journals, not the anacdotal stuff from bassmasters, in-fisherman, and your other garden variety periodicals. I realize the periodicals are good info for new techniques and developing patterns, but I want to get to "KNOW" a bass. I know there are some Icthiologist, and Fisheries Biologist types checkin out this forum, so you guys that are in the know could you give a fellow science geek a hand. I would especially like to get my hands on some concrete research findings on fish response, or bass response to variable environmental stimuli.

I have seriously been fishing tournaments for only about three years now, and realize I have so much more to learn. Before that it was enter 1 here 1 there and hope to get lucky. I decided donating to the guys who regularly win boats wasnt good enough. Then I started studying bass, and I mean really scientifically studying them to figure out what makes em' tick...this helped quite a bit on eliminating water. I also have kept very detailed logs of all fishing trips taken in the last 3 years as to be able to refer back for "GENERALIZATIONS" not specific spots and baits as this stuff can change overnight...this helped with choosing a starting point on techniques for a particular situation. Then I went to map study about two years ago, and due to the fact I have an educational background in geology (understand the geology of a lake and it opens up a whole new world)... I found this very helpful in locating spots to try and then relating the "fishy" ones to other similar spots. Last year I began an indepth study of fish relation to "breaklines" during various parts of the year. I didnt go fishing to catch fish I went fishing to find fish (get to know your electronics and buy good sunglasses). By taking a small portion of a couple of lakes and disecting them into sections relating to breaklines I learned alot about fish movements and feeding patterns. Once you do this to 1 or two spots youll get very good at recognizing these "sections" anywhere you go. By chance I married into a family of die-hard big water catfishermen (my fater-in-law has held state record for blue cat) subsequently I learned about bait...this is a really important part of fish behavior that is often overlooked- KNOW THE BAIT. I have unfortunately found that no amount of "learning" can be substituted for time on the water. Time out there is the only way youll ever be able to notice those little things that can make a big difference. I am by no stretch of the imagination a "GREAT STICK", but im getting alot better every time I hit the water. Now fishing tournys is the only way to get good a fishing tourneys. Only then will you be able to learn to control the panick and indecision that will befall you when it hits noon and you only have 1 dink in the livewell. Casting accuracy, boat control, decision making, reaction time, reading the weather, picking a color, knowing when to move or stay, all come from experience. I have logged about 200-250 hrs on the water since jan 1 of this year and have learned more than all of my previous experience combined and look to follow a similar trend in the future. This year resulted in over twice the winnings of the past two years, 8 largemouth over 6lbs, 5 smallies over 4 lbs, and only 1 tourney w/o a limit. Hopefully next year I can actually cover my expenses.

I think fish know, all they do is observe...all day long, every day, its how they make a livin. So if somthin' happens they know. Now does that matter??? Seems to with shallower fish more than deeper fish. A shallow fish doesnt have much room to work with when trying to get away...low ceiling to their environment...deeper fish have much more space to work with and probably "see" much more boat traffic so boats and loud sounds dont bother them as much at times.

Caught more bass on zoom finnesse worm than the same color gulp finnesse worm, but boy those blues, channels, flatheads and bluegills sure do like the gulp.

Here I come with some more science. 1. Fish area product of their environment- they cant change it so they react to it 2. People Make their environment a product of preference- We change our environment to suit us SO We dont normally "think" like a bass "thinks". We get hungry we go get food. A bass gets hungry they do what they can to preserve their current energy supplies until a meal becomes available. So are bass characteristics consistant? YES they are, but consistant doesnt mean the SAME actions from every fish The fish that will survive will exhibit similar characteristics under similar environmental circumstances. Even further than that...big fish will exhibit similar behavior, but different than little fish The more and I learn about bass the less I find I know, so I do different things as I learn more about the response of fish to environmental variables

http://digital.library.okstate.edu/oas/oas_pdf/v59/p34_40.pdf Check out this link to a research paper from OSU. Its pretty hard to find hard core research about bass, and this is a paper that will maybe open your eyes to a few things you may not know about the green fish

My son has hooked us up with a few bass pets in the past. I found the best success with keeping the bass in a fairly large aquarium so that it can stretch its legs i guess. Have 1 big stump taking up about 1/3 of the tank and a clump of some type of water weed. Fed it gold fish about once every couple of weeks. dont put too many in at first, or it probably gorge up and die on ya....had this happen the first time around. But after a couple of weeks you can just pitch 8-10 little wannabe carps in there and the bass will just eat when hungry, oh and gold fish excrete NH4+ (ammonium) This will jack up the pH, so keep an eye on that till you figure out the right balance. i also put some crawdads in the tank and he ate them too. Currently our bass pet (about 8in long) feasts on some kinda round pellet fish food for herbivorous fishies, but he doesnt seem to mind the taste. He has a jack dempsy for a roomy, and I think he decided to eat when the jack ate and the jack ate the pellets...He learned to eat the pellets, but still takes out an occasional goldfish or crawdad. He has alot of open water in the tank, the place my wife works does some fisheries biology work and they said to give em' room to roam. And as for the washing out of color, ours got that way when the pH got high, but he actually turned nearly black from the clear water in the tank otherwise. Oh, and 1 other thing, if ou get an aquarium with a light get a flourecent bulb...an incandecent bulb will make the algae problem real bad.

Turn the sensitivity all the way up then back it off slowly until you see one line that is the bottum and a gradation of intensity upward. If you have a definable thermocline...thats the key "definable" because sometimes a thermocline is so gradual its almost impossible to define. Try this first in the deepest spot in the lake, because sometimes the thermocline can range anywhere from 7-8ft all the way down to 60 or 80 ft. Once you find it in the deep parts of the lake it should be easier to define it as you move shallower. Understand that you are looking for a change in h2o density. The higher you turn up the sensitivity on your flasher the more clearly it will show slight changes in density.

My #1 big smallie rig is a rollin runner sportin a 4" yum dinger or senko or tiki stick t-rigged on a 7ft spinnin' rig w/ 6lb vanish or your favorite flavor of FC. I like ozark smoke/ june bug/ clear-smoke/ p-seed w/ chart tail...color just depends on depth and light conditions. Studies from A&M and OSU have evidence to support the statement that fish respond to different colors at different depths. In additional reading I have found that the only wavelengths of light that find little hindrence in penetrating "water" deeper than 15 ft are those associated with the "colors" we perceive as purples or blues-Red becomes invisible at around 15ft, black produces a sillouette, clear adopts the color of the h2o but makes it "glow" somwhat, and light reflection is solely a function of light penetration. Subsequently fish can see purples and blues better in deeper water, and with a clear lake you will generally be forced to fish deeper or in ares of lower light penetration for larger older fish, so blue and purple hues are the best choice scientificly speaking...now science and fish dont always line up in the rules dept, but you cant dispute research unless you have research to the contrary and I dont...so its a good place to start. Also, fish dont have eyelids...they cant blink or squint to escape the sun...sunlight gives em cataracts...they go blind they cant see to eat they die...or they find shade or areas with diffused light...deeper water....use purple/blue. Now that all applies to fishing the bottum which I do most of the time- just dragin' it. Now you can also very effectively fish this technique for stratified fish on breaklines with some of the non-purple/blue colors by allowing it to sink a little and then slow hopping it back w/o allowing it to hit bottum. Vary the depth by line size and rollin runner weight. I wouldnt suggest trying anything heavier than 10lb FC in the line dept cause your fishing slack line alot of the time and you get bad wrap/twist problems. This isnt an original technique, the good smallie guides on texoma use this almost exclusively next to loose linin' shad. I have compared this rig to an identically set-up shakeyhead (spotremover)setup. One cast w/ the rollin runner and then 1 cast w/ the shakey head, and then invert the order every other target so that niether gets a biased advantage at first shot. results= 200 casts per each/ 12 smallies 1 largemouth on rollin runner/ 2 smallies and 2 largemouth on spot remover. 1 smallie on spot remover= 3lbs/ 2 smallies on rollin runner= 3.5& 4.5 lbs, and a 4.8 largemouth (wish I could do that in a tourny). if you do the stats on this (I Have) the correlation of bigger and more is better towards the rollin runner with acceptable standard deviation. Now a fish at rest I can catch this way, but a school of rabbid smallies kicks my but every time. Hope this helps or at least is some food for thought.

Big loud and dark Weakly caught a 25lber early this year late last year in cali...not certified by I'ntl game fish blah blah. Check out the pics on bassmasters web

Deep clear impoundment. Fish runnin' bait hard. I Have exactly matched forage colors and movements, but very few bites. Have had this prob over and over again on this lake for years now. Others that are "GOOD" sticks have the same prob. Any suggestions?

1 month pre-fishin=3 fish 4.24 lbs Next day just fishin=5 fish 17.44 lbs and $2K I have a very detailed log for two lakes I fish pretty much every week. Did more harm than good!!

You can pull and rattle a c-rig on the bottum faster than a t-rig. 3/4 to 1 oz weight stays down better so you keep constant contact w/ the bottum. Try watching your c-rig move in some clear shallow water next time your out. You'll notice w/a soft stick that the action imparted to the bait is alot like a weightless soft stick, but with the weight, you can cover more water quicker. Think of a c-rig as an alternative to a deep diving crank. Now thats not to say that the c-rig cant be fished very slow with effectiveness. General rule Ive found- Faster c-rig with longer leader (4-6ft)...realy lets the bait go wild/ Slower c-rig shorter leader (3-5ft) still has lots of action, but you can stay in contact with what goin' on a little better. Just my 2 pennies

Why not a c-bait? I of course dont know all the circumstances, but I have become a real bridge fishing addict this last year (from a boat). I caught my 2nd place personal best off a railroad bridge (8lb large), as well as numerous 4s and 5s....of course they dont show up to play on tourny day, but when I can see these fish and they wont bite for luv or money, I break out the vibe. If you get under the bridge and give it short pops while retrievin' it...man is it loud (it echoes off the pilings). Ive been successful doing this on more than 1 outing. I think they just try to kill it to make it shut up.

6lb smallie- rico 5lb smallie- yellow magic 8lb largemouth- horny toad 8.5lb largemouth- twin engine buzz 4.5lb spot- horny toad 4.8lb spot- Kinami Hard Baits Stick Bait Big fish on Top...it happens....but gimme a 2lb smallie on a drop shot anyday!!!

Crankbait (vibe/DLN/DD22) Carolina Rig (3/4 to 1oz with short leader) I have even been known to break out the drop shot with a 1/2 oz wt. if the frontal passage gives em lock jaw.

Lets just say it was a team effort on the big smallie. Ive caught my share of good un's and my kung-fu may be a little more in tune with gettin' the hook up, but my son sure does put on a lot better show than do I while crankin in a toad!!

#1 Sharp hooks good hooks...whatever- Gams, or my personal favorite Owner #2 How to rig your bait- Stick the hook completely through and then skin hook the hook point #3 Line size and type- 8lb mono for worm fishing aint a good choice- Its hard to imagine the stretch 8lb mono has even at short distances- Try 12lb florocarbon #4 You dont have to cross their eyes on the hook set, the most important thing is to make sure the fish has a solid hold on the worm...go on point for a couple of seconds #5 Fight the fish with your rod not your reel, those things bend for a reason (shock absorber) #6 Use the lightest weight possible as a heavier weight gives the fish more leverage against the hook on a headshake #7 No matter what youve seen on TV letting a fish do the "Bill Dance" is a high percentage way to lose em' #8 Your always gonna loose a few no matter how good you are