Sponsorships, are they worth it?
August 22, 2008
First off I want to take a minute to give a big thank you to my sponsors for all of their help. Bob at Magna Charger, George at Belltech, Bill at Baer, Tony at Volant, Steve at Trucksecuirty.com, TJ and Ron at TTI Companies the makers of X-Point and Daiichi hooks, Rick at Maxima line and of course my major sponsor Bass’es Choice. THANK YOU VERY MUCH for believing in me, having faith in me and giving me the opportunity to promote your products. The honor is greatly appreciated and I promise I will not let you down.
Now onto the subject of this article. I’ve recently been asked quite a few times, how does one go about acquiring sponsors? How can I get sponsors and so forth. I thought I’d take the time to write a little something to assist others in there quest to obtaining sponsorship.
The first thing I tell people is that getting sponsors and keeping them is a job. It’s not just, give me stuff, thank you, see ya later bye. There are usually contracts with obligations that you must abide by as well as rules you must follow. It takes commitment and dedication because you will have to give up some of your free time to promote their products. You must be willing to advertise for them and be ethical, as well as a good roll model because the bottom line is, they are trusting you with their name.
I know I have worked the Fred Hall Show, which is a major west coast boating show held in Long Beach CA, for several years now in different sponsor’s booths for 2 to 3 days at time. You must be both knowledgeable and personable because you will meet all kinds of people who are attempting to gain knowledge on why they should purchase your product instead of another company’s product. In this, as well as other situations you must be a good communicator as well as be able to read people.
If you agree to the above then it’s on to the next step. Find out who the marketing or public relations person is within the company. This is usually as easy as calling the operator for the company your interested in and asking them. After finding out who they are give them a call, lay out your basic proposal verbally and ask them if it would be OK if you sent them a formal proposal, which I will discuss a little later, for them to review.
Remember, this initial conversation with them is usually the most important conversation you will have. This is when that old saying about making a good first impression really comes into play. If you come across with a bad first impression chances are even if they say they will review your proposal they won’t. Be friendly, be cordial, be professional and be personable.
OK, so you found the person, you feel you made a good first impression, now forward we go to putting together the formal proposal. Here again, be professional. What you’re attempting to do is you convince them that by giving you some kind of assistance you will increase their sales as well as be a good spokesman for them. Never come across like, “Give me stuff” Make sure your proposal is professional as well as interjecting a bit of personality in it.
Remember, they get hundreds if not thousands of requests daily so you need to stand out from the crowd. Put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself, why should I give this guy my product? What’s in it for me? How can I benefit?
With any sponsors you have to sell yourself and it really helps if you offer them something they don’t already have, an avenue for which they can introduce their products to a whole new audience. Follow up with phone calls inquiring if they had a chance to review your proposal? The big trick to this part is to be a little persistent without being pushy.
When you talk to them remember a few of the personal things they might have mentioned about themselves, make notes if need be and the next time you talk mention it. Example, if they say something to the effect that they have not been able to review it because they have a sick child and have not been able to have allot of extra time then ask when would be a good time for you to call back. When you call back or write them use the official greeting, “Mr. Smith”, its more professional, of course if their last name is Jones then don’t call them Smith, then somewhere in the conversation ask how their child is doing, be concerned about them as people and not as just a free ride because allot of them have the ability to see right through the fake people, remember, they deal with people all the time.
This next step is a very important one. Let them make the decision as to what kind of sponsorship to give you. Be it a full sponsorship, free stuff, or a partial one, meaning you get the product at a reduced price, leave it up to them. The way I handle this is when they ask you what you are expecting from them I tell them any assistance they are willing to provide you with will be fine.
Be ready for rejection because chances are you will get more no’s than you will yes’s. However, no matter what the outcome, ALWAYS, ALWAYS remain positive and professional! You would be surprised just how “Tight” the major manufactures are, if word gets out that your pissy with an attitude problem then you might as well write off the possibility of anyone sponsoring you. I have seen it happen to more than one person in the bass fishing circuit.
So, now you have obtained the sponsorship, what next. Be sure to follow through with your commitments and contractual agreements because once you pick up some major sponsors, like I said above the word can get out that you did not honor your obligations to them you can forget about the possibilities of getting anymore.
Another note worthy item is remember that contract you signed? Did you take the time to read the fine print? Did you over look the part where it mentioned that you would be financially liable if you defaulted on the contract? Yes, you are bound by law to pay full retail value for said items. A lot of times when you get a full sponsorship they ask for a credit card number and you pay the shipping of the item so guess what? They have your number on file and they will charge the card. You then get your statement and next thing you know you’re over drawn. Of course all of this can be avoided as long as you follow through on your word.
A great thing about getting a major sponsor is once again the word gets around that you’re a valuable asset and then other sponsors start to approach you asking if they can sponsor you. I currently have several companies that have approached me and I’m contemplating accepting their offers. I have also turned down more than one sponsor because I did not believe in their product or there was a conflict with a current sponsor. That’s another point worth making. You should really believe in and use their products before accepting a sponsorship from any company and be sure to once again read the fine print of the contract you signed, there just might be something in there.
Anyways, always be sure to thank your sponsors when at awards ceremonies, this will attract more sponsors because you can never tell “Who” is sitting in the crowd. I’ve seen times when “Angler A” was sponsored by “Company A” and a represenitive of Company A just happen to be at an event and Angler A neglected to mention company A as a sponsor during the awards ceremony. Of course company a made a note of this and made a point to be at several more tournaments where Angler A was and after a few more times of neglecting to mention his sponsorship with Company A he was let go.
I could go on and on about the do’s and don’ts on this subject but I think I’ve covered the basics involved. In closing let me say that getting sponsors is a great way to not only help cut back on costs of items you would want and need, but In my opinion, it makes one feel good inside knowing that you have reached that level of expertise in the field, that companies have faith enough in you to give you the honor of representing them.
So, my personal answer to the question are they worth it? Yes they are, though it may not be worth it to everyone. I hope I was able to give you some insite.
Thanks for visiting my site. Be sure to tell all of your fishing buddies and come back soon!
Until Next Time, Good Luck and Tight Lines To Ya!
Dick Trask, the inventor of the split shot rig
February 21, 2008
I recently saw a story in Bass West magazine as well as a reposting on a West Coast Bass Fishing Forum where they did a write up on the Inventor of the Split Shot Dick Trask. For those of you who don’t know who he was let me fill you in a little.
He was the original inventor of the split shot rig, not just in my opinion but in others as well. He was one of the original pioneers of finesse fishing out here in the clear water lakes of California which has evolved into a world wide style of fishing.
He would show up at west coast tournaments and just put a whipping on just about all of us. This man knew his stuff, either that or he was the luckiest person alive. But when he would beat everyone time and time again there had to be allot more than luck involved. Of course the rumors went around that he was cheating but I never for a second believed them. I didn’t know him personally at the time, just knew him as that ornery old guy in the ugly red Monarch that always seemed to kick everyone’s butts.
I have always referred to Lake Isabella as my home lake mainly because I have been fishing there just about every weekend since mid 1979. At times I would see that Ugly red Monarch on the water there but did not pay it much attention.
Fast forward to 1996. This was the first I met Mr. Trask in person. The way we met was I was sitting on one of the spots at Lake Isabella that I had been fishing for years and along comes this grimy looking old buzzard in a brand new Hawk bass boat with this little dog, which by the way, looked like an over sized rat to me. Anyhow, he pulls up close to me and says, “HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY SPOT!” I glared at him and said, “Dude, I’ve been fishing this spot forever, its NOT your spot!” Then he gave me that crooked little smile and we both started laughing. We introduced ourselves to each other and thus began out friendship. It didn’t take me very long to figure out that even though he had a rough exterior and came across brash he was a very nice guy, a little on the Ornery side, well maybe more than a little but hey, I’ve been known to be the same as well. Maybe that’s why we got along so well.
I remember looking at him and saying, “Your Dick Trask? The Dick Trask that used to have that ugly red boat?” “Yeah, little red” he replied, “And she served me well” I commented on how he had lost allot of weight and didn’t look like the same person. I also called his dog a big rat and he agreed. One thing for sure, he did love that rat.
From that day on we would see each other on the water frequently and share tips and stories. I came to really like and respect him. Not only was he one heck of an angler he was also one heck of a great guy. I remember sitting on this one spot along the flume and I was just wacking em. Up pulls Dick and asks how am I doing? I tell him great. He then asks if I mind if he joins me, one thing about him, he would never just pull up and start to fish a spot you were in, he would ALWAYS ask. I said to him, there are plenty of fish here, your more than welcome. The bass I was catching were all in about the 2-3 pound range with the largest so far going about 5 pounds. On his second cast he sets the hook and says, This is a good one! I’m thinking OK, another 5 pounder. Then the fish surfaces to shake its head and it was well beyond 5 pounds. I sat there and watched him fight this bass and when he finally boated it the bass was at least 10 pounds. After admiring her he placed her back into the water and we watched her swim away. I then saw his bait floating on the water, which he retrieved, took a lighter and patched it back up put it back on his hook and make another cast. It was then and there that I discovered the Mr. Twister Phenom worm and he shared with me a few of his secrets to making them “perfect”
The funny part about that day was I had several packs of the exact worm in my boat that I had picked up at a store out of town. They had them in a clearance bin for .50 cents a pack so I had picked up all they had, just because I liked the way they looked. I just had never even opened any of the package’s. I told Dick about this and he asked if he could buy some off of me, I told him hell no, then I tossed him a couple packages. He gave me that crooked little smile of his, said thanks and we went back to fishing. By the way, that 10 pounder was the biggest fish of the day but I did manage to catch one that went just a tad over 8 pounds.
He taught me allot about fine tuning my split shot fishing as well as introduced me to darter head fishing. I had heard of this technique in the past but never seen it in action and let me tell you what, it is definitely a deadly tactic under certain circumstances. He also told me about the old but still effective techniques of slider fishing, which I still use to this day with great success. I was also just amazed that how no matter how bad the wind got, those of you who have fished Isabella know just how bad it can get, but he would be able to make his Hawk just sit in one place without moving.
We talked about Aaron Martens and how much liked him, his respect for him as a fisherman and how that “kid” could really be someone in the world of bass fishing. I said he already is big and Dick said, No, somebody REALLY BIG. To bad Dick didn’t get to see Aaron take BASS Angler of the Year in 2005. I know that would have made him very happy and proud.
There were many times that we would sit in the parking lot after a day of fishing, wiping down our boats and sharing stories for hours of how the day went out on the water and just talking in general. I remember many times we would sit in the parking lot and laugh at people launching their boats, at times it was quite humorous. I remember one time in particular we were sting there and this black 900 series BMW with dark tinted windows crested the hill at the ramp and behind it there was a huge, at least 25 foot, ocean going boat. This alone was quite the site to see. It looked like a monkey on a football. So this BMW proceeds to back this boat down the launch ramp. He gets the boat part way into the water and then the passenger door opens and out steps this tall slender blonde that was very “Cosmetically Enhanced”. Dick and I just looked at each other and started laughing and proceeded to joke about this site. I cant say what we were saying here but I can say that if the boat were to sink she would not need a PFD, Personal Floatation Device.
Anyhow, the blonde is signaling the driver to keep backing up to float the boat but the boat would not float off the trailer. In order to finally get it to float they had to back the BMW into the water past the rear doors all the way to the front door. Then the driver got out, with the car still in the water, and pulled the boat back and tied it off. He then proceeded to hop back into the car and drive it up into the parking lot. He then opened his door as well as the rear door and out poured quite a bit of water. We about fell over from laughing so hard. It didn’t even seem to phase the driver of the car, in our opinion’s, more money that brains.
I could go on for hours telling stories of Dick but this will be the last one. I remember going to his house in Bodfish and him showing me a video of him and Jimmy Huston, yes the Jimmy Huston, fishing together on Lake Isabella. He told me that Jimmy had made a show of it and it was on TV quite awhile back. I’ll tell ya what, I was impressed!
I remember the day I heard that Dick had passed on. I stopped by the local tackle shop, Village Tackle in Lake Isabella to talk to the store owner Dave. As I entered the store out comes this over grown rat that sure did look familure. I mentioned to him that his dog looked allot like Dicks dog and he replied that it was Dicks dog. I asked if he was watching him for Dick and then he told me the sad news. I was shocked! I had just seen him out on the lake 2 weeks earlier where we had talked and shared a few laughs. That day I didn’t do real well out on the water because I was dealing with the fact that I had lost someone that I had allot of respect for both as a fisherman as well as a friend.
I got hold of his wife after he passed and she was unable to find the video so I could make a copy of it. I have since contacted Jimmy Huston to see if he has it in his archives anywhere but have yet to hear yes or no.
I know even now, every time I go to the lake sometimes I forget for a second that he has passed on and I kinda expect to be sitting out on the lake and hearing, “HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY SPOT!” and looking over my shoulder to see his crooked smile and that over grown rat.
I for one sure do miss the man as well as others I’m sure. I don’t remember who said it but when they said Dick would give you the shirt off of his back if he felt you needed it more than he did, was 100% correct. I hope you all enjoyed reading my experiences with Dick half as much as I enjoyed remembering them.
Until Next Time, Good Luck To Ya And Tight Lines
My 130 pound bass
February 17, 2008
I mentioned this in my Who Is BassnMan post when I said I’d tell yall about it later and now I am. I know what your thinking, “NO WAY, BassnMan has lost his mind” but read on, I promise you all of what your about to read is true.
The year was 1997, Jeff Gordon won his first Daytona 500, Dion Hibdon won the Bassmaster Classic and we lost a very special lady when Princess Diana died in a car accident. That was the year my life would change forever. Yes, just like today I fished just about every weekend. Whether it was a tournament or pleasure fishing you could find me on the water somewhere. As a matter of fact, 1997 and 1998 were very profitable tournament seasons for me.
However, I was at a point in my life that I was growing tired of all the games I encountered during relationships. Yes, getting a date was never an issue but finding someone that could understand my passion for fishing or my ornery streak seemed like an impossibility and odds of finding someone that I was truly compatible with seemed like just a dream. I was happy where I was at in my life and I would rather be single and happy than in a commited relationship and unhappy. It was at that point that a friend told me about this new way of meeting women called on line dating so I decided to give it a try and see if I could find someone that I was actually compatible with.
It was about the middle of September 1997 that I signed up for a free trial membership at Matchmaker.com. As I filled out my profile I was honest about everything I wrote because I wanted any potential dates know exactly who I was and I hoped that everyone else was as honest as I was. Over the next 25 days I met quite a few different ladies that either I contacted or they contacted me through the web site. Some were great, some not so much so but none of which I really clicked with so I figured I’d just let my free subscription expire and not pay to continue my membership.
With 2 days left a lady contacted me and there was something about the way she wrote that caught my attention. She also made mention that she liked some of my ornery answers in my profile. I told her that my subscription was about to expire and that I would not be renewing my membership and gave her my email address if she wanted to contact me again.
As it turned out we continued to write each other and I found out something very interesting. Her name was Cindy BASS! Hmm, imagine that? What are the odds? Could this be the reason I felt attracter to her, she did have the right name. We continued to email each other for the next few weeks and the attraction continued to grow. Then we started talking on the phone and would spend hours on the phone. Oh, by the way, anyone that knows me knows how much I hate to be on the phone but our conversations never seemed that long and we both had something to say the whole time. To this point we had never seen each other, no pictures, nothing.
Finally in late November we figured it was about time we met in person. Seeing how we lived about 3 hours away from each other we figured we would meet half way. This was also a strategic decision on my part because I didn’t want her to know where I lived just in case I was not physically attracted to her. Yes, I know, that was VERY shallow if me. I was attracted to her personality so looks shouldn’t have mattered but hey, even the BassnMan is human. There has to be a physical attraction, right?
I arrived at the pre-determined destination, it was a Denny’s restaurant, first and waited. As I sat there a car pulled into the parking lot that matched the general description of her car. It parked and this rather large unattractive lady got out of the drivers side, my heart dropped. I thought about ducking down and driving away. You can imagine my relief when an equally unattractive man got out of the passenger side of the car.
Five minutes later another car pulled into the parking lot that matched the description of her car. Out of this car a very attractive lady hops out with a big smile on her face and I’m thinking, “No Way, that couldn’t be her!” Guess what? Yes, not only am I lucky when it comes to fishing but this time I was lucky in love as well. How’s that country song go, “You Had Me From Hello”
We celebrated our 10th year together last October and this May we will celebrate our official 5th year anniversary of marriage. Yes I waited quite awhile before popping the question. I can honestly say that the last 10 years my live have been the best 10 years of my life. My Cindy is all a man could ask for and more. We get along great and she supports me in everything I do. She is one Bass that I will not practice Catch And Release with. She’s a keeper!
That’s the story of my 130 pound bass. It brought back allot of good memories as I wrote it. I hope you enjoyed reading it.
Until Next Time, Good Luck and Tight Lines To Ya!
Fishing with Ryan Newman
November 24, 2007
On Saturday April 23, 2003 I had the honor of taking the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Raybesto’s Rookie of the Year, driver of the Number 12 All-Tel, Ford at the time, Ryan “Rocket Man” Newman out for a day of bass fishing on Lake Perris the day before his race at the California Speedway.
I also took his crew chief at the time Matt Borland out in my boat, Chrissy, his fiancé at the time and now his wife was supposed to attend but she couldn’t make it. Fellow members of the Fishing Kids.com Pro Team took the rest of his pit crew along with his dad out on the same day. Yes, that’s Ryan with me in some of the pictures in my above.
The way I met Ryan was while I watched NASCAR races they always said how much Ryan liked to go bass fishing and how he tried to get out at times during the race season. I then contacted his official fan club and after several months of sending e-mail’s to countless different people I finally managed to get in touch with his public relations person and started to setup the date.
I was asked not to go public with the information about the planned fishing trip so we could keep the crowd down and Ryan could enjoy fishing without being hounded by crowds. I then contacted my fellow Pro Team members and told them they needed to be available for the weekend of April 23/24 to take a celebrity out fishing. I didn’t tell them who it was or which lake we would be going to, just that it would be at a Southern California lake, on Saturday or Sunday so just be available and ready to go and that I would let them know all of the details on Thursday April 21.
So the stage was set, people in place and all systems go. Ryan had my cell phone number so Ryan could call me when they were on their way because they couldn’t show up until after they had Saturdays practice.
So we all show up bright and early to the lake to do some pre fishing to make sure we were on fish before Ryan and company showed up. We all were able to locate active fish so we were ready to go. We setup in the corner of one of the parking lots, shared information with each other and cleaned up our boats.
I got the call and Ryan and company showed up at the lake in the afternoon. Anyone that has been to Lake Perris on a Saturday during the spring knows what he lake was like, pleasure boaters everywhere, but hey, no problem.
We all launch our boats and off we go. The first spot I stop at is by the old road across the lake from the launch and we proceed to work the stretch from there towards rock climber’s cove. I explained to both Ryan and Matt that these California bass are very heavily pressured and offer to set them up with a finesse drop shot rig to which they said no. Ryan was throwing this funny looking, strange rigged, east coast looking, hard plastic purple worm, which I proceeded to tease him about.
Anyhow, after I catch 4 bass to their none, Matt comes up to me and asks me what I’m using again, so I rig him up and he proceeds to catch a bass. Again I tell Ryan to put down that stupid looking worm and use a west coast bait but he said he would stick with his funny looking worm. So, here Matt and I are catching bass and Ryan is not…………yet.
Yep, you guessed it, he ended up catching the largest bass of the day on that stupid looking worm and of course then it was his turn to be the ornery one. We continued to fish, catching them on Senko’s, drop shots and I even managed to get one on a jig. We had a great time, teased each other back and forth like we knew each other for years.
I’ve heard people say that Ryan is somewhat stuck up and a jerk when they have met him at the track but I personally know that he is far from stuck up or being a jerk. He is a down to earth great guy with a great sense of humor, he has to have one in order to put up with me in my boat for the day.
After we were done we stood around and took some pictures, got some autographs and talked about the day and how much fun we had. After packing things up Ryan asked me where the nearest In and Out Burger was so off we went to have Double Doubles with Grilled Onions.
About 2 weeks after we went fishing I get a package in the mail. Ryan sent me a bunch of autographed photos to hand out to my fellow Pro Team members, an autographed T-Shirt and can you guess what else was in the package? I’ll give ya a hint, remember what I mentioned I teased him the most about? Yep, 2 of them stupid looking purple worms.
We still to this day call each other and talk from time to time but since he became a NASCAR Super Star, with all of his sponsorship obligations he does not have much free time to break away and do much fishing during the race season but wishes he did.
That’s my story, I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed remembering it.
Until Next Time, Good Luck and Tight Lines To Ya!
No Bull
November 14, 2007
The following post is going to sound like a bunch of bull but I give you my word that it is 100% true, NO BULL.
A few years back while shore fishing at one of my favorite lakes, Haiwee Reservoir, which has since been closed because according to LADWP it’s a Homeland Security issue which is a crock. Anyhow, on with the story.
I pulled up to the water at about 7:00am and proceeded to make my first cast of the day, got a bite, set the hook and reeled in a bass that weighed about 3 pounds, “What a great day this is going to be” I said out loud as I released her back into the water. As I was replacing my torn up plastic worm I noticed this rather large bull, were talking the big black burley, pointed horns, hump backed, Brahma type ones you see in the rodeos that buck cowboys off and stomp them into the ground after they are on the ground, just for the fun of it. So he comes down to the shoreline about 10 yards from me to get a drink and I think nothing of it because I’m fixing to have a great day, or so I thought.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, there were several people about 20 yards away between the bull and I. I’m standing there getting ready to make another cast when I hear the people yelling at me, I turn and see this bull with his head lowered scraping his hoof on the ground and giving me the evil eye. So I figured I’d seen cowboys on TV yell at bulls and they would back down and this tactic of course always worked, on TV. All this did was made him mad and here he comes at be, head lowered with steam coming out of his nostrils. Of course he was between me and my truck, where I always keep a 357 magnum when I go fishing just on case, and on the other side of me was a chain link fence with razor wire on top of it so I was forced to take the only route possible, yep you guessed it, into the water I go.
Mr. Bull then proceeded to go up the hill behind me, still between me and my truck, so I get out of the water and I’m standing there, wet up to my waist and a little cold. Remember those people that were standing about 20 yards away, well guess what? They were laughing. I guess if the role was reversed I’d be laughing as well. So, I’m standing there and I figure what the heck, as long as he is standing up the hill from me I might as well continue to fish. I make a cast, of course the bass are kind of wondering just what is going on, me running into the water then expecting them to bite. Anyhow, I continue to watch Toro and he is keeping a very close eye on me, a very close evil eye mind you.
Oh yeah, in case you are wondering I was wearing blue jeans and a white t-shirt with a grey sweat shirt to help keep me warm. I look over my shoulder and there is Toro lowering his head and scrapping his hoof so I say to myself, “Self” just ignore him and he will leave you alone so I turn my back just in time to hear the people down the shore yelling to “Look out!”, I turn around and here he comes at me so once again into the water I go, this time up to my armpits. As a matter of fact Toro actually came into the water after me. He then turns smugly and slowly walks back up the hill. I’d almost swear I saw him smile and heard him snicker at me.
Once again I get back out of the water and Toro is still standing there giving me the evil eye. It was at this point I was starting to get very annoyed at the whole situation and apparently momentarily brain dead, so I say to him, “OK, Now you done gone and made me mad!” I reach down and pick up this big rock, about the size of a cantaloupe and I proceed to hurl it at this crazy bull. Let me tell you something now and please make note of it, under any circumstances “DO NOT THROW A ROCK AT A MAD BULL!”
Here comes Toro, full steam ahead, lowered head, smoke coming out of his nostrils with the “I’m going to take you out” look in his eyes, so once again into the water I go, this time I’m actually treading water because he came in after me. So there I am, treading water, with my fishing pole in one hand, people down the shore rolling on the ground laughing like crazy all the while wondering just what in the world did I do to this bull to make him want to come after me in the first place and hoping that bulls cant swim, can they?
Toro then makes his way back up the top of the hill so I get out of the water and realize that my fishing tackle has been flattened by this crazy beast, luckily I had only took a limited amount of tackle down to the water with me and only had the one pole, which came in the water with me. By now I figure the bass are long gone, either that or they were watching the whole fiasco and were laughing too hard to even consider biting.
Finally Toro grows tired of messing with me and wanders off. I’m picturing the whole thing in my head and it made me laugh, it sure would have been nice to catch it on video because I’m sure I could have won on Americas Funniest Home Videos. Because I’m in a good mood after getting back to my truck I decided not to hunt Toro down and fill my freezer with steaks, though I have to admit, the thought did cross my mind.
I’ve since talked to several friends who have cattle and bulls as well and the only conclusion I could come up with is that quite possibly this bull came down to the water in this same spot everyday to have a drink and hang out for a little while and I broke his “Pattern” so that made him mad, either that or he just didn’t like me. Either way, it was quite the experience for me, NO BULL!
Until Next Time, Good Luck And Tight Lines To Ya!
My Big Bass
October 5, 2007
The day I caught my big bass …
I remember it like it was yesterday. It was back in the early 80’s, I don’t remember the exact day but I do remember it was in early spring. A friend and I decided to go over to Lake Isabella, basically my home lake, for a day of tubing, and what a memorable day it turned out to be.
Twas a bit nippy that morning as we loaded the truck so the little woman made me take along the waders. I promise her that I would use them, what a mistake that would turn out to be … keep reading to find out why.
Anyhow as we are driving to the lake, rounding a corner we both detect the very distinctive smell of a skunk within close proximity. All of the sudden there he was, directly in the path of the headlights … Thinking quickly I figured I would rather take the little fella out, may God rest his little soul, instead of a head on into oncoming traffic or over the mountain side. To this day I’m still not sure if that was a good idea or not. Everything that was in the bed of the truck had the skunk smell on it.
We arrived at the lake at 0 dark 30 and proceed to get ready to get out on the water. Oh yeah, my waders, float tube and fishing rods all had the wonderful smell of road kill skunk on them so that was real pleasant, ha! Because of the promise made, I pull on the ole waders, which by the way were the old fashioned thick vinyl, rubber coated, oversized 50 pound models.
Maybe I exaggerated the weight just a bit, but neoprene ones were not yet invented. Either that or they were still way too expensive. I then hook up the suspenders in order to keep them up so they didn’t fill with water.
Off we went, throwing a good old Texas rigged 6′ Mann’s Jelly worm. This was before the days of the hand poured plastics we all use now days. In black grape we proceed to kick some bass. I truthfully don’t remember just how many we caught that day but it was quite a few. Most of the bass were averaging about 1-2 pounds with a couple that were in the 5 pound range.
As the day progressed I figured what the heck and put on a 12 inch Jelly worm that I had originally bought as a joke. I believe it was a 12 incher, I remember they used to sell them in 2 packs.
Anyhow, on my first cast with this monster worm I feel the distinctive tap, tap of Mr. Bass inhaling the worm. I then reel down and proceed to drive the hook home. As soon as I set the hook I KNOW that the beast on the other end of the line was a lot bigger that the 5 I had caught earlier and the fight was on. I battled this giant for what seemed like hours, in truth it was probably more like 3 or 4 minutes before she came up to the surface and shook her head.
“Holy Sh*t!!” I yelled when I saw her. My buddy didn’t see her but knew by the way I was reacting that I did have a big un.
Then my worst nightmare came true, she had managed to get into a submerged tree. I looked at my buddy and said, “Hold my rod Cliff, I’m going in after her”.
As I said earlier, Cliff had not seen her jump so he didn’t know just how big she was so he thought I had gone completely nuts. “Just break her off” Cliff told me, to which I replied …
“NO WAY, this is the world record bass”. Mind you, at this point in my “Bass” career the largest I had caught was a 7 pounder.
I then proceeded to un-hook the crotch strap and drop down into the water. As Cliff was holding the rod I started to swim down with a knife in one hand to cut the line and using the line between my fingers with the other as a guide.
I figured I’d keep my eyes closed to avoid getting all the dirty water in them, big mistake. All of the sudden I found the tree with my forehead, yep that required 4 stitches.
It was then that I opened my eyes and saw the size of the fish. I grabbed her by the bottom lip, cut the line and proceeded to try and swim back to the surface.
Remember the waders? Yep, the once 50 pound waders were now completely full of water and weighed a TON. There was no way I was going to let go of what I was sure was a world record bass. So there I am, my life passing before my eyes, bass in one hand, knife in the other wondering just how the papers would report this one.
I then realize all I have to do is un-hook my suspenders and swim out of the anchor that my waders had become. Easier said then done. I ended up dropping my knife in order to use my free hand to help me disconnect the suspenders and wiggle free of the 2 ton anchor, ha!
So I finally get out of the waders as I kicked up to the surface. Gasping for air as I finally broke the surface. Cliff told me that he was starting to worry about me and asked if the fish was worth it. As I slowly pulled her out of the water he was shocked.
I took her to the local super market, after a quick stop at the E.R to stitch up my forehead, to weigh her as well as brag about the one that didn’t get away. She weighed in at a whopping 15.7, not quite the world record but a monster never the less.
Yes, this was back in the old days when we just didn’t know any better and everyone kept their catch. Hell, catch and release was a term used by fishermen who were just too lazy to clean their catch. Now days, I wouldn’t even dream of killing such a magnificent animal.
It was at this point in my life I had an epiphany. I wanted to learn everything there was to know about catching big bass. Yes, anyone can get lucky from time to time and catch a 10 pounder but in order to catch them consistently it takes a different mind set because they are a superior fish.
No, I don’t believe bass possess the ability to gain knowledge like humans do. But I do believe that they learn from past experiences and become conditioned to things that are not normal for them …
Like the sound of a boat motor, the dropping of something in a boat, especially an aluminum boat without a deck or even loud noises.
I also believe that they become conditioned to smells and lures that produced an unpleasant effect the last time they encountered it. Like being pulled in a direction they didn’t want to go by a fishing line. Their natural instinct is to attempt to go somewhere safe, brush, rock piles, or a structure. In general, Like I said, Conditioning, not knowledge.
During my quest to learn how to catch big bass, and hopefully one day catching the world record largemouth bass I have read a lot of books and articles.
In My Honest Opinion a MUST read for anyone who is serious about catching big bass consistently is the book by Bill Murphy titled “In Pursuit of Giant Bass
Another good read is “Big Bass Zone: Catch Monster Bass
I do hope you enjoyed my story. It sure brought back some great memories for me.
Until Next Time, Good Luck to ya and Tight Lines
Technorati Tags: big bass, largemouth, bass, fishing
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