Dick Trask, the inventor of the split shot rig

 
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