Funny what gets you motivated–or better, that you really can learn something new every day.

Back on Jan. 2o (Features), Brent Ehrler shared the importance of the braid/fluoro combination for finesse fishing and especially the critical knot. He said double uni. Practice until you can tie it in the dark (or at least the wind) and do so consistently, every time. The reason, you need to rely on that connection between two diverse materials. But I was nervous about my skills.

I went on the web, checked the Power Pro package and found some instruction. But every night as I sat in front of this screen I just couldn’t get myself to step into untried territory…. When suddenly, Jayhawker Ned Kehde, (more…)

You know me. I’m a Bassmasters Classic honk. I like this one-event means of crowning a World Champion. Heck, I even got to ride along for eight of them. This was the event that started it all for the sport at Lake Mead, and by next Sunday at Lay Lake, B.A.S.S. will, indeed, crown a Classic champ.

But it won’t be pretty. Of all the Classics since 1971, none will have less to do about fishing and more about survival. (more…)

It’s not enough that the industry wants me to buy Skeet Reese undergarments or yellow rods and reels. Now people want me to fret about what boat he floats?

The Bassmasters Classic is coming up and every qualifier will be dissected like an African nightcrawler. In the case of the “Dancing Dangler” from Auburn, hype over his boat deal sounds like so many squealing kids at a slumber party. (more…)

You heard the beef when FLW’s Red River tournament was shelved. Yes, the anglers missed a chance at cashing, but they missed something else. Each lost an opportunity to highlight his or her sponsors. Whether they were going to make the cut or not, whether they were going to get TV face time, or just be around a few days to converse with the locals, those moments were lost. (more…)

UPDATED–With no rain in the immediate future, many reservoirs and water districts are taking stock of their individual situations. And most are looking good.

That’s the case across the street at Lake Elsinore where, as of the latest report (around 3 p.m.) a steady flow of about 20 cubic feet per second has flowed from the Canyon Lake Dam on the San Jacinto River for more than 48 hours– (more…)

I know it’s only five weeks into the new year, but how are you doing on your bass fishing Resolutions?

We talked about these in the last week of December: nothing changes if there is no accountability. But since it was my big idea, here’s what’s happening to me so far.

As for my first resolution of trying something new to add my approach, I’ve had limited time spent with the big baits, but I’ve got the gear and I’m making the throws. Hopefully, when the stormy season subsides (even without trout plants) I can get in sync with the baits (more…)

In the late 1960′s anglers sat on Rocky Point at Irvine Lake, casting to deep water. Their worm, hooked in the middle, was inched along uphill. “The Irvine Rig,” some called it.

During the same era, a few San Diegans took the same 6-inch straight tail, and hooked it in the center as a jig trailer. I heard it referred to as “fishing on the drape” or with the worm draped on the hook.

Out of Texas, somewhere late in the 1970′s or maybe later in the 1980′s, the method was actually called “wacky” style, and the worm was usually a 6-inch Creme Scoundrel, though a conventional Sproat style worm hook was still standard.

Today, it’s definitely a wackier world. (more…)

UPDATED 10:30 a.m. Super Bowl Sunday: The last leg from Canyon Lake to Lake Elsinore showed a surge of water earlier this morning almost 90 cfs, see chart. (With 3600 seconds in an hour, it gives you an idea of how much water could flow down the San Jacinto). And if the dam keeper holds to form, the lake level upstream may be lowered more (water released) in advance of Tuesday’s forecast storm.

SATURDAY: Los Angeles up to Santa Barbara County got the heavier rain–and some say, surprisingly heavier amounts–but the “cells” that hit parts of Riverside and San Bernardino counties still got the streams flowing. (more…)

There was a time, winter fishing at Lake Havasu was like walking the plank. You might see the water, but you wouldn’t need a fishing rod.

But the arrival of smallmouth bass has changed everything. Guide and competitive angler Rusty Brown just got back from three days on the water: one for the WON Bass team event and two for just for the heck of it.

Well, not quite. The Rapala pro staffer and his partner David Grant of Newport Beach were taking some time to test out some new baits from the sponsor company. And wouldn’t you know it, (more…)