Keep Your Tournament Fish Alive

Ever since the early days of pro bass fishing and the change from "Catch & Keep" to "Catch & Release" tournaments bass anglers have been striving to keep their bass alive. 

Though we all work to keep bass alive, some days it’s just plain tough to do so…

I know we’ve all heard the phrase, “fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me”

For those of us who have lost fish during more than one tournament, that’s pretty much how we feel.

My Personal Live Well Frustrations…

A few decades ago during my first full season of fishing club tournaments, I was in contention for the annual “Angler Of The Year” (AOY) title. As it turned out, everything was on the line during the last tournament of the season and it was very tight between me and another club member.

I managed to catch a decent limit of bass during the event but so did my closest competitor. When all was said and done, I ended up finishing in second place for the year; a mere 3 ounces behind the AOY winner.

Though that was both frustrating and painful, what really hurt was the fact I had two dead fish at the final weigh-in not only costing me 8 ounces off my total weight for the day but obviously the AOY title.

Can you say OUCH!

I think I remember using a few other choice words when I heard the results!

Now let’s fast-forward a few decades.

A buddy and I were fishing a night team tournament on a local lake during one of the longest heat waves for the year. As our night’s fishing got underway, we quickly connected with several nice largemouth including one, 22 inch bass weighing about 6 pounds.

As we started to place the fish and live well, I noticed the water was quite warm. So I made sure that the re-circulation system was operating; added “catch and release” preservative to the water; as well as a couple of ice blocks to help keep the fish alive.

It turned out, most of the fish catching happened early that evening. The rest of the fish caught during the final hours of the tournament wouldn’t help our weight and were instantly released back into the water so we never checked the live-well since we heard the pump system working away.

A short time before we headed into weigh-in, I open the live well to check on our fish. As soon as I popped the lid I was met with a rush of hot, musty air rising out of the well.  As my headlamp beamed into the live well, I noticed three of the bass, including our largest, were floating belly up. Ugh!

Even though were fishing out of an expensive bass boat with a modern, recirculating live well system with extra precautions, 60% of our limit died.

Although there wasn’t an AOY title at stake, those three dead fish did cost us financially as we dropped from first to third place. The only upside, one of the anglers love to eat bass and ended up with quite a meal.

One of the things that stuck with me after that night was the feeling of the relatively hot air and odor that came rushing out of the live well when I popped the lid.

It seemed to me that the buildup of heat as well as the stagnation of the air above the water in the live well might have had something to do with killing the fish.

Does a lack of ventilation kill bass in live wells?

After learning about a new product invented by the folks at New Pro Products, it seems the lack of ventilation was the culprit.

A short time ago, New Pro Products introduced a new live well ventilation system they call V-T2. The V-T2 system involves the installation of flush mounted ventilation portals on the live well covers.

These portals that allow the exchange of fresh air from the atmosphere with the stagnant air that builds up in the air space of a live well as shown in the image below:

It is also designed to prevent sloshing water in the well from splashing up onto the deck.

The result – purging the hot, stagnant air over the water with cooler air replenished with oxygen!

A pretty ingenious invention if you ask me; obviously one that may have helped me keep my fish alive in the past.

You can bet New Pro Products’ V-T2 system will be added to all my live wells from this point forward.

You can check out the details of the V-T2 system by clicking on the image above…

Selecting Bass Fishing Rods

Are you in the market for a new rod and reel combo for bass fishing?

Then you definitely need the right set of “tools” to get the job done once you hit the water to catch some bass.

One of the most important tools in your bass fishing toolbox is the proper selection of rod and reel combo. Selecting the right bass fishing rods, however can be more than a little confusing since there are literally hundreds on the market today.

It becomes even more complex when you understand that each rod and reel combination is intended to be used with certain lures and sometimes even specific presentations of those baits.

Therefore you’ll need a little background regarding these different combos to make the proper choice.

Considerations When Selecting a Rod …

If you’re going to a local discount store or bait and tackle shop, you may find a fairly large selection of bass fishing rods for sale. In order to focus your efforts and narrow the selection, there are some basic questions you need to answer including:

* Do you want a spinning or baitcasting outfit?

* Do you know the rod length do you need/want?

* What kind of power will you need in your bass rod?

* What type of rod action is best for the way you fish?

These questions will likely be based on factors like the types of baits and presetantions you usualy fish or your experience level with the equipment.

Stop Line Issues When Using Spinning Reels

 Spinning reels afford bass angler both ease of use and greater versatility especially when throwing light baits…

One problem many anglers have when using spinning gear is line twist; often a major problem when using light line…

In the following video, Bassmaster Elite Series Pro, Shaw Grigsby offers some great tips to help combat many of the common issues associated with spinning reel use…

Take a few moments to watch and learn 

Squarebill Crankbaits Are the 4x4s of Bass Baits

When fishing shallow cover for bass, the squarebill crankbait can be one of the most important lures in your tackle box for triggering strikes. Often referred to as the 4x4 of bass baits, the broad lip and buoyant nature of most squarebills make it ideal for working through and deflecting off of wood, rocks, docks and even weeds.

Take a moment and watch as MLF pro Edwin Evers explains how he uses the squarebill to pull bass from shallow cover throughout the year...

To build on one of the comments made by EE regarding retrieve speed, bass legend Rick Clunn often tells the story of Clunn's introduction to squarebill fishing by Big-O originator Mr. Fred Young during a tournament in the 1970s. 

After giving a couple of his hand-carved Big-Os to RC and watching him methodically work the bait around the shallows, Young demonstrated his preferred method of squarebill fishing. Hold the rod against one arm, point the tip down and at the bait and burn the bait with a stop n go retrieve deflecting the bait off cover as much as possible. Rick says Young's fishing method still works for him today even though the squarebill itself has evolved...

Looking to add to your squarebill crankbait collection?

Check out all the different squarebill options available via the Omnia Fishing by clicking the following link:

Squarebills, the 4x4 of Bass Baits

Color Selection Tips For Bass

 Color Selection For Bass

By Ron Kurucz

Catching bass on artificial lures is usually not by chance. In fact, an assortment of variables must be considered in selecting the right lure.

One of these is which color or shade of a particular lure will be most effective under prevailing conditions.

Water Clarity:

To professional anglers, water clarity is the most fundamental guide in choosing the right lure color. Selection is determined by whether the water they are fishing is clear or dirty. In clear water use clearer, lightly colored worms, shad colored crankbaits and white spinnerbaits. In dingy water, use more chartreuse, more spinnerbaits with hammered blades, brighter chartreuse crankbaits and purple or black worms. For stained or muddy water, throw some sort of dark or bright colored lure. A plastic worm or crankbait in purple, black, brown or chartreuse usually presents a better silhouette for bass to notice in dirty water. In contrast, lures in lighter shades such as white, yellow, gray or silver typically draw more strikes in clearer water. Let it be noted, however, not all lures are simply divided into shades of light verses dark. For example, there are subtle variations in the component of a spinnerbait in which only the leadhead portion of the lure is painted. In this situation, the bass angler must scrutinize, the most prominent feature of the spinnerbait: the skirt. Here again, the basic light-dark distinction usually applies in skirt selection; throw white skirted spinnerbaits in clear water conditions, switch to darker colors or chartreuse for stained or muddy water. As for metal surfaces, like those of a spinnerbait blade, the light-dark dimension also holds. Most veteran bass anglers prefer to throw nickel colored blades in clear water, and brass, bronze, copper or painted blades in off-colored conditions.

Climactic Conditions:

Accomplished anglers also consider the weather in selecting the most effective lure color. If the sky is dark and cloudy, then choose a color that, once again, presents a prominent silhouette as the bass looks at it from below. Lures in black, brown and purple are an excellent choice for a dark, cloudy day, whether it’s plastic worm, crankbait or topwater lure. Conversely, for bright sunny days, switch to lighter, more translucent lures that present a subtle silhouette to fish. Baits in shades of white, gray, yellow, silver, smoke or clear are recommended for this type of whether.

Color and Forage Bait:

Another clue in lure selection is the coloration of natural forage in a given body of water. Traditionally, the two dominant types of prey found in most bass lakes and rivers are crayfish and shad minnows. The formula for matching artificial lures with these forage baits is fairly simple. For hard baits (like crankbaits, topwater lures, and spinners) the various natural crayfish finishes on today’s market continue to generate results. Bear in mind, however, that on heavily pressured waters, bass may become bombarded by this crayfish imitation pattern and a less popular shading may prove a better choice. Here is where spinnerbaits, crankbaits and surface lures may be an effective alternative to lures in the natural crayfish pattern. Consider those in the “earth tone” shades featuring a mixture of brown, black, purple, green and orange. A similar choice commonly occurs in matching hard baits with shad minnows. The most popular lures selected for this type of forage are those with either Tennessee shad or silver body with black back cosmetics. Here again, experiment with subtle color options.

A number of manufacturers market surface plugs and crankbaits in white, bone, charcoal gray and a prism like clear finish. Throw these as an alternative to widely used Tennessee shad colored baits. Similarly, there are some intriguing innovations in spinnerbaits in which the traditional solid white skirt, representing shad, has been replaced by glittery, translucent versions with sparkling glitter and mylar. There is more opportunity when selecting the right color for soft plastic lures. With hand poured or injected molded worms, grubs, reapers, crayfish or shad, the shape of the lure is duplicated in precise detail. Today, for instance, a multitude of soft plastics bring out the delicate mottled brown and green hues of a spring crayfish, while another bait features the bright red and black of the same bass forage in summer colors. It is important, however, not to limit your proper choice of lure color solely to mimic either a crayfish or shad minnow. Many reservoirs and rivers have other forms of natural prey that may require a precise color match. Some other secondary patterns featured in many lure catalogues include baby bass, rainbow trout, frog, perch, bluegill, shiner, bullhead, salamander and even mice. All of these different patterns attempt to match the particular shade or color of other forms of bass forage apart from shad or crayfish. You have at least a minor selection of lures in these more insightful patterns to throw when traditional colors fail to produce.

Be Innovative:

Quite frequently, anglers are caught in the field without the proper color in a particular lure. But with a small collection of felt tip marking pens and a pocket knife, you can use a few simple tricks to custom color baits while on the water. Keep permanent markers in black, brown, green and chartreuse in the tackle box at all times. These can be purchased at most stationary or art supply stores. The black pen probably has the greatest utility. In a pinch, practically any light colored plug, spinnerbait, or soft plastic lure can be changed to a darker shade. A dark dorsal fin or ventral vein can be added to both soft and hard plastic lures for a contrast effect the manufacturer may have overlooked. Use markers in brown and green to create the mottled tones on hard and soft plastic lures. This particular coloration has been widely popularized in the West as the “green weenie” look. And it’s one of the best combinations of color and shade to duplicate crayfish anywhere in the country. A chartreuse marker also can be a real boon when fishing in stained or muddy water.

If a crankbait or plastic worm can’t be found in this more brilliant pattern, add a slight trace of chartreuse to the bait with the marking pen. In stained water, a small band of chartreuse along the underbelly of the plug often can transform an otherwise bland, ineffective lure into a potent bait. The same custom coloring works when a chartreuse tail is added to a lightly colored worm. A small pocket knife can create similar miracles in the field for hard baits that aren’t getting bit. A subtle change can make the different. As mentioned earlier, bass in pressured waters frequently become accustomed to seeing the same parade of lure colors day after day. Take a pocket knife and scrape away some of the paint from a stickbait, chugger, popper or crankbait. Most likely, you will be now throwing a lure with your own customized paint and shade, offering bass something new and interesting.

Unfortunately, many anglers overlook the importance of color and shade as it affects proper lure selection. A lot of times, color makes the difference.

Article Source: Color Selection For Bass