Issue #4, Feb. 14, 2011 - "Passion Play"

There's nothing like the first time. The heart starts pounding like it's going to explode. Everything is wheeling around you as in fast forward while you want the moment to slow and last forever. And then, the bass jumps. That's when things get really wild. Our guys are spending Valentine's Day at the Bassmaster Classic. So just how romantic are they?

Straight from the pros

From left to right: Tommy Biffle, Dale Hightower, Jeff Kriet, Mike McClelland, Scott Rook, Terry Scroggins, Kevin VanDam

DPR: Do you remember when and where you first fell in love with the bass?

Biffle: I know I was a little kid but don't remember how old. I used to go pond fishing all the time on my own and couldn't get enough of it.

Hightower: I think I was about 9 years old when I caught a 6-pounder out of a pond down the street from where I lived. I'd never seen one that big before and thought it was pretty cool.

Kriet: Oh man, I was little. I think ... I was so small I don't know. I've been fishing since I was 3 or 4 years old and used to catch 'em on a Beetle Spin. I think when I really fell in love with it was when I caught my first bass on a purple fire tail worm. I was probably 9 years old.

McClelland: I actually do, it was on Table Rock lake. I don't know if I can remember for sure but I was probably between 10-11 years old. My uncle was a guide and it was the first time he took me fishing. We caught a lot of bass on a spinnerbait that day and it was a great day.

Rook: Well, my first bass on an artificial lure came when I was 11 years old. I was fishing a creek near my home in Little Rock and it nailed a topwater. Got me hooked. I started fishing when I was around 7 or 8, and fished every creek nearby as often as possible.

Scroggins: I do remember. I was 4 years old, fishing a farm pond with my dad in Illinois. I was using an old Johnson push-button spincast reel. I was tossing a beat up Rooster Tail (in-line spinner) toward the middle of the pond. A bass grabbed it and was hooked. So was I.

VanDam: Absolutely. I was 7 years old, fishing with my dad on Michigan's Lake Leelanau. I was fishing with a live nightcrawler when I caught a smallmouth. It probably only weighed about a pound. Needless to say, it made a big impression.

DPR: Do you remember when and where you proposed to your wife?

Biffle: I think she asked me.
DPR: Are you sure that's the answer you want to give?
Biffle: Yeah, I think I was tricked.

Hightower: I know that one too. It was 1993 on New Year's night. We were at her mother's house.

Kriet: I proposed to Stefanie at a steak house in Oklahoma City. I had just graduated from OU.

McClelland: I proposed to her ... it'd be ... at my house. You're gonna get me in trouble. It would have been 2002 and I do remember we had watched a movie that night.

Rook: I'm not sure I like where this questioning is headed ... could get me in trouble. It was Christmas ... Christmas Eve ... at my parent's house. Kathy and I have been married 18 years. Yeah, I'm pretty sure 18.

VanDam: Uhhhhh (pause). Gosh ... (long pause). You know, Sherry and I have been married for 18 years, so that was a long time ago. It was a special moment, and a special place, so I'm thinking I probably just better keep it as my own special thought, so it will always be ... special.

DPR: Do you and your wife spend time fishing together now?

Biffle: Not very often, but we do go just a little bit. Sharron enjoys it too. We used to go all the time together and went a little last year before the Sooner Run tournament. We had fun.

Hightower: We do. We've fished a couples trail together for the last 3 years.

Kriet: She likes to go offshore but she hasn't been bass fishing with me in awhile. Stefanie doesn't like to bass fish because even when we go for fun, I'm too serious for her. So we go to the coast together.

McClelland: We do. In fact Stacy absolutely loves to fish. I might be on the road for several weeks at a time and when I get home if she wants to go, there's no way I'd tell her no.

VanDam: We enjoy fishing as a family. That's just kind of a VanDam thing. It means a lot to me to have my boys, my family, fishing with me whenever we have the chance.

DPR: Now here's your chance to show us who you really are. If you could put any two-word message on a conversation heart, what would it be?

This question was the first time we really stumped the group. For some there was dead silence. Others said, "Are you kidding me?" One wanted to make sure it was "the little hearts you eat." Here are their answers:

Biffle: I just have one message for the Delta bass, and it's simple ... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hightower: The two words that every bass fisherman loves to say ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kriet: Hey, I'm fishing for a living and in the Bassmaster Classic ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

McClelland: This message is for my wife. It's more than two words, but it works ... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rook: Describing my focus this week, to win the Bassmaster Classic on the Delta ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scroggins: Thinking about a repeat of the 12-pounder I caught on the last tournament day of the FLW Tour event on Okeechobee several days ago ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VanDam: Looking for a few brownie points here in case Sherry didn't like my earlier answer, and this is a genuine thought ...

 

 

The Louisiana Delta - A love/hate relationship?

She loves me? She loves me not? She loves me ...

More than likely most of the 50 anglers fishing in the 2011 Bassmaster Classic this week on the Louisiana Delta are pondering these questions and more after the past three practice days. They got the cold shoulder first, and now the Delta seems to be warming up to them a little. Some real mixed signals here, so is it love or not?

Each of the seven pros we've been interviewing this week say that having success on the Delta is all about finding the right "spots." Tommy Biffle summed it up well when he said, "You can be doing the right things in the right stuff, but just be in the wrong places. That's what makes it so difficult here. But when you do find 'em, you can catch 'em."

Finding them is a challenge because there are lots of places to look in this massive fishery, which is a good one for bass. Pro angler Trevor Knight offers this eye-opening look at what this year's Classic field is up against in the Louisiana Delta.

On Feb. 18, 50 anglers will take to the Louisiana Delta out of Bayou Segnette State Park.  From there, they will have more than 800 miles of shoreline open to them from the Mississippi state line west to the eastern side of the Atchafalaya Basin and south to Venice.  Finding the winning fish will certainly be a daunting task on this massive fishery with hundreds of canals, bayous, and marshes to target.  The last time the Classic visited New Orleans in 2003, Mike Iaconelli took the title with a three day total of 37 lbs 14 oz from a small clear water lagoon in the Venice area.  That was in the summer, and the Classic competitors can expect it to take more to win this year in February.

The Louisiana Delta appears to have rebounded from the devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita back in 2005.  Hurricane Gustav was the most recent Hurricane to hit the region back in 2008, but the Roseau cane and other marsh grasses have proven resilient. 

It is in these grassy areas that many of the competitors will be focusing their attention.  The general consensus is that this Classic will be won fishing shallow cover in less than 5 feet of water.  As with most tidal systems in late winter, the strong currents and turbid water cause the majority of the bass to occupy shallow backwaters and canals where weaker current and cleaner water can be found around thick vegetation.  Count on this Classic being won somewhere between 5 inches and 5 feet of water.

Several areas on the Delta are sure to produce during the Classic.  Bayou Black is a well known area west of New Orleans that historically produces good bass.  Des Allemands is southwest of New Orleans and is one of the areas where 1999 Delta Classic champ Davy Hite has done well.  Delacroix is an area that can produce big bags, but the need to lock through will deter some anglers.  The famous Venice area is where Iaconelli won and is expected to produce several Top 10 finishes.  The biggest downside is the long, treacherous run.  One wrong turn or unexpected weather change can take a competitor out of the race quickly.  Lake Cataouatche is an area close to the launch that will draw a number of anglers playing it safe.  Two areas that could be wild cards in the tournament are the Davis Pond and Caernarvon freshwater diversion projects.  These areas have helped in the expansion of more vegetation in the area and could prove productive.  One thing is certain.  Whoever wins the Classic will have definitely earned it.

Product highlights

 

Jewel's The Rock

The Rock is the perfect cross between a traditional worm sinker and the popular football jig, getting the very best traits of both items. It looks like a football head, but it has a hole entirely through it just like any slip sinker does. All similarities to previous fishing weights stop there.

 

For starters, The Rock has an angled hole and specialized surfaces to allow for two different rigging options. Run the line through the sinker in the direction that puts the weight's flat surface on the underside and The Rock will roll and tumble over rocks and other obstacles like nothing else can.

 

Reverse the line direction so the sinker's "shovel" side faces forward and The Rock stirs up the bottom when fishing irregular areas of sand, clay, pea gravel, etc. The versatility means that the Rock Rig is the ideal single solution for both Texas rigging and Carolina rigging.

 

The Rock is availalble in 1/2 and 3/4 ounce sizes and is unpainted.  The 1/2-ounce size is sold four per pack, and the 3/4 ounce comes three per package.  Visit www.JewelBait.com.

 

 

Gene Larew Biffle-O Lizard 

Anglers who have a passion for dragging rigs in spring are destined to fall in love with Gene Larew's brand new Biffle-O Lizard Jr.

 

Junior measures in at 6.5 inches. It has a solid head for holding a quality hook, a hollow body that can receive a rattle, scent or flotation, and that famous long tail that is always dancing. The tail features Larew's patented design. Its flexible, cupped shape tapers to a point and delivers a crazy, tantalizing action, making it the ultimate Carolina rig bait.

More action comes from the bait's four unique and hyperactive swimming legs. The legs are broad at the shoulders for stability. Then they thin from the shoulders to become more flexible to make them swim with the slightest of movement. On the end of each leg there is a special "foot" to further facilitate swimming ease and kick up plenty of bass catching action.

 

The Biffle-O Lizard Jr.'s tube body makes for high hookset percentages simply from its hollow design. And because the body is hollow, a piece of Styrofoam can be inserted to float the bait high behind the rig's weight. A bag of eight juniors sales for around $5.99. Visit www.GeneLarew.com.

Classic Countdown 



A special thank you ... 

Dollahon PR would like to thank editorial contributor and pro angler Trevor Knight for his assistance with our 2011 Classic Insight newsletters.

Classic Insight Brought to You by DPR and ...







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