Innholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2022 i Bassmaster

When we announced the #iambassmaster cover photo contest, we were innundated with amazing images of B.A.S.S. members doing what they love to do… fish. It was tough to narrow down the field to our Super Six. Once we did, we had a company-wide vote on not only the image that should grace the cover, but also which member embodied the passion of being a member of B.A.S.S. Here, you can see the finalists. As important as the image itself is, we wanted to share the stories we received that went along with each photo submission. 1. Cliff Willis of Jacksonville, Fla., was fishing out of a float tube in a canal when this brute bit. He had gone two hours without a bite on his frog. The explosion, followed by…

November 6 Pumpkin Destruction Day. Make time to clean up that front porch after the Halloween festivities. 11 Veterans Day. Thank a veteran or take a veteran friend fishing for the day. 14 World Diabetes Day. Most of us are guilty of too many honeybuns or doughnuts. Check in with your physician if you haven’t been in a while. 24 Thanksgiving. A strong candidate for America’s best holiday, today is a day of feast, reflection and football. December 21 Winter Solstice. Congratulations. The shortest day of the year marks the date when you begin to have more daylight for fishing. 25 Christmas Day. It’s the day many wait the whole year for. Stock up on tackle for your family, and maybe snag a few new baits for yourself, too.…

Kevin Lazarski Silver Lake, Wis. David Prochaska Glacial Lakes, S.D. Avery Largilliere Madison, Miss. Cooper Kendrick Heath, Texas A Legend Lives On Thank you so much for the awesome “remembrance” issues of Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times. That “Hollywood” shot on the Bassmaster cover was so dramatic it took my breath away when I first saw it. And the jacket and hat at the end brought tears to my eyes. The boat shot on B.A.S.S. Times has always been one of my favorites. And, all editorial was great. Ray would be so proud. Thank you for such outstanding tributes to Ray. I miss him dearly but have so many wonderful memories made even sweeter by contributions like yours and others. I thank you and all involved with all my heart. Susan Scott Pintlala, Ala.…

THE STORY OF how Jason Christie won the 2022 Bassmaster Classic — by leaving his much-preferred, dingy-water area even after he’d caught a 6-pounder there with his favorite spinnerbait and moving to more difficult, clear, deeper-water conditions — has already been told many times and doubtless will be discussed for months to come. There’s an add-on to Christie’s Classic victory story, however, that should also become part of the conversation. Barely a month after winning on Lake Hartwell, the Oklahoma pro won the Bassmaster Elite Series event at Chickamauga Lake by starting in clear water and then moving to dingy conditions far up the Hiwassee River. It was a complete reversal of his Classic strategy. “All anglers have a comfort zone in which they like to fish, and for me,…

Water type: Winding in the warmth on a Southeastern reservoir Water temp: Upper 60s to low 70s Clarity: 1 to 2 feet Depth: 5 to 15 feet Structure: Points, flats, isolated rock, stumps Cover: Laydowns, grass Forage: Shad, bluegill Weather: Warming trend following cold weather, bright skies Wind/current: Little to no wind 1 AHEAD OF SCHEDULE Drew Benton Blakely, Ga. First move: Knowing that extended warmth can prompt Southeastern fish to jump ahead in their seasonal cycles, Benton wants to know what moon phase he’s fishing. Most of the fish, he said, will be following prespawn patterns. However, it’s no rarity to find fish on beds while covering water for prespawners. Baits/tackle to use: For open-water sparse grass, Benton uses a rattling bait. For thicker grass, he’ll go with a…

Don’t let the cold send you into hibernation! Head over to Bassmaster.com/Go-Outside for tips and how-tos on staying warm and active even when the temperature outside is dropping. Go {Fish} While the South is experiencing a cooldown, Northern states are bracing for snow. If you’ve recently moved North or are planning a visit and want to fish, you may have to break some ice to catch them. GO Ambassador Jimmy Kennedy shares how to get started ice fishing. Go {Cook} Cooking outside over a Breeo Fire Pit is the perfect way to warm up your campsite and have full control over the amount of open flame contact your food will have. Check out this recipe for grilling prime steak over an open flame. Go {Camp} Camping in the winter has…

WHEN I FIRST heard B.A.S.S. was making plans for the Abu Garcia Bassmaster High School Combine presented by Skeeter, I was a little skeptical. Don’t get me wrong. Any excuse to bring young people together with schools and coaches who can help shape their futures in a positive way is a fabulous thing — and the mere title of the event left no doubt the sponsors were on board. What I wondered, though, is what coaches could truly learn about young anglers during an event that takes place on land as much as it does on water. After Year 1, I was convinced. After Year 2, I’m simply blown away. The 2022 version of the event was held Sept. 16-18 on Wheeler Lake in Decatur, Ala. After drawing 84 anglers…

SIXTEEN YEARS AGO, an 8-year-old girl joined her father to watch a bass fishing weigh-in. That particular event, the Elite Series Santee Cooper Showdown, shattered all sorts of records, with six anglers cracking the 100-pound mark and Preston Clark landing almost 116 pounds for the win. However, the effect it had on that little girl was likely the most profound result. “I don’t know why, but the excitement around that event, seeing the fish and watching the people… I knew that’s what I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” explains Anastasia Patterson. That’s quite a statement, but one the South Carolina native is certainly living up to. Patterson submitted the photo you see on the cover of this issue as part of our #iambassmaster cover photo contest.…

Perched at the nexus of New York, Vermont and Quebec, the vibrant city of Plattsburgh is the stuff of bass anglers’ dreams during the summer. Excellent launch ramps, an easy parking situation and a ready supply of fish tacos near weigh-in at the Naked Turtle make Plattsburgh a lovable destination for competitors. This storied fishing town on the shores of Lake Champlain is a gateway to an incredibly rich history that predates the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Nearby Fort Ticonderoga lords over an ample largemouth fishery while offering visitors a glimpse at daily life during the American Revolution. Meanwhile, myths of a legendary lake monster come to life every August during Port Henry’s “Champ Day” celebration. 125 Length of Lake Champlain in miles 10-4 Weight of the record…

It’s your turn to write a cutline for your favorite magazine. Follow B.A.S.S. on Instagram (@bass_nation) and comment with a clever caption on this cartoon that will be posted on our feed on Nov. 15, 2022. If your caption is chosen, it will be printed in an upcoming issue. Last Month’s Post Last Month’s Caption Winner: “Pictured: history museum employees work to reconstruct a fossil from the Jur-BASS-ic period” @french904  …

When drop shotting edges of deep, offshore vegetation, is there an advantage to using a tungsten sinker? Are there times when you prefer lead?Robert Brown, Grand Rapids, Mich. Bassmaster Elite Series pro Jacob Foutz I really don’t have a preference, but I personally don’t believe tungsten gives you that much more sensitivity when fishing around soft cover. Now, it does offer advantages around rocks, gravel and other hard bottoms. It allows you a better feel of what’s down there and does help you detect bites better. Tungsten weights aren’t cheap, but if you can afford them, they do have other advantages when fishing in grass. For example, they are smaller; therefore, they don’t catch on the grass as often as larger lead ones do. I also prefer the cylinder-shaped drop-shot…

Daiwa Exist LT A true high-end reel, the Exist LT packs a load of performance in a remarkably lightweight Magnesium MQ Frame. Its single-piece frame allows more gear space and promotes greater torque and power. Featuring the all-new EXIST Air Drive System with ZAION Air Drive Rotor, Air Drive Bail, Air Drive Spool and Air Drive Shaft, this reel comes in 4.9:1, 5.2:1 and 6.2:1 models, each with Daiwa’s Advanced Tournament Drag (ATD) system. ($859.99-$929.99) daiwa.us Berkley Slobberknocker Winning the ICAST 2022 Freshwater Hard Lure category, this bladed jig features an innovative through-head design for blade attachment, a hand-tied, PowerBait-infused silicone skirt, a talon-style trailer keeper to secure trailers without ripping, chip-resistant paint and a Berkley Fusion19 hook. It’s available in 3/8- and 1/2-ounce sizes and 12 colors. ($13.99) berkley-fishing.com…

WHEREVER B.A.S.S. SENDS the Elite Series pros, the top finishers always find baits and presentations that stuff their livewells with bass. It isn’t just the lures they use, but the nuances of where and how they fish them that’s the difference between success and failure. Here’s how six Elite anglers finished among the Top 10 at three very different bodies of water in 2022. Pickwick Lake Brandon Lester, 1st place, 86-1 On the first morning of the tournament, Lester caught over 21 pounds of bass in 30 minutes with Strike King’s 4.0 Magnum squarebill in chartreuse shad. He opted for this large, 7/8-ounce crankbait to appeal to the bigger bass in the school. “The 4.0 runs about 7 feet deep on 15-pound line,” Lester said. “The little flat I was…

You are now the reigning Falcon Rods Elite Series Rookie of the Year. What does that feel like? Oh, man. It feels amazing to accomplish a goal that I set out to hit at the beginning of the year. I had two goals in mind: to make the Bassmaster Classic and to win Rookie of the Year. Obviously, you can only do [the latter] once, and it is crazy to accomplish that in such a stacked field of rookies. They didn’t let up for the whole season. It took until the last tournament to finish it up. That last tournament was on your home turf. You’re in Wisconsin. You’ve got a baseball stadium full of fans to cheer you on. That must have been surreal. It was, especially because it…

The Bass Fishing Hall of Fame continues to put its money where its mouth is with the presentation of four new conservation grants. The recipients came from a competitive field of entrants. “Each year we continue to be impressed by the seriousness and dedication of our applicants,” said Bass Fishing Hall of Fame President John Mazurkiewicz. In Tennessee, the state’s B.A.S.S. Nation conservation and high school/youth clubs are working on habitat enhancement and restoration at Tims Ford Lake. Further south, the Alabama B.A.S.S. Nation High School Team Trail has been awarded a grant to assist with a mobile fish-care trailer. In Kentucky, the Bluegrass Bassmasters are using grant money to fund cypress tree planting on Lake Barkley. In Texas, anglers are rallying to replace fish habitat lost at Belton Lake.…

Daryll Gavin Congratulations. Hard work and determination paid off! Cherie Thostenson McCall So very proud of you and your team. Congratulations on your second AOY win! Shawn Erickson Way to make North Idaho proud Brandon Palaniuk. Austin Sharpe What a beast! Congrats on an awesome year, keep it up BMP Fishing! Kathy Van Pelt Johnson Congratulations Brandon Palaniuk. You deserve this and have worked hard for it. So happy for you!…

What are some good tips for protecting/caring for your boat when you don’t have a garage? @Shawntilbury, Instagram The most important thing is to keep it covered, says Kevin Short, former Bassmaster pro now with Bass Cat Boats. “Sunlight is the biggest enemy of any boat, fiberglass or aluminum,” says Short. “Carpet, vinyl and dash shrouds can be severely damaged as easily as the gelcoat on the fiberglass.” A properly fitted, waterproof or water-resistant cover is a must, but a portable carport would be better, he adds. If you have fiberglass trailer fenders, cover them as well. Take everything out of the boat you want protected. Don’t leave food in it or you will attract unwanted visitors. Fully charge the batteries, then disconnect them, trim the engine down, pull the…

TAKE THE FRUGALITY mantra “if it’s free, it’s for me,” replace “free” with “easy” and you have the very essence of why bass do their best feeding around choke points. Applicable year-round, the notion of structures natural and man-made funneling water flow and thereby concentrating food sources proves particularly relevant when fall finds fish focused on filling their bellies. Bridges, creek mouths, big laydowns, river islands — anything that chokes or narrows the water’s course presents a definable path that opportunistic fish will leverage. Sounds pretty straightforward, but learning to identify specific scenarios and understanding how fish will use them can yield an autumn abundance. Beyond the more obvious stuff, three Bassmaster Elite Series pros shared their favorite examples of where and how to make the most of fall choke…

Immediately upon announcing the #iambassmaster cover photo contest, we started receiving photos from Mark “Chief” Torrez. Actually, we received a photo from him every day of the contest (nearly 150). That is the sort of passion Chief had for B.A.S.S. Just before this issue went to press, we lost Torrez to pneumonia. Chief was a former president of the California B.A.S.S. Nation. Seldom was he seen without his flag of support for his fellow anglers, waving it at blastoff, weigh-ins and anywhere else a crowd might congregate. He greeted everyone he met with a giant, welcoming smile. He loved B.A.S.S., loved bass fishing and loved the community of anglers associated with the sport. Chief met Ray Scott at the 2007 Nation Championship in Orlando and talked about the impact of…