Central VA Bass Cast

FLW Pro Kevin Hawk – Pre Potomac River – Podcast 5-16-12

SiteOwner — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:13:31 +0000

I had the opportunity today to catch up with Kevin before the Potomac River event to pick his brain a little and see what he thought it would take to win this event. Kevin is no stranger to the Potomac he has fished the river before so he should do well, we look forward to seeing him on the podium…So sit back and take a listen to what he has to say…

KEVIN HAWK.com

A deeper look at long lining

SiteOwner — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:57:13 +0000

A deeper look at long lining

Kelly Jordon has been long lining for decades. Here’s his advice on the technique that’s catching on fast

Ken Duke

Kelly Jordon is not new to long lining, and he has tips for getting your baits down to where the bass are.

About the author

Ken Duke

Ken Duke is the Senior Editor of B.A.S.S. Publications. To get your daily dose of bass information, history and trivia, follow him on Twitter @thinkbass.

By Ken Duke

May 16, 2012

“They” say there’s nothing new under the sun, and “they” may be right. After watching Jeremy Starks and Britt Myers finish 1-2 at the Douglas Lake Elite Series tournament last week, it looked like we were watching a new technique being unveiled — long lining was having its coming out party.

Except that it wasn’t.

It turns out that anglers around the country have been using the method for years — decades even — to catch bass at depths that crankbaits couldn’t reach on a conventional cast and retrieve.

If you missed it, Starks, Myers and several other Elite anglers were getting their deep-diving cranks to 30, 35 and perhaps as deep as 45 feet by making a long cast, then keeping their reels in free-spool while the bait bobbed in the waves and they moved away, so that the motor is not moving the lure. After they had backed away 200 or even 300 yards, they’d start the retrieve. A single cast and retrieve was taking as long as five or even 10 minutes, limiting Starks to just 40 or 50 casts a day. It hardly mattered, though, since he was catching a bass on nearly every cast.

There are several important things to consider here.

First, it’s against the rules of most tournament organizations to use either your outboard or electric motor to move your bait. That’s trolling, and it’s a big no-no.

Second, there are lots of factors that limit the running depth of a crankbait — line size and composition, bait size and design, retrieve speed and trajectory just to name a few — but the most limiting component has always been retrieve distance. A long cast by anyone’s standards would be 70 yards, and no conventional crankbait is going to dive deeper than 25 feet or so on a cast of that length. But if you can stretch the length of the retrieve, you can get the bait deeper.

Enter long lining.

A technique by any other name

“I first tried it in 1989 or 1990,” says Elite Series pro and Texan Kelly Jordon. “I developed it on my own, but I’m certain there were other guys doing it before me. I was just looking for a way to get a crankbait deeper than you could on a regular cast, and back then a lot of Texas bass tournaments allowed you to troll with your electric motor.”

The nine-time Classic qualifier didn’t call the technique “long lining,” however.

“We called it ‘strolling’,” he said, “and it wouldn’t be legal in a B.A.S.S. tournament because we used the trolling motor to help move the bait. That’s when we came up with ‘stroll casting,’ which is the same as long lining.”

Brushes with the spotlight

As Jordon tells it, long lining or stroll casting has come close to being exposed by the outdoors media on several occasions. Jordon and three teammates used it to win the Toyota Texas Bass Classic a few years ago, and it was a factor in the Elite tournament on Wheeler Lake in 2011.

It wasn’t until Starks and Myers, however, that long lining was used so prominently in a major win. “A lot of the guys who use it have been trying to keep it quiet for a long time,” Jordon says.

Jordon, who finished 17th at Douglas Lake, admits to having missed a long lining opportunity there. “I stopped looking for them at about 30 feet deep. It wasn’t until the end of practice that I realized I had missed it. At about 1:30 on the last practice day I tried it with a Lucky Craft D20 and was hitting bottom in about 39 feet of water when a 7 pounder hit. It was too late for me to put anything together, though.”

Gearing up

For his long lining or stroll casting, Jordon likes a 7-foot, 11-inch medium-heavy Micro Magic cranking rod from Duckett Fishing. He’d go with an even longer model, but many tournament circuits (including the Elite Series) prohibit rods over 8 feet. He likes the Abu Garcia Revo STX or Premier in a 6.4:1 gear ratio for his cranking reel, and has found these models suit his needs well, though he says further customization might give some anglers a longer cast.

“I’ve seen some custom reels with ceramic bearings that could cast over 100 yards,” Jordon says, “but if you make one little mistake with them, you’re looking at an epic backlash. With my gear, I can cast 75 yards or so, and long casts are critical because they save time.”

Jordon also emphasizes the need for extremely castable baits — especially crankbaits that have a weight-transfer system that allow for longer casts. His favorite deep-diving crankbait is the Lucky Craft Flat CB D20. It’s the bait he was using at Douglas to catch the big fish in practice. It reached 39 feet on that presentation, but Jordon knows he can get it even deeper if he needs to.

As for line, conventional wisdom says lighter lines will help crankbaits get deeper, and that was certainly true in the days of monofilament. There’s some debate, however, now that most anglers are using fluorocarbon for their cranking. Fluorocarbon sinks, though not likely fast enough to make a difference with this method.

Jordon likes 10- or 12-pound test Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon for his cranking. He says lines lighter than 10 will cost you too many baits, but heavier than 12 will cost you too many bites.

How deep can you go?

“I know my Lucky Craft D20 was getting down to 39 feet at Douglas,” Jordon says, “but I think you can go deeper. I’d never tried to go that deep before.”

Of course, the key to successful long lining or stroll casting is not just how deep you can make the bait go, but putting it near catchable bass. For that, you need to be good with your electronics. You have to find the bass, get lined up on them and be able to put your bait on target time after time. Casts can take five to 10 minutes each, so missing the mark — even by a few feet — results in a considerable waste of time and effort.

“When I started stroll casting,” Jordon says, “I’d mark the area I wanted to hit with a buoy. Now I just use my electronics — especially my GPS — but a buoy could be a big help for anglers who are just learning the technique or who aren’t as familiar with their electronics. Just be sure to put the buoy off to one side so you don’t snag it.”

Ultimately, the depth bass anglers can reach with a crankbait is determined by physics. Nevertheless, with long lining, high capacity spools, fluorocarbon lines and proper rod trajectory, “deep-diving” is taking on a whole new meaning.

www.bassmaster.com

Missile Baits – Douglas Video Recap – Tip – 5-15-12

SiteOwner — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:33:19 +0000

John Gives us a recap of what took place on Douglas Lake and what he used to fish this body of water. Take a close listen as he gives us some great pointers to use the next time you are on the water

MISSILE BAITS.COM

Brent Ehler – Humminbird Electronics Setup

SiteOwner — Mon, 14 May 2012 21:23:47 +0000

Brent gets asked a lot about the electronics on his boat and how they are set up. Here’s a video from when he picked up his 2012 Ranger at Angler’s Marine in Anaheim

Big Bite Baits – Shake in Squirrel by Will Petty – Tip

SiteOwner — Mon, 14 May 2012 20:20:24 +0000

We caught up with Will Petty up at Smith Mountain this past week and he gave us some great tips on the big Bite Baits Shake in Squirrel. Take a listen to what he had to say

One Stop Mart Bass Tournament Series – Results – SML – 5/12/12

SiteOwner — Sun, 13 May 2012 12:12:00 +0000

One Stop Mart Bass Tournament Series – Results

SML – 5/12/12

1st Place – Tyler Farmer / Jeremy Caldwell 13 lbs. 10 oz.

2nd Place – Jerry Rice / Robert Reynolds 13 lbs. 9 oz.

3rd Place – Tim Davis / Rodney Irving 11 lbs. 13.5 oz.

4th Place - Bobby Davis Sr. / Bobby Davis Jr. 11 lbs. 6.5 oz.

Lunker – Tie : Tim Davis / Rodney Irving 3 lbs. 13 oz.

Tyler Farmer / Jeremy Caldwell

Totals : Boats – 27 Fish – 66 Weight – 142 lbs. 2 oz.

Next Tournament – SML Nite 6-16-12 8pm – 4am Penhook

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Augusta County Bass Jon’s – Mill Creek – 5.12.12 Reults

SiteOwner — Sun, 13 May 2012 00:24:59 +0000

The Augusta County Bass – Jon’s had an amazing turn out for this weekends Mill Creek Event. But the big sack and the check for 200.00 come down to the father son trio of Josh & Bill Bailey with at total wight of 8.14lbs. Congratulations to them on their first victory…

A photo of the guys that competed in this weeks event

Brandon Card – Longlining gets Card Top Finish – Douglas Lake Podcast 5-9-12

SiteOwner — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:19:32 +0000

Wayne catches up with Brandon this week after his 9th place finish on Douglas Lake, with a total weight of 68lbs. Take a listen as Brandon tells us all about this technique (Longlining) and what he learned about it on the water at Douglas Lake…

Robertson takes Shenandoah Division on Smith Mountain Lake 5-5-12

SiteOwner — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:34:17 +0000

HUDDLESTON, Va. – Mark Robertson of Henderson, N.C., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 16 pounds, 14 ounces Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Shenandoah Division event on Smith Mountain Lake. For his victory, Robertson earned $6,359.

“I was fishing near the Blackwater River area,” said Robertson. “I was looking for the points, and I would target the structure and stumps in 8 to 15 feet of water. It was a pretty tough day out there. I only had six keeper bites.

“I was throwing a Texas rig, rigged with a green pumpkin-colored Berkley Power Worm,” Robertson continued. “I found three good fish on the beds, and I had them in the boat by 9:30 a.m. I didn’t catch my other three until around noon. I’d had a few good days of practice, and coming into this event I thought it would take around 20 pounds to win, so I was pretty surprised that I won it with 16. It was warm and sunny during most of my practice days, and I think the cloudy weather moved them out a little deeper.”

Rounding out the top 10 pros:

2nd: Luke Nichols, Moneta, Va., five bass, 15-6, $2,179

3rd: Brandon Gray, Bullock, N.C., five bass, 15-3, $1,452

4th: Snapple pro Jacob Powroznik, Prince George, Va., five bass, 14-6, $1,017

5th: Thomas Wooten, Huddleston, Va., five bass, 14-1, $872

6th: Shawn Hammack, Gasburg, Va., five bass, 13-14, $799

7th: Gabriel Scott, Ruckersville, Va., five bass, 13-8, $726

8th: William Kemp, Scotland Neck, N.C., five bass, 13-7, $617

8th: William Shelton III, La Crosse, Va., five bass, 13-7, $617

10th: Kevin Kane, Woodbridge, Va., five bass, 13-5, $509

DeMaury takes co-angler title

Co-angler Josh Demaury of Troutville, Va., won the May 5 Shenandoah event on Smith Mountain Lake with a total weight of 12 pounds, 9 ounces. For his efforts he was awarded over $2,000 in winnings. Josh DeMaury of Troutville, Va., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to win $2,179 in the co-angler division.

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers:

2nd: David Deciucis, Richmond, Va., five bass, 11-7, $1,090

3rd: Braxton Moore, Mechanicsville, Va., five bass, 10-10, $725

4th: Keith Allen, Sumerduck, Va., five bass, 10-9, $509

5th: Mark Belew, Palmyra, Va., three bass, 9-15, $436

6th: Michael Nelms, Hartwood, Va., four bass, 9-13, $400

7th: Keith Ruley, Lexington, Va., four bass, 9-12, $363

8th: Brent Chapman, Union Hall, Va., five bass, 9-5, $327

9th: Gerald Heffler, Chester Va., four bass, 9-2, $291

10th: Kermit Crowder, Matoaca, Va., five bass, 9-1, $254

Complete co-angler results can be found here.

The next BFL Shenandoah Division tournament is scheduled for June 23 on the Potomac River in La Plata, Md. After the fifth Shenandoah Division tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 11-13 Regional Championship on Kerr Lake in Henderson, N.C. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.

The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. The 2012 BFL All-American is being held May 17 – 19 on the Potomac River in National Harbor, Md. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL RESULTS

Special Thanks to the Guys at Parkway Marina

BASS Federation Nation of VA Team Championship – Results 5-5-12

SiteOwner — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:00:32 +0000

Central VA Bass Cast

FLW Pro Kevin Hawk – Pre Potomac River – Podcast 5-16-12

KEVIN HAWK.com

A deeper look at long lining

A deeper look at long lining

Kelly Jordon has been long lining for decades. Here’s his advice on the technique that’s catching on fast

About the author

Ken Duke

A technique by any other name

Brushes with the spotlight

Gearing up

How deep can you go?

Missile Baits – Douglas Video Recap – Tip – 5-15-12

John Gives us a recap of what took place on Douglas Lake and what he used to fish this body of water. Take a close listen as he gives us some great pointers to use the next time you are on the water

MISSILE BAITS.COM

Brent Ehler – Humminbird Electronics Setup

Brent gets asked a lot about the electronics on his boat and how they are set up. Here’s a video from when he picked up his 2012 Ranger at Angler’s Marine in Anaheim

Big Bite Baits – Shake in Squirrel by Will Petty – Tip

We caught up with Will Petty up at Smith Mountain this past week and he gave us some great tips on the big Bite Baits Shake in Squirrel. Take a listen to what he had to say

One Stop Mart Bass Tournament Series – Results – SML – 5/12/12

Augusta County Bass Jon’s – Mill Creek – 5.12.12 Reults

The Augusta County Bass – Jon’s had an amazing turn out for this weekends Mill Creek Event. But the big sack and the check for 200.00 come down to the father son trio of Josh & Bill Bailey with at total wight of 8.14lbs. Congratulations to them on their first victory…

A photo of the guys that competed in this weeks event

Brandon Card – Longlining gets Card Top Finish – Douglas Lake Podcast 5-9-12

Wayne catches up with Brandon this week after his 9th place finish on Douglas Lake, with a total weight of 68lbs. Take a listen as Brandon tells us all about this technique (Longlining) and what he learned about it on the water at Douglas Lake…

Robertson takes Shenandoah Division on Smith Mountain Lake 5-5-12

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL RESULTS

Special Thanks to the Guys at Parkway Marina

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL RESULTS

Special Thanks to the Guys at Parkway Marina

Special Thanks to the Guys at Parkway Marina

BASS Federation Nation of VA Team Championship – Results 5-5-12

CLICK HERE CLUB RESULTS DAY ONE

CLICK HERE CLUB RESULTS FINAL DAY

CLICK HERE RESULTS DAY ONE

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS

CLICK HERE CLUB RESULTS FINAL DAY

CLICK HERE RESULTS DAY ONE

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS

CLICK HERE CLUB RESULTS FINAL DAY

CLICK HERE RESULTS DAY ONE

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS

CLICK HERE RESULTS DAY ONE

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS

CLICK HERE RESULTS DAY ONE

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS

CLICK HERE FINAL RESULTS