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One of the things
that separates the serious tournament fisherman from the casual angler is attention to detail. As an example, I own somewhere in the neighborhood of twenty different fishing rods, and ten or twelve reels. The rods differ in type (spinning vs. baitcasting,) as well as in length, weight, stiffness, and action. Reels differ in such things as gear ratio (rate of retrieve), smoothness of operation, and even age. Each rod and reel has it's own characteristics, which I rely on for different fishing situations.
Some of the decisions I make while practicing for a tournament include what baits I'm going to throw during the tournament, what rods are best suited for throwing these baits, which reel is best for each bait & rod combination, and what line size I will use on each reel. To keep all of this information organized I have devised a chart, which is shown below. On this chart I have listed all of the rods I own, all of the reels I own, all of my line options, and all of my lure or bait options. When I come in off the water on the last day of practice, I print out a copy of this chart, and then sit down and fill in the bottom half. Starting with the box labeled "1:", I choose a lure or bait category from the box above it, write that in box 1, and cross that selection off the list of options. Next I select a rod to use with this bait, write that in the next box, and cross it off the options list. I go across the line selecting a reel, and finally the line size I want to spool onto this rod/reel combination once I set it up. For example, one line in the chart might show that I want to throw a baby crankbait on a 6'0" All Star rod with a Shimano Chronarch reel spooled up with 10 lb. test monofilament. One nice feature about employing this chart is that once it's filled out, I can either finish the job myself, or hand the chart to my wife and she can put everything together and respool line while I attend to other pre-tournament preparations.
Many anglers complain about fishing in windy weather, and routinely search out a calm cove or pocket in which to hide from the wind. Experienced anglers know though that windy weather, while making boat control and casting control more difficult, tends to make the fish more aggressive and less spooky than under calm conditions. The wind stirs up the food chain, making everybody want to eat, from the baitfish on up to the biggest bass. It also breaks up the surface of the water, making it harder for predators above water to see down, and this tends to make fish less wary about moving about in shallow water areas. As for baits, any fast-moving baits like a crankbait, a Rattletrap, and especially a spinnerbait should be tried on windy days, and instead of searching out the flat water, move over to the windblown banks to catch those fish who are actively feeding.
Selecting a spinnerbait should involve more than just reaching for the newest or the shiniest bait in the box. Experienced anglers know that when you buy a spinnerbait, you are actually buying three different components put together to make up one bait. The first component is the spinnerbait body, then comes the blade or blades, and finally the skirt. I force myself into considering each component seperately by managing my spinnerbaits on a component level, rather than on a finished product level. To organize my spinnerbait box, the first thing I do is I remove the skirts from all of the baits. I keep all of my skirts in a separate box, organized by color. The spinnerbaits themselves without their skirts are now much easier to keep track of. I organize mine into 3 hanging boxes, separated by weights - 3/8, 1/2, and 3/4 oz. Since blades are more difficult to swap than skirts, I generally leave them attached - but keep two plastic bags right there in the same box, one for extra willow leaf blades in a variety of colors and sizes, the other for Colorado and Indiana blades. With this arrangement, when I decide I want to throw a spinnerbait, instead of opening a box and picking out the prettiest finished package, I actually make three seperate decisions. I first pick a size, let's say 1/2 oz., then I look through my box of 1/2 oz. baits for the blade configuration that I like, swapping blades right there if I need to, and finally I choose a skirt, slipping that on followed by any plastic trailers or trailer hooks. Using this system I am able to make subtle and controlled changes to my baits, say by changing the skirt color but keeping the spinnerbait size and blades the same, or by changing the size of the bait itself to make it run deeper, yet keeping the blades and the skirt color consistent. P.S: I organize my jig box the same way, by separating skirts from heads, and for exactly the same reasons. Differences in jig head shapes and sizes, hook sizes, rattle vs. no rattle, and skirt color all need to be considered separately from the overall finished bait. Choose a jig head first, then decide on the other components one at a time.
When changing line on your reels, why throw away that section of the old line that’s never even been wet? Instead, strip the line off of one reel to be respooled, and tie the used end of the line that is currently on another reel, onto the spool of the stripped reel. Press the button (or open the bail), and simply crank the line off of one reel and onto the other. Caution: While this practice can cut the cost of new line in half, it can also cost you lost lures and lost fish, if you do not keep accurate records of which reels have the line that has been used on both ends. The method I use is to stick a small piece of tape to the underside of each reel when spooling on new line, and remove that tape after spooling on "used" line.
You can't carry your big cold weather boots around in the boat all the time - they take up too much room and would just get moldy being stored in a wet boat. The best thing I have ever bought for my boat is a pair of GoreTex waterproof socks. These socks take up virtually no space, so can be packed easily in with your rainsuit. They are 100% waterproof, and extremely warm as well. For those days when you're caught out in the rain or the cold without your boots, put these socks on under your sneakers and you can spend all day splashing around in the puddles and your feet still stay warm and dry.
To get the most out of your worm fishing (or jig fishing, or Carolina rigging), try this: every time you make a cast, no matter how long the cast or how deep or dirty the water, pretend that you are sight fishing. Pretend that you can see a 5 lb. bass just six inches behind your bait, eying it from the attack position. Then you'll be paying attention! If you were to visualize like this on every cast, then when get that subtle bite that you otherwise would have missed, this time you'll be ready for it and you won't be caught off guard.
"Super Lines", or braided lines like 
, have come a long way since they were re-introduced to the market with a great deal of fanfare back in the early 90's. Technology has changed, formulas have changed, and the quality and properties of all the super lines have changed significantly since this time. If you haven't tried fishing the new products lately, you owe it to yourself to give them a try. But be patient. After having fished with monofilament for so long, braid is definately going to feel different. Fish it on a softer, more limber rod to make up for the lack of stretch. And remember to keep your rod tip low - these lines have a tendency to tangle around the tip, but hardly ever when you're paying attention to your rod tip, especially at the end of a cast or flip. Don't hold the rod up at such an angle that the line drops down parallel to it, where it can catch one of the eyes. Again be patient, and give the new braided lines a chance. The more you fish with these lines the more aware you become of subtle adjustments you can make to prevent problems. It'll be worth it - once you've hooked a big fish on 50lb.
, the game is over - he is not going to break off. Just hang on and have fun!
Another complaint
about braided line that is now totally unfounded, is that knots tend to slip. Once again, changes made to manufacturing processes in recent years have totally eliminated this problem. I fish with
on virtually every rod I own, and have tied countless thousands of knots. Not one has failed. As with any line though, if you use the wrong knot, or you use the right knot but tie it incorrectly, you're going to have a problem. With Spiderwire, there is only one knot I ever use, the Palomar, and it has never failed me. Learn to tie the Palomar knot, and then always tie the Palomar knot, and you will never have a problem.
There is no question that braided lines like
can help you feel, hook and land more fish. The color of the line though can make the line appear quite visible under certain conditions, like clear water. I carry a felt-tipped marker in the boat with me, and simply color the last 4-5 feet of line periodically through the day. For general use in all water conditions, I have found black to be the best all-around color choice.
Tying on a Carolina rig - add a small steel or brass disk, available where you buy your other Carolina rig components, between the glass bead and the swivel – it adds noise to attract fish, but more importantly it protects the knot from being cut by sharp glass edges.
Cutting off a Carolina rig - Cut the main line 2’ above the sinker, double the end back to the swivel, and slide the sinker and beads down to the bend in the line. Now tie a simple overhand knot in this doubled-over section of line. This keeps all the pieces together from hook to sinker, and makes tying on a Carolina rig the next time a simpler process, since you're not searching for 6 different components and there is only one knot to tie instead of the usual three. (Note though that in a tournament situation, you want to be very careful about not retying your knots!)
Toothpicks stuck
in slip sinkers? - Take a stout worm hook and use needle nose pliers to cut or break the hook at the end of the straight shaft, immediately before the bend. Discard the curved portion (with the point) and use the straight shank to push the toothpick out. Make up a few of these tools, and keep one in with your sinkers and one with worm hooks. Better yet –– attach a split ring and hang it on the same cord that keeps your line clippers.
Drain Plug - A simple, no-fail method of remembering to install your drain plug before launching your boat is as follows: When you pull the plug after a day on the water, don't put the plug away in the boat. Instead hang it either to the transom saver ("motor toter"), or to the transom tie-down straps. Since these items must be removed before launching the next time, the drain plug automatically ends up in your hand, where it can't be forgotten. Note: If you don't have the kind of plug that can be hung up in this way, hang some kind of "flag" instead. (I use a plastic key chain.) The same principle applies -- before launching the boat I always end up with the "flag" in my hand, reminding me to install the drain plug.
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