|
Big
Baits = Big Bites
If any of you have
been following the
Bassmaster Elite Tour this
year, you have been able
to see just how many of
the pros turn towards big
baits to get big bites.
Big Bite Pro Russ
Lane is a prime example of
this way of thinking.
He was able to land
big fish at Clarks Hill,
Pickwick Lake and again at
Guntersville. Russ
was fishing in areas that
he thought was holding big
fish so he pulled out a
10 Kriet Tail Worm and
went to work. All
of these waters are known
to have big bass roaming
the landscape and Russ
took advantage of the
adage big baits will get
you big bites.
Generally, bass fishermen
do not want to fish with
this tactic everyday as
you are out to catch as
many quality bass that you
can in a day. In
the same breath I will
tell you not only will you
catch big bass with a big
bait presentation, but you
will still catch smaller
bass as well. So
dont get to thinking
that big baits will only
catch big bass that is
simply not true.
If I am looking for
a few big bites in my day
of fishing I will
definitely turn towards
bigger baits.
The 3 baits that I want to
focus on for this article
are Big Bites 6 Trick
Stick, 8 Kriet Tail
Lizard and 10 Kriet
Tail Worm. Each
bait has a special place
to be fished when looking
for bigger bites.
6 Trick Stick
I
started to fish this bait
a couple of years ago in
the spring of the season
when the bigger females
were either in the
shallows or coming off of
the spawn and were heading
back out to the flats or
the weed edge to
recuperate after the
spawn. Bass after the
spawn seem to want a bait
that looks natural to them
as it falls, and the 6
Trick Stick covers this MO
to the tee.
I
will rig my Trick Stick
two different ways. One
way is to texas rig my
Trick Stick on a worm hook
with no weight. This is
probably the most popular
way to fish a Trick Stick
anytime of the season, but
this bigger bait has a
slower fall that will
trigger bites from bigger
bass when you are in the
zone.
If the bass are sitting
out on the edge of the
flat, or off of the
weedline I will still turn
to a texas rigged Trick
Stick, but I will use a
weighted worm hook as my
first choice or use a
bullet weight with my
texas rig. The
difference is with the
weighted hook the Trick
Stick will have more of a
vertical fall that is
slower than if I add a
weight to my texas rig. Base
this decision on the mood
of the bass. If
the bass are somewhat
active you can get by with
the weighted texas rig,
but if the bass are on the
inactive side; and it is
tough to get bites you
will get more bites from a
vertical falling Trick
Stick.
Another option I use my
6 Trick Stick for is to
use it as a bait option
for my
Carolina
rig presentation.
8 Kriet Tail Lizard
For
most of you this is going
to be a new bait as Big
Bite is introducing this
bait for 2011, but I have
been able to fish the 8
Kriet Tail Lizard the last
few months, and it is a
must for all bass
fishermen to have in their
box.
When the bass are on the
spawn you cannot miss
having a lizard bait
rigged and ready to go.
The reason for this is
during the spring its a
fact that the lizard is a
natural enemy to the bass
and they will go out of
their way to strike them
hungry or not. So
in a nut shell if the bass
is inactive or hungry your
lizard offering is going
to get the attention of
bass in the area.
I rig my lizard bait two
different ways; one is on
a weighted texas rig and
the other is texas rigged
on a weighted hook. Once
again which texas rig I
use will depend on how the
bite is going. If
the bass are active I will
fish the lizard on a
regular weighted texas rig
and adjust my weight size
for conditions and depths
that I am fishing.
If the bass are inactive I
will opt to use a weighted
hook. This option gives my
bait more of a vertical
fall and will trigger more
bites than a front
weighted texas rigged
lizard.
The main tactic I have
been using the new 8
Kriet Tail Lizard for is
to
Carolina
rig with it. There is
something about a lizard
and Carolina rig that just
go together all year long.
In
the past I have been
fishing a 6lizard, but
in the short time I have
been fishing with the 8
Kriet Tail Lizard the
average size of my bite
has gone up. I
think a lot of this has to
do with the increased tail
action of the bigger Kriet
Tail bait. It
is attracting more
attention than other
lizard options I have used
in the past.
10
Kriet Tail
When
it comes to big bites this
is the number one bait to
turn to. There is
something about a 10
Kriet Tail Worm that dares
a bass to bite it. Just
ask Russ Lane, when he
needs a big bite this is
the bait that you will
find he has rigged
(usually in plum apple).
The
majority of the time I
fish the 10 Kriet Tail
it is texas rigged. I
use a flippin stick as my
rod option and team this
with a matching baitcaster
spooled with 15 to 25lb
Sunline Shooter
Fluorocarbon line. This
is a big bass rig to the
max and gives you the
ability to move big bass
from heavy cover if
necessary.
I
will let the mood of the
fish dictate how I fish
the bait. If
the bass are active I will
fish my Kriet Tail Worm
with a typical worm
retrieve using a lift and
drop back to the boat. If
I am fishing rocks I will
just drag the worm along
the bottom or move it in
slow, short hops trying to
keep the bait close to the
bottom.
If the bite is tough I
have two tactics: one
is to slow way down and
crawl the worm along, and
the second is to do what
is called stroking the
bait.
In stroking the
bait the goal is to get
radical with the bait. Lift
the worm up off the bottom
a few feet and let it fall
back to the bottom on a
semi slack line, use this
retrieve all the way back
to the boat. What
you are trying to do here
is to get a reaction bite
out of the bass from all
the radical movement of
the bait.
Well as you can see there
is a time and a place to
use big baits, especially
if you are looking for a
big bite. Make
sure you are armed and
ready by always carrying a
few big options with you
for when the time is right
for that big bite.
Scott
Petersen
|
