Author: jcarrigan

Categories
MLF BIG-5

FLW ANNOUNCES 2019 T-H MARINE BASS FISHING LEAGUE SCHEDULE, NEW ADVANCEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

October 2, 2018  Photo “Courtesy of FLW”

MINNEAPOLIS – FLW announced today the schedule, rules and increased regional payouts for the 2019 T-H Marine Bass Fishing League (BFL), which includes the opportunity to fish 10 no-entry-fee championships awarding more than $3 million. Fishing the BFL puts local anglers in front of the largest fan base in the sport with coverage on FLWFishing.com and FLW’s social media outlets, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, that reach more than 1 million fans each month. Boaters and co-anglers also have the convenience of fishing close to home for advancement to seven BFL Regional Championships, the T-H Marine BFL All-American and the Forrest Wood Cup, plus a new opportunity to advance directly to the Costa FLW Series Championship.

  • The top 45 boaters and co-anglers plus qualifying tournament winners in each division advance to Regional Championships.
  • Enter all five events in a division, fish at least two and automatically advance to the Wild Card Regional.
  • The top six boaters and co-anglers from each Regional Championship and the Wild Card Regional advance to the All-American.
  • The highest-finishing boater and co-angler from each Regional Championship and the Wild Card Regional at the All-American advance to the FLW Series Championship – you only have to beat five anglers from your regional to advance.
  • The winning boater at the All-American advances to the FLW Cup.
  • The winning boater and co-angler at the FLW Series Championship advance to the FLW Cup. The winning co-angler also receives use of a Ranger Z520L from the championship through the FLW Cup to fish as a pro. Minimum payout at the FLW Cup is $10,000.

For 2019 BFL anglers are eligible for FREE Bass Pro Shops FLW Tournament Incentives at basspro.com/flwincentives. BFL anglers receive a VIP discount card for 25 percent off Bass Pro Shops branded merchandise all year plus incredible tournament bonuses. Lucrative bonuses are also available from Ranger, Triton, Nitro, Evinrude, Mercury, Costa, Leer, Toyota, Power-Pole, T-H Marine and other FLW sponsors.

Guaranteed no-entry-fee Regional Championship payouts have increased to $70,000 for winning boaters and $50,000 for winning co-anglers, up from $65,000 and $45,000 in 2018. Each regional payout includes $10,000 for second and $5,000 for third on the boater side and $5,000 for second and $2,500 for third on the co-angler side. The top 24 boaters and co-anglers in each regional receive checks.

The 2019 All-American will feature FLW Live on-the-water coverage just like the FLW Tour to showcase BFL anglers and their sponsors to FLW’s worldwide audience. FLW Live weigh-in coverage will also be available from every BFL tournament in 2019 for enhanced media coverage at every level.

Entry fees have increased slightly to $300 per qualifier for boaters and $150 per qualifier for co-anglers. Super tournament entry fees remain the same at $350 for boaters and $175 for co-anglers. The popular “Win and You are In” format that automatically qualifies the winners from each of the 96 one-day qualifying tournaments and 24 two-day super tournaments to the Regional Championships along with the top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division based on point standings remains unchanged. In the BFL, anglers are never out of contention for advancement to a no-entry-fee championship.

“FLW was founded on providing affordable, close-to-home weekend tournaments for bass anglers,” said T-H Marine BFL tournament director Daniel Fennel. “BFL anglers are the heart and soul of FLW, and we take great pride in providing them with the best possible tournaments along with a clear pathway for advancement to the sport’s next levels – namely the Costa FLW Series and the FLW Tour. Nowhere else do anglers have the opportunity to fish five close-to-home tournaments with a shot at advancing to not just one, but three of the sport’s biggest championships, the All-American, FLW Series Championship and FLW Cup, where a BFL angler can win a total of $520,000.”

For the complete 2019 BFL schedule, rules and payouts, visit FLWFishing.com.

The BFL is the nation’s largest and most rewarding weekend bass-fishing circuit. Nobody offers better rewards and media coverage to local anglers for a lower cost to compete. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division and tournament winners receive priority entry into the 2020 Costa FLW Series while All-American champions may advance directly to the FLW Tour, the world’s most competitive professional bass-fishing circuit.

Anglers can register for the 2019 BFL season at FLWFishing.com or by calling 270.252.1000 on the dates listed below:

  • November 12, 2018 – Hoosier, Michigan, Music City, and Volunteer
  • November 13, 2018 – Bulldog, Cowboy, Great Lakes, Illini, and Mississippi
  • November 14, 2018 – Bama, Buckeye, Choo Choo, Mountain and Ozark
  • November 15, 2018 – Arkie, LBL, North Carolina, Northeast and Okie
  • November 16, 2018 – Gator, Piedmont, Savannah River, Shenandoah, and South Carolina
Categories
Swimbait Mayhem

$150 SWIMBAIT COMBO ???

A $150 swimbait combo is possible and it will work just like the rest! If you are set on spending money on premium gear then go for it. If you are not sure big swimbaits is for you yet, or you don’t have the money, it’s really ok. I promise the fish won’t care that you don’t have the most expensive custom swimbait rod and a $400 Shimano reel.

This rod I have already introduced to, it’s the Bass Pro Muskie Graphite Series. If you have not, below are links to my article and video giving details of the rod.

Beginner Swimbait Rod

The rod was always just ok, I defiantly didn’t like the reel that I originally had on this rod, which was an older Bass Pro Nitro reel. So, this winter I checked out and purchased the Bass Pro Revolution reel, and my first impression when I put the reel on the rod, was great.

The Bass Pro Revolution is an aluminum frame that has the perfect large spool for pilling on 20+ pound test on your reel. It weighs about 11 oz. and is slightly heavy. However, the weight really balances out this combo and makes slinging big baits an ease. I don’t think this was ever supposed to be a matching combo. However, this rod and reel combo is perfect. It is heave, but if you are taking it easy and just lobbing big swimbaits and want to save money this $150 combo is for you!

Here is the link to the Bass Pro rod review: https://www.thenationalangler.com/50-beginner-swimbait-rod/ 

Check out my video review of this combo: https://youtu.be/iOjqo2D34M8

If you have any questions about this combo, please ask below!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

Be sure to check out my other related articles.

DRT KLASH JOKER – CLICK HERE!

DRT KLASH JOKER PART 2 – CLICK HERE!

BIG BAITS SMALL REEL – WILL IT WORK? – CLICK HERE!

SWIMBAIT SPINNING ROD – CLICK HERE!

SWIMBAIT STORAGE SOLUTIONS – CLICK HERE!

CABELAS SWIMBAIT ROD – CABELAS PREDATOR MUSKY ROD – CLICK HER

Categories
Monthly Lure Giveaway The National Angler

April 2018 YouTube Subscriber Giveaway

RULES:

1. Be a The National Angler YouTube Subscriber! Subscribe here –> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg1muSxR5JpeN-bCsQkFtgw?view_as=subscriber

2. Sign up with name and email @ www. thenationalangler.com under March 2018 subscriber giveaway. 

Make sure to check your email inbox and confirm your subscription! This will also ensure you are registered for future giveaways!

If you have any questions, let me know and good luck!

Winner will be drawn at the end of March and updated right here!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

 

 






Categories
Monthly Lure Giveaway The National Angler

The National Angler March 2018 Lure Giveaway!

The National Angler March 2018 Lure Giveaway!

I just made the video drawing for the winner of the March 2018 lure giveaway!

Thank you to all the entered and good luck on the next one!

The March Winner is Christopher Hrbacek!

Congrats and thanks for entering!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

Categories
Fishing Tips & Tricks The National Angler

EARLY SPRING FISHING TIPS – RAPALA SHADOW RAP

EARLY SPRING FISHING – RAPALA SHADOW RAP

Fishing in the early spring requires finesse and patience, suspending jerk baits like the Rapala Shadow Rap work perfectly. This bait is lightweight, dances side to side and shimmies on the suspense when all of my strikes occurred. If you are targeting cold weather fish from freezing to the spawn. In casting vicinity of the bank from a boat or the bank at 45-degree angled casts near structure will work best.  The Rapala Shadow rap will serve you fine.

This was my first trip out on Rocky Gorge Reservoir in Maryland and on my boat for 2018. Last few years was dedicated to throwing big swimbaits. Decided this day that going back to what I know was first when I found success in fishing a certain technique I would switch over to swimbaits. I judge success on catching 5 fish on one lure in a day, just like a tournament. When I hit that mark I will change things up. That has worked well for me in the past and going back to that direction for 2018.

This day started out cold and didn’t really warm up either. The water temp was 42 when I got on the water and managed to make it up to 45 by midafternoon. The air temp started at 28 and ended up getting to 50, but with the wind blowing, you could hardly tell.

As soon as I got on the water, I really wanted to throw a new swimbait. However, something told me to go for the jerk bait. 3 casts in I caught my first fish and biggest of the day, a 21 in largemouth bass. Unfortunately, for me, my scale wasn’t working so no weight. That is what I need to get me going for the rest of the day and year.

I worked that bait the rest of the day near shore and cast at 45-degree angles specifically looking for structure to locate bass in about 8-15ft of water. The last and most important part of fishing this time of year with these baits is patience. After the cast, I would pull the bait down a few feet and wait about 10 sec. Then I would pop the bait a couple time and wait at least 10sec. I repeated this over and over all day. It directly resulted in my pulling up 4 fish for the day and here are the other three below.

Early spring with super cold water, the biggest thing is to slow way down. So, when you think you are going slow enough, go slower and you should see some results.

If you have any questions, please ask below!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

Categories
Blog The National Angler

New Fishing Focus – Custom Fishing Lures

New Fishing Focus – Custom Fishing Lures

When it comes to fishing I’m always looking for something new to call my own and do something that no one else is doing. I’m always looking for an edge and something innovative as well. In today’s fishing world the big-time pros are going to be the ones who get their hands on the latest and greatest the fishing community has to offer. The one untouched and sometimes unnoticed part of the fishing world is the custom world. Custom molded, poured, painted, shaped, or carved, the custom fishing world is where the average guy will find something new the fish in your area have yet to see or anyone else for that matter. You also have a higher chance at calling a new technique from a custom lure your own as well.

Starting in 2018, I’m going to start focusing on custom lures created by fellow anglers. Why, simple, it puts money into the hands of people like me. After starting to use big custom swimbaits, you really get better quality and craftsmanship. These lures are usually tested for quality and sometimes swimabilty before being sent out. You are not going to get that from a large manufacturer of lures. Does Rapala still hand tune and test each bait? Guess I should find out.

I’m also going to put up a page dedicated to the custom lures that I have discovered and tried as well, so you can have the same as me! Here is the link to the page thenationalangler.com/custom-fishing-lures/

So what custom lures do you make or recommend for me to try! Comment below!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

Categories
Monthly Lure Giveaway The National Angler

March 2018 YouTube Subscriber Giveaway

March 2018 YouTube Subscriber Giveaway

RULES:

1. Be a The National Angler YouTube Subscriber! Subscribe here –> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg1muSxR5JpeN-bCsQkFtgw?view_as=subscriber

2. Sign up with name and email @ www. thenationalangler.com under March 2018 subscriber giveaway. 

Make sure to check your email inbox and confirm your subscription! This will also insure you are registered for future giveaways!

If you have any questions, let me know and good luck!

Winner will be drawn at the end of March and updated right here!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

ENTER BELOW






Categories
Swimbait Mayhem

What is SWIMBAIT MAYHEM

SWIMBAIT MAYHEM

Swimbait Mayhem

A fishing technique that has been around for over two decades has now boomed thanks to social media. While some people may have wished its stayed secret, it has exploded. It’s an industry dominated by high dollar custom baits and even bigger attitudes to go with those baits. The allure of throwing a bait sized for a musky, attempting to lure the bite of a giant bass of a lifetime. Most anglers are instantly hooked on these big baits as if they came off a bad infomercial promising you a fish on every cast no matter what. I bet someone reading this is currently thinking about buying the Mighty Bite since it close to a swimbait or a Banjo Minnow with a paddle tail.

This industry is dominated by names like Huddleston, Deps, DRT, Working Class Zero, Hiroshima, and Hinkle to name a few. Personalities also dominate this industry and they are powerful ones. So powerful, that one person could swindle an entire following. Starting to sound like a cult almost. Kids who catch fish on conventional baits then stick swimbaits in the mouth for a quick Instagram photo… People who have no idea how to use google to search for “cheap swimbait” or “swimbait rod”. You can search Facebook for info also!!

How do you define a swimbait angler?

In the motorcycle world, the 1 percenter is considered the outlaws, while the other 99 percent are law abiding citizens. In the financial world, the 1 percent is the rich, the super-rich is actually classified as the .01 percent. In the fishing world, most people fall into that 99 percent category. While I would place musky anglers in the 1 percent category. Swimbait anglers now make up the .01 percent of the fishing world.

Fish of 1000 casts is a common term in the musky angling world. In the swimbait world, it’s now a fish of 10,000 casts. It will be the 10,000 casts that prevent most people from sticking with swimbait fishing. Dedicated swimbait anglers are few and far between, and even fewer are successful year-round with strictly big swimbaits. This is what separates the 99.99 percent from the last .01 percent.

fish.01%er

What is SWIMBAIT MAYHEM?

Swimbait Mayhem is state of mind, its dedication, a huge ego, and its bravery. You carry the mindset of “GO BIG, or GO HOME” and throwing big baits becomes an obsession. You have to have an ego to go along with this to counter the other anglers or the 99 percent. You have heard things like “look, daddy, he caught a fish”, “you can’t use that type of live bait”, “what are you fishing for, a whale”, “you are never going to catch something with that”. The list of crazy things people will say to you goes on, and on. You brave because you are willing to lose a bait that costs that could cost upwards of $200. The result of the state of mind, the comments, egos, and bravery create MAYHEM, SWIMBAIT MAYHEM.

So are you part of the .01 percent and has Swimbait Mayhem consumed you?

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

THE NATIONAL ANGLER (1)

Categories
Swimbait Mayhem

CHEAP SWIMBAITS – Bass Pro Shops XPS Boss Glide Swimbait

Bass Pro Shops XPS Boss Glide Swimbait

CHEAP SWIMBAITS – Bass Pro Shops XPS Boss Glide Swimbait

Cheap Swimbaits is kind of misleading because most people using big swimbaits know that they are usually expensive and you get what you pay for. There are several options for those who don’t want to spend a ton of money but still want to learn the art of big swimbaits.

The Bass Pro Shops XPS Boss Glide Swimbait is a similar replica to the River 2 Sea S-waver, which is a proven big fish swimbait. The Bass pro version looks the same and has a similar swim to the s-waver. Colors are slightly different. This swimbait doesn’t have the mesmerizing swim of the s-waver, but it still has a great glide. Check out the reviews as they are not bad on Basspro.com.

Cheap Swimbait

For the people who are new the game of big swimbaits, these are the type of baits you can start with that won’t break the bank. I’m 100% confident that this will catch fish. People who say that these types of baits don’t catch fish, probably don’t buy them because they think they are too cheap. They might also be one of the believers who think you have to spend big money on big baits to catch fish. Probably not, and I firmly believe that some of these high-end big dollar baits catch, they catch the anglers who buy them also!!

This is just one bait for starting out, what you have you found for starter baits? Comment below!

Here is the link to the YouTube video to showing how this lure swims! Click Here!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

 

Be sure to check out one of my other “Project” SWIMBAIT MAYHEM articles!

SMASH-TECH CUSTOM SWIMBAITS GIZZARD SHAD WEEDLESS SWIMBAIT – CLICK HERE!

DRT KLASH JOKER – CLICK HERE!

DRT KLASH JOKER PART 2 – CLICK HERE!

BIG BAITS SMALL REEL – WILL IT WORK? – CLICK HERE!

SWIMBAIT SPINNING ROD – CLICK HERE!

SWIMBAIT STORAGE SOLUTIONS – CLICK HERE!

CABELAS SWIMBAIT ROD – CABELAS PREDATOR MUSKY ROD – CLICK HERE!

Categories
Swimbait Mayhem

SMASH-TECH CUSTOM SWIMBAITS GIZZARD SHAD WEEDLESS SWIMBAIT

SMASH-TECH

SMASH TECH CUSTOM BAITS GIZZARD SHAD WEEDLESS SWIMBAIT

SMASH-TECH Custom Swimbaits and especially the Gizzard Shad Weedless Swimbait seemed to be a potential front-runner for the hard to get Battles Shad. The style and the look of this bait showed so much potential. However, the durability of the bait, for me, has made this a no-go.

The 7in bait must be rigged on an Owner Beast 12/0 hook, and this is not an easy thing to accomplish.  Promise you will create the famous stretch face the first time you try. Trying to get the hook line up is also difficult as well. I believe you might have to bend the hook out a little. This might allow the hook to sit properly in the bait.

The first cast, the screw lock ripped out of the bait and within the first few cast, the area where the hook comes through was completely ripped. At this point even with glue, I’m doubtful this bait will handle much fish. I emailed the company, got an immediate response with a new bait in the mail the next day. The owner also gave me some suggestions on how to rig and handle the bait.

Recommendations from the owner included, not using too stiff of a rod…, delicately casting the bait… and proper rigging. I asked for any rigging tips or videos, other than just being told to use the Beast 12/0 hook. I got no response to multiple emails to the owner and company in general. Oh well, figure it out myself. When it comes to the casting and rod recommendations, I was a little shocked. These are big heavy baits requiring heavier than normal equipment and I’m supposed to be gentle when casting the SMASH-TECH Custom Swimbait ????

Conclusion: There is a line through model that might be better and more durable due to the way it’s rigged, but this is a no-go in my book. For $15 I’ll take my money someplace else or just be patient and get more Battles Shads.

If you have any questions, please comment below and let me know what you think!

Be sure to check out the video review on YouTube; CLICK HERE!

Semper Fish!

Joe, The National Angler

Be sure to check out one of my other “Project” SWIMBAIT MAYHEM articles!

DRT KLASH JOKER – CLICK HERE!

DRT KLASH JOKER PART 2 – CLICK HERE!

BIG BAITS SMALL REEL – WILL IT WORK? – CLICK HERE!

SWIMBAIT SPINNING ROD – CLICK HERE!

SWIMBAIT STORAGE SOLUTIONS – CLICK HERE!

CABELAS SWIMBAIT ROD – CABELAS PREDATOR MUSKY ROD – CLICK HERE!