Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Rapala CEO: ‘Fishing tackle retail business in turmoil’

Time for a change?
Originally posted on Angling-international
One of the biggest manufacturers in the industry has described the fishing tackle retail business as in ‘turmoil’ and going through structural change.
Rapala VMC Corporation President and CEO,
Jussi Ristimäki, told investors that the fishing
tackle retail business is in turmoil.
In his company’s latest quarterly report to investors, Jussi Ristimäki, President and CEO of Rapala VMC Corporation, reported first quarter sales roughly in line with last year’s levels, but outlined the problems facing the retail sector.
He said that the U.S. – the group’s biggest market – had seen consumers increasingly shifting to digital channels. He added: “Several big players, including some of Rapala’s biggest customers, are in financial distress, several bankruptcies have been filed and this development has accelerated in the past few months.
“Similar uncertainties in the trade have also to some extent been witnessed in Europe.”
For the period January to March, Rapala reported net sales of €69.5 million compared to last year’s level of €69.7 million.
Ristimäki added: “With the favourable support of exchange rates, the first quarter sales were at last year’s levels and well in line with expectation in many aspects. The positive highlights of the period included good sales of ice fishing and winter sports products as well as Marttiini knives and Dynamite Baits’ products. Sales developed well in Canada, Norway and Portugal, among others.”
Shimano saw its fishing tackle sales for the first quarter of 2017 fall by nearly 10% from the previous year to 15,153 million yen, citing a decrease in sales in North America and Australia.
Growing UK retailer, Fishing Republic, posted a 32% profit before tax to £403,000 for the year ended December 31st 2016 compared to £6,000 in the previous year. Revenue was up 41% to £5,799,000 (£4,124,000).

Monday, May 29, 2017

Memorial Day

Wish you all a very safe and relaxing Memorial Day. Remember our freedom didn't come free.

Crankbaiting with BASS CLASSIC CHAMP and crankbait legend Paul Elias

Paul Elias won the 1982 BASS Classic on a crankbait and he has never looked back. Learn from the master on how he selects his tackle to make cranking easier and more effective. Southern boys if you love ledge fishing, deep water cranking is a must. Northern guys who want a big smallmouth need to be casting one. So, why not learn for the Paul Elias the true crankbait master.

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Ledge fishing tips from FLW CUP Champ Brad Knight

The spawn is over and the bass are moving to the ledges. Being there first can mean some of the most intense bass fishing of the whole year. Learn from FLW Cup Champion Brad Knight as he breaks down how he fishes ledges. Brad Knight is a master and Walmart FLW Tour pro who knows how to catch them out deep.

Monday, May 22, 2017

Brandon Palaniuk Wins 2017 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest!

Brent Ehrler 2nd and wins tundra truck for big bass
By Bryan Brasher
BASS PRESS RELEASE

Big worm and Neko rig grabs win for Brandon. (Photo: BASS)
It’s not like Brandon Palaniuk had never won a Bassmaster Elite Series event.

Coming into this week, the 29-year-old pro from Idaho had already claimed Elite Series trophies in 2012 and 2013 and came close to raising that win total with three other second-place finishes.

But for an intense competitor known as the “prodigy,” the four-year victory drought was an itch he desperately needed to scratch — and he did it during this week’s Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Palaniuk caught 24 pounds, 7 ounces of bass during Wednesday’s opening round and followed with 23-2 and 24-7 the next two rounds. Then he caught he caught 21-12 on Championship Sunday to push his four-day total to 93-12 and hold off a late charge by California pro Brent Ehrler.

Ehrler, who led the first two days, finished second with 91-12.

“I never found a school in practice where I could just go and pound on them and catch multiple fish in one spot,” said Palaniuk, who earned a $100,000 first-place prize and an automatic berth into the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented DICK’S Sporting Goods. “It wasn’t until the tournament started to roll around that more and more fish started to transition out and school up on spots.

“I was just far enough ahead of the fish.”

It was a sign of things to come for Palaniuk when he started Wednesday’s opening round with his biggest fish of the tournament — a largemouth that weighed 8-4. Palaniuk caught the bass in deeper water than what was being fished by most of the field.

Bryan Schmitt Wins 2017 Walmart FLW Mississippi River with 61-6lbs!

Swim jig seals win.
by Rob Newell 
FLW PRESS RELEASE 

No one really knew what to expect when the FLW Tour pulled into to La Crosse, Wisconsin. Plenty of tournament history exists on Pools 7, 8 and 9 of the Mighty Mississippi, but most of it is after June when the spawn is an afterthought and summertime fishing is in full play.
Many Tour pros had never even been to this part of the Mississippi before, especially in May. Add to that high water conditions, uncertainty about the river’s grass habitat and - of course - the arrival of a nasty cold front during competition, and the Mississippi River essentially became a brand-new venue for most of the field.
Slow & steady swim jig gets big win! (Photo FLW)
When it was all over, though, Deale, Md. pro and Potomac River wizard Bryan Schmitt channeled his river experience into an impressive 61-pound, 6-ounce four-day total to win the FLW Tour presented by Evinrude on the Mississippi River. Schmitt beat back a challenge from talented Tour rookie Josh Weaver, who finished second with 58-11, and three-time Angler of the Year Andy Morgan, to take his first FLW tour victory, $125,400, and a huge amount of momentum going into next month’s season finale on Schmitt’s home water.
 “To win feels really good,” Schmitt says. “I’ve wanted this for a long time. I’m a big believer in momentum and I’m fishing really well right now, so I’m ready to get to the next event on my home waters on the Potomac and see what happens.”

Sunday, May 21, 2017

2017 Walmart FLW Mississippi River Day 2: Bryan Schmitt Leads with 46-12lbs!

Third leader in three days!
by Rob Newell 
FLW PRESS RELEASE

Pools 7, 8 and 9 on the Mississippi River have not disappointed this week during the FLW Tour presented by Evinrude on the Mississippi River, and following a day three that saw cold, steady rainfall, two of the best river wizards on Tour are locked in battle atop the leaderboard.
Schmitt using hometown skills on the Mississippi. (Photo: FLW)
Bryan Schmitt of Deale, Md., snatched the tournament lead away from Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn., on Friday by bringing in five bass weighing 15 pounds, 12 ounces, for a three-day total of 46-12. Schmitt will have a scant 12-ounce lead over Morgan going into the final day.
In what has been an impressive trading of river wits on the Mighty Mississippi, Schmitt and Morgan have both served up some of their best river-reading skills this week. What makes this duo’s duel so interesting is that Schmitt is using  river knowledge garnered from the Potomac River, while Morgan is battling with some good old-fashioned Tennessee River skills.

Saturday, May 20, 2017

2017 Walmart FLW Mississippi River Day 2: Andy Morgan Leads with 31-4lbs!

Gustafson 102th, Chris Johnston 104th, Cory Johnston 105th,  and Richardson 141st.
by Rob Newell 
FLW PRESS RELEASE

Morgan takes lead as river keeps rolling. (Photo: FLW)
A river is a river.
That’s the simple philosophy Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn. used to capture the lead on day two of the FLW Tour presented by Evinrude on the Mississippi River.
Morgan cut his angling teeth fishing the “pools” along the Tennessee River – pools with names like Chickamauga, Nickajack and Guntersville. Though he’s never fished this part of the Mississippi River, in his mind pools 7, 8 and 9 are not much different than the “pools” he fishes back home in Tennessee.
Friday he relied on his river-reading skills to sack up 14 pounds, 9 ounces of bass, giving him a two-day total of 31 pounds, 4 ounces.

“A river is a river,” Morgan says. “They rise. They fall. They have a main channel. They have backwaters. These pools up here are somewhat like little tiny versions of the lakes on the Tennessee River.”
TOP 1O BELOW

Friday, May 19, 2017

2017 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Day 3: Brandon Palaniuk Advances into Lead!

Waiting game begins as Top 12 rest on Saturday. 

BASS PRESS RELEASE
Brent Ehrler hasn’t won a tournament since joining the Bassmaster Elite Series in 2015.
Brandon got on a role and climbed it into the lead. (Photo: BASS)
But after three rounds of the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, both anglers are in good position to end those droughts.

Palaniuk, a seven-year Elite Series veteran from Idaho, caught 24 pounds, 7 ounces during Friday’s semifinals to vault himself from second place into the lead with 72-0. Ehrler, the California pro who led the tournament the first two days, caught 24-3 Friday and slipped into second place, just 2 ounces behind Palaniuk with 71-14.

Palaniuk’s lead might be much bigger if it hadn’t been for several giant fish he lost at the boat.

“It was not a very good day of execution,” he said. “I’ve lost fish every day. But today was just the day that I got them all the way to the boat, and they broke off or came off for whatever reason.”

One fish, in particular, haunted Palaniuk the most.


2017 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Day 2: Ehrler Leads Only by 2 Ounces!

Tight race on Rayburn
BASS PRESS RELEASE

After two days, the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has turned into an all-out slugfest with some of the biggest names in professional bass fishing at the top of the leaderboard.

The Top 10 anglers have all averaged more than 20 pounds apiece the first two days on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, and the top two pros have averaged better than 23.

Jerkbait pattern key to Ehrler's lead.  (Photo: BASS)
California pro Brent Ehrler holds the top spot for the second day in a row with a two-day mark of 47-11. He caught 22-5 Thursday in the 90-degree Texas heat to maintain a slim lead over Idaho pro Brandon Palaniuk, who is just 2 ounces back with 47-9 after catching 23-2 Thursday.
Ehrler also still holds the lead for Toyota Big Bass of the week with a 9-1 he caught Wednesday. The winner of that award will receive a Toyota Tundra pickup valued at $50,000.

“I didn’t really find any new stuff today,” Ehrler said. “I checked one spot where I thought I could catch a good one, and I caught about a 4 1/2-pounder later in the day. But I still didn’t get that real clear feeling for what I’m going to do the rest of the week.”


2017 Walmart FLW Mississippi River Day 1: Matthew Stefan Leads with 18 Pounds!

Chris Johnston 32nd, Cory Johnston 92th, Gustafson 100th and Richardson 159th
by Rob Newell 
FLW PRESS RELEASE

Muddy, rising water has been the bane of the FLW Tour recently. After a rising-water event at Lake Cumberland, then a mega rising-water event at Beaver Lake, the pros once again find themselves in a familiar predicament at the FLW Tour presented by Evinrude on the Mississippi.
Local Stefan grabs lead on rising river. (Photo: FLW)
After a warm, sunny practice where bass were moving up by the droves to spawn, a cold front dumped plenty of rain in the river basin Wednesday. For FLW Tour pros, it was like déjà vu all over again. And with many Tour pros having very little prior experience on the Mighty Mississippi, things can get even more confusing.
But even just a little experience on the river goes a long way, as day one tournament leader Matthew Stefan of Junction City, Wis., demonstrated Thursday.
Stefan took the early lead with five smallmouths weighing 18 pounds even.
“I am by no means a river stud over here on these pools, but I do fish here about five days a year,” says Stefan, who lives about two hours away from La Crosse. “I’ve never fished here in May, but on this place, just knowing how to get around in these backwaters and how to gauge barge traffic for locking is a big help. So, comparatively speaking, I probably do have a little bit of an advantage on guys who have never seen this place before this week.”
Stefan sampled pools 8 and 9 for his catch Thursday. He weighed in all smallmouths, a rarity for day one limits.
TOP 10 BELOW

Thursday, May 18, 2017

2017 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Day 1: Ehrler Take Early Lead

Fishing great on Day 1
BASS PRESS RELEASE

Brent looking for his 2nd TTBC win!
(Photo: BASS)
Brent Ehrler used a strange term to describe the way he fished Sam Rayburn Reservoir during Wednesday’s first round of the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
 
“The fish are confused,” he said. “And you have to fish confused.”
 
The tactic worked, as the California pro caught 25 pounds, 6 ounces of bass to take the lead in an event that features a $100,000 first-place prize and an automatic berth into the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.
 
His five-bass catch was anchored by a 9-1 largemouth that gave him the lead in the race for Toyota Big Bass of the week. The angler who claims that title will take home a Toyota Tundra pickup truck valued at $50,000. Total payout is $1 million.
 

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Starts Today on San Rayburn

Big bass action coming!
By Luigi De Rose

2016 Champ Matt Herren ready to win a second on Rayburn!
(Photo BASS)
The merger of BASS and Toyota Texas Bass Classic is aimed to create one of the most exciting tournaments of 2017. Anglers will have their catch measured and weighted on the spot and then quickly released throughout each day of the event. Pro anglers will be allowed to bring only 1 bass over 21 inches to share with the crowd. Stay tuned to IBASSIN.com as we will have all the action right here.

Monday, May 15, 2017

The EverGreen / Z-Man Jackhammer Chatterbait Unboxing!


The EverGreen JACKHAMMER Chatterbait lures was IBASSIN.com's #1 searched post in 2016 and for good reason. A cloud of interque grew as BASS Elite angler Brett Hite scored numerous Top 10 in Elite tournaments with a secret Japanese lure. The mystery grew deeper as it was declared illegal to sell in North America due to Z Man's patent. Everyone wants what they cannot have so as demand intensified smarter heads prevailed and the two companies joined forces. As of 2017, Z Man and EverGreen USA have developed the most refined chatterbait ever.

Videos
https://www.zmanfishing.com/cms/chatter/introducing-chatterbait-jack-hammer/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx-Ixg8TLEs

Z-Man Site
https://www.zmanfishing.com/cms/chatter/introducing-chatterbait-jack-hammer/

Let's review its many quality features.
The patented coffin style blade is thin, tough and perfectly cut from stainless steel.
Available in brilliant silver and green pumpkin
which is Brett's most favourite blade colour. 
Just look at that hook! A wide, heavy wire Gamakatsu hook
with 2 wire prong trailer keepers is amazing. The original chatterbaits
had smaller, cheaper hooks. This thing is a beast. The trailer is a huge part
of the chatterbait's success. Fighting to keep it on is a drag.
This should easily take care of that problem.
A sleek fish shaped head is very compact. It will slip through cover with ease.
I really love that the weight of the bait is labelled on the head of each bait.
Always hated trying to determine which size I was fishing.  The bottom of the head
is white with a splash of red for dark and light coloured skirted jigs.
MORE BELOW

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Fishing and Hunting Big Engine for the Economy!

The next time someone asks you, "what do anglers and hunters to help?" feed them some of these facts. The fine people of Southwick Associates generated these finding through an extensive survey and some good research. Here's the key points:

Key findings of the report include: 
  • Outdoor recreation is a powerful economic sector. At $887 billion spent annually, it is larger than education ($278 billion), gas and fuels ($304 billion), household utilities ($313 billion) motor vehicles and parts ($465 billion) and pharmaceuticals ($466 billion).
  • Supporting 7.6 million jobs, outdoor recreation creates more jobs than real estate, rentals and leasing (2.1 million) and education (3.5 million) combined. It also supports more jobs than the food and beverage industry (4.7 million), finance and insurance (6 million), construction (6.4 million) and computer technology (6.7 million).
  • Outdoor recreation generates $65.3 billion in federal tax revenue a year and $59.2 billion in state and local tax revenues.
  • More American jobs depend on recreational motorcycling and off-roading (867,000) than lawyers in the United States (779,000).
  • Nearly 331 million people visit U.S. national parks each year-that's nearly one visit for every American.
Beyond the numbers, the report touches on the health and societal benefits of outdoor recreation including evidence that suggests that investments in outdoor recreation and programming could significantly reduce crime rates, improve educational outcomes for many children and actually lower long-term individual and public health care costs by reducing stress and obesity rates.
 
"The benefits of outdoor recreation far exceed mere numbers, though the numbers are impressive," says Rob Southwick, president of Southwick Associates. "From helping people reduce stress, exercise more and overall improve their health, the tangible benefits of providing an abundant of outdoor activities go far beyond dollars and cents."

Monday, May 8, 2017

Ledge Fishing! Brad Knight with the new Strike King Bull Worm

The Bull Worm from Strike King is a great bait for pulling over ledges. Rig it Texas or on a jighead it works either way. FLW CUP Champ, Brad Knight explains why you need to buy some packs of these worms.

Thursday, May 4, 2017

Advanced Jerkbait Fishing with Megabass Pro Nick Cousvis!


Jerkbait fishing is one of the best lures ever invented. Learning to fish one is more difficult than you think. Learn from expert angler and Megabass pro Nick Cousvis. He knows his stuff. Nick explains how to adjust the leader length to get greater depth, more action and how to target giant smallmouth bass. Jerkbaits work well on both smallmouth and largemouth. You simply have to know how to fish them.

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Dustin Connell Wins 2017 BASS Elite Ross Barnett Event with 64-13lbs!

Big storm didn't phase rookie Connell
BASS PRESS RELEASE

Rookie Connell outlasts Van Dams
(Photo: BASS)
Severe storms may have caused the postponement of the final round of fishing Sunday, but nothing could stop Bassmaster Elite Series rookie Dustin Connell of Clanton, Ala., from claiming victory in the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Elite at Ross Barnett.
Connell caught a five-bass limit weighing 12 pounds, 15 ounces today, pushing his four-day total to 64-13 and holding off a late-charging veteran Kevin VanDam, who ended with 62-10.
Hoisting the coveted first-place trophy overhead — and pocketing the $100,000 that goes with it — has been Connell's dream since childhood.

Monday, May 1, 2017

Johnny McCombs Wins 2017 Walmart FLW Tour Beaver Lake with 47-01lbs!

Life tests us in many ways – some tests being more significant than others.
Bass fishing, for instance, is a test of concentration, strategy and an understanding of Mother Nature’s ways.
Professional tournament fishing in the kind of extreme conditions we saw this week at the FLW Tour presented by General Tire at Beaver Lake, which included a lake-level rise of more than 12 feet, more than 9 inches of rain on Saturday alone, flash floods and thunderstorms, might be the toughest kind of bass fishing test.
Johnny ran topwater over flooded shorelines to win.
(Photo: FLW)
For Johnny McCombs, the result at Beaver Lake was a passing score and a $100,000 paycheck. McCombs won the tournament with a four-day catch of 47 pounds, 1 ounce.
Still, the challenges of this week were minor compared to the ways that life has tested McCombs off the water. His success is significant not because of how he caught his fish, but because of what he’s managed to overcome to have this opportunity.