Friday Flashback – April 1988

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Today’s flashback goes back 30 years and features a bass reeled in by Dad from one of our favorite haunts, Lake Storey, located just north of Galesburg, IL. This one tipped the scales at 4-6 and came on a deep diving crankbait, says so right there on the back of the pic in my photo album.

Details from back of photo and etched in my mind

Although I really didn’t need to peek for those details as I knew all of that already. I was there on the other side of the camera that day and with that piscatorial photographic memory thing I’m afflicted with, well, a good catch kind of gets embedded upstairs.

As does a good “fish story”, and this one certainly qualifies.

We’ll start with Dad’s new bass boat that he purchased in 1987. This bass would have represented the boat record at that time as Dad devoted a fair amount of those early days to chasing some catfish on the Mississippi. Don’t imagine that it took much arm twisting from one of his boys to ditch the muddy water for the green tinted Lake Storey and it paid off quite well for him.

And speaking of Lake Storey, this was also likely the family lake record bass at the time and still stands in the Top 5 all these years later.  By the way, I also remember exactly where he caught it as I’m sure he does too.  But a good fish story has to maintain a little mystery, so I’m not telling.

These Mann’s 20+ models, that still reside in my tackle, reached unheard of depths for crankbaits when they hit the market back in the 80s.

The lure is also an interesting piece of the tale as it was a revolution in bass fishing at the time. You see, the Mann’s 20+ series deep diving crankbaits were pushing crankbaits to a whole new depth range and potentially putting a pair of trebles in front of bass who’d never seen such a thing.

Which brings us to the catch, which could only see out of one eye. If you take a look at the close up of the original photo below it is apparent that Dad’s catch indeed was half blind. Now, since I was on the photographing side of this story, I gave Dad a hard time for fooling this poor fish who obviously had some health concerns and was at a disadvantage when it came to discerning a real meal from a fake one. Of course, as the guy who nabbed the bass, Dad countered with “do you know how much skill it takes to catch a fish who can only see out of one eye?” Certainly a matter of perspective, perhaps coupled with a bit of envy.

“The One-Eyed Bass” – a classic fish story still told 30 years later

Somehow this trip eluded the log so I have no idea what else was caught or if the photographer even landed a bass. What is also fun to laugh about all these years later is that I don’t recall either of us ever catching another bass on one of those Mann’s 20+ crankbaits. Thus not only “one-eyed” but one of a kind. Talk to you later. Troy

Top 10 Trip Tunes 3/31 – Part II

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Songs will have to suffice for this week’s Top 5 update but if the weather holds out…

5. Too Late For Love – Def Leppard (1983) – The Pyromania album was certainly an integral part of my high school soundtrack with heavy radio rotation and frequent flying MTV videos for “Photograph” and “Rock of Ages.” But for my money, the best of this bunch is this cut. And while I also dug the next Def Leppard release, Hysteria, some of it sounds like Shania Twain in hindsight thanks to Mutt Lange’s commercial touch.

4. Don’t Stand So Close To Me – The Police (1980)  – From haunting to frustrated to peppy, more than a bit taboo and rife with the good, old repetitive Police hook kicking in at high energy and high volume over that distinctive drumming. Don’t get much better than that.

3. Lido Shuffle – Boz Scaggs (1977) – One of those songs that finds me saying, “Man, that was my favorite song…” Back in fifth grade in this case. Didn’t understand it and still not entirely sure, but just sounded good.

2. Reelin’ In The Years – Steely Dan (1973)  – If there is such a thing as a bad Steely Dan song, I have yet to discover it. Impossible to pick a favorite but this one is definitely in the mix. Somehow or another this one has also become my go to track when periodically testing the conference room sound and video at work. The 1973 Midnight Special appearance that I pull up for the test features an intro by someone named Bill Cosby. Wonder whatever happened to that guy?

1. Fool In The Rain – Led Zeppelin (1979) – So much to like in the Zeppelin catalog for so many different reasons. This one is just plain fun while following a fellow who’s been had but can’t seem to admit it. Or does he as “a fool waiting on the wrong block”?

There you have it, the first Top 10 tunes of 2018.

And as a follow up to yesterday’s trivia tidbit concerning the phrase “perpetual motion” in song lyrics, here is my trifecta.

“You’ve really slipped me a potion, I can’t get off of the floor, all this perpetual motion, you gotta give me some more…” – You Make Me Feel Like Dancing, Leo Sayer

“You can ponder perpetual motion, fix your mind on a crystal day…” – Up Around the Bend, Credence Clearwater Revival

“Through 86 years of perpetual motion, if he likes you he’ll smile and he’ll say, Jimmy some of it’s magic, some of it’s tragic but I had a good life all the way.” He Went to Paris, Jimmy Buffett

Talk to you later. Troy

Top 10 Trip Tunes 3/31 – Part I

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Got my baseball fix in earlier this week with a fishing related project so now it’s time to work in some favorite jams. If you stopped by last year perhaps you are familiar with my Top 10 Tunes series. If not, the concept is to present the Top 10 tunes heard while surfing the radio dial on a trip to my longtime stomping grounds. With roughly an hour drive each way, the two-hour round trip provides ample time to cross paths with some blasts from the past (and the occasional, rare “new” tune that has caught my ear).

I had fun with this tangent in 2017, so here we go again.  Back by popular demand, or not. Apologies in advance for a couple of these but honesty is the best policy.

10. Bad Blood – Neil Sedaka (1975) – My teenage daughter, Helena, uses the word “cringey” fairly frequently and it could certainly describe this #1 cut from Sedaka’s mid-70s resurgence. “Cringey” signifies something that is awkward or makes you feel a bit uncomfortable, literally cringing. Despite, or maybe because of, that cringey feeling, I feel I must include this tune. Just a weird fit for the 60s pop star, made even stranger via an appearance on the classic Midnight Special television program (click here if you dare). The performance features “Bad Blood” along with bad hair, bad attire and bad dance moves. Cringey indeed, but in a way that has always made me smile and resist the urge to change the radio dial.

9. Is She Really Going Out with Him – Joe Jackson (1979) – I’ve got a thing for catchy first lines in songs and this one has always been an attention getter. “Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street.” Pretty sure we’ve all been there, not the gorilla, of course, but the person scratching his head. And when it comes to rock stars and their mates, I guess charisma rules. As Jackson also adds, “They say that looks don’t count for much, if so, there goes your proof.”

8. You Make Me Feel Like Dancing – Leo Sayer (1976) – For my money, a good tune should make you feel like something; dancing, singing, smiling, crying or well, you know. This one fits the bill and is just as fun and catchy as when I was a nine year old kid. The falsetto is a winner and I always dig hearing the version with a third verse that uses the term “perpetual motion” in the lyrics. Quick, name two other songs with that phrase in the lyrics (answer in tomorrow’s post).

7. With A Little Luck – Wings (1978) – I’m always on the lookout for unique words in song lyrics and this one has long been on my list with “inclement.” A timeless cut with yet another Sir Paul McCartney hook. And definitely a timely term as my 2018 fishing has certainly been met with some “inclement weather” of which it seems “there is no end.”

6. Flirtin’ With Disaster – Molly Hatchet (1979) – Killer Southern Rock jam and I still can’t quite get all the lyrics right after singing it with occasional bouts of gibberish thrown in all of these years. And how about those Frank Frazetta album covers on the early releases? Digital downloads from app stores and websites will never equal the days of flipping through albums at the old local haunts like Co-Op, Musicland, Lindstrom’s or The Platter.

Okay, kind of all over the place but that’s yet another aspect of how cool the music was for this kid of the 70s. More classics headed your way tomorrow with the Top 5 as I’m still looking for another Top 5 fish update. Talk to you later. Troy

Friday Flashback – 4/11/2003

Posted on by Troy Jackson

The Friday Flashback series plows ahead into a new month with another visit to an old fishing hole. Below is the original fishing report sent out to family and friends back on April 11, 2003, the same evening that I fooled the fish pictured above.

“Finally, some decent weather coinciding with some free time. After working first shift and following dinner, I had a couple hours before darkness settled in so I couldn’t pass up a trip to Emstrom’s Pond to try and fool a few bass. The recent warming trend gave me high hopes and I wasn’t disappointed. An hour and a half produced six bass including a new record for 2003. A 4-10 engulfed my Rapala Rattlin’ Rap (brown craw) as I worked it across a shallow flat. This area had seen a lot of baitfish, shiner or bluegill movement about a half hour prior to catching this bass. In fact, there had been a very large swirl and a scattering of small fish in its wake as I worked this area earlier. A couple cranks into my retrieve during my second pass in this area and a fish slammed my lure. After a pair of jumps at boatside, the bass was securely in my grasp with both treble hooks embedded firmly in its lower jaw. It was the last bite I had as darkness rolled in about ten minutes later and I headed for home.”

The Lure – still got it and dig the battle scars although I haven’t thrown it for years as lipless crankbait allegiance has turned to the Red Eye Shad.

The original log entry from this outing

Fifteen years later and decent weather and free time have been pretty tough to come by in 2018. Still looking for a bass of this quality as well as I currently sit at 2-6 for my Top Bass this year among the ten bass in the log from a pair of outings and just under eight hours on the water.

Sooner or later, I’m bound to get some good weather, some free time and some big bass. Not too much to ask, right? Maybe next week. Stay tuned and talk to you later. Troy

Le Grande Orange

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Sure was ready for Opening Day of Major League Baseball last Thursday as it’s been a long off-season without a World Series title to bask in for the first time since 2016. Still feels good to mention World Series as it pertains to the Cubs.

   

Got to dig through the old baseball card collection for these, left to right 1975, 1976 Traded and 1977 Topps

However, during the afternoon of Opening Day my boss informed of the passing of an old ballplayer, Rusty Staub, at age 73. And for this soon to be 51 year old baseball fan, Staub spanned a great deal of my “Golden Age” of baseball. I suppose every fan has such an era and I would have to say mine spans from probably about 1973 when I seem to recall Dad bringing me home my first Topps baseball cards until roughly 1986 when I got “too old” to collect them anymore. Now, I still dig baseball but that time period just seems a bit more special.

And Staub graced the field during nearly that entire time frame (as well as before) with a 23 year career spanning 1963 to 1985. In 1969 he joined the expansion Montreal Expos franchise where he was a fan favorite and was bestowed with the nickname “Le Grande Orange” as he indeed was a big redhead.

       

More from the collection, left to right 1971, 1974 and 1976 (tough to decide 74’s pose or 76’s hair as my favorite Staub card)

So, as a baseball fan and a fisherman I felt it befitting to pay my own tribute to a fellow who was larger than life to this kid from the 70s. As such I set out on my March 31 fishing trip with a starting lineup of lures dedicated to red or orange color schemes. The mission was to fool a bass in honor of Daniel “Rusty” Staub (never actually knew his real name until his passing despite it being right there on the back of all of these baseball cards).

The “Le Grande Orange” lineup

I began casting with my themed arsenal at around 2:15pm running through each and every one in addition to a rusty colored Chatterbait without a single bite for nearly an hour. But at 3:10pm a cast near a downed tree with an old Rapala Fat Rap (crawdad color) provided me with my first hit and busted up the shutout. This particular lure could qualify as an antique as it was purchased in the late 80s and last caught a bass in 1999 according to my logs. So kind of cool in that respect as well that an old-timer came through pinch-hitting in the clutch on a day with less than ideal cold front conditions.

The “Le Grande Orange” catch

Mission accomplished and I resumed my normal habits and color schemes which weren’t really much more productive than the orange/red arsenal. However, I found it to be an interesting project although it arose from unfortunate circumstance.

Along the way it was also interesting to revisit some internet video of Staub as well as getting my stat fix in reviewing his career. One particular stat stuck out, for when my boss informed that Staub had passed away I stated, “Man, he was quite a hitter, had around 2,700 hits or so.” Ballpark guess but turns out I may have shorted him a few if you want to get technical as it was 2,716.

Just another reinforcement of the imprint that baseball left in my childhood and continues to this day. Kind of like fishing. And just as fishing takes on all shapes and sizes so does baseball. Staub epitomized that aspect as his career progressed, he wasn’t fast, not particularly graceful, no flash, just could flat out hit. On top of that, he seemed like a genuinely good man in reading of his accomplishments and hearing friends and teammates share their memories. Why, I almost got to liking Keith Hernandez as he spoke fondly of his friend, Rusty Staub. That says a lot about the man. Talk to you later. Troy

Strip Mine Report 3/31

Posted on by Troy Jackson

The original shot at a fishing report actually began the previous day on Good Friday, March 30. I had the day off, my boys, Jayce and Zac, wanted to go fishing and the weather was tolerable. Zac’s GoPro clip below shows an incident about 30 minutes after our arrival that put a damper on the outing and sent us packing as we hadn’t packed a change of footwear. Hadn’t really anticipated anyone taking a bit of a dip. You think I would know better by now.

 

So, on the heels of that abbreviated outing featuring about a dozen casts between me and my boy, Jayce, with no bites I was a little desperate to claim a March bass. Earlier this year, with Mother Nature’s assistance I had somehow been able to fool a handful of bonus February bass. Therefore, I wasn’t about to let March slip by no matter how surly Mother Nature had gotten in the meantime. Here’s how it went down.


3:10pm Mission accomplished with a March bass (more on the lure choice later this week)

Stats
Date: March 31, 2018
Location: Little John Conservation Club (2 lakes)
Time: 2:10pm-5:20pm
Weather: Partly cloudy to overcast/windy to very windy
Air Temp: 51-43F
Totals: 3 bass
Lures:
Rapala Shad Rap (blue) – 1 bass
Strike King Red Eye Shad (sexy shad) – 1 bass
Rapala Fat Rap (crawdad) – 1 bass
Top Bass: none 12” or better
Top 5 Weight: not applicable

Notes and Nonsense

Conditions – As if it wasn’t cold enough at barely 50 degrees, a cold front was scheduled to move in mid-afternoon right in the heart of my fishing time. Go figure but you get what you get and I was on a quest. Actually, a few quests (more on the others later this week). Anyhow, when the front came roaring in just over an hour into my trip, the already windy day got rather outrageous. Radio reports placed gusts at 35-40 mph and I would say that was right on the money.


3:33pm As close as I’d get to a “keeper” at 11.5″ on Shad Rap

Approach – Two bass on my first stop before the winds kicked into full gear came off a couple reliable spots but many more let me down. As such I elected to move to lake number two and fish some stretches of bank that were just getting pounded by wind and wave. Kind of interesting while rowing around in an eight foot johnboat. With the windchill dipping to a reported 36F I skipped using the anchor as half my fingers were already numb and resorted instead to letting the wind simply push me into the bank. I worked over several areas running some lures parallel to the fairly sharp drops and points but only scored one short bass while running a Red Eye Shad off the edge of a shallow hump. Not long after the catch I finally gave up, content with my March catches although they left a bit to be desired in terms of quality.


5:10pm Third and last bass but darn happy to get it in some ugly conditions

Extras – Had a couple projects included on this fishing trip for a little something extra. One is a standard from last year’s outings while the other is something different. One lets me stray into my fondness for tunes on the radio and the other takes me on a tangent into what I still consider to be America’s favorite pastime, baseball. Right, I know that this blog is billed as “outdoor” but bear with me as it’s all part of the fun. Stay tuned…

Talk to you later. Troy

2017 Video Blooper Reel

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Happy April Fools’ Day with a batch of clips compiled from the 2017 adventures of some fishing fools. You know, you can’t haul your video devices along on your fishing trips without coming back with some goofs to show for it. Here’s a final shout out to 2017 and yes, I’ve already got a start on the 2018 version as it don’t take long for somebody to get caught on camera.

 

Oh yeah, Happy Easter also as that is truly the more important of our two holidays today but just too hard to pass up this opportunity. Latest fishing report headed your way next week along with a couple projects, one old and one new, that I threw into the mix for the outing. Talk to you later. Troy

2017 Video #1 – Bad Break

Posted on by Troy Jackson

 

You win some, you lose some.

And some that you lose sting a little more than others.

Gotta admit that this one stung for a while.

Makes it even worse that it was caught on video so I can relive it over and over again if I so choose.

I have so chosen and you know, it’s really kind of a cool strike, especially in slow motion. It gives me some extra time to analyze the incident and assess what I could have done differently to land this boatside blast from a bass in the 4 to 5 pound range. I actually got a great split second view of the fish in the last couple feet of the retrieve as it chased down and struck the bait. Kind of weird there too as that brief instant also seemed to have a slow motion feel to it. However, it did not last long before reality shifted back to full speed and the fish and my buzzbait were gone.

Slow motion version of the clip

In regards to what I could have done to land the fish, I guess one potential item would involve having my drag set a little looser thus potentially allowing the fish to run. Tough call on this one as my drag was pretty well dialed in for a typical strike whereas a strike with only a couple feet of line out is a whole different ballgame.

A second possibility would have been to disengage my reel and thumb it in free spool as the fish charged off with the bait. I’ve actually done this with success on a couple boatside muskie strikes but must admit that those were nowhere near as vicious and sudden as this bass strike thus providing an extra fraction of a second for those motor skills to instinctively kick in.

A final possible route to success would be to switch my allegiance from monofilament line to some sort of braid or super line. Not gonna happen in the near future, if ever, as I’ve been there and they just didn’t suit me. Besides, my good, old Trilene 12-pound test has come out on top versus muskies pushing 20-pounds, walleye over 10 pounds and just a few big bass. Plain and simple, I’ll put my money on my experience and low budget gear over pricey superlines any day of the week.

In the end, this one just wasn’t meant to be and while I was disappointed at the time, I eventually got over it. I can watch this video and simply appreciate the power of the freight train like strike of this fish and admit that it got the best of me on this day. My main concern in looking back on the bad break is that the bass was able to dislodge the lure, go about its business and live to make another mistake. Hopefully, just a little farther away from the boat.

One last time in super slow motion and yes, it still gets away

This concludes my 2017 Top 10 Video countdown, appreciate anyone who has taken the time to tune in. However, I do have one more video compilation up tomorrow in light of the holiday. April Fools’ Day, that is. Talk to you later. Troy

Friday Flashback – 3/30/2008

Posted on by Troy Jackson

March 30, 2008 Little John Conservation Club 18.5″ 2-13 Chatterbait (white)

Week 3 of the Friday Flashback series breaks away from Emstrom’s Pond as featured the first two postings. After losing our access to the old favorite pond in 2004, I needed to find another locale to start my fishing year. Didn’t take much thought as the focus shifted to the Knox County strip mines, both public and private.

For quite a few years now, my goal has been to post my first bass in March and going back to 2002 I’ve managed to do just that every year to present. May not sound like much of a feat but weather, responsibilities and a bunch of kids can make it a challenge. And while it would be nice to slow time down a bit in regards to that last item, we have reached the point where one of the boys is ready to tag along for a March outing (a report for another day on how we did today).

The bass featured today came from a 2008 trip to Little John Conservation Club as I achieved that whole March bass goal by about the narrowest of margins. This was my first bass of the year on the next to last day of the month and was the only one I could muster in three hours of casting.

Original log entry of the outing, not much to report but happy to get on the board

Now this picture leaves much to be desired similar to more than a few others in the photo album. I’m not sure why I did not get a better shot though as I had entered the world of do over, digital photography at this point but apparently did not check the pic before releasing my catch. It is apparent that this shot comes from the days before I began packing along a tripod to assist with the pre-selfie selfies. Instead, I used to prop my camera up on a stack of utility boxes to get the shot and that is likely what serves as the white border in this washed out photo. Still holding the fish in front of my face too, despite Julie’s advice on shooting better fishing pics.

 Chatterbait with twin tail trailer – easily the Top Lure of the day as it caught the only bass

And speaking of photographs, I believe that I have at least a moderate form of what I like to call a piscatorial photographic memory. For while this is a decent bass at 18.5” and weighed in at 2-13, it certainly does not qualify as one of those “trophy” moments on the water. Yet, I can still tell you exactly where I caught this fish, even though I won’t. I will tell you what I caught it on and that was a white Chatterbait. It just so happens to be my current Chatterbait Top Bass which likely pales in comparison to the top Chatterbait bass of many anglers. I have seen catches and heard tales that easily outclass this fish but it’s just never been my forte or go to bait. Perhaps someday I’ll leave my favorites at home and give myself some much needed practice with this lure.

Nah…Talk to you later. Troy

2017 Video #2 – Called Shot

Posted on by Troy Jackson

To coincide with today being Opening Day for the 2018 Major League Baseball season I’m going with a “called shot.” Not quite as epic as the legendary Babe Ruth prediction from the 1932 World Series but a called shot nonetheless.

And with one big difference.

There’s no dispute on my called shot as it’s all right here on video and audio. Of course, you can do some pretty creative stuff with software these days but those techniques are still above my editing level. Maybe someday, though.

In contrast, there remains some debate on The Babe’s feat. While video of the at bat indeed shows some sort of gesture it just depends on whose version of the story you buy as to whether it was truly Ruth pointing to where he would then hit a mammoth home run. Makes for one heck of a story and I’m all about those so I’ll buy it hook, line and sinker.

My called shot took place on a remote Knox County, IL strip mine with the bass falling to a Strike King KVD 2.5 Rattling Squarebill crankbait. I wound up with four bass on this lure and it was fun to have this one on video as it decided to strike right as I was describing where the bite should occur.

 

If you’ve fished long enough it is likely that you can relate to such predictions coming through in a fishy looking spot. You know, one of those can’t miss spots that experience and instinct prompt you to say, “There should be one here.” A well placed cast, a couple turns of the reel and bang, right on cue, you’ve got your bite. Happens plenty of times and those seem to be the ones that you remember. But, of course, whether human nature or just the nature of those who fish, we lose count of all of these sorts of called shots that just don’t materialize.

There’s no story on those failed predictions that are simply cast, reel in and cast again so not surprisingly they all fall by the wayside. Kind of edited out of the memory just as I edit out all of the uneventful footage from the GoPro sessions. For instance, a few of the clips in this Top 10 project are a part of six or eight minutes worth of footage that get whittled down to the 30 seconds or so where something actually happens.

But every once in a while you get some feedback right of the bat which I guess could also qualify as a sort of called shot. After all, why bother turning on the camera if you aren’t expecting to catch something. Below is a bonus “called shot” clip from earlier the same day that features a changeup in presentation from a Senko wacky rig to a crankbait that was met with some immediate results.

 

Always fun on the water and cool to have some video these days as a reminder that every once in a while you get it dialed in and make it work just like it does on television. Talk to you later. Troy