Category: Stats

2017 Stats – Lures Part I

Posted on by Troy Jackson

Do you know how many bass lures I’ve amassed over the last 35 years or so?

Yeah, me neither. Probably don’t want to know.

Any guess on how many lures I used in 2017 to fool over 400 bass?

Well, stay tuned over the next two days, because I’m going to tell you.

We’ll start from the bottom of the list (fewest bass caught) and move up to the heavy hitters from there.


Alabama Rig


Alabama Rig Top Bass (details below)

Alabama Rig
Yumbrella 3-wire rig (Tennessee Shad with white swimbaits) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 13.5” 1-1 September 9 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: This was a Resolution and it was fulfilled on 9/9 complete with a video and then I put the thing back in the tacklebox.


Ned Rig

Grubs
Arkie DeD Stand-up Jig head (green pumpkin) with Senko tail (electric shad) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 11” March 26 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: Billed as a “Ned Rig”, this is a reputed cold water killer according to glossy magazines. It came through for me on 3/26 by enticing a bass that followed my jig & pig to the shore before losing interest and disappearing back into the depths. A cast beyond where the bass disappeared was enough to get a bite as the tidbit slowly drifted past.


Rapala Shadow Rap

Jerkbaits
Rapala Shadow Rap (blueback herring) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 10.5” October 8 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: This lure is supposed to be quite effective in cold water conditions for those who know what they are doing and can exercise the patience needed for a retrieve often requiring lengthy pauses. Nope and nope for this angler but I was able to fool a lone bass on 10/8 with a more rapid retrieve before conditions got too chilly and slowed down the fish.


Chatterbait


Chatterbait Top Bass

Chatterbaits
Chatterbait (bluegill) with swimbait trailer (watermelon) – 2 bass
Top Bass: 14” 1-7 October 8 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: I know a good collection of anglers swear by these baits but I’ve rarely given them much of a shot as I’m usually dialed in on something else (see Part II of this wrap-up). Fooled one bass in April and one in October but didn’t really need this weapon anytime in between.


Underspin


Underspin Top Bass

Underspins
Fish Head Underspin (white) with 4” Keitech Swing Impact (electric shad) – 2 bass
Top Bass: 15” 1-9 May 13 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: Much like the chatterbait, I’ve seen some eye opening catches on these types of lures but never given much more than a few casts myself, thus some pretty meager results.


Stickbait – Zara Spook


Stickbait Top Bass

Stickbaits
Zara Spook (black shore minnow) – 3 bass
Top Bass: 16.5” 1-11 May 30 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: Me and The Spook go back to the mid-80s and I could write a whole chapter in a fishing book about this bait and its impact. Not only in terms of numbers back in the day but also what it meant to me and my brother, Brent, when we were bitten by the bass fishing bug. All three of these bass came on May 30 while searching for that big bite that The Spook can produce but the best it could muster was a 1-11. Good to reconnect with an old friend, however, still remember how to “walk the dog.”


Swim Jig


Swim Jig Top Bass

Swim Jigs
Swim Jig (sexy shad) with hammertail trailer – 4 bass
Top Bass: 14” 1-9 October 8 Knox County, IL public strip mine
Comments: Not sure on the model but this may be a bait fashioned by Illinois smallmouth catcher, Jonn Graham. At any rate, this was another Resolution and it came through with flying colors on 10/8 when the bite on anything else completely shut down at mid-morning.


Creature Bait – Zoom Baby Brush Hog


Creature Bait Top Bass

Creature Baits
Zoom Baby Brush Hog (green pumpkin) – 5 bass
Top Bass: 15” 1-5 July 30 Little John Conservation Club
Comments: Similar to the jig & pig it’s fun to feel that telltale tap and lay down the hammer on ‘em when fishing this bait. Bad thing is, it’s a slower type presentation and that’s not really in my wheelhouse. If I can get away with fishing fast that is what I do so the brush hog only got a brief workout but fun to revisit an old friend that has been a solid producer over the years.

That wraps up Part I with a look at the lures that fooled a handful of scattered fish or had a particular day where they pinch hit and got bit. Part II features the baits that got a heavier workout while reeling in a darn good bunch of bass both in terms of quantity and quality. Stop by tomorrow for some pretty serious “confidence baits.” Talk to you later. Troy

2017 Stats – Intro

Posted on by Troy Jackson

For a number of years I submitted a series of fishing wrap-up posts over the winter. These posts served multiple purposes. They recapped the previous year, fueled the fire for the new one, gave me a stat fix and fed my writing habit.

Well, here we go again as I’m bringing back a look back. This time around, the series appears a little later than previous years and even comes after adding some 2018 bass to the log. It doesn’t look like I’ll be back on the water for a while though, so instead of fishing reports you get a recap. You see, I just got around to the 2017 data entry from my fishing log this week, and as a result, I’m kind of fired up to share the numbers, pics and some thoughts. And once I get a blog idea in my head, well, it usually finds its way onto the web.


2017  Bass #2 (first is pictured a little below) – March 26 Little John Conservation Club 15.5″ 1-12 Jig & Pig

Part I of the series will take a general look at the numbers, while subsequent posts will delve into lures, locations, partners and a countdown.

Let the stats, pics and two cents begin.

2017 Bass #59 – May 13 Knox County, IL public strip mine 17.5″ 3-5 Senko weighted wacky rig

Grand Totals (bass fishing only)
135.50 hours fishing
418 bass
3.08 bass/hour
Comments: I knew I caught a load of bass this year but got lazy on transferring the log data into the database and spreadsheets so I really had no idea where I was at until running the totals this week. It turns out that I established a new yearly personal best with the 416 bass, easily outdistancing my 2013 mark of 345 bass. Kind of wish I had paid closer attention as the year unfolded, could have had some exciting blog countdown going. It is worth noting, however, that the 345 bass in 2013 came in only 91.25 hours of bass fishing for a better rate of 3.78 bass/hour.


2017 Bass #1 is also 2017 Top Bass, are you kidding me? March 4 Little John Conservation Club 22.5″ 6-2 Jig & Pig

First Bass/Last Bass
March 4 – Little John Conservation Club 22.5” 6-2 Jig & Pig
December 2 – Little John Conservation Club 17” 2-4 Rapala Shad Rap
Comments: Gotta say that the 6-pound first bass of the year was pretty nuts. The only fish I caught that day and wound up being the largest catch of the year as none of the 417 to follow could measure up. A few five-pounders came close with the best being 5-11 but was technically all downhill after that first catch. The December bookend did turn out to be a decent catch as well at 2-4 and was the only fish landed on the finale. A pair of one fish days to start and finish the season but when they add up to eight and a half pounds I’m fine with the results. Not sure if a 273 day season is a record but has to be awful close if not.


2017 Bass #416 – December 2 Little John Conservation Club 17″ 2-4 Rapala Shad Rap

Top 5 Weight
26-13 (6-2,5-11,5-9,5-0,4-7)
Comments: The 2017 total establishes a new personal Top 5 best going back to the kickoff of the project in 2014 and likely my all-time mark though I have yet to do the research to make it official. My previous Top 5 best was 22-12 in 2015 so got a pretty substantial boost, just over four pounds. Included in my creel was my first ever six-pounder although not a personal best as I do have one over seven in the ledger.

2017 Bass #182 – July 23 a cool 50th birthday gift from Little John Conservation Club 19″ 3-8 Buzzbait 

Based on these numbers, I’d have to say that 2017 was my best year ever when it comes to bass fishing. Pretty cool to coincide with the introduction of my own website back on May 1. I did hit it a little harder in an effort to provide plenty of fishing content but even so, I must say that the bass sure helped me out and even made me feel kind of smart every now and then.

Plenty more stats where these came from over the next week or so to fill my self-imposed blogging quota and keep me outdoor occupied until I get another shot to actually get outdoors. Talk to your later. Troy