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Luke Clausen Megabass Dog-X Speed Slide Top Water
Luke Clausen talks about the Megabass Dog-X Speed Slide Top Water Bait. He says it’s an easy to walk smaller style top water bait.
Megabass USA
Daiwa to Launch Tatula Reel Sweepstakes through Fishhound.com
LOS ANGELES, Calif., May 20, 2014 – Fishhound announced today that it is teaming up with leading tackle manufacturer Daiwa Corporation to conduct an online contest in which one lucky angler will win a new Daiwa Tatula baitcasting reel. The contest will run until June 15 and anyone with a Facebook page can enter by visiting the contest page (http://woobox.com/j5ip3c), Daiwa’s Facebook page, or the Fishhound.com website.
“This contest is a great way to familiarize Fishhound’s audience of nearly one million die-hard anglers with the features and qualities that make Daiwa’s Tatula one of the most sought-after reels on the market,” said Rick Patri, Fishhound’s Vice President, Operations. “It allows us to help Daiwa increase consumer awareness and market to a new audience, while also giving our users a chance to win a valuable prize they can put to good use out on the water.”
Curt Arakawa, Daiwa’s marketing director, is excited about the contest and partnering with Fishhound. “We have run similar campaigns with Fishhound in the past, and the results were tremendous. That’s why we continue to work with them,” explained Arakawa. “The size of their audience and Fishhound’s expertise in the social media spectrum are unparalleled.”
This will be the second time Fishhound has hosted a giveaway featuring a Tatula Baitcaster as the prize. The overwhelming success of the first contest reflected both Fishhound’s popularity and high demand for Daiwa’s Tatula reel. Since making its debut at ICAST in 2013, the Tatula has been winning over avid anglers with its unsurpassed performance and reliability. A host of advanced features, including an innovative hybrid T-Wing Casting System for superior castability, an Air Rotation System for optimum smoothness, and a longer, stronger drive gear for increased fish-fighting power, puts the Tatula in a class by itself.
Contest Overview
Timeline: Runs for a three-week period (Entries accepted now through June 15, 2014)
Entry Process: Entrants must become fans of Daiwa’s Facebook page and can enter online at (http://woobox.com/j5ip3c, at www.facebook.com/DaiwaUSA, or at www.fishhound.com.
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Winner Selection: The contest winner will be selected at random will be notified by e-mail and on both Fishhound.com and Daiwa’s Facebook page.
For complete details on Fishhound’s Daiwa Tatula Reel Contest, or to enter online, visit www.fishhound.com. To learn more about Daiwa’s Tatula baitcaster, or the complete lineup of quality Daiwa reels, rods and accessories, visit www.daiwa.com.
About Fishhound
Fishhound introduces new and innovative products to our community of members and allow s them to share their stories and opinions to help drive more informed buying decisions. We have the attention of more than 750,000 outdoor enthusiasts who are eager to discover, share, influence and buy these kinds of products online. We partner with little known startups, as well as industry leaders to introduce their products to potential consumers. People like to be “in the know,” and Fishhound supports this by delivering the latest product news, pro staff tips & techniques, tournament results, and fishing reports on 2,800 waters across North America. We believe commerce and the way that people make purchases have changed. As consumers, we can decide which brands to support, and as members of Fishhound, we have the opportunity to influence those decisions with care and thought. Knowledge is power. Welcome to Fishhound.
About Daiwa Corporation
Daiwa has been making innovative products since 1966. From the very beginning, Daiwa’s emphasis has been upon innovation and quality. The result is a long list of product features, design and materials that have become standards for the fishing tackle industry. It is a long-standing record of innovation, the type of innovation that has left a visible mark on the majority of tackle manufactured today, innovation that continues to advance the sport of fishing. For more information about Daiwa products please visit daiwa.com.
Lake Fork Dream
Swindle On How To Rig Jig Trailers
Twelve hours after losing by ounces at the Bassmaster Elite Series event on Lake Dardanelle, Gerald Swindle sat in a booth with his best friend and wife, LeAnn, at the Russellville, Arkansas Waffle House.
He talked about how cool it was to see his ride-along Marshall’s hands tremble with excitement during the 40-minute flurry of keeper catching madness they shared in the tournament’s final hour the day before. In the wake of heartbreaking defeat, Swindle still laughed, and even talked about more serious matters like the importance of having a true sense of God-fearing accountability in life.
Swindle is heartbroken, but not bitter. There’s a big difference. He knows the number of blue Elite Series trophies he wins won’t define his life.
He also knows a ton about jigs, and the soft plastic trailers he hangs on their hooks, more specifically, when to hang them from the hook, versus when to thread them up the entire hook shank.
“Threading a trailer up the hook shank versus hanging it from the bend of the hook is pretty much all about what profile you’re trying to achieve, and that relates mostly to water color and fishing pressure,” explains the 2004 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year.
When Going Big, Tip It
“Ninety percent of the time, if I’m pitching or flipping a ½ ounce jig, I want a bigger profile, so I’ll just tip it, as opposed to threading it on there,” says Swindle. “By tipping it, you’re adding length to the jig, giving it a bigger profile, and in stained to muddy water, that’s important.”
Swindle’s favorite trailer in this situation is a Zoom Big Salty Chunk in either black with blue fleck, or sapphire blue. “For example, at Dardanelle I was pitching into gnarly cover like thick cattails, and real thick water willow vegetation on the shoreline, and at times you couldn’t see 2” deep because the water was so dirty from the rains we had – that’s when the big profile is really important.”
When to Thread Instead
“Always thread your trailer up the hook shank if you’re skipping a jig around docks, because if you tip it it’s gonna turn-over on the hook and mess up your skip,” says Swindle, known as one of the best dock skippers to ever launch a boat. His favorite trailer to thread on his jig when skipping docks is a simple one: a plain green pumpkin Zoom Fat Albert twin tail.
“I thread the trailer on the hook shank when I’m using a smaller, more finesse-style, compact jig – and typically I use a smaller jig if I’m pitching down a bank behind somebody, or fishing around more sparse cover,” he explains.
“Like at Dardanelle, from time-to-time, I would encounter some really thinned-out emergent water willow vegetation on the shoreline, and I’d go to the compact jig with that Z-Hog Jr threaded on the hook shank,” reflects Swindle.
Equipment
For compact jigs threaded with plastic trailers: 20-pound fluorocarbon line, a 7’ 2” rod suited for making short roll casts and more lengthily pitches, and 6.3:1 Quantum Tour Mg reel.
For bulkier large profile jigs tipped with a Zoom Big Salty Chunk: 25-pound Sunline fluorocarbon line, a larger 7’ 6” Quantum EXO rod, and again a 6.3:1 Quantum Tour Mg reel. “A lot of guys want the faster 7.3:1 reels to pitch with. Not me. I’m amped-up enough as it is, and besides, you can tow a bass out of heavier cover way better with a bulldozer than you can a sports car, and that 6.3:1 reel is geared more like a dozer. Not to mention, it’s still plenty, plenty, fast enough to pick up slack line when the bite occurs.
New LEER Program Pays Cash Bonus to Pro and Amateur Tournament Anglers
Thanks to LEER truck caps and tonneau covers, the two most recent Bassmaster Elite Series winners have hauled home more than just the $100,000 prize.
Both Jacob Powroznik and Jason Christie got an extra $500 simply for having a LEER truck cap on their tow vehicles, and signing-up for the LEER “Cover Cash” bonus program.
You certainly don’t have to be a pro, and you don’t even have to win your local tournament to win money from the “Cover Cash” program. You just need to be the highest finishing eligible angler in the following supported trails: B.A.S.S., FLW, TBF, ABA Weekend Series, and LBAA. The following team trails are also eligible: Alabama Bass Trail, Bass Champs, Nichols Marine Tournament Series, Platinum Team Trail, Priority Fishing Team Series, Skeeter XFL, Texas Team Trail and the Bassmaster Team Championship.
It’s free to sign-up for Cover Cash, and it will generously support over 300 individual tournament events and offer a variety of payouts ranging from $150 to $1,000. For example, the Bassmaster Open will pay a single award of $300 on the boater side, and $150 to the highest placing non-boater. Team trail events will offer $150 to both the highest finishing and second highest finishing eligible angler in a regular season event. To see a complete list of currently supported LEER Cover Cash tournament events, visit: www.LeerCoverCash.com.
LEER has also made it easy for anglers to save money on their initial purchase of a new truck cap or tonneau cover by making exclusive angler coupons available. Simply carry the coupon into your local LEER dealer, save money up-front, and then get ready to win additional funds when you do well in supported tournaments – but you have to sign-up either on line at LeerCoverCash.com, or by calling (918) 742-6424.