Bass Fishing Articles - Fishing With Rusty

Bass Fishing Articles

How to “breakdown” new water - 2009-10-29
Thought process on tackling new water and finding fish.

Go Kermit! Go Kermit! - 2009-07-01
Article on the tactics and equipment used in fishing hollow bodied frogs.

Grass or No Grass? - 2009-05-10
An article on the subject of letting hydrilla take hold in Lake Wylie.

Spring at last - 2009-04-13
It's time to go fishing!

Getting wound up - 2009-01-29
Valuable points about pre-season preparation.

Seeing Red - 2008-12-30
An article on crankbait color selection in the winter.

Getting started in bass tournaments. - 2008-11-01
My perspective on getting started in the sport.

Eliminating Water - 2008-10-06
An article on the value of not finding a productive pattern during pre- tournamnet practice.

“The Bluegill Connection” - 2008-07-31
During different parts of the year the largemouth bass seems to key in on particular types of bait. In the early spring, as the water warms and the crawfish really begin to emerge they are pursued heavily by the bass. In the late summer and fall the threadfin

“Sharing the Wealth” - 2008-07-31
An article on the value of helping others and sharing information.

Its that time again - 2008-05-23
Well, warmer weather and Memorial Day are just around the corner and for those of that have enjoyed the peaceful days of fishing on the lake through winter this means one thing; boat traffic and lots of it. Lake Wylie being so close to the Charlotte metro area

The Weakest Link - 2008-05-23
Over the years I’ve heard so many stories about the big one that “broke my line.” This is an avoidable circumstance in most cases but very few people give nearly as much attention or thought to their fishing line as they probably should. In this day and age

Crankbait fishing in the winter - 2008-02-19
Its winter time again, the weather’s cold, the water is cold and the fishing… well it can be hot or cold. Typically as the water cools in the winter the metabolism of the bass slows and they don’t feed as aggressively or as often, but that doesn’t mean

Why I do it - 2008-02-06
When most people are out on the lake and see these bass boats flying around, doing 60 or 70mph or they see a traffic jam of bass boats at the boat ramps on Saturday morning in the freezing cold or rain, they probably think to themselves, “those guys

“The Shakeyhead” - 2008-02-06
If I told you there was a bait that all you had to do was throw it out there, let it sink to the bottom and shake your rod and a fish would come and get it. Would you try it? Now what if I told

Lessons learned from Lake Guntersville - 2007-11-14
I was fortunate to be invited to fish the Southern anglers Challenge Championship tournament this year. I had qualified to fish the tournament but wasn’t planning to make the trip. I’m glad I went! I had never been to the lake but the research I did

Lessons learned from Lake Murray - 2007-11-14
In September, the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League’s (BFL) South Carolina division season ending, two day event was moved to Lake Murray from Lake Wylie as the result of low water and ramp closures. I was sitting 6th in points and needed a good showing to move up.

“The Frog Bite Is On” - 2007-10-05
By: Jeremy Cabe As a local angler who has never fished a tournament out of North or South Carolina going to Lake Guntersville, Alabama was a huge step in my tournament career. Lake Guntersville was not only a different lake, but Guntersville was also a different type of fishing.

Where did it go? - 2007-09-18
I was on Lake Wylie one day last week, running around fishing. Early in the morning I came to a tree that was laid over into the water. The water was calm, the light was low, I just knew there had to be a bass in that tree.

It was better in the old days? - 2007-08-20
It's always funny and interesting to hear stories of how things used to be. There was a time when all the wives stayed home, cars were made of steel and you could catch a fish on every cast. Today both adults, if there are two in the household

Execution - 2007-08-06
As I sit and watch all the FLW and BASS Tournament shows, it amazes me to see the ?Elite? and the ?Superstars? of our sport make some of the basic mistakes that they make. Granted they are where many of us would love to be - competing at that level.

Find Your Own Fish! - 2007-06-28
Have you ever had a buddy tell you he ?whacked them? on this place or that place? Have you ever watched someone else pummel fish in an area or on a place and then when you tried it - nothing, zippo, zilch? Well, some of you probably thought

My First Bass Tournament Experience - 2007-06-11
By: Deirdre Davison Saturday was an experience that will play in my memory for a long time to come. I fished my first BFL tournament on Lake Wateree as a Co-Angler. As some already know, I became very interested in fishing because I wanted to spend more time with

Reflections on a pitching lesson - 2007-06-04
By: Deirdre Davison As an executive coach and consultant, I help executives and small business owners become more successful in their careers, more focused on and accountable for their goals, and more balanced in their lives. More often than not, clients and I have conversations about them following their hearts.

Bed Fishing 102 - 2007-04-11
I thought I would write another article on bed fishing to try and help folks better understand what it is I'm doing. Well, I went back and read my previous article on the subject and there's just not alot to add. If you've not already read it now might be

"The view from the back seat" - 2007-04-02
By Rick Latta I just finished another FLW Tournament. This time at Lake Tellico/Ft. Loudoun. These two lakes are located just west of Knoxville Tennessee and are joined at the hip via a navigable canal. Tellico being a bit bigger, deeper and clearer than Fort Loudoun, but with less bass per acre. Most of the boats

Confidence Breeds Confidence and Catches Bass! - 2007-03-06
I've been thinking a lot about this subject and my tournament fishing performance in general over the winter. A lot of my successes have come when I?ve been able to put a flipping stick in my hand and go for what I know. With that in mind, I?ve tried to

Lessons from Lake Travis - 2007-02-21
by Rick Latta I always learn something when I go fishing. And sometimes the lessons are painful. Such was the case at the recent FLW Tour contest on Lake Travis just outside of Austin Texas, in which I participated as a co-angler. Hopefully someone will benefit by learning from

Lessons learned from Lake Okeechobee - 2007-01-10
After each fishing tournament I like to evaluate my performance, try to figure out what I did right and wrong. At the Stren Series opener on Lake Okeechobee I did more wrong than right. I went down early because I had never been on the lake, which gave me 4

Following your Instincts - 2006-12-11
Once in a while my instincts kick in and tell me to do one thing or another, sometimes I listen, other times I ignore that little voice in the back of my head, only to later wonder about how things would have gone had I listened. Well, just last

Staying Warm - 2006-11-12
As the temperatures continue to drop, the fishing in many cases gets better, the lakes certainly become less crowded and for those willing to brave the winter weather it can be a great time. Being prepared/dressed for the winter weather can make or brake your winter fishing trip. Years ago

Chasing the Bait - 2006-10-18
It?s that time of year again, the leaves, air and water temperatures are all falling and the shad are migrating to the backs of the creeks and pockets. Where the shad go, so do the bass, the bass follow the bait as they put on their feed in

The Dog Days of Summer - 2006-08-30
In the heat of the summer sun the water temperatures rise towards the century mark as air temperatures hover in the mid to low 90?s the fishing generally gets pretty tough. Fishing in the daylight hours can be a chore in more ways than one. The soaring temperatures

Deep Cranking - 2006-08-06
We all want to get rich quick, it?s the American dream. In fishing, deep cranking is probably the fastest way to get rich. If you have found the right school of fish in practice or come across them during the tournament day, you can get rich quickly by bringing that

Lessons learned from Lake Erie - 2006-08-04
I recently went to Lake Erie to fish as a co-angler in the Northern Division of the Stren Series with the intention of learning more about catching northern smallmouth. The tournament was July 17 through the 21st, out of Cleveland, OH. When it was all said and done

Getting started in bass tournaments. - 2006-07-31
If my son came to me today and said he wanted to start learning and fishing tournaments, I would be so very happy to teach and share with him my passion for the sport. Tournament fishing is a bitter sweet circumstance, you want to win but you have

Jig Fishing - 2006-06-28
In competitive fishing few baits have a better reputation for catching big fish than a jig, which is also known to catch fish when the bite is tough. I thought I would take some time to share my perspective on fishing a jig, selecting the jig and the

To Stay or Go? (part III) - 2006-06-14
The biggest challenge in competitive bass fishing continues to be the decision making process. I started writing these articles to help myself and others learn from some of the good and bad decisions I?ve made, I hope they help you as much as they help me. This past weekend I

When the going gets tough... - 2006-06-06
When the going gets tough? Certain times of the year fishing gets tough, the bites are few and far between and the size of the fish isn?t what we hope it to be. Post spawn fishing can be one of those times and ladies and gentlemen we are in

Bed Fishing 101 - 2006-04-14
For most of the year we are after fish that we rarely see, but for about six to eight weeks in the spring we can actually watch and look at the fish we are trying to catch. It?s really exciting! A lot of fisherman will say that they

Stay or Go, part II - 2006-04-09
To Stay or Go, that is the question. (This is part two of a series of articles on this subject) Tournament fishing is an ever changing puzzle of what to do and when to do it. Decision making is the difference between winning or getting a check and not even

To Stay or Go, that is the question. - 2006-03-30
(This is part one of a series of articles on this subject) In today's tournament bass fishing one of the biggest struggles most fishermen face is the decision making process. Do you stay on or with the fish you've got? Do you swing for the fence and go hunting

Winter Jerkbaits - 2006-03-10
In the colder months of the year a primary pattern that develops is fishing suspending jerkbaits in and around pods of bait (primarily threadfin shad). This can be done on any part of the lake; points, coves, creek channel bends or river channel ledges. The key is baitfish. The cooling water

The Essential Rods and Reels - 0000-00-00