Charlie Ingram, host of Fishing University and Hunting University, is one of
our middle-Tennessee neighbors, and he invited me to be his guest on an
upcoming episode of his show that is scheduled to air Sunday, Feb 27 (8:30
AM CST) and repeat Friday, March 4 (1 PM CST). Check your local listings.

He's recognizable, having been a prominent BASS and FLW competitor for years
and a show host for . I'll be the short guy in the back of the boat who
can't catch a bass.

Ingram told us a few years back how impressed he was with Rickard's design,
and he's been real encouraging to us all along, suggesting a few
modifications and configurations that produce well for him.

For the show we fished a lake down in Alabama. I usually manage ok when I'm
tossing Secret Weapons, but I couldn't hold a candle to Ingram. He's a real
pro with the spinnerbait, pulling fish out of places that I'd cast to a
couple of times just moments earlier. He caught 20 bass ranging from one to
four pounds before I caught my first. I think he kept fishing, and the crew
kept filming, much later than planned in hopes that I'd finally catch a bass
or two. I ended up with two... each of them about three pounds. We'll see
how they turn out after editing.

I studied Charlie's lure placement, presentation, and retrieve and tried to
match it. I switched blades several times during the day, trying to come up
with a combination that worked as well for me as his did. He was fishing
what I suppose is his favorite SWL -- a 1/2 ounce chartreuse and white with
nickel willowleaf blade. He may also have had a single CO blade in front....
I don't recall for sure.

I was throwing a 3/8 ounce Blue Avenger (chartreuse, white, with blue
accents) with similar blades, just slightly smaller. I also tried another
color or two in 1/2 ounce or 3/8 ounce sizes, including chartreuse and
white, like his, but to no avail.

Charlie finally laid it out for me.... When we both retrieved at the same
speed, having put both our lures in the same spot, his lure was swimming
back up to a foot lower in the water than mine. My bait was swimming by
overhead, ignored by bass that were hunkered down among submerged logs and
brush piles. Charlie's bait, though, was smacking into the wood all the way
back... banging and careening off logs, enticing bass that were waiting for
something to swim by within easy reach. In the end, he stopped casting and
pointed to where I was to cast, and then coached me to slow down enough to
feel the timber, and that's when I finally connected.

Another thing he pointed out.... I have a tendency to twitch my rod tip
every fifth crank or so. I noticed that when I momentarily pause and then
twitch the bait during the retrieve, the skirt flares just before the bait
darts forward. My theory has always been that erratic motion triggers
strikes. Charlie threatened to whap me if I didn't stop that, and I noticed
that his retrieve was steady and moderate all the way back to the boat,
altered only as he guided the lure over and past obstructions.

I wasn't discouraged by my lack of success..... there are days that my
technique and retrieve would have paid off, as they have in the past. But on
that day, as we fished a variety of areas (docks, weed beds, clay banks,
standing timber, log jams, and old flooded fencerows) he was able to pattern
the bass and consistently produce fish that eluded me.

One other piece of advice he offered was that I should take advantage of any
opportunity I had to fish as the non-boater in BASS or FLW competitions. He
said that was a great way to learn to fish better as well as to network in
the business. Judging from my day on the lake with him, that sounds like a
good idea.

--
Joe Haubenreich
www.secretweaponlures.com
First real spinnerbait change in 50 years!
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