Before the doors opened Friday morning at the Nashville Boat Show, I passed
by the Mojo booth and spied a familiar-looking face. Rodney Long and a Mojo
Prostaff member were setting up a demonstration tank for Mojo's SpecTastic
bungee rig, Rock Hopper, and Rig Saver.
Rodney and I didn't have a lot of time to chat before the show since I was
late loading in and had to set up in a hurry, but attendance was pretty low
through the weekend, so from time to time we were able to visit. The Secret
Weapon Lures booth was next to the American Bass Anglers. We had a clear
line of sight to the Mojo booth, which was on the end one aisle up.
Without a doubt the Mojo booth drew the biggest crowd of any exhibit there.
Rarely did I look over when there weren't somewhere between two to a dozen
visitors clustered around the demonstration tank. I know first-hand that the
attitude of most show attendees when presented with something different is
"I dare you to convince me." Anglers put on a crap-proof hard shell coating
before entering the hall, and you can see it in their expressions. I grew
accustomed to the change of expressions marching across the faces of people
leaning over the Mojo demo tank. They went from skeptical or non-committal,
to interested, to amazed, to delighted. And about that time, hands were
reaching for wallets, too. I have no doubt that more money crossed the
counter at the Mojo booth Friday afternoon than we took in for the entire
three days of the show.
I've kept my mouth shut for the last two years as the boomerang "thingy" was
ballyhooed and maligned by one ROFB regular or the other. I know some of us
have used the bungee rig and have been pleased with it, so I figured I would
try it one of these days. Not being a tournament angler, my main interest in
fishing has been to test new products, test techniques, or introduce others
to our lures. I can't remember ever having fished a drop-shot rig.
Sports fans, that's about to change. Next week I'm heading down to the
Harris Chain for the season opener of the Fishing w/ Jim Austin tour.
Usually I don't get to compete in tournaments we sponsor since I'm mainly
there to lend my support and promote our company. This time, though, I plan
to win the tournament. I'll rely on our Quickstrike or Sidearm spinnerbaits
and Buzzrbait to locate fish. If conditions don't favor blade baits, though,
you can count on my having a rod rigged drop-shot style with a "Wiggle Rig."
I'll post the results here in a couple of weeks.
I made sure all the Secret Weapon Prostaff working our booth took time out
to visit with Rodney and pick up some gear and skills that will help give
them a competitive edge. I'm not going to pass on all the extra little tips
Rodney gave me, but if you just go to his Website (ezknot.com) and follow
the instructions there, you'll benefit greatly.
One thing for sure; I'll want to spend an hour or so just practicing with
the bait right by the shore in clear water so I can master the basic wiggle,
death quiver, and slapping techniques with various baits. Strike King's
floating soft plastic jerkbait (I think it was the 3X Zulu) and the Zoom
Tiny Fluke look to be the two highest percentage baits.
Anyway, I haven't weighed in on the subject, but now that I have a little
first-hand information, I have to tell you I'm impressed. The new tools and
techniques are definitely going to improve my fishing success in situations
where I've located fish but haven't been able to goad them into biting....
until now.
Joe
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Secret Weapon Lures
http://secretweaponlures.com
World's Finest Spinnerbaits & Buzzbaits.
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