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Bladed jig lures provided a solid year

Looking back on my 2021 fishing trips, it is clear that the category of lures known as bladed jigs accounted for a significant percentage of the bass that boarded the Bass Cat. Bladed jigs gained traction in the bass world 15 years ago after a South Carolina lure tinkerer told his fishing buddies he had been working on a new bait that vibrated so hard it made his teeth chatter. The name ChatterBait took hold and soon hooked thousands of bass anglers. I was among those who bought a few ChatterBaits during the initial surge in their popularity, but they served only as back-up baits for ...

Anglers learn something new every day

The adage “You learn something new every day” is not just a corny expression. It’s a fact in just about every aspect of our lives and holds equally true for the days we spend fishing. Looking back on 2021, I realize I did indeed learn something new pretty much every time I went to the water. Some of my learning reinforced lessons from long ago; other experiences brought me new insights that I will build on in future fishing trips. I have coached myself over 35 years of competitive fishing to always go to the lake with an open mind and to tune my senses to pick up on the ...

Winding down the trips and prepping for winter

Not so many years ago, I procrastinated every fall on making the inevitable decision to winterize the boat and park it under cover until spring brought a fresh new fishing season. The winds of autumn can blow cold and wet, but my experience taught me that November did deliver a few days with a bright sky, mild temperature and hungry fish. I often took the boat to favorite lakes in the week of Thanksgiving. One year I even stretched my luck with a December trip. But that was then, and this is a season that has already concluded for the BassCat. I know I could squeeze out a few more ...

Details are important for local anglers

Details, details, details. Who cares, right? Anglers care. Or more precisely, we qualify that by noting “successful” anglers care. They know the difference between a successful fishing trip and a bust often boils down to seemingly insignificant details. Ask Ohio’s steelhead anglers. They know the persnickety trout will snub offerings that are anything short of perfect. Two of the best in the steelhead game are John Breedlove of Girard and Chris DePaola of Austintown. Breedlove and DePaola favor completely different tactics, but they tally pretty much identical totals of ...

The Ohio River is a diamond in the rough

The day is never fresher than the hour after sunrise, especially when the wind is in your hair and the breeze is in your face. So began another fishing day last week. Miles of glass-smooth Ohio River stretched in front of me as I pushed the Mercury in gear and mashed the Hot Foot throttle. The BassCat planed out and made short work of the two-mile run to the morning’s first stop. It happened quickly. Three casts were all that I needed to catch the attention of a river bass, which rocketed vertically out of the water to eat my surface popper. The smallmouth churned and ran sideways, ...

Column: Some thoughts during YSU’s midseason bye

YOUNGSTOWN — Without a doubt, it’s been an up-and-down season for Youngstown State so far. The Penguins sit at 2-3 overall and 1-2 in Missouri Valley Football Conference play, and are a disastrous second half against Western Illinois away from being above .500 instead. On the other hand, both wins are over teams currently in the FCS Top 25 — No. 18 Incarnate Word (who was receiving votes at the time of its matchup at YSU) and No. 20 Missouri State (who entered last week’s matchup at No. 15). Also, YSU received 20 votes in this week’s poll. With the Penguins idle this week, ...