Close Quarter Combat
04/25/08 200812:30
This week I had an awesome opportunity to experience some close quarter combat with a few big bass on Buffalo Lake. I have never tried pitching or flipping for bass before although I have seen it many times on television with the Bass Masters series. Bass Master Mike Iaconelli (www.mikeiaconelli.com) says flipping for big bass into heavy cover is one of his favorite ways to fish. I am sure many other Bass Masters would agree with him! I think it will be one of my favorite ways to fish as soon as I get a little better at it!
So what is pitchin and flippin for bass? Well www.bassresource.com describes it like this....
The Pitch Cast (Pitchin')
This is best for targets between 10 and 30 feet away and provides a very quiet lure entry. Use a rod 6 1/2 feet or longer and a single-hook lure such as a worm, jig or spinnerbait. Face the target. Let out line until the lure is even with the reel. Hold the lure in your free hand at waist level. Lower the rod tip toward the water and put tension on the line. In one smooth, quick motion, swing the rod tip forward toward the target and upward, letting go of the lure with your free hand. Use only your wrist, arm movement is not a factor. As the lure moves from beneath the rod tip, release the line and continue raising the rod tip. (On bait casting gear, this cast requires a very light setting on the spool tension control, and you must know how to control the spool with your thumb, or the reel will backlash.) The lure should fly just above the water. Use a combination of line tension and rod movement to guide it to the target and to make it touch down softly. If you stop the bait just before it enters the water you'll almost always get a smooth entry. Immediately place your free hand on the reel and be ready for a strike.
I was very thankful to have Beaver Dam Bass Angler Mark Eilbes take me out on Buffalo lake this weekend to show me the correct way to fish for bass using this technique.
I almost lost the rod setting the hook on the first fish! I also managed to set the hook in my hand twice - ouch!! But eventually I got the hang of it and caught several fish. Mark caught a nice 5 lber and really deserved it after guiding me around all day!
