A pike, a split ring and DUMB LUCK

[Scott McKee]

Bruce and I had possibly the best twenty minutes of fishing we've ever had tonight just before 9pm, and we owe it all to the three components in the title of this post.

After four hours of catching maybe 30 to 40 nondescript bass and pike, we decided to fish a small island with a rock shelf that slopes in to weeds.  Bruce had a small pike smack his Imakatsu Gillroid. During the fight the snot rocket must have opened the rear split ring.  Bruce asked if he should replace it which translates into "I don't have any terminal tackle, would you replace it for me."

I handed him my Megabass BMG with an Osprey Spiritual Performer Dolive SS-Gill, a bait banned from sale in the US thanks to a BS Lucky Strike law suit, tied on.

Bruce, who has very little experience with soft plastic bottom contact baits instantly pops three bass on four casts. All three are nice fish.

After replacing the rear hook, I make a cast with his Megabass FMJ and catch a decent bass just crawling the Gillroid under the surface, its large paddle-tail thumping slowly.  On the next cast I pop a 17" or 18" largie doing the same thing.

On the very next carbon copy cast, all hell broke loose. I knew I had another nice fish on when it hit.  What I didn't expect was the second largest largemouth I've ever caught.  The fish dove under our net while Bruce was almost yelling, "I don't have her."  Surprisingly calm, I backed off the drag and allowed the fish to bulldog beside the boat.  After what seemed like hours, but was actually seconds, I guided her boatside and Bruce snatched her three feet under the surface into our net the very second she finally stopped freaking out. It was a brilliant net job. Absolutely brilliant. 

We bunked her at 22.5-inches, un-pinched. After she swam away, Bruce immediately grabbed his rod and started chucking.  He caught about ten more largies in the next ten minutes and I added eight more throwing a Raid Japan Dodge crawler and an Imakatsu RSR Crawler. It was insane. And it was all thanks to a small pike and Bruce's glaring lack of terminal tackle. We fished until 11pm, catching another ten or so fish all on the surface. What a night.

[Martin Wielgosz]

That’s some serious nice looking bass congratulations