The recent obsession of Clear Lake bass fishermen with the swimbait called the “Trash Fish” is a good indication of just how important new types of fishing lures are to fishermen, especially the tournament anglers.
Bass fishermen will go to any lengths to gain that slight advantage over their competitors and once they find the “perfect” lure they will do practically anything to keep it a secret. For example, the winner of the recent FLW Outdoors tournament held at Clear Lake said he caught at least 75 bass on the Trash Fish. The result is the lure has been selling like crazy.
Clear Lake Outdoors is the only tackle store in the county currently carrying the lure and they can”t keep it in stock. The lure isn”t cheap, costing $16 for two, but the price hasn”t deterred the fishermen. In fact, the lure is so popular that the manufacturer, Benno Heune, can”t keep up with the orders.
I am always amazed how bass fishermen guard their secret lures and their favorite places to fish. They have been known to completely buy out a particular lure from a local tackle shop in order to keep it away from their competitors. Bass fishermen also rarely disclose what lure they have been using. When the announcer at a tournament weigh-in asks a fisherman how he caught his fish, the fisherman often roll his eyes, looks up at the sky and gives a vague answer, and it”s usually a lie. I have seen fishermen say they caught their bass on topwater lures even though it”s mid-January and there is snow on the ground. This happened a few years ago when I interviewed the winner of a pro/am tournament. He said he caught his bass on topwater lures in Rodman Slough. Now most fishermen know it”s rare for a bass to take a topwater lure during the cold winter months.
Later, when I spoke with his amateur partner, he said they actually caught all their fish on a jig over a rockpile in the south end of the lake. Tournament fishermen often say they caught their bass on the tackle made by their sponsors. In truth, a tournament fisherman will use any lure that catches fish regardless of who makes it.
Bass fishermen hate it when outdoor writers reveal what the fish are biting on and where they can be caught. I have had more than one fisherman refuse to even talk with me. Last year I was fishing near the Lakeside County Park when I came upon two fishermen prefishing for an upcoming tournament. One of the fishermen recognized me and said to his partner, “Don”t say a word, that”s the local outdoor writer and he will put it in the newspaper.”
One well-known bass pro would always stop his boat out in the middle of the lake on the way to the weigh-in and change all his lures so that everyone would think those were the lures he caught his fish on.
As for secret locations, forget it. There are no so-called secret spots on Clear Lake. On any given day just about every spot that is holding bass will see at least two boats there. This is especially true during a tournament. During a recent tournament the area around the Skylark Shores Motel in Lakeport was holding bass. I counted seven boats fishing within a few yards of each other.
Is the Trash Fish the secret lure that everyone is seeking? Hardly. Whereas it has been catching bass and selling like crazy, its popularity will pass and another lure will take its place. Actually, there are at least 25 different brands of swimbaits on the market. It”s not only swimbaits drawing the attention of tournament anglers. Remember the Banjo Minnow or the Helicopter lure that was touted a few years ago. Nowadays you rarely see one. It goes to prove that the fishermen are often not much smarter than the fish they seek.
