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By LOUIE STOUTSenior Writer

Here are the

winning ways

of the nation’s

best bass anglers

on the world’s

toughest tournament

series

Top3Trailfrom theTrends

(Continued)

AAny notions that West Coast tactics lacked staying power in Eastern tournaments were put to rest on the Bassmaster Elite Series last year.

Drop shotting dainty soft plastics, cranking swimbaits and crawling football jigs over rocky bottoms — techniques that West Coast anglers cut their teeth on — found a home in the hands and hearts of successful East Coast anglers.

Those techniques were responsible for several high fin-ishes on the 11-event Bassmaster Elite Series for the second year in a row.

“It’s kind of weird,” says Californian Skeet Reese, 2007 Angler of the Year. “The things that have become trends on the Elite Series are tactics we’ve done out West for a long time.”

Not only have Bassmaster pros embraced those tech-niques, but they’re putting them to use in places they would have never imagined.

With a few added wrinkles.

Lake amistad: Derek Remitz broke the 100-pound mark by using a football head jig on the edges of channels near spawning flats.Illustration: Chris Armstrong

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“We’re taking techniques that have been proven in other regions and adapting them to situations we never considered before,” says Angler of the Year runner-up Kevin VanDam. “That’s made it fun.”

Those who didn’t adapt, adds Mark Zona, ESPN Outdoors television host and tournament analyst, found themselves looking up in the 2007 standings.

“If you didn’t add a drop shot, swimbait or football jig to your repertoire, you were in trouble,” he insists.

For example, the football jig produced four wins and the drop shot rig two. The swimbait played a major role in one win as well as two seconds and two thirds. More impressively, the pros who finished in the money of those same events were using them, too.

Of course, versatility was critical.“You have to be proficient with

everything from finesse fishing to power tactics to survive this schedule,” says Texas pro Alton Jones. “Unlike the early days, a guy can’t ride one bait or tech-nique into an Angler of the Year title.”

The expanded Elite Series changed that, forcing anglers to be more versatile and innovative. It put pros on deep, clear waters and shallow stained lakes from California to Maryland, New York to Florida. They were forced to fish spawning conditions and late summer patterns. They dealt with grass, wood, rocks, clear water and dirty water.

Because tournaments were scheduled on lakes during their prime times, small, daily limits no lon-

ger guaranteed a paycheck. And, when coupled with local fishing pressure and boat traffic, anglers had to present baits to more wary fish.

“They were forced to adapt and experiment,” says Zona. “The new ideas that developed provide week-end anglers more weapons to try and adaptations to their fishing styles. I know it’s made me a better

angler.”Here’s a look at those trends from

last season:

SWIMBAITSThe swimbait came into its own

during the 2007 season, and you’re going to hear more about them this year.

“The surface hasn’t been scratched as to what the swimbait can do,” says Zona, who spent countless hours on the water observing pros at each ven-ue. “I mean, after what I saw last sea-

son, there’s no way this is a niche bait.”Everyone knew swimbaits would

get a lot of play during the West Coast swing. But when pros brought it east

and made it work, it opened a lot of eyes.“If you weren’t throwing a swimbait last year, you

were getting your butt kicked,” says Jones. “We took it to different parts of the country and figured out how to make it work.”

While the large traditional swimbaits played a role in western events, it was smaller versions, like Storm’s Wildeye Shiner, Strike King’s King Shad and the Basstrix Paddle Tail that pros put to use in waters not known for giant bass.

“What’s interesting is we’re fishing swimbaits deep and shallow, and in stained water as well as clear water,” VanDam explains. “We’re finding they work in places we never considered before this year.”

The Basstrix, a hollow bait that must be rigged on a hook or jighead, got the most attention. Pros rigged it on a weighted hook and swam it over grass flats and shoreline cover.

“It’s essentially a sub-surface bait, and the 5- and 6-inch sizes fit the forage better so anglers are more comfortable using it out East,” says Reese. “You’re going to see a whole lot more of these types of baits in the future.”

The swimbait isn’t without faults. You can’t force it and you’re not likely to get a lot of bites. The attrac-tion, of course, is the bites you get are good ones.

“You’ll hear guys say, ‘I tried the swimbait and wasted too much time with it,’” says Zona. “The hard part is knowing when to put it down. But if you can get it going, you are fishing to win.”

DROP SHOTSNo other technique exemplifies the ingenuity of Elite

anglers more than this finesse rig. Once stereotyped as a vertical presentation for small fish living in deep, clear water, the drop shot is proving itself to be more than that.

For example:Aaron Martens won at the California Delta by fishing for giant bass in heavy cover and shallow water.Brent Chapman made a serious run at Lake Toho by fishing a drop shot around Florida grass.

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Edwin Evers caught giant smallmouth in nearly 50 feet of water by fishing a small bait and a heavy weight.At the Bassmaster American on High Rock Lake, N.C., winner Fred Roumbanis fished a drop shot around docks and bedding fish.

“Erase those preconceived notions of what you think the drop shot is,” Zona advises. “This thing can be fished a number of ways. Best of all, it catches bass when other presentations fail.”

Even VanDam, known for his run-and-gun tac-tics, heaps praise upon the drop shot and its potential for covering water.

“I’m fishing it more than ever,” he admits. “Since I’ve adapted it to my style and spent some time with it, I’m finding out just how versatile it is.”

Peter Thliveros says the drop shot has become a go-to technique for a lot of pros who used to throw Carolina rigs. He used both to win the Bassmaster Memorial at Oneida Lake, N.Y.

“Both techniques are designed to catch finicky fish and work in many of the same areas,” he offers. “You get more bites on the drop shot, although there are days the Carolina rig will perform better.”

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Fluorocarbon, TooRemarkably, Elite pros utilized monofilament line in less than 25

percent of the techniques they used to earn Top 3 finishes last year.Fluorocarbon line has supplanted mono as a pro’s favorite.That trend is not likely to change, says Angler of the Year

Skeet Reese, given improvements being made in the new lines. “Guys on tour are realizing the benefits of fluorocarbon line,

and it is the wave of the future,” he says. “It’s been that way in Japan for years.”

“Unlike the early days, a guy can’t ride one bait or technique into an Angler of the Year title. — Alton Jones

“(Continued)

Top3Trailfrom theTrends

Prevailing PaTTerns From The ’07 eliTes

California Delta: Aaron Martens caught some huge bass by drop shot-ting the edges of grass. Clear Lake: Steve Kennedy used swim-

baits near structure (mainly docks) to rewrite the BASS record books, catch-ing 122-14 during the tourney.

Clarks Hill: A football head jig strikes again, as Mike McClelland drags this one over long points to catch over 70 pounds of bass.

Lake Guntersville: Shad have never looked so sexy, as KVD ripped this Strike King crank (sexy shad color)

through grass for most of his bites. The rest came on a spinnerbait he burned over the

salad.

Smith Mountain: Casey Ashley jigged rockpiles and finessed a shaky head for wary bass.

Grand Lake: The sexy shad strikes again, as KVD used it to comb gravel points from 4 to 15 feet of water.

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FOOtBaLL JiGs Heavy, compact jigs played a major role in four

Elite Series victories, and that trend could continue into this season.

“If you’re a rookie coming into the Elite Series without 1/2-ounce football jigs, you’re going to be in trouble,” says Zona.

The football jig was instrumental in Derek Remitz’s win at Lake Amistad in Texas, Mike McClelland’s victory at Clarks Hill Lake in Georgia, and Tim Horton’s blow-out at Lake Champlain in New York.

Although it wasn’t a football head design, Casey Ashley used a 7/16-ounce finesse jig to win at Smith Mountain Lake.

The football jig gets its name from its oblong head that wobbles along the bottom, imitating crawfish.

“We’re learning the subtle differences between foot-ball heads and traditional jigheads, and how the presen-tations differ,” says VanDam. “The head rocks on foot-ball jigs so that the trailer imparts more lively action.”

Designed for fishing deep, rocky bottoms, pros put it to work on other hard bottom structure and in a variety of depths.

They fished it on bare banks, deep bottom struc-ture, around scattered rock and wood, sandy bottoms and bottoms with short patchy grass. They also dis-covered it could be used to cover water in a hurry.

“Companies are making improvements in the weedguards and the overall design,” notes VanDam. “Some of these jigs can be flipped or hopped on the bottom, which makes them more versatile.”

tReNds FOR 2008?Reese says versatility will be instrumental in

one’s ability to succeed on the 2008 Elite circuit. Pros will have to be good with a drop shot, structure jig, flipping rod and a crankbait.

“If you’re only a flipper, you had better learn to drop shot if you want to make money on this sched-ule,” he offers. “We’ll fish some power fisheries where you can break out the big sticks, but you also will have to grind it out with little stuff to keep yourself in it.”

And while the season opens in Florida, where sight fishing tactics generally prevail, many observers believe spawning activity could peak before the pros arrive. Bass will be caught on beds, but other meth-ods will be in play.

“We could see postspawn conditions in the first five events,” predicts Jones. “That opens it up to a variety of techniques and could make it interesting.”

The Texan says that punching grass with soft plastics has certainly played a role on some lakes, but flipping wood has been noticeably absent.

That could change at Falcon Lake.“What could be interesting is it probably will be

deep, heavy cover flipping, and that’s something we haven’t had to do for a while,” Jones says.

Weather and conditions often dictate which tac-tics emerge.

“Regardless, you’re going to see new ideas because this (the Elite Series) is where trends develop,” VanDam says. “Guys are always looking for a better mouse-trap, and at our level someone will find it.”

Top3Trailfrom theTrends

Lake Champlain: Exploiting a honey hole perfectly, Tim Horton jigged and cranked an offshore rockpile loaded with bass.

Lake Erie: Edwin Evers drop shotted a Yum Houdini worm to catch big-ger than average smallmouth.

Potomac River: Using a Berkley PowerBait Sabertail near grass and a Power Hawg near wood, Skeet Reese pieced together enough structure and bass for a win.

Lake Toho: A Carolina rigged straight-tail worm worked slowly around grass and over shell beds proved the best pattern in mid-September in Florida, giving Ben Matsubu the win.

Prevailing Patterns From the ’07 elites