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By Stan Fagerstrom
Part 1
Anybody who has been around golfers much has undoubtedly heard them mention handicaps.
Sometimes I think there should be handicap ratings for those of us who fish. Think about it for a minute. Do you have weaknesses in your own approach to fishing? Did I hear you say “No way!”
Well, maybe you do and maybe you don’t. I have my share. My guess is you do too.
Let’s just about bass fishing. I can’t, for example, now stand in the bow of my bass boat for long hours as I did earlier in life. A pair of artificial knees precludes that kind of joint stress. That’s a handicap all by itself, but it poses a couple of other problems that aren’t as readily apparent.
There are times, many of them, when the ability to present a bass lure with the flipping method might determine whether or not I put fish in the boat. It’s far easier to flip from a standing position than it is while seated. I still flip some sitting down, but nowhere near as effectively as I did while standing. That’s handicap Number Two.
I could add a number of other things that handicap my piscatorial endeavors to one degree or another, but you get the point. If you give it some thought I think you’ll agree darn near all of us have handicaps that tend to reduce our fish-catching ability one way or another.
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| This white skirted Pro Model Stan's Spin is a super bass catcher, but sometimes those fickle hearted bass prefer a different shade. Don't handicap yourself by sticking to just one skirt color in a Stan's Spin if the fish fail to show interest in the one you are using. |
Consider the not uncommon guy who won’t consider using anything but one skirt color on a dandy bait like the Mack’s Lure Stan’s Spin spinnerbait. That’s a handicap? You can bloody well bet it is, partner! I’m not putting down a white-skirted Stan’s Spin, it happens to be one of my favorites.
But my favorite might not be the same as that of those scaly boogers finning around out there in the submerged timber. They change their mind as often as that Georgia gal who didn’t show up for her wedding. Sometimes a black skirted spinnerbait will out fish one that’s white big time. If you continue to throw the same color bait, hour after hour without results, be it a Stan’s Spin or something else, your piscatorial handicap is bound to increase.
Some handicaps, like my artificial knees, we can’t do a blessed thing about. But what puzzles me is those not uncommon anglers who just go on accepting handicaps they can control.
Consider the fishermen I hear all the time who say they have no use for level wind reels. “I just don’t like the bleeping things,” they snort. “I never could learn how to use one. All I ever got was backlashes. Spinning gear works a lot better anyhow.”
That, of course, is so much nonsense. Sure spinning gear is an excellent choice some of the time. But there are other times, many of them, when a level wind reel and a casting rod are far superior. Remember now, we’re talking only about bass fishing.
So where does that leave the guy who can’t handle a bait casting reel in his search for bass? It leaves him with a big fat handicap and don’t kid yourself that it doesn’t.
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| When you lower your angling handicaps you increase your odds of nailing a beauty like the one I have here. |
I’ve just touched on a few of the handicaps so common among those of us who love to fish. Some you can change and some you can’t. In my next column we’ll look at some of the other ways you can lower your angling handicap and increase the odds of putting fish in your boat.
-To Be Continued-
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