Interview with Wade Middleton.

[nwgabassmaster]

The following is an interview with Mr. Wade Middleton, host of Hunting and Fishing Texas, that was conducted via e-mail.  

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1. In your time in fishing, what lures, techniques, and "hot" items have you seen go to the wayside, and which have stuck around to stand the test of time?  

Wow, tough questions.  Since almost everything in fishing runs in cycles based on the time of year, the lakes being fished and conditions your facing.  As for one technique that has stood the test of time, in my eyes, and one that will always be there for us as anglers, the answer would have to be the Texas rigged worm. No doubt about it.  

2. How often do you get out to fish, on which waters, and how do you fish them?

I fish about 125 days a year now which is way down from what I used to fish of 200 a year, but now that I hardly ever get to fish big tournaments anymore due to time constraints which is why I don't fish as much now.  Producing my show and working on many other tournament events for TV has sort of changed my fishing time on the water.  However of the time I get on water now about 30 days a year are spent fishing saltwater with the remaining being bass fishing.  As for what I like to fish or where I do my best, I enjoy all lakes but favor lakes that have either grass, docks or clear water.  I have lots of confidence fishing clear water.  Enjoy spring time grass fishing and love to flip docks  Combine all those likes into one lake and I'm really happy.

I like to fish grass and the ditches along the grass in pre spawn, then fish visible structure the rest of the year.  When it gets hot and the fish move out and suspend I head to the coast and go saltwater fishing since summer time deep structure fishing is my biggest dislike in fishing.  When fall rolls around I'm back out on the lakes ready to go till the next summer.

3. Out of all the lures on the market today, which lure do you turn to, time and time again, as the one lure that you know for a fact will catch you a fish, without consideration of conditions?

Hmmmmmm, two baits.  Texas rigged soft plastics, leaning toward a tube/creature bait in spring and worm in summer and a small crankbait to cover water all year long.  I can catch them all year long on those two baits under any condition and while I may not win an event on them I can be competive under any conditions on those baits.

4. You are the host of Hunting and Fishing Texas.  With the programs that you help put on the air, what do you wish for the public to gain from your hunting and fishing shows?  What things have been brought to your attention, that the public was misinformed of?

I hope a viewer gains insight on locations on where to go fishing. I try to film the majority of my shows on public water where the viewer can actually go and do their own deal.  Basically unload at the same ramps we did, fish the same creeks and learn from the show about that body of water.   From there I hope they learn how to fish those lakes with the baits I'm using or a similar bait based on the time of year.

As for things brought to my attention, I love to have folks come up and tell me how much they enjoyed a certain show since they were able to go out and do the same thing.  Wow misinformed.  I'd say 90% of that is due to somebody not really paying attention or not understanding what is being said.  I don't think anybody intentionally goes out to misinform anyone on a show.  

5. Do you remember what the largest species of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and spotted bass weighed, where you caught it, and what lure you caught it on?

Biggest largemouth was at Lake Huites on a Pop-R in  mid October.  Just sucked it under and  the war was on.  The fish weighed just over 11 pounds.  Smallmouths.  I've not caught any really big ones (as of yet).  Spotted bass Easy..  Lake Texoma, on a Yamamoto Kut Tail worm on a ball head last year using 6 pound test.  I can still feel the drag that fish took on it's first run under the boat.

6. What moments led you to the career that you have chosen, and what are your future aspirations in the fishing industry?

I was ten years old watching fishing shows and knew what I wanted to do.  There wasn't any one moment I just knew.  As for future aspirations I hope to just do this till I'm done but if that's tomorrow or 25 years from now I'll be happy since I lived a dream and feel I've done some good things for folks that like to fish.

[jivey]

Good read, Thanks!

[stratoscaster]

Nice job and thanks.

[senko_77]

thats good.  how do u get this interview w/ these guys??

[nwgabassmaster]

Just ask them nicely.  Both Ish and Wade are true gentlemen of the sport of bass fishing, and I hope to get more interviews and more insight into who they are as people, and how they fish.

[senko_77]

how did u get in touch with them