Success Formula -- a Subject of Debate

[Jerkbate]

Dude you're over complicating a simple sport by trying to over analyze it

Here my FORMULA FOR SUCCESS

Make an educated guess based pasted experiences as to where, when, and with what

If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you always got

I agree.

[justfishin]

Can I ask you a honest question Mr. Baugher? How did you come to the conclusion of your specific percentage values in each category?

[Dan:]

OK, I have been patient but, here is my two cents. Leave your slide rules, hypothesis's, calculators, the position of the sun and moon charts, crystal balls, underwater camera's, laptops with formulas and equations software at home. As the saying goes " Just shut up and fish ". Ghesssssssshhhh, quit making it all so complicated and lets just fish. Its not that hard.

Well said.

[BassChaser57]

If you develop a plan based on scientific fact you will have a much better chance of putting bass in the boat. Sure you might get lucky and beat KVD on a given day, but he will win in the long run because he and other pros will take the scientific approach. I would rather be smart and good over lucky every day!!!

8-)

[hi_steel_basser]

You left gut instinct off of your list. That is the best tool a fisherman has. I will never forget the day I thought I needed to fish one particular bank that was tough to get to with a white spinnerbait. Well, I couldn't find the trail to it when I got to that pond that morning. So I proceeded to throw my spinnerbait around the easy side of the lake, along with several other lures. About two hours in, I see a guy on the other side of the pond. He proceeds to catch 4-5 fish in the next hour, all caught on a white spinnerbait. The biggest was about 8 lbs. IMO, gut instinct is the key to catching fish.

[spiritgide]

Most of us are sort of at a disadvantage, as we don't live where bass do.  I started bass fishing in 1958, when my folks bought a marina. 17 years later I was teaching scuba diving, and spending a lot of time underwater at beaver lake arkansas...  And I made it a point to learn all I could about the habits of bass; things I couldn't learn from the surface. Some of that applies to how I fish now.

Location is first, of course- as your sonar tells you, 95% of the lake has perhaps 2% of the fish... the rest are gathered at the current choice of cover.  If you aren't where they are at, you're not fishing, you're on a boat ride.  By the way, I found that two locations that seem equal with similar cover, positioning and depth can have widely different appeal to bass as a hang-out.  Never figured that one out.  I learned that some such spots are always hot, and some are not.

Depth-  At any place in the lake, the bass are found within a range that typically covers only about 5 feet or so.  How deep depends on the time of year and time of day. Due to this, I agree that depth matters a lot; I don't think bass are inclined to leave this comfort zone.  Why are they there?  Temperature appears to be the biggest reason; I think oxygen content in the water is the next.  I didn't have high quality equipment to test O2 levels, but it appeared to make a difference.  I also noticed that a given temperature didn't always occur at the same depth point is a lake- inflow could make a creek cove a bit warmer or cooler, and fish moved accordingly.  

Lure speed has a lot to do with it, and is definitely related to temperature.  Seems logical; cold-blooded systems work slower when cold.  In colder water, you need to slow down to a rate they are willing to pursue.  I also think that bait size is an issue; colder fish prefer smaller baits.

You can find cover and fish with the sonar. You can approximate the lure speed and experiment up or down until you get action.  These require some knowledge, but not high skills.

Aside from those, I think that the ability of the angler to chose the right bait for the situation and present his bait in the most realistic way is the biggest variable, and a critical one.  That's the skill issue; each angler will be different.  I think you are better off with a lure that's not ideal but you really know how to use well,  than one that is technically right but you aren't skilled with.  The tougher the bite- the more critical the presentation.  The more baits you are really skilled with, the better the odds of success.

[FIN-S-R]

Seth is that you

Nope not seth.

All of you fellows that are commenting on making it too complicated are CORRECT. When im on the water, despite the large number of hours I have put into concocting my personal "system" I rarely if ever take the paper to the lake. I review the concepts and "rules" I have collected a couple of days or maybe even weeks before I hit the lake. I make a plan and as 1 guy mentioned pre-rig to the tune of about 10 rigs, then I go fishing. If I get stumped, I move my efforts left or right of central idea i planned for. This weekend it took me two days to catch 1 fish on largely unexplored cold slightly murkey water. So I essentially made the wrong call on some variables. this info will go into my log, and the new perspective concerning these variables will be calculated into my "system" to hopefully make it better. Bottum line: I have tried to come up with a good place to start. Anything that happens after that first cast is anybodys game.

[.ghoti.]

A very interesting take on one of the Lindner boy's major contributions to our favorite pasttime. The only point I'd really disagree with is taste. As a guy who primarily fishes soft plastics, I'd argue that taste  is a major factor.  A bass can spit out a bait that doesn't taste ok much faster than you can set the hook. If you don't believe that, try squirting a little Off, or the bug juice  of your choice, on your baits, and see how many fish you catch. I use a scent basically as a cover up, to help conceal any scents or flavors I may have added to the bait.   I almost always have a thermos of coffee, a sandwich or two, and a couple of fine cigars along for the trip. I seriously doubt that bass find tobacco, coffee, or mustard to be flavorful. Maybe they do, but I doubt it. So, I try to cover it up. I've proved, at least to my own satisfaction, that a cover scent will improve my catch rate.

Good topic, and an interesting analysis.

Cheers,

GK

[Bankbeater]

One of the reasons I go fishing is so I won't have to think about stuff like this.

[Dan:]

One of the reasons I go fishing is so I won't have to think about stuff like this.

same here. I just try different things until I find things that work, then I remember thost things and replicate them.