‘New’ cranking technique excellent for summer bass

This month’s edition of FLW Bass Fishing has all kinds of interesting stories, including one about “long-lining” crankbaits.

Written by Tyler Brinks, the article describes a deep-cranking technique that Mark Rose of West Memphis uses in the summer. Rose casts a crankbait, and then with the reel disengaged, uses his trolling motor to move his boat 4050 yards while the crankbait sits on the surface. When he reaches his desired position, Rose stops the boat, engages the reel and retrieves. The distance flattens the crankbait’s arc and allows it to run longer at its maximum depth before it ascends.

“It works best during the hottest times of the year when fish are very deep or when there is a lot of fishing pressure moving fish deeper because they are finicky,” Rose said in the article.

I used this very technique to win a mini tournament at the 1993 Red Man All-American championship on the Black Warrior River near Tuscaloosa, Ala. The first two days were practice rounds in which press observers were allowed to fish. Some pros didn’t like this tradition, and some had a one hookset rule. The observer was allowed to set the hook only once. If he hooked a log, tough luck. Some pros wouldn’t allow you to retrieve a stuck lure.

Others encouraged their press observers to fish aggressively to help them identify or eliminate productive or unproductive water and baits.

During one of these rounds I accompanied pro angler Bobby McMullin of St. Louis. We were in an upper portion of the Black Warrior River where the water was very clear, and where few other anglers ventured because of the area’s preponderance of small spotted bass. Most of the competitors fished downriver where bigger largemouth bass were more common.

To ease McMullin’s mind, I had a 5-foot ultralight Falcon rod with a spinning reel and 4-pound test line. It was basically a bream or trout rig. My only lure was a deep-diving Rapala silver/black Shad Rap.

McMullin zipped from one side of the river to the other to flip beds of water willow along the bank. His pace made it virtually impossible to fish that big, slow crankbait.

Eventually we reached a spot where an old lock had been demolished. The concrete ruins were still on the bottom. McMullin flipped a willow bed and hastened to the other side of the river.

I cast the Shad Rap and let it soak. When McMullin reached the other side, I closed the bail and started reeling.

I felt the Shad Rap bounce off the detritus on the bottom, and then I felt a savage jolt. I swept the rod back and set the hook, and a mighty battle began. The rod bent double, and the drag squealed as the fish made a series of line-stripping runs.

Up to that point, McMullin and I had scarcely said a word. His attitude was, “Be quiet and stay out of my way.” He was cordial, but he was in no mood for small talk, especially with some media clown who — judging from his dinky bream rig — was obviously not a knowledgable bass angler.

“It’s probably a big ol’ catfish,” McMullin said. “No,” I said.

“How can you tell?” he asked.

“I fish a lot of streams,” I replied. “It feels like a big smallmouth!”

Soon McMullin was beside me, encouraging me to take my time and not “horse” the fish.

When the fish finally showed color, McMullin and I whooped like fans at a football game. It was a 4-pound spotted bass, the biggest bass of the press observer tournament. It earned McMullin and me brand new Abu Garcia 1500 baitcasting reels, which are now highly collectible. I still have mine.

That fish changed the whole day. Having earned his respect, McMullin got very talkative, and he taught me a lot about his style of fishing.

Charlie Evans, the tournament director, described my tactic as trolling, which is forbidden in formal competition. It was not “trolling” because the lure remained motionless as long as McMullin’s boat moved.

The last paragraph in the Brinks article addresses that issue. He wrote, “Typically, trolling is not allowed, but how it’s defined can vary. In a tournament, Rose is careful to stop the boat’s movement when he finishes letting out line.”

If you’re in a tournament, clarify the rules governing the technique with the tournament director, and then let it work its magic.