Entry 230-1

James Niggemeyer and Strike King’s New Products

Part 1: Don’t Go Fishing Without a Rage Tail Craw

Question: James, tell us about the new Strike King lures you’re most excited about, and why.

Niggemeyer: I’m really excited about the new Strike King Rage Tail Craw. I can fish this bait a lot of different ways and around various structures, such as heavy-wood cover, thick grass, rocky bottoms, boathouses and rip-rap. I can flip it, pitch it and crawl it. The Rage Tail Craw may be one of the most-versatile lures Strike King has ever developed. It’s different from other soft-plastic craws because the action is built into the pincers. As it swims through the water, those claws flap like a flag.

You can attach this bait to the back of a jig and use it as a trailer for a swimming jig, or swim it on the bottom or up near the surface through lily pads. I use a lot of soft-plastic lures, and this one lure will cover most of my soft-plastic needs. I can use it as a stand-alone bait or in combination with other lures. I’ll rig it Texas style for flipping and pitching or use a heavier weight on the front of it to punch through heavy vegetation when I’m flipping mats. I also like to fish it on a Football Jig and as a trailer on a KVD swim jig.

Question: What’s your favorite color?

Niggemeyer: My favorite colors are green-pumpkin-and-black and blue. I keep my color selection simple with this lure. I’ll be fishing 10- to 12-pound-test Seaguar fluorocarbon line, if I’m fishing it with the Football-Head Jig in clear water with sparse cover; 50-pound-test braided line around weeds, grass or heavy vegetation; and 20- to 25-pound-test fluorocarbon line around isolated or scattered timber.

Question: What rod-and-reel combination will you be fishing?

Niggemeyer: I’ll be fishing a 7- or a 7-1/2-foot All Star Rod with a Pflueger baitcasting reel. This is a great multipurpose bait that I’ll always keep in my tackle box.

Next: How and Why to Fish the Rage Tail Shad

Contents:

• Part 1: Don’t Go Fishing Without a Rage Tail Craw
• Part 2: How and Why to Fish the Rage Tail Shad
• Part 3: Take the Red Eye
• Part 4: Let’s Play Football
• Part 5: The Shaky Head