Entry 230-2

James Niggemeyer and Strike King’s New Products

Part 2: How and Why to Fish the Rage Tail Shad

Question: James, what’s your second choice of new lures?

Niggemeyer: The Rage Tail Shad.

Question: This is a goofy-looking chunk of rubber. Why do you like it?

Niggemeyer: There are plenty of soft-plastic-surface lures on the market today. But I haven’t found one that produces as much action or noise as the Rage Tail Shad does. Generally, you don’t associate noise with soft-plastic lures, but with this lure, you get vibration, sound and action in a soft-plastic lure that can be fished in gin-clear or chocolate-milkshake-colored water. The lure puts out a nice V-wake so the bass can trail the lure much like a rutting buck can trail a doe, even if he can’t see her. This lure has proven itself to me. I’ve fished it and caught bass on it, so I know it’s a fish-catching lure.

Question: Where did you fish this lure?

Niggemeyer: When the Rage Tail Shad was still in the experimental stages, I was lucky enough to get a handful of them to test. I took them with me to Lake Champlain when I was fishing the 2007 Bassmaster Elite Series. I was able to catch a five-fish limit early on the last day. I learned that the bass preferred this bait, and they’d chase and attack it with a vengeance. I was catching largemouth fishing this lure on 50-pound-test braided line around scattered milfoil clumps and a milfoil edge.

Question: How big were the bass you were catching?

Niggemeyer: They were between 2-1/2- and 3-pounds each.

Question: What kind of retrieve were you using with the Rage Tail Shad?

Niggemeyer: I used a steady retrieve, holding my rod tip high to keep the lure up and on the surface. I reeled the bait just fast enough to keep the tail flopping back and forth. The bass either ate the bait as it came through the holes in the milfoil, or as it swam just along the edge of the matted milfoil.

Question: What do you think the bass thought of the Rage Tail Shad?

Niggemeyer: They thought it was a bream or a perch. Because the bass never really got a good look at the bait before they attacked it, as soon as the Rage Tail Shad came out of cover, they instinctively took it.

Question: What color did you use?

Niggemeyer: I used an experimental color with chartreuse on one side and green pumpkin on the other side. This is a really-different looking bait that the bass haven’t seen before, but they’ll eat it up.

Next: Take the Red Eye

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