Entry 305-4

I Really Got Tired of Catching Bass at Alabama’s Lake Guntersville with Mark Menendez

Part 4: Steppin’ It Up

Question: Mark, what did you decide to do on the third day of competition?

Menendez: I went to my first spot and caught 60 bass in the first 1-1/2-hours of fishing. About 40 of those bass weighed 4 pounds. I caught about 24 pounds, 9 ounces of bass really quickly.

Question: What did you use to catch the bass at this place?

Menendez: I started fishing shallow with a square-billed crankbait. Then I went to the Strike King Series 5 and fished a little deeper with a Strike King Series 6 crankbait. The current break I fished had a type of stair-step design. There was a stair step down at 6 feet and then it dropped-off again at 12 feet. The bigger bass were holding at that 12-foot drop-off. So, I caught most of the bass I weighed-in with a Series 6 crankbait in the Sexy Shad color.

Question: How did you fish the crankbait to get the bites?

Menendez: I used 10-pound-test line to get the Series 6 down deep and then reeled as fast as I could. I was burning that crankbait back to the boat and reeling it faster than most people would believe you should reel a crankbait. I knew the school of bass was holding on that stair step, and that if I could fire them up, I really could get entice them to take my bait. I was catching a bass on every cast. But I had a big surprise on this day. I couldn’t believe the number of spotted bass I caught. I didn’t catch any big spots, but I caught a large number of 3 pounders. This day was the first I’d gotten around spotted bass and started catching them. Most of the bass I caught were in 3 to 5 feet of water, but I was fishing in 10 to 12 feet of water. So, I knew the spotted bass were holding in that deeper water.

Most people don’t think of Guntersville as a spotted-bass lake. However, a friend of mine weighed in a spot from there that tipped the scales at 4 pounds, 10 ounces, which was a really-nice-sized spotted bass. Because I was catching so many bass that weighed 4 pounds, I got somewhat desensitized to the size of these bass. I’d set the hook on a bass, it would come up to the surface of the water where I could see it, and I’d say to myself, “Oh, no, another 4 pounder. This bass won’t help me very much.”

Question: How many pounds did you take to the scale at the end of the third day?

Menendez: I had 24 pounds and was in 9th place. I made the 12 cut to fish on the final day.

Next: I Needed at Least Fifth Place

Contents:

• Part 1: The Key to the Tournament
• Part 2: Day One of the Tournament
• Part 3: The Second Competition Day - Wind 'Em as Fast as You Possibly Can Wind Them
• Part 4: Steppin' It Up
• Part 5: I Needed at Least Fifth Place