Classic Runner-Up Pattern
Ike Worked Power-Finesse Combo
Thursday, February 26, 2009
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Photo: ESPN Outdoors
A single portion of Sullivan's in Pool 4 nearly carried Mike Iaconelli to a Bassmaster Classic victory.
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Mike Iaconelli finished 2nd to Skeet Reese at the recent Red River Bassmaster Classic. The two worked somewhat similar patterns – they caught both power-fish and flip/pitch-fish. But Skeet worked his magic in Pool 5, while Ike fished Sullivan's in Pool 4.
What follows is an examination of Ike's approach and gear.
The Great Depression
Ike fished the same area all 3 days, although as noted, he changed his approach as he worked through.
About the area itself, he said: "It was a very, very unique spot. Basically, it was a giant northeast-facing cove inside Sullivan's. It was shaped like a mouth, and three-quarters of it was a foot to a foot and half deep. But in the very back third was a depression that was 7 feet (deep) in the middle and tapered to 3.
"Every fish I caught in the tournament came from the edge of that depression – every single one of them."
Two-Pronged Attack
Because the edge of the depression was the critical bite zone, Ike worked his boat in a circle around the depression and targeted the sides. What he threw depended on what type of cover he came up on.
When power-fishing, he threw a LaserLure crank and a new ChatterBait-style lure from Longshank. For target-fishing, he pitched a finesse jig he designed for Berkley and a Tru-Tungsten tube.
"I'd use reaction-style baits to search, and when I got to a key piece of cover I'd slow down," he noted. "A couple of things were important there. One, the area I was fishing was I think a lot dirtier than the semi-clear water a lot of the other guys were fishing.
"Two, there were three types of cover I keyed on (for pitching). One was big stumps, another was clusters of pole timber – they'd be thin, like sticks, all in a cluster – and the other was horizontals, and by that I mean anything laying on an angle. When I saw that stuff, I'd slow down and use the finesse-style baits."
Pattern Notes
> The water temps in his area had dropped from 60 on day 1 to 50 on day 3, which slowed the reaction bite. He caught each of his 15 or so day-3 fish on the tube.
> About the two cold fronts that blew through, Ike said: "To me, I think the colder water temps triggered these fish to feed. A lot of time in the pre-spawn, a cold snap can trigger these fish to feed again."
Gear Notes
> Crankbait gear: 6'6" Team Daiwa-S fiberglass cranking rod ("One of the old green, cork-handled ones"), Daiwa Steez casting reel (6.3:1), 20-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon (green), LaserLure Super Shallow Diver (Ike's special, which is black/blue).
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Photo: Berkley
Ike mixed it up, and his finesse presentation included a tube and a Berkley Ike's Finesse Gripper jig (shown).
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> Ike noted that LaserLure built him about six baits in the "Ike's special" custom color the week before the Classic. The color will soon be available to the public. "It's really neat – it's black/blue but with a little bit of transparency so the (internal) laser will pop," he said.
> Swim-jig gear: 7'2" Team Daiwa Mike Iaconelli signature-series rod, Daiwa Steez casting reel, 20-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon (green), 3/8-ounce Longshank ChatterBait-style swim-jig (Ike's revenge, which is black/blue), "generic" grub trailer (black/blue).
> Finesse jig gear: Same rod and reel as swim-jig, 20-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon (clear), 3/8-ounce Berkley Ike's Finesse Gripper jig (blue fleck), "generic" grub trailer (black/blue).
> Tube gear: Same rod and reel and line as finesse jig, 1/4-ounce Tru-Tungsten weight, 4/0 extra-wide gap Youvella hook, 4 1/2-inch Tru-Tungsten tube (black/blue, not yet available to public).
> He used MegaStrike scent on all his baits. "I'm not sponsored by them, but I feel it added a little bit of appeal," he noted.
> He also talked of his eyewear being significant. "It was key to be able to identity stumps that were just under the water," he said. "I wore the new Cocoons Pro Models that Ish Monroe and I are designing. I used yellow lenses, which have been one of my favorites the last couple of years. That color really brightens things up and helps you see dark stuff a lot easier than with traditional gray lenses."
Main factor in his success – "To be honest, I had a lot of confidence in that one spot. It would have been really easy to get caught up with running around. The other thing was time management. I fished in Pool 4, so I only had about 5 hours to fish every day. Being able to manage my time each day was real important."
Notable
Although not a piece of traditional gear, Ike wore a medal on his jacket throughout the event. Here's what he said about it.
"There's a great story behind that. Last year at Table Rock for the Stren Championship, I was going into the second day, which would decide whether or not I qualified for the Forrest Wood Cup. I had a soldier with me that was over in Iraq – who'd served in active combat. He gave me that pin as good luck. He said, 'Mike, please wear this.'
"That meant a lot to me. That pin, from what I understand, is given when you see active duty in combat – when you're in action and getting shot at. That really meant a lot to me. I kept it on my jacket from last season, and I'll continue to use it to support him and show appreciation for what everybody's doing over there."
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