This year is flying by and we’ve already made it to Thanksgiving month. It’s kind of crazy really. I’ve heard comments of the older you get the faster time goes; it sure seems this way to me now. I don’t really have a lot going on right now. I’m playing farmer more than anything and watching the weather closely for planting.

As a fisherman, I’ve always watched the weather as we all know this is very important and plays a huge part in fishing patterns. We must make adjustments as weather fronts change and fishing patterns change as well. When fishing multiple day tournament events, many times we’re forced to change techniques and even fishing areas to stay on top. I’ve always believed this is what separates anglers. The guys that are quick to realize things are changing and make the adjustments needed to keep catching the right tournament fish come out as winners.

Here’s a quick story on making changes in an event, even though this was an easy decision. Maybe ten years ago or so the tournament started on Lake Oroville in northern California with a stiff cold front and north wind. We had extremely high barometric pressure, blue bird skies, and fishing was brutally tough. I caught seven fish this day and all were caught on light line with a Dry Creek tube in 45-50 feet of water. Oroville is a fish factory and on a bad day a guy will usually catch twenty-five keepers or so, but on this day, I caught seven fish. The next day we had a warm south wind, very low pressure and plenty of rain. I simply laid two jerkbait rods on the deck. My first stop was good and I caught about a dozen keepers in less than an hour. I didn’t even fish this area on day one. I went on to catch 75-80 fish this day and culled to a great limit for Oroville. I won the event and won a brand-new boat for two days of fishing.

I remember fishing around a very good angler in the event and was surprised when he asked me “How do you do that? You fished deep and slow on day one, and superfast and shallow on day two?” I remember saying, “How do you not do this?” We had exactly opposite conditions in those two days and I just knew there’d be a bunch of shallow reaction bait fish on day two. It was so obvious to me and yet many anglers simply didn’t have the confidence to abandon their pre-fish and first tournament day patterns. Always pay attention to the weather and never be afraid to follow your gut and make changes. I truly believe this is what separates winners and losers in an event.

Congrats to a couple of great friends on qualifying for the BASS Elites next year. The General, Larry Nixon, qualified for the BASS Elites and so has another long-time stud angler from the west, Bryant Smith. 

I’d like to throw a reminder out to all anglers that as you read this, you need to get out and VOTE!!!!!! This is so important and one of the things that makes our country so great, so don’t think it’s only one vote. Think that my vote will count and take a few minutes and get it done!!

Good fishing to all, and later this month, enjoy Turkey Day!!

by Dobyns Rods Pro Staffer Chris Rhoden

Frequently on social media and within bass fishing publications, the mantra of “making adjustments” is mentioned. The process of adapting and following the fish in their seasonal movements is a lot of keeping an open mind and a ton of time on the water observing. Transition periods are among the hardest times to consistently catch fish; whether the bass are following bait schools through their own myriad of seasonal migrations or headed to/away from the bank around the spawn, you are trying to intercept fish on the move.

Keep in mind the basics of where the fish are and where they will be going. Once you have that pinned, the finer details of patterning the fish is often the result of ad hoc improvisations to adapt to the day by day conditions. If you find them in the first half of a creek arm one day and the bite fizzles on the next, press on and start looking for similar areas further in. Don't get tripped up on what did the trick yesterday!

Recently, my tournament partner and I fished a TOC on the California Delta. Going into day one, we felt we had solid areas with a lot of bait and planned to spend most of our day punching. With an outgoing tide at the start of the day, we found our fish in practice on areas that were slightly our of the current. All seemed well...except the punch bite was a bust and we sucked!

Looking at things later that night, we figured we were behind the big fish. Starting the next morning, we began probing farther from the current. Almost immediately, my partner caught a solid one on a buzzbait and had two big ones miss it. As the tide dropped, those areas fell off and we started looking for oxbows with solid weed lines. As my partner reverted to punching, I picked up the buzz and kept covering water. First bite was a keeper and the second was about a 5lber that swiped at the bait two feet off the bow. Ten minutes later, an 8lber annihilates the bait next to a pylon!

Another keeper came into the boat about half an hour later before the tide went slack. We ended with four for a little under 15lbs. We ended up in the upper third of the field but our big fish was enough to pay for the gas tab. We knew a 20lb + bag was needed for us to do well and we had the opportunities to do just that. Adapt, improvise and keep moving!

Dobyns Rods Pro Staffer Donny Bass took 9th Place with the MLF Toyota Series on Lake Guntersville with a 3-day total of 39lbs. 9oz. Congratulations Donny!

Brad and Kim Bolino at the American Bass/Bass Cat Boats North Team Classic on the California Delta.

Dobyns Rods Pro Staffer Derrick Hicks had a blast on Clear Lake with the fish easing into their fall transition using a Dobyns Rods D-Blade Spinnerbait.

Dobyns Rods Pro Staffer Jason Tripp and fishing partner Adam Baldwin took 2nd Place recently with a 7.8lb kicker. Congratulations Jason and Adam!

Crappie were chewing today! Dobyns Rods Pro Staffer Chad Petrie had an awesome afternoon/evening trip on Cypress Springs. Caught 'em 4-12’ on stumps and low piles all on the Dobyns Sierra STP 791SF, pitching and dropping a 1/8oz jig head and minnow body.

Kyle Scott and his fishing partner pulled off a win on the Savannah River using the DX 745C FH.

Dobyns Rods Pro Staffer Dustin Dennis caught a nice tiger musky recently while fishing a 3-day, 3-different-lakes, bass tournament in Tioga County, PA.

Dennis and his tournament partner, Joseph Osgood managed to take home the win at the Annual Skip Bastain Memorial tournament in cold front conditions, lakes turning over, grass dying off and water temps dropping below 55 degrees.

Congratulations fellas!