By Paul Lebowitz

Bass fishing tricks. Let’s count the ways. There’s that great staple, plastics, in all its big and small varieties. That fish favorite Gulp too. You’ve got your crankbaits and blades, small spinnerbaits from a half ounce to giants weighing three times as much. Then there are a couple of special categories, heavy weedless jigs and giant hunks of sight-fishing plastic as known as slugs.

That list of artificial baits that’ll catch a saltwater bass is a long one! Of course, what accounts for calicos doesn’t necessarily work for their smaller cousins the spotties. And vice-versa? Little calicos will snap up a tiny grub, the big ones too at times. But for argument’s sake, let’s stipulate going super small is not normally a winning strategy, at least not unless your name is Erik Bent and you’re dunking Newport docks from a surfboard.

The meandering point as plain as the smile on fishing champ Ed Howerton’s face is different lures – and thus different rods and reels spooled up with different strength string – are required from water to water. In Plastic Navy terms, they break down into two or three sets of gear. That’s a quiver each for the spotted bay bass that swim Mission and Newport, another for the structure calicos at Dana Pt and similar environs, and yet a third for the grumpy sandies hunkered down on the bottom of San Diego Bay.

Unlike traditional boaters, kayakers are a tad cramped for space. Some keep-it-simple types head out with a single rod in hand, but most Plastic Navy gladiators say two rods is the bare minimum. Take a look at the average guy’s ride just as he’s about to launch, and you’ll probably find a quiver of three or four sticks set-up and ready for action. Let’s see what a few familiar names in the Plastic Navy family have to say about it.

“This is a difficult one. What do you really need to show up with?” said the Maxima sponsored Howerton, a dominant 2007 performance salted away in his back pocket. Perhaps there’s no cut and dry answer?

“No there isn’t. I’d say four rods. Personally, I’ve been fortunate enough to fish with the best gear made,” Howerton added. For Mission and Newport, his foursome breaks down into two swimbait rods and two crankbait or spinnerbait sticks. Ready for the kicker? Howerton avoids light line.

“This is just me now. I fish no lighter than 10-lb test. Why? Because I don’t like to lose. If you lose one fish, it could be the whole ballgame,” Howerton admitted with his characteristic openness.

In San Diego Bay, that strategy leads to 20-lb line. “You’re fishing on the bottom; the fish are not going to see it,” he quipped. Ok, he also goes as low as 12-lb. It’s his normal rig for fishing the long line wind ‘n grind.

When it comes to calicos, Howerton is chucking thicker string. For iron, that’s 25 or 40-lb, and 65 or 80-lb braid on the slugs. That’s the only time he breaks out the superline. “Personally, I feel fish need the stretch. If they pick up the bait they have a tendency to spit when they feel the pressure. If you feel it, the fish feels it. A lot of guys would disagree,” Howerton modestly added.

One of those guys would be Hobie factory rider Nate Clookie, although I’m sure he’d never put it that way. An angler who always looks like he’s having fun, Clookie has a knack for catching big sandbass. On good days he pressures Howerton on the latter’s home court. 

Clookie, a member of the Abu Garcia Kayak Fishing Team, only fishes Revo Inshore baitcasters filled with 50 or 65-lb Spiderwire. Depending on the venue, he ties on a different top-shot. It’s 8-lb for spotties on plastics; 12-lbs or straight to the braid for crankbaits. In the bigger water outside, Clookie scales up to 12 or 15-lb top-shots for swimbaits. For weedless jigs like the Trix Jetty Worm, 20-lbs is the ticket.

“The Revo is a smaller reel, perfectly suited to spotties and sandies. Calicos too, because it packs 24-lbs of drag,” Clookie said. He even uses one for his slug rod. “Yes, the spool is deep enough to toss a slug as far as I can throw it,” he added.

Now let’s hear from Brian Sanner, a man who has often inhabited the Plastic Navy leader board’s upper echelons over the years. Sanner, top dog at 2008’s Mission Bay Trail kick-off, was gearing up for Newport when we spoke. Good thing this story won’t see print until it’s in the books.

BRAID BASS – Plastic Navy’s Mission Bay champ Brian Sanner fishes Fireline Crystal in the bays. He feels the translucent braid doesn’t deter bites.

COUNT THE RIGS – That’s one, two, three, four rods and reels visible on Drew Clark’s kayak. The only one missing is the spinning stick. Clark always brings one along for dealing with windy days.

THE 2007 CHAMP’S TAKE – Ed Howerton said the number and type of rods and reels to take on tournament day has no cut and dry answer. Personally, he often brings four set-ups when fishing the bays. That’s two for swimbaits and another pair for crankbaits or spinners. All of them are spooled with relatively heavy line.

CLOOKIE WITH A BIG BASS – Big sandbass magnet Nate Clookie is a big believer in fishing braided line on his Abu Garcia Revo Inshore set-ups. All he changes whether fishing in the bays or outside is the strength of the top-shot.

“At Newport, I don’t plan on fishing anything heavier than 8-lb, even trolling. A lot of guys are fishing heavier stuff. I’m fishing 6-lb on the docks and haven’t been busted off yet,” said Sanner.

He feels his crankbaits sink a bit farther on the lighter line, but resignation over the fate of a stuck bait plays a part. “If you get hung up in Newport, it doesn’t matter if you have 8 or 20-lb, you’re pretty much going to lose your crankbait,” Sanner said.

Sanner has bought into braid; he likes Berkley’s translucent Fireline Crystal.  “I was skeptical at first. Its no problem to get bit,” Sanner added. 

Sanner said he has 9 or 10 tournament ready rigs at any given time. “You’ve got to have more than a couple. I’ve got some for calicos, something for the bays. It beats stripping line between tournaments,” he finished.

And finally, there’s Drew Clark, Plastic Navy’s tournament director and the captain of Abu Garcia’s Kayak Fishing Team. As usual, this thinker shared something out of the box.

“I always carry a spinning rod. My best tournament day came on one. It was very windy. I couldn’t have fished the way I needed to with a levelwind,” Clark said.

The rest of his bay quiver consists of low profile baitcasters. Two are mounted on 7-ft medium action rods set up for crankbaits; he spools them with 8-lb mono. He works plastics with another, employing Berkley Ultracast braid with a 10-lb fluorocarbon top shot. The final and fifth stick is his blade flinger. There’s nothing but 15-lb Ultracast on that one. Five rigs? Isn’t that pushing it?

“Nope, it’s not too much for the kayak. It’s perfect. On tournament day, my goal is not to retie. Tournament day is number of casts day. The less you have to retie, the more fish you’ll catch,” Clark pointed out.  

Clark cuts his rigs down to four when fishing outside the bays. Yep, there’s still a spinning rig sitting in one of his rod holders, only now it’s spooled up with 50-lb Ultracast braid and a 15-lb fluorocarbon leader.

The large quivers listed here bring up an interesting question. Does it really take 10 or 12 complete rigs to compete in the Plastic Navy Tournament Trail? “No, you can win events with a single spinning reel. Paul Weintraub (like Clark, a Plastic Navy tournament director) fishes with two. He makes fun of me if I only have 5!” Clark said.