Since We Spend More Time Bass Fishing Than Catching, The Fishing Part Should Be Fun Too

Hello, My Name Is Burns, I love bass fishing. I'm a Bass Bum™

What can I say? I'm a Bass Bum™. Now the word bum brings up negative connotations I know. However, if you look up "bum" in Websters you will find the following definition:

bum...an enthusiast of a specific sport or recreational activity, esp. one who gives it priority over work, family life, etc...

It's probably good I clarify at this point. Yes, I'll give fishing priority over work any chance I can, over family? No, I do not. To me fishing is all about friends and family. I have my own definition of a Bass Bum™ that describes what I'm certain most bass fishermen feel about the sport.

My wife considers me to be more of a bass fishing fanatic. I can't argue, though I prefer being described as passionate about all things bass fishing instead.

I live and breathe it and go to bed most nights thinking about it. I live in Tennessee where we are fortunate to have many great impoundments as well as in surrounding states. We're able to fish for both largemouth and smallmouth virtually year round as we don't experience "freeze out" like you guys up north do.

Experimenting means learning. Learning means becoming a more versatile and better bass fisherman.

I'm a student of the sport who has for many years learned continually by fishing, sometimes catching, reading, and researching. I'm continually amazed at the never ending evolution of the sport's tools and techniques. I love them all and try them all.

As a matter of fact, I'm up to my eyeballs in the "stuff" of bass fishing. I'm fortunate to have an unfinished basement which I have taken over as my bass fishing domain. I keep my gear and tackle in it as well as my lure making paraphernalia.

Yep, I have my beer frige and a TV there as well. What more could a man want? And that lump of blond hair on the red pad, that's Murphy, man's best friend, always keeping me company, especially if I have treats.

I'm No Pro - I Just Fish For The Love Of The Sport!

Fishing rods, reels, line, lures, soft plastics, spinnerbaits, hooks, sinkers, topwaters, crankbaits, swim baits, jigs, bass boats, depth finders, underwater cameras and beer, I love them all. Oops, well maybe I should have left out the beer but the fact that bass and beer both start with a "b" can not possibly be a mere coincidence. Right?

For the record, I fish in excess, I drink beer in moderation. Fishing and drinking on the water is no smarter than driving and drinking. Moderation in all things (bass fishing excluded)...is the key to a happy life.

My wife calls these my "walls of shame". "Why do you need so many" she asks. She just doesn't get it.

It's not just about the catching, it's all about the "stuff" of bass fishing as well. I'm a junk fisherman. I like experimenting with bass fishing techniques and bass fishing lures.

Remember, "Experimenting means learning. Learning means becoming a more versatile and better bass fisherman".

Oh, and what about hard baits? Topwaters, crank baits and jerkbaits? We all love them. Big ones, small ones, floaters, divers and suspending make a day on the lake one of continuous excitement and anticipation hunting for bass.

I keep my backup hardbaits, jigs and spinnerbaits on these peg boards making them easy to catalog and identify.

Organization on and off the water insures a more productive and less frustrating day on the lake or river. What you see here is a rack where I keep many of my hard lures, floats, sinkers, extra line, etc, etc in plastic organizers appropriately labeled. I know, anal retentive.

By the way, I got the rack at Costco. It's great. There are six shelves and the whole thing is on wheels so it can be moved around easily.

Yes, that's right, another wall of plastics. Don't you love the smell of soft plastic lures? That is one smell that always conjures up pleasant memories and triggers anticipation of the next day on the water.
Making Your Own

If you haven't tried making your own lures you're missing a really fun aspect of largemouth and smallmouth fishing. My lure making work area is also in the basement.

I make jigs, spinnerbaits, plastic baits, tie flies and am just starting my first attempt at making swim baits. I'm just to the "master model" stage of swim baits at present.

I carve "models" for my plastic lures and swimbaits, make molds and then pour masters. From these I make production molds from which I can make duplicate swim baits and soft plastic lures of my own design for my personal use.

It's great fun but "not" really a money saver. If you do it you'll be doing so for the pleasure in it.

You can fish for bass without catching them, but you can't catch them without fishing for them.

Nothing could be truer. I enjoy "fishing" for bass as much as I do actually catching them.

Those of us who are not professional fishermen really do fish differently, at least with a different frame of mind. I recently heard one of the top pros say he didn't fish for pleasure, he fished for the win, to beat the others. It was all about speed. Well I can say that the desire to beat others with whom I fish is the last thing on my mind. I want my other Bass Bum™ buddies, you met them on another page, to catch the "big un" of their life just as I want the same thing for myself. While in this pursuit I continue to learn each time I take to the water while I enjoying a wonderful sport with great friends.

There is so much to enjoy in the fishing and catching parts of this sport. As you venture through this site I hope I can bring you information and knowledge from my personal experiences and all those with whom I have fished over the years that will help you become a better bass fisherman.

I also hope you will offer your own ideas and experiences for sharing with the readers of this site. See our "Contact Us", page.

Read and enjoy.

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