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Cleve Worthington- Vermont FROG fishing Updates for
2009
Team "SharkBait"
Email : Cleve Worthington
Cleve Worthington is going to be lots of fun to follow in his
development as a Designer Bass FROG™ fisherman. Cleve and his sons were "live
frog fishermen" for years. They would hook their FROGs through the lips
similar to my Bass FROG lures. They have had great results over the years fishing from a
small john boat with paddles instead of a motor in order to maximize their stealtthy
approach and to allow their craft to glide through the vegetation toward their hooked
fish. These guys know what they are doing on the heavily vegetated waters of Lake
Champlain and their local smaller ponds where they fish for largemouth, smallmouth and
northern pike. They just started fishing with the Designer Bass FROGs with one of my
personal FROGs, since my production backlog prevented me from getting them their FROG
order in time for what's left of their summer. I sent them my favorite personal FROG --- a
Clown Tree FROG, to hold them over until their order could be completed. They
had to take turns using it.
 
Cleve with his FROG "Shark Bait"
named by his son Jed after the character in "Finding Nemo".
9/15/09 Update
Sensing the end of the season, Cleve and the
boys, Jed and Zak, are really kicking "Bass Butt" in Vermont. All of their
Original Series FROGs are now getting in on the action. Smallmouth are gobbbling up
"Poison" & "Bull" for Jed. Cleve sent his new Pine Barrens Tree
FROG "Devil" out on his first mission, and shortly after, he was spotted in
mid-air clinging onto a probable state record smallmouth. "Demon" has been
banging the Pike & Pickerel. While Dad was preoccupied with his new sweet thing
"Bane", Zak managed to get his hands on the team captain "Sharkbait"
and landed a gorgeous smallmouth featured just below. But Dad bounced right back from the
loss of the monster smallmouth with the help of "Bane" who continued his
successful bass wrestling career by dragging 3 hefty smallmouths back to the net,
including a beefy 4 pound smalmouth. But, I'll let them tell you about it.
| "Of
Beaver Tails, Addicts, and Purple Hearts..."
The weather in northern Vermont for the last few weeks has been
almost too good to be true. Dry, mostly sunny, and calm and warm. After the nasty begining
to summer that we had, it was about time. Fall however is well on it`s way, with the hint
of foliage and colour change already in the leaves, and cooler evenings. Tonight it was
supposed to rain, and is in fact doing so as I am writing this now. Knowing that the
season is coming to a rapid close soon up here in the north, and that the coming rain this
evening would have an effect on the Bass, Team Shark Bait packed up and headed out to try
for some SmallMouth Bass after a hard days work. |
Zak & Sharkbait team up to produce
this beautiful smallmouth.
| We decided on three seperate places on the
water to focus our fishing. All of them were rocky sharp points jutting out into the
water, with coves nearby. We got to the first point with mixed clouds and some sun
filtering through. I had chosen "Devil" as my fishing companion for the evening,
and Jed had chosen "Bull". My third son Zak, was going to sit this spot out to
see the action. Jed cast first, then me, and so on. Things usually start slow, but by my
third cast as we were talking, all of a sudden, the State Record SmallMouth we`ve been
dreaming of, comes from deep off the point, and jumps clear out of the water with Devil in
his maw, giving us a clear view of his beauty and huge size, then crashes back down into
the depths of the water off of the point. His tail was Beaver sized, bigger than one of my
oars. Are you sure we`re not Sail Fishing? It`s running down my legs, and the boys are
going crazy! My seven and a half foot rod instantly bends in half as I try to set the
hook, and I feel him on for a second....but miss the connection. I`m shaking as I
finish reeling in Devil. "Did anyone bring some Toilet Paper?" Then the real
shock comes as Devil is 'life rafted' back into the boat....he`s missing a leg!! That`s
why I missed this monster SmallMouth, because he hit sideways and grabbed Devil by the
legs, hitting him so hard that he took one off comepletely!! This had to be the most
thrilling topwater explosion of the season. Devil 'took one' for Team Shark Bait, almost
landing himself into the Frog Hall Of Fame with a six or seven lb. monster SmallMouth.
Instead, he earns an honorable "Purple Heart", Team Shark Baits first, as he
awaits a new set of Ornate legs from CaptKen. |
Jed is just as deadly with
"Bull" as he was with "Poison",
scoring heavily that evening on
smallmouth.
| On a side note; we`ve long suspected this
small body of water held a potential State record SmallMouth, and now we know! We were
also planning on getting some video footage during this outing, but after what had just
happened there was a revolt in the boat, and every member of Team Shark Bait was frantic
to get "their Frog" out onto the water. We were reduced to being a bunch of
'Frog Bass Crack Addicts' for the rest of the evening! My third son Zak wanted to use
Shark Bait, which I was reluctant to do after what we had just witnessed, but agreed to. I
switched to Darth Bane as I didn`t want to waste another second, and Jed continued with
Bull. Although we continued our efforts longer than we should have in this area off the
first point, we didn`t see hide nor hair of "Moby Dick" again, and nor were we
likely to. Smallmouth are notoriously smart. Especially in small, clear bodies of water.
You usually only get one chance at them, and then they are gone. |
Cleve and his new buddy Bane get the best of
3 hefty smallmouths that evening.
"There is a serious
drop off just to my right." |
| We continued on to the next point, with a
little over an hour left to fish. All Frogs in the water. It`s gray out. Ten minutes
passes, then.... Bam!! Darth Bane strikes again. Eighty feet of line out, and this
SmallMouth is pulling my drag out when he runs. Splashing out of the water like you
wouldn`t believe. What a fighter, but Bane takes him down as we net him. A 4 lb.
SmallMouth beast!( See photo on the rocky point.) In Vermont, 4 lbs and up are considered
nice fish, with trophy SmallMouth from 5-7 lbs. I think the State record is 7.2 lbs. As
I`m letting him go, Bull gets swallowed by another hungry Smallmouth, and Jed has all he
can Handle with this Bass pulling his drag out. 3 lbs. As Jed is letting him go, Bane
draws another viscious strike, and Bam again! This time a Smallie @ 3.5 lbs. (See Photos).
"Who needs toilet paper now? This is way too much fun!!" |
Darth Bane in
the "live well" with another brute.
Don't be fooled !
Bane has this smallmouth right where he
wants him.
| "Bane
is awesome! What a nice SmallMouth!
Not the State record ( at least not yet...),
but still a blast to catch! |
| We head to the last cove at twilight. Not
to be out done by his Team Mates, Shark Bait produces the next Bass for Zak, that we can
barely get in the net he`s so aggressive. A solid 3 lbs. Five minutes later, Bull is
pulled under again, bringing in another Bass in the 2.5 lb. range. The boat is going
crazy. You can imagine how pumped everyone is?! Twilight is over. Darkness is upon us as
the rain begins to lightly sprinkle. We `re hoping for one more Bass as darkness over
takes us completely. Who do you think it will be? For the third time tonight, Bane uses
his "UV" powers, and brawls with a SmallMouth brute after a long cast, and
brings home the bacon to end the night with a 3.75 lb. beauty. We call it quits after the
photo in the dark, and begin to paddle home. Six nice SmallMouth Bass in a northern pond,
in a little over two hours. All were of a bigger caliber. This isn`t Champlain folks.
During the paddle home, Jed says to me, "It was a Turkey Shoot tonight Dad."
"Yes it was son." It just doesn`t get any better than that. "Be” the FROG Do they work?!
Cleve and Team Shark Bait |
|
9/6/09
Update
"Persistance Pays
Off"
"Darth Bane" drags a
Big Bass to boatside after dark for his "Master",
FROGman Cleve Worthington II
Cleve's "personal best" bass comes
to boatside on his first trip out with his
" All Visibility Blind Cave FROG."
| We`ll call this
update "Persistance Pays Off".
We begin on Friday by waiting for the recent order
of Designer Bass Frogs. Jed was working when I picked them up from the post office at
aroud 1 o`clock. So I opened the 'Christmas' package in awe all by myself. Couldn`t wait
another minute. Wow was the only thing I could say. You really out did yourself this time
Ken. They truely are works of art! Now to fish them. The weather was perfect on Friday. I
spent a couple of hours organising my tackle box, particularly where I keep Team Shark
Bait. Put some new twenty pound test Pro-Line on our reels(no leaders), and tied in two of
the new Frogs. Jed bought the Baby Bull Frog, so that`s what he fished with, and I started
with my Ornate Series Pine Barrens Tree Frog. I named him "The Jersey Devil" or
'Devil' after the Pine Barrens legendary Jersey Devil monster. When Jed got home(late), he
was cranked to go fishing with the new stuff. We knew we were going to have less than two
hours to fish. I couldn`t help but remember the big one I missed the other day, so we went
back to Derby Pond probably for the last time this season.
We got there and the usual group of fisherman were there. We quickly went to each one
of the six coves and hot spots where we know the Bass hide. We had a blast casting and
fishing Bull and Devil. The leg action is perfect. The balance between the durability and
action of the Clone series Legs, and the detail of the Ornate series Legs. Right on Ken!
But nothing. As the evening was approaching Jed finally had a 2-3 lb. Bass hit Bull twice
but missed him, and Devil had what we call a "sniff". The UFO of passes where we
don`t know what it might have been? It is now Twilight, and Happy Hour is over. We have
less than twenty minutes of fishing left as the full moon rises in the sky. I hear some
curses echoeing from the other side of the pond. Where are the Bass? I `m changing over to
my Designer Bass Frog Ornate Series- "AV Blind Cave FROG"
( AV stands for all visibility ), as I tell Jed how much I love him and how much
fun we`ve had together this season. It is a teary moment for both of us as we enter the
last cove, fishing until darkness is upon us. The moon is at it`s peak, the water is calm,
and it`s warm. I`ve cast my night frog about a dozen times. The bass are as silent as the
night. Jed is resolved to leave and is moving to the oars.
I decide to take one last "die hard" cast, hurling towards the shore
line,scrub, and vegetation that we can barely make out about 80 feet away. I say," I
think I have a perfect cast", landing right next to a large green plant in the
water.I let my Frog set there for a moment because I couldn`t see exactly where it was
even in the moon light, and I wanted to make sure that I fished him in the right
direction. As soon as I started to move my Frog from the shore, it sounded like an
electric trolling motor splashing half out of the water. This Monster Bass comes comes at
full on ramming speed because he can clearly see my specially made "All
Visibility" Designer Bass Frog, and swallows him whole as I instinctively set the
hook on this beast. Holy Crap! Fish on... "Dad, it`s a big one." I`m in auditory
aclusion. I can`t keep up with him when he runs, so I`m swinging the rod from side to
side. I almost lost him, but keep the pressure on him as we battle under the moon light.
As he comes to the boat, Jed gets a glimpse of him in the dark, Oh my gosh Dad!
"Don`t lose him." I`m trying not to son. We`re screaming now we`re so excited.
Then into the net, we got him!You could hear us yellin` and high fivin` all across the
pond like we were some kind of nut jobs! He was beautiful(See Photos). My new Night Frog
earned his name: Darth Bane( after the most powerful Sith Lord of all time), or
'Bane". Jed caught a Small Mouth that was 5 lbs. a few years back, and we`ve caught
plenty in the 4lb. range, but this was a personal best this far into our top water Frog
Fishing careers. He was fat, and topped the scales at 5 lbs. 12 ounces. That`s five and
three quarters. Just shy of a six pounder.
I know that this is no big deal for all the southern fisherman, and that it is tiny
compared to the likes of your Bass, but next to the Canadian border in a small heavily
fished pond, we feel proud. Normal guys never see the likes of this kind of fish.This kind
of Bass only comes out at night from his hiding spot in the thickest of shore line cover.
Our success is attributed to two things; Persistance and Bane. I firmally believe that the
Bass could clearly see my Frog and was confident in a large free meal to come out of cover
and hammer so hard in the dark! You made Bane perfect Ken. How`s it feel to know something
you just created for me at my request, eight hours out of the box, scores me a huge
northern night stalker Bass, and lands Bane on his maiden voyage into the Frog Hall Of
Fame?!! I tried to get some good photos for you, so you can see your handy work close up.
We leave, Team Shark Bait having scored yet again. By the way, I love Bane!
There are more monsters out there to fall victim to the Frogs, and the season ain`t
over `till "the fat lady sings", so you can be sure that we`ll be trying to the
very end. Once again, THANK YOU, THANK YOU Ken for getting us our latest 'family' Members
despite your full schedule. Your friends at TEAM SHARK BAIT- keep in touch,
Cleve
P.S. Jed wants his own night Frog! Can you blame him? I also want you to know that even
though Team Shark Bait Has all The Frogs it needs, any time you want to make ,or have a
Frog to sell, you have but to send me a Pay Pal request!
|
This is what Darth Bane looks like to
the bass at night.
|
9/1/09 Update
"Live Frog Test"
"Shark Bait" outfishes 30
"live frogs" !
|
Several days after our "Gorrilla
Experience". Jed had to work, and my brother and his son wanted to go fishing. You
didn`t have to twist my arm, so we took the night off and went to Derby Pond up by the
Canadian border. I offered them to use My Designer Bass FROGs, but since they were
"live Frog Fisherman" as I used to be, they declined and came on board with over
thirty Frogs to use as bait. I was smiling to myself. They used crank bait rods and reels.
From the begining, they were struggling to keep up with me. They could not even cast half
as far as I was, let alone the accuracy. And every time they tried, there went another
flying Frog for the Free Chinese "all you can eat" Large Mouth Bass buffet. I
started teasing them as things started to get testy when their Frog count started to run
low. They also could not keep up in the weeds and scrub, as the live Frogs kept getting
torn and stuck, and they lost more than one Bass from the hook tearing through the Frog`s
worn nose. They were stunned as I cast 100 feet into the back of a small cove near some
scrub bushes in about 8-10 inches of water, and watched as a monster 4- 5 lb. Bass
hammered Shark Bait, showing us his beaver sized back, only for us both to miss the
connection. Whew!! In even more utter disbelief, We went around to the next small cove,
and as Shark Bait was cast about 80 feet to the very edge of the bushes, another nice Bass
just about caught him in his mouth. Wham!! Fish on... Their eyes were big as quarters as
this Large Mouth is all over the place. The water was shallow with stumps and logs
everwhere, so I had to keep him off of the bottom. He came out of the water three times
with huge splashes and wakes( who says only Small Mouths perform acrobatics?) before we
netted him. Sooo much fun! He was just an averge nice Bass at 3.1 lbs. (See photo.) The
gaunlet had been thrown, and the Designer Bass FROGs had won hands down. My nephew Ezra,
wants one of these FROGs real bad now. I had to slow down, and give them some more
opportunities. My nephew did land a nice little 2 lb. Large Mouth, and they both caught a
bunch of half to three quarter lb. Crappies on their smaller live Frogs. I missed two more
real nice Bass in the dark fifteen minutes after twilight. We had a blast though, and left
for a real Chinese buffet, Team Shark Bait having scored another point.
|
|
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8/30/09 Update
"Gorrillas In The Mist"
"Poison" shows off with Jed's
beautiful Vermont pond largemouth bass.
A week ago,Team
Shark Bait went back to Fairfield Pond for revenge after a hard spanking, and having
missed, (being unable to land) a boat load of Bass. We got there in late afternoon just
before evening and keyed in on three areas, saving the best for last. Right off, Jed with
Poison started the action by landing a quintet of nice little 2.5 - 3 lb. Large Mouths(
See photo). Shark Bait was still struggling a little though and missed two nice 3 - 4 lb.
little beefys in a back cove and corner. I was ready to jump out of the boat, but managed
to stay sane. The sun was warm, the fishing was great, and then something interseting
happened. The whole previous week the weather had been really hot for Vermont, 80`s and
90`s, but this night was the start of the full moon cycle. As we neared the huge weed and
lily pad bed at the back of the pond to finish off at twilight, the moon came out, the
temperature dropped fast (high thirties), and a cold front moved in over the pond.
Steaming mists came off of the warm water, and there we were in the fog, mist, darkness
and moon light drifting over the biggest lily pad bed in the pond, with the last few
minutes of fishing time remaing.... and the Bass start going "APE" on us. Team
Shark Bait is throwing everything we got out into the abyss, and these Gorrillas are
jumping and smashing our Frog`s everwhere. Jed and I are going nut`s because we feel like
we`re going through a land mine field and can`t see anything clearly. We didn`t get lucky
though as they kept missing our Frogs. Can you imagine though what it`s like to see
glimpses of your Frog swimming through the pads and the mists shrouded in moonlight? It
was awesome!! If only we had an Ornate Series Night Frog with us!! But the experience was
one we`ll never forget, unique, and such an adrenaline rush! We leave, Team Shark Bait`s
score is evened out none the less. |
|
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8/19/09 Update
Cleve and his boys are now fully armed. All
three have their own Designer Bass FROG
Original Series, Ornate Bass FROGs, including
"POISON" the black & yellow Poison Dart FROG and "DEMON" the Deep
Jungle Tree FROG.
"Demon" captures a vicious
pickerel.
They also have more FROGs on order. These
guys are so fired up to fish the FROGs that I have given them their own webpage to share
their FROG fishing adventures with everyone.
"POISON" brings home the
bacon - a real nice smallmouth.
| Ken, I`ve
been in competative sports and such my whole life. I ran a Gracie Certified Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu school for 10 plus years. My point to this is that I`ve learned that after
you`ve taken a spanking, you need to get right back on that horse! And that`s exactly what
we did yesterday.
Team Shark Bait`s therapy consisted of a two hour visit to
a Small Mouth Bass pond in Eden Vermont called South Pond. We`ve fished it before and
caught some nice Bass up to over 4lbs. Only at night, and never this time of year. Plus
only from the shore in one place. It`s been unusually hot for Vermont lately(finally-it`s
been rainy and cold), and this pond has no cover. No pads, weeds or such, and nothing on
the bottom but mud, gravel, and dead logs. The shore lines are thick with trees in most
places, and some are fallen over. During the evening the Small Mouth are on the move, and
everywhere. The water is almost drinkable. We went in the middle of the day. We had to
hunt these smart fish to find them. |
| We picked
three spots to fish as we drifted in those areas. Again there was no cover, these fish
would have to come up off of the bottom in clear water to pounce on our Frogs. The first
place was likely the best spot ( see photo) and after 45 minutes and nothing we were
thinking it was just the wrong time and conditions. Suddenly as we were debating wether or
not to continue, Jed`s Frog Poison was stealthily sucked under by something. "Dad, I
think I got one on." Let him take it I told him. Wait.. Wait...Wait...Now! Set the
hook!!!(see photo) Bamm! Fish on, and what a fight! Within a minute and after a few out of
the water acrobatics, Team Shark Bait`s curse was over, and we landed a nice little 3lb.
Small Mouth(see photos). In the photo of the fish in the water I got, you can see he looks
beautiful yet mean! |
Jed poses with a nice smallmouth bass and his
Original Series Designer Bass FROG "POISON".
| We went to two more small coves. One had an
abandoned beaver lodge on the opposite side. As we drifted in, I cast Shark Bait out into
the middle not expecting anything as the action besides Poison`s Bass was super slow.
Wham! A huge Small Mouth came up from under a log in the middle and smacked Shark Bait
like he was a wired land mine! I had him on for a second but he shook the hook before I
fully set it. Dang It! Then two seconds later he hits with another explosion, but this
time he missed completely as Shark Bait lay out there still panting from the first attack.
Experience kicks in and we immediately double tap the same area with Poison. We can see
the Bass now as we are drifting in closer, TWICE the size as the last one, an absolute
monster! As soon as he saw us, even though he wanted to strike our Frogs, we could not get
him to hit again. We would have had some bragging rights on this one. Almost... but the
reward of such an encounter, and seeing such a fish in his home environment is really what
it is all about. We know where his address is now. On
the way back Poison was trampolined out of the water by another 3-4 pounder, hitting him
so hard that he knocked the Frog out of swallowing distance. He did not strike again. One
for three, could have been better, but not bad. When we got out of the water, the land
owner who gave us permission to fish(it`s a private pond), said that no one catches them
this time of year. "Only when they are on their nests", he said.
"Be the Frog" - Do they work?! |
| Enjoy the photos from the hunt.
Keep in touch... Cleve and the Team
Shark Bait Gang |
---------------------------------------
8/17/09 Update
Yesterday we went to a new small lake in search of
the Big One. It is loaded with lily pads on the edges and coves, plus the thickest weeds
underneath. Rumours were floating about this place, and I guess they catch some nice bass,
but they are very hard to land due to the weeds. Team Shark Bait fished for about 4 plus
hours. No one else we saw caught a thing, I mean not even a bite!!! For us, it was the
stuff dreams are made of! Jed and I studied the pond map on satelite before going, and
determined the best spots to fish in the whole place. Four to be exact. We were dead on.
We stopped counting after over thirty Bass hammered Poison and Shark Bait. Some were near
misses, others were fish on, and ALL were lost in the weeds! Most were in the 2-3 pound
range, but there were many in the 4-6 pound range, and a few beasts 7-10 pounds. These
Bass, mostly Large Mouth, with some Small Mouth, were agressive from the afternoon til
dark. Some of the big ones were swallowing the Frogs right through the pads. One Bass was
so big that when he missed in the pads next to us, his tail splashed the water like a
Beaver and we felt the spray.
Talk about thrilling!! I think God was humbling us though because it didn`t matter what
we tried, quick or slow hook set, we could not land a Bass. I can`t tell you how many
times Jed and I dropped our poles to get the net for each other, confident of a fish, only
to see it come off. Right up until we were getting out of the water with five minutes
left, we misseds five more, including a 4 or 5 pounder. Go figure...It was the off day of
all off days! The fishing was phenominal, we just couldn`t convert the explosions, one
after another into the boat.
We were numb from all the excitement, and from what had just happened when we left. I
would say that these Bass had never been fished by the likes of Team Shark Bait before,
although I`m sure they are heavily fished by the usual trash. Jed and I are headed to
therapy today. We need it. Another small pond that has nothing but Small Mouth. Maybe the
end of the week, or next we`re going to go back and have Team Shark Baits` revenge!!
Have you ever had a day like this? I can still taste the bitter sweet in my mouth!
Please note the few things we are in desperate need of when you get the letter tomorrow.
Until then, have a great day, and keep in touch!
Cleve
Team Shark Bait
| Cleve, I have had stretches of phenomenally unexplainable bad luck at landing big
fish, but not all in the same day like that.
I have missed big bass for as many as four trips in a row this spring. Unexplainable
escapes too! I felt cursed.
But you have seen the potential, and you are strategizing correctly on your pre-trip
planning.
Destiny will not be denied ! Hang tough !
I will be waiting at the mailbox, and I'll be waiting for the tide to turn for
"Team Shark Bait"
Shark Bait & Poison are destined to be in the FROG Hall of Fame
"Be" the FROG
™
CaptKen |
|
--------------------------------------------
Team "SharkBait"
Cleve Worthington- Vermont FROG Fishing Updates
7/29/09
Cleve Worthington is going to be lots of fun to follow in his
development as a Designer Bass FROG™ fisherman. Cleve and his sons were "live
frog fishermen" for years. They would hook their FROGs through the lips similar to my
Bass FROG lures. They have had great results over the years fishing from a small john boat
with paddles instead of a motor in order to maximize their stealtthy approach and to allow
their craft to glide through the vegetation toward their hooked fish. These guys know what
they are doing on the heavily vegetated waters of Lake Champlain and their local smaller
ponds where they fish for largemouth, smallmouth and northern pike. They just started
fishing with the Designer Bass FROGs with one of my personal FROGs, since my production
backlog prevented me from getting them their FROG order in time for what's left of their
summer. I sent them my favorite personal FROG --- a Clown Tree FROG, to hold them over
until their order could be completed. They had to take turns using it.
Cleve with his new FROG "Shark
Bait" named by his son Jed after the character in "Finding Nemo".
| Dear Ken, Sorry it`s been a few days since you heard from me. As you can
guess, things have been busy. None the less, I recieved my Original Series Clown Tree
Designer Bass Frog a couple of days ago, and finally was able to get out and baptise it!
I was so impressed by your precise packaging, and appreciative for the extra legs, and
the extra weedless hook bands. I couldn`t believe the quality and attention to detail. The
eyes, the feel, the set up, the colours, it all said "I`m special" and "I`m
gonna work"!
I started out using the extra legs first, as I didn`t want
anything to happen to the originals. My first casts I was gentle and slow as I felt like I
was throwing something from a museum out there to be destroyed. Gradually though, instinct
took over, and I `ve now dragged this little guy through hell and back again. Weeds,
stumps, pads, branches, you name it. He handles it all fine. I finally put the original
legs back on and have decided I like them best. Not only because they look so much better,
but because the action on them seems to me to be so much more realistic. Just smoother.
The extra legs felt slightly heavier so I could cast a tiny bit farther. I used a short
leader I made out of 65 lb. test moss green Pro Line, in case of anything big or a pike.
Attached to 30 lb. test moss green Pro Line. It worked well, and the action seemed to be
just as I thought it would be and should be. I think I`ll switch to 20 lb. test Pro Line
for the extra casting distance, but with the same leader set up. Loved the hook and it`s
set up.
We`ve only fished a day in terrible windy weather, so it
has been far from prime conditions, and we went to some place new. A small pond that is
heavily fished with primarily large mouth bass. We fished for about three hours, and saw
about six other small boats and people out on the water, and heard lots of complaining. No
one was catching anything. Well as you can guess, our little friend has earned his name;
'Shark Bait' ooh aah aah! (My 14 year old son Jed named him from the Disney movie Finding
Nemo.) We found a small cove with structure in the middle,and pads and stuff in the back.
Shark Bait hammered three in a row! Nothing trophy sized, like what you are used to down
their, but for northern Vermont in a small pond less than a mile from the Canadian
border(Derby Pond), they were decent bass. 2 - to almost 4 lbs. He`s lethal in the pads!
He even got his first scar from one of the fights in the pads and scrub, a small punture
near one of his eyes.
We missed a bunch of others. One of my sons was using a
frog on a steel leader and the bass was so big it broke the leader off. No doubt there are
a few monsters in this place. Shark Bait would`ve landed him though! It is just a matter
of time. I am absolutely confident that we will land a trophy with him before the season
is over, not to mention all we`ll hit along the way!
I`m ready to have another pair of custom legs made for Shark Bait if possible, a few
more hooks and weed bands, and how about those pins you use in keeping the legs in place?
Just name your price and I`ll pay pal it to you. Plus I`d like to order another special
frog from you. Something we can discuss when you get a chance. The kids are in panic mode
for the other Frogs to get here, so I hope you recieved the money for the second order?
and when should we be getting them? And what about those Be The Frog shirts? We want to be
the first to get them.
Again, thanks so much for sharing your awesome little
friend Shark Bait with us and all your time, talents, and experience to bring him to
life!!! Hope you in enjoy the photos. Promise to send you some more. Have a great evening,
Cleve from Vermont 7/29/09
Email : Cleve Worthington
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