Serving up a Specialty
While nobody really knows at this
point how big of a hit reach rods or
“super rods” will be, it is safe to assume
they will be technique-specific and use-
ful in only a handful of situations.
Cranking and flipping are the main
techniques where early adopters and
product testers have been putting
them to use, but if there are other
applicable scenarios you can bet bass
fishermen will find them once they
adjust to the differences.
We reached out to several pros
who’ve had a chance to try out the new
mega-rods to find out where they see
them fitting into a tournament angler’s
arsenal.
Great for Cranking
which boasts a medium-heavy power and
light composite construction. Lew’s also
recently introduced a 9-foot Custom Pro
Speed Stick Mark Rose Ledge Series Long
Range Crankbait rod, a 9-foot Custom Pro
Speed Stick Series Monster Flipping Stick,
and 8-foot and 9-foot Tournament
Performance TP1 Speed Stick Series
float-n-fly spinning rods at ICAST 2017.
Like Kenney, Fritts says the primary
benefit of the longer rods is more cast-
ing distance, and not just when fishing
crankbaits.
“They aren’t any easier to throw than
the shorter rods, but you are definitely
going to gain some distance with your
casts and be able to maximize the run-
ning depth of your bait, especially when
throwing with the wind or when there is
no wind,” he says. “There isn’t much
benefit throwing into the wind, though,
because the longer rod has more
resistance.”
On average, Fritts says he can throw
Berkley’s 25.5 Dredger crankbait 12 to
15 yards farther with the 9-footer ver-
sus a 7 1/2-foot rod. He saw an increase
from 72 to 88 yards with a 3/4-ounce
jighead in a Lew’s casting competition.
Though JT Kenney is widely known to
the fishing public as a shallow-water
specialist, he’s actually one of the more
accomplished deep-water anglers on
the FLW Tour. He was a point man in
helping develop Halo’s new Ledge
Monster Series of cranking rods.
Deep cranking is the arena where he
expects longer rods to shine.
“The major advantage is the increase
in casting distance,” Kenney says.
“Distance is everything with deep crank-
ing because it allows you to get the bait
deeper. Plus, it allows you to cover way
more water.”
Kenney estimates that his casting
distance with medium-sized plugs such
as the Strike King 5XD increased by
approximately 15 yards with an 8 1/2-
foot rod versus his previous 7 1/2-foot
cranking rod. Larger baits such as the
8XD and 10XD sailed even farther.
“The long rods really launch ’em,”
Kenney says. “I can cast all the line off
with a standard spool and 16-pound
line with a 10XD.”
How about sensitivity?
“It’s maybe a pitch duller, but only
because there’s more rod for vibration
to transfer through,” he says. “It wasn’t
major. I could still feel when the bait was
on sand, rock or shell.”
Crankbait legend David Fritts is a high-
ly decorated veteran with Forrest Wood
Cup and Bassmaster Classic trophies. He
was instrumental in helping Lew’s design
its new 9-foot telescopic David Fritts
Perfect Crankbait Speed Stick Series rod,
New “super rods” in excess of 8 feet long could offer some advantages for fishing deep-diving crankbaits.
AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2017 I FLWFISHING.COM
49