COLUMN : BALOG ON BASS FISHING the x-factor
Is vibration really the key to unlocking bass fishing mastery ?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
For more than 20 years , Joe Balog has made his living in the fishing industry on and off the water . A successful tournament angler from the Great Lakes region , Balog now lives in Florida , where he continues to work in product design , marketing and outdoor media when he ' s not chasing trophy largemouth .
H ow many times have you struggled to explain why a certain technique or lure works so well ? I mean , beyond the obvious – color , size , retrieve speed , depth ; those variables come into play most of the time when determining the effectiveness of our favorite bass fishing baits . But then there ’ s the X-factor : the variable that obviously exists , as evidenced by our catch rates , yet remains invisible to our detection .
For years , I ’ ve searched to define the X-factor . I ’ ve played with lure scents , pulled dozens of baits through tanks and briefed scientific journals to learn the ways bass see and hear . I ’ ve obsessed to the point of diving beneath the surface to view the underwater world ; to see for myself how bass fishing lures really work .
The bulk of my questions remain unanswered . However , after nearly 40 years of hardcore fishing ( and learning ), I feel I can safely say that the biggest X-factor in bass fishing – the subtle variable that determines whether or not a bass strikes a lure – is somehow linked to what we term “ vibration .”
Wave patterns within the water . Fish footprints , as I ’ ve heard them called . You see , energy expended as movement within the water – by real fish or fake ( lures ) – results in a wave pattern that can be felt by bass . Somehow , it ’ s that wave pattern that accounts for most of the unknowns . I think .
My intention was to interview a few notable pro anglers and get their take on this mystery , record their accounts and slowly begin to link them all to the subtleties of vibration and feel . Then I called Gary Klein and threw everything out the window .
Klein ’ s approach to fishing defies the X-factor . As one of the sport ’ s most seasoned veterans , Klein ’ s entire career – nearly his entire life – has revolved around rationalizing , discovering and quantifying the unknown variables of our sport . To Klein , no fishing riddle is unsolvable .
He admits the concept consumes him .
22 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | APRIL-MAY 2023