Don Moorman, Swimbait Trophy Bass Hunter, shows us the Double Hudd Rig
(continued)
Regardless
of the bait size or type we could tell that Moorman had put in his time with
swimbaits. He could lob or underhand cast any swimbait accurately regardless of
size and weight. We could also tell that he has a passion not only for big fish
and big baits, but also sharing his knowledge of how to fish these baits with
others. He wasn’t shy about giving up his techniques, demonstrating what has
worked for him, and really likes it when someone he fishes with boats their
first big swimbait fish.
This Hudd was responsible for a
number of trophy fish, and continues to deliver
“So what is
the key to successfully fishing swimbaits?” Zander asked. “Its really pretty
simple,” Moorman responded. “It comes down to dedication and faith. Dedication
to throwing these baits all day, and faith that they really do and will work.
There are a lot of people that will try and mix swimbaits in with what they are
doing early on. It’s difficult to have success and build confidence doing it
that way.
Another bait that has seen its
share of strikes
Dedicate
yourself to fishing them, then all it takes is that one big fish to build that
faith,” Moorman said with that gleam in his eye. “Now that I’ve caught all those
big swimbait fish and been so focused on swimbaits the last three years, I might
start going back to work with my old lures and styles to see if I can boat even
bigger limits with a combination of both techniques. Besides, I’ve been away
from the other stuff for so long, I want to see what I’ve been missing! You guys
keep pulling out all this stuff I’ve never seen before!”
Don kneels to one knee as he jokes "I'm not
worthy" of the pricey Calais 4x8 DC
With that
Zander reached back and handed Moorman two setups to check out, one being an all
Steez baitcast combo which Moorman said was the lightest setup he had ever held,
and the second was a Calais 4x8 DC and Loomis GLX combo. This was the first time
Moorman had ever seen or held a Calais and the minute he casted it he was in
amazed by both the casting distance and alluring whine that the reel made as it
casted. "Your telling me there is a microchip in this reel, can I dial up TackleTour from here?” Moorman quipped.
Cal and Don
get a closer look at the structure and see big fish hovering by nests
“This is one
sweet setup; I have to get myself one of these, how much does the reel cost?”
Moorman inquired. “649 dollars,” Zander said, at which point Moorman’s jaw
opened and he fell to one knee positioned the reel over his head and said “I’m
not worthy!” Cal reached over to hand the combo back to Zander and Moorman said
“hold on now, I said I wasn’t worthy but I still want to keep casting it a bit
longer,” Moorman joked. After a few minutes he finally did hand the rig back to
Zander and said "Now you guys have done it, I've never seen a reel like that" to
which Cal replied "oh you haven't seen anything yet."
The Double
Hudd Rig, a new weapon in our big bass cache of techniques
Conclusion: Prior to this morning, we were already sold on the big bait
craze, and while these baits are one of Cal’s strengths, we both come out of
this with an added appreciation of how a specialist like Moorman uses various
big baits in place of other lures, and how he works his boat, GPS, and depth
finder in unison to increase his chances of success with these often
intimidating baits”
A great day
out with Don, the fishing was good and the catching was tough, but we had a
great time out!
If you want
to catch not only bigger fish but bigger limits of fish, spending time to learn
the many techniques and secrets of swimbait fishing is a good way to do it. Of
course, there is only one way to really have success with these big baits, and
that is to put in the time. In Moorman’s case it’s only been three years, and
his success since dedicating himself to the big baits is awe-inspiring. The
Double Hudd Rig is definitely something we will be experimenting more with in
the coming months, and like all other baits sometimes putting something out
there that fish are not as used to seeing can make all the difference in the
world. As long as manufacturers continue to refine and develop new swimbaits you
can be sure that experts like our new friend, Don Moorman, will be discovering
and sharing exciting new ways to fish them.
Check out the
TT Video of the Double Hudd Rig in Action!
TackleTour would like to thank Don Moorman for taking the time to share with us
his passion for big baits, big fish, and good times on the water
