There's no denying that swimbaits and glide baits have become a worldwide phenomenon. Some of the best available come from here in America and also across the Pacific in Japan, but Spain has also become a significant player with Swimbait Republic's Glideway 176 Glide Bait. This popular brand is available in the United States because of its distribution from California's Optimum Bait Co. Since it hit our shores, it's been a favorite lure for many anglers, including big bait fanatic Jeff Clough, also known as SoCalCrusher on social media.
Clough has fished the bait before it was even available in America and praises it for its ease of use, value, and versatility.
Meet the Glideway
What makes the Glideway unique is that it can transform into different baits by adding weights to achieve different actions and buoyancies. The bait comes with lead stickers and has cavities that allow for different weighting depending on the situation.
"It's three different styles; you can add no weight and get it to float or add one weight to get a slow float. If you add two weights, it's a slow sinking bait, which almost makes it suspend," said Clough. "It's really three baits in one, and sometimes, I'll even wrap some lead around the hook to get it to sink even more, just add the same to both hooks to keep it even. You also have interchangeable tails with different colors that I'll change out for the situation. I'll use the chartreuse one if I'm striper fishing."
The 176 bait is 7 inches long, weighs 2.8 ounces, and comes in 12 colors. Clough has found great success with it for largemouth, smallmouth, and striped bass in Southern California and the lower Colorado River. He also hinted at a new, smaller size that will be available soon.
Clough says the bait is easy to work on, and the design features, besides the weighting system, allow it to swim great with any retrieve.
"I like how the hook tie is on top of the bait, so even when you have it in the floating mode if you hold your rod tip up, it will glide across the surface almost like a wake bait," he shared. "It's also a very stable bait because the bottom is thicker, giving it great stability with all the different weight options. Even if there's strong current or cross-current, the design allows it to glide correctly."
Fishing the Glideway
Since multiple weight options make the bait act slightly differently, Clough has found several different retrieves that work.
"You can burn it, or you can twitch it; you can do all kinds of stuff with it," he said. "It's one of the easiest glide baits to work, and even a beginner to big baits can just reel it, and it will still have good action."
One situation where the bait produced well was during the summer on Clear Lake. "It was in July, and I was throwing it over the grass, which came up to six inches below the surface," he said. "I was fishing with my rod tip up and gliding it over the grass, and they exploded on it like a topwater."
Clough will also cast right next to rocks and work the bait fast when using it for river smallmouth. "Another cool thing about the bait is that it is much less expensive than some other glide baits, so you aren't as worried about breaking it when you cast close to cover," he said. "It's $80, which is way less than some of the other good glides I have, and you want to get those baits right next to rocks where the fish are."
Once he makes a cast to a likely area, Clough will employ a handful of different retrieves. "One of my favorites is a 'burn and stop' where I crank real fast and then just stop it, then crank it fast again and stop it," he said. "I'll also use a lot of twitching with my reels. I've noticed over the years the fish in California won't react to a standard glide anymore. That won't cut it since they've seen it so much, and you need to use chopping action to get bites."
Glideway Gear, Color Selection, and When to Fish It
Clough fishes the Glideway 176 on an iRod Quercus 7-feet, 8-inch "Jr. Swim" rod that's rated for baits between 2 and 4 ounces and pairs it with a 300-sized reel and 15-pound Seaguar AbrazX fluorocarbon.
He has all the colors, but two stand out. "Offspring is a transparent baitfish imitator, and it's definitely my favorite," he said. "Another good one is After Party, which is straight white."
Because he likes to fish the Glideway quickly and get the most out of the action, it's primarily a warm-water bait for Clough. "When it gets real cold, I switch to soft swimbaits," he said. "The Glideway will still work, but it's definitely better for springtime and summer fishing when the fish are more aggressive."
The Glideway 176 has flown under the radar for many big bait fans, but it's a proven lure that was first tested in Europe and has become a favorite for anglers here in America. It's a versatile bait that catches fish with many different retrieves.
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