The use of forward-facing sonar is here to stay, whether at the professional level or among recreational anglers. Bass fishermen everywhere are learning the power of the technology and ways to trigger fish to bite. At the pro ranks, one of the best with it is Arkansas pro Spencer Shuffield, who recently won the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit TITLE on the St. Lawrence River in New York.
That event was won with his Garmin LiveScope, using a drop-shot, a killer technique for those looking at their graphs, but a jerkbait has also emerged as one of the best weapons for forward-facing fans. Shuffield utilizes them for a significant portion of the year and has learned some tricks to get fish he sees on his screens to commit to biting.
When He Picks it Up
Starting in the fall and then throughout winter and spring, Shuffield will likely have a few jerkbaits rigged up. His favorites are the Duel Hardcore Minnow Flat SP in the 95 and 110 mm sizes.
"I like to fish them over brush, grass, and standing timber: it's deadly," he said. "The jerkbait and forward-facing sonar go together like peanut butter and jelly."
Shuffield likes the Hardcore jerkbaits because of their casting ability, especially their accuracy.
"The magnetic weight transfer allows you to make long casts that are also very accurate," he said. "That's critical when you are casting around docks and cables. The baits stay low to the water during the cast and let you make those great casts right to what you see on your screen. They also have a great left-to-right action that gets their attention."
He uses the 95 for shallow water as it dives down only 4 feet deep and will use it in water less than 6 feet and when fishing for bass that are high in the water column. The 110 size is his go-to for all other situations and he keeps things simple with colors, using metallic ghost ayu and ghost pro blue just about every time.
Getting Followers to Commit
Anyone who's fished a bait around bass while watching forward-facing sonar knows that many bass will follow your bait without biting. To get more of these fish to bite., Shuffield continually mixes up his retrieve.
"I never let the bait sit for more than two seconds and vary my retrieve, maybe it's one rip, three, then four, and then five," he said. "I try to mix it up, and if I see a fish following the bait and dogging after it, I'll give my rod two or three jerks upward to change the direction of the bait and get the jerkbait to jump up. You can also give it two quick reel cranks, then snap up your rod to change it. Those two little things will get a bunch of those followers to commit."
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