Alabama Rig

The Alabama Rig

First of all I would like to thank the few that gave me a response on the forum for helping me with this story. Now let’s get to it. The Alabama Rig came to light last year in a FLW event on Lake Guntersville. The top finishers including the winner caught huge sacks when most were struggling. After that one event the bait went viral and tournament after tournament was being won on this rig. Currently on the Tennessee River chain of lakes it has proven deadly here in the winter with guys catching huge sacks of fish daily. Even here at home on Lake of Egypt fishermen are smashing bass on it. So the big question is do we or don’t we allow it in tournaments? One response I got was that this will take several years of fishing with this bait to see if it is effecting the bass population and if and any damage it is doing to the fish. I agree with that. Another said that it is not the Holy Grail or magic bait and several tries with it have produced nothing. Another asked where we draw the line. Yes it is legal in some states and not in others. With today’s technology and the advancement of electronics what is the difference. Again I agree with that also. Another said that if it is legal then I better fish it so I won’t get my tail beat. Very true. One person said that it might be a bait that will just run it’s coarse and just be another bait in his tackle box, kind of like the Chatterbait or Senko. It will dominate for a while then fall off the map. Whether you agree or disagree with me, that is your opinion and I respect that but here is my thoughts on this matter. For one, I will have one tied on at all times when I am fishing a tournament when it is allowed. Do I think it may possibly change the dynamics of tournament fishing? Possibly. One thing I know for sure is that I have spent the last twenty plus years refining my fishing skills and work hard at trying to figure the fish out when I am in a tournament situation. Do not take this the wrong way because I am speaking for every fishermen that has paid his dues. I go out on tournament day and get the right bites I need, put them in the boat, go to the weigh in, and low and behold some guy off the street made one lucky cast and caught five four pounders casting this rig in the middle of the lake and beats me, who is the better fisherman? So to me what this does is dumb the competition. Now all I have to do is go around and throw this bait all day and hope I am the lucky guy. Tournament fishing to me is to see who is the best angler that day. The guy who figures them out and catches them. Sometimes it is me but most times it is not and that is ok because I love the competition.  Look at it like this. Why can David Fritts catch bass so much better on a crankbait than you? Because he has fined tuned the art of crankbait fishing and is so far above your level. How does Shaw Grigsby catch fish off beds better than anyone. Because he has practiced so much and has figured it out better than anyone in the fishing world. I can go on and on about fishermen that can dominate by using a certain bait, but to me you don’t have to be an expert to throw this rig, except know how to cast. Like I said before, I will throw it if it is allowed because I will have to when conditions are right but the bottom line is that where it is legal people will throw it. We will know more by the end of this year and see how they are won. It would be nice for someone to keep track on how many tournaments are actually won throughout the year on it. Heck, maybe I will do it and next year write another article on it. For now it is what it is and that is the bottom line. Throw it, don’t throw it, ban or keep it, that is the decision for each state and or up to the tournament director. A rule is a rule. Enough said.