Dandridge, Tenn.– After jumping out to a lead on day one, Aaron Martins could not fend of Britt Myers and his 24 pound, 1 ounce bag on day two.

Nearly four pounds separate Myers from Martins at the moment, but moving into day three, the tournament is most definitely still up for grabs. [Read more…]

Dandridge, Tenn.– Aaron Martins is looking to make some huge improvements to his season at this weekend’s Elite Series tournament on Douglas Lake.

After only about 30 minutes of fishing, Martins already had a strong 19 pounds of bass in the boat. He started culling early on, and kept improving, before finally weighing in a 23 pound, 14 ounce bag.

He credits breaking a personal rule for his strong early showing—he practiced. [Read more…]

You’ve probably stored up a pile of brownie points by going to romantic comedies with your wife. You’ve sat through predictable “tear-jerkers,” and now it’s time to redeem your points.

Luckily, The Fly Fishing Film Tour may be on it’s way to a theater near you very soon. [Read more…]

I have to apologize to the Walmart FLW tour in that they have already concluded two of their majors and we have yet to acknowledge the results and congratulate the winners of those tournaments. So, although it is belated, I would like to start by giving props to one of the finest anglers out there today.

National guard pro Brent Ehrler waited till the final day to make his move on Lake Hartwell but when the dust settled, he brought in a 20-pound, 5-ounce sack that took his total for the event to 74 pounds, 13 ounces to outdistance the second place finisher by more than 3 pounds.

In this tourney Brent caught them from 2 -50 feet deep employing a variety of techniques that included drop-shot rigs, jigs, reaction baits and the now infamous umbrella rig. He really showed how versatile an angler he is in this victory. In case you’re wondering, his most productive technique was using a combination of a jig followed by a drop-shot rig.

We have written about the Redlands Ca pro in an earlier article that showed the small ponds that he fished and began honing his skill as a kid. Obviously, he hasn’t lost any of his passion for this wonderful past time.

MVF congratulates Brent Ehrler on a great win!

Bull Shoals, Arkansas– Congratulations are due to Brandon Palaniuk for his first Elite Series win at the Trokar Quest on Bull Shoals Lake. Brandon pulled off a wire to wire victory to take home the top prize as well as secure himself a spot in the 2013 Bassmaster Classic.

In our opinion, this is a unique victory in more ways than one. In case you haven’t heard, Brandon managed to skewer himself with a hook in the finger that required him to weigh in early one day so that he could visit the local emergency room to have it removed and be ready to fish the next. Even with this time handicap, he never relinquished the lead. [Read more…]

We recently received a couple of emails essentially asking the same thing: What’s wrong with my dropshot rig? Why can’t I catch fish using this technique?

This is a great question because this is one of those techniques that you see on TV and magazines a lot catching fish—but in many conversations with casual fisherman, it can be trickier than it looks. Let’s dive in to a few of the finer points of the dropshot and answer these questions. [Read more…]

As the weather heats up and bass move onto their beds for the spawn, a lot of special things start to happen.

First of all, I spend a lot less time doing “grown up” stuff, and a heck of a lot more time on the water. I’m sure we can all agree that fishing is a much more productive way to spend the weekend than mowing the lawn.

Secondly, bass start to behave in that special spring way. They get aggressive, protective, and downright nasty. As a fisherman, this is a good thing. When bass are protecting their beds, that aggression means more fish on the hook, right? [Read more…]