Ira Waldman Posted August 6, 2019 Report Share Posted August 6, 2019 A few days ago I joined Swimbait Underground and yesterday I caught my biggest bass ever... coincidence... I think not! About a year ago I began throwing swimbaits and struggled. In Oregon our bass are not notorious for their swimbait eating ability; however, they still eat them good! Due to this, at first I didn't have too much confidence and I wondered if it could be done. After a few months of throwing a glidebait, I finally connected with my first fish: a 3 lb smallmouth that ate off a concrete wall in downtown Portland. Since then, the addiction has steadily increased. I acquired baits such as the Megabass I-Slide 185 and 262, the Deps Slide Swimmer 175 and 250, the Gancraft Jointed Claw 178 and 230, Working Class Zero 6 and 7 Citizen, and I was lucky enough to find a 3:16 Wake Jr from a coworker (I work at a tackle shop) for a fraction of what they resell for. Since I started swimbait fishing (not exclusively) I have found success throughout a variety of Oregon and Washington waters. Before the events that took place over the past few days, my biggest swimbait fish were around a 3.5-4 lb smallmouth and a 3 lb largemouth. However, after recently finding a Roman Made Negotiator in Oikawa Mesu, I put in a full two days at a local lake that has a fairly healthy population of trout. On the second day at 8:30 in the morning, I made a long cast over deep open water where I had seen trout eating off the surface. I began a slow and steady retrieve feeling the bait make wide turns back and forth and about 10 feet in front of the boat, right as I could start to see the bait, I saw the biggest bass I have ever seen make a beeline towards my bait. My eyes became incredibly wide and it took all I could muster to continue the slow and steady retrieve without yelling in excitement and anticipation. Before I knew what had happened, the bass sucked the Negotiator in head first. There was no hesitation, no doubt in its mind, that bass intended to obliterate that bait. After what seemed like an endless battle of violent head shakes and a terrifying run under my boat, the fish was finally in the net. After giving it plenty of oxygen in the livewell, the fish weighed in at 6.96 lbs of pure northern strain goodness! I look forward to learning and contributing more to Swimbait Underground! Gear used: Roman Made Negotiator in Oikawa Mesu Shimano Curado 200k with 20 lb Seagar Abrazx Dobyns Fury 795 bassing305, Jason30, SumoNinja and 20 others 23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassbass Posted August 7, 2019 Report Share Posted August 7, 2019 Thats a pig, congratulations Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumbler Posted August 7, 2019 Report Share Posted August 7, 2019 Nice job!! Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliBassin Posted August 7, 2019 Report Share Posted August 7, 2019 Good one! The Oregon largies are so thick! I fish southern Oregon a lot and it is very tough in my area but congrats on finding that pig! Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Waldman Posted August 8, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 1 hour ago, CaliBassin said: Good one! The Oregon largies are so thick! I fish southern Oregon a lot and it is very tough in my area but congrats on finding that pig! They are built really well! And thanks! It can definitely be tough here but it makes those fish that much more rewarding. CaliBassin 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noreaster603 Posted August 8, 2019 Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 H*ll yeah, big congrats! As you know this game can be a grind you cant be afraid of failing time and time again it gets you to try different avenues, retrieves, bodies of water, baits that you otherwise may never would have. It always pays off; may be days, weeks, months or years but putting the time in WILL pay off as you can see. Heck of a fish man. Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harshwaters Posted August 8, 2019 Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 Nice trout eater. Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CG_Fishes Posted August 8, 2019 Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 such a dope story, I can relate a lot being from NY Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Waldman Posted August 8, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 3 hours ago, Noreaster603 said: H*ll yeah, big congrats! As you know this game can be a grind you cant be afraid of failing time and time again it gets you to try different avenues, retrieves, bodies of water, baits that you otherwise may never would have. It always pays off; may be days, weeks, months or years but putting the time in WILL pay off as you can see. Heck of a fish man. Completely agree! It’s all about investing in the time. The struggles and frustration I experienced before this fish were absolutely worth it. It definitely makes you a better angler to fail time and time again. When you start to think outside the box and try stuff you never would’ve thought could work is when it all comes together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass24hr Posted August 8, 2019 Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 Awesome fish man and thanks for sharing. Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlsbadbassin89 Posted August 8, 2019 Report Share Posted August 8, 2019 Congrats on the new PB. That’s awesome Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmv_bassfishing Posted August 9, 2019 Report Share Posted August 9, 2019 Absolute donkey man, congrats on that. Time on the water is the single most important thing for swimbait fishing by far! Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeLo7 Posted August 9, 2019 Report Share Posted August 9, 2019 nice fish dude, congrats! Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SocalofSD Posted August 10, 2019 Report Share Posted August 10, 2019 beautiful fish...congrats Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassing305 Posted August 13, 2019 Report Share Posted August 13, 2019 Congratulations on your new PB bass. Ira Waldman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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