By Shearon Harris Lake standards for this time of year fishing “has been terrible this fall,” according to Phil McCarson, tournament director of the JB Custom Rods Piedmont Bass Classics Fall Trail, but it took almost 20 pounds to win the final qualifier Sunday for the Fall Trail Championship this coming Sunday.

“We probably had some of the smallest weights come in for the fall trail I’ve ever seen,” McCarson said. “But that is just normal here on Shearon Harris.”

The 19.43-pound 5-fish limit that Rick Ohlson and Joey Davis weighed in Sunday to win the qualifier was “a small bag for Shearon Harris,” McCarson said.

“Normally, it takes a 25-pound bag of fish to win on Shearon Harris, but that is usually during spring and summer.”

McCarson said fishing is tough right now, with anglers reporting the bass “scattered everywhere.”

“There is no rhyme or reason for any kind of pattern. The guys think the bass are just staying with the baitfish. They were catching them on spinnerbaits off the points last weekend, anywhere from 2 feet deep out to 20 feet.”

The water temperature needs to cool on down to make the shad ball up tighter, he said.

“When they do that the bass will start piling up. Usually, bass fishing on Shearon Harris is pretty strong in December, January and February. You just have to find them.”

McCarson said 10 teams are qualified for the championship Sunday and first place will win about $1,700.

The field will be small, he said, because, “This time of year it’s hard to get a crowd together, especially during hunting season. But, we’ve got some good guys fishing with us, some quality bass fishermen.”

He warned anglers to make sure they reset their clocks because the time changes Saturday night.

“I’ll be at the ramp at 5:30 to take entries and blastoff will be approximately 6:20 a.m., so have your boat in the water by 6:10,” he said.

The Fall Trail was sponsored by JB Custom Rods, which also sponsored the Piedmont Bass Classics Summer Trail this year.

“We were lucky to have a sponsor for the Fall Trail. The Spring Trail is looking really good for next year,” he said. “We had our best year with the Spring Trail this year and next year’s Spring Trail is going to be a really good one. It will run February through June and we have a min-trail lined up to coincide with it.”

JB Custom Rods in Dunn, N.C., owned by John Ballard, creates technique specific bass rods, each design having it’s own unique purpose. Every individual rod is painstakingly handcrafted.

 

JB Custom Rods – Piedmont Bass Classics Fall Championship

Sun, Nov 4, 2012

Shearon Harris Lake

Holleman’s Crossing

Call Phil McCarson at 919-471-1571(H) or cell 919-971-5042

www.piedmontbassclassics.com