Tracy Adams Punches Ticket to 2013 BASSMASTER CLASSIC

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Cornelius, NC - April 9, 2012- Gerald Swindle said it best at the Day 3 final weigh-in of the Bassmaster Southern Open on Lake Norman, when he announced that this tournament was over after Day 1. Tracy Adams surprised even himself with a 20lb 13oz limit on Day 1. To most people around the country their response is lackluster when a 20 pound stringer is weighed-in because that happens every weekend on their home lake. To educate those around the country, 20-pound bags are extremely rare on Norman. Tracy explained, “I have never caught a 20-pound bag on Norman before Day 1 and I have only heard of it being done a couple of times. If it is going to happen on Norman it will be between January and April.” It is a great fishery for numbers, but trophy fish are few and far between. No one was surprised that Tracy was leading because Adams is known as one of the best sight fishermen, but after leading by over 5 pounds after Day 1 even he was surprised.

It all started on the first day by catching a 4 ½-pounder and a 6-pounder off the same bed. “In practice I found the bed and saw a little one in the bed and the 4 ½-pounder hanging out real close. I played with the 4 ½-pounder for a while and could tell she would bite. However, that was early in the week of practice and I thought, no way will that fish be there on Thursday” explained Adams. Tracy checked on the fish later in the week of practice and could not believe the fish was still hanging around. On the first day of the tournament he figured his spot had been fished but surprisingly it had not and the big female was still around. Tracy caught the little one first and then the 4 ½-pounder pulled up, and then a 6–pounder pulled up in her place. He was able to catch the 4 ½-pounder on a Zoom Speed Crawl using a Cashion M8447 7’ Fast, Hvy and 20 lb. XPS Fluorocarbon. To his amazement a 6–pounder pulled up to replace the 4 ½-pounder, playing musical chairs. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw the 6–pounder pull up behind the 4 ½-pounder. I could tell the 6–pounder was interested but I needed to give her a little time to settle down”, explained Tracy. Knowing the Day 1 lead was with in grasp, he pulled off the bed and gave her a chance to settle down. Tracy then returned a short period later and threw a combination of jigs, plastics, and swimbaits. “It took about an hour but I finally got a KeiTech swimbait in the sweet spot with the Cashion M8447 and jiggled it till she couldn’t stand it anymore and she engulfed it blowing leaves and sand out of her gills as she took the bait”, said Tracy.

Next, Tracy knew the location of an extremely large male that he found in practice but could not get to bite anything. “This was a sign that it was my day when I went to the 3 ½ - pounder that would not bite anything during practice, and I caught him on the first cast in the tournament”, described Tracy. He finished out his tournament leading bag catching quality keepers on a KeiTech swimbait and a jig fishing docks.

Tracy’s performance in Day 1 was a tremendous accomplishment, but he did not rest, catching the largest bag of the tournament on Day 2 also. He knew he would have to change his pattern going into Day 2 and would not be able to bed fish, “I didn’t even look for bedding fish the last two days because the weather changed and from practice I knew there were not enough bedding fish to be caught. It forced me to change things up. One good thing about Lake Norman is that you can catch a limit on a shakey head anytime of the year. I never fished the same water twice”, said Tracy.

In his career Tracy has already competed at the highest levels of the FLW Tour and competed in the 2011 Bassmaster Classic even qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series, but he remains very grounded. “It is difficult to know why I was able to string several good days together, but when it is your time it is your time”, said Adams. With this victory Tracy has guaranteed his place in the 2013 Bassmaster Classic on Grand Lake in Tulsa, Oklahoma, qualifying for his second Bassmaster Classic in three years.

2012 FLW Table Rock recap

I love fishing clear impoundments like Table Rock Lake when the fish start moving up shallow to spawn. The warm temps throughout the winter and early spring had the water temperatures in the mid sixties and pushed a pretty good wave of bedders up to the bank. As the tournament grew nearer, more and more fish seemed to be moving up, although wary due to falling water levels. My patterns revolved around the backs of some midsize creeks along with shorter main lake pockets with spawing areas. I fished a six inch Trashfish by Little Creeper around flooded bushes and other shallow cover as a way to get bites as well as locate bedders. My rod was a Cashion 7'6" med-hvy flipping stick paired with 20 lb Gamma Edge flourocarbon. This combo allowed me to skip this swimbait into some pretty tight spaces. Fish that followed the swimbait were often bedders that I would catch later on a craw or wacky worm. As the tournament progressed the falling water moved a lot of the fish to the outside edge of the bushes and eventually out to some secondary points. By the end of the tournament I was actually catching my big fish on the swimbait in open water about 6 to 8 feet deep on the secondary points in the backs of the creeks. It feels good to get off to a great start this year and I am looking forward to heading back out to Beaver Lake in a few weeks.

 Anthony Gagliardi

You have to be happy anytime you start the year out with a top ten, especially when it is in your own backyard. Hopefully this 5th place finish at Harwell will create some good momentum going into this 2012 season. I am excited about the schedule going forward as it contains several lakes I have either won on or had good success. Looking back on Hartwell, there are still some thinks to learn from but I am pretty satisfied with the decisions that I made throughout the tournament. Here is a review of my primary patterns.

I would spend the first part of the day on my deep fish; and this is when I would usually catch my weight for the day, all before 10:30 to 11:00. It was a fairly large area that featured a roadbed, a ditch funneling onto a spawning flat, and a point that bumped out into the side of the ditch. I would fish around until I started seeing scattered fish on my Humminbird sonar and then I would slow down. Sometimes I got bit on the top of the roadbed, sometimes on the side. I also got bites down in the ditch directly out from where the point pushed outward into the ditch. And lastly I caught many fish on the point itself. The point turned out to be the most consistent place for me to get bites, especially as the tournament progressed. Most bites were between 22 to 34 feet. I was using a 5/16 oz. Spot Remover with either a Senko or Magnum Finesse Worm, I also went with 10 lb Gamma Edge Flourocarbon. However, the biggest reason for my success honestly had to do with my Cashion rods. Early in the tournament I would get a bite, reel down slowly to tighten up, only to set the hook and get nothing. I missed quite a few fish early on. So I decided to do something different. I started to really pay attention to just the bite itself, not waiting to feel the movement of the fish. I would quickly reel down and set the hook at the slightest detection of a bite. By doing this I missed far fewer fish. I was using the 7' 3" Fast Heavy Worm rod, and there is no doubt in my mind I could feel fish way sooner than I have with other rods, and conversely they were feeling me way less. After my deep bite died I would go shallow with a 6" Trashfish swimbait by Little Creeper Baits. This is where I had my chance to make a run at first place, as I had several opportunities at some big fish but just couldn't get hooked up all the way. I skipped this big swimbait under docks with a Cashion 7' 6" Fast Med-Heavy Flipping stick. This rod really handled this big bait well allowing me to make precise cast into tight spaces under the floaters. I can't wait to see some of the big fish I am going to catch on this combination in the future. Thanks for all the support, let's go to Table Rock!

 Anthony Gagliardi

Anthony Gagliardi has already notched three Tour Major Victories and an Angler of the Year on the FLW Tour. Cashion Rods is extremely proud to announce that he now joins a Cashion roster of pro anglers that is prideful and aware of its exclusivity.

“Cashion Rods feel incredible in your hand. You just know as soon as you pick one up that these rods are different" said Gagliardi. Anthony is an extremely versatile angler, and can concentrate on catching fish shallow or deep when the situation calls for it. “It’s really obvious that the team at Cashion Rods use their technical expertise in designing rods,” added Gagliardi, who graduated from Clemson with a BS in Mechanical Engineering before becoming a professional angler on the FLW Tour.

Although Gagliardi has racked up a list of impressive accomplishments as a pro angler, he still remains aggressive and hungry.But amid his many accomplishments, he remains energized by the opportunity to join Cashion Rods team. “Obviously, Cashion Rods has worked extremely hard to make a name for themselves in a very competitive market. But they have designed a great product, now we just need to tell people about Cashion Rods." said Gagliardi.

Gagliardi brings a very impressive resume with him and the team at Cashion Rods is extremely excited to have him join their team. "Anthony has been tremendous to work with. We are extremely lucky to have him because Anthony is a very smart fisherman. He really calculates his moves and the equipment he needs to achieve his goals." said Cashion Rods founder, Dr. Matthew Cashion.

Cashion Rods Pro-Staff director Hank Cherry also realizes how valuable an asset Gagliardi will be to Cashion Rods. "I have known Anthony for a long time and competed against him. Anthony has earned his success on Tour and I am extremely excited to welcome him to the Cashion Rods family of anglers."

We offer two models of rods designed to throw Alabama Rigs. Our 7'11" X-Hvy (Model S967711b) was designed to throw heavy Alabama Rigs with five big baits and 1/4 oz. jig heads or larger. We have also designed a 7'11" Hvy (Model S956711u) that has more tip and is better suited for fishing Alabama Rigs with 1/8 oz jig heads. Either way the Alabama Rig has been a tremendous bait and a LOT OF FUN!