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[ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
12/15/2002 ]
BASS founder aims to "put the sports back into sportsfishing"
By SCOTT BERNARDE
Much in the world of bass fishing has been attributed to Ray Scott, the cowboy hat-wearing legend who founded the Bass Anglers Sportsman
Society more than 30 years ago.
He is credited with starting the entire bass-fishing craze, which hooks about 30 million U.S. anglers every year. He popularized tournament
fishing, which has grown into a major sport that offers millions of dollars in prize money.
He pushed bass anglers into practicing catch-and-release and encouraged the development of livewell systems in boats. And people listen to
Scott when he speaks his mind on such things as wearing life vests, boater certification and conservation.
Now, he's aiming to persuade bassers that real men use light tackle.
Scott says he wants to "put the sports back into sportfishing" by promoting a new rod-and-reel combination, the Sportackle System, designed
for fishing with 2- to 6-pound test line. Recently, he invited fishing experts to his 55-acre private lake near Pintlala, Ala., to test the new gear,
which consists of a Scott-designed rod and a large-spool reel invented by Fred Kemp, a St. Louis-based reel manufacturer.
"I know it will never replace the security of using 'well-rope' line," said Scott, who gave President George W. Bush one of the rod-and-reels
earlier this year. "But catching a 2 1/2- or 3 1/2-pound bass on light line --- that experience is much better remembered.
"It's like deer hunting with gun or bow and arrow: What's the better experience for the hunter? When a guy sets a hook out there on heavy
line in 50 feet of water and takes 5 or 6 seconds to pull it up and into the boat, I can't think of anything less exciting."
Scott has promoted light-tackle fishing and tournaments the past few years. Lighter line means increased bites (and probably more
break-offs), better sensitivity in detecting a strike and a more exciting fight.
The only problem in his concept is that light-test line works best with ultra-light gear, which often gets overwhelmed by a surging largemouth
bass. And using light line with rods and reels made for heavier lines causes breaks and tangles.
Scott developed a light-weight rod that weighs 2.3 ounces (traditional spinning rods are at least twice as heavy) but has more backbone than
ultra-light sticks. His models are 6 1/2 and 7 feet long and feature smaller guides.
Then, he hooked up with Kemp, president of U.S. Reel, who built a new reel that will be marketed as the Ray Scott SuperCaster 225. The reel
has a noticeably larger spool (2 1/4 inches diameter, compared to a 1 1/2 average on most reels) and a light body made of aircraft-grade carbon
fiber. The drag system is designed especially for smaller lines.
"Lightweight, but strong," said Kemp, a homebuilder-turned-reel-designer. "The advantage of the large-size spool is longer casts, less line
twist and low-line memory."
The prototypes went over well at the recent testing on Scott's lake. One angler, a photographer named Joe Songers, caught a 5-pound, 6-ounce
bass, believed to be an Alabama line-class record.
Scott said he plans to market his new rod (which retails for $189) like he did when he started BASS --- one angler at a time. He hopes word
of mouth will help it catch on. The rod-and-reel combo should be available together by the spring (price to be determined).
"I'm not suggesting that everyone should fish this way, just like I wouldn't tell anyone to hunt with a bow and arrow instead of a gun," he
said. "I have no intentions of damning the heavy fishing line and heavy rods. . . . But it takes a real man, not a sissy, to use 4-pound test."
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