By: Joe Sheaffer
Looking back to my bass fishing days, one of my go-to lures was a plastic jerk shad. I loved to skip the lure under docks to unsuspecting fish. This lure crosses over very well to the inshore fishing game. Strategies that have worked for me over the years, can be helpful during challenging conditions such as cold spells or low water conditions. Many of our inshore species will work shallow when the sun gets up to soak up the warmth of the sun. These fish can be very finicky, a subtle approach, like a jerk shad with a weedless light weight hook can be presented to these fish without spooky them. Making a long cast usually in front of the fish, letting it sit for a few seconds, then slow quick twitches can entice a bite from these finicky fish. This presentation also works great around potholes as well as the beach. Short, small jerks then pausing it as it gets to the edge of the hole or the surf can be very effective. Another strategy that works great during warmer periods, making long casts, using a quick jerk, jerk, pause, jerk, jerk, pause presentation. This aggressive presentation can produce slamming strikes. One of my favorite ways to present this lure is skipping it under mangroves or docks. The lure skips very well and because it is rigged weedless it doesn’t get hung up as often as other presentations. Another advantage using this lure is its availability from many different companies like Zoom, Zman, Strike King to name a few. The names on the packages may be different but the lures are very similar. This lure is very versatile and can be presented many other ways. It is a very productive lure to have rigged up during your fishing adventures especially in shallow water. Good luck and keep casting.