A lot of times when anglers think about jerkbait fishing, they think solely about the pre spawn period. Major League Fishing Pro, Fred Roumbanis, knows just how effective a jerkbait can be year round, but especially after the spawn. Roumbanis is a true jerkbait fanatic and today he shares a few tips for fishing an IMA Flit during the post spawn period.
Fast and Erratic
“In the post spawn you start getting a lot of activity with the shad,” explained Roumbanis. “The shad start getting excited up shallow, start working your jerkbaits really really quick and erratically, you’re gonna catch a lot of fish. It’s a twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch, kill presenation, but I don’t let it sit very long during the post spawn. I am working this thing super fast, super errratic.”
Roumbanis’ post spawn presenation is much different than the jerk, jerk, extended 5 to 10 second pause cadence that he employs during the the early spring.
“One of the things I look for a lot this time of the year are boat docks,” explained Roumbanis. “I like some kind of secondary cover for the fish to relax. Some bass go deep during the post spawn but some will just kinda of sit up and get lethargic and get around bluegill and perch and stuff that are up under docks. So around boat docks, excellent. Laydowns excellent. Any kind of cover like standing timber, this is when I like to throw this jerkbait.”
Gear Up
The Arkanasas Pro’s go to jerkbait is the IMA Flit 120. “I really love the Flit because it has a slender bait fish profile, great flash and a super erratic side to side motion,” he explained. “The bill is key. It is designed so that it gets the bait down to 4′ – 6′ on 10lb fluorocarbon, if I go lighter to 8lb, it will get to about 8′ and if I go with 12lb it stays in the 3′ – 4′ range.” If the bait fish are small or the bass are finicky, Roumbanis won’t hesitate to downsize to the Flit 100. In addition to its smaller profile, the 100 has a tighter quicker action and will run a bit shallower than its bigger brother.
During the shad spawn, Roumbanis likes to match the hatch. His number one all around color is the OG Ghost Minnow, however during lowlight conditions he is partial to Bone Shad and Chartreuse Shad. If it is sunny and super windy he’ll go with American Shad or Silver Lining as they both reflect a lot. Finally if the water has a little dinge to it, then he’ll opt for Table Rock Shad or Ghost Chartreuse Herring.
Roumbanis fishes the Flit on a Sixgill Heimdall Series 6′ 9” medium action jerkbait rod paired with a 6:5:1 gear ratio Sixgill casting reel that he spools with 12 lb fluorocarbon line. “A big difference from early spring to late spring is that I go to a heavier diameter line,” said Roumbanis. “I am fishing near the surface so I don’t want my jerkbait to get down deep. This is in contrast to the prespawn when I want my Flit to get deeper in the water column and I will use a smaller diameter fluorocarbon like 10lb or even 8lb.”
