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Southern Trout Eaters DVD

The G-Loomis 966 BBR — The BigBait Rod

Published: 24 April 2012
Written by Alex Tech
12 Comments
Categories: Huddleston Deluxe, MS Slammer, Nezumaa Rat, P-Line, Rods, Shimano, Southern Trout Eaters DVD, The Alabama Rig, Themes from our Southern Trout Eaters DVD, Triple Trout

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRJC3pot6GA]

I love to be able to recommend something I’ve used for years and years and years and have no reservations at all about recommending.   The G-Loomis 966 BBR is an excellent rod for the 8″ Huddleston Deluxe, which in itself, you need an 8″ Huddleston Deluxe rod, therefore, do not pass go until you have an 8″ Huddleston Deluxe rod!    No kidding, that is what makes this rod something to consider in the BIGbait picture.  So, dig this, you can throw all 4 ROFs from Ken Huddleston with the rod, but its also what else the rod can do which is serve as your ‘bigbait’ rod, the one rod you have multiples of so you can also fish 10″ Triple Trouts, 9-12″ MS Slammers, XL Nezumaa Rats, and various hard and softbaits in the 3-7 ounce range.    This rod is not the beefiest of rods in the bigbait world.    I totally understand and get where the G-Loomis 966 BBR is NOT a good rod for the ‘megabaits’ lets call them, these giant hardbaits and giant softbaits pushing 10-16 ounces and upwards of 18″ long or longer.   You need super specialized rods for those baits for sure.  What about the Alabama Rig and other castable umbrella rigs?  You plan on throwing any 4-5-6″ swimbaits on it?

The G-Loomis 966 BBR on deck or in my hand. You need an excellent  Huddleston Deluxe  rod, and the G-Loomis 966 is that indeed, and since it also handles A-Rigs, 10″ Triple Trouts, 9-12″ Slammers, XL Nezumaa rats, etc its an interchangeable tool in my bigbait approach

I need a rod to get after it with the 8″ Huddleston, the XL Nezumaa Rat, or the 10″ Triple Trout, or whatever combinations thereof, so having one rod that can handle multiple bigbaits is key.    I have at least four G-Loomis 966 BBR rod and four Shimano Calcutta 400 TE reel setups in my boat when I’m seriously getting after the trout eaters.  And at least one of the above said combos onboard at all times, because it can fish whatever bigbait I might want to explore in a more tournament centric lake that has big fish in it, like an Okeechobee or Seminole or Santee Cooper.  I know that with that rod, if things are good, and feeling right or just feel like chunking some big stuff, I have a rod that will handle any of my best big search tools.   Rod management.  If you’ve seen Southern Trout Eaters, about 90% of the fish I catch in the film are on that rod.  The other 10% are fish I catch on ‘medium’ rods.   But the film itself should serve as validation that the rod is a workhorse and staple tool in my bigbait fishing approach.

The G-Loomis 966 BBBR + Shimano Calcutta 400TE + 80# Power Pro = torque and power like few have experienced in bass fishing. To properly fish exposed or weedless bigbaits around grass , or to just ‘snatch’ your baits clean, this setup has grass fishing and bigbaits covered as well as the standard clear water and 30# copolymer applications.

Braided line?  You bet.  Try 80# braided line on your G-Loomis 966 BBR, and add whatever bait of your choice.  8″ Huddlestons in the grass on 80# braid?  No, don’t do that.  You will realize that a Shimano Calcutta 400 TE and G-Loomis 966 BBR not only match well in the mountains, but they match well in the grass. You might migrate south down the peninsula called Florida or wherever grass grows thick and heavy.  It is scary the amount of force and stopping power that rod and reel combo deliver with 80# Power Pro.    I’m seriously contemplating moving to Fort Lauderdale, selling software, regrouping,  and fishing in S. Florida and Central Florida for a few years until I get more bites on 8″ Huddleston Deluxes with 80# braid involved and G-Loomis 966s and Calcutta 400 TEs!!!  Talk about addicting.   Big fish, big bites and vicious battles in shallow grass where your gear better be balanced and able to get the job done.    Braid and a slow action parabolic rod is the reason God made hydrilla.

The A-Rig Affect

I found the G-Loomis 966 BBR to be an excellent rod choice for lobbing the ‘bigger’ castable umbrella rigs with the larger 1/2 to 3/4 ounce heads and 4-5″ swimbait tails.  Another usage for an already proven combo.   The rod can load up and handle the lob casting and swimming of a lure that weighs in the 4-5 ounce zone really well.  And it doesn’t suck that the rod can whip 4-7 pounders like other rods handle 2-3 pounders.    So with the effects of the Alabama Rig coming down on our heads, guys who’ve never considered a big rod for anything but flipping might like to know this rod will handle the rigors of the castable umbrella rig as well as swimming big swimbaits.

The Rod:

  • Moderate Fast:  Parabolic action.  The 966 BBR is slow compared to most, and that slower action means it has that parabolic bend, which means it doesn’t wear you out when you decide you’re going to lob bigbaits for 8-10 hours.  The rod does the work of the casting and retrieving, and hooking.  Since the rod loads up nicely, it has an inherent slight load it maintains while you’re retrieving your bigbait, so when a bite does come, you are in an excellent spot to hook and setup on a bite.  The slow action gives the rod incredible power on the pull, which is key to whipping big fish early in the fight.  This rod builds and maintains a lot of force and momentum and it really comes in to play once you get a big fish hooked up because you control and fight the fish while applying maximum pressure.
  • 8 foot long:  I like this rod is a full 8 feet long.  I like a rod that maximizes length for added casting distance, feel and touch, and ability to direct my cast as the bait flies thru the air. I can also lay my line where I want it at the end of a long cast, giving me the ability to influence the swim of my bait by the bow of the line at the beginning of my retrieve.
  • Balanced:  The 966 BBR is not the lightest most advanced rod on the market today.  That is okay.  You don’t hunt elephants with a BB gun.  You need to match power with power and this rod has the mass and make up that matches bigbaits, big fish and has proven itself as a workhorse.    We mentioned the physics of bigbait fishing in Southern Trout Eaters.  The G-Loomis 966 BBR is a standard to measure the strength of your line, terminal tackle selections, whereby you have a standardized rod that you can shape your rigs and rigging around.  The handle is ‘right length’ and the full cork uniform feel makes it comfortable. It just works.
  • Shimano Calcutta 400 TE:  The 400 TE is the reel.  So, think about this. I have a big round gold reel with incredible gears and gearing.  It fits and compliments the G-Loomis 966 perfectly.  It’s like they were made to fit each other, which they weren’t, but the rod and reel together balance.  There are a lot of rods out there where the Calcutta 400 TE would be silly because it so far outweighs and out guns the rod, even though some guy put ‘swimbait’ on the rod.     The reel matches the rod, and the rod matches the reel.
  • Interchangeability&Consistency:  With a few 966 BBR + Calcutta 400 TE reels, I know I approach any bigbait situation, and be able to throw the various tools of my trade and not worry about having specialized rods onboard everytime.  I can use the same combo for any of the bigbaits (or A-Rig) I throw and that is huge because rod management and being able to be efficient with your equipment makes a difference in your fishing.
I’ve had 3-4 G-Loomis 966 BBRs on deck for 6+ years. Interchangeable because they handle the tools of my trade equally well. Sometimes with fishing rods, you just find one that covers multiple baits and applications, and that helps you simplify your approaches and be prepared out on the water.   It’s not uncommon to have 2-3 Hudds tied on the same day or need a 10″ Triple Trout and 8″ Huddleston for the same 100 yard stretch.   Picking up the same rod with a different bait is easier to get used to than different baits on different rods.

Conclusions:

There are plenty of rods out there marketed toward swimbaits and bigbaits.   Shimano/G-Loomis  doesn’t even highlight or feature the G-Loomis 966 BBR as a swimbait rod.    They have other lines of newer rods and actions positioned to serve these purposes.  I understand progress and business and ‘how things’ go, but fishing rods are like classic shaped surfboards, or a fine shotgun, or perhaps a Tommy Armor 7 iron…somethings just work and are classic pieces of sporting goods.  Gary Loomis is a legend in the rod building world, and this rod is one of his best known in some circles, and is a model you can talk about and appreciate because it was made in the Pacific NorthWest as a mooching and salmon rod, where they’d lob big hooks and lead for big ole salmon, and can connect the dots that the rod is just ‘simple’ but takes advantage of the physics and balances and compromises.  Catching big fish by lobbing bigbaits, and we are talking about the same approximate size spectrum, so that is why I think the 966 crosses over from that original saltwater world to the freshwater bigbait space so well.   You a V8 engine to tow a boat, so don’t try and do it with a 4 cylinder.  You don’t catch trains on a bicycle, you need to match power with power, and the reel has to match the rod, and the big ole round goldie locks 400 TE to the G-Loomis 966 BBR makes me feel like I’ve got the perfect high powered rifle to shoot whatever big game I encounter.    The G-Loomis 966 BBR is a ‘classic’ and a rod that set a benchmark out there in the bigbait fishing community and is one you can talk around other rods.

Many of my friends use Okuma Rods, Dobyns,  and the G-Loomis Swimbait series of rod.    Rods are a personal choice, and sometimes they are a business decision and sometimes they just are because that is what you have and you already invested in them, and they aren’t broken so you use what you use.  I have zero reservations about recommending the  G-Loomis 966 BBR because it has worked so well for me, for so many years, and continues to impress me with the things I can do with it (ie, 80 # Braid).  You need a Huddleston Rod, you need a BigBait Rod, you need an A-Rig Rod, and this rod does it all.

Southern Trout Eaters Soundtrack and Music

Published: 29 March 2012
Written by Alex Tech
1 Comment
Categories: Culture, Southern Trout Eaters DVD
At home in Capo Beach, Fall 2004. Notice WON BASS and Anglers Choice tournament trophies, my girlfriend at the time's halloweeen costume, Rago Trout and 3:16 Armageddon, stacks of fishing junk, much of which I still have. Southern Trout Eaters was being developed before I ever left California, I just didn't know it.
At home in Capo Beach, Fall 2004, a few months prior to heading to GA. Notice WON BASS and Anglers Choice tournament trophies, my girlfriend at the time's halloweeen costume, LA Lakers ticket stub in corner of San Onofre painting, Rago Wood Generic Trout, 3:16 Armageddon decorations, 7" MS Slammer tied on, my first swimbait rod (top) I hand wrapped and made, stacks of fishing junk, much of which I still have. Southern Trout Eaters was being developed before I ever left California, I just didn't know it.

Here is the music we licensed for Southern Trout Eaters:

The Sweet Sunny South (Garcia/Grisman, Shady Grove) –Opening Menu
Shady Grove (Garcia/Grisman, Shady Grove) — Intro
The “C” –(Montana Slim)–Blue Ridge Hudd Breakdown
Friday Morning 9:30 (The Muses, Penny) — Freestyle
Angel Band (Old&In The Way, That High Lonesome Sound) -The Huddleston Triad
Pig in a Pen (Old&In the Way, Old&In the Way) Triple Trout Stomp Part 1
Working on a Building (Old&In the Way, Breakdown)  Triple Trout Stomp Part 2
Santa Maria (The Muses, Sinners Waltz) –Closing Credits

If you could listen to my iTunes library, you would hear music from the Civil War, the old West, Latin America, Hawaiian traditional tunes, sea shanties, reggae, country, bluegrass, and classic rock.   About the only thing I knew about Southern Trout Eaters, from it’s early conception, was that bluegrass would be the music that would be used (assuming I could figure out how to license the music).    Since I could not afford to license Bill Monroe’s music, I thought it was terribly fortunate that Acoustic Disc was accessible, super aloha, and worked with me to figure out licensing.

Old&In The Way and Garcia/Grisman are both bands that Jerry Garcia played in. His music outside of the Grateful Dead.  It reminds me of wanting to focus on bigbaits and chasing trophy brown trout, and still trying to do tournament fishing.  Different worlds, but all still very much fishing (or music) in Jerry’s case.  There are many things about the lifestyle choices of Jerry Garcia that are not to be copied or celebrated.   However, when it comes to music, Jerry’s depth and ability to capture the original intent of song is second to none.  The richness of music in real life. I enjoy the Grateful Dead, but I really really enjoy Jerry’s solo work, where he plays in old time, bluegrass, country, and various Americana style bands.  Jerry literally would learn tunes that were hundreds of years old, and get together with David to arrange them, and that is what always resonated with me.  They sounded really good too. Simple songs.  Simple music.  Again, that simplification being the ultimate sophistication thing.    It reminds me of taking a break from the tournament world of fishing and going after a big fish, or focusing on night fishing or exploring new water.  When you do something for the love of doing it, like playing banjo in a bluegrass band, you are forsaking money and financial gain, and you are just doing it because you love music (or the sport of catching fish).   Jerry has a knack for unearthing tunes you never heard of, that are hundreds of years old in many cases, and playing them really really well.  Great tunes, tunes that otherwise would likely be lost for generations and generations.  Do young mothers sing hip hop or heavy metal tunes to their children these days?  Do teachers bring acoustic instruments into classrooms anymore? Am I the only guy that likes to hear musicians play stuff around campfires way out the woods without electricity?  The Garcia/Grisman style of bluegrass was born in the early 90s in San Francisco (David Grisman was a member of Old&In the Way, and Jerry and Dave are just lifelong friends thru music who got back together in the early 90s to record music they both enjoyed.   David kills the mandolin,and together with Jerry, they formed their own style of bluegrass (called “grateful dawg”  the ‘grateful’ from Jerry’s contributions and the dawg from David’s mandolin style) , clean and acoustic, yet loose and fun).     I heard the original Garcia/Grisman album because my brother, who was then a freshman at Standford University, played it for me and my sister while he was home for a holiday one time.  I was blown away.  It resonated with me immediately.  Friend of the Devil and cover of BB King’s Thrill is Gone just rocked, and that sent me on my way to explore and connect the dots in all things that style of music when I was a freshman in high school.  If you want to watch a killer DVD that pretty much summarizes and better explains everything above check out Grateful Dawg.

"I ain't broke, but brother I'm badly bent". Southern Trout Eaters is a journey. Move across the country or somewhere you haven't been 2000 miles near, by yourself, not know a single person and try to blend in and get along. Summer of 2005 was some of the craziest exploration and weekend trips I have ever taken. Try driving thru Western NC and North GA with California tags on your truck and boat sometime. I was pulled over and inspected 5 times in 3 months! Just part of the journey. This photo was in 2006, but I still was learning the hard way... was trying to back down a long driveway, I high centered the trailer because I got too far to the right. Was stuck and had to have a wrecker un-stick me. Guh, fun times.

I was having dinner with my 2 college roommates in Morro Bay, upstairs in a killer beach house we had rented across from Morro Strand, we had been surfing that evening, when on KOTR, the local radio station played “Whiskey in the Jar” from the then newly released Shady Grove album.  This was the first Garcia/Grisman album that was released after Jerry’s death in 1995.  This was approximately late 1996 or early 1997.   There is something about the clean acoustic sound that Jerry and Dave put together that just strikes me to my core.  I think I probably played the Shady Grove album in my college days about 10,000 times.     I went to college at Cal Poly SLO.  San Luis Obispo is the Central Coast of California, and among other things, has a huge agriculture scene.  The Central Valley is nearby, and the Central Valley of California is where the biggest and baddest farming and agriculture goes down that I’m aware of.   Where I’m going with this, is there was a huge cowboy and cowgirl population at Cal Poly.  My favorite times at Cal Poly usually had to do with rodeos, Thursday nights at McClintock’s in downtown where even a goof ‘surfer dude’  like me could find a cowgirl to dance with, partying with a great crew of guys and gals that were decidedly non fraternity/sorority in nature, surfing and fishing (WON BASS and Anglers Choice). Cal Poly was a wonderfully diverse place where you would be in class sitting next to a cowboy from Bakersfield, a surfer from La Jolla, a snowboarder from Mammoth, and a computer whiz from Palo Alto.

August 2005 Trout Eaters. This was a special day. 30 pounds in August makes the heat a lot more tolerable. That Southern heat was something (it still is). I went out and caught 5 studs by the time the wake boards ruined the lake. A nice fellow saw me catch #5 and I still had #4 in the box, and he took this picture for me, from his dock. I was absolutely eaten up with it all. I had no friends, no girlfriend, nothing to do outside of work but fish. So I fished. Weekend warrior to the max. I probably fished 40-45 of the 52 weekends in the year. Only deep cold winter could keep me off the water.

When Southern Trout Eaters was coming together, you have to understand the personal journey that the film encompasses to appreciate why Shady Grove was so perfect for the film, as far as I was concerned.  Shady Grove is the album name, but also, a song name, and the tune Shady Grove was my #1 favorite from the album and if you ask anyone of my college friends, they will tell you I would play Shady Grove while suiting up and getting ready for a surf every time.   Shady Grove is a traditional courting tune, played in Appalachia for centuries.  I’m 100% sure I’d never had heard the song if Jerry hadn’t introduced me to it.   So, when I found myself years later, in the Appalachian Mountains in the middle of a pretty awesome swimbait bite, bluegrass is what I played in my truck.  I have spent many many days and nights alone in the woods in Appalachia, especially the early years, exploring and fishing, and about the only thing I can remember besides the fishing is rocking out to Bill Monroe, Garcia/Grisman, and Old&In The Way on the way to and from the lakes on my weekend adventures.  It’s one of the rituals you get into. I have certain music I play based on where I’m going or what I’m doing, and bluegrass is usually being played with 8″ Huddleston’s and 10″ Triple Trouts are involved.    Then came Monday;  back to forecast updates, software, venture capitalism, and Atlanta.

Appalachia isn't my home. I'm a guest, traveling thru. I know and love bluegrass. To me, bluegrass pays respect to the mountains, the people and the heritage, and that was my attempt to 'tip my hat' or extend some 'aloha'. Some people understood. Some did not and never will. Some will learn. I hope at minimum, the music we used exposes younger people to styles and tunes they otherwise would have no chance at being exposed to in today's world. Music is nowhere near as important as the content itself. I am proud of the music and the content.

February 2012 Triple Trout/Southern Trout Eaters DVD Raffle-Tackle Warehouse

Published: 2 February 2012
Written by Alex Tech
3 Comments
Categories: Southern Trout Eaters DVD, Triple Trout
Click the above image to be routed to Tackle Warehouse, buy a copy of Southern Trout Eaters (and whatever else you might need), check out, and you'll be entered to win one of two 3 Dot Triple Trouts. Raffle Ends 2-29-12.

Thanking Mr. Whitmer for his contribution to our film in both person and in bait, and thanking him again for allowing us the opportunity to give away a couple of beautiful baits that anyone would be stoked to have.   The Triple Trout is a hard bait.  Hard Baits require much more scrutiny than do soft baits.  The Triple Trout catches fish in all latitudes and longitudes trout or no trout, and is a bigbait you need to be fluent in.   We featured the Triple Trout in the Southern Trout Eaters DVD of course, and show how we fish it in ‘moving bait’ conditions and in straight up Southern heat.   S-Swimmers are part of the tool kit, and the Triple Trout is right next to the set of wrenches.

CLICK HERE to view the page to buy your copy of our  Southern Trout Eaters DVD, and see the banner at the top of the page that outlines the raffle from Tackle Warehouse.   Bottom line is, buy a copy of Southern Trout Eaters in February and you’ll be entered into the drawing to win one.

Owner ST-36 Stinger Hooks and Hyper Wire Split Rings added to the raffled baits for your fish hooking and landing pleasure.