Zonk Gataride....

The Zonk Gataride is one of those lures that everyone seems to ask about when they come into the shop, it certainly is a much talked about lure (and rightly so). The Gataride is by far my number one bass lure and 9 times out of ten the first lure I pick out of my box when I arrive at a mark.

With regard the divide over the Gataride, we all know it has a fragile bib and smash it into structure and you can kiss you Gataride goodbye. It simply wasn't designed to be fished over the rough ground we fish it, but that sure as hell isn't going to stop me using it because it works so well and simply catches me a lot of fish.  

To be honest I learnt the hard way how to fish these lures on my marks, but get to know your area and you won't break or snag your precious Gataride.

I generally retrieve my Gataride quite slow (when fishing shallow ground) with the rod tip in the air, this way if you feel the lure bump into a rock you simply stop retrieving and the lure floats up and away from the rock out of harm's way and you can start retrieving again. If you crank the Gataride over shallow ground you will be looking for trouble. Even with a slow retrieve the Gataride still picks out the fish, a quick crank and pause letting it float back to the surface is lethal with this lure.  

The much talked about hinged lip is what gives the Gataride its superb action which the bass just can't seem to ignore. It is also a definite to have in the box if you are fishing in rough conditions as this very stable lure will bite down perfectly to where the fish are feeding.    

There are two types of lips on the Zonk Gataride Yoro-Yoro and Hi-Pitch.

The Yoro Yoro is designed to run slightly shallower than the Hi-Pitch. So if you are fishing shallow ground I would recommend starting with the Yoro Yoro as you will not get snagged up as easily. They both catch, but in my opinion the Hi-Pitch just seems to have a little extra erratic action than the Yoro Yoro does not. And that is why the majority of the Gatarides in my box are Hi-Pitch.

The Gataride also accounted for a lot of fish in the dead of night for me last season, the great thing with the Gataride is that it will work well even on a very slow retrieve (what you need at night).

Tight lines,

James.