Chris Brown has a hard job... he sells fishing lures.
"It's tough," he said with a smile. At the time, we were drifting gently down the Tennessee River in the tailwaters beneath Pickwick Dam.
Brown is the Marketing Director for the Strike King Lure Company, and in spite of the subject, and the locale, he says selling fishing lures is a lot different then using them.
"I have to spend far too many days at the office behind a computer," he said.
So this trip was a welcome break. Brown had invited several outdoor writers and photographers from across the country to show off Pickwick Lake, and Strike King Lures.
It was 1966 when Charles Spence bought another small, garage-style lure making operation and created the "Strike King Lure Company."
In 1967 Spence took part in the first BASS (Bass Anglers Sportsman Society) tournament on Beaver Lake Arkansas and was among the Top-5 finishers.
Throughout the 1970's and '80's the company's growth paralleled that of the tournament bass fishing, best know for its spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and jigs. However in 1998 the company decided to get into the crankbait market.
That's what Brown was pushing hard at Pickwick.
"We have a new line of hard baits called the Tour Grade Line," he said.
They all feature new paint jobs developed by the Strike King Pro Staff that includes Denny Brauer, Shaw Grigsby, and Kevin VanDam.
VanDam fished Strike King's new Red Eye Shad, a lipless crankbait in his 3rd place spot in the latest Bassmaster Classic.
"Right now they're really hard to come by," said Brown. "Everybody is buying them up as fast as they can get them."
Brown says Strike King depends heavily on their Pro Staff.
"A lot of these pros tweak things on the water," said Brown. "It's colors they've brought to us and said 'you guys need to come out with these. They've been big fish catchers for us."
"But isn't it true that paint jobs are more often designed to catch fishermen, rather than fish," I asked.
"These are designed to catch fish," said Brown emphatically. "They come from our pros and these guys have to catch fish East to West, North to South… they've got to produce fish wherever they go. And when they come up with something that works, they bring it to us and tell us to produce it… and that's what we've done."
Strike King Pro Mark Davis might agree. He recently used the King Shad by Strike King in his $100,000 FLW win on Ft. Loudon Lake.
"The bulk of my fish are coming on the two topwater wakebaits," said Davis. "A Long A and a King Shad by Strike King. Today, I caught three on the wakebaits, one off bed and one on a wacky worm.”
One of those fish caught on the wakebait was a 6-pound-plus largemouth.
“That was a real blessing,” he said. “I never expected to catch such a huge fish like that.”
Davis is slow-reeling both the Long A and the King Shad along the surface to create a wake – hence the name wakebaits.
Pickwick smallmouth guide Roger Stegall is also a member of the Strike King Pro Staff. He started with Strike King in 1989.
"I was with another company at the time when Charles Spence called me and said 'we want you fishing our baits.' They are big, nationally known company. They're a leader in the lure industry making all kinds of baits. You don't need another bait when you're fishing with Strike King."
Guide Roger Stegall says Pickwick Lake may not have the reputation of Dale Hollow, but he believes anglers can consistently catch bigger smallmouth there. Photo by Richard Simms
Of course Stegall is quick to point out that Pickwick also harbors more than it's fair share of lunker largemouth. Photo by Richard Simms
It's easy to see why Stegall has made a good living guiding on Pickwick. Photo by Richard Simms
Sometimes Stegall gets more business than he can handle. He has several folks, like Gary Harlan, who help him out. Photo by Richard Simms
Steve Barnett also helps Stegall. Here a hefty smallmouth has him "laid low" in the tailwaters of Pickwick Dam. Photo by Richard Simms
The end result... Photo by Richard Simms
Of course Pickwick Tailwater is known for it's incredible diversity. "Boat paddle-sized" white bass are a favorite for many anglers. Photo by Richard Simms
Guide Darrell Moon shows off a 7 lb. largemouth, and a Strike King "King Shad" in the Pickwick Tailwaters. Photo by Richard Simms