Back to the Past to Become a Fishing King

Chapter 820 - 556: Quick Lead Short Leader Rig

Before receiving a call from his mentor Deng Gang, Huang Zheng thought he had thoroughly understood the reason for his earlier setback when he returned to the resting area, but upon hearing his mentor’s analysis on the phone, he immediately felt that his insight was too shallow; it was his mentor’s words that truly hit the essence.

The mentor was right. Adjusting the bait does have a noticeable impact on the success rate of hooking fish in the early stages. However, there are pros and cons; in the mid to late stages, adjusting the bait affects the overall bait quantity in the fishing spot. In the end, it’s Huang Zheng’s inflexible approach that caused him to suffer in the competition.

Now the last shortcoming in Huang Zheng’s thinking has been addressed, and his summary of why he didn’t fish well in the last round is complete.

Some might say, isn’t it just about the tiny bit of bait residue left on the hook after each cast? In a fifteen-minute competition, does this really make a difference in the end?? Normally, in the environment of a black pit or wild fishing, you never feel this kind of gap.

That’s both right and wrong!

In ordinary wild fishing and regular black pits, indeed you don’t feel the difference, but it’s different in the Competition Pond, especially in such a high-density and uniquely patterned competitive fishing venue.

What is bait? Bait is the main medium and means through which the angler communicates with the fish in the water. As long as the fish have a relatively high desire to feed, the amount of bait cast is a key factor in fish gathering.

Moreover, this disparity can cause a snowball effect due to the phenomenon of fish attracting fish.

Here we can say very responsibly that it was precisely the short fifteen-minute period that saved Huang Zheng. If the competition were half an hour or even an hour long, the disparity in fish density at the fishing spot would have been even greater.

"So... mentor, given the current situation, what can I do to turn things around? Can you give me some advice? My head is a bit muddled right now!" Huang Zheng asked his mentor for help with determination.

Deng Gang was silent for about three seconds, then sighed slightly after a brief thought and said, "With the steady-depth strategy, it’s hard for you to beat Zhang Yang. I was watching the whole thing earlier, and he made almost no obvious mistakes. Even if you perform at your best, you’ll at most break even with him.

Otherwise, why don’t you use the light running lead with short leaders?"

"Huh? Light running lead with short leaders?" Huang Zheng was stunned upon hearing his mentor’s suggestion, feeling a bit confused.

This is a target fish competition pond. Although the fish are a bit slick, they generally feed near the bottom and within ten centimeters of it.

The light running lead method involves the swivel hitting the bottom directly, and with short leaders, the turnaround time is very quick. This allows for a fast attack on the bottom, much faster than the normal adjusting method.

Deng Gang continued, "Yes, you heard me right, and I didn’t say anything wrong!

This maneuver has some applicable prerequisites, but I asked around before calling you.

The Tian Tian Yu Competition Pond has a fairly clean bottom. The pond bottom was just cleaned in the spring.

If the fish are seriously feeding at the bottom, the light running lead with short leader method is not slower than the current near-bottom steady-depth method. Plus, it filters out some nuisance bites; when there are more fish, the chances of double catches increase!!"

"Use float n003, adjusted so the swivel hits the bottom?" Huang Zheng asked earnestly after listening to his mentor’s explanation.

"Yes, the number two float of the 003 model will suffice! The leader must be kept short to maintain sensitivity! This is the only method I can think of that gives you a chance to win over Zhang Yang in terms of frequency and rhythm! There are five rounds in total, and there are still four rounds left; you still have a chance to overtake! I’ve given you the strategy, but whether you use it or not is up to you!"

"Okay, I’ll follow your advice!" Huang Zheng made a significant decision, pursed his lips, and nodded firmly at the phone’s camera.

After finishing the call with his mentor, Huang Zheng immediately began to prepare anew for the next round.

He took out a new main line marked separately from the foam tray in his toolbox, removed the lead sheet wrapped around the main line’s lead holder, and then opened another short leader box only thirty to forty centimeters long.

Like Huang Zheng, who participates in fishing competitions across the country daily, preparation for the competition is quite thorough. Why does he look so bulky with all the bags? It’s the thorough preparation; he would rather have things prepared and not use them than not have them when needed.

For example, the short leaders required for the light running lead method suggested by Deng Gang are less than ten centimeters long. Normally, what competitive angler in Chinese-style fishing is prepared for this? But Huang Zheng has it, and a whole box at that, with a full range of hook leader sizes.

As for the weight of the lead sheet needed for the swivel to touch the bottom, it was prepared before coming to the competition. As long as the line size matches and the bobber is undamaged, wrapping the pre-prepared lead sheet typically requires no additional adjustments. You just need to find the right depth and bottom conditions before use.

The ten-minute adjustment time quickly passed for both Zhang Yang and Huang Zheng.

As the two emerged again from the resting area, before starting the second match, it was the usual rule to flip a coin.

This time, Zhang Yang, defying the rule which states the leading angler flips the coin, generously took the coin from the staff and handed it to Huang Zheng.

"I flipped the coin last round; it’s your turn this time!"