“The Dock Doctor”
By
Billy "Hawkeye" Decoteau
2010 FLW Tour Angler of the Year, Bryan Thrift is considered by his peers to be the best professional dock angler competing within the FLW Outdoors bass circuits.
“When it comes to dock fishing Bryan is the best there is, period,” echoes FLW’s most highly respected Pro Angler Larry Nixon.
With a chuckle in his laidback Shelby, North Carolina southern drawl, Thrift says, “I’m not so certain I can be considered a ‘Doctor of Docks’, but I sure do love dissecting them!”
Like any educated surgeon, Bryan Thrift has dedicated years to reading docks and recognizing which features are imperative to filling his Ranger livewells.
“I like to keep my entire ‘Dock’ game plan very simple.” Thrift does so by utilizing only three basic colors in his jig bait arsenal, Black/Blue, Black, and Crawdad color.
“Shooter jigs are all hand tied, and when it comes to shipping, anglers want to stick with hand tied jigs or they will end up finding their jig skirts wrapped around the bend of their jig hook!”
Thrift’s Dock Tools include; A Damiki Signature Series ‘Bryan Thrift’ 6’9” Skipping Stick, (Medium/Heavy or Heavy Action), Abu Garcia Revo STX-HS reel, Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon Line, and depending upon the conditions his baits of choice will be either Damiki Soft Plastics, or ½ and 3/8 oz Shooter Jigs. (Thrift will also utilize Damiki’s ½ oz Mamba Jig.)
“My trailer is usually a Zoom Big Salty Chunk, because this allows me to easily skip my jigs up and under docks with ease,” claims Thrift.
“I just feel it is extremely important and I have had so much more success by matching my trailer’s color to my jig color” said Thrift. When it comes to soft plastic trailers this Damiki Pro-Staffer turns to the Damiki Air Craw.
“This bait comes in two sizes 3” and 4”. It has a hollow belly and claws. This in turn allows the Air Craw to stand upright on the bottom no matter how you rig it.” Thrift suggest anglers utilize it with the following techniques; Carolina Rig, Shakey Head, Drop-Shot and of course as a jig trailer. Bryan’s favorite weight jig for the Air Craw is a 3/8 oz Shooter or Mamba Damiki jig.
No angler on plant earth ventures out on the water without some form of plastic stick bait. For FLW Tour Angler Bryan Thrift, that means loading his tackle lockers with Damiki 6” Hot Dogs and 5.5” Stingers “Once again, I like to keep it simple and stick with what I feel are natural colors, Oxblood Red, Green Pumpkin and Watermelon,” suggests Thrift.
Drop-Shot rig or Shakey Head When confronted with the question, “What about utilizing a Drop-Shot rig or Shakey Head rigs around docks? Thrift was almost as quick to answer as is his ability to make multiple skips with his jigs under a dock!
“No doubt, to be consistent in dock fishing, an angler has to have these techniques in his arsenal!” Adding Thrift said, “Let’s take deep water docks for example. Many times the bass may follow your jig at first but refuse to eat it.
“This is when you have to employ a Finesse Technique with a much slower and subtle presentation.”
Pulling a plastic box from his Ranger tackle locker, Bryan Thrift opened it and handed me a long skinny tapering ribbed bait. ‘This is a Damiki Finesse Miki soft plastic. It is 6.5” long; it works great with Drop-Shot or Shakey Head presentations. But, the secret to this bait being so productive is the Finesse Miki’s cupped tail. This allows the Finesse Miki to fall much slower than other baits, while its tail action gives off a vibrating fluttering signal to bass under the docks.”
When it comes to skipping light weight baits, this Chevy Trucks Pro-Staffer turns to a Damiki 7’ medium action DARK ANGEL spinning rod, saddles an Abu Garcia REVO STX spinning reel spooled with Trilene line.
“When I’m using spinning equipment I am generally throwing finesse baits that weigh about 1/8 oz,” Says Thrift.
Utilizing Docks All Year
Bryan Thrift’s approach to ‘Dissecting Docks’ is formatted around seasonal bass patterns. “I honestly feel bass will utilize docks all year. Where they are holding in relationship to the dock depends on seasonal patterns, sunken brush piles, isolated cover and shade, especially during the hotter summer months!”
Turning his head to his Humminbird electronics, Thrift’s body language was loud and clear! “I will actually ride around the entire lake before ever making a single cast,” claims Thrift. “With my Humminbird Side Imaging I can pre-read every dock without making a cast. This in turn allows me to set waypoints, log in specific information on each dock saving me an abundant amount of precious tournament time.”
So what are some of the key features the “Dock Doctor” looks for in each dock?
“Anglers need to remember bass utilize docks for their cover and structure, this in turn allows bass to feel secure, while giving them an ambush advantage to their forage. For example in my home state of North Carolina during the shad spawn in April I concentrate on docks with ‘Black Plastic Floatation’. While floating docks and rafts are high percentage areas in the summer and during post-spawn.”
Working Those Docks Quickly Pausing for a moment, Bryan Thrift continued. “I really fish docks extremely fast and never waste time on a specific dock, unless it is holding and producing bass! If you put your jig in the right place the first time, the bass will either eat it or ignore it!”
Ok, so where is the right place for the first cast?
“Let me give you a rule of thumb to follow. In the mornings concentrate on the dock’s walkway and rocks. As the sun rises, look for the shaded areas and always skip your bait under pontoon boats. And, if the dock has a boat lift, you better be skipping your bait over the cross bars at least eight to ten feet!”
“And, one last thing…….I never worry about noise! In my opinion I feel it doesn’t effect the bass.” Claims Thrift. Well, there you have it ‘The Dock Doctor’, Bryan Thrift’s prescription for filling your livewells. For more on Professional Bass Angler Bryan Thrift log unto his web site at www.BryanThrift.net and www.FLWoutdoors.com God Bless and Best Bass’n ■
