The Rat Pack Bites Back
Posted by Pete Robbins on Jan 20th 2020
Some of my favorite bites of 2019 came in the last week of the year, but 2020 started with a bang. After catching a bit of the big bait bug, I committed to trying some new things at El Salto. One of them was the SPRO Rat BBZ-1 Rat, which may not be true small-scale garage craft, nor does it require you to mortgage your house or learn a secret handshake to get one, but it’s still legit. In private conversations, it received the blessing of several top anglers I know along with a couple of vaunted swimbait manufacturers.
When the squarebill, jerkbait and topwater bite proved to be exceptional, I brought out the 40-sized rat to test it out and was immediately rewarded with a handful of strikes that might make you have to check your drawers for skid marks. No gigantors, but I had a feeling that was coming. The undulating action, natural look and clacking noise just scream big bite. Alas, I probably fished the rat a bit more than I should have, but I don’t regret it one iota. I’ll be back, and I’ll throw it a lot more. That double digit effort will be worth the wait.
