BRANDON HAYWARD SALT REPORT

GET A COPY OF BRANDON HAYWARD’S FIRST BOOK, THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ANGLER, AT THE LONG BEACH FRED HALL SHOW WESTERN OUTDOOR NEWSPublished: Feb 20, 2009

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Western Outdoor News SOCAL UPDATE REPORT BY BRANDON HAYWARD Stop by booths 413-414 to get a copy of the 260 page book and have a chance to win free fishing trips on the Pacific Queen, Big Game 90 After almost two years in the making, the book The Southern California Angler is set to debut at the Long Beach Fred Hall Show. The 260 page book that contains over 52,000 words and nearly 100 pictures, graphs, tables and images, was written by Western Outdoor News’ Saltwater Editor, Brandon Hayward. It is essentially a modern day guide to Southern California sportfishing that incorporates the knowledge and know how of not just Hayward, but also over 30 sportboat captains and a handful of top-tier anglers like David Choate, Danny Wade and Pete Haynes. “I just wanted to come up with an easy-to-read book that goes over the more modern styles of fishing and the newest trends. At no point did I want it turn into a book that was filled entirely with my opinions and thoughts on fishing, so I sought out the ‘best of the best’ when it came to each specific area of the book,” says Hayward, who holds a captain’s license and worked on overnight and long range sportboats from 1996 through August of 2005 when he joined WON. As a bonus to buying the book at the Long Beach Fred Hall Show, everyone that buys the book will be entered in a drawing to win free fishing trips with Hayward. “Everyone that buys a book will get a raffle ticket that goes towards raffling off fishing trips from ¾ days on up to 2 ½-day trips on the Pacific Queen, Big Game 90 and Gail Force… at the end of the show I’ll pull three winners who will go on a fishing trip with me that will appear in an On-the-Spot in WON,” says Hayward. The book is broken down into five chapters. Chapter One is called “The big two: Tuna and Tails” and it goes over everything tuna and yellowtail. The yellowtail sections breaks down all the different styles of yellowtail fishing, from fishing the local coast and islands to fishing on long range boats and on trips into the Sea of Cortez. All the different tackle and styles that goes with fishing yellows, from surface and yo-yo irons to fishing live squid and fin baits, are discussed in detail. The tuna section discusses the migrations of albacore, bluefin, yellowfin and bigeye with info from top scientists before switching gears to the “Fishing tunas: Be ready for anything” section, where some of the individual topics included include: the long soak, short stops, meter marks and sonar schools, fishing kelps  and how to make the most of those wide-open bites. The discussion then switches gears and focused on the “art” of fishing both yellowfin and bluefin on the anchor. Chapter two is titled “Essential Skills” and goes over all the “little” things that turn fishermen into anglers. This is where Pete Haynes puts his well-received 10/90 seminar  in print for the first time. Other sections include “Casting skills—learning to fly” which goes over the ins and outs of both overhand and underhand casting, with diagrams and step-by-step instructions. A focus on unconventional and conventional ways to hook live baits highlights the “Bait Basics” section. Entire sections on anchovy fishing (“Anchovy Fishing: A lost art?) and squid fishing (“Squid Success”) can also be found in chapter two. Chapter three “Gearing up—a look at terminal tackle, rigs and knots” goes over modern day tackle and gear, from kelp cutter rigs for fishing around kelp to “stealth rigs” for fishing offshore with Spectra and short fluorocarbon topshots. The facts behind fluorocarbon are discussed at length before a discussion on knots and what makes up the “ultimate tackle box” that won’t break the bank. Chapter four is titled, “The SoCal style—a look at rods and reels” and, as the name suggests, it talks about the rods and reels that are uniquely Southern California. Chapter five is called “Tips from those in the know” and it seeks out expert anglers on specific topics. Danny Wade, who is considered by many to be the elite jig fisherman in San Diego, goes over everything iron, from picking jigs to how to wind ‘em and throw ‘em. David “wahoodad” Choate, the long range angler who is considered one of the best around, talks specifically about fishing for 200-plus-pound yellowfin with sardines. From there, Ben Secrest of Accurate shares some of the information that has helped him in having five calico bass over 10 pounds to his credit. The final discussion is with Tino Valantine, the long-time skipper of the six-pack Phantom. Valantine talks about what it takes to be a successful seabass fishermen, from fishing shallow water beaches on out to the deep water squid grounds. The book ends with a selection of Hayward’s past Tackle Room columns, where a total of 12 previously published columns on a variety of subjects appear. The book will retail for $24.99 and be for sale in the WON Events/Promotions booths (numbers 413-414) at the Long Beach Fred Hall Show. For more information on the book, contact Brandon Hayward at Brandon@wonews.com or at (949) 212-0719, ext. 37. The book will be available through retailers, mail order and online at wonews.com after the Fred Hall Show.