These days, an invitation to travel and fish becomes a welcome distraction from pandemic stay-at-home-itis. So when Bubba asked me to join their pros and other media representatives to test the company’s new line of Tidal inshore rods in Charleston, South Carolina, last month, I jumped. Good choice.
Which leads me to a question: What would you call new spinning rods that land 110 redfish in one day among four anglers? “Lucky” just doesn’t seem to do it. “Golden?”
By the way, that release tally earned our team a coveted Fishing Machine T-shirt from our fishing hosts — Redfin Charters. Also, in addition to redfish, we caught trout, flounder, bluefish, sheepshead and black drum. Swish.
Throughout a day and a half of fishing, we switched up among the three Tidal versions — Tidal, Tidal Select and Tidal Pro. The red-and-white Tidal rods feature 24-ton graphite construction, split reel seats and stainless-steel guides. They come in lengths from 6 feet 10 inches to 7 feet 6 inches, in spin or casting models, and cost $129.99.
Also red and white, Tidal Selects are made from 24/30-ton Toray graphite and come with Fuji graphite reel seats and Fuji BC Concept-O guides (aluminum-oxide inserts). Lengths for spin and cast models range from 7 feet to 7 feet 6 inches. Selects cost $199.99.
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Tidal Pro rods — colored black and red — feature 30-ton Toray graphite, Fuji graphite reel seats and Fuji K-Series guides (Alconite inserts). Available in 7-foot or 7-foot-6-inch lengths, and in casting and spinning models, they cost $329.99..
Tidal rods will be available in February.
Credit: Chris Woodward / Sport Fishing
Bubba makes it a practice to build products that take anglers from water to plate. So the redfish bash last month — which netted my team more than 110 redfish — also featured a fresh-caught, fish-five-ways appetizer at dinner, a shore lunch of shrimp and prime rib and a six-course evening meal from noted chef Capt. Jamie Hough.
