When Bernie Schultz practices for the Bassmaster Classic Wild Card tournament this December on Lake Okeechobee, two new Rapala lures will be tied on and at the ready – a BX Jointed Minnow and BX Jointed Shad.

“It’s my last chance to make the [2014] Classic and I’m going to be throwing both in practice,” says the Florida Rapala pro, an 8-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier. “I can’t say yet which one might be a go-to lure in the tournament, but one of them is going to work, I think.”

Rapala introduced the BX Jointed Minnow and BX Jointed Shad this summer after releasing the BX Minnow and BX Swimmer earlier in the year. Soon thereafter, Field & Stream magazine named the BX series a “Best of the Best” new lure for 2013.

Schultz had few opportunities to throw BX baits throughout the 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series season, he says, “because we never really went anywhere with a swimbait bite. Or I would have been throwing it sooner.”

Cast or trolled, the BX Jointed Minnow displays a methodical, slow-moving, floating kicking action that turns on otherwise finicky fish. If the fish are aggressive, however, turn up the heat on your retrieve and the bait continues to run straight and true, enticing a menacing jaw attack.

At 3 ½ inches long, weighing 5/16 oz. and running six to eight feet deep, the BX Jointed Minnow will kick all species of fish into full-on attack mode.

Measuring 2 ½ inches long and weighing 1/4 ounce, the BX Jointed Shad reaps all the great benefits of the BX Series in the most common prey baitfish profile. Deadly when trolled or cast, anglers will immediately sense the lure’s versatility when displaying its ever-so-enticing floating kicking action.

Both the BX Jointed Minnow and BX Jointed Shad feature lifelike 3D eyes, finite scales and gill detail paired with an internal holographic foil for ultimate attraction, and tough VMC Black Nickel Treble Hooks that hold true and tight. Each is available in 10 color patterns: Blue Back Herring, Gold Shiner, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Blue Pearl, Perch, Silver, Firetiger, Purpledescent and Smelt.

Brawny And Beautiful
Both the BX Jointed Minnow and BX Jointed Shad stay true to the BX Series blueprint, boasting a balsa core encased in a durable copolymer shell for unrivaled toughness.

“The fact that they’ve figured out how to encase balsa in transparent plastic is incredible,” Schultz says. “It gives the bait the buoyancy that you want, but also the durability.”

Combine those qualities with artful finishes and masterful action, and the result is beautiful and brawny bait “that can handle a beating from the toughest of fish across the board,” says Rapala pro Michael “Ike” Iaconelli.

Versatility
The beauty of the BX Series, Ike says, is there’s a bait for every situation, for all species. “Quite frankly, the BX Jointed Minnow and BX Jointed Shad amplify anglers’ opportunities to catch more fish in a variety of situations.”

Schultz predicts the BX series baits will be effective “in so many different scenarios,” including along grass edges, over the top of submerged grass, over the tops of points, along bluff banks and around docks – especially floating docks.

“I like to fish a BX Jointed Shad right on the surface with a slow retrieve,” Schultz says. “And that’s when, in the winter time in the south, a swimbait can really shine.”

As the weather warms, Schultz will keep his BX baits tied on after the spawn.

“I think it could work any time of the year,” he says. “For my immediate interests, I’m thinking of that tournament. I think it’s going work there.”

The Dec. 5-7 Bassmaster Classic Wild Card tournament will host 175 anglers seeking a spot in the 2014 Classic. Priority entry for the Bassmaster Classic Wild Card lies first with the Bassmaster Elite Series pros who didn’t make the Classic cut via Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings or an Elite event win. Additional slots will be filled by Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens pros who entered and paid for all three events in the respective circuits, until the 175-angler roster is full.

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