A "Country Boy's" Take on Topwater Lures

I've often referred to myself as a "country boy" over the years, mainly because my little hometown is a rural area, with a lot of farmers among the fewer-than-2,000 population. While we weren't farmers, we lived on the edge of town, nearly within spitting distance of several folks who were, and I dated more than one farmer's daughter during my youth. Of course, I also dated a couple of preacher's daughters, but all that's a whole different story.

Let me mention just one more thing here before I get to what I really want to talk about, though. Just for grins and giggles, I went to the online Urban Dictionary for its definition of "country boy," and I couldn't help but chuckle just a bit when I read one of the descriptions it offered. "Can usually fix just about anything that needs fixing, including trucks, home repair, yard repair, light to heavy machinery, etc.," it said. If my wife had seen that description, she still would be doubled over in unrestrained laughter, 'cause just between you, me and the fencepost, you can count the number of things I've ever fixed on one hand and have fingers left over. Mechanically inclined--I'm not.

That being said, I'll turn my attention to the reason I started this post in the first place. I know some anglers sort their topwater lures into multiple categories, e.g., poppers, dog-walkers, prop baits, wake baits, buzzbaits, and so forth. I, however, like to keep things simple. I lump everything into just two categories: noisy or quiet.

On days when it's dead calm or there's only a slight chop on the water, my usual go-to baits are things like the Pop-R, Torpedo, or Bang-O-Lure. When the wind is kicking up its heels, buzzbaits (or the Rage Tail Shad), the Buzzjet Jr., or maybe a Jitterbug normally get the nod. If I had to limit my picks to only two topwaters, I'd have to go with the Bang-O-Lure for a quiet bait and the Buzzjet Jr. for a noisy bait. And if I didn't have either one of these in my tacklebox but had a wake bait, I'd gladly throw it all day long, under any conditions. Why these particular baits? Simply because they're my confidence lures.

As anyone who has fished a number of years knows, however, nothing is locked in concrete when it comes to this sport. The one thing that seems to hold true without exception is the fact we all love those days when we can catch 'em on top. Just remember: Sometimes, less is more, and more is just enough. Tight Lines!