From Crappie World Magazine
Shooting Docks
Story and Photos By Vic Attardo

Some sportsmen like to shoot ducks, but Alabama pro Brad Whitehead, TV host Russ Bailey and a growing cadre
of crappie anglers prefer to shoot docks.

Relatively new in the lexicon of crappie fishermen is the technique known as dock shooting. The tactic is designed to get a lure deep under the platform of a dock. It begins by forming a hard curve or bow with the rod and then firing a tiny jig past the pilings and beneath the crossbeams of an elevated dock.

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The essence of dock shooting is the cast that sends the lure into the pier’s dark recesses. However, it is incorrect to think of shooting as a cast in the traditional sense. Instead, the rod tip is pulled tight under the rod, and the jig is gripped behind the reel on a taut line. When the rod is loaded, the jig is let go and sent speeding on its way beneath the dock.

Variations And Presentations
Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as it sounds, but then again it’s not all that hard either. It takes practice to get the jig far underneath a dock and to consistently place it where you want it. It takes even more skill and practice to get a jig to skip three or four times before it sinks below the surface.

Of course, dock shooting isn’t all just casting or shooting. There are variations of baits and presentations that make it even more interesting. For starters, the jig can be shot unadorned, but it is commonly used with a plastic tail. A soft putty bait can be added to the jig and tail. However, rarely is live bait used. It’s doubtful a minnow could stand up to the assault. Bladed jigs can also be employed in this technique.

For a real change of pace, add a small float ahead of the jig, in essence shooting a jig and a cork. Jigs with corks can’t be skipped, but on the water the cork forces the jig to descend in a way that is particularly good for non-aggressive crappie or for fishing cold water. A jig with a cork also can be worked very slowly, which is another asset for neutral crappie.

While there are other variables, the equipment for shooting docks revolves around the rod. Most shooters prefer a short rod between 41⁄2 to 51⁄2 feet long, which is certainly much shorter than the 8- to 16-footers used for crappie trolling. Other anglers favor rod lengths up to 7 feet. Some short rods are even built specifically for the tactic.

The choice of rod length is totally subjective. Anglers using shorter rods say it’s easier to stand in their boats and flick a jig under low docks. Anglers who use longer rods often add a cork above the jig. Those crappie chasers aren’t interested in having the jig bounce across the water as much as they are concerned about hitting the bull’s-eye.

Alabama guide Brad Whitehead practices his dock shooting with a short rod and only a jig with a soft trailer.

“If I can hit spots that other anglers can’t reach, I know I’ll catch more fish,” Whitehead says.

When he prepares to cast, Whitehead often bends low and holds the rod about belt high. After releasing the jig, he follows through the shooting motion, lifting the rod tip perceptively so that the jig hops over the surface like a stone. It’s nothing for him to get three or four skips from a cast.

Like all good dock shooters, Whitehead works a dock systematically and pays particular attention to the dark niches. If the underside of a dock has an exposed frame, he won’t let a few possible snags stand in the way of reaching a distant nook.

“I know the crappie are back there,” Whitehead says. “It’s just a matter of getting something in front of those fish that haven’t seen anything for a while.”

Russ Bailey, who hosts the “Midwest Crappie” TV series, uses a cork normally associated with a fly rod or ice fishing. The float is pegged with a toothpick so the space between the cork and jig is easily changed.

“With the cork, you get a completely different presentation,” Bailey notes. “When you cast, the jig goes out farther from the cork, but when they hit the water, the jig slides under the cork like the swing of a pendulum. This gives the bait a very slow fall.”

The advantages of a cork don’t stop with the first swing. Bailey can twitch the cork along the surface, and each time it advances, the jig rises and then falls back under the cork as he stops the retrieve.

“When the crappie aren’t feeling aggressive, this is an excellent slow presentation,” he says.

How To Shoot
A novice to dock shooting might question the sanity of exposing your fingers to an open hook that will be released like an arrow at full tension. Understandably, your initial concern may be how to avoid getting stuck. But when following the steps practiced by Whitehead and Bailey, this is not likely to occur.

To perform the shooting cast, first open the bail of the spinning reel and extend the line from the rod tip down to the top of the reel face. This is about the average length of line most dock shooters begin with.

Next, if you’re a right-handed caster, grip the jig in your left hand. To hold the jig correctly, pinch the collar between your thumb and index finger. Do not point the head of the jig outward, but instead lay the jig on its side so that the hook bend faces the rod. Also, do not put the jig too close to the reel, as it may catch on the handle when you let go. About a foot of separation between the jig and handle seems to be about right.

While it may sound silly to remind seasoned anglers of the need to open the bail before shooting, this is a common mistake made by novices. Failing to open the bail sends the fired jig around the rod tip in a circle that ends up close to your ear.

You’ll want to align the rod parallel to the water. With the index finger of your rod hand, press the line to the rod handle and pull the jig back behind the reel to the outside of the handle. As you pull, the rod tip flexes down just as it would if you had a big fish close by. At this point, the line is taut and the rod is loaded.

The final step involves aiming the rod and letting go. Basically, when the jig is released, it will follow the path of the rod tip. However, if you hold the jig too far from the side of the reel, it might not trail

Novice shooters often attempt to pointedly aim the jig at the desired spot where they want it to land, but then find that a truly conscious effort often results in something going wrong. The best approach is to perform the bowing and positioning of the rod in a smooth, unified motion and to release the jig without dead-point aiming. In other words, if you don’t put your hands in the way of your mind, you’ll hit the target more often.

The level or plane on which the rod is held is important
to good shooting. The rod should not be pointed too far
down or else the projectile jig will swing low and hit the water beneath the rod, thus ruining the shot. Also, the rod tip should not be raised too high or else the jig will not shoot under low-hanging planks.

To accomplish shooting the jig, the rod should have a slight angle toward the water. The angle can vary slightly, and you’ll soon learn what is too high or too low. The angle also depends on the length of rod being used. A shorter rod can be held with the tip pointed more to the water than a longer rod. But again, the cast isn’t everything with dock shooting.

As Whitehead fishes, he gives the jig a steady retrieve and stays in firm contact with the lure. When a crappie hits, there is nothing in the way of him feeling the strike.

A hallmark of Whitehead’s technique is that he skips the jig well beyond his actual intended spot. If he thinks the fish are hanging under a crossbar or in a patch of shade by a piling, he shoots the jig beyond these spots so that by the time the retrieved jig enters the hot zone, it has achieved the correct depth and he is in control of the lure. He works the jig around every piling and pole in the water and pays particular attention to each pocket of shade.

With a cork, Bailey also likes to flick a jig past the expected hot zone. However, the former Ohio tournament angler usually works the cork and jig slower than Whitehead. Bailey twitches the cork forward with soft movements and often leaves the jig hanging beneath the cork for long moments before he moves it forward again.

“Having the jig hang so long in their face makes them strike it,” Bailey says. “They may not be in a mood to strike when the jig is moving, but hanging there just drives them wild.”

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