For the 4th entry of our 7 part series, were going to go over yet another way to utilize the subtle effectiveness of the Sick Stick, and this time it’s Drop shotting with a 2/0 EWG hook rigged weedless. This is one of my personal favs because most people don’t even think of doing it, so it’s a presentation the bass rarely see. Yet it’s an extremely effective way to target bass in and around cover with a somewhat finesse presentation. Try throwing an exposed drop shot hook into a brush pile, timber or grass and you’ll wear your patience out before you ever get to wear out a fish. But with this weedless method, the playing field between you and the bass is now leveled.
Being that you’re going to be using a 2/0 EWG hook for this method, you can afford to use “heavier than norm” drop shotting gear to get the fish out. So you can put away your noodle rod 
spooled with 8 lb. line! My personal set up is a 7’3” Med action spinning rod, a 3000 series reel spooled with 20 lb. braid, topped off with an 8 foot section of 12 lb. Fluoro leader. The combination of my line choice and the 2/0 EWG hook allow me to set the hook a lot harder than you could with a normal drop shot set up. Plus this helps me to get the fish’s head facing in my direction quickly and allows me to keep ample pressure on them to wrestle them out of the cover. I also use a heavier drop shot weight for this technique, like a 3/8 or a 1/2 oz. Lean Drop, because the heavier weight helps hold the bait in position as I wiggle it.
Working this rig: Like I said earlier, this technique is one of my personal favorites because being that the Sick Stick is rigged weedless with the hook point tucked back into the bait, this rig is virtually snag proof and I can throw it anywhere. If I’m casting this rig, I leave about 18 to 24 inches between the Lean Drop and the Sick Stick to compensate for the angle I’m fishing at. If I’m fishing vertically under the boat, I stick with 8 to 12 inches of space between the weight and the bait. After the cast, I do something I call the “kill twitch” method with the Sick Stick. Once I can feel the weight on the bottom, I’ll gently pick up on the rod tip to remove the slack from the line (without moving the weight from the bottom) and give the Sick Stick a few tiny twitches with my rod tip. After the twitches, I’ll slowly lower my rod tip and ease the bait back to the bottom as if it were dying. Sometimes I’ll let the bait sit for as long as a minute before I raise the rod tip up and start twitching again. I’ll let the fish tell me how slow they want it, and then I’ll just repeat that speed as I work the bait back across the targeted area. If you have a little stain to your water, you can insert a small glass rattle to the tail of the Sick Stick to add a little sound to your twitches.
If you’re new to this technique and want to give it a try, use coupon code SSDS during checkout when you purchase any Pro Pack of Sick Sticks . You’ll not only save $1.99 off each Sick Stick Pro Pack, but we’ll toss in 3 Lean Drops and 3 2/0 EWG hooks (for each pro pack you purchase) to help you get started with your new technique. It’s simple, it’s effective, and you can even do it while your chomping down on last night’s leftovers…that’s how easy it is!
