Everything You Need to Know about Alabama Rig Fishing & Setup 

When it comes to wintertime fishing and the pre-spawn time of year, this is one of the best times to go out and catch the biggest largemouth in any lake in the country. The fish are feeding up and getting ready to move into the shallows to spawn, which makes them become very aggressive. This is a time when anglers can pick up any reaction bait and burn areas of the lake which truly have the most remarkable days on the water. Crankbaits, jerkbaits, swimjigs, chatterbaits, swimbaits, spinnerbaits; these all get the nod during late January into February. But since the introduction of the Alabama Rig in 2011; this bait, and this technique, changed bass fishing in the late winter and pre-spawn time of year. Make sure to read to the bottom to see How Revital Outdoors Premium CBD Products can help when Alabama Rig fishing.

When Was the Alabama Rig First Introduced?

The Alabama Rig made its first introduction in 2012 when Paul Elias won the FLW (now Major League Fishing) Tour Open on Lake Guntersville. Although this tournament happened in September, once anglers started to get more Alabama Rigs into their hands, and started fishing them in the winter months into the pre-spawn, that’s when the Alabama Rig really started to shine and show its potential. Fast-forward to today, almost 10 years later, the Alabama Rig isn’t the miracle bait anglers once thought it would be, but it certainly is something that anglers across the country have tied on and throw in the late winter/ pre-spawn time of year. To properly execute fishing an Alabama Rig, anglers have separate set-ups and separate equipment just to fish this bait. After an Alabama Rig is rigged up with all the swimbaits, swimbait heads and the rig itself, the bait nearly weighs 2 ounces. Very untraditional like other baits that anglers throw, so therefore anglers are forced to have bigger equipment and heavier line to throw the Alabama Rig. 

Make sure to read to the bottom to find out How Revital Outdoors Premium CBD Products may help anglers fishing with the Alabama Rig Setup.

Choosing the Right Rod and Reel

The first step to having the right equipment, is anglers will need the right rod and the right reel. After 10 years of the Alabama Rig being on the scene, anglers agree that throwing the Alabama Rig on a heavier, longer rod produces the best results. Many anglers are using heavy flippin’ sticks to get the job done, however many rod manufacturers are making specific rods designed just for the Alabama Rig. It’s not uncommon to walk into a bait shop, go to the rod rack, and see rods there that display Alabama Rig. A 7 1/2 foot or longer rod is the best rod an angler can pick up and throw with the Alabama Rig. The longer rods provide better casting distance when throwing the Alabama Rig. It also provides better fighting ability when a fish loads up on the Alabama Rig, typically bass kill this bait, and the longer length of the rod helps an angler fight the fish with more precision.

The other piece of the puzzle to making a good Alabama Rig rod, is the action of the rod. Typically, anglers want a heavier backbone, with a lighter tip. This helps an angler throw the Alabama rig a little bit further but also, again, when the fish loads up the rod it will bend toward bait allowing for better hook up accuracy. The next piece of equipment is the reel. Many anglers are using big swimbait reels, and reels that are lower gear ratio and hold larger amounts of line. Low gear ratio helps anglers slow down the bait so that it provides a more natural presentation to the fish, to mimic that bait school going through the water column. And having more line helps anglers get further casting distance, but also for the anglers that want to long line Alabama Rigs they have more line to do so. 

Fluorocarbon: A More Natural presentation to the Fish

The most critical element to fishing an Alabama Rig is the line angler’s use. When the Alabama Rig was first introduced, many angles were throwing heavy braid. As time went on, more and more anglers started using 20 to 25 pound fluorocarbon to fish an Alabama Rig. Fluorocarbon helps keep the bait in the strike zone because it sinks, it’s clear and invisible to the fish, it also has a smaller diameter. Through-and-through, fishing the Alabama Rig on fluorocarbon will give it a more natural presentation to the fish. 

Types of Alabama Rigs

As for choosing the right Alabama Rig, the number of variations in the market is endless. Once the Alabama Rig really started to pick up popularity, every lure manufacturer started to produce their own version. Some have multiple wires, others are small and compact with fewer wires, many versions of the Alabama rig have spinnerbait blades on them now, and even jig skirts being attached to the head of the Alabama Rig are offered to anglers today. Eventually tournament organizations had to come forth with rules pertaining just to the Alabama Rig. Many anglers were stringing multiple Alabama Rigs together, and some were building them out of their garage that had an unbelievable number of baits and equipment. The rules for the Alabama Rig now with many tournament organizations is, an Alabama Rig can only have five wires, three spinnerbait blades, three hooks, and two dummy swimbaits. But even with these restrictions many angles are still catching numerous amounts of fish on the Alabama Rig, and still winning tournaments. 

Throwing the Alabama Rig

There’s no wrong way to throw the Alabama Rig. It’s another bait that anglers throw, let sink to the depth they want to let it sink it to, and then reel it back to the boat. Some anglers are even starting to use weedless hooks with the swimbaits, allowing them to reel the Alabama Rig through brush piles. The Alabama Rig really shines when fished near bridges, bluff walls, riprap with chunk rock, and alongside docks. These are the areas holding fish that are searching for an easy meal and chasing shad.  
 
Throwing an Alabama Rig requires a lot of work. Again, this bait weighs up to 2 ounces with all the equipment on it. So, chunking and reeling an Alabama Rig all day will take a toll on angler’s body. That being stated: an angler’s back, shoulders, wrists, arms, and joints will start to become very sore and be very uncomfortable for the angler after a long day of throwing the Alabama Rig. Many anglers have compared it to swinging a sledgehammer all day long, the discomfort they feel in their body at the end of the day and doing that, is very similar to throwing an Alabama Rig all day.  This is exactly why Revital Outdoors was founded in 2021, to help outdoor enthusiast, especially anglers, with a product that will help them feel better, and alleviate those aches and soreness from being on the water. For those anglers that are starting their tournament season and are searching for some relief to feel better out on the water in a tournament, Revital Outdoors has those anglers covered. We offer three products that are truly a difference maker for anglers that want to spend long days on the water and be more comfortable. The first being our Premium CBD cream, the second is the premium CBD Gummies, and lastly the  CBD Softgels.  

A daily routine that Revital Outdoors recommends to all anglers to start and see the best results, is to form a regiment that includes all three of these products.  

• Starting in the morning we highly recommend anglers begin their day taking one or two of the 25mg Softgels. This provides aid to inflammation relief, helps alleviate those aches and soreness in their back and joints, and overall can help an angler start their day to promote a sense of better health and wellness.  
• The second is the Revital Outdoors CBD Gummies. Our gummies are manufactured with the most organic and best ingredients, including 10 mg of our premium CBD Oil, and offered in the strawberry lemonade flavor. Unlike other CBD companies on the market that manufacture their gummies and then inject CBD Oil into the gummy, the Revital Outdoors Gummies have our premium CBD Oil manufactured into the gummy during the process. This is not an injection process, which will provide for a better tasting CBD Gummies to anglers. Throughout the day of fishing, once the afternoon starts to creep up on anglers and he or she begins to feel those aches and soreness in the back and shoulders, this is where taking a couple of the Revital Outdoors CBD Gummies will provide midday relief that anglers need to finish out their tournament.  
• After the tournament is over, we recommend all anglers use the Revital Outdoors Premium CBD Cream on their shoulders, back, and any other problem areas where they feel discomfort. The Revital Outdoors CBD cream is fantastic in producing results very quickly and help reduce the inflammation and discomfort that anglers will have after a long day of fishing. 

How CBD Helps Anglers:

If you’re an avid fisherman, you probably have spent hours searching for coping mechanisms to help your body rebound from the exercise-induced situations that we enjoy. Advanced participation reports have shown that approximately three million anglers stop participating each year. At Revital Outdoors, our vision is to extend the average active years that outdoor enthusiasts pursue their passions. CBD works within your Endocannabinoid System (or ECS) to promote overall health and wellness. The ECS is known for it’s ability to oversee the body’s homeostasis throughout each various system throughout.

If you’re interested in getting started with CBD, check out our delicious strawberry-lemonade Premium CBD Gummies. Each bite is just as delicious as the last, and provides 10mg of CBD to your body. They’re the perfect pick-me-up throughout the day to supplement your already established CBD regime.