Ep. 1: Shannon of Sudden Impact on the Winter Bite & Cold Water Bass

Guest: Shannon Gallagher (Sudden Impact Bait Co) Hosts: Daniel Dahlin ([FISH]rx), El Charly, Luke Dean (Bait Slingers / Artemis Charters)

The first episode of Is This Mandatory — the show that became Time On The Water — kicked off on December 6, 2022, with Shannon from Sudden Impact Bait Co breaking down the winter bite in SoCal. Water temperatures, how bass move out of docks and into eelgrass as conditions cool, and a deep conversation about the cold water transition that most anglers fish wrong.

In This Episode

• Cold water transition timing — mid-60s surface temps are still warm. Calico spawn at 64°F so the real transition hasn’t started yet. How to read the difference between air temp drops and actual water temp changes
• Where bass go in winter — as water cools, fish move off dock pilings and into deeper structure, eelgrass, and channel edges. The fish that held one piling deep in summer need warmer safe zones as temps drop
• Eelgrass as winter structure — Shannon explains why eelgrass beds and grass channels hold fish in colder months and how current moving through grass concentrates bait and bass. MDR had limited eelgrass at the time
• Jerkbait in the grass — Rapala Shadow Rap Deep 11 with Owner ST-46 TNS hooks as a cold water jerkbait approach. How to fish it over and through grass without constantly fouling. Deeper-diving jerkbaits work better in winter than standard suspension models
• Scrounger and burn-pause retrieve — Shannon’s go-to winter retrieve: wind it, pause it, burn it. The fast retrieve triggering reaction bites when slow finesse isn’t producing
• Glizzies at the Ramp recap — the first community event, worst fishing of the year, but enough people showed up that hot dogs became the saving grace. Origin of the event and how it started
• Toy drive community event preview — Shannon and Bill from Sudden Impact will be at the toy drive alongside Optimum, Toxic Baits, Lateral Vision, and others

Beyond the Rod & Reel on Winter Bass Fishing

The cold water conversation was the most useful part of this episode. Shannon’s framework: don’t assume the fish are on the same structure they were in summer. When water temps drop, bass don’t just slow down — they relocate. The docks that produced all fall start to lose fish to the deeper, insulated structure: grass beds, channel edges, and anywhere the water holds heat longer.

The jerkbait tip was specific and worth remembering. Shadow Rap Deep 11, swap the hooks to Owner ST-46 TNS, and fish it slow over grass with a pause. The reason it works: deeper-diving jerkbaits get down into the thermal layer where cold water bass are sitting, and the pause lets suspended fish commit. Most people fish the same jerkbait year-round. Shannon doesn’t.

Watch the full episode on the Time On The Water YouTube channel. New episodes every Tuesday at 6 PM.

Note: This episode was originally recorded as part of Is This Mandatory, the show that became Time On The Water. Daniel was fishing and building baits under the name Dahlin Baits at the time — the brand is now [FISH]rx.