CONTACT: Katie Wilson Dale
479-283-4781
katie@taylormack.com
New Slinker lure makes other plastic worms look straight
SPRINGDALE, Ark.-Bass anglers can expect to see a new and very different looking plastic worm on the water this year. Created to be the closest thing to natural bait in the artificial bait category, Slinker plastic worms have a patented S-shape that not only makes them look different compared to traditional plastic worms, but also gives them a versatility advantage.
Marketed under the slogan "Because Worms Aren't Straight", Slinker can be thrown weightless as soft plastic twitch or jerk bait with increased action, can be flipped, or can be rigged Carolina or Texas style. According to Slinker creator Shawn Clark, "You can hook this worm anywhere-it will still have lots of action because its shape allows it to emulate natural live food."
Clark came up with the idea for Slinker almost eight years ago while working in real estate and hobby fishing on the weekend. But it wasn't until he took over a family-owned live bait business from a relative who was ready to retire in 1999 that Clark got serious about manufacturing his product.
Clark grew up fishing in northwest and central Arkansas. During high school and college, he often competed in tournaments with his dad. After graduating from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 1994, he moved to Little Rock and spent many weekends fishing area lakes and the Arkansas River. It was on one such fishing trip that Clark first had the idea to create Slinker.
Fishing a bank from his flat-bottomed boat, he was throwing plastic jerk bait when he saw a small snake swimming towards his boat, inching under the water and slinking above the water again. Clark remembers, "After a few minutes of watching this snake, a four or five pound bass came out of the water at the front left of the boat, just about the same area was fishing a plastic jerk bait, and swallowed the snake whole. That bass came within 10 inches of my boat. That instant stuck in my head."
Clark spent the next year trying to style an S-shaped lure that would hold its shape, look like a snake and wiggle like a worm. "I own a live bait business," said Clark. "I look at millions of worms, and they're not straight. If I see a straight worm, it's usually dead. It's hard to catch a fish when you start with a dead worm."
He whittled a plaster of paris
mold, filling it with rubber and trying
to achieve the action of a natural worm without twisting the fishing
line. Four molds and several trips to the lake later, Clark was finally
satisfied that he had perfected the mold. "I took it out and started
catching a lot of big fish. My plastic worm design seemed to call on the
fish's predator instinct to bite."
Feeling confident that he had created a lure that other anglers would enjoy fishing as much as he did, Clark patented his design and began working to produce Slinker. "The biggest thrill for me is to watch someone else catch fish on this," said Clark. "I'm a normal guy who likes to fish. I developed this product for guys like me."
While designed to make fishing more exciting for all anglers, Slinker is becoming a favorite of professional anglers. According to Central Pro Am Touring Pro Lynn Sykes, "It's the most realistic worm on the market, with incredible life-like action."
Beginning in May, Clark will
add Slinker to his line of live bait
products being sold from his distribution center in Springdale, Ark.,
where he grows, imports and packages anything for the live bait
fisherman: Canadian, African and European night crawlers, red worms, crickets
and pre-packaged frozen bait. He currently services sports shops, marinas
and convenience stores in the Arkansas River area, and subcontracts service
to clients in Oklahoma, Missouri and other areas of Arkansas. "We
sell our clients our service, and a product we stand behind. I'm on call
24 hours a day and I'm happy to do it," said Clark.
Slinker lures are produced in a range of colors including pearl, bubble gum, watermelon seed, watermelon seed red flake, watermelon candy, green pumpkin, black red flake, tequila, plum and red bug.
Slinker lures are available for sale at www.slinkerlures.com, and will be marketed to Clark's existing retail customer base. For more information, to download a print quality image of the retail product package or to view photos of Slinker in action, return to Press / Media page.
U.S.
Patent # D453,205 S
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