In observance of the Memorial Day weekend we will not be distributing any of our services on Monday, May 25. The Outdoor Wire Digital Network will resume our normal distribution schedule on Tuesday, May 26. If you have important news to distribute prior to the holiday weekend, please submit it by 4:00pm Eastern on Thursday, May 21. News arriving later will not make Friday's final editions for the week.
Nomad Outdoor relaunches its bestselling Hobcaw Hybrid Short in Mossy Oak Greenleaf and Bottomland Camo patterns. The versatile performance short features an adjustable waistband, breathable mesh lining, and quick-drying fabric designed for outdoor activities from land management to water recreation.
TrueTimber introduces the Tekari Men's Performance Fishing Hoodie, now available at Walmart. The hoodie features moisture-wicking rayon from bamboo, antimicrobial properties, and 5% spandex for mobility, designed for anglers in warm conditions.
The U.S. Forest Service lifted a boating closure on the Gallatin River near Big Sky that had restricted access from Upper Deer Creek boat launch to Portal Creek boat launch. A temporary emergency closure will be reinstated when the new Markley Bridge is ready for installation.
Team Remington's Brandon Powell won his third consecutive NSCA Northeast Regional Main Event Championship at M&M Hunting Preserve in Pennsville, New Jersey, defeating 828 competitors. Teammate Braxton Oliver also claimed top prize in the B&P Preliminary, while Turner Parcell won the 20-gauge event and Michael Luongo finished runner-up in the 28-gauge competition.
Walther Arms is hosting the Walther Shop Stop on May 22, 2026, at FrogBones Family Shooting Center in Melbourne, Florida. The event features live product demonstrations, private instruction from professional shooters Santiago Lopez, Parker Patrick, and Jay Beal, a Walther drift car driven by Caleb Quanbeck, and exclusive deals and giveaways.
Meprolight will showcase its battle-proven optics at The Tactical Games at The Sawmill Training Complex this Memorial Day Weekend, offering hands-on demonstrations and exclusive event pricing on products including the MVO riflescope series, Tru-Vision SR, M22 PRO, MCO PRO, and MMX4 magnifiers.
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources reminds residents of Free Fishing Days on June 6–7 and September 26, 2026, when fishing licenses are waived for public waters. All other state fishing regulations remain in effect during these designated days.
The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department released the 2025 Master Angler Program Report with a record 1,222 entries and 90 Master Angler Award recipients, including 28 youth anglers. The program recognizes anglers catching trophy-sized fish from 37 eligible species and includes new changes for 2026, such as individual categories for three Redhorse species.
Whitetails Unlimited granted $36,044 to over 20 organizations in Massachusetts for outdoor education and hunting and shooting sports preservation. The organization's six Massachusetts chapters supported rod and gun clubs and sportsmen's clubs through their Staying on Target Program.
M360-PRO offers programmatic advertising across premium platforms including streaming TV, news websites, and digital audio, contrasting with Meta's closed ecosystem. The platform supports restricted categories and provides advanced targeting capabilities beyond social media signals, potentially improving efficiency of downstream channels like Meta.
Celerant Technology hosted its 2026 Client Conference in Dallas, introducing major product updates including Skylar IQ AI retail agent, Customer Engagement Suite, and redesigned POS interface. The event brought together firearms retailers, distributors, manufacturers, and industry partners including SIG SAUER, RSR Group, NASGW, Silencer Shop, and Project ChildSafe to discuss regulatory changes and retail technology solutions.
The Michigan Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development and Natural Resources are urging residents to follow safe firewood practices during camping season, as untreated firewood can transport invasive pests and diseases that threaten Michigan's $126 billion food and agriculture industry and $26 billion forest products industry.
The International Hunter Education Association-USA (IHEA-USA) is offering final registration for its 2026 Annual Meeting & Training, June 1–4 in Glendale, Arizona. The event features AI workshops, online learning research, blood trailing app technology, and networking opportunities, with free virtual access available for IHEA volunteer members and in-person attendance options.
The Wild Sheep Foundation held its fourth Thinhorn Summit in Prince George, British Columbia, bringing together 65 in-person and 24 virtual participants to advance Dall's and Stone's sheep conservation. The event focused on applied conservation science, climate resilience, habitat management, and practical strategies to sustain thinhorn populations across northwestern North America.
Michael Waddell hosts his father James Edwin "Paw Paw" Waddell and longtime mentor Bill Joe "Sammy" Ellison on The Michael Waddell Podcast, presented by Spandau Arms in partnership with Folds of Honor, Cigars International, and Poncho Outdoors. The episode explores their journey from hardscrabble childhoods in the rural South to successful careers in construction, emphasizing work ethic, skilled trades, and enduring friendship.
GRITR announces the release of the GRITR Dopp Pouch, a tactical-style travel organizer featuring structured stand-up construction, reinforced EVA foam walls, and durable 840D fabric. Available in two sizes with hook-and-loop patch panels, the pouch is designed for daily carry, range use, and travel environments.
Beretta USA and Langdon Tactical Technology unveiled the 92G Elite Combat LTT, a competition-grade pistol featuring enhanced ergonomics, a Toni System compensator, fiber-optic sights, and three 22-round magazines. The pistol is available through authorized dealers at $1,299 MSRP.
Blue Force Gear unveiled the patented BFG Integrated Stealth Harness (ISH), a certified system combining a combat gun belt and climbing harness into one lightweight platform. Weighing just 1 pound 9 ounces total, the ISH serves as a combat gun belt, helicopter restraint system, and certified rappel harness rated to hold over 3,000 pounds.
XS Sights launched pre-drilled Tritium Standard Dot front sights for Ruger SP101 revolvers, featuring dual-illuminated tritium lamps with green or orange photoluminescent Glow Dots for improved target acquisition in various lighting conditions. The sights are priced at $75.99 and backed by a Limited Lifetime Warranty plus 12-year illumination warranty.
VKTR Industries announced a collaboration with Shark Coast Tactical and Exigent Defense Suppressors to release the "Kentucky Truck Gun," featuring a 10.5 inch piston VK-1 rifle with Exigent LE556 Suppressor, Holosun sight, and additional tactical components available exclusively through Shark Coast Tactical.
Nosler, Inc. announced the expansion of its Whitetail Country ammunition line with two new 30 caliber offerings: 30-06 Springfield 180gr Solid Base and 300 Winchester Magnum 180gr Solid Base. Designed for deer hunters, these offerings deliver premium terminal performance at accessible price points starting at $40.95 per box.
SoundGear and Realtree have partnered to introduce the SoundGear Shield x Realtree Special Edition, a 93 dB electronic hearing protection device designed for hunters and shooters. The collaboration combines SoundGear's advanced sound management technology with Realtree's exclusive accessories to promote hearing conservation and outdoor safety.
Magpul released three new M-LOK products: an Index Stop, Thumb Shelf, and SVG Grip designed to improve firearm control and mitigate recoil. All accessories are ambidextrous, available in multiple colors, and constructed from durable polymer with mil-spec hardware included.
Debut author Joe Betar launches thriller HAMMER, following retired UFC champion Jack Garrett forced back into violence after personal tragedy. The gritly action thriller blends conspiracy, cartel violence, and vengeance, earning praise from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jack Carr for its emotional depth and realism.
Sarsilmaz and SDS Arms announce co-sponsorship of the 2026 CMP Bianchi Cup, taking place May 21–24 at Green Valley Rifle & Pistol Club in Hallsville, Missouri. Sarsilmaz will showcase firearms including the SAR9 series, SAR9 SOCOM models, 7/24 series, and K12 hammer-fired steel pistol.
ShellShock Protection announced its sponsorship of the 2026 Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) Summit, taking place May 26-28 at Wild Wings of Oneka in Hugo, Minnesota. The company will provide hearing and eye protection for participants during a media turkey hunt hosted with the Murray Road Agency, National Wild Turkey Federation, and onX Hunt.
The Indiana Rare Earth Recovery Council, created by Governor Mike Braun's Executive Order 25-62, will meet May 21 at Fort Harrison State Park to advance efforts reclaiming rare earth elements and critical materials from legacy coal byproducts, positioning Indiana as a strategic source.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced traffic circulation improvements and a dedicated two-way cycle track at Belle Isle Park based on the 2025 multimodal mobility plan. Central Avenue will transition to two-way traffic, and a new bicycle loop will allow cyclists to circle the island without crossing vehicle lanes.
First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park in Great Falls hosts a family-friendly Outdoor Extravaganza on May 30, featuring trail stewardship with the Stew Crew, a presentation by Dan "The Snake Man" Waitt about Montana snakes, weekly Jump Talk by park staff, and a Blue Moon & Sunset Hike.
Shooting USA features the Hornady Zombie 3Gun match at Heartland Public Shooting Center in Grand Island, Nebraska, and profiles a D1 College shotgun team without university support that achieved a national championship.
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources urges outdoor enthusiasts not to touch, feed, or take home baby deer fawns or elk calves found during summer hikes. Big Game Coordinator Mike Wardle explains that newborn fawns are intentionally left alone by mothers as protection from predators, and human interference can have fatal consequences for the animals.
The Coike Fullcast is an archetypal “Coike” style bait, originating in Japan but now taking U.S. bass tournament fishing by storm.
Weird can sometimes be wonderful. If you tried to think of a lure more unlikely to entice gamefish than a “fuzzy dice” or Coike type lure, you’d no doubt find it a challenge—they look like nothing that lives in fresh water. The nearest living thing might be an octopus from the sea—or perhaps a giant virus come to life in the lake.
But, as is often the case, bass are the final judges. And if it’s stupid but it works, it ain’t stupid.
At the just completed Bassmaster Elite Series event on South Carolina’s sprawling Santee Cooper Lakes, Canadian pro Chris Johnston powered his way to victory in a field stacked with top talent. The headline wasn’t just the weight — a hefty 113-pound, 12-ounce four-day total — it was how many of those bass were caught: on a Coike-style lure.
Not only that, but second-place Brandon Palaniuk also relied heavily on these weird but wonderful lures.
For anglers who haven’t yet embraced these oddball offerings, the success at Santee Cooper is more than a curiosity — it’s a signal that the bass world is evolving, and what would appear to be the magic mushroom dream of a lure maker is now legitimate, proven tournament hardware.
What Are Fuzzy Dice and Coike-Style Lures?
At first glance, these baits look like nothing a bass would naturally encounter. Imagine a small block or sphere of soft plastic with strands of silicone or rubber protruding in all directions — fuzzy, spiky, and frankly bizarre compared with the usual suspects like worms, craws, bluegill and shad imitations.
In Japan’s highly pressured bass waters, these designs have been a mainstay for years; now U.S. anglers are finally taking notice as they prove capable of tempting bites tougher presentations can’t.
Often called “dice baits” or “fuzzy baits”, these lures come in a variety of shapes and materials. The classic style — popularized by the OSP Saikoro Dice Rubber — looks like a miniature cube with silicone skirt material pulled through it in multiple directions. Other offerings, like the Hideup Coike series, are more spherical or sea-urchin like, with molded-in soft spines radiating from a central core.
The “Fuzzy Dice” style appeared prior to the molded Coike design, and is also a great fish-catcher.
What unites them all is their unconventional profile. They don’t imitate shad, crawfish, worms, or any familiar forage item. Instead, underwater they produce a mass of subtle movement: fluttering strands that drift and pulse even with minimal rod tip action. It’s this texture and ambiguity that seems to trigger strikes from bass — especially fish that have seen every other bait in the box.
Different From “Natural” Lures — But Effective
One of the biggest questions anglers have about fuzzy dice and Coike-style lures is why bass eat them at all. They don’t resemble anything in the forage catalog — no realistic shad profile, no craw silhouette, no segmented body or discernible tail.
Instead of mimicking a specific critter, these baits create a totally new silhouette and a mass of tiny movements that bass key in on. The strands and spines flutter and pulse, creating subtle water displacement and micro-vibrations that pique a bass’s curiosity or trigger a reaction bite. They seem to work particularly well in hard-fished lakes where the fish already know the name and model number of every commonly used bass lure.
It’s a concept not entirely alien — spinnerbait skirts, jig trailers, and soft plastic flukes all rely on movement and vibration rather than strict realism — but dice and Coike baits take it to an extreme. When fish are pressured or conditioned to avoid familiar shapes, something truly different apparently can be the thing that draws a strike.
How to Fish Fuzzy/Coike Lures
Fishing these lures is all about finesse and subtle presentation — speed isn’t the ticket here. The general idea is to let the lure sink slowly, give it minimal movement, and let those strands do the talking.
Because the bodies can be bulky, traditional Texas rigs aren’t the go-to choice; instead, finesse setups with fully exposed hooks are the ticket. The hooks are guarded from snags by the “arms’ of the bait, so weedless rigging is usually not necessary.
The top anglers in the Elite event at Santee Cooper appeared to be fishing the Coike lures with what would be called a wacky or Neko rig in a worm, that is a small nail weight in the center, along with a large hook cradling the center of the bait.
This is cast near cover, allowed to slowly drift to bottom, then twitched up with the rod, then allowed to sink again and so on. Strikes are subtle, often only a slight tap or a slacking of the line.
Some anglers also fish the baits with a drop shot, which works well in deeper water where the bait can be sent to bottom quickly with a sizeable weight on the dropper, then twitched and shook in place until the fish can’t stand it.
The key with these lures is patience. These lures come alive with the slightest motion, and bass often hit them on the fall or during a slight twitch rather than a hard strip.
They are, however, “slow” baits—that is, they’re not good for prospecting a new lake where you want to move rapidly to find fish concentrations before you slow down and try to entice the fish that you’ve located. Crank baits and blade baits remain the ticket for most anglers in that venue.
Strike King’s entry into the Coike-style baits is also a proven fish catcher when rigged on a dropshot and fished slowly around cover.
When They Shine
Fuzzy and Coike-style lures seem to excel in situations where bass are cautious — pressured lakes, clear water, or times when fish have seen every typical bait imaginable. They could also show up well on forward-facing sonar presentations, where slow fall and sustained presence in the strike zone matter a lot.
The lures are expensive as soft plastics go, currently at $15 to $20 for the well-known brands. That’s a lot for a lure that may only last through 5 to 10 fish or so. Of course, for tournament anglers this is a cost of doing business, but for us weekend warriors, it can get pricey in a hurry.
However, that has not stopped us weekend warriors from buying whatever is “hot” in the past, and it won’t with these lures, either—and for right now, fuzzy dice and Coike lures are definitely having a moment.
