Hooked 0403_Hooked 0403- - Hooked Magazine

NEW PRODUCTS
The Talon!
Shallow water anchor allows you to fish precisely and effectively
BY DARRIN BOHONIS
Every once in a while a product
comes along that gives you that
extra edge. Whether a technology
such as Side Imaging® and
Down Imaging sonar from
Humminbird® that enables you to
explore in picture-like detail the
underwater environment, or Minn
Kota’s iPilot that helps define the
meaning of boat control.
With the introduction of the new
Talon shallow water anchor, Minn Kota®
again proves its commitment in leading
the way through innovation and design.
Instead of taking a “me too” approach
in the shallow water anchor market, Minn
Kota raises the bar and sets the standard
in this unique category.
First, let’s take a step back to discuss
the concept of a shallow water anchor and
how it can benefit you as an angler.
Although the shallow water anchor market
has a following in the southern saltwater
flats, tournament Bass anglers soon
took notice to the benefits of this stealthy
anchoring concept. By being able to pull
up to a dock, submerged timber, weed
edge or rock pile without the worry of
drifting past the target area or having to
reposition the boat with your trolling
motor, a shallow water anchor enables you
to fish an area precisely and effectively.
30 | HOOKED | Summer 2011
Talon gives you the ability to “set your
position on a dime” to fish with precision
with the simple press of a button.
At first glance, Talon certainly catches
the curiosity of many people. Positioned
on the transom, the concept is relatively
simple. Within the external self-contained
design rests a fiberglass reinforced composite
spike. With a one-touch press of the
wireless remote or by pressing the external
button on the unit itself, the two-stage
deployment extends the spike vertically
until it comes in contact with the bottom.
Bright blue LED lights indicate the depth at
which the spike is deployed – 1 LED for
each foot of depth to a maximum 8'4" on
the 8' model and 6'4" on the 6' model.
At this point, the Auto-Drive initiates a
series of three successive increases in force
to drive the spike, ensuring secure positioning.
To retract the system, another single
press of the remote retracts the spike
quickly and securely within the housing.
Instead of holding down a button and
waiting, this fully automatic Auto Up/Down
feature allows you to spend more time
fishing. By the way, did I mention the
spike carries a lifetime guarantee?
A significant difference that sets Talon
ahead of the competition is its electro
mechanical design. As opposed to a
hydraulic system that runs the risk of
leaking seals, Talon simply installs much
like your electric trolling motor with the
connection of a single wire cable to your
battery. There’s no worry about where to
store a hydraulic pump and motor that
can take up valuable storage space—not
to mention the added shop time and cost
of installation.
Talon can be mounted directly on to the
transom or to an adaptor mounting bracket
for your specific boat design.
In rough water situations, Talon features
a built in Wave Absorption suspension.
Additionally, you can also set the
system to Rough Water Mode which performs
three Auto-Drive sequences in 10
second intervals. This ensures a positive
lock on the bottom… and let me tell you—
it works!
At the Sturgeon Bay Open Bass
Tournament earlier this Spring, we were
faced with some pretty windy conditions.
In fact the second day of the tournament
was canceled due to the high winds. All
around us we noticed teams working their
trolling motors on high or attempting to
anchor with time consuming effort. I even
noticed some anglers with competitive
shallow water anchors attempting to maintain
their boat position. However given
the windy conditions we were facing, they
were continually forced to reposition