There’s a couple of really good you tube videos that will teach you how to throw one. I can throw a 8 or 10 footer pretty decent and I’m short at 5’9”. Go to the boat ramps on the river at night under the lights. IF you do find the shad, you’ll find a pile of em.

Cast net = Tacos for me. I need to pull mine out and practice in the backyard.

I like fresh shad the best. I use a cast net to get them but i wont share my honey holes.

To me the blues taste too gamey.
Flatheads taste too gamey.
Channels have tender white meat thats not as fishy tasting. I can see a huge difference in taste compared to channels from the tenn river and channels i catch from a spring fed lake.
The river channels are yellow looking compared to the solid white meat from the spring fed clear lake.

If i target big cats i use live bluegill.

Night crawlers work great for channels too.