A-Jay

So it's day 3 for me - Covid Again ~ WTH Enjoying all the same delightful symptoms while living in the basement. Might be 3 or 4 WEEKS before I'm able to be back in the home gym. But when I can , I will be, Yup, this sux. A-Jay

I drove the 04 & the 05 and they were both 5.7 and not my cup of tea. 3rd gear in the 06 with 6.0L sealed the deal for me. Driving it brought back so many memories. Fun actually driving a ride again - no tech. Just a seat, a radio, a big motor and 3 pedals ! Ah the good old days. Went through some rubber. A-Jay

2006, year before I retired, I bought myself a birthday present. 2006 Pontiac GTO (Last Year they made them). LS2 6.0L 6 speed short shifter along with a few other after market tweaks. ALWAYS wanted a rear wheel drive road eater and this what certainty that. Just a Blast to drive. After 10 years 2016, I sold her for cash to my local GMC dealer. The money help finance my Lund Pro-V Bass. I miss it a little. A-Jay

Big fish on spinning or casting ? We've all either done it or heard stories of crazy big catches on both gear. And while mutants on spinning gear routinely seems more impressive, it may not be The Best way to Go IMO. I believe it's important to define what we're calling "Big Fish". For me and for the sake of this discussion that would be LMB over 10 lbs and a SMB over 6 lbs. This sizes seems to challenge me the most from hookset, through the fight and hopefully into the net. I have only ever landed big LMB on MH & H casting gear armed with at least 20 to 25 lb mono/FC. And knowing what I know now, and while I might be able to do it, I'd never honestly fish for those big mouth beasts on spinning tackle. It's feels like bringing a knife to a bazooka fight. I have also been fortunate enough to land some very respectable smallmouth bass on both spinning and casting gear. As @WRB mentioned above, when the tackle is 'matched to the situation', both are equally effective in my mind. Finally, the biggest challenges for me when landing plus size bass on any gear, is to have a plan to land the fish in advance of hooking up and staying PATIENT ! Fish Hard https://youtu.be/UYTzJHDCdMo?feature=shared&t=882 https://youtu.be/o9xew3tWuuU?feature=shared&t=1014 https://youtu.be/W2jqCf7BVAE?feature=shared&t=18 https://youtu.be/c8ncmrbV3-M?feature=shared&t=615 A-Jay

The gathering of debris on trailer bunks when the boat is elsewhere, regardless of the type, is something that plagues every trailer. I figured out that a quick wipe down with something like 303 Protectant before I load my rig each time, cleans off the grit and grime, helps with UW ray protection while keeping the boat coming and going on & off the trailer very easily. Might work with Gator bunks too although I am just guessing. A-Jay

Congrats on your new personal best. Always a good time. Also I have a feeling that you're not done yet. A-Jay

Get the Duck Boats Ready ~ ! A-Jay

I wouldn't try that here. #montezuma’srevenge A-Jay

Workout Day 2 this morning. #borninfiftynine https://youtu.be/uZDOhCfbJNI?feature=shared A-Jay

And to add insult to injury, I'm pretty sure he caught it off his dock on a worm from a Walmart live bait container dangling under a bobber. A trophy smallmouth bass anglers worse nightmare ! The DNR 'verified the record' after the fish had been in the guys freezer for a week. Just shoot me now. A-Jay

The Local brown bass population thrives in the routinely clear water. So if the rain muddies it up a ton, I'm looking for cleanest water I can find. If there isn't any 'clean water, I'm fishing close to the bottom & tight to 'cover'. Rattle & bight colors is SOP. If it's not too bad, maybe just a little 'color', I'm looking shallow. Sometimes both pay off . . . https://youtu.be/eGeAS26LB3w?feature=shared https://youtu.be/o9xew3tWuuU?feature=shared&t=319 A-Jay

4 years later . . . . . and I still Hate Braid mainline on casting gear. All FC for me with the caveat that I rarely fish heavy cover. Spinning gear is all braid & leader. And I fish a 20-25 ft leader at LEAST. FC or mono leader, which ever is appropriate. Either way, with a big fish getting close to the boat, I want that connection knot on the reel well before she gets anywhere near the net. But I rarely ever catch any good ones so . . . . . A-Jay

Big Game is still a very decent choice IMO, and used quite a bit this spring with success. But when I want the highest level of confidence, I reach for the Armilo. Last few seasons it's helped me land every topwater brown bass over 5 lbs and 6 pounds. Still looking for that elusive topwater smallies over 7. I get giddy just typing that. A-Jay

May not look like much ~ But I'm very happy. A-Jay

Thank You @OG Crankster And you know what ? I totally missed that until I reposted the link here. My bad and that's what I get for not paying attention. I was initially just happy with getting what I needed and at half price before it was gone. K as in Knucklehead. 🤓 A-Jay

While I haven't seen anything 'official' sure seems like the writings on the wall. Seeing all the 'signs'. Fortunately, if you're a fan of this one as I am, and are looking for a last gasp shot at a few spools It's still available and On Sale (54% off) https://sunlineamerica.com/collections/line/products/shooter-defier-armilo (Fair warning - The standard shipping is a little rugged) I got mine as it makes a killer topwater leader. A-Jay

Hook sets Standing on the front deck of the Pro-V bass vs Sitting in the Old Town canoe are totally different. The seated deal requires far more 'force', at least for me. Over coming the boats movement toward the fish and the fish coming at me is often quite a challenge. Being anchored in the canoe helps quite a bit. The few times I've fished from a kayak it's even tougher, especially a super light one. Unless the fish is directly under the smaller craft, sweeping the hookset while never stopping the reeling (at least at the start) can be a decent way to keep a determine stout bass from coming unpinned. https://youtu.be/gSHOgDGlJGE?feature=shared&t=10 https://youtu.be/NArz656wh9I?feature=shared&t=294 A-Jay

This dirty bird has been tearing up the dog yard since the early spring. Dogs aren't much help unless you like fox holes everywhere. All the while the tricky bugger managed avoiding multiple attempts to do what is pictured below. Happy Fathers Day ! A-Jay

Makes guys partially sink their rig to get under a bridge to access water otherwise only available to beavers. On a personal level, maintain a valid passport, procure specialized tackle and baits, endure far too much air travel, (I hate airports & flying), drink way too much tequila, bake my brain in sub tropical heat and lose serious amounts of sleep. But sometimes it evens out. A-Jay

Just follow these signs right to the ramp ~ Compliments of @FishTank 🤓 A-Jay

I'm pretty sure that's directions to Lake Menderchuck. 😎 A-Jay

I believe that what we become depends on what our fathers teach us at odd moments, when they aren’t trying to teach us. We are formed by little scraps of wisdom ~ Happy Fathers Day A-Jay

After an unscheduled lay off, I eased into Workout Day 1 this morning. Didn't take long to remember why I do this. #borninfiftynine https://youtu.be/TqKn0TuqWac?feature=shared A-Jay

The environments we all fish can be wildly different and require vastly different gear and landing techniques. I fish mostly open water early season and I'm around some soft cover late summer & fall. My gear & fish fighting style reflects that. While I don't like to drop fish, especially big fish. My angling adventures rarely include losing too many bass. I may participate in a few long distance releases a year, but for the most part, it's not sometime that plagues me and I can't really place numbers on it. I'd be guessing. In truth, I use casting to, hooking, playing & net landing most bass over dink size as practice. Besides helping me fine tune my gear and presentation, this Practice is for the one maybe two, truly trophy bass opportunities I may get a year. I figure if landing smaller fish is a struggle, I for sure feel like I'd Dump most every plus size bass I get a shot at. And that would not be good. Still might but So Far - So good. Fish Hard. A-Jay

Coming up on 5 straight days of not working out. Totally unscheduled lay off and the kind I've really tried hard over the years to to avoid. This deal was not. Interesting thing is with that type of lay off, barring an injury, which I do not have, the eternal muscle soreness that comes with training every other day, is totally gone. Kind of nice. However what's also missing is that 'really great feeling' that effective routine and consistent resistance training provides. Mind, body & soul. In the end, I much rather be a little sore than feel as flat as I do right now. Hardest part of these deals for me is once I get out of the groove of eat, train, sleep & repeat; it's a bit of a chore to spin that all back up again. That's where understanding and believing in the benefits this offers come into play for me. Makes it the driving force to just put my head down, grit my teeth and get it done. Well all of that starts back up in about an hour. #borninfiftynine A-Jay