A-Jay

Don't look now but the Touring Anglers Association is a non-profit fishing tournament designed to dramatically reduce tournament costs and significantly increase winnings for anglers. Their mission is to offer anglers a fishing tournament that pays out the maximum cash prizes. The world’s largest performance-based cash earnings. https://touringanglersassociation.com/ Some of TAA’s philosophies are set up to create a simple old-fashioned fishing tournament for the fishermen by the fisherman. One way they plan on doing that . . . . Wait for it . . . . . . Is with Equipment Restrictions: The following equipment MUST be REMOVED from the boat prior to the 3-hour ride around: * Live scope * Forward-facing sonar * 360 imaging transducer More here . . . https://touringanglersassociation.com/format/ Was only a matter of time . . . A-Jay

Total Body Day 3 this morning. Still adapting to this 'less is more' training philosophy. I can already see that as this moves along, self discipline will be tested. Seems it always is though. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

Wearing of life saving equipment has been a topic of concern for me for just about all of my adult life. When it was part of my job description, I witnessed the demise of many men, women & children who went into the water without any; recreational & professional alike. IMO, Seems there's two categories ~ Folks who know, care, are responsible and respect their lives and the lives of those who love them. Then there's Folks, who don't know the dangers, are mostly oblivious to any situational awareness at all, are supremely selfish and take their life and those that love them for granted. Personal feelings on this matter, one way, or the other have proven to be like a waste of time. This one resembles drunk driving in many respects. Folks just keep doing it. But the first time I handed over the lifeless body of a 12 year old girl to her hysterical parents on the beach, it changed me. Stay Safe A-Jay

I will add that after reading 'several' recommendations from @Dwight Hottle promoting the benefits of Sufix 131 braid vs 832, my interest has bean peaked. So when my various spools of 832 are exhausted, which may take a while frankly, that 131 will get it's shot on the Pro-V Bass. Be nice if Sufix began offering it in more of a bulk spool sizing. A-Jay

The following applies to when I pursue the plus sized local smallmouth population. I like spinning & casting for standard size jerkbaits ~ sticks are medium / fast and 6' 9"-7'-1" is routinely the the magic spot for me on both. For line, 10 lb braid on spinning gear (suffix 832) and an 8 - 10lb big game (green) mono or Tatsu FC leader. I prefer a 20 - 25 ft leader lengths in front of the braid on spinning gear. I use a 7' ML spinning stick for smaller baits (110 +1 JR) with 8 lb braid and an 8 lb leader. It's something I started doing several year ago and have stuck with it. I believe it offers a few benefits that revolve around casting distance and landing fish. For one, once a hooked bass gets close to my rig and is making her last few ditch efforts to earn her freedom, i.e. short runs, jumps and even digging under the boat, the longer leader keeps the connection knot on the reel for the most part. So I don't have to worry about the connection knot ripping on & off the reel and up & down the guide train 5-10 times under strain, during one of the most critical parts of landing a brown tank. On casting gear, I prefer straight 10 FC line. Tatsu or InvisX. https://youtu.be/AcsR1MWdSo8?feature=shared&t=423 A-Jay

I have not ever pursued SMB that didn't spend a significant time under the ice. Maybe This Is the Year. I could 'guess' what I might do, but there's enough of that on the web as there is. And very little of it's actionable. Either way, the conditions need to be reasonable for the basshead, namely me. So if the air temps and wind speeds stay within acceptable parameters, I may find out but I don't do iced up guides. Time will tell. A-Jay

Total Body Day 2 this morning. Been feeling like I haven't been recovering fully from many of the recent & more intense workouts. Decided to back it off a bit and started that with this one. Once I believe I am coming back right, I may bump it up a bit and see how that goes. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

Hard to fathom at this point, but I've already used mine a couple of times this 'winter'. And I'm using that term is the tradition sense . . . . A-Jay

Quite an assortment of very interesting responses & ideas in this one. While I've used different products (including some of what's mentioned above), few seemed great or poor. Most were effective and sort OK. That said, and because I always have a bunch of it on hand, I use vehicle (truck) care products. If it's safe and effective on the clear coat, usually works fine on the Blanks. The newer Ceramic containing deals seem especially good. (Don't use the leather care at all here) My cork all gets sealed when new so I rarely need to do any thing there. A-Jay

101 Days ~ But to what ? ? ? Well this is an interesting turn of events. For the FIRST time that I can remember, since we retired to northern Michigan, Some of the bigger Lake Menderchucks Are Presently OPEN Water ! At least the few that have 'live web cams' are. Not sure if they even ever iced over yet. Today and for the next two days, air temps are close to or above 50 degrees. #bizarreoworld My property looks and feels more akin to April than late December. Not exactly sure how this is going to play out but I don't expect it to hinder my hopes of an early ice out any. Great Lakes seem to be open water at this end as well. Locally, no one's Ice Fishing, what little skim ice there may be is, is way too sketchy for even the most brazen. Either way, I'm still waiting but expectations just took a jump. Might I be floating in Mid-March ? Don't even tease me. Still, it's 'Tight Line Sunday'. This pre-spawn fatty is from 2020 and was my biggest Smallie that season. A-Jay

If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done ? ? ? A-Jay

If Zigging is what everyone else does, my personal version of Zagging to catch bigger fish looks like this . . . . Be on water when/where there is no crowd. Fish presentations that I have confidence in, ignoring what others do, because it has zero effect on my results. Fish my own fish. Fish gear that is up to the task and perhaps even a little overkill. Either way, being at the right place, at the right time, using what has worked for me in the past, might trump zigging & zagging in my book. Fish Hard A-Jay

Change that to Snow & Cold and that's northern Michigan too. A-Jay

Really Sorry Ken ~ A-Jay

Thanks Mike ~ I don't have any ownership experience with the "Apollo of Dogs". However we have nice neighbor who has had a pair for as long as we've lived here. He's on one of our "walk routes". So we've had several up close & personal opportunities with them. Big Dogs for sure and they would make our 100 lb malamutes look pretty small. Tall and imposing but seem easy going and super friendly. Must make wonderful companions and serious guardians for your home & property. He feeds them outside (on his front porch), they look like ponies from a distance ! Happy Holidays from our pack to yours. A-Jay

Running E-Free in everything except the truck. It's all 89 octane here. (rec gas) GMC 6.2L calls for Super and the only 93 I can get is not ethanol free. A-Jay

A-Jay

In another thread I was asked to pass on some info regarding dog adoption/rescue. I linked this response in that thread https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/258477-i-took-my-dog-back-to-the-rescue…/?do=findComment&comment=3031619 but believe this could be helpful standing on its own. The initial discussion revolved around some of the challenges associated with finding the right dog from an animal shelter. Right off the bat, I am not promoting the below information as anything more than my own personal experience. All of which is from simple dog ownership, as well as working with, fostering & placing/re-homes dogs for a local animal shelter and various dog rescue entities over the course of the past 25 years. I totally understand that everyone has their own dog ownership experiences & beliefs many of which may totally differ from mine. And I have zero problem with that. So that said, here’s what I got . . . . . . Over the years, my wife & I have gotten Great dogs from pure bred AKC reputable dog breeders, animal shelters and dog rescues. And with some effective research in advance, we believe most anyone else can too. It all boils down to finding the Right Dog For You & your specific situation. This is where it really pays off to first be completely honest with yourself while having realistic expectations about what you can offer the dog. As well as what you expect from him/her. Being knowledgeable about a specific breed of dog and knowing what to expect is key. Animals have free will, a mind of their own and specific Breed characteristics/reputations are a real thing. As for breeders, shelters and dog rescues, they may all have pro’s & cons and some have a better track record than others. AKC Breeders usually deal in puppies. While Dog Rescues have all ages and often depend heavily on foster homes to keep the dogs while waiting on adoption. Both are routinely very selective when it comes to the application process; which is a good thing. Animal shelters may have any age/breed/mix and are often less selective. Meaning an application to a reputable breeder and or dog rescue might be denied. Where that’s a rare event at most animal shelters. Speaking of the application, the best places have a thorough one, because they care about you & the dogs. Many are several pages long and ask a ton of personal info. You might even need to have your home ‘visited’. Meaning a human designated by the entity will actually come to and check your home, property and situation to ensure that they are safe/appropriate for the dog. We’ve actually participated in a few of these. Both as an owner and a representative of the local animal shelter. Seen some stuff. Either way, don’t be put off. Instead be open & thankful for the process which can help get a new best friend. Searching Long distance and even out of state Dog Rescues digitally, can seriously widen the selection opportunities. And something that many folks don’t know about, is that most all of these places participate in dog ‘transports’. So the way it works is some wonderful, generous dog loving volunteers will safely transport your new dog state to state and right to you, often from anywhere in the country. My current two dogs started out in Texas, were transported to a Rescue in Wisconsin and then shuttled to us in Michigan. Ask about it if the need is there. Little doubt that there’s a lot to this however I am going to end with what we call “the animal shelter experience” and “The Rescue Story”. Looking at pictures of a dog, reading about it on line and even talking to those who know about a dog might not prepare one sufficiently for an actual visit to the animal shelter. Especially those facilities that are entirely indoors. If one has never been in a building with 20, 50 or even several hundred stressed out, over excited, barking dogs, it can be incredibly intimidating. (and smell bad) It’s important for prospective owners to understand that most of what we see behavior wise at the shelter, is a direct result of being there in the first place and often does not reflect what any particular dog is actually like after just a few days with the right people in a new home. Simply taking a dog out of that environment for just a brief period can often provide a glimpse of what to expect. That’s why we really believe in the power of “A Walk”. Do it, take your new friend for a couple of laps outside around the shelter if you can. Will probably pay huge dividends. We’ve learned quite a bit about these processes from multiple fosters, especially when we screened applicants and rehomed dogs ourselves. The rescue story is always the deal. Every rescue dog has one and perspective owners, including me, are very interested in knowing what the situation was before the dog got to where it is now. Sometimes it’s known, sometimes not and sometimes it’s totally made. Yup, made up to attract people to the dog. Does it matter ? I say yes and no. I want to know what I can about a new dog but it rarely changes much of what I do when I get the dog home. Both the dog and I are in a new situation and we’re both starting from scratch. Rarely does the dog dwell on it’s past, regardless of how ‘bad’ it was. Not sure I could tell for sure anyway. Most are all about where they are now, living and loving in the present. Hope this helps. A-Jay

Total Body Day 1 this morning. Past month or so I have 'cleaned up' my diet a bit more. I Always feel a little better when I do, both physically & mentally. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

OK ~ Thanks. Give me a bit to put something useful together. A-Jay

I have 'some' experience with that. Both positive and a little negative stuff. Don't want to high jack this thread but would be happy to respond specific thread or to serious, non-casual questions via PM regarding the topic. There's quite a bit to it, IMO. A-Jay

Yup ~ Ethanol & I parted ways a few years ago. Never looked back and that's a good thing IMO. https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/221442-ethanol-fuel-treatment-~-no-longer-a-believer/ A-Jay

Happy Holidays to all the people ~ 🎅 A-Jay

My gear is a few years old now but still No problems with anything and I'll put it to you this way. Lake Baccarac in Mexico, where I use these reels, requires a notable commitment in Time, Travel & $$. There's no Tackle Warehouse attached to the lodge which is on top of a mountain. Gear failure can be a Trip killer. I want to take that concern right off the table. These reels do that for me. A-Jay

OK good. I will tell you that I started this deal fishing a Calcutta 300D round reel (Pic bottom right) Great reel and the TranX is essentially a low profile version of that reel. Tranx is Much easier to palm, if that's important to you. It's one reason I initially purchased the Tranx. As for reel gear ratio or IPT of line. I had a few real heart breaking fish losses with the 5.8:1 speed reels. Contrary to what seems to be a popular belief about really big bass is that they are slow. IME (in warm water) this is not the case and while I love fishing swim baits on the slower reel, fish that swam at me or came right to the top, were throwing my single top hook swimbaits right back in my face. Not a fan. Once I switched to the HG reels, I was better at keeping up with the fish, maintaining a tight line, and putting a few more in the net. I still use the non HG reels for swimbaits, but I know ahead of time I may need to reel like a madman to get on the bass. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. A-Jay