A-Jay

And it's snowing up here. Feel like I'm really earning the warm weather again. A-Jay

Seems like fiberglass, has 'fibers' running it's length. I routinely use the Talons to hold position in some snotty weather. Boat's always stern to the waves in that deal and it's a bit on the violent side. As the rig rides up/down/over the waves and or swells, the length of the Talon will also 'ride' in & out as needed. Don't know for sure, but I'm betting at some point during one of these events, with the Talons extended most all of their length, the forces on that spike ended up being a little more than it could handle and this one split. A-Jay

Circling back & putting a cap on this one ~ Completed the Minn Kota Talon Spike replacement today. Took 10 minutes and I went slow. Hit the button A-Jay

I could see it being a couple of days sooner ~ A-Jay

Mostly not a huge surprise that the prediction I made more than 18 weeks ago didn't happen. Looking at hard water now is wildly disappointing. The local weather is totally trending in the right direction with above freezing air temps day & night along with some serious rain action. So while the Over 3025 hours seems long enough for me, remembering what was happening a year ago today is fun and does test my patience. Maybe next week. A-Jay

Congrats ~ You've given yourself a gift that just might promote longevity and a better quality of life moving forward. Either way, I hope you 'feel good'. A-Jay

I really enjoy responses that begin like this. Half a century is a great teacher. A-Jay

I don't use reel covers. However I am a big fan of Stick Jackets rod covers. They provide a very nice smooth, safe & tangle free method of sliding rigs in & out of the rod locker. A-Jay

I think every semi-serious basshead 'evaluates & re-evaluates' his or her decisions both on & off the water. I'm no different. 'Evaluating' what, where, when & how I fish happens just about constantly; during open AND hard water seasons. It's how I learn. Which Lake, What Section, How Deep/Shallow, What technique, Vertical or Horizontal Presentation, and at What Time ? The list can be as short or long as we want to make it. In fact, I do it before, no doubt during and of course, after just about every trip; regardless of my level or lack of success. A long ride in the GMC to & from Lake Menderchuck offers plenty of opportunity. The satisfaction from 'coming up with' an effective game plan, especially after the first few crash & burn, is what feeds the process for me. So, I don't like to call it 'second guessing'. Sounds negative. Finally while I can and have certainly learned from one trip on the water, compared to an entire season, it's a pretty small sample size. Start stringing some together and then perhaps add a few decades to that, the big picture starts to get a bit clearer. Doesn't always mean more or bigger bass, but it can certainly display how important it all is to me. Fish Hard A-Jay

The Big Fat rain all day today did put a serious dent in it. A-Jay

Admittedly, depending on how the day is going catch wise, it can be quite the mental challenge and exercise in self discipline to focus 100% for the entire length of every single cast - all day. Seems I'm much better at it when my nets already been wet a few times and or I'm in a prime area at what I consider prime time. Either way, we all know that when our baits are wet, anything can happen. A-Jay

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

Tucker's enjoying some morning sunshine ~ A-Jay

Nice - so it was a Blast for a Blast then ? A-Jay

As if there was even an option . . . 1. Standard Jerkbait 2. Deep Jerkbait 3. Silent Jerkbait Bonus points for anything landed on The Stunna ! A-Jay

With a miniscule one day & a wake up left on the open water calendar, we're looking at upwards of an inch of rain. Definitely can't hurt. A-Jay

Totally appreciate the update ~ (especially right now). IME, the bold type above is a reoccurring theme through most all of this deal. #copyandpaste I expect to 'feel' that every trip. And it gets considerably 'worse' AFTER I poke a few fatties, you'll see. Above you mentioned having your gear ready to go, Solid plan for sure. If I may, I'd like to offer an often over looked but IMO, super critical factor. Mind set & Mental preparation. We all may have our own version of this but in the end the result are hopefully the same. So for me this starts with visualization. By imaging what I am going to do when the right bass strikes has been beneficial. Running through it all in my mind, step by step. From the cast, to the hookset, to the fight right on through to where I'm going to land her and how. Clearly it's not possible to account for every situation and every fish catch is so different, but ignoring this type of preparation would leave me winging it or making it up on the fly. Which can be less than ideal, especially with the heart pumping, the knees knocking and the adrenaline flowing ! Might be something to consider. When I first started shooting video, I learned a ton watching myself make all types of 'rookie mistakes' landing fish. Totally counter productive stuff, I didn't even realize I was doing ! Once I cleaned most all of that up - things went much smoother. As your efforts continue, what you might find is that it can be hard to 'believe & trust' in any big fish location, technique or timing deal, until you get a few and then can produce repeatable results. We can probably say this about most all of bass fishing in general but it may be more prevalent for you during this quest. Finally, and this is something that I strongly believe. The actual Catching of Big Bass is not hard. When we get it right it can seem ridiculously simple. What IS Hard is 'what it takes' to make it happen. Enjoy the journey because the gratification is like no other. Fish Hard A-Jay

Hello Oliver and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

Killer Bass - Love a proper early season swimbait bite. Bet that felt good. Congrats A-Jay

I clipped the Mercury on a cast with one a while back. Bill was toast. Removed the hardware and now it' a sweet ignition key fob and a friendly reminder for me to be mindful of my back cast. A-Jay

That's no fun . . . . Hope that clears up soon (and is localized on just that area) The big three are fairly prominent here (Poison Ivy, Oak, or Sumac) I stumbled across this video a while ago. It was very helpful. https://youtu.be/4oyoDRHpQK0 Fortunately for us the same preventatives that works for ticks, usually takes care of this as well. Separate clothes for inside & outside has been the deal for a while now. This would really wipe my wife out. Ah, the great outdoors . . . . A-Jay

Either or I guess. Both methods have pros and cons. We live in the woods. Transporting what lives there inside can happen any number of ways; including what might get on us. Since the 'biting' is actually the bad part, this product kills any that get the chance. A-Jay

The Frabill Conservation Series Landing Net has been good for me. Camlock Reinforced Telescoping Handle from 24-48", 20 X 23-Inch Hoop, 16" net depth. Model 9510 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003JSLWLQ/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Light, sturdy and effective with one hand operation. Even for a mildly eccentric and somewhat elderly fellow like me. A-Jay

I think we're both wondering if & when winter 2022 will end . . . . . A-Jay

Despite nothing that would lead me to believe otherwise, I tooled around a couple of the smaller local Lake Menderchucks yesterday afternoon in the GMC checking for open water. Hard water everywhere with little relief in sight. With a mere 3 days left on this years countdown to open water and snow STILL in the daily forecast, I've had to come to the realization that early April Bassing just isn't going to happen. Hope it opens up soon. A-Jay