Low_Budget_Hooker

"Sierra cement", as the general public knows it,comes a few days later, if at all. That's when the sun is on the new snow and compresses that 10' down to 6'. Next day, same thing, 6' down to 4' but now it gets a nice shine on top from the crust that is forming. Another day and we are down to 2 ft of naturally compressed, ice topped snow. This stuff will tear you some new skin on your shins when making fresh tracks. Sometimes, you don't get that ice crust and this is a Sierra cement that is probably one of the BEST surfaces to compete on believe it or not. The snow is firm and carveable like a stiff styrofoam. REAL Sierra cement however, refers to a wind blown ridge that is shaded all day. If you should launch of one of these rims without realizing the condition below you (I learned from locals who had been skiing these mtns their whole lives, which areas to ski when and why) you will be coming out on a sled with a minimum of a broken femur. Landing on a hard wind blown patch of snow that started off wet and then compressed via the wind, is just like landing on a cement slab. Many watch the Warren Miller movies and there are lots of "OOOhs and Ahhs" with the cliff jumps but they are really quite similar to jumping into a big air bag. But that's only when the conditions are right. This is a calculated risk that you are watching. These people know where they are jumping, what's below them, etc. The injuries, etc that you hear about are usually from people who jumped in an area they did not know. LOCAL KNOWLEDGE IS EVERYTHING in the mtns just like it is on a lake. and.....just for the record, New England ski areas experience "Sierra cement" much more than the western resorts do, by far. Skiing out west is much more forgiving than skiing the east because of the differences in the snow.

Well the snow the Sierra's gets is a very light, powdery snow, 10' of powpow (a Tahoe-ian word for White gold) really isn't as big a deal as 2' of heavy stuff. The wind and 30 ft swells ARE a big deal as well as the rain which could cause some major mud slides considering the fires they had this summer. You know what WE say though, foul weather?? Time to go fishin' ;D Hang tough Cali boys

Remove the "to" and eliminate the rest of the sentence. "That's when you hop in your H2, drive over to the offending neighbors house" ;D ;D

Or you could just leave your name alone!!

The issue here is age. Most sponsors do not want to enter into a contract with a minor. In all brutal honesty, a sponsor won't usually consider a youth till they make it to the JWC's. This is the route I would take if I were you... but be prepared to have your parents handle the details and contracts.

You guys are calling him all wrong,.... RIBBIT RIBBIT

I bet you were the kid in the neighborhood that told all the younger kids that Santa wasn't real. I dub thee Buzzkizzle!!

Cool, we'll have to do lunch in a month or so. Thanks Alan.

I'm just playin'

They're in there. Of course the whole Jordan Family is high on the list. But man, it's a big list. I'm fortunate to be close with many of the people I fish with on a daily basis.

You should have sent all the paperwork back and asked them to return it to the forest because our country is in a resources crisis. ;D Less trees means less oxygen and using paper to pass your propaganda is just blatant waste of such resources. There are groups set up to asssist with the saving of our forest's but surely they use the paperless internet instead of killing trees for spamming purposes. I'll send them your address so they can send you an educational email. Peace & Happiness BIZZ

and then there's the Super Bowl so,...5 more bowl threads coming, right? ;D

A real Captain eats his first Giant Bluefin Tuna's heart. It's the way of the sea. Eat the heart. There are many ceremonial practices in multiple cultures all over the world that pertain to the eating, drinking, or sharing of certain parts of the kill after a successful hunt. It is not seen as gross or hard core, it is more of a homage to the soul of the animal or the gods they believe brought that meal to them.

How many Bowl games ARE there? Man,...... : ;D

I have a 3500. I bought it primarily for Bluefish (Hence the size) but used it bassin' all season,lol. A 2500 will be on the shopping list this yr.

Dude, buy a bigger boat

Just as the sponsors of the site deserve a big thanks every year, my personal sponsors allowed me to be able to both be here, and do the things I do all season long. With that, a huge thank you to everyone who participated in CAST For Kids with me this year. I won't break it down, there are too many and I would hate to forget someone but you know who you are and you know how I feel about you being there to help out the kids. You all are great. Also, a special thank you to UPS but not just for their support of CAST for Kids and it's future growth but specifically to my boss for allowing me the flexibility needed on so many occasions. Without his direct support, many things would not have happened. That was huge. Thanks Pat. For the warmth, tip to toe, the dry as toast comfort I enjoyed through any and all foul weather,......The North Face. Unbelievable gear, unbelievable people, unbelievable company. Top notch, head to toe. NEVER STOP EXPLORING. Thank You. Brent & Amy Bollinger of ***. You step up on every occasion. Whether it's the kids, the members, the general public or me, you got us all covered. A special Thank you and big wishes for a prosperous 2008 season. Calcutta Optics- Providing me with the "window" into the bass' world. Thank you. To all my friends and fishing partners. We had some fun, didn't we?...................Thanks for sharing your time and allowing my free time to be so enjoyable and fruitful. This is why we do what we do right here. Good times with good people, the ultimate wealth. Thanks for making me such a rich man. Wishing everyone a new PB and a safe, fun season for 2008. TAKE A KID FISHING!! With deep gratitude, J. Russell Thetonia a.k.a. Low_Budget_Hooker

RIP small pond I always hate when those go.

I have my reservations about Key west in particular, the hardware can be "not the best". example, look at how the seat back mounts to the aluminum framing. Not alot holding it on, not alot of surface area supported, etc. Small stuff, but on the salt, things that aren't made top notch,....fall apart. That layout is very versatile set up for a small boat though. I have a 15 Whaler jet. Exact same set up but with an inboard. (mine also has padded cooler as seat in front of CC) Boat is great for chasing bluefish, stripers and water skiing in the lakes. I did fish it once with my dad, in a lake, during a test run after switching out the power plant and we had a blast. Caught fish all afternoon in comfort.

Good stuff or junk? (CVZ)

(Understand that I just gave you some serious mojo right there. Any time Eric tells me I'm not going to do as well as I think,....guess what......,lol.) ps- beautiful fish shadcranker, healthy looking. now, GO GET "EM!!

You need to steer clear from that line of thinking Wayne. 2 trips to Fork have taught me 1 thing, you can be fishing Ray Scotts backyard, if it's during the spawn, the weather is everything. we went to Fork on yr 1 with the same thought process as you, relying on our level as fishermen to at least give us a few fish/day, certainly not a skunk. Heck, so what,...no 10lbr, that's not my goal,...well GOOD THING!! lol. A 2 lbr took everything but Dynamite. I could have been fishing somewhere in RI during cold weather season and I would not have known the difference. This is Lake Fork??? Yup, during a severe cold front during the spawn. The idea of going during spawn is that there is that chance of a real brag worthy fish. With those chances come higher odds of a complete shut down, weather forbidding. Yr 2 , we had similar conditions but nowhere near as harsh. The bite was tough. Folks with guides saw their big fish but the avg decent angler would struggle just to put a few in the boat, but they were caught. The whole moral here is that we go to meet up, catching, is icing on the cake, catching a biggun', makes it that much better. The primary highlight for many of us who have gone however, even those that caught the big fish, was the camaraderie. By far. Just hanging out in person with all the guys we hang out with via cable modem,...it's very cool. Actually fishing with them and attacking a foreign lake together, well, it's something only our members will ever know. You guys are gonna have a blast, trust me, big fish or no fish, you'll have a blast.

You got it Wayne, just keepin' it real,lol. ;D

Shoot, if you travel there from a place where a 5 is a chunk, then a 5.1 would do it for me,lol.

From a Fishonbc article (Steelhead site): Center Pin reels come in many styles and from many different manufactures. These reels can cost any where from about $250.00 to over $600.00 dollars depending on the model. When choosing a reel you must first decide where your budget is, as these reels are expensive. Center pins are all very similar they are a very simple design basically what we have here is a large fly reel with the ability to free spool line so we can cast and make drifts while fishing. Some center pin reels are equipped with bearings and some have a bushing drive. Bearing models are the most widely produced at present as they spin faster and longer right out of the box, however do not count out a good quality bushing reel. They may take longer to break in but once they do thy will run smooth as silk for years of use. Most center pin reels now come offered in a variety of anodized finishes this is a nice feature and enhances the look of your investment, black, gold and silver are the most popular. When many anglers are looking to purchase a center pin reel they often make the mistake of thinking that this is a reel that they can use for all of their river fishing. While you can use these reels in several different applications you will soon find out that center pin reels are for the most part designed for specialty situations, most common is float fishing in small to medium sized rivers. The main feature that makes a center pin reel so much fun to play fish is also its downfall as far as versatility is concerned. The one to one ratio you get from this reel is okay when you don't have to cast or retrieve a long distance, but if you are casting long distances all day a center pin will wear you out. Also you will not be able to cast as often thus making you less efficient in covering water and you will show less fish your bait. This is the reason that center pin reels are better suited for use on small and medium sized rivers.