Fishing Rhino

It's also going to be quite noisy when the skeletons ..................................................................... uhhhhh, never mind.

It's 7:08 EDT. You guys better be on your way to the lake if you're not there already. There's fish to be caught, and obviously, some very nice fish at that. Reveille has already been played. Looking forward to the daily report at the end of the day.

And, golfers balls have dimples.

What about wind direction? Has it been blowing toward the affected side?

A-Jay, our forum equivalent of

Where are you? Has it rained? Is there any construction on that side of the pond. How deep is it? There are some waters around here where decomposition gasses get trapped in or beneath bottom layers of, for lack of a better word, gunk. But that happens later in the summer when water temps peak. In the fall, the gunk settles back to the bottom. Some of it will rise to the surface and some will suspend below the surface being tethered by whatever, that only lets it rise so far. We refer to it as "undulating bottom".

I have two sets of rain/foul weather gear that I bought at Dick's on sale for 75 dollars, pants and hooded top. They are lined, have zippered leg bottoms so you can pull the pants on over boots. The brand is Field and Stream. Unfortunately, they don't carry them anymore as a set. I got the first set in 2008 and the only time the second set has been worn is when I have a guest and they didn't have rain gear. The only problem I had was the pants. They were not the bib overall type, and they'd work down when I was sitting. Ended up with a wet butt. Solved the problem with a pair of suspenders. Stretch 'em up snug over my shoulders and no more wet but. Most of us have no need for the super duty, speed of sound, frigid temps type of gear. Buy them large enough to allow you to layer your clothing beneath and you'll stay warm and toasty.

I'd keep the cleats on the inside of the boat, below the rails if at all possible. Cleats on top of a deck/rail/gunnel are a no no for me. They provide snags for fishing line, brush, branches, etc.

I've had a Nitro Z-7, which is about the same size as the Stratos you are considering. I now have a Z-8, and there is no comparison. The Nitro had a 150 EFI Merc and the top speed I saw on the GPS was just over 58 mph. The 8 has a 200 hp Optimax (standard engine on the 8) and I've seen just under 63 mph on the gps unit. The main difference is size and stability. The 7 was skitterish at top speed. It had the sensation that it was about to take off. The 8, has shown no tendency to "dance" on the surface when on the pad. The 8 is also much more stable when someone moves around on the deck. Given the waters your going to be fishing regularly I'd opt for the Nitro. On smaller waters probably the Stratos simply because it is new, though the smaller engine gives me pause. I'm not a horsepower freak. Most of the time I cruise between 35 - 40 mph. I do like the four cycle. They purr like a kitten.

Uh oh, do I sense a "Chili Bowl" cookoff in the making.

How did I know what you were getting up on your soap box for?

C'mon guys. We want some catch reports.

There is a simple reason why they can tell you what you can and cannot keep in your driveway. The rules a clearly stated when a person buys into such a community. They understand this going in. If they don't like the rules, then they should look elsewhere for a home.

Here are some images of how trolling motors are mounted. I don't recall ever seeing a trolling motor mounted parallel to the center line of the boat. Nitros have the trolling motor mounted as shown in the last image. They are mounted that way to open up deck space on the bow. It's why trolling motors have internal adjustments so the motor can be in line with the hull while the control pedal is in the middle position.

I don't know how the Minnkota's steering is set up. A Motorguide has a rack and pinion steering system. The steering can be accessed by taking the top off the head. A plastic plate holds the rack in place. I can remove the plate, and lift the rack out of its place. Then, the foot pedal can be centered and the motor can be set to the straight ahead position. The rack is replaced with the pinion gear centered on the rack. I think the Minnkota has a push/pull cable on a pulley. The pulley should be splined over the steering shaft to allow for adjustment of mounting the unit in various positions whether it be in line with the boat, or across it like you have done. I found this on a google search. Sounds like it might be best done with a helper to hold tension on the cables. Warning!!! from Mark Richards (98.199.150.17) 1/1/2008 3:27:00 PM Ok, I have done this quite a few times so take heed, I am not familiar with the MK65 but I am sure the principal is the same on all of these motors.. Take off the top half of the plastic head and look on the center shaft. Your two foot control wires wrap around a plastic spool which sits on the shaft with a spline fit. If you have not done this before, get a pad and pencil and draw the way the wires come in, lay and attach in that plastic spool - because when you pull it off, if they come off you will be scratching your head wondering what the hell you did. You can figure it out but why think if you don't have to, its not as simple as it sounds because spool rotates, the wires wrap round and round etc.. Slack your cable tension adjustment screw in the footpedal all the way off, then what you have to do is slide that plastic spool off, and rotate it until you have the right position. The object of this, is to have the motor set pointing straight ahead, with your footpedal in the middle incline position, so you have full travel in each direction up and down. When you do this, you have to be aware that with the cables loose, they can come off the cams in the footpedal if you don't keep tension on them. Good luck.

Before you make all the electrical connections, is it possible for you to turn/twist the foot control 360 degrees which will put a loop in the control cable, effectively shortening it? Looking at the image, you should be able to "stow" the loop beneath the two crossmembers at the bow. Use a zip tie or two to secure the loop where it will be out of the way. Then route your electrical cables.

One of my sources confirms that you do fish, and snapped this picture of you.

I take care of the lawnmowing, and the missus and I both tend to the gardens. They are mostly perennials and once well established, the only work is getting rid of the branches and leaves that accumulated during the winter, and putting a thin cover of mulch on the beds to keep the weeds in check. Coneflowers with Lucifer in the background. Nature's garden. Wild lady slippers.

Another glaring omission by me, the Ron Popeil Pocket Fisherman.

How many times did you get hit by a pin(s)? I remember those days. I never did it, but I remember the pin boy would step on a lever, raising posts on the alley. The pins had a hole bored in the bottom so they could be set on those posts. I think you had a high seat between the two alleys, so you could work two alleys at a time.

I've got a 34' X 34' garage attached to the house. Plenty of room for the boat. Our vehicles park in the 34' X 24' deep garage on our lot next door. My Z-7 would fit snugly into the garage next door, but my Z-8 won't, so it stays in the big garage. The garage was built to serve as a woodworking shop, then changed to building lobster pots when I became a lobsterman, then a fiberglass shop when I switched from lobstering to making race car bodies. It's heated, air conditioned, and very well lit. I couldn't have it any better.

Goodyear Eagle LS-2 P275/55R20 List for about 168.00 each. GMC dealer price, just over 130.00 each mounted, balanced, and old tires disposed of. That was three years ago.

How often rain and weather disrupt your programming depends on where you are. For our area, the satellite which transmits the program is close to the horizon, so widespread rain will disrupt the broadcast more often than those whose satellite is high in the sky. Still, though it's a pain when it happens, it doesn't happen that often. Snow is more of a problem though we only lost the signal twice despite the unusual amount of snow we got. I've got a "treatment" for snow building up on the antenna. Spray it thoroughly with silicone spray, then after it is totally dry, spray it with deicer. It may need to be done two or three times, depending on the weather, but it's preferable to getting up on the roof to clear the buildup off the antenna.

Well that's certainly a bummer LM. What's a road trip without RW and LM preparing dinner after one or maybe two, at the most, drinks. For those who are heading out to the Road Trip, Bon Voyage, and catch 'em up. Catch a few for me while you're at it.

I have only one superstition. It's that the only way to catch fish is to go fishing.