Darren.

Color is totally up to you. As for matching with red, just be aware that red may bleed more than others, depending on the dye used in manufacturing. I've heard newer red braids don't bleed as much as red braid from say 5 years ago. For me, yellow wins the day. Its all about visibility the way I fish (and my aging eyes).

If I lived and fished where you Florida guys go, I'd probably have a pair of snake boots. Used to have strap-on anti-snake bite ...thingys for my legs when I was a bit younger. No idea what happened to them. But they'd definitely save you from the biters, not the squeezers (pythons) or gators. Anyhow, Florida is an awesome place for herpetologists, entomologists, and fishermen alike. I'll visit, but don't want to live there even though I love snakes.

Better late than never! Eric, your avatar suggests you went diving for that bass. Is that because you're so tall that you lost your balance? Or were you going Larry Dahlberg on that bass? LOL Anyhow, welcome aboard.

You're officially invited up to my neck of the woods to prove you can catch these beasts in Virginia waters!

Yeah, I probably should have been a little clearer on that But FWIW, I've never been cut when doing a quick stop of my line (10 lb PP) as described. I've been cut plenty of times freeing it from snags incorrectly. I would normally suggest feathering, or palm slapping the spool. I suppose in my case, I don't throw anything very heavy on spinning gear, everything is weightless, or up to ⅛ oz give or take. Best to be cautious with braid.

It is quite possible that your email providers/email clients have updated spam algorithms. They're always having to adapt to the spammers who are always trying to find ways around the blockers. In the case of BR emails, it may be that something in the raw source is being flagged as spam...though not spam. Spam fighting is kind of a shotgun blast as opposed to a laser. Collateral damage, if you know what I mean. Select all the BR emails and say "not spam" or "move to inbox", etc. You can also create a rule in your client to never send these emails to the spam folder... Hope that's helpful.

Welcome back, then!

Welcome to the forums! You could use a slow action rod for cranking, live bait presentations....

With practice, you can grab your line and slow it down with your left hand (or right, depending on which you crank with).

If red works for ya, use 'em. Me? I've used 'em and don't think they make any difference. Besides, I hate when the paint chips and they become a mix of gold and red (or whatever's underneath). Prefer un-painted hooks myself.

Absolutely! Just tie on a longer leader for your dropshot... Unless you only use the rod/reel combo for vertical dropshot, then I'm not so sure line management matters as much.

Welcome aboard!

Nothing to do with Apple or Microsoft, but if it is flagged as spam, that's due to filters (either from your ISP, Google, Yahoo, Hotmail, or whomever your email provider is). However, if you're using Apple Mail on a Mac, it will flag stuff as junk that bears similarity to mass mailings, etc (spammish) and flags it. You will want to mark it as "Not Junk" in that case. Most email clients (platform agnostic) have such features...

First off, welcome to the forums! Assume you've fished this pond often in warmer weather? I will sometimes go to a pond in a local community. I don't often change techniques since it is a relatively shallow pond, and I've caught on soft plastics year-round. But I do have one cold-weather technique there that always works (98% of the time) and that's a tiny Lunkercity Fin-S minnow-head jig at 1/16oz. I'll add panfish killer minnows on it and catch bass, sunfish, yellow perch, etc. Makes for a fun outing as it's a multi-species setup!

Assume you checked your spam/junk folder to make sure things aren't getting thrown in there by your email provider? I've been getting emails fine so far.

The longest distance I can cast a particular lure.

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, Merrick!

I was in a hurry loading my kayak and I left my iPad on the back of the truck. I drove off, arrived at my spot, unloaded and was completely ready to go when I couldn't find my iPad. So I launched "Find My iPhone" on my iPhone and hey, my iPad is moving, back near my house, but it's going down the street. I quickly locked it and sent a message to whomever had it. Loaded the yak back in the truck drove home and a guy who was on a walk was brining it back to my house with a note! So what happened when I drove off, the iPad slid off the back of my truck, hit the road and bounced up (didn't break the screen, but did mess the aluminum a bit. The man happened to be walking and saw me drive off, saw the iPad fall, said he was waving frantically hoping I saw him in my rear view mirror. Not exactly a fishing experience, but it happened while I was trying to GO fishing.

I want to note that of all the rods I handle in-store (i.e., BPS), one of the lightest I've handled is the Carbonlite. I am quite interested in trying the latest models, I believe 3rd generation. As one who values lightness in the tip, I will not discount the Carbonlite when looking for my next rod. FWIW.

A good one, but I don't remember it in Spanish! LOL

No doubt, it can be rough depending on where you're driving...which is almost anywhere.

<gasp><stretching arm southward>must.... get.... to....oooo.....oooo....oookechoooobbbbeeee soooooon.</gasp></stretching arm southward> That's code-speak for you non-techie folks.... Basically speaking, Lake O is on the bucket list.

Yorktown/Hampton Roads/Peninsula!