RichF

x2...My dad and I just picked this up. AWESOME reel!

x2!!!!

Been having a lot of fun lately. Last week my buddy and I got 41 largemouth (I got 29 of them...he's a pike fisherman). Got 5 over 5lbs, largest was 5lbs 10oz. 29 of the were 3lbs or better. ALL FISH RELEASED!

I think these rules only hurt guys like us that fish for the love of the sport. Guys/gals that violate the laws i.e. keeping out of season fish or fishing without a license will do so regardless of what rules are in place. These are the real bad guys/gals. It seems as though many guys on here feel as though keeping fish during the season has less impact on the success of the fishery than catching and releasing before the season opens, which leaves me quite vexed. (And I am not talking about fishing bedding bass!)

Welcome fellow New Yorker!

Why is nobody acknowledging the fact that keeping a bass = no chance at spawning? Everyone is saying that guys like myself and rookie that catch and release bass before the season opens are affecting the fishery in a negative way. Releasing a fish out of season...or keeping a fish during the season... I see one live fish and one dead fish. Which is really hurting the bass population?

No it's not rocket science. Right now the bass are NOT spawning, so what is the harm in catching and releasing. Like I said before, I'm pretty sure keeping bass (whether they are in season or not) is obviously much worse than catching and releasing a bedding bass. A bass doesn't stand a chance at spawning if it's in your frying pan.

Don't worry. You didn't upset my day. I'd just rather hear comments on the topic because I think it's a good one. It just seems like I see way too many snide remarks about people's grammar instead of comments on threads. Yes it's nice to see proper grammar used but I don't think the rude comments are that necessary.

What is everybody here trying to be an English teacher? Why don't you guys talk about the topic instead of bashing rookiesmallmouther's grammar.

And another thing..What does more damage to the bass population..me catching and releasing all year or some one else catching and keeping his limit every time he goes out when the season is open?

Please tell my how it hurts the bass population if you catch and release now. They are far from spawning. The real "scoundrels" are the guys that catch a limit of bass, take them into shore, then go back out and repeat. I've seen that happen. I fish purely for sport and I spend a lot of time and money doing it. I pay taxes and I buy my license every year. I'm not the scoundrel here.

I feel like this rule only hurts the guys that fish bass strictly for sport, joy, and fun (like me). I don't keep ANY fish ANY time of the season. This rule isn't going to stop those folks that fish illegally. I've seen way too many guys fish without a license, keep more than the legal limit, etc. and this rule with not discourage them. It only discourages guys like me who fish for the pure sport of it.

How can these elite guys hold a full time job and fish the elite schedule every year? That's like 7 or 8 tournaments plus the post season and classic. Not to mention, each of these tournaments is four days, not including practice and travel time. They must have great jobs that allow them to take half the year off in order to fish! I'd love to find a job like that.

I use mainly baitcasting gear but that's because I fish almost exclusively for bass. I feel that there are a lot of techniques for bass that absolutely require baitcasting (i.e. flipping, pitching, burning big cranks and spinnerbaits, froggin). It also come down to personal preference. I've fished with guys on bass tournaments that can barely use baitcasting gear. Baitcasters can be a pain at first but there's no harm in trying them out. Heck, you may love them!

Thanks! Got that big girl last July up here in northern New York! There is some unbelievable bass fishing up here.

No problem. I can never seem to stop talking about fishing!

When I take out my friends that don't fish often I always give them a spinnerbait. No matter how crappy the day is, it always seems to get a fish or two.

It's definitely funny but I can relate with your friend. I have quite the ego when I'm bass fishing. For example, I refuse, refuse, refuse to use a senko. Is it silly? Absolutely! It's also a confidence thing I think. For example, if my dad starts catching more on a particular color, I will usually stick with my favorite color just because it's "my color."

I almost always get a limit of bass when I go out and I preach and practice catch and release of all fish, especially bass. I fish at least twice a week from mid April to the end of November. Got into some giant smallies yesterday. My five biggest went a touch over 23lbs and my dad's best five went almost 22lbs.

I would definitely give powells a shot. I just got my first one a couple weeks ago and I'm in love with it. It's the 702 glass crank rod and it's unbelievably light for glass. Great price, quality components, and outstanding customer service.

Absolutely!! Rubber nets are amazing. I actually don't net too many fish. I've been practicing landing fish by hand for some time now (you know, because you can't use them in the elite series and I plan on getting there in the future;). If you don't wanna net your fish, try lifting them with your hand under their belly. I don't know what it is but the bass will completely relax and won't flop around if you pick them up like this.

9am to 11am

MY club had a one pound penalty for dead fish but changed it this year to a quarter pound penalty. I think it was a big mistake. Most of our tournaments are on the St Lawrence river during the middle of summer. Obviously smallies are the main target and during this time most fish are caught in 30+ feet of water. Last year, a lot of our guys were bringing in dead fish to the scales and it was even addressed by our director. Now, with such a minimal penalty, I think we'll be seeing more fish kills. If you're not going to enforce harsher penalties for dead fish, the times and/or locations of certain tournaments should be changed.

I live in Jefferson county (northern NY). My county and the next one over are like the only counties in NY that don't allow catch and release on bass before the season opens in june. How terrible is that! I never keep anything to begin with but we're not even allowed to catch and release!

Absolutely agree! I have a pair of these and a pair of wiley x polarized. The oakleys are a million times better! The optical clarity is unbelievable.