Nitrofreak

I dunno J they look pretty good right about now, looks like we just might have to have a cook off...lol. I come up to NY every now and then for GM training, we might have to go catch supper one evening.

I must dissagree here, I use EVOO in all of my cooking, I use cast iron skillets and medium low temps to pan fry whatever I need. Granted the lower temps will cause you to have to cook it a little longer but unless you dip the fish in badder there is no need for having a half of a skillet full of oil or grease, the flavor EVOO adds to the fish or any dish is fantastic and once you add the lemon and pepper you are still left with a good fish taste and very little oil to clean up afterwards.

Nice job guy's !!!!!!!

If you have a temp probe that would work better, ALL electric stoves will differ from one to the next, I have to use 7 on mine.

Ha, I like how you tease us with the little video there, I thought he was going to rip one there at the end lol. What channel does extreme angler come on with dish?

I couldn't agree with you more !!

LOL Yes I know what you mean, I must admit your persistence is pretty good but believe me it will pay off and you are doing just fine.

Punching mats, or grass in my case, is a whole lot of fun or a whole lot frustration, sounds like you are well on your way to being an excellent angler. Just keep an open mind if you are having trouble retreving from the mat and go get them with other options. Good luck and be safe!!!

Not sure if your referring to my suggestion or not but I should have made myself a little clearer anyway. The reason why I suggested a spinner on the edge is due to the fact that these mats sound really very thick, it is possible that the fish is getting a mouthfull of whatever this stuff is along with picking up his bait and he just can not get a good hook set. It is not that he looses any experience punching mats, it sounds like he is doing a pretty darn good job at it, but it does give him other options of getting these fish out of the really thick stuff and learning a lesson as to why he is missing some of these fish, if they really are bitting and he is missing them then this will prove they are there and the mat is aiding in his missed opportunities.

Put your finger under the line next to the reel and lift a little, just enough to put line tension on your finger if your having trouble feeling the bite, just remember to move it before you set the hook. It's going to do one of two things, it;s either going to go slack on you or you will feel a bump.

I have walleye here in Va. at the lake I fish a lot, Had a few on before but have not landed one yet, but grubs in general seem to work pretty good for these guy's, can't wait to try these on them.

THANX !!! I look forward to giving that a try.

I have yet to catch my first smallie, How do you rig yours up to go after these bass? do you use the same color? They say these things are fighters all the way to the boat and out of all my years of fishing here in Va. on the Shennandoah river( or anywhere for that matter ) I have seen them caught but I just cant seem to get one on.

Sounds like you have a pretty good handle on what your doing, Nice job!! But if the mat is that thick and you know they are in there I would throw a spinner around the very edge to draw them out that way. Not sure if you have tried that yet but just a suggestion.

X2

Here in Va. I see these used all the time on the lake I fish. They are primarily used for stripers with people on larger boats that just troll around all day. After seeing the rig in person I do not think I would want something like that thing on the end of my rod, it is already hard enough working one crank bait all day I just cant imagine what my arms would feel like if I had to fish that thing all day. To me it is what it is and people are going to use it no matter what anyone says about it.

Ha! Who knew? TA DA!!! Is universal. Loved it though.

Ha I like it !!! I still want to see someone skip it under a dock though...would that be boring?...lol

There is one other thing that I do when im in thick grass, I do not know how it compares to your mat but I will tie on a heavy jig and tie a dropshot lure just above it, depending on how deep the mat is determines how far up the line I tie the dropshot. If you get bit this will let you know if they are on the bottom or suspended in the mat. Once I flip it in I let it sit for about 5 seconds and give it 2 or 3 twitches on a tight line, moving the jig slightly, let it sit again and 2 or 3 more, if I do not get a reaction I will move to another spot or move to the outside of the grass or in your case the mat. Good luck and be safe!!!

For me it's a 3/4 oz triple blade HAWG CALLER. 2 gold 1 silver, all Willow leaf blades, lot of vibration on the fall. Make sure you take off the skirt it comes with and replace it with a Luma Flex, I like Fire Tiger or White, the action it adds to the spinner is great. I like a split tail or twin tail trailer.

Flipping takes time but once you get good at it it's like J says it becomes 2nd nature, it's good you are practicing but you can continue honeing your skill at home too, Glenn has a great way of doing this at home, he used 4" PVC pipe and cut them into I think he said 4 or 6" tall pieces and scattered them in the yard. As far as the grass or mats are concerned I generally look for a small opening to toss into, if there are any, once I make my pitch or flip I treat it like a dropshot.

Then by goodness make a few tosses. With no trails or houses though I would take a buddy and make sure you let someone know where your going to be. It looks like it could be a little rough getting around. Good luck and be safe!!!

How do you know it's never been fished? or it is never fished? Are you bank fishing or from a boat? Either way it deserves a few tosses.

Nice job!!!

I was wondering what your responce was going to be to this... lol