Hyrule Bass

its one thing to encourage catch and release, but quite another to frown upon someone if they dont release a trophy fish or any legal fish for that matter. personally, i dont want a fake replica of a bass, i can buy that anywhere. if im getting a mount, i want the real fish. also, i dont even eat fish, but i will defend the right for anyone to keep legally obtained fish. i throw everything back of all species unless family or a friend wants it, but i just dont like when people get offended by or look down on someone else for keeping fish. I dont think someone keeping one large fish is going to destroy or negatively affect your fishery in a huge way that you wont be able to enjoy it. i look at it like, who am i to try and discourage someone from eating a smallmouth if thats their favorite fish to eat, i wouldnt want to be denied my favorite food...

you can expect something all you want on the waters you fish, but it doesnt mean people have to live by your expectations either. you dont make the laws of whats a legal and illegal fish to keep. Also, just because someone doesnt feel the same way you do, does not mean it is wrong for them to keep a trophy bass. Like i've always said, if its caught and kept legally, then that person shouldnt be persecuted by someone else for ANY reason.

i have no problem with the guy getting a real skin mount of the fish. as long as it was caught and kept legally, and it sounds like it was, then its his decision what to do with the fish. id rather have a real mount than an imitation model i can buy anywhere. i want to be able to say "i caught that fish" not "thats a fake fish i had painted like a fish i caught and paid a lot of money for though i coulda got a replica much cheaper off the shelf at BPS or Wal-Mart"

not exactly related to the spring classic sale. but i spent the day in Baltimore today, on the way home we stopped by the BPS in Hanover, MD just outside Baltimore. I ended up meeting Roland Martin, got a cheap $2.99 hat, he had a table setup signing autographs so i got one. He had an alabama rig on the table and my uncle who was buying stuff to put together umbrella rigs had a discussion with him about the differences. my uncle had never heard of an a-rig, he trolls for stripers mostly. best part was i got out of there only spending $18...

see if there is a homeowners association, that might be who you have to ask for permission. Be mindful of peoples yards. if someone asks you not to fish from their house, kindly move on.

thats nice, you fish some great ponds man

I hope its much funner filming the show than what they actually air on it. I really dont care to see segments wasted on which high end steak house he is eating at though...

stuff that happens while fishing never fails to amaze me. its like im always seeing or discovering something new. and when your normal favorite baits dont work one day, or you just decide to try something new or different, and you start catching fish and gain confidence that you didnt have before in a lure or technique that is new to you, well thats a great feeling. you've expanded your arsenal. i went years without catching a fish on a spinnerbait, when i finally did, they came in numbers. same for lipless cranks, except i still dont get bit on them often, but when i find that bite its killer and a blast. Your positivity should help lead you to a successful 2012 season...

is there anywhere to watch this online? i didnt get a chance to catch it on tv

well, i dont always outfish my buddies all the time lol, i dont even make it a competitive thing between me and people i fish with. but its hard not to take note of someone having a good day or bad day, including myself. the most competitive we might get is something like a dollar for first fish. Also, im pretty sure ive missed a fish i never felt bite, im sure we all have at some point, im not worried about that. if i am missing an exorbitant amount of fish that i do feel bite, well, then maybe i will rethink my current position. What i disagree with there, is that a higher dollar rod gives me the "potential" of catching a fish anymore than a cheap rod. i would tend to believe me catching a fish has to do with being in the right place, at the right time, with the right presentation. but also, you did remind me that feeling the bottom is an important part of finding a pattern. thanks for the discussion... I agree with this. if i miss a fish, big deal, ill catch another, just like you said. and if i dont happen to catch another, oh well, ill get them next time. and i dont cross it very often, but i dont like the condescending attitudes some people get about fishing either. i will fish my way and you fish your way, im going to enjoy it and i hope you do too.

first, youre kinda twisting my words there into something theyre not. i said the difference in sensitivity is very minimal in my opinion. basically it comes down to this, i cant justify spending $100+ or more on a rod because its "more sensitive" than my $30 dollar rod. Since the difference in sensitivity is so minimal to me, i'm going to save my money on rods and spend it elsewhere... second, i didnt say i couldnt feel the bottom. just that i dont really need to, all i need to feel is the bite. i can feel the bottom just fine with my cheaper rods. i can tell when im going through a grass bed or a rock pile, etc. and if im going up hill or down hill over humps and all that stuff, but ultimately it doesnt tell me anything useful other than there is structure there. look, for me, fishing is not rocket science and i dont make it rocket science like some people do. i have no need to over-complicate things and worry about minuscule details. i dont go by the 'book' like some people. if i was fishing for money it might be different, i might would study things more down to the finest details. but i dont fish tournaments. i fish for peace of mind and relaxation, a $200 reel on a $150 dollar rod isnt going to give me those things. if you can justify that kind of expensive gear then good for you, but i cant justify it. i've been fishing all my life and i never needed a high dollar rod or reel to catch a fish, nor did my parents or grandparents... and another thing about the sensitivity of high dollar rods, how come those guys on tv using them cant feel the bite when the underwater camera man is yelling at them to set the hook? thanks for explaining that, i always wondered about that. the weight thing did cross my mind, but thats it...

LOL I really like this show, even if not so much for the fishing, but for the stories

this could also be a plus for visiting Smith Mountain Lake, you have Leesville Lake right on the other side of the SML dam. and theres a couple other lakes not really too far from there if you wanted to travel a couple hours to them just to experience several lakes and the fishing on them. Early May on SML should be pretty good fishing...

the thing is, i dont really care about any of this stuff as i catch plenty of fish on my cheap "non-sensitive" rods. all i need to feel is the bite, not the bottom. why does anyone need to feel the bottom so bad, especially if you got electronics to tell you whats on the bottom?

i've always thought the sensitivity thing was overrated. Sure there may be differences in the sensitivity of different rods, but in my experiences, its so minimal you almost cant even tell. I've said as much lately that i dont buy into it either. Other people can tell me about their sensitive $100+ rods all day long, i'll just be like "ok" while im outfishing them or doing just as well as them with my ugly stiks and other cheap shakespeare rods. Also, i never really understood those ugly split grip rods i see all the time. i hate the feel of them. Whats the point of having a split grip handle if youre holding the rod up by the reel and palming the reel? doesnt make sense to me. please dont tell me its a sensitivity thing, as your hand is above the split grip when holding the rod...

waste of money

of those listed, ive spent more at BPS. i stop at the one in Richmond, VA on my way to NC and theres one even closer to my house in Maryland. Never been to a Cabelas, and havent been to a Dicks Sporting Goods in a few years and never bought anything fishing related there. i really like going to Gander Mountain though. They dont have the selection of lures BPS does, but they do have a much better inventory of hooks and sinkers. BPS terminal tackle selection is severely lacking. I stopped by the Richmond BPS a couple weeks ago on a trip back from NC and i couldnt even find rage craws either, i looked down every plastics aisle 3 times. either im blind or they didnt have any, ive bought them there before. I like the Baltimore store much better in some aspects...

i've noticed the rapidly growing list of sponsors too. what im wondering is what happened to the G3 Boats special forum section, it was there for like a day or two then gone...

i was going to recommend Smith Mountain Lake as well. Its my favorite place in the world there. So peaceful and beautiful, amazing scenery out on the water at sunset and sunrise. I go there several times a year and never want to leave. Its also hosted a few bassmaster elite series tournaments in the recent past as well. you may want to try and get into the striped bass there as well... Lake Gaston was going to be my next suggestion, just an amazing fishery there. you may want to target some of the catfish there as well, it can be fun.

i will throw anything on spinning gear, it doesnt matter to me.

I never use black or bright red and bright orange colors. havent used blue much either. as for the pink/bubblegum colored plastics, theyve worked pretty good for me out of the pack i have. theyre bubblegum made by Haw River Tackle i think, and theyre a 7" floating worm. i fish them weightless on a 4/0 worm hook and the action is great on them. i give them a slight jerk and they slither through the water like a snake and sink slow, pond bass really seem to crush them...

ive never really noticed any difference using KVD L&L compared to not using it. I will use up the bottle i have, but probably wont be buying anymore, especially since i didnt seem to have many if any line problems at all before ever using it...

i really dont care that she was lip synching. its got to be hard to sing and sing well when youre doing all that dancing and bouncing around. also just to mention, my sister said she seen madonna sing live at some event and that she was horrible live... another thing, the super bowl people try so hard for the halftime act to be a family friendly type artist or band. after the janet jackson nip slip we got nothing but old boring classic rock acts for 2-3 years. i like classic rock, but not at the superbowl hafltime show when its 60 year olds without much energy performing. then we got the prince guitar phallus shadow and now m.i.a. gave a middle finger this past show. i can see this going right back to lame boring acts who wont try to stun or shock anyone

if you fish any lakes that have marinas, they may have ethanol free gas. atleast i know the one i go to on Smith Mtn Lake does... also, i hear they exist, but i have never seen a regular gas station with ethanol free gas since everything changed over...

This post is an example of why i dont buy into the having one brand of everything theory being discussed. I think its better to just familiarize yourself with the equipment you do have and become comfortable with that, and with any new equipment you may purchase.