Sam

TOXIC, bad weather getting close to the 23rd. Could arriver earlier or later. Just giving you a heads up. Be careful if you drive to Toano on the 23rd. WEATHER NOTIFICATION !!! 60s ON DEC 25 IN VA NC 50s over MD DEL? BALONEY!!!! as I have been saying for 3 days during the long Christmas weekend temps over Mid Atlantic will drop sharply DEC 23-24-25-26 and with this sharp drop in temps the chances are going up for seeing snow and or ice on Christmas day. IMAGE #1 NEW SATURDAY early am EURO Model VALID 7AM DEC 25 IMAGE #2 NEW SATURDAY early am EURO Model VALID 1PM DEC 25 IMAGE #3 NEW SATURDAY early am EURO Model VALID 7PM DEC 25 22 Comments 66 Shares 98157120 120

Spinnerbait or Silver Buddy.

January 16 - 21, 2018 Doswell, Virginia http://www.richmondfishingexpo.com/ BPS and Green Top have their sales this weekend. Not sure about Cabela's.

If we have ice I don't think I will make it to Toano. Hope not, but the forecast is "iffy" at this time. If you have to be at Hookers please keep an eye on the weather. From Dave at Wxrisk.com: ***ALERT !! ** IS THERE AN ICE STORM **THREAT ** FOR THE TENN VALLEY/ MIDDLE ATLANTIC REGION DEC 24-25 ? The updated new edition of the NEXT 3 WEEKENDS Newsletter in now on line with NEW information on long CHRISTMAS weekend DEC 22-26 forecast... TOPICS - No problem this weekend.... 50s likely in many areas for DEC 18-21-- Strong cold front arrives DEC22 with some rain then it turns colder... but How cold? Models don't show temps cold enough for Frozen precip in WVA VA MD DEL VA DEC 24-25 but the Upper pattern is 'screaming' ice storm-- colder and stormy right through New Years long weekend as well...

Great having you with us.

Fantastic about you being a qualified mechanic. Quite an accomplishment for a 16 year old guy. Now, hopefully you will do as good or better bass fishing. Great having you with us.

Glad to have you with us. Just ask your questions and you will receive a lot of answers. And be sure to put your two-cents in when others ask for assistance.

I fish Lake Cherokee off Cherokee Road in the city of Richmond and have caught some beautiful bass. Two years ago the homeowners on the lake installed an aerator system to help put more oxygen in the lake. I was told that they had to do this to help keep the lake clean. Last year the grass went wild with all the oxygen being pumped in the lake. Grass everywhere. So what did the homeowners do? They put grass carp in the lake this past spring. And guess what? The grass is gone. The homeowners I know say they put in only 15 grass carp but there is no way 15 grass carp could eat all that grass in the lake in one summer. Of course, I will go back next year and fish again but the bite was very slow and the bass smaller than in past years.

Ever wonder why people around the world put an angle on top of their Christmas tree? Well, here is the story. Enjoy. In early December, four of Santa's elves got sick. When the trainee elves could not produce toys as fast as the regular ones, Santa began to feel some Pre-Christmas pressure. Then Mrs. Claus mentioned that her Mother was coming to visit, stressing Santa even more. He went to harness the reindeer, and found that three of them were about to give birth and two others had gotten loose and were out, Heaven knows where. Then, when he began load-testing the sleigh, one of the floorboards cracked; the bag of toys fell to the ground and all the toys were scattered. Frustrated, Santa went back in the house for a cup of apple cider and a shot of rum. Opening the cupboard, he discovered the elves had drunk all the cider and hidden the liquor. In his frustration, he accidentally dropped the cider jug, breaking it into hundreds of little glass pieces all over the kitchen floor. He got the broom and found the mice had eaten all the straw off the end of the broom Just then the doorbell rang. An irritated Santa marched to the door, yanked it open, only to find a little Angel with a great big Christmas tree. The Angel said very cheerfully, 'Merry Christmas, Santa. Isn't this a lovely day? I have a beautiful tree for you. Where would you like me to stick it?' And so began the tradition of the little angel on top of the Christmas tree. Not a lot of people know this. You're welcome.

Fantastic. Never hear anything about him these days. Like his body of work. Thanks for sharing.

See my post in Bassmasters Opens below this thread. Take what you want from it and go out there and kick some butt!!!!! Good luck and be sure to post the details as to who you pulled out with; were you treated nicely; how did you do; and how did your hubby do? Be safe. Merry Christmas

Slow, I have one and it works great. No hooks get hung up or hooked in the netting. Best one I had fell out of the boat this year on Buggs Island. It was a great net. I really miss her.

May I suggest a net that will avoid having the hooks get entangled in the netting? I think it is rubber coated polyester. Ask the tackle store if the net is the type that the hooks will not get hooked on the netting. Otherwise, what the guys said above.

Beautiful. Should do well to store your baits. Thanks for sharing. Merry Christmas.

GGE, let me give you my two cents as I worked a few Northern Bassmasters Opens and also had friends fish a coanglers. First, you need to do some scouting and prefishing as your boater may not know the waters. In Richmond, we fish tidal rivers (Historic James, Appomattox and Chickahominy). Many times my coangler friends were paired with guys who had never fished tidal rivers and had no idea about how the tides affected the bite. So you need to hit the water to see what is there just in case your boater has never fished that body of water. Second, you need to have an idea of water clarity, water temperature, structure, docks, ramps, piers, humps, laydowns, submerged structure, points, creeks, coves, current breaks, dams, pads, grass, rip-rap, streams, and the list goes on. You can only learn this data by actually being on the water. Third, while practicing you will get an idea of the baits the bass are eating. Of course, those little green monsters change their appetites by the hour, but you will learn what works and what does not plus any patterns and at what hour and where are they feeding. You then use this data to formulate your plan of attack. Fourth, while prefishing, use barbless hooks. You don't want to nail a nice one and not have her bite a few days later after finding where she is located. Fifth, and just as important as the first four, you will learn how to get to the ramp. Yes, some ramps are easy to find while others take a Ph.D. in map reading to get to the ramp in the dark. And you will learn where to park your car and if you have to pay a parking fee in addition to finding out if there are any bathrooms or port-a-potties available at the blast off site. Sixth, the pros are jerks in the Opens. Remember, they are working for a living and making it into the Classic. You are out there having fun and trying to win a boat. So you will be back boated; ignored; yelled at for not netting the fish the way the pros want them netted; and you are actually a pain in the fanny during the tournament. After the tournament is over they will revert to the great guys they are. But Ike and Hackney, two I have been told about or seen upset at the weigh-in, are not your friend during the fishing time. All the best for fishing in the Opens. You will meet a lot of nice people and hopefully do very well. Please let us know how you do.

Welcome. I thought Australia had big crocks in their lakes and ponds. Great to see you can fish safely for bass out of a kayak.

As stated above: Fisheries Biology - Get a Ph.D. - You may have to go with your state's game and fisheries department Engineering - Mechanical BS from good mechanical engineering university, like Michigan State. Marketing - BS but I would not bet on this one. Companies use professional marketing companies May I suggest you contact Dr. Keith Jones of Pure Fishing. He is a great guy and he will give you insight into what Pure Fishing is seeking. Send Dr. Jones a note or give him a call. The Bassmaster Classic I attended a few years ago had a Mississippi State engineering grad working in Dr. Jones' research department. We discussed the difference in stretch between fluorocarbon and monofilament and how Berkley develops their rods. Very interesting discussions and presentations. Of course, every time he finished a demonstration he rang that crazy cowbell. Did you know there are sea grant universities that parallel the land grant universities? Check out sea grant universities and note all of them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Sea_Grant_College_Program No idea what ones are in Michigan but you can check. You may want to head down south to Florida, Alabama or Louisiana and major in their sea grant university biology colleges. Even if you don't attend, you can ask the assistant deans questions about future career positions of their grads. And then there are the Bassmaster and FLW Classics with all of the fishing industry represented. You really need to attend the next one in 2018 and walk around speaking with all of the guys and gals in the fishing industry to hear how they got their careers started. Not only will you have a fantastic time, but it is worth every penny you spend to attend the Classic for a day or two. Outstanding event. You will be blown away. I recommend attending the Classics to everyone on the Forum. At the Classic you can find out if they will be hiring in the future and who should you contact. You really need to know the names of the execs to send your resume and letter of introduction. All the best for you to find a place you will love in the fishing industry. Maybe one day you will be one of the vendors at a Classic and speak with other young men and women about fishing industry careers. Please introduce yourself in the Introductions section of the Forum.

About an hour from my home in Richmond but I doubt I will make it unless the weather is nice and all my "honey do's" are done for Christmas and the family that following Monday. Hope to make it. P.S. Do you have any of the 958's, Smoked Shad color???

Correct answer. To find out the colors of your local crawfish call your state game and fisheries and ask for the individual who knows about crawfish. They will love to speak with you and they will give you a lot of great crawfish information. And for starters at the pond, go with a 1/2 ounce brown and orange jig with a Root Beer Zoom chunk. If no bites, scale down to a smaller jig. If still no bites, go with a hair jig. If still no bites, go home. Just some suggestions. Good luck and Merry Christmas.

Thanks for the reminder. Great information. And don't forget telephone scams. We are getting all types of calls asking for donations.

Michael, sorry to read about your situation and that you had to move back to Shreveport. I sincerely hope whatever the reason for the move works out in your favor. As for jobs in the fishing industry, as you know, they are few and far between and once a guy gets one he holds on to it. But with that said, there are many, many fishing industry positions throughout the country that you could handle without any problem. I know you don't want to leave Louisiana and especially Bossier City (), but you may have to, if possible. Otherwise I think you are doing the right thing by getting on at Academy Sports (best frog out there...H2O) and then working into a full time position. Don't forget the big boys, like Pure Fishing and others. They may need reps in the deep south so apply to them. Can't hurt. Wishing you good luck in your application at Academy Sports. Please keep us posted on what happens.

Stay inside until spring. With your safety record you don't need to be around any water. OK, so you want to finesse fish. Great. Finesse fishing is the best anytime of the year. I am sure you have a medium heavy 7-foot fast action tip rod; a 6:1 spinning reel; some 8-pound braid laying around; some jig head hooks, like 3/0 or smaller; a pliers; a line cutter; some Neosporin; a tetanus shot; PFD; your health insurance card; a list of people to call when you are on your way to the hospital; a cowbell; an LSU sweatshirt for good luck; and flares. The last items are not for fishing but I think you may need them. Go out and flip and pitch your plastics of your choice; throw your small spinnerbaits; small lipless crankbaits; small crankbaits; and go have some fun. Drop shot is also an option with a drop shot setup. And remember to yell "Geaux Tigers" when you set that hook. If you say "hotty toddy" or ring the cowbell you will lose the fish. Good luck.

Nope, I have an array of rods from various manufacturers. Kevin VanDam at one of his seminars I attended said to use only rods from your favorite manufacturer so you will be familiar with each. I have BPS Extremes all the way up to G. Loomis. Each on has a different use on either wild waters or ponds.

Quarry, I always open my hard baits' tackle boxes after a trip on the water and the next day, when the baits are dry, I sprinkle some talcum powder on them and close the lid. Not only does this help keep all baits dry until you use them, but the powder helps preserve any rubber spinnerbait skirts. I do not do this with plastics.

Jake, what everyone offered is great. Use them all!!!! What you need to know is when to use weights, what line is best, types of hooks, length of rod, how to skip and when to flip and when to pitch. In fact, you can use any baits you want to flip and pitch. You can even flip and pitch a spinnerbait or a crankbait along with topwaters like the poppers and buzzbaits. And all of the finesse, trick worms and Swamp Crawlers you can find. So go out and get a number of plastics and have some fun. Let us know how you do.