Sam

Back in the 80's (yes, I remember the 80's) we called it the "jig and eel" which is now the "jig and pig." The eel was made of pork rind and it was a bugger getting it off the hook after it dried on. Spinnerbaits were called "the safety pin" bait in the early 80's. Bassmaster Magazine had an article calling it a "secret bait" and the spinnerbait craze got started around 1985. That is what we called them in Southeastern Louisiana in the 60's. Am I really that old?????

While in a tournament - very quiet - say nothing other than "get the net" Fun Fishing - Geaux Tigers!

If you point the rod tip to 11 PM you get to stand upside down to fish for the day and then you have to watch the movie Emma for three straight days. After that, you will be committed to a mental institution. ??

Hi Dave, I enjoyed reading your post on the Forum about the DC reel. Go for it and then move up to other baitcasters as you improve your casting and control. I want to give you, by the numbers, how to set up your rod and reel (balancing them together) to avoid backlashes. This is not a secret as I learned it from Ike at one of his seminars and on a DVD disk. So here it is by the numbers: 1. Look at the rod's parameters for 1)line test and 2) bait weight. Never, never, never exceed these rod parameters. 2. Rig your baitcaster with the bait you will be throwing and the line you will be using. If braid, spool it TIGHT onto your reel after you put some mono on the reel's spool, first, to avoid having the braid spin on you. 3. Set up your baitcaster by having the drag tight and the spool adjuster tight. 4. If you wish, you can set your brakes as you wish for this presentation and technique. 3. Go outside, or stay inside if you have a room without carpet. Carpet and treble hooks don't get along. 4. Point rod tip to 11 AM. 5, Reel in bait until it is about 6 inches from the rod's tip. 5. Release the spool by releasing the thumb bar. 6. You now control the bait's fall to the ground by releasing the spool's tension as it falls. 7. Do it again until the bait free falls to the ground and the spool stops when the bait hits the ground. 8. You can then adjust your drag and do the release trick once again to make sure the spool stops when the bait hits the ground. 9. Adjust the spool tension after a few test casts to get more or less distance. You do this every time you change baits on a baitcaster. Sooner or later you will get the feel of the bait's drop and just know when to adjust the spool. I do this if bank fishing or in my Ranger every time I change baitcaster baits. And if you want, you take the line test's high and low levels, add them together and divide by 2. This is the most efficient line test for your rod. (12 to 17 line test = 29 divided by 2 = 14.5 or 15 pound line test) Now, for the second trick which is easier: 1. Get some Scotch Tape or black electrical tape. 2. After you have set up your rod and reel to "balance them together" as listed above, cast the bait as far as you can and then pull out one or two arm lengths of line off the spool and then place a strip of tape over the remaining line on your spool. 3. You can use one or two strips of tape as you wish. By doing this, the line will stop at the tape should you still have a backlash problem. When I balance my rod and reel correctly, I start my baitcaster retrieve as the bait approaches the end of the cast when throwing a buzzbait, Whopper Plopper, spinnerbait, Chatterbait, crankbait, or other treble hook baits or a Senko, finesse worm, or a jig. My retrieve actually starts right before the bait hits the water. It works for anything you throw as long as you "balance your rod and reel" together. Good luck and let us know if the above is helpful. Happy New Year! Sam

Hi Allen, Are you seeking a photo of a Jackhammer without its skirt or a picture of a Jackhammer with its skirt? I am confused by your query that asks "without the skirt of?" Of course, just Google Jackhammer and you can see what it looks like with its skirt as in this link: "jackhammer chatterbaits for sale" Or you can watch this video and see what a Jackhammer looks without it: skirt.

From an old high school friend who has a good sense of humor. Please add to the list. Number 12 is a classic!!! Enjoy! Here are 12 things to consider as we get closer to closing the door on one of the most horrible years of our lifetime. 1. The dumbest thing I ever bought was a 2020 planner. 2. I was so bored I called Jake from State Farm just to talk to someone. He asked me what I was wearing. 3. 2019: Stay away from negative people. 2020: Stay away from positive people. 4. The world has turned upside down. Old folks are sneaking out of the house & their kids are yelling at them to stay indoors! 5. This morning I saw a neighbor talking to her dog. It was obvious she thought her dog understood her. I came into my house & told my cat. We laughed a lot. 6. Every few days try your jeans on just to make sure they fit. Pajamas will have you believe all is well in the kingdom. 7. Does anyone know if we can take showers yet or should we just keep washing our hands? 8. This virus has done what no woman has been able to do. Cancel sports, shut down all bars & keep men at home! 9. I never thought the comment, “I wouldn’t touch him/her with a 6-foot pole” would become a national policy, but here we are! 10. I need to practice social-distancing from the refrigerator. 11. I hope the weather is good tomorrow for my trip to the Backyard. I’m getting tired of the Living Room. 12. Never in a million years could I have imagined I would go up to a bank teller wearing a mask & ask for money.

Cali, you may want to consider speaking with an investment counselor with a company like Legg Mason or your bank who can do the research for you regarding your query. Or, you can take a list of possible companies to invest in and then go to your local library and look them up in the research section to see if they are public and how their stock has performed. Just remember that you are entering a world that is totally different from your environment and it has all types of numbers, ratios, future projections, if there were any payments made to stockholders, go with either a common or preferred stock, and note the charts for company performance that you may need a professional investment counselor to explain. Then decide if you want to use a Roth IRA, add this purchase to your existing IRA, or just make the purchase outside of these two retirement vehicles. In other words, when shopping for jewelry you go to a jeweler, not a used car lot. So please consider going with a professional investment counselor who has insight into and can look at the ratios, performance history, and future projections and let you know if the investment is a good one. Good luck.

Teal, I once asked an LSU coach how come LSU got a bid to a big bowl when other teams with better records did not. He told me, in a nutshell, "Follow the money." LSU fans will travel to bowl games and the local businesses and governments love the income, in addition the LSU people know how to party. As for adding teams to the playoffs, once again, follow the money. If there is more money to be shared by the conferences by expanding the playoffs then it will happen. I understand from some sources in Baton Rouge that there is a quiet backroom movement to have the Power 5 separate from the NCAA and form their own program. Discussions among the Athletic Directors and their staffs may be going on as you read this post. Stay tuned!

X2. Start before sunrise is my favorite time to go fishing.

X2. Never have seen a "wild" Koi but was told by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries they are an invasive species and if I caught any to let them know when and where. The conservation officer did not tell me to kill any that I caught.

5'11" so at 220 I looked like a clown.

The Tennessee football program is too strong and has a rich history and they will be back. Give them two or three years and they will challenge Bamasux once again, driving the Tide fans nuts.

Time to brag. Back in October, 2019, I weighed 220 pounds. At my April, 2020 physical review with my doctor he told me I was still too heavy at 198 pounds and he had just started a weight reduction clinic and he wanted me to be one of their first patients, which I agreed. So on May 1, 2020 I joined the clinic and weighed in at 194 pounds. My goal was set at 175, what I weighed when I got out of the Army and got married. As of today, December 20, 2020, I weighed 177 this morning. I had hit and then exceeded my goal of 175 on Monday, December 10th weighing in at 173 pounds, but with all of the Christmas candy and cakes my wife made for Thanksgiving and Christmas I am up to 177. Clothes fit great now and I can look down and see my feet! Still trying for 170 in January so I have some work to do. Once the rehab indoor swimming pool opens I will go back to swimming for my exercise unless I bite the bullet and go to Trinity High School and walk around their track. If I can do it, anyone out there who wants to drop a few pounds can do it. It will not be easy and you have to give up some great things you are used to eating or snacking, but you can do it once you get started. Merry Christmas!

That's this season. Give 'em time as with all teams they go through rough times and then great times. The Vols will be back.

Good idea, but I will shout "Geaux Tigers!" on the gallery so the neighbors will know I am alive and well and looking forward to 2021.

What is interesting about the bass fishing industry is that it does not matter what your career is; what your education level is; where you live; what car/truck/SUV you drive; how you dress; if you have a crew cut or long hair; you have a beard or are clean shaven; love a certain football team while the other guy hates it; and so on. What matters is that we are bass fishermen and we put our differences aside to discuss bass fishing. You can learn from everyone you meet, even Bamasux fans.

Lemon Meringue pie is my all time favorite. Just give me the dish and leave me alone.

You are so right. We need to get Tennessee into a position where they could qualify for the championship plus other SEC schools in the future. Nothing against the selection committee, but haven't we seen Clemson/Bama and Clemson/Ohio State and Clemson/Notre Dame before? We need to open up the playoffs to give other teams the chance to pull off an upset and move forward towards the championship game, like the fantastic NCAA basketball tournament, where a small school like Richmond can beat a big time school like Indiana many years ago or have a basketball powerhouse like Virginia get upset by a small college in the first round. Now that type of playoff system would really create some interest in the games. Are the Vols going to a bowl game this year? Bowls are open to any teams they can get. LSU is staying home due to sanctions placed on themselves by the administration for botching all of the sexual assaults charges against our jocks for the past years. Hey, that's more impressive than Alabama getting in trouble with the NCAA for having the football team members getting outside money to purchase text books or something like that.

Roadwarrior, what is disappointing is that the committee is going with the same programs year in and year out. Last year LSU won the title by replacing Alabama from the SEC. The Fighting Tigers did earn top spot and proved they were the best team in the country. The selection committee, at this time, seems to lean towards Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, and a team to be named later. This eliminates the rest of the college field consisting of 124 teams that know that they can't play for the title when they kick off in their first game of the season because they are new comers on the block; do not have that "football pedigree"; lost a game by a bad call; lost a game by a freaky play; or are in a conference where they are considered not to have played a tough enough schedule. We need to expand the field to 16 teams, including the teams that are in the Atlantic Athletic, Sunbelt, Mid-American, Mountain West, Ohio Valley, etc. starting with either #1 playing #16 and so on or #9 playing #16 for the right to play #1. Cinncy had a great year as did Texas A&M. But both are "newcomers" to the championship series so we are stuck with the same three plus Notre Dame for this crazy season. Nothing against Notre Dame, but they sure laid a goose egg against Clemson this weekend. Now don't' get me wrong. Bama and Clemson are excellent teams if their QBs stay healthy and Ohio State is the only hope the Big 10 has to win the championship. And there are lots and lots of TVs in the Big 10 conference geographical area commanding nice TV advertisement rates. But wouldn't it be Kool to see UCF battle Texas or Ball State take on Southern Cal or Jacksonville State match up with North Carolina? These matchups would be better than bowl games, although these newer games would be played as bowl games. What do you think? My suggestion is just food for thought. And you and the other guys say..........................

Kade, to get sponsors you have to be an excellent bass fisherman and win some tournaments in your age group. By winning tournaments you will be noticed and then the manufacturers will come to you with offers. Being sponsored does not mean you get a free boat, free tackle, free rods and reels, free anything. You may get a bait or two and discounts on products, but that's it until you win a few BASS or FLW tournaments in your geographical area as a high school, college, BASS or FLW bass club member or one of the Opens your probability of getting sponsors is low. Subscribe to Bass Times and read the articles about high school fishing and professional tournament results. I think you will like the publication and it is only $12 a year, or ask for that special subscription price. Here is Bass Times web site. Check out the article about the kids 11 to 16 fishing in a tournament: https://www.bassmaster.com/author/b.a.s.s.-times 877.227.7872 to start to find out how to subscribe to Bass Times or go to: bassmaster@emailcustomerservice.com Nicest people in the world at BASS and they are very helpful. Good luck with your fishing skills and getting sponsors in the future. Merry Christmas!

X2. My wife keeps asking how many rods and reels plus baits does one need to go fishing and then he throws them all back!!!!

Welcome Scott. Great having you with us. As for the difference between a canoe and a kayak, it is personal preference, although a canoe is relatively inexpensive when compared to a kayak. You have more room in a canoe and can add a trolling motor and battery easier than a kayak, but you still have to 1) find a place to launch your canoe/kayak; 2) paddle around all day; and 3) watch the tides if you go on tidal rivers as the tide can take control of your watercraft and away you go in the opposite direction you want to go. Please make sure you have your fishing license as you will probably never see a conservation officer but if you do you want to be legal. And always check out the tides on the local tidal rivers and know how to fish them. https://www.saltwatertides.com/dynamic.dir/virginiasites.html As for places to fish in the greater Richmond geographical area, there are a number. I suggest you secure a copy of the 2020 or 2021 VG&IF booklet, Freshwater Fishing and Boating in Virginia, and check out Central Virginia for places to fish. There are many listed and you still have others that did not make the cut. For example, the lake off Research Road; the pond on Lochinvar Road; the off limits pond on Hollyhills Road (outstanding but the locals will call the police on you); the City Park lakes; the lake behind the new Trader Joe's on Huguenot Road. (Lake is behind the office building behind Trader Joes. Easy parking and fish the bank with the trees! as best you can or fish by the road on the apartment side) If you want to learn bass fishing from local guys who are great bass fishermen; fish out of a bass boat in club tournaments; learn where the ramps are located (easier said then done); and see the techniques and presentations the guys use at different times of the year, give me a call at the number I sent you via the Private Messenger on this site. Maybe we can meet at Mission Bar-B-Q on Midlothian by Wegman's and Essex Bank after Christmas to discuss places to fish locally. It is a shame that the Richmond Fishing Expo was cancelled. You can learn so much from the vendors; see many kayaks and talk with guys who fish out of them; hear some great seminars by the bass pros; and meet the movers and shakers in the Virginia bass fishing industry at the January show. Oh well, maybe later this year or next year. Now a word to the wise: If you go Bass Pro Shops you need to find Conner in the fishing department. Conner is one of the best bass fishermen in the state. Nothing against the other guys, but they do not know bass fishing and will never get to Conner's level. Also, Green Top has some good people in their fishing department. Ask for Bryan for help and any questions you may have. It is hit or miss with the Green Top fishing department staff until Freddy returns, if he does. (He is out due to the Chinese virus) In the meantime, how about I scramble your brains by asking you to visit this site to see what Zoom has to offer in the form of their plastic baits. We can discuss this warehouse when we meet at Mission BBQ: http://virginiaguidebaitco.com/ Good luck with your fishing and Merry Christmas! Looking forward to hearing from you.

Go to your favorite drug store and purchase the heaviest weight blue surgical gloves. Put the surgical gloves on first and then the gloves of your choice. The surgical gloves protect your hands from the wind and getting wet. You will need the gloves to help to keep your hands warmer.

Grandson's 10th birthday on December 15, 2020.