Sam

You must act in a reasonable and responsible manner when protecting property or persons. You must use "reasonable" force. Anything else is the basis for criminal charges that you will have to let a judge and jury deeming. For example. You cannot set a trap to protect property. You cannot shoot someone when they are trying to steal your car. You must always act in a prudent manner even though the perks are breaking the law. This is why we always carried a knief on us in Viet Nam. You never knew when you would have to put that knief in the hand of your adversary after an encounter.

Paul, Make plans to one day fish the Florida and Texas waters. I plan to fish Disneyworld ponds before I croak. I hear the Mexico locations are super, too.

Open it and let us know what is in the package.

$1,000,000 of third-party liability coverage. It is cheap.

Beautiful. Simply beautiful. Enjoy it for many years.

The Bait Monkey awaits you. ;D ;D ;D

I agree with the suggested colors and trailers. A little yellow or orange in the skirt can also work. Try 'em and let us know your results.

Daniel, Louisiana drivers are bad in good weather. So how do you think they will do in the snow and ice???? ;D ;D ;D

Here in Richmond, Virginia, when it snows everyone goes to the grocery store and then drives into a ditch. ;D I sure would love to have a white Christmas.

X2 Just go out and fish and don't worry about your trolling motor. We have caught a lot of fish with the trolling motor running.

May I suggest purchasing Dr. Keith Jones' book, Knowing Bass, the Scientific Approach to Catching More Bass? It will make a wonderful Christmas present to yourself and some very interesting reading this winter. On page 115 in Chapter Four, Hearing and Vibration Detection, here is what Dr. Jones penned regarding the bass: Given their sensory equipment, bass seem better designed to detect acoustic transients (that is, sudden changes) than perform complex frequency or intensity analyses. Natural sounds are rarely continuous. Rather, they occur in series of beats and pluses intermixed with dead spots. The regular tail beats of a swimming shad and the thump a crayfish makes flicking its tail to escape have two distinct rhythms. By focusing on the rhythm rather than the actual sound frequencies, bass could potentially discern one prey from another, or prey versus non-prey. If Lowrance says that the bass cannot hear its trolling motor frequency they may be correct. But I would surmise that the bass could feel the rhythm of the motor. Uncle Homer Circle and Glen Lau have stated in their literature that they have seen the larger bass head for cover when they heard a trolling motor. If you want to continue your studies of the bass, I suggest the five (5) videos by Glen Lau and Uncle Homer Circle, Bigmouth, Bigmouth Forever, The Feeding Habits of Bass, Surface Lures and Buzz Baits and Bass in Heavy Cover. You can order them via the Wildlife Foundation of Florida. So read, watch and decide if bass actually "sense electronics."

Outstanding. Do you think they will do a story on the Forum?

The only problem you have is to find a Rod Anonymous Chapter in your area. After you get on their 12-Step Program, go for the reels. These classes are taught by the Bait Monkey. ;D ;D ;D

The Bait Monkey loves you. ;D

Tie it onto your line and throw it out and reel it back. You can reel it fast, slow, stop and go, fast-slow, slow-fast, stop and go fast or stop and go slow, bounce it off the bottom, hit various structure, fish it like a jig. You can fish it anyway you want. Experiment and the bass will tell you what they want. Use a baitcaster and flouro line. You can add a trailer hook, too. And remember, spell check is now an option when posting so we all can read and understand what you are asking.

I believe the price has been reduced down to $45. Excellent buy. I make a motion that everyone purchase one. The Bait Monkey seconds my motion. ;D ;D ;D

I see it. I see it. I will use it. Hope some of the guys use it as they really need it. English and grammer are not two of their top subjects. ;D ;D ;D

We have spellcheck? I have to go back and try to find it. Good move.

Since Rats do better early in the Spring before the spawn and in the Fall, I agree with Catt. Although I do throw them in 50* water, too. As for swimbaits, I did not throw them very often in 2008 but plan to thrwo them a lot more in 2009 so I am of no help with that part of your question.

We do what Roadwarrior says to do when fishing for catfish. Hooks go to the corner of the fish's mouth and are easy to remove. As for bass and live bait, I use straight shank hooks with Nightcrawlers and minnows but I don't fish live bait much unless I take some kids fishing.

Sometimes rattles can actually spook the fish so keep an open mind about using them. If you are not catching bass with rattles in your tubes then insert a rattle, and vise versa, to change the presentation. Did you ever think of putting a fresh quater tablet of Alka-Seltzer tablets in your tube? You can use cotton to keep the Alka-Seltzer in the tube. The bubbles are a different approach and sound for the fish. Just a suggestion.

Of course. But my wife knows that bass fishing is my only vice so she lets me alone. Once upon a time we drove to the Hampton, Virgina Bass Pro Shop to hear a seminar by a local guide and during the Q&A session my wife asked, "How many rods does a guy really need?" Lots of laughs from the audience and it actually stopped the guide (presenter) in his tracks. Stumped the poor guy. No one ever did answer the question. So she does her sewing and I leave her alone and in return I do my bass fishing and she leaves me alone. And she gives me fishing stuff for my birthday, wedding anniversary and Christmas every year. With some suggestions from me, of course.

SLO_ROLL, If you are serious about testing products may I suggest becoming a Platinum Member of Bassin'? For only $1.99 a month, you get free issues of Bassin', special e-deals, entry into the Abu Garcia baitcasting rod and reel drawing, and become a member of Bassin's product testing program. And as Bassin' advertises, you get to test, review and keep the selected fishing products. Bassin' 7580 East 151st Bixby, Oklahoma 74008 or check out www.bassinonlline.com/platinum Good luck.

My personal boat insurance is with USAA. Guys in my bass club use Farm Bureau, State Farm and Progressive. When getting a few quotes be sure to tell the agent you tournament fish and that you want the liability and physical damage coverage to cover tournament fishing. Remember one of the three major rules of Risk Management: Don't Risk a Lot for a Little. This means that you should procure $1,000,000 of third-party liability. If nothing else, it is sleep insurnace. And the cost is nickles and dimes over the standard $300,000 limit. A lot of strange things can happen on the water, and fast, so protect yourself and your assets. Just a word to the wise.

Anything Shimano.