Sam

Your birthday song. Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birghday to You, The Bait Monkey Wants You, Happy Birthday to You. Hope you get a G. Loomis rod to go with your CORE reel. ;D Happy Birthday.

A man was on the water for his weekly fishing trip. He began his day with an 8-pound bass on the first cast and a 7-pounder on the second. On the third cast he had just caught his first ever bass over 11 pounds when his cell phone rang. It was a doctor notifying him that his wife had just been in a terrible accident and was in critical condition and in the ICU. The man told the doctor to inform his wife where he was and that he'd be there as soon as possible. As he hung up he realized he was leaving what was shaping up to be his best day ever on the water. He decided to get in a couple of more casts before heading to the hospital. He ended up fishing the rest of the morning, finishing his trip with a stringer like he'd never seen, with three bass over 10 pounds. He was jubilant! Then he remembered his wife. Feeling guilty, he dashed to the hospital. He saw the doctor in the corridor and asked about his wife's condition. The doctor glared at him and shouted, You went ahead and finished your fishing trip didn't you? I hope you're proud of yourself! While you were out for the past four hours enjoying yourself on the pond, your wife has been languishing in the ICU! It's just as well you went ahead and finished, the doctor continued, because it will be more than likely the last fishing trip you ever take!' For the rest of her life she will require round the clock care. And you'll be her care giver forever! The man was feeling so guilty he broke down and sobbed. The doctor then chuckled and said, I'm just messing with you. She's dead. What'd you catch?

I would guess that March is the month we start to think about fishing once again. The weather is starting to get a little warmer; fishing shows on TV; April is just around the corner; and it is time to check our tackle and start making plans to fish specific bodies of water. But no matter the reason, good observation, Avid.

You are not older. You are just better. And as you move up the ladder towards retirement not only will you get better but also richer. So be proud of your age and wear it with pride.

Now Long Mike, let's not be too hard on him. Not caring about his life or the lives of others is really nothing for us to be concerned. What bothers me is that we need him to pay as much F.I.C.A. as possible before he kills himself so I hope he slows down and goes no more than 5 miles per hour over the speed limit. Law Enforcement will give you that 5 MPH cushion. Otherwise, it is everybody for themselves. And don't forget the last week of the month. Seems a lot of tickets are written during the last week of each month. Please slow down. We need all the members we can get on the forum plus the fact that we really need your F.I.C.A. out of your pay check.

When going through security on the Post do not make any jokes or say anything about anything. Just stand there and shut up as they go through your car. It will make life a lot easier.

She is beautiful. Keep your honey hole to yourself and keep enjoying it for years.

Super news. He seems like a very nice person and his books and DVDs are excellent. I am very happy for him and his family.

That's all you got? Good order. Now go out and use them and post the pics.

Yes! At a friend's pond I caught them on almost every cast. And using all types of baits but mostly plastics. I even lost a buzzbait when my line got caught in some wood and a stray mono line that had snagged the wood. Ever lose a buzzbait? Unless it flies off your line it is impossible, but I did it. I caught some beautiful bass. Hope to go back once we get some rain. Come on tropical storm. Where are you? ;D

Around here in central Virginia, with the lack of rain and the ponds losing a lot of water, the bass are deep. I have had more success with drop shots, Texas rigged finesse worms and wacky Senkos than any other baits. They do not seem interested in any crankbaits or spinnerbaits. I agree with what the guys said....deeper, slower and use plastics.

Yourassa, Go for it. Beautiful bait and I have a friend who bass fishes with me and he uses saltwater lures and he catches bass the same size as his bait. Give it a try and post those lunker photos for us.

ColdwaterBassin says it all. Let him take the frog; count to two or three seconds; and slam the hook home after you have reeled in all of the slack. You will not hook every one but you will improve your hooking ratio. It takes some practice and I still get excited when he hits the bait and I have to try to control myself from setting the hook, immediately. Some say to wait until you feel the "weight" of the fish with the frog. I can't do that so I count (sometimes too fast) to two or three seconds and then slam the rod home, eager to see if I got him. One "crazy" suggestion that I have done and it can work so take it or leave it. Use a trailer hook. Yes, one trailer hook on one of the two frog hooks, facing up, can improve your hookset ratio. At the same time, depending on the slop, pads and grass you are fishing, it can drive you crazy with hangups. So if you are fishing open water next to a bulkhead or shoreline; or over pads and grass; or parallel to pads and grass; consider using a trailer hook. Just a suggestion.

As Raul stated, get a heavier rod and the "balance" the rod, reel and line with your bait. This means that the rod will support your lure weight and line test; the reel will support the line test; and the line will support the lure. Simple. ;D You may want to consider a heavy 7 foot rod for your heavy swimbaits on a baitcaster that can handle the pressure of the retrieve and fight. May I suggest going with a name brand, like the All Star, Kistler, G. Loomis, St. Croix , Fenwick or the Shimano and Diawa rods? Speak with your local tackle shop salesperson for their ideas and suggestions, too. Be sure to post photos of those lunkers you will catch with those large swimbaits.

Welcome and be sure to read the various fishing articles. They are excellent.

It happens to me, too. Usually when I am casting and hit the boat's windshield, another rod, or a bush/tree. This is why I take extra baitcasters and spinning reels with me to switch out while fishing and then remove the backlash when I get home.

Islandbass gave you an excellent list to select among. Some of my favorites are: Denny Brauer's Jig Fishing Secrets Outdoor World Press, Inc. PO Box 278 Humansville, MO 65674 Kevin VanDam Secrets of a Champion KVD Publications Jones, Michigan These two books are more of the "how to do it" as opposed to the scientific research and philosophicalpublications that are out there. You need to read both types of books to know your enemy better.

Follow Roadwarrior's post. Go with watermealon; watermealon with black flake; pumpkinseed; pumpkinseed with black flake Senkos, or a "stick bait" from other manufacturers. Can't go wrong. I caught four tonight - one on a drop shot with a black 4-inch Zoom finesse worm and the other three on a 4-inch watermealon with black flake Senko fished Wacky style. Read, read and read the posts on this forum regarding worm colors; rods; reels; weights; hooks; line; and whatever. Have fun with your stick baits. Senkos are super and the *** baits are sensational. Now go back and do some fishing.

Personally, I think your success was due to your good looks and great personality. ;D Actually, you found a "honey hole" that we always look for. Weeds to a drop off, on a point. Can't get better than that. And the Beatle Spin, too. Great story and congrats on hitting that school. Now go back and find the school again under the same conditions.

Zak, We need to see you with a bass the size of that pike you are holding. Welcome aboard.

That reel is too beautiful to use. Put it in a cabinet so everyone can enjoy seeing it.

All spinning reels get line twist. It is just a fact of life. Spooling Spool from bottom of spool onto reel if using spooling machine. If not, then have line come off spool counterclockwise and onto reel as reel lets line out clockwise and this will help reduce line twist. Use KVD Lure and Line Conditioner, as stated above, when spooling all reels. It helps the line become more supple. Casting After casting a spinning reel, use your hand to set the bail. Pull on the line from spinning reel to make it tight when starting your retrieve and if possible, hold line to rod with one hand so it will remain tight as you reel in the line onto your baitcaster. In other words, do something to make line tight when you first start to reel in the slack after a cast. Rigging Use barrell swivels. They will not interfer with most baits and they will take most of the twist out of the line. What to Expect Line twist, but not as bad as if you did not do the above. Line twist comes with spinning reels so do all you can to try to reduce the line twist before it happens. Give these suggestions a try and let us know if you see an improvement.

Mono for treble hook baits. Fluoro and copoly for anything. Braid and super lines for heavy cover and deep water or topwaters over pads, grass and slop. Balance rod with reel with line by knowing the weights of the lines and lures for your rod and reel. Lighter lines cannot hurt; heavy lines can cause damage to rod and reel. Use higher test braid based on its diameter and how it translates into mono or fluoro test line. Save your pennies and dimes and get a nice name-brand $75 to $100 baitcaster. Lagor Day sales are around the corner so check out BPS, Peckers, Gander Mountain, etc. for some good deals. Just keep on fishing.

I think this may be in honor of Bassboy15 and Dave could not find a good one of Barney. ;D

Wayne, exactly where is this location????? ;D