FrogFreak

I build lures and jigs and visit this forum way too often.

1) The most challenging part of fishing is figuring them out. Others have said it better than I could here. When I have to work to find a pattern, it's very satisfying when I get it right. 2) Besides the obvious (catching), the thing I find exciting is the drive to the lake. The anticipation of the day and what it may bring still makes me feel like a little kid on Christmas morning! I absolutely positively love fishing for bass! When I'm not fishing, I'm thinking about it. I fall asleep every night thinking about how I'm going to fish in certain conditions on certain lakes. I'm full on addicted and I'm very ok with it.

I try to keep it simple as well. I can either keep it simple or make it complicated and prove my ignorance to all within earshot.

My Dad used to tell me that a closed mouth gathers no foot.

I've used several in the 90 size. I did get a couple that just didn't work correctly. They required a very fast retrieve to get the correct action. I need to return them. On the other hand, when they work, they really work! What impresses me is that the bass hit the front treble about 90% of the time.

I agree with the jig but I would add a swim jig to the mix as well. From shore you can fish it effectively and it's a great search bait! I make my own and have had a ton of success using white color variations with a white plastic trailer (paddle tail or grub) which is weird because most of the lakes I fish don't have shad. Oh well, the bass want what the bass want. Do a youtube search for Tom Monsoor and check out his video on swim jigs.

jig and rage craw, swim jig and caffeine shad most of the summer. 4 in senko early in the year. However, I always start with something on top cuz if they're hiring on top, forget every other technique!

x2 on the swimming caffiene shad

Maybe I'm in the minority here but I bought a Crestliner VT17 aluminum boat and I'm happy as heck with it! I understand the arguments above but I bet there are a ton of anglers who can't or won't pay over 30K for a boat no matter who makes it. However, for those of you who are willing to pay that type of money for a boat, you can and should "vote" with your wallet. If you don't like what BPS stands for, go with another brand. There is one heck of a movement out there where people will only buy from companies that align with their beliefs. That's why I avoid Walmart like the plague.

I'd think of a less than attractive but ummm accommodating gal from your past and there you are! It's even better if she had two names like Ellie Mae or something.

I have a friend who shares the passion. He fishes close to home and I go to a lake place. We fish together 2-3 times per year. When we take my boat, he pays for breakfast & lunch and when he takes the boat, I pay for breakfast & lunch. We were in the military together so we bust each other's balls all day on the water. It's pretty comical! I bring kids out a couple times a year and let them use my stuff. It's fun to see their joy. However, I don't have anytime for leeches. On the other hand, I'm probably going anyway so if it didn't inconvenience me to much, I'd probably take a friend. He better be able to fish though. There's nothing fun about unsnapping someone over and over.

On google earth (street view) my teenager is getting into his car and looking at the Google car with a I don't understand look. It's pretty comical.

My advice is this: don't get overwhelmed with all the choices. Keep it simple! For my money, it doesn't get much simpler than a T-rigged worm. Weight depends on a ton of variables but if you have enough weight to get it to the bottom, you should be fine. As far as color goes, it really depends on water clarity. For clear water, stick with natural colors (watermelon, green pumpkin) and for dingy water go with either black or blue. Bass need cover and food. I don't know where you fish but look for places they can ambush their food and you are on the right track. Next look for places where they have access to shallow and deep water. Points are obvious choices. If it were me, I'd take one of the old timers out on that nice new boat and absorb everything they share. Oh, and forget having any "extra" money now. All mine goes to TW or some other fishing site. Finally, listen to the folks on this site. They are very knowledgable and subscribe to bassresource on youtube.

I have read all the replies and i'm shocked! Come on you guys, the OP asked if you could. I have seen posts where a lot of you have given some great information on different techniques and doled out some superior fishing wisdom. I do believe Catt could bet him on Toledo Bend. i also think SpeedBead (sp) could get some pigs with his swimbait prowess and I know AJ and Hootie have caught some huge fish over the last couple years. Tom seems like he has the SoCal area locked down tight and he has caught lots of DD fish. Heck even some of the newer fisherman on the forum could do it. I know he's a pro but so what. On any given day...... In my humble opinion, i think that there are anglers out there that pursue this crazy hobby with passion but don't care about tournaments and making money doing it. I hope that several of you could and would do it. I would watch and I wouldn't root for KVD or any other pro against one of the non-pro BassResource members.

If I were a BPS marketing executive, I would be reading these posts with concern. It seems very few of us (myself included) buy from them. Maybe they don't care about the diehard bass anglers but they sure should. I make my jigs and buy my components online. When it comes to hard baits and plastics, TW gets my business 9 times out of 10 and Academy gets some business from me as well. I live 5 minutes from a Cabelas but their selection is limited and overpriced.

Check out the wave walk kayak at wavewalk.com. It's very stable. I love mine! Pics are before and after my talented wife camo'ed it up. I use it duck hunting as well. Makes it easy to go get ducks on the water and pick up the deeks.

3/8 ounce swim jigs,mostly white with a white caffeine shad trailer, 3/8 ounce flipping jig in green pumpkin with rage craw or rage bug in green pumpkin and a sexy shad square bill (Academy Sports brand). Just put the boat up for the winter and I'm sad.

Caffeine shad up north, any color as long as it's white.

I know this post is old but if anyone catches Bigfoot, can I get some of his/her fur so I can make a Bigfoot hair jig and win my local tourney?

I started using a skirted flipping jig with a plastic craw type trailer (thats for you Roger) this year. I said for 2 years that I was going to learn how to fish a flipping jig and I finally did it this year. So next year I'll be leaning hard on that presentation since I'm now addicted to using it. I also had a ton of success with a swim jig after watching Tom Monsoor's video last winter on YouTube. So I'll probably attempt to continue the success I had this year with those two techniques.

Walmart-Evil, won't buy from them, heck I would be happy if the whole d**n company went away! Cabelas-OK but they think bass fishing is an afterthought up north Academy-None locally but good for online purchases BPS-None locally and it's a hassle to buy from them online TW-The best place to buy online in my opinion. I got sick of driving around town looking for jigs so I started making my own. I order most of the parts from fishing skirts.com.

I like the poppin version if I feel I need more commotion but most of the time it's straight pad crasher. Black and leopard frog for me.

I just started fishing the 90 a couple weeks ago and it's a blast! It is weird how most of my hook ups have been on the front treble. I have been thinking about simply taking the rear treble off of the lure. I run it like a buzz bait and sometimes do quick jerks like a crazy horse. Both ways have worked.

Devils Lake is about 90 minutes from where I live. This was an absolute tragedy. One of my coworkers has a camper about 4 down from the guy who was driving the boat. If you knew this lake, you'd know that driving that fast even during the day that close to shore is crazy with all the submerged timber. Very sad.

I agree that you need to take both boats out and test em. My buddy has a Tracker and I wouldn't pay him to own it. The rod storage is horrible and I dislike the layout. The bottom line is this, if you love it and can afford it, buy it.