Choporoz

Not unusual to beat up a laydown or pad area with spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, etc and then work more meticulous with plastics. The one precaution I take is if I have to maneuver close, say... to flip or dropshot, I will just sit for a bit after I get my boat or kayak in position. I find it helps, especially in pad fields. I don't think the big baits had any lasting effect. Another time I might let a target 'rest' for a minute is if a cormorant or otter came from near that spot when I pulled up. I'm reminded of a B.A.S.S. event I watched some months ago. One of the 'legends', whose name I can't recall, spent a good portion of a day throwing spinnerbaits at a single tree...and not like once every couple minutes...but bang bang....he wasn't worried about shutting them down....I think he was trying to tick them off...lol

Don't tell me. Tell Z. But I disagree. On both. With you. Not Zona. The sensitivity is not the same...to me. And the stretch is most certainly not the same...sooo many variables to consider, not least of which is whether you have measured stretch and 'return to shape' under 'wet' fishing conditions. I am NOT going to try to tell anyone that any one line is better for them. But I am happy to argue that most measurables (and all subjective points) are (still) inconclusive

Was not familiar with eel grass, since there is none on my 'home waters', but I fished Guntersville in October a couple years ago and some areas were truly painful to try to fish....maddening

FIFY

I'm sold on fluoro slack-line-sensitivity....even if its imaginary. But i am quite amused that I got a (commercial) email a few hours ago that contained this: Mark Zona: "Compared to the old days of using monofilament line, which was like a rubber band, fluorocarbon has much less stretch and greater sensitivity."

No clue how they differ from bass' perspective....but I'm sure appearance and sound are 'different'. But, as @Mobassersays, hooksets are mo better than skin-hooked 'solid' worms. SKRT Recon was a very effective ring type worm for me. With light wire hook, fish practically hooked themselves. But they fell apart pretty quickly. No clue why some days were better with Recon, and some days they preferred an Anaconda.

I've never had a hand-pour ring worm, but my biggest problem with all commercial ring worms that I have tried is fragility. One fish, at best...sometimes shot before a fish.

You have answered your original question.

Off top of my head, 14 brands and a custom, but I may be forgetting some.

I don't know if they still do it, but last winter I was watching rerun of a tourny (MLF, maybe) where the pros didn't know where they were fishing until hours or days prior. Seemed a cool concept. Maybe BASS should try to recreate the earliest tournament, with surprise lake in identical boats. I'd watch.

It is funny....I remember the exact date, time and place when I decided i was through with the basic 5in FF. End of year (Oct) tournament and I found them hitting dropshot on smaller, isolated brushpiles. I had good idea where 5 or 6 such piles were. Problem was that without SI, nor GPS, it took sometimes 20 minutes to find them and position well, even when I had reasonably good familiarity with the lake. I was shopping for new FF the next day.

Problem is that my Hobie has a fixed rudder that precludes standing it up on the stern. You're right. The Hullivator won't even handle that kayak. I'm pushing the limits at 70#

I didn't really upgrade until about my 4th or 5th year of kayak fishing. Now, I'd never want to be without SI and GPS again. Lots of days it wouldn't make a difference....but lots of days it makes all the difference

More than once, I came home on third straight 10 hour kayak fishing day and told my wife I'd rather do something else tomorrow. She just laughs and says "Riiiight". I'd be thoroughly exhausted, but by 5AM next day, I'd be itching to go back out.....and if weather is ok, I'd be on the water soon after

I missed the part in the OP that says they posted video of prohibited or illegal activities. I may be misinterpreting, but I see the primary point is that the captain may be ethically challenged, resulting in harm to the overall competition and depriving his students of learning and improving opportunities. Do you agree? Or is winning (within the rules) more important than even competition and learning/improving?

Have you handled that rod? I bought it without having seen it, or any other glass rod made in last 40 years. I couldn't stand it. Bought a Cashion Elite graphite crank rod and couldn't be happier with the change. If you want to try the Mojo.... PM me if you are more or less between DMV and Kerr. I transit that stretch frequently.

I bought a set of Conair clippers 20 years agonfor about 25 bucks. Wife slaps those comb things on the clippers and cuts my hair in 15 minutes once a month. Haven't paid for a haircut in decades.

Capitalism sucks

Never seen them that big. Barlows has some they call 5" on closeout. (They look a lot like Big Bite 5")

I'm projecting a bit, but I often find good fish at outside grass edge in that sort of lake in May/June. When I have encountered such a situation, I like to position over deep water and make a long cast with light T-Rig into the grass. Bring it out slowly and you will get bit as it just comes out of the outside edge of the grass.

Slacker

Set the scene a bit more...what sort of lake/river? Deep, clear lake? Dirty, shallow tidal river? Warm August day in NY? Warm January day in MS? SMB? Spots?

+1 + another 1 Was coming in to say that most difficult for me is finesse in the wind....or any bottom contact, really. Fishing from a kayak in the wind is challenge enough. But if you can't feel bites, or wind has blown enough slack in your line that hook setting is harder than deploying James Webb gold panels....well....probably best to just head in

Never less than 5 or 6 in one outing. Possibly hundreds over the past 12 months