Smokinal

^^Dang bro, harsh....harsh

Kevin is my all time favorite as well. Absolute perfection. And be careful not to open any Kai Greene "grapefruit" pics... I like the roid look personally. I've been into BBing since I was 14. And there are natural competitions as well (and some of those guys look like they've done a couple cycles too). To be honest, these guys would look nothing like they do without the gear. Sure it takes some amazing genetics to accept the quantities of juice these guys do, and tons of hours under heavy, heavy weight. But without the cycle, they would look completely different.

We did that a few years ago. I love it!

If I could only throw one bait in water between 35 and 45 degrees, it would be a jerkbait. And I would try hard baits as well as soft baits like a Zoom fluke. My second choice would be a jig; keeping is simple- 5/16 to 3/8 black and blue jig with matching craw trailer; same jig weight in green pumpkin.

^^^ Oh yes sir it is.

"Ain't nothin but a peanut!" Yep, Ronnie alright. 8 time Mr.O. There never was and probably never will be another bodybuilder like him. Oh, and about him being all natty...

Sniper fluoro? That stuff is like a rubber band. You wouldn't have that issue with a braid/leader setup. Not looking to start the whole braid vs fluoro thing, just sayin.

ditto

5.5 to 6. Good 'un for sure.

Do you have a boat or fish from the bank?

Yup, man does that bring back memories of when I lived in Corpus Christi Texas; did a ton of spec and redfish fishing there and that was the lure to use.

Well done sir!

That's a pig right there for sure!

When my go-to techniques aren't working.

OK OK STOP!! I'm having bad visions here lol. Seriously though, thanks for the input. I watched some vids and it doesn't look bad; I'm sure I can do it. I'll keep you posted.

My little Nitro is a 1996 with a 75hp Merc. Always fresh water but never had a water pump done. I'm kind of thinking I should replace it just due to age as I don't want to be stuck on the water with no flow. What's you thouhgts on just changing them as PM? Usual life expactancy? I'm pretty mechanically inclined and I'm sure I could do it myself, just wondering if there are any good vids on this so I feel a little more confident going into it?

What a pretty specimen! Can't wait for my first. Mind me askin what that jerk is?

It's funny; I used to picture the same cover you mentioned....until I started fishing offshore. Now, when I go out, I can't wait to pull up my gps, throw a bouy and cast a jig. EDIT: To answer your question Opie, shorelines get beat up all the time, not saying you cant catch fish there but everyone sees that same cover. I like finding offshore stuff, marking it and figuring it out. The biggest advantage of fishing offshore/deeper is I have found that deeper fish are less affected by pressure changes, weather changes etc... When the shoreline bite stops, I feel I can always hit some ridges or humps and find biting fish.

Nice! That's the way to make do with what you have and make it work for you.

Some good advice above^^^ My 2 cents is not to buy a cheap first reel. I made that mistake when my son wanted to go to baitcasters. I bought a cheap combo with a cheap reel in case he didn't like it. Well, cheap reels are the hardest to cast and he hated it. Get a good reel, some good quality line (20 lb Super Slick imo), tie on a rattle trap, set the reel correctly (lots of good vids on how to set up your baitcaster) and go fish. After all, what's not to like about a casting setup???

Sweet!

Well we saw 60 and sunny today, with temps in the teens and snow for tomorrow. Not a surprise as far as how this winter/spring has gone. I anticipate my home lake open around the 18th which will put my first day out the 26th.

^^He's always got his fingers stuffed in their gills. Great fisherman; a legend, but he has some bad handling habits.

Although I don't use fluoro for anything but leaders, I agree with what you are saying. I typically hold my rod tip high and there is hardly any sag in the line when fishing a buzzbait. Don't see any reason why fluoro wouldn't work with a buzzer.

When I was fishing CMR tourneys a 20" fish was a 5lber. Good one either way!