Trek

I was portaging up in Canada about three years ago. Me and a buddy were in a small river maybe 8 to 10 foot wide in a 12 foot boat. It was just a river between two lakes and when we got to the other lake there was a bigger boat and motor there for us. When came around a bend where the weeds were real high and there stood a full grown cougar maybe 20 yards from us. There was no way he didn't hear us coming. The water was down that year and we had seen more game then normal. The woods were pretty dry and they needed to come to the lake to drink. He stood there for a few seconds then turned and walked into the brush. I still wonder why he let us get so close. I saw one about 10 years ago in Costa Rica at a distance. They're a lot bigger when your sitting down looking them in the eyes.

Exactly ! That is to serious of a problem. Take it to a dealer and get it fixed right.

Now that I started making my own plastics I would hate to even try to give that number. I guess the difference is now one bag might have 50 baits in it instead five bags with ten. When I use to fish Federation they gave us bags full of sample baits to try. Most of it I never used so when I would get home I had a box that I would pitch them in. Who knows why. I had a large box full of baits. So I separated all the colors and melted them down into baits I would use. The odd colors I just added black and made them black. It was free plastic and kept me busy this winter.

Tanners Creek on the river can be awesome fishing. Tons of water to fish. You can run 26 miles to Big Bone on the KY side if you like. Been a few years since I fished it but I like that pool.

Shut up and fish !

I have a rule when I go down to fish that lake. Never fish on the weekend. Even the weekdays are crowded when the bite is on. That's just part of it there and all the pro's know it.

I'd watch out for Mueller and Defoe. When squirrel interviewed them at the ramp both guys acted like they had something good going. Mueller acted like his weight was no big deal. I guess we'll see.

Looks like they're are going to get sun and warmer each day. High of 68 on Sunday. My guess would be most of the field will go north. The bass should be staging out in the mouths of the bays on the ledges. Moving shallower as the days sun warms the water up. The water up there will be muddy. So I would toss a big bladed spinner bait up on the flats and slow roll it down the ledges out in the mouths of the bays. Maybe even fish the top of the flats were some old weeds and lily pads are if the sun warms it up a lot. I would be hog hunting all day. That lake can produce a big bag. Your going to need a 5 to 6 pound average to stay in the hunt. If the sun will stay out the big girls just might show up. You might see 90 pounds plus to win. When I say ledges and flats up in the north part of the lake I mean flats at 1 to 3 feet and ledges maybe down to 10 feet. Also I would stay away from the clear water. This time of year mud warms up first.

It's kind of like basketball. Almost everyone can dribble a ball. Very very few make money doing it. Getting discounts and free shirts and hats doesn't feed the family. I see hundreds of guys with sponsors all over their shirts, trucks and boats. But I have only met one that went pro and made it. So I guess it is possible. The best way to get there is to work your way up one of the big tournament trails and make it to the Classic or the Forrest Wood Cup. Then you will find sponsors that will pay you money and entry fees. Working for free stuff is just going to take up your time from being a better fisherman. I've had more money taken from me from guys in tee shirts and old boats then I have from the ones with sponsors.

Yes I ride a Trek. I have a road and a mountain bike. Stretching is the one thing most men don't do. Yet may be the single best thing I do for myself. I hurt my ankle one year and wasn't allowed to lift weights with the group. So twice a week we would meet at the gym and they lifted and I would stretch for an hour. Trust me I hated it. After a month I was ok again and I jumped in on a day they were going to max on. My max on my squats went up 40 pounds and all I did was stretch for a month. That made me a believer.

In the summer I'm a bicyclist. Did 2,000 miles last summer and 2,800 the summer before. During the winter I go to spinning classes twice a week and weight train twice a week.I stretch twice a day everyday. Doing all that takes away from my tournament fishing but I'm not sore anymore after 8 hours on the water. So I think it helps me.

The old saying goes. Look at their mother. If you can't live with that later down the road then don't marry them. I've also learned to not expect to do what you want if you hold her back all the time. It's give and take. You both need to be happy in life. She'll be a much better wife to you if she is. The last thing is if she's going to cheat then there's nothing you can do about it. Get rid of her. Remember once you find out it wasn't the first or the last time.

Several items are always in the boat. Gloves, stocking hat, extra sun glasses, extra hat, sun screen, bug spray, hand warmers, hoodie and a Gortex rain suit. I can't tell you how many times I've needed those items while out on the water.

I carry a Sig 380 auto. I carry it every day. I take it from the house to the truck and then back to the house again at night. It depends what job I'm on during the day to weather or not it's in my back pocket. I always have it on me or in the boat when I fish. I'm also a bicyclist and always have it or a smaller 22 mag derringer on me when I ride. It's like shoes. I put them on when I go out.

We have to remember one thing here too. We are talking public water here. That means everyone should have the right to fish them. If one guy can take an old 9.9 hp wide open then I should have the right to idle my big motor. The facts are I'm not hurting the water any more then they are. To be fair to all it should be a speed limit not a horse power limit.

This was 50 years ago

We had a lot of lakes like that here in Ohio. They are slowly making them idle only and or 10 HP limit lakes. It never made sense to me why I couldn't idle my big motor but a 14 foot flat bottom could scream down the lake. It's a stupid law and doesn't serve any purpose. I may be wrong but I believe it was our Ohio BASS Federation Nation that worked with the ODNR to get them to start changing that law. It took a few years but it is slowly being changed.

One other thing I would like to add to this topic is you need to remember that a lot of the boat ride is the driver. That 520 Ranger your thinking about is one of the most popular boats on the market for a reason. If you take care of it when it comes time to sell her there will be no problem finding a buyer. I always like it when you hear guys say that their boat is as good as or better then a Ranger. That's kind of like during basketball season you hear guys say this kid is the next Jordan. Well again must be a reason for that.

When it comes to club fishing I would say your first year out to just go have fun. Some of the guys are going to be serious and some will be there just to have fun and hang out with the guys. Your just going to have to get to know them. I use to fish Federation clubs about five years ago. Fished the state team a couple of times and met a ton of fisherman. Many are still good friends. Now I fish Team Extream and a bunch of local stuff. The traveling just got to be to much. I like this better. The guy I partner with I meet back in the club days and we fish well together. But it is a great way to meet new friends. So I say go have fun and enjoy.

I like the ride of my Ranger. My Champion rode nicer. That being said I like fishing better out of my Ranger by far because it fishes flat. The Champion was nose high. If all you fish is open water it wouldn't matter. The Ranger also has a track true hull. This is for when your on the trolling motor the boat travels straight and doesn't let the wind push it as bad. Also when at idle the boat rides true. My Champion I always had to steer it. The front deck of a Ranger is soft. It has little springs in there to help your back when standing all day. The seats are second to none. You pair all that with a lift assist trolling motor and you have a boat with a lot of comfort. At age 55 I like the comfort of my Ranger.

I have a 2010 Ranger Z519 with a 225 Mercury. I got it because I wanted a fast hole shot and I like the 19 foot length for moving in and out of small coves. I don't fish large bodies of water and when I do it does fine. For fishing local lakes I fill it up twice a year. That's 100 gallons. Like another poster I think I burn more in my truck then I do in the boat. In Ohio most of our lakes are small and most of the time I'm in a no wake zone idling to the spot. I find in tournament fishing most of the money spent is in hotels, food and gas in your truck.

Sounds like in your area there is a Evinrude dealer. I my area everyone has Mercury and Evinrudes. That's because the dealer in my area sells them. You couldn't give me a Yamaha on the back of my Ranger. And not because it's a bad motor. The nearest dealer 1 1/2 hours away and to get a part or a tune up would be at least 6 hours of drive time to drop it off and pick it up on a later date. The best thing you can do when buying a boat is to find a good dealer near you and build a good relationship with them. It will pay for itself in the long run.

You put the weight in first. Hole side first. Then stick the point of the hook through the nose of the tube and then through the hole of the weight and back out the tube again. Then Texas rig it as show in the picture.

Well it's 7am and I've had two cups of coffee and getting ready for work. You've been up who knows how long and ready for a nap. You're one tough old bird, I'll give ya that. Just an observation there.

I ride my bicycle with one guy that is 67 and the other is 70. There are also many others in their 50's like me. We all go out together and ride 30 to 100 miles at a time. Age is only a number if you stay in shape. You can't let your self get to the point of no return.