Logan S

Here's the biggest one I've ever caught or seen...Got it back in 2016 on the Potomac. I should have weighed it because it could have been close to a state record, guessing it was in the 15lb class. It pulled me around pretty good even with a 7'6" H rod and 65lb braid (can actually see it pull my boat a bit). They can be fun but really just bycatch for me, I catch quite a few each year when bass fishing on the Potomac and Upper Chesapeake. Nothing will ever get them out of the Potomac, but the ***holes that are illegally stocking them in every other waterway in the area need to be caught and have the book thrown at them. The Potomac is doing OK with them but other places might not.

I generally request off well in advance for fishing trips I know I'm taking ahead of time...But everyone once in a while there's a perfect day and a chance to hit the water has been too good to pass up. I've never felt like I needed to lie outright though, "I need to take an unexpected PTO day," has always seemed to go over just fine. Assuming your absence doesn't cause some kind of disruption...Nobody is going to care unless you actually tell them that you're going fishing or you forget sun protection and come in the next day with major raccoon-eyes.

There aren't really any that I'm falling over myself to scrounge for them on eBay or anything...But there's a handful of baits that are or used to be productive for me that I would pick up if they were readily available at normal retail prices... UJ Pork Rebel Deep Wee-R Lucky Craft Redemption Spinnerbaits Havoc Devil Spear Yum Wooly Bully Jackall Bling WEC/Zoom Cranks - Would be nice to have some backups to the ones I like without paying the crazy prices right now. Probably a couple more I can't remember too.

When I was 17 I went on the first of many annual trips to a chain of lakes in Canada with a group of guys from my club. It was my first big, long distance fishing trip. The day we were leaving I was really hyped up to go, hooked the boat up early and basically paced around till it was time to go (we were leaving mid-afternoon). I loaded up my truck and tinkered with some tackle in the boat for a while until I just decided head to the meeting spot early....Guys were always early. So I do that and then get to the meeting spot and no one is there yet, but whatever I'm a little extra early.... It gets to the actual meeting time and still no one there so I call the guy that lived closest to the meeting spot to ask where everyone was....And he says, "What are you talking about? It's Friday, we leave tomorrow....." Yep, I was an entire day early ?. As a teenager trying to be 'cool' in a group of more experienced fisherman, it was pretty embarrassing - Though they were good sports about it, giving me just enough flak to stay funny. It's been 16 or 17 years now since that screw up and if I'm ever the first guy to the ramp in the morning one of those guys will still hit me with, "You've been here since yesterday haven't you?" Or something similar ?.

I've thought about this several times - But haven't yet because of concerns over how waterproof I can make it and the power situation. I know there are water proof cases and I can run a power cord to it like anything else but I just can't see it standing up to the abuse that a regular graph does. I know several pros do this because I've seen them mounted in their boats, but they don't talk about it a ton.

You've got a couple talented teams that are participating a lot, that's a good thing. IMO, it's better to keep the guys that are doing well around and if you end up 'culling' some teams, let it be the from the other end of the leaderboard. One thing you might try is to promote a sharing/learning attitude...NOT giving out every detail/location/etc, but in a very general sense. Our club has this philosophy and it has worked very well....During weigh in each angler talks a bit about their day. Something like, "I got a few on a jerkbait and the rest on a jig, I was targeting main lake points." It's after the day is over and no one is giving up anything so specific that it would compromise them...But it gives everyone some insight as to what worked that day. We've found that it really helps newer anglers get their feet under them and it keeps the experienced guys working to stay ahead of the curve - "Rising tide lifts all ships" sort of mentality. It also gets people talking to each other that might not have otherwise. It's been a great feature of our club for over 20 years now and one of the big reasons we maintain a large membership base (60ish members annually) IMO at the club/local you need to strike the right balance of fun and competitiveness, too little of either and you'll have people bailing. I think too many groups try to neuter the competitiveness out of their events in the name of 'fun' - But it ends up backfiring because the competition is a big part of what makes tournaments fun. Anyway, it could be something you talk to your group about...You have some talented anglers so even just little tidbits from them would probably be good insight for the rest of your group.

You have to be willing to put in travel time around here...We have more options than most would think though. Local electric-only lake is about 20 mins away and is among the best bass fisheries in MD....Great option to have even though I have to putt around it on the trolling motor. At 500 acres its workable without using the outboard. There's another electric-only lake that can be really fun about 45 mins away too, but once I'm driving that long I typically will hit a 'real' place instead. The Potomac has a ton of ramps as close at 30 mins, but my favorite launch site is about 45 mins away. Upper Chesapeake and Conowingo are about 1.5 hours for me Lake Anna is 1.5 hours or so in the AM, but 95 traffic can be a killer on the way home. James/Chickahominey are about 2 hours. Places like Deep Creek Lake, Gaston, Smith Mountain, and a few others are 2.5 to 4.5 hours away...I'll go to these lakes 4 or 5 times a year for multi-day tournament trips. And if I really need to get a fix, there's a creek behind my house that has smallmouth and panfish in it...So I can grab my ultralight and catch a few almost anytime if needed .

The line and hook you would likely be using with a L or ML rod wouldn't be ideal for boat flipping anything of size either. Bass smaller than 14" or so are generally OK to flip on just about any gear....At least for me. Above that it's situational for your line/hook/rod. I've boat flipped bass in the 5lb class and netted 12" smallies...Depends on the situation, my gear, and my judgement.

Dang, page two and no one has mentioned livewells or bed-fishing yet? ?

Looks funny, but there are actually a lot of goldfish in the Potomac and on the Upper Chesapeake. It's rare to actually catch one though.

I got sick of rods sliding down the wall and falling over so I had to get them mounted when I had them in house. I've never liked the vertical racks and in my case, my ceiling is too low for my 7-6+ rods. This rack is pretty crude and I'll probably make a nicer version one day, but for now it works beautifully. I'm kicking myself for not thinking of horizontal wall racks sooner. Even when everything is out of the boat, I can rig and work on stuff much easier now. I generally fish through the winter, though definitely less often so I pull the gear out of the boat usually...So this is my off-season storage.

I'm not a big swimbait fisherman so I've steered clear of the really high dollar stuff. But I have more Vision 110's than I'd care to account for...Actually more $25 class baits in general, I shouldn't tally them up ?. The most valuable baits I have are probably several from this box...Some of these could probably bring a high price if I were to sell them.

I don't think they will change anything major...And I don't think they should. They did a single year while the industry was chaotic, if they knee-jerk this quickly it would be a sign of larger internal trouble (IMO). If they do make a change, they shouldn't make any of these gimmicky things I keep seeing here and elsewhere...MLF/BPT has enough gimmicks already (also, IMO). If they want to emphasize big fish they just need to put a limit in place. Despite what @Team9nine wrote (and he seems to be connected somehow), I seriously doubt they will do it...More likely the ownership is just humoring the anglers by not shooting it down immediately. A limit would throw a wrench into a lot of their selling points...Most notably, the cut-line drama since they would be culling ounces within a limit (or not gaining any weight) instead of counting every fish's total weight....The movement up/down the leaderboard would be much less drastic, almost non-existent in the manner it is now at the end of a round. Lots of other big things too, but that's one I doubt they want to nerf...

The best way to emphasize larger fish in a tournament format is to limit the total number of fish you count toward your weight total. What a novel idea . It automatically scales to the fishery or conditions and isn't skewed by big fish factories like Lake Fork or small fish events like Sabine or Winyah. If a 1lb fish is average, a 2lber is valuable (Sabine/Winyah)....If a 4lber is average a 6lber is valuable (Fork). You need to target and catch the valuable fish to win. It even works on a curve, for example in NY where a 9lber is extremely uncommon - If you did catch one it would help you exponentially. Apply the same idea to any lake with any size fish. When I catch a 6lber on the Potomac in a tournament it's WAY more valuable than three 2lbers or even two 3lbers. There's no need to bring points or equations into it. In the MLF format, the valuable fish are the ones you can catch the most of...And most of the time those tend to be smaller fish. It's not wrong, it's just different and a bit counter-intuitive to what most are used to. IMO if MLF is going to keep their format they should just keep it and run with it. This heavyweights tournament thing they are doing might hurt them more than it helps them in the long run as it's another reminder that MOST anglers, tournament or not, place a higher value on larger fish. The 2 formats are like 2 different games with different strategies. So it shouldn't be a shock that some guys are more suited to one or the other...With the best anglers being able to succeed in both.

It's possible to see consistency in either format....But each format favors a different type of angler (in general). A smaller number of guys will (and have been) consistently successful in both, while most of the others will be consistently successful in one or the other. Don't forget that the MLF/BPT format of counting every fish is still very new to pretty much every angler on that tour. Even the original MLF pros that have been doing it for years are new to doing it full time - Prior to 2019 their primary focus was still with 5 bass limits, the MLF thing was sort of a sideshow for them until now. As long as the MLF/BPT format sticks around long term, I think you'll see more guys adapt to it.

That's very true, I didn't think of the YouTube guys...But he and YouTubeFishingVids are probably more well known in general than any tournament angler . There's a couple other popular YT guys from MD and Northern VA. "Famous" means more than just tournaments, my mistake.

Roland Martin is originally from MD, though I don't think he ever considered it is home state fishing wise. There have been a handful of pro anglers from MD, I think the best currently is Bryan Schmitt. He switched from FLW to the Elites this season and should be a contender.

The standard 110 is a 'slow-float' not a true suspending bait. The 110 FX is a true suspending version. The Shadow Rap being a slow sink would technically be the opposite if you want to go that route...But don't forget you can weight the 110 ever so slightly to get it to slow sink if you wanted. Using Suspend-Strips on the body doesn't effect the action too much (I don't notice any difference).

It's impossible for the boat to ALWAYS be in an ideal position for both anglers, even with the best intentions on the boater's part. A huge part of being a co-angler in tournaments is understanding this and adapting to it the best you can. If stuff like this makes someone miserable on the water they should probably try to reset/re-evaluate their expectations because regardless of the situation...a day on the water fishing, overall, should still be fun. I've fished a lot of tournaments with a lot of different co-anglers....The good ones catch fish regardless of what I'm doing with the boat, they adapt and make it work.

My co's catch fish behind the boat with the same bait I'm using, so I wouldn't count it out. You might also ask if you can cast up the other side of the boat, some guys don't like that though....Including me in certain situations. If you do this, go with something heavier or deeper running so it gets down quicker since you're usually dealing with water a few feet deeper than the boater. When I'm doing what you describe I typically tell my co sorry for the poor angle first...And then tell him that he can either cast up ahead on the opposite side of the boat (most of the time), as long as he's careful not to get too close to the trolling motor - Or he can cast/drag behind the boat, as long as he understands I'm unlikely to back track 50 yards to get a snag. I've had co's catch fish both ways and I'm happy when they do. Regarding the situation in general...Like you said, it's something that happens occasionally. If that's how I'm having success I'm going to do it. Doesn't mean I go out of my way to do it, but it happens. Part of being a co is dealing with situations like this, I've never had anyone take it personally or get upset (not saying you are, but other people here seem to be). The only place I see people get up in arms about it is on the internet ?.

Z18 is a nice boat, good for a first bassboat for sure...Ultrex and electronics also good options to start. A couple things you may not realize are nice to have are a hotfoot and jackplate. It's much easier to have these on the boat from the start than it is to add them later. I'd also throw in the blinker-trim switch, very convenient and relatively low cost. Not sure if any of these are standard on the Z18 or not, but if not I'd consider adding them. If you keep it outside or see yourself taking overnight/multi-day trips....Getting the factory custom cover is also something I'd highly recommend. I'd also max the HP at 175 (I think the Z18 is rated for it?). No one has ever regretted getting more HP but a great many regret getting less . Enjoy!

Neither MD or VA have required snakeheads to be killed for many years....However both still encourage and recommend all snakeheads caught to be killed. https://dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/Pages/snakehead.aspx "What can you do? If you catch a northern snakehead, harvest it." "The northern snakehead has been described as a voracious predator of fishes, freshwater crustaceans, and amphibians. Its native range (24-35°N) and temperature tolerance (0-30°C or 32-85°F) indicates that, if introduced, northern snakehead populations could become established throughout most of the contiguous United States and possibly adjoining Canadian provinces. Because of their feeding style, they could outcompete popular sport fish such as largemouth bass. Biologists are also concerned that they could introduce parasites and diseases that could harm native species." https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/snakehead/ "the Department asks that all snakeheads be killed if possible." "Ruffin’s Mill Pond has been joined recently by Hunting Run Reservoir (Spotsylvania County), Pelham Reservoir (Culpeper County), Abel Reservoir (Stafford County), Burke Lake (Fairfax County), and Occoquan Reservoir (Fairfax/Prince William line) as all waters receiving illegal stockings of northern snakeheads. An individual was arrested and prosecuted for illegally stocking snakeheads in Lake Brittle (Fauquier County) in 2015. A bill was passed during the 2017 Virginia General Assemble providing for increased penalties for persons illegally moving (stocking) snakeheads. Anglers are encouraged to visit these lakes and harvest all snakeheads caught. They are excellent table fare. Snakeheads were found to be self-sustaining in Lake Anna (York drainage) in 2017. Thus far, none have been found downstream of North Anna Dam. However, as of May 2018; they were reported from multiple reservoirs in the James River watershed – undoubtedly a result of callous, illegal stocking from short-sighted individuals." It's pretty clear that neither MD or VA view them as "no big deal" or in a positive light at all. I wish they would do more to try to catch the people moving them around....

Not necessary...and that's coming from someone that owns and enjoys several DC models. In general, they aren't giving you abilities you don't have without DC. I can notice slight improvements when skipping - seems like I can get an extra skip or two of distance since I can back off the thumb a bit. I also like it on my chatterbait rods because I can go from long bomb casts, to skips, to short pitches, to left hand casts, back to bomb casts in the space of a couple minutes...The DC helps me keep all that in check a bit better (especially those left handed ones ). You have to be able to make these casts without DC, the DC just makes it a little cleaner. Also keep in mind that almost every DC reel model utilizes a different version of DC...With different settings and attributes. FWIW I've never considered the purpose/intention of DC to be preventing backlashes. IMO it's purpose is 'cleaning up' the small flaws in my cast due to my errors or the conditions, which can result in slightly better performance. Could be wrong, but that's my application of it anyway.

Legend had you covered before they went out of business...The Legend 'Tactical'. ?

Stop painting the blade on bladed jigs for EVERY color! Or if you do, offer it with painted and unpainted blades. Looking at you ZMan/Evergreen. I'd have a more Jackhammers if i could get a couple of those colors with gold blades....Specifically GP and BHite. My that's my current, biggest pet peeve ...but hey, it's saving me some money at least! EDIT: I got another one for online retailers....List the blade size on spinnerbaits! It's the most important feature of the bait and everything else is the same....I don't need to know about the space-age wires they mined from an asteroid (AKA the same wire every other one uses), tell me how big the blades are!