Fish Chris

Right on Tuck I didn't want to give it away before anyone saw it, but I think that "double take" it does, and when it looks at its owner, then looks at the stuffed dog through the side of its eyes, is just hilarious ! ......and the "butt sniff"... He's like, What the heck kind of dog smells like this thing" ??? So confused LOL Fish

Yea', what a sad thing And yes, I think a lot of people overlooked that movie based on the title, when it really is a must see type of movie. RIP Fish

Of course I love all kinds of dogs, even a good mutt, as I know a lot of you do, but Boston Terriers have been one of my favorite breeds for a long time.... So anyway.... Fish BTW, I found this only a few days ago, when it had barely 4000 hits, I believe ? Up to 10,000 already ! Be cool if I found it so early, and then it ended up going viral I think it should.... But I'm probably partial to Boston's

Whatever the tech, the performance numbers don't lie ! Fish

No doubt, CTS-V's are bad a$$, as are the new 2014 Corvette Stingray < A straight up American supercar ! {may I please have one of these too ? } In fact, I'll admit, Vette's are beating stock Viper's.... but of course you can do anything to a car that you can afford ....and if you live in CA, just register in Nev Their was a guy here in my town a couple years ago, with an original Dodge Viper RT10, onto which he had added big, fat twin turbo chargers. Dyno'd at 750hp..... Anyway, the all new 2014 Vipers, are no slouches either though, with 640bhp !.... and again, they get my vote for standing out in a sea full of GM's LOL Hey wait.... didn't this thread start out about a beautiful "luxury car" ? ....oh yea, it did ! ....also with nearly 600hp Fish

Derek, wait..... don't tell me.... You would want a white one, right ? Or dark blue ? Red ? Something that would just blend right in, so nobody would notice you ? Then what the heck would you buy an Aston Martin Vanquish for ? LOL If you want to blend in with some boring color, you might as well just buy a Toyota Camry If this thing "wasn't" this bad @$$ blue, then it would have to be some kind of crazy, poison green ! ~~~~~~~~~ CTS-V's are bad @$$, no doubt. But the CTS body shape is just pretty darn common. Kind of like driving a Corvette. I mean, they are also super awesome cars, but everyone and their grandmother has seen a CTS... and unless your a real car person you would probably not even notice the "V"..... On the other hand, nobody looks right past a Viper, without noticing it. For me, being waaay less common, is a HUGE plus. Peace, Fish

.....and about 20 others, that I'll never have Jay says, a lot of people buy really expensive "race cars" for the street, and it they just end up not suiting their needs very well. Jay says, "THIS is a car that you could take out to dinner, then drive it up the coast, then put it on track mode for some fun on the weekend". It's totally made for the steet.... but still not exactly a slouch, with almost 600hp Oh, so even if you only watch a minute or two, then skip to 12:00 and listen to this thing, when Jay gets on it ! Yea' buddy Jay said the bright blue paint wasn't his favorite. Are you kidding me ? That paint is off the freaking chain ! Perfect for the car Peace, Fish

Shimmy > I figure If you have never done a skin mount, then i think you have more of a right to advocate for the replica stance. I feel just the opposite. I mean it would be like me sitting here and telling everybody that drugs / alcohol suck a$$, "just because somebody told me so". I've made "plenty" of stupid decisions in my life, so hopefully, a few people will be able to learn from that, without having to make the same stupid decisions, themselves. I believe a many of the strongest advocates for C/R, have kept a fish or two in the past for skin mounts. But have learned better, since then. I know I have had two skin mounts done... Gave one away. Had a lot of personal issues over the other one for a long time, but have since gotten over that by accepting the fact of > "Live and learn". Now its just a little dust collecting piece of fish art. Not near so impressive as the replica of my 18.4 Peace, Fish

WRB, true. BTW, have I asked you before where you got your replica done, for your 19 ? That mount looks fantastic ! Fish

Thanks Matt. BTW, I'd try my darndest to keep a WR LMB alive..... but it would likely be donated to a testing tank, somewhere that it could be studied, and possibly used to make a "bunch more" just like it Fish

No. I almost never use electronics... besides scales and cameras. I quietly slip around in likely waters, with polarized glasses, and look for big fish with my eyes, and even if the water is too murky, I can almost always get one to follow a swim bait, or big top water to the boat, giving away their location. I don't know exactly why, but almost NEVER do I get on a trophy bass lake, and "not" have a monster bass cruise up to the side of my boat, close enough I could reach them with my rod tip, and just kind of look at me, like, "Hey dude ! What's up" ? I always talk to them LOL .....like, "What's up big girl ? You know you want to come into the boat with me, and get your picture taken" LOL Peace, Fish

Hooked > I personally don't kill "big, trophy sized bass". The bigger it is, the more important it is for me to release it unharmed... And here's why > Because by killing a huge fish, I will have single handedly reduced my own odds of catching a monster (that same monster) in the future ! Don't think it can happen ??? I have caught, released, and re-caught and released multiple big bass, sometimes a year or two later > with photo proof. And I've done this in huge res. of 20,000 acres or more ! {big bass can be very territorial} The first time this happened, we thought it was just the most amazing, long-shot thing that could possibly happen ! Then it happed again.... and again.... and again ! Nowadays we don't even trip when we re-catch and re-release a big fish. If you C/R enough big fish, it starts to happen on a regular basis. Bottom line; If I C/R a big fish, then you catch it, and it becomes your new PB, that's awesome ! Congrats ! Now you can do whatever you want with it. But I'll be honest, my primary reason for releasing that fish was to increase my own odds of catching a big bass in the future, not yours. IMPO, "well done" replicas, look better / last longer, anyway..... along with a beautiful enlarged photo of the actual fish, hanging right beside it Peace, Fish PS, I always have to laugh, when some guy hundreds or thousands of miles away from me, catches and keeps a big bass, from some random lake that 99.9% of us will never fish in, then some goofball gets his panties in a knot, over it LOL Hey, if that guy wants to "hurt his own odds" of catching big bass in the future, who am I to argue ? Releasing big bass, is just one of many reasons, that I've caught a bunch of big bass.

Everything Mattlures said about CA is spot on. Slight difference, up here in Nor CA, we have places that are stocked with trout 7 or 8 months a year, and their are holdovers for the other 4-5 months. I truly believe we have fish which eat hatchery trout nearly all year.... but interestingly, because of the climate difference between SO and Nor CA, all we can grow is these "dinky little" 18's ....while they grow those 20+ lb monsters. Sir Snook > There are those that have a credible history on this site and claims of larger fish without a pic are more than believable, other claims may be a bit dubious IMO. Well sure..... But if I caught a huge fish, and didn't have a photo or the actual weight from a scale, I don't think I'd ever mention it on a public forum If somebody wants to believe me, just because I said so, cool ! But this is why I carry "multiple cameras and scales", every single time I'm on the water. They won't have to just take my word for it Peace, Fish

In the water ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Seriously though, a genetic fluke, could pop up anywhere. Case in point, the MA state record is over 15lbs !!! The second biggest bass ever caught from MA, was slightly over 11, and that state record, had held for decades, before that total genetic fluke of a bass came along, and destroyed it. So if MA could jump from an 11, to a 15, then Texas could jump from an 18 to a WR, LA, could jump from a 17 to a WR, etc, etc. All of this said, the odds say, So Cal, or Japan (and not anywhere in Japan... just maybe 1 or 2 lakes) Fish

Ya' know, I'm sure we had this exact same kind of thread a while back, and what's funny, if I remember correctly, it had the same kind of tone in the OP, and then had the same kinds of initial responses.... at which point, I said the same things I stand behind now.... First off, I think their might be more bucket fishermen and, more of them that actually catch fish, in the Southern US. I spent 3 years in Louisiana, and compared to Nor Cal, this is just what I saw, first hand. That said, on the fairly rare occasion I see a "bucket fisherman" up here in Nor Cal, they have almost never caught squat, to begin with ! They'd have to fish for a 10 years, to fill that 5 gal bucket LOL Oh sure, their will be exceptions. Heck, I used to be a bucket fishermen > which is to say, I carried all my tackle, bait, etc, in a 5 gal bucket, while I walked "miles" of shoreline. Use to whack em' too. Released all of them. However, you just will not catch any number of fish, in the lakes up here in Nor Cal, sitting on the shore, in any one spot. Bottom line > Most of these so-called bucket fishermen have pretty much zero effect, on anything I am fishing for. Peace, Fish PS, Reading back over the responses, Marty your right that "small ponds" could be effected.... but the question would be, how small ? I mean, obviously if you can cast all the way across it.... or your cane pole reaches to the center LOL ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Edit: Around these parts, the people you have most to blame for hurting fish populations is not bucket fishermen.... It's the straight up, professional poachers ! These guys are high tech ! They don't sit in one spot, on the shore, like a goof ball.... they get out on boat, and use every technique, legal or otherwise, to catch as many fish > over the limit, as is humanly possible, and keep every last one of them ! I'm SURE these idiots hurt my fishing

Not sure about other states, but in CA, no. You are not allowed to use a "sportfish" for bait... and yes, a catfish is considered a sportfish. Oh but hey, even if you could, catfish would have to be very low on the list of food choices for a bass. Just imagine those sharp spines in the bass' throat ! Yikes ! Not saying a bass won't eat one, just that it's not the "preferred food of choice" for a bass. Fish

.... not usually very much. If their were a list of the top 10 variables which affected my odds of putting fish in the boat, color would likely be no better than an 8. IMPO, bass anglers tend to get too caught up in color, when their are so many more important aspects to consider. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I've talked, in the past, about this little thing called the "Purple worm" phenomenon. Basically a guy goes out with an assortment of worms. He starts out with a red one.... but doesn't realize he is fishing "fishless" water. So he moves... and switches to a green worm. Of course he doesn't know that the angler right before him has already stuck all the "easy biters" in that area. {maybe while using a green worm ! Ha ! } Finally, he stumbles into a fresh, hotspot, with lots of fish willing to play. He rigs up a purple worm, and whacks the $#%$ out of them ! Whoo Hoo ! So, the guy thinks, it must be all because of that purple worm ! So from then on, the guy ALWAYS at least starts with a purple worm.... and he always starts in that new "hotspot" of his too. And so now, not surprisingly, the guy catches nearly all of his fish on purple worms ! A year later, the guy has gotten so sucked up, believing that that "purple" worm has everything to do with his success, that its all he ever fishes with. And so guess what ? Now, It really does have everything to do with his angling success ! > Because that's the only color the guy fishes with anymore LOL Color.... How do I type a big, loud, fart sound ? LOL Tell you what, just let me find a bunch of big, hungry bass...... then you can pick out your "worst" color.... and I'll stick some of those fish on it Peace, Fish

I once saw an 18 lb'er do a straight verticle jump, so that its tail clear the water by its full body length.... 29"... then it did it again ! .....then a long jump, of several feet... Then I landed it LOL Peace, Fish

Scorcher, congrats on your big weight loss, too ! I know 4000 cals sounds like a lot, but its actually a pretty big drop from the 6000-8000 cals, of pure garbage, that I ate every day, for most of my life, until 3 1/2 years ago And, I'm just guessing that the OP is the kind of guy that can (and prefers to) hammer down some serious volume of food, just like I do ! So again, for me anyway, I'm better off just eating "mostly stuff" I can eat a lot of, vs. trying t o eat high density carb stuff, and trying to keep the portion size down to some "dinky" little amount that a pencil neck might prefer LOL Peace, Fish

Keeper, your taking the right step, in your decision to get fit. I think you know about my whole fat to fit journey, right ? Anyway, diet and exercise. Burn more cals than you consume. (until you reach your long term goal, then you can maintain, or start cycling, whatever you want) But as has already been mentioned, this has to be for life, to make differences that last for life. Oh hey, one little thing, I think its safe to say, that like myself, you could, and have, hammered on some food, right ? LOL Well hey, after having lost most of the fat, and putting on 45 lbs of muscle, I am not only able to eat.... but I should say "need" to eat 4000 cals a day just to break even. Furthermore > and you should really consider this heavily < Look at your carb intake. Your probably tripping over how dinky those serving sizes are, right ? For a big guy like us ? Are you freaking kidding me ? I don't know about you, but I'd never have enough will power and moderation for all that..... Which is why I just completely cut out all bread, pasta, rice, and potatos (and dairy, but not saying you should.... if you can eat an 8 oz cup of ice cream.... a week ! LOL And you should see the mountain of greens, along side my 16-20 ounces of chicken, pork tenderloin, or fish... occasionally red meat.... tons of fruits too, nuts, peanut butter, 10 jumbo egg whites every morning, silk soy milk, etc My point is, if you eat the right things, you can eat a lot...... So I have worked out a list of foods that are on my list of "Will eat" or "Won't eat". I don't eat out, ever. I make my rocket fuel breakfast And put together my daily intake, for my lunch box, at the same time, 365 days a year, whether I'm working, or playing. This is how I keep track of how much I'm eating. Can't eat it, if I didn't pack it Oh hey ! Look into "macro balances". I try to keep mine pretty close to equal 1/3rds... or 33% lean protein, 33% healthy fats, 33% carbs (the less processed / less condensed, the better ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oh Keeper, you mentioned pain from arthritis. I've had those exact same (horrendous) pains, but without any joint damage, due to {life altering} Fibromyalgia. I also had severe IBS for 20+ years. My Fibro is now in 95% remission, and my IBS, 100% Best wishes, Wish I could bottle up some of my OCD and send it to ya' Fish PS, This is a little larger than normal (16-20oz, more typical), but it's the general layout of my nightly dinner.... 24oz chicken breasts, 24 oz fresh green beans, 3/4 cup oatmeal (my only condensed carb) with silk soy milk, fresh strawberries and bananas, some Molina, and of course > some sucralose ! Whoo Hoo !

>>> Getting new sunscreen every year is critical <<< How could a person go through a whole year, and not have to buy 3 or 4 bottles of sunscreen ??? I go through a medium / large bottle every 3 or 4 weeks. I put it on thick, everywhere sun hits, in the morning, before I leave the house. Then I reapply it at about 1-2pm..... But I do not cover up with anything, other than shorts and a tank top. Might I get skin cancer ? Sure..... if something else doesn't kill me first. Oh hey, for of you guys hiding from the sun, you should probably take some supplemental vit D. I only take it in the Winter, when I have to bury myself in cloths. I'm not saying everybody should be as wreckless as me. I'm just saying... Fish

tentimes, excellent idea ! I wouldn't be caught on the water without my auto inflatable like jacket ! I've used both the SOSpender brand, as well as Cabelas. Both were fine. Peace, Fish

Right on. Whatever gets you the best results, just do it. I've come to the conclusion that I don't ever have to go onto a "conscious" bulk cycle. I'm either paying close attention to my intake, and using some will power to "cut"..... Then, once I've finally gotten down to as low a BF % as I was trying for, I just slowly start relaxing on my intake > and it always goes up automatically... without trying. I break even at pretty close to 4000 a day. I shoot for 3500 or so for a cut, and 4300 or so, for a slow bulk. BTW, your bulk and cut cal intake, seems pretty extreme ? If I tried to go down to 2700 for more than a day or two, I would be so weak, tired, and starving...... but then, if I bumped it all the way up to more than 6000, I'd be bloated, lethargic, and would gain more fat than muscle. But that's just me. Like I say, whatever works for you...... Peace, Fish

I have this one old video with Bob Crupi and Dan Kadota, where Dan says > If its only like a 10-13 lb'er, it's not a big deal.... But if its a "big bass" use a net ! Fish PS, If I'm fishing in a place that might have big catfish, that's another reason to carry a net. Total PITA to land one of those big, slippery things without one.

What an awesome catch ! Big congrats, and continued success to you. Fish