corn-on-the-rob

For me I use anything and everything in clear water, only in stained/muddy water do I start to reduce my selection.

I am only 24 and have arthritis (mainly a side effect of a previous illness). Boy do my knees, elbows, fingers lock up and hurt in the cold, I feel like an old man! The biggest thing that helps me is fish oil supplements. They are said to help lubricate the joints and I can honestly say it has helped a ton.

If tournament fishing sounds like a fun idea to you, then chances are you will like it. Like others mentioned I would try to start with a club to get your feet wet before doing any large tournaments. Also remember to have fun. If that ever changes, tournament fishing probably isn't for you. Keep in mind that even the most successful anglers win/finish high only a small percentage of the time. Give it a shot!

It can be very tough but tends to be its best when in a summer pattern. Just catching a limit of small fish there in a tournament can put you in good position. My best advice is to pre-fish if possible. I personally would down size a bit since the average size fish there is fairly small.

How do they decide which two guys to give money to out of the 6-man?

Ice won't be out for another week or more 'round here. Casting a drop shot is one of my favorite techniques all year. Once I am able to get on the water it will be drop shot, jigs, jerks, wiggle warts until the water warms up a bit, then add more moving baits.

this. twenty was fine but I tore my hands up. I use 30lb on my 2500 shimano size spinning reels and never looked back.

I have not personally but have only heard good things.

I personally wouldn't dare moving on from a spot where I caught multiple and sometimes a single fish on a moving bait with out throwing something on the bottom even if only quickly. It can be anything from a jig, grub, tube, worm, drop shot, anything really, but I don't want to miss out on easy potential fish because I didn't. The whole "search" bait term is subjective but to me when bass are active enough to eat moving baits, even in the cold, it means to me there are likely less active fish in the area that will not take a moving bait but may take something on the bottom. Like always, only one way to find out.

Looks good for controlling car traffic

The key on really windy days for me is make sure you use a heavy enough weight for your bottom baits. Too heavy is better than too light in this case, it is so frustrating when the wind won't let your baits touch bottom even in shallower water. Like others mentioned moving baits are typically a staple. Big spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, lipless cranks cast like a charm in heavy wind. Buzzbaits as well. My best day fishing this year was in just below gale force winds (about 30mph sustained with gusts up to 50). It was semi-dangerous, and hectic, but man did we clobber them. The wind blew so hard that when the periods of rain came it stung when we weren't moving.

If you are talking about sponsor support it is definitely pretty attainable. The high school/college level is quite a bit different than pros in that respect. Many companies give heavy discounts/ donated free product to the club/program because they are supporting the young, up and coming anglers. They are supporting the program, not an individual so it almost more of a donation than a sponsor relationship. Talk to purefishing (parent company of berkley, abu garcia, penn, flueger, etc.) Even TW does a small discount but they pretty much give it to all high school/college clubs if asked. Just look around and make sure to put the emphasis on the club and not a particular individual.

Gotcha, well I was going along the lines of need meaning fishing competitively in the first place was necessary, but yea it is quite expensive at that level.

When are they necessary? (honest question) I guess we will have to find out, but I'd rather give him the benefit of the doubt and try to help him as much as possible.

I have dealt with some moderate depression and pretty severe anxiety semi-recently. I was life-threateningly ill a few years back and the depression stemmed from that. My best advice is as follows: Do your best to listen, and really listen hard, which means do your best not to talk. It sounds slightly counter intuitive but even if you have to sit next to him in silence until he says something, do it. Never interrupt him to tell him your advice or "how to fix" something, it can be extremely discouraging, just let him talk it out then talk potential solutions but let him have the control. The worst thing you can do is say something offensive or condescendiing then have him clamshell up on you. It isn't easy not matter how easy it might seem. Often times the problem is not logical even to the depressed person so the obvious solution may be extremely hard for the person to do even though "they know". In this case, a friendly yet firm kick in the butt can be the answer. The best thing you can do is tell him you are there for him, and want to help him, but try not to say that you understand. Unless you are him, in his exact situation, you truly don't understand and it can discourage/upset him if you say that you know exactly how he feels. Say that you will try to understand the best you can and would like to see him get better. The biggest thing that helped me out of the hole was that I realized that waiting for something to change was not going to happen. If I wanted something to be different, I had to change it. EDIT: also, yes get him professional help and don't let him give you the whole "I wont take psych meds" spiel. If he is really resistant tell him to just give them chance and if he doesn't like them then he can quit them or try another one. They are like any other medicine, they correct an imbalance, and should not be treated differently.

oh okay, you had made the distinction between "want vs need" clear, so I figured he had said it. Sure he doesn't need to, no one does, but a young person (likely in college) getting even minor financial support to do something he is passionate about is hardly a negative in my book, Let alone a shot to one's integrity.

yea those dang catfish will get ya. There are plenty of orange belly gills and perch up here too. I own one of the perch x-raps too. I just need to not hesitate to use orange as much as I do.

Am I missing something? I re-read and did not see anywhere where he mentions "needing" them. (I may have missed it, if so point it out)

On a side note, Having realistic expectations can really pave the way for a successful career. If a sponsor gives you 10% off their products that is a great start, don't take it as an insult. Some might even start you at 20%, maybe much larger but very few if any at all will give you extreme discounts or free product sufficient enough for supporting tournament fishing. The 13 year old who gets one bag of sample baits because he said he was gonna review them on youtube is hardly what we (you) are trying to accomplish here. The key here is to establish yourself with these companies and prove you are of value. Heck, if you really like a company and they won't outright sponsor you, ask if you can put their logo on your jersey because you truly like/use their product and maybe in a year they might start something official. After concurrent seasons of success and the proven ability to promote the companies products sufficiently, your sponsor might increase your discounts and may start to offer free product. Get the resume done, get it reviewed, then get it reviewed again (preferably by someone experience in either writing or the targeted field). Pick out a long list of companies you would like to be sponsored by in order of desire. I would strongly suggest looking at more local places because the big names flat out don't sponsor much except the pros and if they do sponsor you, it would likely be for extremely little return. The local companies are looking for the support and looking to support young/locals. Now go talk to these places individually in order. If you can't talk to someone in person, call them. If you can't do either THEN email them. Try to make the contact as personal as possible, don't just send out an automated email to every company. This will increase your odds tenfold. Don't be forgettable, but don't be imposing or cocky. Just like others have mentioned, for some reason getting sponsored is the young angler's crutch, everyone wants them, and honestly all but a few are qualified. Now you have given me enough information such that I feel that you would be successful in acquiring a decent handful of sponsors, but I do stress doing it locally and to expect minimal return initially. *commenting on the "negativity": Understand that like I mentioned above, there are tons of really young anglers that pop on this website and ask about sponsorship and are generally over their heads and are quite annoying. Some of the members come into this thread with a bit of negativity/condescension because their experience tells them it's just another one of those threads. That being said, though much of the info on here comes off as slightly harsh criticism, it is the most effective way to communicate with you, all with the intention to help you and see you succeed. *Now some mentioned your negativity, even though it was not extreme, your prose did indicate it. This is important because even if only a glimmer of negativity, some of the guys that read this public thread probably thought to themselves "I wouldn't sponsor this kid" and it is important to note: You came to us regarding professional matters, so in turn, you should do your absolute best to treat this as professionally as possible. It is a skill to turn off the negativity button but it is a must for professionalism. This includes when people do say something stupid or mean, don't engage them if possible and if you have to, pretend everyone you talk to is your boss. Remember, you are representing yourself in public at all times, don't give anyone any reason to doubt you.

use yellow 832 on everything but giving the trilene tracer braid a shot on a couple of rods this season.

That is the biggest quality I love about braid, I was raised a line watcher and boy can I actually see my hi-vis yellow braid clearly in all conditions.

I love fishing rocks.

It is really funny, my dad being a mostly lake erie fisherman his whole life just about refuses to throw anything orange colored and it has kind of rubbed off onto me though I do use some. Seems most people love their orange colored cranks. I like any variations of bluegill/craw/shad at any depth. The biggest thing that changes the variation is water clarity/sun.

I haven't tried glass lenses though I have heard they are nice. I buy $27 (the $40 strike kings) glasses because I can't justify buying anything more expensive even though I would love to have them. Sunglasses are an item for me that get used and get used hard, and if I have to baby them they lose the appeal. I still treat my stuff nicely I just don't want to suffer losing an expensive pair due to accidents that frequently enough happen in summer sports/fishing/boating. Now once I get a full-time engineering job by next season I might start upping my glasses budget (the bait monkey waits eagerly).

Once you get the pics posted people will chime in. Wiggle warts are a proven bait, solid small profile medium diving crank. Some like the older versions of them better, some are fine with the new ones. Just bang em around stuff.