Pond Hopper

A pound a year is too much to expect out of an Iowa body of water. I would say the larger fish you are catching are the oldest year class in there. Normally I have noticed about .5lb to .75lb per year with the high end being less common.

Man I cannot wait to throw that bluegill one at some muskies, then later in the year try and pick up a toad on it I am overly impressed at the paint job!

Minus the wild turkey, and substitute Jeremiah Weed. A glass on occasion is great but never something I could drink all night

Fish, Why not the Tacoma? I am in the market for a new truck and have pretty much settled on the Tacoma, except for the crew cab one. For what I want it for and reliability it is tough to beat. I do not need a full size truck but my Ranger is not big enough to meet my current needs. Just another option and I believe it even comes in a 4 cyl.

Coming from an Abu guy, the Exceler is a sweet little reel although I have not put it through the paces yet. I am very impressed so far with little use I have gotten out of it.

Reel grips, enough said

If by game you mean deer or waterfowl, you must like chewing cardboard more than I do. Medium rare for beef and a little more so for deer, goose, and duck.

Finesse, if I have to pick up a spinning rod when bass fishing, it drives me nuts. Although my best fish last year came on spinning tackle...God hates me :-X

You were 40 years old before you feel in love with fishing ;D

Dude! You might nothave given them all a try. Maybe not me but the guides I've talked to have : remember...............It's all JMHO. (Just My Humble/Honest Opinion) Muddy swears by Fenwick...............He also recomends them. Others swear by G-Loomis...............They reccomend them. Others (make that a LOT of others) swear by Carrot Stix......They reccomend them. I swear by American Rodsmiths.............I reccomend them. simple as that. Tight Lines 8-) One kid swears by an unproven rod... I guess that makes it the best : There use to be an acronym but either way I hope those guides do well because if they handed me a rod I had not heard of I would get off the boat and fish from shore

I recently bought a 7'3" MHF LTX of jbshimanofan on the board(great seller) and this rod is incredible and will be my jig and worm stick(could be a good frog stick but sensitive and higher dollar is not my idea of a frog rod). I fished it for the first time tonight and do not want to make enemies yet so I will not make comparisons just yet but it is d**n light and very sensitive. Either way I see orange in my future Corey

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/NEWS/80328005 There is a recent story about a guy who got lucky he was carrying, and even though he had to use his weapon he went about it the right way involving law enforcement and is apparently not going to be charged of any crimes although he may lose his job.

What you are talking about doing to a game fish in Iowa would get you a nice fat ticket for every fish for violating the Wanton Waste Law :-[

Owner and Gamakatsu in sizes 3/0, 4/0, and 5/0. I use offset EWG hooks for all plastics. Also for cranks some mustad triple grips. That basically covers all of the hook needs I have for 95% of my fishing.

I would say a Revo S, but I recently got a Daiwa Exceler and love it for the price.

I am taking the class in May mainly for the safety and legal aspect. I do not intend to carry often but would rather have a pistol for home protection than a big shotgun. That and certain situations, I want to be able to carry.

Guilty as charged, when on a good big fish bite I do not take the time to retie. Although using braid it has not happened but on a couple occasions last year when using a copoly I did not retie when I should of and it cost me some big fish. I agree with what RW said though, pay attention to your line!

50 or 65 lb braid, hands down

I have yet to find a better pizza than Harris or Frank's, and a sandwich from Hungry Hobo is second to none IMO. Makes me want to take a trip back home to get some of both.

I have never used hot sauce, I use the oils that are sent in the reel package from Abu and have been happy so far. That being said ReelMech recently serviced a used reel I bought(Revo S) and it feels better than any of my other Revos did, even brand new out of the box! If he speaks, I listen.

I would have to say a 3/8 oz jig with an *** trailer, the only problem I have with it is when the vegetation starts to grow up in the summer and fishing a jig gets tough.

It is possible on all 4 of my Revos, you dont get your finger around it just on the front and spin it.

You got me Burley : :-X

We are not worthy, that almost makes a guy forget about a 5 lber he caught yesterday! Well done Fish!

Sure was! Burley, Just kidding. I bought a Cubs shirt while I was out there. 8-) I am a Cards fan, but always love seeing a game at Wrigley, just a great place to be regardless of who you are rooting for