bmadd

I've been to two events. If you're up for it, I think being there early in the morning before blast off on the last day is the best day. The guys are just waiting around and you really get to see how they interact. You also get to see some of the preparations they go through and the mindset that they have. Also, if you hang around for a while after weigh ins, like a pretty good while. You can often get to talk to the anglers in a more personal setting. Offer to help hook up their boat to their truck, etc.

I'm really liking that craw at the bottom Marty!

Have you tested that bait in the water yet? I'm interested to see if it changed the action of the lure any. It really looks clean though. It looks professional. What did you use inside the cartridge?

The biggest thing that I can't say enough about the Spot is that when it is fished slow it still has action. Some of the other lipless baits have little to no action unless they are retrieved at a medium to fast retrieve. That just isn't the case with the Spot.

I'm hoping that arm/wrist movement as well as the stopping abruptly are my bigger problems. We shall see though.

Thanks guys. One big problem is that there isn't any fly shops nearby really. West Tennessee doesn't have any trout waters, besides stocked city ponds. I'll have to drive a few hours to get to some. My two rods are definitely LOW grade haha. The 5wt is a Shakespeare that was given to me as a Christmas gift several years ago and the 4wt is a Fenwick Eagle GT. Both rods combined are still less than $100 I suppose. From the tips and a video I watched last night, two big things that stand out I've been doing wrong are 1) trying to use my wrist too much and 2) not stopping abruptly. I'm going to try the rest but those two really seem to stand out in my mind as to what I've been doing wrong.

Don't be an underachiever or anything ;D

I've been attempting to catch fish with a fly rod now for about two years. Most of this consists of fishing for bass and bluegill in smaller ponds. I haven't really had any education on the how-tos of casting or anything else like that. I've been ignorant in thinking that I could teach myself enough for the little bit I do. I'm sure I've already developed bad habits. My biggest problem though is that my casts tend to be only 15-20 feet :-[ If anybody has any advice for casting or any other resources that they've used to help them I would really appreciate it. I've searched for videos on youtube but I don't know what to think of random people giving advice haha. BTW, I use 2 rods. For bluegill, a 7'6" 4wt. For bass, a 9' 5wt.

Cranks are something I really like to throw. I've had experience with 4 rods. I've used a Team Daiwa S 6'6" Glass rod, a Powell 684CB, a Loomis CBR 906, and a St. Croix Premier 7' ML spinning rod. The Daiwa was actually a great small crank rod. It was one of the better casting rods I've had and one of the best reel seats I've ever used. Wasn't real sensitive but kept fish buttoned and isn't a bad option. I currently use the Powell for all of my shallow to medium cranking. This rod has good sensitivity, is lightweight, and has a good action to keep fish buttoned. I really like this rod and I'm thinking about buying a few more Powell crank rods soon. The Loomis is a 7'6" beast that I bought for throwing deep cranks. It does that job good, but a problem I've heard many times with the Loomis CBR series is that the handle is just too short to really sling a bait. When I'm trying to cast a 5/8+ oz. bait, it just feels like the rod might fly out of my hand. This rod is now my primary lipless rod and it is a champ at this. Has enough power to rip baits from the grass and the handle length isn't as big a problem since they seem to cast effortlessly anyway. I use the 7' St. Croix Premier spinning rod to cast small balsa baits like Shad Rap #5s and some of the smaller Big M baits. With 10# PP this rod is fun to fish gravel banks and points with during the early spring.

Like I said in your last post, one of the best attributes of the Super Spot is it's versatility. They can be burned over grass, ripped through grass, or crawled back to the boat. You can jig them up and down, the yo-yo retrieve, or just reel and pause. My favorite two ways are to rip it out of the grass and to reel and pause or sweep and pause. I like to rip it in the early summer and in the fall. The reel/sweep and pause works best in early spring on into early summer.

Out of those baits, I highly recommend the Fat Free Shads. I throw those in the BD6 and BD7 sizes. Alot.

So .61 lbs would drop it 96 places???? :-?

First thing you need to do with those Super Spots is don't tell anybody else! These lures have been around for a long time and they seem to have kind of been forgotten about by most. The Super Spot is my most productive lipless bait. This time of year I really like the Rayburn Red color. I also use Chrome/Black back. These lures have a pretty good rattle to them. What makes them killer this time of year though is that they keep their action at a slower retrieve speed. Also, when you kill the bait, it will still fall upright. Being able to reel it slow and pause the bait without it falling over is great this time of year. Good luck 8-)

Man that's tough. Locally, I really like fried sauger. If I'm near the ocean, I really enjoy grilled or blackened dorado or cobia. Flounder is pretty tasty as well.

I agree. The Classic coverage was pretty decent. I'm very disappointed with the coverage as well

We're not trying to put you down or anything. We're trying to offer you some advice and help you beef up your resume so that you will look better to sponsors. We're not trying to call you dumb or that you don't have talent. Just trying to show you what we think would help you out.

I get what you're saying and I agree. I was just bustin' on you Long Mike style 8-) nhbass- take Tin's advice. Anything that will make you stand out and stay in the back of the sponsor's head is a big plus. Whether it's some kind of speech contest you've entered or even public speaking at your church or somewhere else in your neighborhood. Those kind of things are what good sponsors are looking for.

I might have found it as a better movie had I not seen the couple on a late night show talking about the movie totally ruined the ending (which is the only good part).

So quick to judge my friend ;D

I had an older Cara with a broken guide. I decided to use the trade-up program they offer. I wanted to pay the difference with my card. They said fine, just cut it in half and write down what model I want and they'll call me for my card info when they get it. Long story short, three days after my delivery confirmation I decided to give them a call. They said my new rod was packed up and ready to ship. Why didn't I get a call? No idea. Still good people to deal with though.

The buckbrush I encounter here on Kentucky Lake is the exact same stuff Catt showed.

Exactly what J Francho said.

I agree. I hope it stays low for a little while to let the grass take good hold. Looking forward to another great year on the lake. Good luck in your BFL this weekend Deb!

I bet a Gold Sexy Shad Red Eye would've caught you more fish in that tournament

Saturday, three rednecks in a jon boat creep into the small cut I'm fishing. I'm throwing a spot and catching fish in front of them. They start casting all around talking about how they were throwing the Kevin Van Dam bait and were gonna catch the fish :