Long Mike

Craig, forget about the ties - dumb idea. As for the helmets, I think I'll bring one. I don't know what those goons are up to, but I'll be prepared the best I can. I'm still planning on hitting Fork around 2:00. I'll be the tall, increidbly good-looking (for a sixty-year-old) guy. I'm driving a white Suburban with Oklahoma plates. To three Mooks in a bus have a safe and fun trip. I hope you have enough duct tape to keep Muddy quiet. ;D

I just wanted to throw out something for grins. What about showing up at our evening meals (or at least one of them) wearing a tie? It wouldn't make any difference at all what else you were wearing, so long as you wore a tie. Tank-tops, T-Shirts and Tuxedos would all be acceptable. It would demonstrate to the world that we are all very "classy" individuals. ;D

Glenn, you posted while I was typing in my photo suggestion. If you get any takers as a result of my post, I want a free BFR membership for life.

Just a thought, but it would be great if we could get a group photo with everyone wearing their BFR shirts and/or caps. I have no idea how many of the attendees own them, but I think a BFR Cap & T-Shirt squad would make a great photo. Mayhaps Glenn could throw in a dozen or so caps and shirts into his luggage? It just may happen that he might pick up enough profit to allow him to make a long distance phone call.

buzzbait, unless Craig's boat has been wrecked or repo'd, you two still have a whole week to get it running. Go for it!

Dominick, I would love to be able to fill the space left by your buddy, but there ain't no way I'm ever gonna move to Yankee Land. There is too much snow, summer lasts for only a week, and there are too many people who like to eat salmonella bread with salsa seeds. ;D

I went to BPS and then to Academy looking for Yo Zuri line last week-end. Neither store carried it. I guess I'll have to buy it off E-Bay.

Dominick thanks, I guess I got a little confused with them big words, ;D. Plus, I was trying trying to have a little fun at your expense. BS aside, I placed an order for your Semolina bread this morning - WITH SESAME SEEDS. I'll pick it up on my way out of town on Sunday. As for the garlic, how many cloves will you need?

Sorry Avid, us red-nek transplant Okies don't always look too smart, but we reely ar. OK, I'll be back to the bakery tomorrow with a request for 12 loaves of semen with soprano seed. This is getting a little confusing to me. I could have sworn that Muddy wanted me to order something different.

Muddy, not to change the subject, but, per your request, I tried to order a dozen loaves of salmonella bread with salsa seeds today. The people at the bakery looked at me like I was crazy and told me to either leave or the police would be called. Do you want me to try to order another type of Italian bread?

T-bend, my deepest condolences. Even the most cautious of fishermen can get struck my lightning from a cloud 10 miles away. I'm sure your Dad was very cautious and it was just one of those things that happens for no apparent reason. Nature work that way. The loss of a loved one can be very, very difficult to cope with. If you feel like talking, you have a great many people on this site to provide emotional support.

Muddy, you ought to be on the Stage. There should be one arriving in your area in about thirty minutes. Please get on it and Go West, Old Man, Go West! If you don't. we will be forced to put up with you for an entire week at Fork ;D

While we're telling war stories, several years ago I was playing golf here in Tulsa with my brother-in-law who had come up for a visit from Cajun country. We were probably on the 13th or 14th hole when the wind suddenly picked up. I looked up at the sky and the clouds were literally rolling in. They looked like a bunch of rolling logs packed one behind the other. I had never seen this phenomenon before and it made me very uneasy. Mind you, I had heard no distant thunder at all. I told my brother-in-law that I did not like the look of the weather and suggested we head back to the clubhouse. He looked at me like I was crazy, but didn't argue with me. We piled into the cart and made a bee-line for the clubhouse, which was no more than a ten minute ride away. By the time we got there the wind had picked up to 30 to 40 and thunder and lightning were in the distant area. We grabbed our clubs and hauled-a$$ across the parking lot to my truck. By then, it had begun to rain heavily. Just as we got into the truck all hell broke loose. It was like WWIII. Lightning like I have never seen. It seemed to be everywhere. The rain was coming down in sheets and the wind was so violent is was rocking my truck. I learned later that it was gusting to 70 mph. I made no attempt to leave the parking lot, because I could see no further than the end of my hood. We sat there for fifteen minutes and then it was all over. From dead calm to hurricane to dead calm in thirty minutes. The odd thing is, if the shape of the rolling clouds hadn't spooked me, we would have been caught right in the middle of it.

Point well taken Muddy. I tend to forget that you Yankees are still slogging through the white stuff. I don't mind fishing in the rain, so long as I don't hear thunder or see any of them there big sparks from the sky. In either case I'm not going anywhere near the water. Down here in Tornado Alley, an ordinary Spring shower can become violent in a great big hurry.

Bad news guys and gals. I just looked at the AccuWeather long range forecast and rain is predicted at Fork for Monday the 19th. Of course we're still a week away, so that could change.

I agree with Burley. As you were spooling the new line on your reel you introduced a lot of line twist. Take the rod AND reel into an open area, like a school yard, tie a small weight with a swivel to the end of the line, open the bail, and then walk slowly away from the weight. Keep one finger lightly on the line spool to prevent excess line from spooling off. Walk all the line off the spool if possible. When you have reached the end of the line, take the line between your fingers above the first line guide, hold moderate tension on it, and then slowly reel in the line. An even better way is to tie the line to a post, with a swivel attached between the line and the post, and then reel in slowly, with tension on the line at all times, as you walk towards the post. Either method will pretty much eliminate your line twist problem. One other comment. Do not overfill your spool. Keep at least a 1/8" gap between the spooled line and the rim of the spool.

Avid, I am not what you would call a religious man, but St. Francis of Assisi coined a phrase that we have all heard and that I have lived by for many years, namely, "Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." Throw in the Golden Rule " Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" and I have a pretty much everything I need that allows me to sleep well at night. It's obvious that you are a good man, so I can wish you only Serenity, Courage and Wisdom at this point of your crises.

I think I may have screwed up today. I bought a roll of 50 lb BPS Premium Excel braided line. When I was spooling it on my reel I noticed that it seemed to have almost as much memory as the cheap 20lb mono that I put on the reel as a backer. In addition, I ended up with line dye all over my hands. For those of you who have used this product, will the memory and dye problem go away after the line gets wet a couple of times, or should I strip it off the reel and add it to my list of crap not to buy in the future?

Since it causes the fish to hold the lure for a longer period of time, it makes a lot of sense to spend a few cents putting scents of your bait. ;D

DanekM, you said what I said, but said it a lot better than I did. I use spinning equipment exclusively, so never considered the importance of the BC reel. :-[ RW, feel free to say "I told you so." It becomes obvious that the reel vs rod cost ratio can easily be inverted depending on your choice of fishing method. i.e. BC or spinning. As for the catch ratio vs price of equipment, I still have no idea.

Rockville, I'm with you 100%. I have a SeaEagle 9 equipped almost exactly the same way as yours. The only difference is that I have a drift anchor, which greatly reduces the need to drop the metal one. BTW I built the floor and seating boards my self for about $40. SeaEagle wanted $250. Because always fish alone, I also replaced the trolling motor board with one of my own design. It has a set of wheels on it which make launching and retrieving the fully loaded raft MUCH easier. Let me know if you want me to post a few photos.

The sad thing is that this stupid man went public about his winnings, instead of setting up a blind trust through his attorney. I suspect that is what the owner of the other half of the millions is doing at this moment. Because Mr. Stupids name has been made public, this poor man will be inundated with pleas from the needy, the not so needy, scammers, scammers, scammers, charities, neighbors, and family members whom he has never met, but who seem to appear out of the woodwork. All of them will have "desperate needs." Being a good-hearted blue collar worker, he will feel compassion and will begin to dole out obscene amounts of money to the "needy". Very quickly, he will have no other choice but to change his name and move to another city or state, because there will probably be about 500 people camped on his lawn at all times, begging for a hand-out. Unless he brings in a professional to manage his money, I suspect he will be broke within five years. At this point, I feel sorry for him. He's in for a very trying time.

If you haven't already, see the "Handheld GPS" thread.

If your weight is pegged anywhere on the line except adjacent to the hook/lure, a modified Carolina rig is exactly what you have.

CPR (catch, photo, release) first, last and always.