J_Pearson

Absolutely recommend braid for frogs. I personally enjoy ripping lipless cranks with it as well. JP

That is awesome! You'll have a blast for sure! JP

CABIN FEVER!! Hey guys, I've google-searched the heck out of Okeechobee reports, guide services, hotels, and as much general information as I could. One of my best buds and I are planning college senior trip for SB the week of March 14th to the Big O and/or FL in general. It will be my first time fishing FL, but I love the idea of the heavy cover and shallow water. I found plenty of reviews on area hotels, but it was much more difficult to find any reviews or ratings on the variety of guide services available. I was wondering if anyone had any input or experiences? The majority of what I've read is about Roland Martin Marina.. I know some members are from the immediate area and I'd really appreciate your comments as well. We were thinking of perhaps a guided day and then a day of boat rental. Also visiting a friend in Miami and thought about giving the Everglades a go? We get to stay for free in Miami and would definitely fish the 'glades hard. Thanks a ton guys I appreciate any little tip or pointers on fishing FL or the experience in general. JP (from the chilly COLD cornfields of NE Indiana haha)

Wow, that's interesting...crazy he's been with BPS for a long time it seems. Cool..

That's because they don't spontaneously crack. Exactly.

I've caught some Nice bass in 4 f.o.w. during December...of course thats vertical jigging a rapala from atop the ice haha. However, the first day of ice-off last year I did have a blast absolutely burning a lipless crank over extremely shallow water in local ponds. It blew my mind how fast I was reeling and still getting bit with half the pond covered in ice still. Talk about a BLAST. JP

I thought about this for quite a while, because it was tough to pick out something I can't stand doing. I'm blessed with the opportunity to fish with a variety of people who enjoy very different techniques and clashing styles. I also live in an area with a variety of different types of water, and although they're small bodies of water, the differences in depth, clarity, and vegetation provide a large opportunity for growth and development as an angler. With that said, isolating one technique I'd prefer to never fish is a hollow-belly swimbait. I love swimbaits, but despise these little suckers. They're not for me. JP

Funky and definitely creative! Now that deer season's over I'm going to start pouring some of my own plastics until the darn ice gets out of here. JP

I was trying to do some research on this new line but was unable to really find anything post-ICAST on it other than the initial reviews. I was curious if anyone has personally experimented with this braid or knows of anyone that has. All the lakes around me now are under a nice thick layer of hard junk that won't let me do much casting I appreciate your replies and definitely don't mean to start another wide-open braided line discussion. I'm hoping this stays on the topic of the FX2. Thanks guys JP

Hey that last one was about the right color atleast! haha...Very nice looking fish! Makes me want to go chase some brown ones later this week.. JP

Around here we've got a lot of smaller natural lakes..and when the wind starts blowing, you can pretty much bet I just dropped whatever I was doing and can be found bombing a spinnerbait..it can be pure awesomeness! JP

Texas-Rigged Fluke, a wacky worm, Floating Rapala, little buzzbait, and a frog...small-pond Bomb Squad. JP

I've been on a big buzzbait kick lately.. and the description of your fishing area makes my mouth water... buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz-Whomp! Fish on! Buzzbait it like-a-fool! JP

I believe that it still is, but perhaps less than mono? I posted a link to an article Aaron Martens wrote on line care, and from what I gathered reading it I'm assuming heat and sunlight do have an effect on fluorocarbon as well. http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/bassmaster/fishingtips/news/story?page=b_FT_MS_Martens_Tackle1 JP

Great Fish! And you've gotta love the jig bite! JP

Dude, I'm lovin it! Glad to see I'm not the only crazy when when it comes to fishing. I'm a huge believer in scent. 2 in particular. Megastrike and JJ's Magic. On tournament day, I'm extremely careful about what I touch and always apply my sunscreen at the hotel room then wash my hands then wash them again in lake water. I get real into bass' senses when I'm fishing. A perfect example was yesterday when I was fishing with the girl I'm dating. We were walking around her neighborhood pond and she was basically stomping around so I gave her a piggyback ride to each spot because I really think fish can "feel" loud footsteps. I also tip toe around on the boat during the tournament. I'm real cautious about dropping things and I clip my tag ends with my pliers an inch from the carpet incase I drop it, so it makes minimal noise. It takes me like 10 seconds to put my trolling motor in the water. I ease that thing down so it barely makes a ripple. Am I crazy? You better your @ss I am, but I catch more fish because of it. Thanks for the post man I love reading about anglers doing these kinds of things. I'm a complete nerd at the gas stations, triple layering paper towels and everything else so I don't get the slighest hint of gasoline odor on me... I've gotten in the habit this year of soaking up my jigs in the morning's coffee grounds. Does it make them more effective? Donno.. Have I caught my personal best bass, along with many other good fish since doing it? Yes. So I'll continue

What a beast of a white bass! I had spent some time searching around online for good replica-mount taxidermists earlier this year (just in case lol) Below is a link to a site that I felt looked very realistic. However, please note I have no personal experience with the business. http://www.fishtaxidermytaxidermist.com/ Best of luck in your search! JP

Swimming a jig with a green pumpkin/ orange skirt and super chunk trailer kills them up here when bass are on a bluegill bite. Even when bluegill arent spawning, I beleive they make up a large percentage of forage for bass locally, and this color pattern is usually my go-to flipping pattern as well (other than black/blue )

Just my 2 cents... In the summer months I Live by the frog, especially on my home water where shallow river bushes and pads rule the roost. I am in love with the Bronzeye frog, and find it walks very easily with a little modification. First, I trim the legs slightly (I like the longer legs, but trimming them a little aids in walking) Then, I'll trim one shorter than the other, so that the legs are an uneven length. I read this in an article featuring Dean Rojas, and I highly suggest you try it for yourself out on the water. It may take a couple casts and trims to get it optimally tuned, but you'll know when you do. Best of luck out on the water guys, JP

Up here, we catch them pretty well during first-ice on small chrome/blue-back jigging rapalas. If you're on a good patch of bluegill starting jigging your rap. It's been my experience, atleast in the past couple years, that first-ice mornings have been the most productive. You'll have trips where they just plain Smash it. JP

Noble County! I live in the (extremely) small town of Albion, IN...and being a full-time college student means I jam as much homework as I can into a day or two then fish the majority of the week! I'll take stained water over clear any day, but up here we've got so many small natural lakes that all types of water conditions are optional, and I enjoy expanding on my skills. -JP

+3 A 10" black worm is just about all I throw while night fishing, and I have a lot of success with a big worm during the summer months. This 5/0 Gamakatsu offset round bend worm hook is The Hook to use for big worm fishing in my opinion. JP

ah scales..love them. Those 5lbers turn into 3.5s real quick lol.. I've tested the Rapala digital scale with a number of things in a wal-mart bad (gal. of water..bottles of water, bags of m&ms ;D) and it's read consistenly accurate, so I'm happy with that. JP

Man this cracked me up! haha..good ol' G-man..very funny. -JP

That was a nice bag those guys put together..Nice fish yourself! I'm going to hopefully hit that lake in a couple weeks between class and some local tournies. And a 3-10 smallie? That's what I like to read out of Northern Indiana! ;D Tight lines guys, JP