Captain Phil

There were two people who were of great influence to white 1950s youth culture, Elvis and James Dean. Dean was an actor. He was killed in an auto accident in 1955. Elvis was inducted into the army in 1958. The most influential white singers of the 50s where the Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly. Elvis had more fans because he had sex appeal. Things changed with the British invasion in 1964 when kids grew long hair and wore goofy clothes. I think the best Elvis was the "Black Leather Elvis in 1968" In the 70s, Elvis was more of an icon than a singer. He died in 1977.

Pull it on top like a buzz bait. Throw it back into the pads and pull it out. Hang on!

Elvis and rap music? THE HORROR!!

Elvis was initially popular because he was a white musician that sang like a black man. Being black in the fifties was not as cool as it is today. White parents could accept Elvis until they saw him sing and wiggle his hips on stage. It's funny to think about this now given what's accepted these days. Colonel Parker, Elvis's agent, was a marketing genius. Back in the day, most of the Elvis fans were young women. My sister had Elvis posters all over her bedroom wall. Elvis made a bunch of movies, all of them terrible. Regardless, people went to see them. Elvis sold a lot of records. I believe he sold more than anyone until the Beatles came along.

Gambler Flapp'n Shad

Here in Florida, most all we have is shallow water. Back in my tournament days, I carried 8-10 rods in my boat and my storage compartments were so full of stuff they rivaled most tackle shops. These days, I could care less about catching bass under three pounds and two outfits is all I need. My best producer is a spinnerbait in pad fields and around boat docks. I slow roll the bait back in the pads and it rarely fails to produce what I am looking for. Some of our docks hold big fish too. I may not catch a limit, but one big fish a day is all I need to make me happy. If that fails, I pull out my flipping stick. It's a rare day when one or the other fails to put bass in my boat.

I don't care how fast anyone drives. They can go 100 mph for all I care. If someone wants to pass me, I move over as soon as I can. If I can't move over or the traffic is stacked up in front of me, riding my bumper is not going to make it go away. Never charge up behind another driver or cut them off. If you are going to change lanes, do it slowly and make sure everyone knows it. Not everyone on the highway is a perfect physical specimen. You are sharing the road with everyone from kids who just got their license to 95 year olds who can't see past their hood. You may have the genes of Mario Andretti and Ken Miles, not everyone on the highway does.

I have owned both and they both have advantages. When bass fishing out of a small boat, I prefer cable foot control. One of the advantages foot control gives you is it frees your hands to fish. Cable foot control is more precise. Boat control is important when fishing down a weed line. I didn't have the same control with the Terrova remote. My son fishes back country salt water. He tells me the Terrova is priceless to him as the spot lock holds the boat against even the strongest tide. I think a tiller trolling motor is more trouble than it's worth.

Marine product companies are commercial enterprises. They survive by selling you stuff. The bigger more expensive stuff they sell you, the more profit they make. Most people can catch just as many bass out of a rigged out Jon boat than a $100K bass boat, but they don't look as cool at the ramp. Weekend anglers want to look like professionals, so they buy what they see on TV. In marketing, we call that creating a demand. There is nothing wrong with buying what you want if you can afford it. As long as you realize there is a difference between "want" and "need", you will be fine.

Funny thing about life is by the time you have it figured out, it's over.

I thought it was WD-40? ?

Vicks Vaperrub. Now there's a name from the past. This was the standard medicine for chest congestion years ago. Your Mom would rub it on your chest when you went to bed. Better yet, she would put it in a steam machine next to your bed. If you had asthma, you know all about it. The vapors will clear your sinuses. There are modern day medicines that work much better without the smell.

The older I get the less things bother me. I used to be in a hurry to do everything. Driving to work was a race. Standing in line made me angry. I wasn't tolerant of people with different views of the world. Today, I could care less. TV news channels post stories to make people angry. If you watch that stuff, you will be angry all the time. When I go to the grocery store, I don't mind standing in line because I'm not in a hurry to go anywhere. I read yesterday that the average lifespan of a man in the US is a little less than 80. I will be 76 in the next few weeks and I want to enjoy the time I have left.

If you are a fan of old school round reels, the Shimano Calcutta was the best of the bunch. I still use a Calcutta 200 for spinnerbait fishing.

Many years ago I was involved in some world record fishing attempts where we used a line testing apparatus to test fishing lines. At the time, most of our line was monofilament. As you discovered most fishing line is not what it is advertised. Frequently the line tested 20-30% higher than the label stated. It wouldn't surprise me if the fudge factor on line diameter was equally flawed.

Shimano Bantam Chronarch 100. Super smooth, light and easy to repair.

In 1980, I was making $200K a year. I was 35 years old and was buying everything I could get my hands on. I had a 30 foot boat docked in a marina. A Boston Whaler flats skiff. A condo in Key Largo and a house with acreage in the country. My company car was a Ferrari 308 GTSI. I traveled the world fishing. I had so many debts, I had a full time bookkeeper just to keep up with my payments. I was on a hamster wheel and couldn't get off. One day, my accountant told me I needed to start saving money for retirement. I told him I didn't need to because my company was making me rich. He told me the company may not make it. I thought he was crazy, but I started saving. I invested my money in the stock market and never touched it. I happened to buy some stock in a company that most people didn't think much of at the time. That stock was Apple. I am on this forum today because I took his advice. I was extremely lucky and fortunate that I didn't go bankrupt. Always have a backup plan because you never know what's ahead of you.

Today's boat prices are ridiculous. In the 90s, I bought a 21' custom built Gambler bass boat fully rigged with a 225 Mercury ProMax, trailer, trolling motor and all the electronics for $32,000. I haven't priced one, but a friend just bought a new Skeeter for $70K. The 32' twin diesel sport fish I bought new in 1984 for $85K is now a quarter million. I have no idea who's buying these boats? There can't be that many Bitcoin millionaires left. My little Ranger RT178 cost me $27K out the door. That's a lot of money for a 17' aluminum boat, but it does most everything a $70K bass boat does only a little slower. It doesn't have $4K worth of power poles or a TV that can see fish. I could easily spend three times that much and not catch any more fish.

Salt water fishing reels are expensive. They are made to fight large fish in a tough environment. They are made from expensive materials and have robust drag systems. Some even have multiple gear ratios that can be changed mid fight. Back when I was offshore fishing, I used Penn International reels that cost over $600 each thirty years ago. We had a rack built in our house to hold them all. The most expensive reels at that time were Fin-Nor easily costing $1,000 each. There is a little "mine is bigger than yours" going on among those fishermen. I once fished against a boat in a tournament with Fin-Nor reels used for the teasers. The boat was a 54 Bertram and the guy owned a large real estate firm in South Florida. We beat him fishing out of a 26' Contender. A year later I read in the newspaper that he went bankrupt. Wonder why? ?

Tombstone. Val Kilmer was fantastic.

The weight used when flipping is more significant than most anglers believe. There is no perfect weight for all conditions. The reason is because the drop of the lure is what triggers the strike. I have used flipping weights from 1/8 oz to 3/4 oz. Some days bass want a hard fall and others they want a slow decent. As a starting point, use just enough weight to get through the cover. Obviously, this would be different for wood than topped out hydrilla. In the winter, a slow drop works better for me. In summer, bass are much more active. I have seen instances where too much weight would kill the bite. What you want is a "pin-ball" action as the lure falls, not a cannon ball. I once fished a State Federation tournament on Toho when the angler in the front flipped with a 1 1/2 oz. weight and never got a bite. I fished behind him with a 5/16 oz. weight and caught a limit. When you are flipping very heavy cover like hydrilla, look for small holes in the grass to drop your lure into. Light comes into those holes from above and bass are waiting for something to drop in. There are numerous factors when flipping for bass that can make you a winner or a loser. I could write a book on that subject alone. One more thing, "always" check your bait before lifting it off the bottom. I can't tell you how many times a bass has my bait and I don't know it.

In all the bass tournaments I have fished in over the years, alcohol in any form was not allowed. If a guy showed up drunk, he was disqualified. I assume smoking pot is the same?

RT60 Rat-L-Trap.

When fishing a multi day bass tournament, it is bad etiquette to fish that tournament in a spot you learned about from a previous day's partner. This is asking for trouble. No one owns the lake, but you must have respect for your partners or you will never be told anything. One of the main reasons pros do better than amateurs is they have access to more information.

My favorite area is Brown's Point. Don't be afraid to get back in the cover. The fish will be shallow that time of year.