farmpond1

I think what Sam is trying to say is, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket." Even if you are good, or even very good, the odds aren't in your favor. It is always a good idea to be marketable and able to adapt to circumstances. If all you can do is fish, and if something happens such as a back injury, you're screwed. I don't think he's saying don't try for it. He's just saying have a backup plan. That's one reason why airliners have more than one engine (or as many as 4). Besides, you may find you don't like tournament bass fishing as much as you thought.

This is probably a common lament among users of spinning reels. I have a Daiwa Kastor reel with a broken bail spring. Being not an upper end fishing reel but also not a "disposable" cheapy (around $60 new), I'm uncertain whether it's worth it to have it repaired. I hate to send an otherwise serviceable reel to the great spinning reel graveyard in the sky but I don't want to pay a good portion of what a new reel costs just to fix an old one. I probably should just PM Reel Mechanic to get his thoughts but thought I'd throw this out for everyone/anyone first.

And was there a hook left hanging on the outside knob of the bathroom door? :

The only advice that (sort of) works for me is this: don't go to bed much before you ordinarily would. If I go to bed early, I rarely fall asleep and it only frustrates me-making the problem worse. You might have to stay the night in a hotel or arrive a few hours later than you would ordinarily. Or find tourneys closer to home, if you can. Whatever you do, don't put yourself in a position where you fall asleep while driving. You don't need to kill yourself or others for the sake of a bass tournament.

Unless you are independently wealthy, I suppose the time to end a career is when you stop winning (or placing) and/or the sponsors stop calling. Or when it stops being fun.

Fishing a lake regularly will give a local fisherman a distinct advantage the lions share of the time. Of course there is no substituting skill but everything else being equal, a fisherman really knowledgeable with a lake or river and it's whims will usually win out. It isn't just between you and the fish.

Wow! Those smallies grew 2 extra pounds between just the body of your text and the subject heading! LOL Listen to RW. He knows what he's talking about.

Without an appreciable change in temperature and/or barometric pressure, I don't consider a few rain showers/storms "unstable weather." Here in Illinois, in the Spring especially, you'll discern unstable weather. It smacks you in the face.

I can't argue with you that reaction strikes happen all the time. I caught a smallmouth last year that had a sucker over half it's size still sticking out of his mouth. But if you eliminate hunger strikes from the equation, that does reduce the overall number of bites by a goodly amount. JMHO.

Color isn't as important as contrast for night fishing. Dark colors usually work the best. Best of luck to you.

I've no doubt your fish fought. Any smallmouth will beat a largemouth in a fair fight. But if you get the chance, find yourself some river or stream smallmouth. Those bruisers will convince you you've snagged a mini-submarine on meth.

To all who helped me out earlier: The problem with my reel was, indeed, "ghost drag". I was amazed that an entire spool of braided line could so easily "spin" on a spool. Problem solved. Thanks again.

Too funny! Either I need to inflate my bass or shrink the rest of the world.

"Little" 4's and 5's???!!!! I guess my karma is bad. My personal best (after 35 years of fishing) is still only 6 lbs. Ok, I think I'll bury my head in the sand now. :'(

My best two days for topwater have been on the brightest and hottest days of the year (so far). If you fish "slop" or heavy lily pads, hot and bright don't seem to deter a hungry bass. But ordinarily for summer time bassin', I'd say early mornings and late evenings.

In the case of most of my bass, it isn't just a shave, it's a buzzcut.

I can't possibly do that! The bass would shrink even more!!!

It's a very strange phenomenon. Everytime I catch a "good" bass and then take a picture of it, it subsequently shrinks to as much as half it's original size. The camera may make me seem bigger but it always makes my fish smaller. I'm going to stop taking pictures so I can at least continue to lie to myself.

Ditto.

Your calling my opinion a "rant" is an unfair tactic for discrediting it. Dan asked me why I felt this way (while interjecting his own opinion) and I responded. Isn't this what debating is about? My "rant" is directed toward those who have no reasonable claim to it. I'm not talking about people with old cars (although I'm unclear why they should get a good chunk of Joe taxpayers dollar either. Specifically, your desire to retire your old truck is reasonable but why should you get money from someone else to do so)? Broadly speaking, I'm talking about those who bought gas guzzlers, didn't give a %*&^$ what anybody thought, and now they are going to benefit from it. There are better ways of getting someone in the showroom than taking $ out of someone elses pocket. Or does money indeed grow on trees? Your argument that these programs always take money away from the taxpayer is exactly my argument against said programs. This debate could likely go on and on and I doubt any of it will get anywhere. There are fundamental philosophical differences between the camps. Hence, why there are Republicans and why there are Democrats and why there are capitalists and why there are socialists (or communists). I imagine you can already tell where I rest. Let's just say I regret my choice in the previous election and it won't happen again.

I'm angry because the taxpayer is being forced to shell out money for those who least deserve it. Most of this is whooey as far as I'm concerned. Why do you deserve the money anymore than people who are trading in their cars for new ones? The primary goal of the program is to create an incentive for people to buy new cars, is it not? Who said I deserve anything? I'm not asking for any handouts. I have no issue with providing incentives but not on the backs of the taxpayer. And certainly not by rewarding those who should have known better in the first place. For years people were complaining about big trucks, SUV's and vans using so much gas yet others continued to buy them. Now, they are the ones reaping the rewards. It's entirely screwed up.

I'm angry because the taxpayer is being forced to shell out money for those who least deserve it. Most of this is hooey as far as I'm concerned.

:-? Meaning, those of us who drive fuel-efficient cars won't get any break when it's time to sell or trade them in.

An example of where responsible and ecologically conscientous people (those who already owned and drove fuel efficient cars) aren't receiving squat while those who didn't give a crap how much gas they used are reaping benefits. Grrrr... >

This past weekend my brother and I upscaled our plastic worms to between 7 and 10 inches. Consequently, I believe, we caught several bigger bass. I lost one that might've gone 6 lbs-huge by my standards.