DaubsNU1

I fished a lot before my kiddos were born...and slowed down a little after they were on the ground. What really slowed me down were, 1.) kids sports -- lots of weekends and weeknights going to practices, games, etc., and 2.) divorcing the former Mrs. Daubs -- she willingly gave me primary custody of our two daughters, ages 12 and 10. Life got really busy! I didn't miss fishing...there were too many other things to keep me busy and occupy my time. Now that the daughters are college graduates, and wife #2's kids are out of the house...I got more time. Good luck on the graduate program!

About 20 years ago I got to know a good mechanic in a small town...he was the kind of guy who sat you down, asked about your vehicle...your goals, how long you wanted to drive it, how hard you drove it, etc., etc., etc. His theory related to batteries, and living in the Midwest, where summer temps could push triple digits, and winter lows could be below zero. ** Just replace your battery every 3 years ** For my boat, I keep it plugged in 24/7/365. I have battery tenders for my John Deere garden tractor & ATV's. They sit in unheated shop 365.

Been fishing straight braid on my casting rods since the 1990's. Love it. Only moved to braid-to-leader on my spinning gear after finding this site in 2020. Honestly, it's been a game changer for me!

How do you secure your boat on a multi-day fishing trip? Staying in an Air BnB for three nights. I do lock my 2" hitch to the receiver. Master trailer coupler latch lock key got stuck, unable to turn or remove. Small hammer and I was able to defeat this lock very easily : ( Used a Reese coupler lock when the boat unhitched from the truck...but that bit the dust recently. What are your security methods?

Daughter's Kia was at dealership getting new engine...and the cat converter was stolen. Service manager tried to say it was my responsibility, I had to turn in to insurance. They would not cover the theft or repair. Little did he know my college buddy, and insurance man, actually WROTE the insurance policy for that dealership chain(!). Yes, it was their responsibility...service manager was just trying to avoid a claim...and get me to pay. Nope. Buddy coached me on language and who to speak with...and the dealership replaced her cat converter. Bass Pro is responsible for the boat...it was under their care. They have insurance. Just don't want to use it.

It think it was someone here who recommended. I run 10lb bright yellow PowerPro braid on all my spinning gear...and either 10lb or 8lb fluoro leaders. Casts quite a bit further than my BC set ups.

I rig my rods / reels based on the lake I'm fishing that day. There are some that are always rigged and ready to roll: Spinner bait on my favorite casting rod Jig-n-craw on a casting rod Drop shot on spinning rod Squarebill on spinning rod Other rods get rigged based on the lake, weather, etc.

Thanks @Captain Phil! Love the old pictures and memories!

@scaleface, good topic! My list... Virgil Ward for SURE! (From the lakes of northern Canada, to the Gulf of Mexico...) Roland Martin (got to meet him at boat and sports show a few years back...very nice guy!) Al Lindner Doug Hannon, The Bass Professor

@MediumMouthBass, my college roommate turned in to a life-long best friend! He raced super-cross for many, many years...and has lots of crazy stories. Wrecked on hole shot and got run over...pulled himself up, finished the race...and limped his bike back to the pits... Lying on the ground, his buddy walked up and said, "Hey, did you see the start...this guy fell in front of me and I had to pull a wheelie to get over him...hopefully he's okay..." My buddy replied, "yea, that was ME!" (He broke three ribs, and still finished the race!) By the time we met in college, he had really slowed down on racing...but still did amazing things on that bike. Fortunately (or unfortunately), I was in to sports...and pretty darn competitive. Didn't run in to any issues until I was mid 30's playing pickup basketball. Ruptured my Achilles tendon. That slowed me down quite a bit...only played slow pitch softball for a few more years. Thankfully no lingering effects

I miss mowing with the old Lawn Boy's...both are 7268 models from the late 70's, early 80's. Wife dubbed one on the left "Frank" / "Franken-mower" (pieced together from other mowers / parts, and just will not die!). Think I paid $50 for it when living in St. Louis in 1998. Mower on right was picked up a few years ago...my daughter wanted a Lawn Boy of her own to mow yards and make $$ on the side. Since moving to 3 acres in the country, they get little use now. The John Deere diesel handles mowing and snow removal now.

This is OUTSTANDING!!!! Most Excellent @ol'crickety!!! A day to remember for sure!

Thanks! I wasn't wild about the color at first...but the blue has really grown on me. Wife loves it...and dubbed the boat "Marge" (aka, Marge Simpson). My Brother's white Alaskan is really sharp. I really like @A-Jay's black Lund...although keeping it clean and looking sharp must be a pain. I had a dark gray truck for 16+ years...always seemed to be washing : )

Power washed and replaced some decking. Opening soon...

I'm on the fence here. Metro area has several public lakes...and they get hit hard. My "home lake" is relatively new (2018), and just last year switched from catch and release only to a limited bag. Traffic has increased exponentially, and the fishing has declined. I would probably pay $200 per year to fish a lake with large bass, if it meant less fishing pressure.

I'd say ~8. Always been a tech-nerd. Have owned my own URL / web site since 2001, build my own computers (it's about time for a new box), wired previous house for CAT-5 Ethernet, and probably my most important and satisfying job, tech support for my 83 year old Dad and his android phone, and Chromebook (and cable TV). Good stuff!! Boat is a few years old, but electronics were new last August. No FFS or 360...still learning all the features of the Helix and Ulterra.

@Woody B, the Good Lord was indeed watching over you that day! WOW!

What life-threatening situations have you encountered? What saved you, or someone else? Two come to mind: Mid 1970's, cousin was living with us...she was out one night at the disco...returned to the house after midnight...noticed a smell of rotten eggs...woke up my parents. Gas leak. Pretty sure she saved our bacon that night. Late 1980's my Dad and I were in an auto accident...and both walked away without a scratch. Firmly believe if my Dad had not been wearing his seat-belt, he would not have survived. My 1982 Chevy long bed, regular cab 4x4 had no air-bags.

Old fishing buddy once asked me: "Would you rather catch 100, one pound bass, or one, ten pound bass?" Most days I'm opting for the "hundred bass day." (not many 10lb LMB's in Nebraska).

Not a drowning story...but an accident. The former spouse and I were driving on 2-lane highway in Missouri, she was at the wheel, I was reclined and napping...she slammed on the brakes, and as I awoke she said a car had just been t-boned in front of us by a Mini-van. We stopped to see if there was anything we could help with. My former spouse was, at the time, a third year medical student. I was a residence hall director on college campus, had some emergency response training. Carload of teens thought they could make it across the highway...mini-van with mom and three kids t-boned them. We did what we could, and helped as emergency crews arrived. I remember pulling on the roof as paramedics used the jaws-of-life. We helped load the teens on stretchers, put two on life-flight, others in ambulances. I didn't know the medical side...that was her area of expertise. The mom and kids walked away unharmed (gotta love air-bags). After all was said and done, we got back in the car...Ex-wife told me two of the teens were not going to make it. Sadness.

Excellent thread @ol'crickety! Reminds me of this quote / story: "Vonnegut turned to Heller and asked, “How does it make you feel that our host only yesterday may have made more money than your novel, Catch-22, earned in its entire history?” Heller replied, “Yeah, but I have something he doesn't have. I have enough.”

Absolutely love my Ulterra! Previously I had an old Minn Kota cable steer...it was 20+ years old. Mounted transducer from Garmin Echomap on the TM. I looked long and hard at the Garmin Force...wanted to pair with Garmin fish finders and down the road, possibly forward facing. But... Two years ago my brother got his dream boat, and paired Helix 9's with the Ulterra iPilot and networked them. Very cool. I set up my boat exactly the same as his. I'm still learning. One of the coolest features I've found...cruising along watching the console Helix on side scan...I can mark a brush pile on the Helix...shut off the main motor...deploy the Ulterra...select "go to mark" and pick the waypoint I just created...The Ulterral will automatically drive me to that mark...and spot lock on top of it(!) And love all the other features: auto deploy and stow, auto pilot, cruise control, spot-lock-jog, etc., etc.

I'm thinking Greg Maddux. Calm demeanor, don't look the part, kind of nerdy, not the biggest arm (casting distance), but precise and accurate. But I'm no where near "Cy-Young" status overall. HA!

I've been tracking / logging my fishing trips since the 1990's. The hope is that somehow I can "crack the code" and figure out the best days with regard to temperature, water temp, wind, sun / clouds, barometric pressure, moon phase, etc., etc., etc. Well, I haven't figured it out yet : ) Some days the fish bite...other days they do not. Kinda of like chasing ducks...some days they fly, other days, not so much.

Buddy had some good advice on towing. A farmer, he always had a regular cab, 8' box, diesel pickup. Tow ratings back then were around 14k for that set up...and he routinely pulled a 5th wheel hay trailer loaded with round bales, weight somewhere close to 30k lbs. This was around his farm, or on gravel roads (non-highway). Getting the load moving was never the problem...stopping was! And he recommended doing a "panic stop," so you know what to expect in an emergency situation. I did that with each of our kids when they turned 16...took them for a drive...said "okay, I want you to practice an emergency stop...hammer on that brake as hard as you can...want you to feel the ABS...and know what feels like."