White77

no my handle is just short for my original name..."the red torpedo" but the new forums dont allow you to have same sign in name and screen name. i stocked up on sunblock last night, so i am good now. the only thing i have noiticed from past sunburns is that my shoulders are freckled ever since that first severe burn i got in high school. Cliff

did it alot in my old 89 toyota when i lived in minnesota. went once with 4 others jeeps, and old CJ, two wranglers, and a grand cherokee, all lifted and stuff. i had a four inch lift with 33's on it, after market headers, heavy duty torsion bars, and the most bitchin rusted panels you ever saw!! i was the only truck that day that didnt get stuck!! i was pullin jeeps out of mud, water, and from being high centered on logs. toyota ruled that day!! it was great, i loved every minute of it. not because i dont like jeeps, because these guys thought they were the greatest with their fancy crap. i rolled up in a rusted hunk and showed them how it was done. they didnt invite me anymore after that. ;D the worst part of that story is, when i moved to texas, i GAVE that truck away. thats right, i said GAVE. it wasnt logical for me to haul it down here with me, no one wanted to pay for it, what choice did i have. if i had to do it over again it would be right outside my house right now! IDIOT! Cliff

i think i will be ok now though. the blisters all dried up and peeled off today during work ( i wear a hat) so now its all fresh new pink skin. i had been applying aloe vera ALOT, but now with the new skin it burns like the depths of hell when i put it on. i have actually had blisters worse than this before on my back and shoulders. i think it will be ok in a few more days. now i just gotta stock up on sunblock before i hit the water this weekend! thanks guys and gal! Cliff

good info as i too am headed to upstate NY the week after next. where are you headed? i will be going to my hometown...Greene, NY it sits about half way between syracuse and binghamton. Cliff

i ALWAYS wear a hat, but being we were haulin in the boat pullin a tube and i was also riding the tube at times, i put it in the glove box so i didnt lose it.

ok first of this might sound stupid coming from me, a person who didnt learn his lesson the first 3-4 times i went through this, but you can bet i learned it this time. WEAR SUNBLOCK!!!! dont be an idiot like i was. i didnt really avoid using it it just didnt cross my mind really. spent all day sunday tubing on the lake, now i am paying for it. this picture is kinda gross i think so dont look if you get queasy. this is also only showing my forehead, i have the same thing all over the top of my skull. and some on my shoulders, but not as bad. the stuff works, use it! feel free mods to delete the pic if it too much, i just want to show whats happens in a severe case of sunburn. also, in addition to the burn i was sick all day monday and missed work. here is a link to some good info on the subject. http://www.ecureme.com/emyhealth/data/Sun_Poisoning.asp scroll down for pic. be smart Cliff

nothing!! it has been hit and miss for me. i will catch one on a spinnerbait, and thats it, just one. then maybe one on a jig and my buddy gets one on a worm. and occasionally one on a live magic shad. cranks havent produced anything but i havent thrown them alot either. if i went right now i would have the most confidence in a jig or spinnerbait. now if you were talking hybrids and whites. nailed hybrids early sunday morning in about 48 foot of water. stray from that depth and nothing. caught them on home made slabs, plain lead color, white or chart/orange. whites on the same bait but in about 27-32 foot of water. once the sun gets up you might as well pack it up and go home. or move a bit shallower and try to nail some blacks thats my report!! ;D Cliff

i recently got a 6'7" med light "champions" series american rodsmiths rod. it is called their "finesse" rod. i have yet to catch a LMB with it, but it handled whites ranging from 10 inches up to two pounds or so really well. i have a shimano sahara 2500 reel on it, spooled with 10lb power pro and a trilene flouro leader. i think i am going to return the reel. it is a bit heavy for what i wanted, if they have a smaller size i will just exchange it, if not i will look for something else. all in all i think it is a great rod, cant wait to catch some LMB with it! Cliff

yeah it was alot of fun. it was kinda funny on one spill i took. i went head first with my back towards the boat and i think my knees hit my face!! and as soon as i got oriented i felt my sunglasses hit my leg. so i started grabbing around under water and i actually got them!! my wifes step dad was doing the camera action. he has an amazing camera and he is also very knowledgeable on how to use it and get good pictures. like i said it was great fun but my wife and i are paying for it now with terrible sunburns. ;D Cliff

went out sunday morning in search of a few hybrids. we caught 3 keepers. man these things fight hard!! the fish turned off as soon as the sun got up. so i spent the rest of the day like this. and usually ended up like this. and a few with the kids josclyn bishop taylor i also landed me a nasty nasty sunburn(i know i know, sunblock) anyway i actually called in sick today. i think i had a touch of sun poisoning. i have blisters now on my forehead and all over the top of my head. it sucks. but i would take it every weekend to catch some fish then spend a fun day with the family!! Cliff

congrats dude!! Cliff

next time you catch a big ol blue gill, grab him by the back, point his belly at your unsuspecting buddy, and give him a squeeze!!! great fun!! ;D

dude do you ever catch anything besides dinks!? ;D j/k man great fish, and i think i saw you on the north american fishing magazine cover, was that you? are you paul(i think it was paul) Cliff

well i have to drive about 15 miles to get to the golf course. then we take a cart out on the course and fish it. but the problem is, you have to be a member($100 a month) to fish the course, or go with a member, which is what i do. so it really kinda sucks cuz i cant fish there without my buddy. and he cant/dosent always want to go. and the only other place i have to fish from shore is two very very small tanks that produce mainly dinks and the occasional 2-3 lber. so in short, i dont save much on gas and i have to rely on someone else to go fishing. Cliff

caught these two this morning. one was on a live magic shad and the other on a jig. both were about 2.8 lbs. and both were very agressive and fought very hard. jig bass magic shad bass. this bass has a distinct hump on its back if you look close. i actually caught this fish last week but i didnt get a picture of it then. thanks Cliff

recently my dog that i had growing up through high school was put to sleep. he was old, and the best d**n dog a guy could ask for. he was a liver(brown) spotted dalmation. not to big, about 75lbs in his prime, short hair and more energy(but not wild) than you could ask for. he was more than willing to take me for a walk everyday. ;D he was always great with kids and he was also very smart. thats my recommendation!! Cliff

well here is what i ended up with. i got a shimano sahara 2500FB and put it on a American rodsmiths 6'7" med lt fast finesse rod. used it today catching some whites, gonna hopefully get some LMB tomorrow with it. it feels really great, i dont know what i enjoyed more, fishing with this combo or looking at the crazy little sparkles in the reels paint and the "marble" look on the rod blank when the sun hit them just right. this was a much needed combo for my arsenal. i have this combo and a HVY combo for jigs and the like and a Med Hvy combo for whatever else. i am set now!! thanks for the help guys!! Cliff

thanks for the help guys, i will let you know what i get!! Cliff

i need a spinning reel for under $100....it really only has to have one characteristic.....it needs to have a very very good drag. i will use this reel for fishing mainly soft plastics for LMB, but it will also double for hybrids and stripers. if you have caught one of these i know you know how they can pull drag. i know the shimano symetere will come up really fast so thats one, any other suggestions?? thanks Cliff P.S. i would like a mid size reel. for reference a shimano sonora 4000 is waaay to big for my liking.

thanks for the info. i went and checked it out tonight. it is a ten footer but i am having second thoughts about it now. i dont really know if i will put it to enough use to justify buying it. i would most likely have to travel 50 plus miles one way to use it, and would only be able to do that once a week. and with gas the way it is i think i may just stick to the bank for now and buy a new rod and reel or something. the problem is the only decent spot i have to fish from shore is a golf course, and i am not a member, my buddy is so i have to rely on him to go(which hasnt been very reliable lately, lets just say his annoying girl friend has him by the nuggers) other wise i fish a couple very very small tanks that produce maybe a 3lber once or twice a year. i have talked to the course people about me going fishing without a member with me and its a no go, unless i want to pay $100 a month for the membership. anyway thanks for the info guys Cliff

thanks ronnie, i appreciate it. i was a bit nervous when that one followed in my nephews worm. i made them both stand back away from the bank for a bit just to be safe. Cliff

i live in central texas and there is always people talking about "water mocasin" snakes. isnt a "water mocasin" the same as a cotton mouth? also i see these snakes quite a bit out fishing, actually one followed my nephews trick worm in the other day. how dangerous are these snakes? deadly? i have heard they are mean and generally dont back down, and have a nasty attitude. any info on this critter would be much appreciated thanks Cliff

i am not buying brad new, my reel guy has the boat, two motoers and all the extras for $600, i am hoping to talk him down to $500. going out there in a bit to take a closer look at it. thanks Cliff

i am looking to buy a small boat. it is one of those pelican mini pontoon deals. i think a 10 footer. i have not looked closely at it yet. my question is how well do these things handle in windy situations? with two grown men in it? do they need to be registered? (texas) can you stand safely in them and fish? are they stable? http://www.directboats.com/20bara10pofi.html this is essentially what it is, but it may be an eight footer. i am hopefully going to go take a look at it this weekend. any info about this style boat will be much appreciated!! thanks Cliff

patience