Team9nine

Took the last ten days off, as the window on the big crappie bite has closed. Got back out today, but spent two hrs double checking some of the last areas I found a few but without a bite. So, pulled out the bass sticks and started refocusing efforts there. Only got two bites, but they were decent ones. On the right path it seems. More green fish focus going forward.

You gotta’ love a good mystery. It doesn’t happen a lot, but every so often after a strong cold front, I’ve gone out and graphed nothing but clean water. It’s almost an eerie feeling that kind of hits you when you first see it. I imagine the fish/baitfish still have to be there, but are so tight to the bottom, nothing marks at all. Still feels weird, and I can usually expect a tough bite when it happens.

Technically, 1957, though they really didn't gain any press (newspaper back then) until 1959-1960.

Agreed - raccoon, mink or otter…

Yeah, I’ve got two “like new” Lo-K-Tors, one I fish with and one a collectors piece. Being portable, I’ve set them up and run them side by side with my Lowrances and Humminbirds in traditional mode and was surprised at how close in timing the units were if you have the scroll speed adjusted correctly. Didn’t compare flasher mode, though. Also ran a Vex straight-line flasher for a while, but not quite the same as the old flasher bulb units.

And isn’t it great that pretty much no one has an issue with that 😎 Lol - closest I’ve seen is Fritts’ $80-$90k Ranger with a pair of Eagle Sixty Thirty’s mounted front and back alongside his modern Lowrance units

Might start with this thread, or more specifically the OP's video, then dig into all the back and forth after that if you so desire. It's (the video) a pretty decent start to the subject, but there are quite a few threads on the subject to some degree or another to search through.

Any day a Johnston brother doesn't win an event is a good day in my book, so I'm a little somber this evening; but, on the brighter side, since it was 'like a tournament from 2017 but with anglers you’ve never heard of,' I don't feel quite so bad Hope they run another one or two yet this year, but pull a wider swath of anglers.

That’s 95% over just the past 4 years, with one year at 100% to boost that average. I recently read a similar story that stated overall program mortality was 16%, if I remember correctly.

I'm sure he'll be including that impressive bullet point near the top of his resume next year when he hits up potential new sponsors

It’s also the trait that drives guys to bankruptcy and divorce, always thinking their big break (win) is just around the corner, and it’s just a matter of time before their professional angling aspirations pay off, when in reality, they should have realized long ago they just don’t have “it,” or realistically, it’s not going to happen. So there is a fine line or balancing point, IMO, and just because you envision it and try hard, doesn’t mean it will happen - and that’s OK. Look at all the guys who tried and thought they’d catch the next world record bass - and failed. Just don’t ruin your life over a fish - or because of fish that people post on social media/forums.

From a post I made 8 years ago on the subject, but yeah, I've played with it My guess would be IPT as stated by the manufacturer is based on what they consider a full spool, and simply a single actual measurement one time. "I read Tom's comment with interest and had some time to kill last night, so I grabbed a reel and started measuring. I had a Shimano Castaic CA200 sitting around that I won't be using any more before things freeze up over here. Capacity is listed at 125 yds of 14# test. I had a nearly full spool of16# fluorocarbon on it. It has a 6.2:1 gear ratio, and the tested IPT was around 24.5" The initial starting diameter of the line filled spool was 1.233" (radius = 0.616"). After stripping off about 40 yds of line, the effective gear ratio only dropped to just above 5:1. That would be about as long a cast as I'd normally ever make with that outfit. I kept stripping line off, passing the 82 yd mark that is factory placed on the line and continuing until I had nearly 100 yds stripped off. At this point the filled diameter was just 3/4 of an inch, with a spool radius of 0.385". I was well into my backing and likely only had another 20 or so yds of line left as I could see my arbor knot starting to appear. The calculated "effective gear ratio" at that point was 3.9:1 which was an IPT of 15", a 37% decrease from initial starting capacity. Your mileage will certainly vary, as every reel is different, and a lot of variables affect the overall outcome. In general though, I'd say a typical long cast will likely decrease your overall effective gear ratio by at least 1+ spool revolutions per handle turn (a 7.x:1 becomes a 6:1, etc.). This would only happen during the initial part of your retrieve. As the line gets built back on the spool, the effective gear ratio continues to climb back to "normal." Wider spool reels would probably show less of an effect because they hold more of the line on the "outside" of the spool, while heavier lines, because they are thicker diameter, would likely exaggerate this effect. I also carried out the "shoe test" at all stages (as suggested in one of my other posts). At full spool and attached to a 6' musky rod, it was a big struggle to lift and wind a 10.4 oz. shoe off the ground using only the reel handle and the drag clamped down. After stripping off the 100 yds of line and retesting, even though the gear ratio is still technically 6.2:1, since your IPT has decreased so much, the effective gear ratio of 3.9:1 made the task a pretty simple affair. A very noticeable difference and considerably easier to accomplish with much less effort in winding."

Back in the early tournament days, that exact type rule would often be put into place for some events. Others simply banned “guides,” but the mileage clause was a broader way of eliminating local advantage and seen as a way to encourage and bring in out of state participants.

Wordle 1,017 4/6 ⬜🟨⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩 ⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Sent from my iPhone Not a fan of the “picture” version of Connections 🫤 Connections Puzzle #295 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟨🟪🟨🟨 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟦🟦🟪🟦 🟦🟪🟦🟦 🟦🟪🟪🟦

I’m sure they won’t miss you, but it does have it’s moments, and some pretty good guests and discussions.

That pink color is a big bass killer. I really miss those small ponds - lol.

Yeah, just like bowling, too 😆 It was just a point being expressed on a podcast as to what defines a professional sport, and then whether fishing is one or not. I tend to side with the ‘No’ camp myself, FWIW. I used to have a friend that based the definition of a ‘sport’ on whether the outcome and results could be measured/timed definitively vs. judged. In his instance, fishing was a sport, but things like gymnastics, diving, boxing and ice skating weren’t.

Their point being golf isn’t a “true” professional sport either 😉 Not much different than fishing. You hit a ball, walk to the ball, then hit it again - unlike boxing, basketball, baseball, football, soccer, hockey, etc. which all involve a ‘defense’ of some sort.

No interest here one way or another, but I found the timing of this story a bit ironic as I was listening to the BAD podcast a few days prior. One of the discussions was on ‘Is bass fishing a professional sport?’ One of the arguments for why it IS NOT was because there is no defense involved, to which someone immediately brought up the David Dudley incident many years back (similar bedding situation and outcome), to which the person agreed that that would be a case that met that definition. However, they struggled to come up with other scenarios of how an angler could play ‘defense’ in a tournament scenario.

Here’s a good comparison - different lake yesterday, but same result. Top is a 2 lb black crappie (TH); bottom a 2 pound white crappie I posted the other day (WE). You can also see the weather difference, as yesterday was a north wind post frontal day compared to the cloudy day before. Yesterday’s fish was my 45th crappie over 2 pounds for the year. It’s been a fun few months 😎

Garmin/Lowrance - haven’t heard many positives about HB’s FFS, but they have good DI/SI and mapping. I like Garmin’s FFS screen image better, but have heard Lowrance’s FFS is a bit more user friendly - more plug and play. Lowrance DI is good, too. Think mapping and SI between the two might be toss-up or personal preference. Lowrance also has a pretty decent waypoint mgmnt system…or at least used to. And yes, SI/DI/2D on console and FFS on bow.

Yes, but I modified all mine for tournament fishing. Took the largest size body (3” or 3-1/2”, I forget now) and replaced the stock jig-head with a good modern needlepoint version, then added a Sampo ball bearing swivel and would alter blades as necessary on the standard L-arm, often using a small gold Hildebrandt - basically a “pro” model version, which surprisingly, they never came out with. Worked really well.

Went to a “numbers” lake for crappie just to have some fun and swing on a bunch of fish. I finally caught a white crappie down here - first one I’ve run across, and it turned out to be a two pounder 😎

It’s a boy doll, so…

Back in Indiana, if they gave out lifetime bans for running in an idle zone, there would be almost no boaters left. I'm guessing most of the big circuits would have to pull their events from the state for lack of participants. It was/is an every week occurrence on most reservoirs