senko_77

I'm not trying to argue with you, but believe me, if you want to make it big, B.A.S.S. is the way to go. The FLW Jr. Championship is easier to get to. If you make it to the B.A.S.S., it's a bigger accomplishment. Do the research....it is so difficult to plug your sponsors at an FLW event. It's simple really. If your in it for the money, go FLW. If your in it for a career, then go B.A.S.S. If you want, I can list 10 examples of why BASS gives you more and better exposure than FLW.

CJ, I take back my last statement. Cards up 8-0 in the 2nd. lol

You can fish the dropshot rig on any type of bottom. If it's choked out with grass, try the River2Sea Skinny Drop weight in 1/8oz and rather than nose hooking the worm, get a Gamakatsu EWG in the #1 size and rig it weedless. You should have no problem pulling it through thick cover.

Cj, we didn't have Big Papi, and Kevin Cash was catching so V-tek wasn't in the lineup....our biggest hitter out and no captain and you still barely scraped out a win.

First off, what kind of exposure does the FLW Jr. Nationals give? The only thing I ever hear about when it comes to that tournament is a small amount of exposure to the winner, and definately not enough exposure to plug a sponsor. If you want to make it big, go B.A.S.S. Even though they have done a few wrongs in the last few years, they are the way to go as far as promotions. FLW is the WORST at helping up and coming anglers. Second, on your website in the resume/proposal section, there are some huge "12 year old" indicators on your resume. The biggest one is....quoted from http://www.freewebs.com/basspro96/resumeproposal.htm "I will advertise for you by using stickers, logo's or whatever on the boat and tow vehicle, and on my fishing shirts." The "or whatever" has absolutely gotta go. It sounds very unprofessional, and very middle schoolish. Also this jumped out at me.....quoted from http://www.freewebs.com/basspro96/resumeproposal.htm "I currently get over 100 hits a week sometimes more than that." I looked through every page on the site and could not locate a hit counter. Do you actually know the exact ammount of hits on your page, or is this a false statement? Please don't take this the wrong way. The other members and I are just trying to help you out. All the criticism you are recieving now WILL help you in the future if you continue to pursue a career in bass fishing. Good luck bud

The Black Max reel should be fine with casting plastics. Just make sure you play around with the brakes to find what tension allows you to cast your baits the farthest without frequently birdnesting. As far as a rod goes, any kind of graphite rod will work. I prefer a 7' rod with a medium power and a fast action. The rod has enough tip to sling weightless plastics around, and enough backbone to allow you to work a fish in the thick, Florida grass. Good luck

Cool vid Matt. Looks like ya'll had an awesome time.

Awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome thread! Tons of great info. Alot of fish will stay alive because of this.

Those are some toads! What were you sticking them on?

That's unfortunate that you haven't stumbled onto the big fish potential the shaky head and drop shot rig posess. Once you find a group of big fish, there is no better way to catch them.

x2. After each tourny I dump some baking soda into the well and give it a good scrub down with a sponge. Good luck removing the nastiness ;D

Sending your resume to Zoom and Bandit will do nothing for you. You need to attend the Classic and any form of fishing expo so you can meet the right people. The first company that first showed interest in me was Tru-Tungsten. From there, I was introduced to more and more people that saw potential in me. None of my current sponsors ever recieved a resume from me. They were met face to face at the 07 or 08 Classic and through telephone calls. So have a nice resume ready, print out a ton of copies, and hit up the biggest events of the year for the fishing industry. And don't be dissapointed if it doesn't happen anytime soon. Your 12, and 12 year olds usually have a difficult time meeting the demands that a company requires. Good luck

Good points Dave, but I have to disagree to some extent. I haven't tried the rig, so I really don't have room to argue, but I believe the advantage the Tubo Rig would have on just a slip sinker with a floating plastic is that the bait can actually "hide" from the bass and prevent it from removing it off the bed, therefore agitating the fish even more. I would think it would get more aggresive bites rather than the usual bite and blow it out in a blink of an eye that often happens with bedding fish. Like I said, I have no experience with it, this is just a guess from looking at it.

That was to cool. Thanks for sharing Gary

What a toad!! That fish is easily 8lbs if not more. There is definetely a chance that you have yourself a double digit there. You can never truly tell unless you were there. From my experience, the measurements give you a pretty accurate weight. Again, congrats on that pig!!

I have never understood panic boxes. If the baits in your panic box always produce strikes, why not fish with them for an hour or two to ensure you have a small limit early in the morning? Like I said, the thinking behind the boxes have always puzzled me. Why scramble at the end of the day trying to bag a limit than at the beggining of the day and then getting into a big fish mindset of slowing way down?

Sounds like you already have the answers you need. Some days the fish seem to strike at the bait violently rather than eating it. When this happens, throw a follow up bait, and then go through the area with a fluke. They will strike the fluke, but they have a few extra seconds to key in on it solidly. Good luck

I cant stop freaking laughing!!!

I can definetely attest to the quality of Gmans jigs. He makes a custom color for me called the "senko77 special" that I won a few tournaments on last year, and so far has bailed me out of some tough situations this year. Top notch stuff Gman. Thanks for the awesome products!

Stick to your confidence baits. Obviously, a topwater in 30 degree winter or something along those lines wont work, but if there is a reasonable chance it should work, and you have confidence in it, throw it, because it will work. You just have to find fish that will work with you and that sometimes takes a little while. Goodluck bud

N.O. Explode has worked incredibly for me. I usually take it with a Clif Bar about 30 minutes prior to my workout.

Sure I get a lack of common sense from her side, but I must get my fish-catching abilities from her side as well because you sure don't have any. ;D OHHHHHHH!!!!! Freaking owned.

You know exactly where she is, so just cast to the area. You don't have to see the fish once to catch it. When I bed fish, never once do I see the bed or fish. I drive by it once and mark it with something on the bank or a marker bouy. Come back 5 minutes later and make a long cast to the object on the bank....MONEY. Big fish are difficult once they see you. Don't let her see you and she probably will bite. I bet since it's so pressured she has kinda figured that everytime someone is walking on the bank, things start ploppin down all around her. Be stealthy. Good luck. Fishing for a big girl you can see is probably the most thrilling thing in fishing.

Your almost there!!!! Get home soon so we can go fishing sometime. I still have those tourny pics sitting in my room if you still want them. Good luck and have a safe flight home..... btw, how long is the flight back to the states?

IMO, Mustad doesn't come close to Gamakatsu. Gammies come out of the package sharper and stay that sharp way longer than a Mustad. Burley, T-rig, and Bass_Fin@tic....I have broken a ton of the ST-31's I mean, snapped right in half like it was nothing. Is it possible that the few packs I bought at Bass Pro were bad?