senile1

My favorite conditions are plenty of cloud cover to completely overcast skies early in the morning or late in the evening, air temperatures in the 70s, and water temps in the 60s. But fishing at any other time is not bad either.

Yeah, I'm not down on Carpenter at all. He had the awesome seaon last year going 21 - 5, 2.83 ERA, and the National League Cy Young award. This is a bad season for him and he went 15-8 with a 3.09 ERA. I'd give anything to have three starting pitchers at that level this season.

I'm not making any predictions. I'm rooting for my Cardinals all the way, but then I'd be rooting for them even if they were cellar dwellers. Obviously, going by the season, the Mets have the better team, but anything can happen in the playoffs. Go Redbirds!!!!!!

Calvin, welcome to the forum. Those bass do have a sense of humor.

womanangler1971: Yes, you may add me to your MSN. Chris has some good stuff. You'll find a few people on here who have quite a bit of good advice about techniques, etc. but after being on here for awhile I have to say that just about everyone has a specialty or something that they can add to help all of us.

Glad to have you on the forum, womanangler1971. Most of us aren't pros here either. We're just people who love to fish for bass and we love to talk with people who fish for bass. Welcome.

I just got home from the lake and turned the game on. I see what you're saying, Valascus. It sounds like Carpenter will pitch tomorrow if we lose today. My fingers are crossed though. I don't want to use up Carpenter if we don't have to.

Riskkid, you may already be aware of this, but your Yankees and my Cardinals have a major connection. I remember in 1971 when I was in my 2nd year of little league baseball. Joe Torre, current manager for the Yankees, played for the Cardinals and led the league in batting that year with a .363 average. He also had 24 home runs. I don't remember his RBI total but I'm pretty sure if you look it up, he had over 100. He never achieved anything close to those stats again, but that was his career year.

This may be the longest thread of any on this forum. It's fun to talk baseball.

Exactly, and I think that applies to most of our angling choices For example, I'm a little surprised that only 3 members mentioned the "Rapala Shallow Shad Rap" (3 to 8-ft) Roger If I had responded to this thread the Rapala Shad Rap Roger mentions would have been one of my choices. After answering a few of these that are similar I often lay low and let others carry the thread. I think all of the shad raps are great crankbaits.

Sorry, Riskkid. I didn't mean to communicate that I was offended. I'm not offended at all. I just wanted to throw a viewpoint out there with some historical stuff to get some more talking going.

Well, let's see. Bass Ale Abita Amber Michelob Ultra Amber (When I want a light beer) Boulevard Pale Ale Beck's Oktoberfest

I'm a true baseball fan but I don't hate or love the Yankees. I do get tired of them being there year-in and year-out, but then I'm sure alot of people were tired of the Braves making the playoffs every year too. Some may be tired of the Cardinals as well. No team has made it to the playoffs, played in as many championships, and won as many world series as the Yankees. Of course in the last couple of decades I believe this is because of the lack of true revenue sharing in baseball. (Look at what revenue sharing has done for the NFL. Former commissioner, Pete Rozelle, is looking like a genius more and more, God rest his soul.) A true baseball fan has to respect the Yankees' historical tradition even if he/she isn't a Yankees fan. And after the Yankees, the Cardinals have won 9 world series and have appeared in 16.

;D Great story, Huskerto. I guess KVD didn't tell him who he was? That's classic. No ego trip there.

Yes!!!!!!!!!!!! Cards up 2-zip. So far Pujols has been most of their offense. Three for four today. Surprising Cardinal pitching considering the last few weeks of the season.

Hmmm . . . . your smaller fish must have been hooking themselves due to their aggressive attacks on your lure. The big guys usually give you a little tick or you see you're line moving off one way or another and you have to set the hook quickly.

I just found this interview with Kevin VanDam online. It's dated October 5th. http://www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061005/LIFE06/610050333/1037 It's good to see his statement that his greatest accomplishment would be for his children to think he is a good father. Bravo. Also, he mentions schooling that he thinks is helpful to pro anglers, which relates to the thread about Business Administration being useful in the role of a pro angler.

Trim and thin out your weed guards as already suggested. And as Jomatty and GMAN stated, you generally want to set the hook quickly with a jig. To answer your question, no, fast reeling isn't the way to improve your hookup ratio with a jig and pig. Your fast reeling technique is a trip. I'm surprised you hooked any fish that way. Can you give more details about how the fish were hooked, size, etc?

Gman, get one of your co-workers to throw a glass of water in your face to give you the feel of the wind and spray.

It's not a last resort at all. Dead sticking for most of us involves letting the lure sit for at least a minute, and most of us use the term to refer to letting a plastic bait sit. In fact, a number of lures produce by letting them sit for awhile. I allow my jigs to sit for awhile if nothing hits them on the fall. I rarely throw a minnow plug that floats when stationary without letting it sit close to 30 seconds before I make my first twitch. Many topwaters work best this way. Patience is key.

Yes, indeed. For those who haven't read this, here's the quote: It's been a foregone conclusion in the sport that title sponsor Citgo would no longer be with BASS next year. Citgo is mentioned nowhere in this document, nor is any other title sponsor mentioned. About Citgo and BASS parting ways, BASS director of communications Jamie Wilkinson said: "We have reached an agreement to end sponsorship after this season based on Citgo's decision to move in a different direction. We are in discussions with a number of potential new sponsors." And here's the link: http://www.another site/docktalk.asp?archive=10/3/2006 Oh, Geez Louise, its not showing the site. See Matt's post for the site and leave out the space.

I think it's an "angler" thing. Sure, the southern states have a much longer growing season but that doesn't stop a northern lake from handing you one of the best days of your lives. It's what you take from the experience, as opposed to WHERE you experienced it, that means the most to me. Great experiences can happen anywhere you toss a line. Well said, LBH. I have to agree. I've fished a number of states but not enough to rate one above another. Obviously, if you're after the biggest porkers you'll want to fish California, Florida, Texas, etc. I enjoy fishing just about anywhere. Once you know a lake well, your success at that lake increases. It's difficult to compare the fishing at a lake that I really don't know well from another state, to the lakes that I love and hold so dear that are near me. Quote from RW: I agree. Any lake that you enjoy fishing has a special quality that diffentiates it from all the others. This is what makes it great in its own way.

Well, I agree that more education can't hurt in any endeavor, but I also think the knowledge gained from some degrees is exaggerated. I have a Bachelors in Business Admin with majors in management and marketing. I worked 13 years in management for Roadway Express (now merged with Yellow) before I changed careers for computer networking six years ago. Marketing oneself is a matter of common sense and smoozing at the appropriate times. Some people have a gift for the smoozing and some don't. I don't have this gift. I think the gifted smoozer with common sense would have a leg up on the angler with an associates degree in business, regarding value to potential sponsors. However, some businesses do not look at this objectively. These businesses will see the degree as a required criterion for specific positions, and they won't even consider someone who doesn't have it, no matter how skilled the applicant. For these businesses, or sponsors if you will, the degree would absolutely help. I kind of doubt if these sponsors are looking for this in a pro angler. I think they want someone who is fairly successful and who has the charisma and personality to draw people in. You can't learn charisma in a classroom. It is inherent in your personality. You might want to take a business law course to at least aquire some basic knowledge about contracts, so you will know if your sponsor is giving you a fair deal. If you want to handle the money you make in the most lucrative manner, that's where the business courses can help.

;D Maybe I should say generally speaking, it was easier back in the day. I think what helps Jacomo is that they still limit the motor size. I think the limit is 10 HP but I could be mistaken. Many anglers go to other lakes where they can crank their motors. I haven't fished Jacomo but I've heard good things about it lately. I'm going to have to get out there. It's a pretty place considering it is surrounded by suburbs but when you're there you can't really tell the metro area surrounds it.

Good point, Flechero. There are some young people on this forum who are way ahead of where I was at that age, regarding fishing for bass. Of course, back in the day, you could still catch quantity and quality without being as versatile because there was a lot less fishing pressure.