RyneB

the only thing i can help you on is frogs. I prefer the Rage Toad as far as soft plastic frogs go. Hard bodied frogs I have used all kinds, the only one i can say i hated was the Manns, for some reason my hook up ratio was horrible compared to the Tru Tungten, snag proof and other brands.

To put in a little argument on whether fishing, golf, bowling, etc. is a sport. I have had many arguments on why golf isnt a sport. Here is my conclusion. A sport is something you do where you can make up lack of talent, with hussle. The rest are just games. Fishing on the other hand definately isnt a game, but for some it might be considered a sport. I love to fish, i consider it a hobby and a passion. If i had to invest time to look at maps, time for practice, time to change my line, check the sharpness of my hooks, and all the other minor things, some might consider that hussle. Im not on that level, so to me its just a hobby and passion.

I was just wondering what the Elite guys do during the Classic if they have to use the restroom. Take KVD for instance. He had a cameraman in his boat and hundreds of people watching him. Im pretty sure he dont pull up to shore and run in the woods.

It is one thing to be a good fisherman. Then there is being a fisherman who has a camerman in his boat, hundreds of spectators watching him. Even if i was the greatest fisherman in the world, i think i would buckle under the pressure of the situation. He is like a machine out there. Nothing phases him. When Ike misses a fish he kicks his sonar or throws his rod (no disrespect to Ike, hes my favorite). When KVD misses a fish he just throws right back out there without a hint of emotion. I have never seen this guy panic.

I fish a small river similar to what you are describing. When i first started fishing it i would just wade and throw Senkos and spinnerbaits. After figuring out the river and the fish i became better and better. The one thing i have found out about small river fishing is i rarely catch fish on the same bait on back to back days. I might have a 30 fish day on a Senko, and the next day wont be able to get a bite. I have found the best bait and technique is to bring some sort of jar or can with a lid on it and an Ultra Light setup with 6-8 lb test. When you get to the river start gently moving rocks and you will see crawfish scatter. The best thing to use is a little hend held minnow net. Catch a dozen or so crawfish and rig them weightless. Toss it out, they usually hit it on the fall. The only downside to this is you will lose a lot of hooks. You are using light line, and once the craws hit the bottom they will crawl under any structure they see,whether it be rocks or stumps. Good luck

I fish deep, clear strip mines. I will be throwing Carolina Rigged plastics (zoom lizards,10" worms,beavers) at deep structure most of the time. I will also be throwing jigs and jerkbaits at points. Once the vegetation grows i will be throwing swim jigs into said vegetation. This is my favorite time of the year to throw hard jerk baits like the x-rap,and Xcalibur XS4. I have good luck this time of year throwing a Red Eye shad, plus i can cover a lot of water.

nice, looks like you have a few hundred dollars worth of Lucky Craft baits.

swim jig

if topwaters are not an option. Iv always had luck with texas rigging with a heavy heavy weight. If theyre kind of scattered, i have found throwing a swim jig on braided line through the pads will just murder them.

Red Eye Shad. sexy shad and gizzard shad

Sammy 115 in Pearl Ayu. Later in the year i did decent on a black Chug Bug, but the Sammy was #1.

I personally have not used it, but i have a friend who used it and hated it.

If i had to choose one craw type bait, it would hands down be the Yum Crawbug. I carolina rig it and it flat out catches smallmouth.

I use a 7 foot 3 wt. I mostly use foam spiders that i make myself. I have caught quite a few bass on those spiders as well.

Not a fishing story. But i have a friend who was playing AA minor league baseball. Two of his teamates went bowling one night. One of the kids always carried a small handgun, but the other kid hated guns and refused to let the kid carry. As the two kids were walking out of the bowling alley they were jumped by 4 guys who were "shedding blood" to become a member of a street gang. One of the kids was stabbed to death and the other was stabbed 26 times and lived, but now lives his life in a wheel chair. When you wake up you have to decided if you want to be a victim or not. I live in Illinois so i have no right to defend myself unless it is with my hands, even though the criminals have weapons.

If i have another person in my boat i refuse to make the first cast of the day. I dont know if its really superstition or not but I hate catching the first fish, i feel its always bad luck.

As far as braid goes, i have used most of them, and Power Pro is without a doubt my favorite.

I use Zoom lizards on a carolina rig year round. I dont have as much success in late fall with them as other baits, but if i throw it enough it will produce. The first bait i will throw when the ice is off will be a Zoom lizard in Kudzu color.

Nice work, that thing looks awesome.

It does not matter what reel you trade in, it matters what reel you are trading in for. The more expensive the reel you are purchasing the more you will get taken off. I have not traded any in but have had some friends do it. Lets say you are trading in a Johnny Morris for a BPS Extreme, you will get the same price for the Extreme as you would if say you were trading in a Abu Garcia Revo S.

We were on a fishing trip and the only thing we were catching them on was Rage Toads. Couldnt catch a fish on a ribbit or a horny toad. I had a problem with them flipping over, but i saw a video and as long as you use the right hook and make sure it is completely horizontal, it will do just fine.

I was not in the market for a new reel. But i was at the local wal-mart and they had Abu Garcia Revo S's for $70. Bass Pro has them for $129. I ended up buying one, but i plan on going back and getting at least one more. They had them on sale for 3 weeks and i was the first to buy one the guy said, and they have 7 more left. My Bass Pro Shops Extreme cost that much and using them back to back, the Revo is far superior.

I throw Rage Toads in vegetation when there is pockets and lanes. I throw a Bog Baits frog when fishing thick mats. Love them both. If fish are very active and hitting anything, ill throw a Zoom or ribbit frog to conserve my Rage toad stock.

I use all kinds;strike king,terminator,booyah,lazer eyes. I have had success on all of them, but if i had to choose one i would choose the War Eagle Finesse. Its a smaller profile, but very castable with a baitcaster and 10lb mono. I throw swim jigs 80 percent of the time im on the water so the spinnerbait has kind of taken a backseat on the list.

We were staying at a hotel on a weekend fishing trip and i brought the battery in so we could charge it. Got the boat launched and remembered I left the trolling battery in the hotel room. My friend sat on a rapala and i had to pull a sure set hook out of his rear, then two days later he was in the boat barefoot and stepped on a Ratt L Trap. I was standing in the back of the boat relieving myself when the man on the trolling motor hit a stump and knocked me in the water.