Darren.

Congrats! Interesting catch!

Welcome aboard! I'd go for one good combo, as follows: 1) Medium Fast Spinning rod rod in the $100 range. There are *many* good rods in this price range such as the Bass Pro Carbonlite, the Abu Veritas, St. Croix Premiere, and so forth. If you can find a MXF (Medium Extra Fast) rod, it will have a stiffer taper, also good. 2) Spinning reel in the $100 range. I'm partial to Shimano, and they make a great reel in the Sahara ($79) and Nascii at ($99). Or you can save more with the Sahara, or a Pflueger President and so on, then $100-120 on the rod with a little left over for more hooks, worms, etc.

Welcome aboard! Sounds like you had a really bad experience. Hang in there! By my experience, *most* fishermen are NOT jerks, although clearly, some are. I've had encounters with jerks on the water, but it is not common. I know when I've fished docks on multi-vehicle lakes with boat docks, I try to keep my casts low and under raised boats, or I simply avoid casting by docked, in-water boats.

Well done! A beast, indeed, for the north!

Wow, fat chunk wiper! Congrats!

IMO, you will be fine with a M/F rod. I use M/F and M/XF for 98% of my bass fishing, only have one M/H rod (casting) that gets some, but not a lot of use.

Welcome aboard!

I've never noticed the water buildup. It could be that the coating has worn off? I've had plenty of reel turn spray get on me. But I've never worried about my Stradics and water that gets on the spool otherwise. If they get dunked for some reason, I'll rinse them in fresh tap water when I get home. Should be fine.

Warriors vs. Cavs in final. Warriors win it all. But Cleveland is one of those head scratchers. They put a drubbing on the Celtics the other week - in Boston. Unpredictable. They can turn it on at the strangest of times. Like last years' finals.

I've got both, and I like both. SS8 is ... as the name says, "slick" and it is a good deal quieter than regular PP. I've had no issues with leader knots, and so forth. Bottom line for me is SS8 is a great braid, just as strong as reg PP, and, IMO, worth a try. You may or may not like it. I know, tough to spend the $$ on expensive braid and not like it. You could always sell the surplus in the Flea Market if you don't like it.

Welcome aboard! I'd pick the big O first and foremost, methinks. Then I'd go to South America for some beastly Peacock bass. Then I'd pick the best smallmouth bass lake in the US...then...I dunno. Maybe hit the saltwater havens and search for Blue Marlin! Lots of fish, so little time...alas....

I added a Suntour suspension seatpost to my Specialized this year. Haven't had the chance to put her to the test yet. A 26er. I'm a bit heavier than when I did the neck-breaking stuff in my 20s on a full rigid aluminum Trek, which I still happen to have!! Would probably do 27.5 full sussy if I had the money, as well. My 3rd son, who races XC, rides an SL1 29er Cannondale hardtail. He's pretty good does his ol' man proud!!

A lovely ride, sir! So you ride no tubes, but what size are the wheels? Nobby Nics are quality tires.... Are you a true 26er, a 27.5er, or a 29er? Having a hard time as I can't zoom in close enough

Wow. Nice! Perhaps the angle is a little off. That's a pretty fat tummy, eh?

Welcome aboard! The articles section is chock full of great material for beginners!

Probably a good idea. Issue I found with my boys is that they wanted action *now*, so when I tried to get them on wacky rigs, drop shots, etc., they didn't like to express patience, LOL. The Ned will be less sit-n-wait, so likely to work better than patience-needed techniques.

Have yet to fish Diascund. Now I'm gonna have to see about making sure I do!

Yeah, none of their bikes are "standard" I wager. Love to see 'em use an off-the-shelf bike from a local shop. And their balance is just out of this world. I'd be wrapped head-to-toe in the hospital doing their stunts.

No doubt one of the best! Here's Danny, Chris and Martyn doing their thing on ROAD bikes! Sacrilege!!

I'd suggest keeping the braid and walking off maybe 50-60 feet (more or less depending on your casting distance) and then tape off the spool with electrical tape. This way your backlash is only the distance you cast and you won't have to deal with a massive nest. 20# is what I use and it is not a problem. As I have said multiple times, one just has to be aware of the potential of dig-in after a hard fight, a strong snag/pull. Just pull of several yards of line prior to next cast to ensure the line isn't dug in... Basically habit for me, so I only nest on too much whip with too light a bait, etc.

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, Woody!

Welcome back, G!

Welcome aboard!

Here we are with a full moon and spawn beginning. And I was bailed out by Ned today! That said, I did have a beast on my 8" Mann's Jelly worm today that came off about 10 feet from my yak while tail dancing. Was a big lady, wish I could have landed her. But that was my one and only bite on that bait. A good one, tho. Anyhow, Ned came thru with a ~3/4 lber. Lost one on the Ned, too... wind was not very fishing friendly, either.