Choporoz

I suppose using best 3 for AOY is the reasoning. KBF was arguably the OG major tour, and they had Regionals. (Even though FLW looked to partner with KBF, they couldn't handle the competition from BASS and Hobie trails; ....or are mismanaging themselves on the way to being out of the mix). There is still some evolution ongoing and future regionals wouldn't be a surprise

Never. But I have been planning to try skirt-less paddle tail.

Since that article (2016), I think the leading assumption now is that it is caused by a mostly harmless virus. I've caught dozens in VA....and a few in NC

I like 40# braid to fc leader most of the time. The stretch of fc and mono kills my confidence in my 'jerks' - just feels like the stretch sucks the snap out of the jerks, especially when using a somewhat soft tip (for casting and landing). That said, I have a MM baitcaster with a fairly stiff tip and I like fc on that rod for jerkbaits. Wish I had an easy button for you. But really just got to try different limes on the different rods you have available to you. It isn't complicated. But I can make it complicated. Tip and action and stretch all work to affect cast, jerk, pinning and landing. So it is harder to advise beyond "just try stuff and see what YOU like"

Me, neither. But I keep tossing it, because the splash down is so cool

Green pumpkin. When I really want to change it up, GP with red and/or black flake.

Off the top of my head over last 15 years...Fenwick x5, Dobyns, Powell, Quantum, Abu....probably one or two others I can't recall. ****Four of the Fenwicks were Aetos, and that is the only line I would consider too fragile for real fishing

Sensitivity and price are very high on my list of considerations. Warranty and color do not factor. At all. 90-180 days is plenty of time to discover flaws or defects. After that it is on me. And this from someone who breaks a lot of rods.

Gray.... last few months. I like it a lot, but still need to rotate through a few other colors.

I have strong negative feelings about tournament pressure on a couple lakes I fish. I have no data to support those feelings. But I am not sure I trust this 'data'. I would get behind banning all livewell tournaments in the summer, but I have a hard time believing 50-80% of tournament weigh-in fish die soon after, even in the summer. 10% would be way too many, but 50-80 tells me to stop buying into the rest of the 'expert analysis' in the article.

Gun season opened Saturday. Being mostly alone on the lake this weekend was quite enjoyable. Not entirely peaceful, however. Rarely 15 minutes go by when you can't hear hounds from some direction. Was in a cove alongside a point around noon Saturday and hounds on the point were going crazy. The hunters were almost as noisy. As the hounds drew closer to the bank, my partner pointed out a massive buck picking his way along the short ridge above us. Easily biggest deer I've seen in 14 years living in VA and NC. I'd be surprised if it was not at least 10 points. The hounds were closing and he took off with a bound. When the dogs got to the point the deer was at while we watched it, they milled around, back-tracked, came back and totally lost him. We came upon the hunters as we got to back of the cove and they said, "Seen any deer?". No idea how that buck got off that point escaping the dogs and getting by the hunters, but it was entertaining.

Wasn't me. Tried it. Hated it. Maybe...maybe if I only burned chatterbaits, I might get an occasional hookset. But for me it was frustrating experience.

I bought three Aetos when they started going on deep discounts, maybe ten years ago. 2 spinning and one casting. Loved the action and sensitivity. Snapped one first time out with it, and got a replacement on the warranty. Broke two more within a couple years. Had remaining one, a MHF as my favorite chatterbait rod for just a few more years before it, too, snapped. Try it. May find that the tip is a bit soft for confident 'jerks', but might be great, especially with braid.

I store mine in a shed.... there are some rods in the car year round. If temps are the reason for the question, I would not worry

Good thread, @JHoss. Done well keeping it tracking fairly straight. I enjoy tournament bass fishing, but nearly all of my fun fishing is for bass, also. @Swamp Girlmentioned casting, and that is probably as big a factor as any. That, and.... if I'm gonna get skunked, I'd rather get skunked fishing for 6# bass, than 1# crappie.

Third sentence in OP was as far as I needed to read. TDs shouldn't fish tournaments they make rules for and/or judge. Yes, I know it can be done and done well, but even the most upstanding TD opens themselves to questions when they fish.

They are not far. When prefishing, a creek with bait and no bass may well be better than a creek with bass, but little bait.

Went through the same for several years... around 2015-2022. Lived in Northern VA. Wanted waterfront, no colder than Mid-Atlantic.... and not much warmer. Spent long weekends with kayaks across eastern TN, VA, NC, ..and briefly checked out some PA and MD. Settled on Dandridge TN. But in the intervening years between decision and action, proximity to growing number of grandchildren became a higher priority than it had been. Changed decision to north-central NC and couldn't be happier. Bought house 3 years ago intending to rent it out until my retirement this year, but my wife decided she was through with Northern VA, so I've been splitting time, making the 4hr drive every weekend. I'll be there full time by end of the year. I'm really really happy to be living on the lake. Being able to walk out the back door and be on the water in minutes is amazing.

I would not even consider visibility as one of the variables to consider in this discussion. Buoyancy, stretch, strength, durability, manageability....maybe....visibility....not so much I really like 12# fluoro for a lot of things. But spooks and poppers aren't among them

I suspect this is an underrated comment. I don't think this gets talked about enough. When I am seen catching, I am always asked "what are you using".... once in a blue moon, whether they are hitting moving baits. I am more likely to want to know whether they are feeding up or feeding down

250 for a Helium today! With a free Argon tossed in. I don't have an Argon, so can't make recommendation on that. But, I do have five Heliums.

You didn't break a rod. You crafted a spider web removal tool

7" Rage Tail Thumper. They aren't regularly better than Rage Bug or CutR. But when they are, it can be dramatic. Culprit is probably closest substitute; quite a bit different tho

Biggest price influencer for us is typically the yen rate. If you find someone that can predict exchange rate, please let me know. Manufacture and distribution costs are not going to go down.

A couple years ago when shopping for a utility side by side, I'd decided on Honda. Only local dealer was Kawasaki, so I ended up with a Mule and could not be happier with it. There are faster UTV's, more rugged UTVs, more comfortable UTVs... but that Mule is very good in all respects.