Logan S

If you are financially responsible and really want to make it happen it's not terribly difficult. Just make a plan and execute it. Different ways of doing it, most notably cash -vs- finance...But at the end of the day it's just a math problem. If you have a lot of other expenses, like an extra house, it will probably be more difficult. Most of my buddies with bass boats are very similar to me...Our boats and fishing are pretty much the only things we spend disposable income on.

Do it! The Piedmont schedule is pretty good this year, and the regional is on the Potomac which is nice . I'm still debating whether to sign up for Piedmont or just cherry-pick a couple of closer tournaments between it and the Shenandoah division. If you're a boater you may end up regretting not being a boater in the tournaments, but you'll still be fishing places you haven't fished before and that's always fun. Kerr and SML to start off should be great events, prime times to hit those places.

Not strange to see it since the Potomac is loaded with them...But it was very odd to actually catch it, not snagged either.

The Upper Potomac has some, but they aren't universally distributed so you need to be in the right sections (I don't really know which sections are the right ones either). Conowingo/Susky has some, I usually catch a couple each year up there while bass fishing. If you want a real shot at catching them, Deep Creek is the best place...It's a great walleye lake. I don't fish for them, but I catch a lot while bass fishing up there.

Is it a hydraulic or manual jackplate? If it's manual, the answer is easy....Just drive it, you can't move it while running anyway. If it's hydraulic you can adjust on the fly, but in terms of what you need to do while running the answer is still nothing. You can make adjustments on the fly, such as lowering the plate for better handling in rough water or raising it for better performance (keep an eye on water pressure if raising)...But it's not something that needs constant input in order to drive the boat. You're describing trim and not jackplate operation. If the plate is at an appropriate/universal setting you don't need to adjust it every time you take off (and you shouldn't).

The Picasso Tungsten Football is what you're looking for...No living rubber, but its a nice little bite-sized jig and you can choose hook size for each weight. The 3/8 with 2/0 hook is my spotted bass special .

But if someone DOES have all the trimmings, marker buoys are just redundant....And the OP has got the trimmings . If you've got decent electronics and mapping and are competent using them while fishing and running the trolling motor you just don't need to bother with buoys anymore. The visual reference you need is on the screen instead of the in the water. I say this as someone that was a die-hard buoy user back in the day. Before GPS and accurate mapping was universally available/affordable for bass boats, marker buoys were the only option to put a visual reference on something. We also used the triangulation method to accomplish the same thing. I stopped doing both when I realized I was more accurate with my electronics than I was with the visual references...The bonus is that you save a ton of time - Can go directly to your waypoint/spot and start fishing immediately. Doesn't mean buoys are useless, but modern electronics make them unnecessary for many.

I'd start with the prop...Send it off to get repaired, blueprinted, and balanced. The first time I did this I was amazed, it was like I had a different boat. Better holeshot, top end, and overall handling/responsiveness. Should be around $300, many good prop guys but I recommend Mark Croxton - His site is easy to find. If your prop is dull and/or has any visible knicks, dings, or imperfections then it's hurting your performance. Plenty of good advice here already, but if it were my boat and money I'd start with the prop...It's the single biggest factor in overall boat performance.

Marker buoys used to be required equipment for me, obviously before GPS was universal, but I haven't used one in probably 10 years...Although I still have 1 in boat, probably just for nostalgia . I don't have spot lock, but with GPS at bow and console and accurate mapping I just don't need them. I would say not to bother with them...Instead of learning a defunct methodology, just put that time toward getting familiar with using your trolling motor, GPS, and mapping.

Search & Recovery and Rescue Divers are trained for that. Many divers get the S&R certification without actually 'needing' it...Divers tend to collect certifications much like fisherman collect tackle. It's not an 'easy' dive, but it's one that an experienced pair for divers should be able to handle no problem...And they would probably enjoy it as a real-world test of their training. Scuba Board forums has a FL section, probably a good place to try. Not sure how willing people would be, but I'd imagine it'd at least draw some interest. I also agree with another poster who said to see if you can find a local fisherman with nice graphs on his boat already to help you. Assuming there's a boat ramp and the area is accessible. This might be an easier first step than the diver option honestly....Not hard to convince a fisherman to hit the water for a day ...Surprised this wasn't my first thought.

It might be more efficient and less expensive to hit a local diving board or shop. I'm sure there are plenty of local divers that could find it. If you know the approximate area and it's small/shallow with no current like you say...Should be a pretty straightforward recovery even in low-vis water. Lots of experienced divers in FL for sure. I'd be willing to do it if I were local.

@Burke, FOBA is always open and willing to work with anyone...If you want to talk logistics feel free to shoot me a PM. I'll be honest about how things work and won't try to 'sell' you on it. Same goes for anyone else that might be interested. Since this got bumped I'll just shamelessly plug again... The 2019 Tournament Schedule will be coming out in early December, I'll make a post about it when it does.

Since you're putting on a kayak, no need to network...Which is the biggest advantage for the HB G2N since Elite units don't have ethernet. I'd pick the Elite 9Ti in your specific situation for the screen size and touch screen. Either is a good choice though.

Slight variations on the same basic plastic styles, much like any other brand. I think I read somewhere that they licensed the use of the Rage Tail appendage style, so they will have similar action to RT baits. The one that looks like a Rage Bug but with 2 extra side-flappers caught my eye as a swing-head or Carolina rig bait...But I've got boxes full of Rage Bugs already. On TW they are essentially the same price as a pack of Rage Tail baits, not really outrageous IMO...Local stores might up-charge I guess. Regardless of who 'designed' them, they look like baits that would catch fish.

I know bassboat rentals exist, a buddy of mine rented an equipped Bass Tracker from the BPS Marina on Table Rock I think? I've heard of it on other destination lakes too. It's a niche thing though and in the area we are in (DC Metro) bass fishing probably just isn't viable for the marinas to cater too, despite the popularity of the Potomac. I've known a couple different sets of people that went in together on buying a bassboat...Didn't seem to have major issues, but then again they always pretty much fished together. If each had different schedules or wanted to do something different I could see friction building. Like you said, with the right group it might work...But there's a lot of potential friction points out there. There's another semi-related option out there...Local bass clubs as a non-boater/co-angler. You won't be in charge of the boat, but you'll at least get out in a bass rig and fish with guys that are experienced. Would be cheaper than buying into a boat-share or splitting a boat and probably not far off the price of renting boats.

For me...And this related to skipping with casting gear as I think that's the topic. Spinning is obviously easier and a good way to get some of the basics. -Leave brakes alone, just use whatever setting you normally would for casting. You can tighten spool tension a little bit (maybe 1/4 turn, more if needed) to help with backlashing, but once you get better you won't really need to do this. Reason for spool vs brakes is that brakes (especially centrifugal) need the spool to get going a little bit before kicking in enough to help, while spool tension is constant. -Put yourself an appropriate distance from target...Too close is harder than too far, so if in doubt back off a bit. This might be the most important thing, I see a lot of guys get too close and that steeper angle for the skip is really hard to do unless you pitch-skip which is like skipping level 2 . At least 2 full rod lengths away is what you want. -One fluid motion and follow-thru with the cast...Raise the rod tip as the bait moves toward the dock/target. -Practice makes perfect...On the water. It's very hard IMO to practice without being on the water, concrete/ground/etc is not the same as water in terms of skipping a bait off it....So dialing it in at home might actually hurt you when you get to the water since your muscle memory will be set for your home practice. -If you aren't already reasonably accurate at casting in general, practice that too. Bait placement has a big effect on how successful the skip will be. There's a 'sweet spot' for the bait to land to get that perfect skip, you want to be able to hit that. It's obviously not a static spot, but the point is that you need to have good control of you where your bait lands. Take a look at this no-shame bragging video for a good view of distance, cast, and follow-thru with the rod tip .

Haven't used the ToadRunner but I do like the Sprinker...I haven't really had issues with hook ups or landing, nothing that made me think the frog was the problem. Something with trebles like a plopper or walker can still stick a fish if they swipe and miss or don't eat it all the way. The plopper toads have to be eaten all the way to hook the fish, not really surprising that it has a lower ratio. I fish them the same way I do buzz toad or buzzbait....Rod tip high and a speed that keeps a slight bow in the line. Give you a little built in delay time between strike and hookset. Works for me.

@TOXIC...Intentionally screwing over the co-angler is a far cry from situational disadvantages that are inherent to the boater/co-angler format . The former is why rules were written and the later is just part of tournament fishing. Never said or implied this. It really doesn't have any bearing on the discussion anyway. We'll have to agree to disagree on this..."My boat, my rules" applies to me. I don't fish tournaments for the sake of others. Doesn't mean I'm a jerk and I'm not rooting against the Co, but I'm going to do my own thing and sometimes that means the Co will be out of position. It's not breaking those rules. If someone wants to tally up all the times he was out of position and report them to the TD that's on him...I can say that in the hundreds of tournaments I've fished, I've never once received a complaint or been reported. My co-anglers generally do well. Backseating happens 1000x more often on the internet than it does in real life.

I can sympathize with the notion of wanting to get off the bank, but it doesn't make a boater your personal guide - Since you aren't paying ME, besides maybe chipping in for gas/expenses. I've often said that for someone without a boat, being a co-angler in a club is the best deal possible to get out on the water...It's cheaper than hiring a guide or renting a boat and you still get to fish all day with someone who is likely experienced on the body of water you're fishing. But someone shouldn't do this and expect a guide service as sort of a 'loophole'. Understand your sentiment and I agree about fun fishing. It's great that you still operate that way in tournaments, but if other boaters don't operate that way it doesn't make them backseaters or bad boaters. It's unfair to make that the standard to be measured to. Regarding rules and 'malicious' or 'intentional' acts....If my pattern is dock fishing, or running a spinnerbait close to the bank, or something else where the co-angler is going to be at a disadvantage....Am I being malicious or unfair? Am I supposed to scrap my plans and do something different to appease the Co? My answer is no...That's part of the game for Co's. I'm not going to go out of my way to screw the co-angler, but this whole notion that any inconvenience to the co-angler whatsoever is considered rude/malicious/selfish/backseating/etc is garbage IMO. If someone wants a guide they need to hire a guide. There's a huge difference between situational/unavoidable disadvantages and intentional backseating...And in my experience that vast majority of complaints have to do with the 1st one and not the 2nd.

You can't be throwing this in the discussion about boaters/co-anglers in a tournament...It's not even remotely the same situation and it leads to what is, IMO, a flawed perception of what 'backseating' actually is. Your clients are paying you to take them fishing. A co-angler is NOT paying the boater to take them fishing. Similarly, you can't compare how someone might operate in a team tournament or just out fun-fishing. 'Backseating' is pretty specific to boater/co-angler draw tournaments. In my experience, real backseating - As in the intentional act of denying the non-boater opportunities - Is actually very rare. Now, situations where the boater's plan/style/method/etc happens to put the non-boater at a disadvantage happen frequently...But that's not 'backseating' in my mind, it's just part of being a non-boater. You can't expect your boater to guide you, they are in the tournament too and it's their boat...So if it comes down to the boater or co-angler getting the best shot at something, the boater is going to take that shot (and rightfully so). I've been a tournament director so I've heard some official complaints about backseating and none were ever real backseating...Most often it's just guys that didn't get along or a non-boater with a flawed idea of what the boater 'owes' him. If you're a co-angler/non-boater, you just need to live with the fact that you're along for the ride...99% of the time your boater will be a normal person and you'll get your shots if you know what you're doing. But if you want to call the shots, you need to buy your own boat. Might seem harsh, but it's the reality of the situation.

100% True. If I could fish those lakes I would stop in for sure at least every once in a while. Such a shame to have 3 beautiful lakes so close that are closed off. There's a nice tackle shop (Precision Tackle) in/near Anchor Marina on the Upper Bay (NE River) that seems to do OK because it's got bass boats in and out every day year-round. They also host and sponsor lots of local tournaments. There's several ramps closer to me so I don't go to Anchor often though. I think it's more that the tackle shops operate on a razor-thin line and they don't want to commit their life/career to something that risky.

I buy most of my stuff online...TW and others, plus some tackle from Japan more often than I'd like to admit . I also shop at BPS quite a bit since gift cards are a popular gift item for me and they also have boating gear, clothes, etc. Our BPS has a decent selection including Megabass and other higher end stuff. We have a DSG in town but I choose not to shop there anymore for a variety of reasons, their selection in the fishing department is garbage anyway. There's a relatively new tackle shop that's north of Baltimore (so about an hour+ from me) that's really the only 'local' tackle shop that caters to bass anglers....I've been a few times but to be honest, it's not worth the drive. They have a nice selections and prices on par with online retailers, but then add tax, gas, and time - It just doesn't make sense. It's also still not up to par with TW and others online in terms of selection. Times change, even the great 'local' tackle shops have an online presence. Susquehanna Fishing Tackle in PA and Tackle Supply Depot in CT are good examples...I'd bet both do far more online business than local. I've been to both, TSD actually doesn't even keep their products on the shelves, just 1 example of each...You fill out a little order sheet and they run back to the warehouse to get everything for you.

I fished out of a dual-center-console Dynatrack many years ago...IMO, it sounds like a great idea right up until you get in the boat and start using it. Biggest annoyance to me was the fact that you had to leave the seat to tie up no matter which side you dock on (since it's in the middle and not the starboard side). Layout with the console in the center is also not ideal IMO for both fishing and modern electronics mounting/rigging. The reason they weren't/aren't more popular is because most people didn't/don't like that layout for a bassboat.

Megabass Robin Blade. I normally don't like chatters without directly-attached blades, but I'm a MB junkie so I had to grab a couple to try. Supposedly it was designed this way to run deeper without rising and have a 'hunting' action...I generally need my bladed-jigs to run shallower over thick grass, but there are some lakes where I can get on a deeper, non-grass chatter bite so I'll be trying the Robin Blade there.

I agree with that, however I'm too much of a realist to think there is even the slightest chance of getting rod of them in the Potomac. Snakeheads are here to stay in the Potomac, for better or worse....So I don't fault people for catch and release fishing for them there. It's the guys that want to make their closest lake a snakehead fishery so they don't have to drive to the river that need to meet the long arm of the law eventually....One can hope.