Logan S

Boats with more expensive retail prices will have more expensive used prices...Your example is not really apples to apples. A new Tracker 175 might be 18k...But a new 190 might be 25k and a new Nitro Z20 might be 55k. Check the prices of used 175's and I'd bet the depreciation is the same or similar percentage wise. FWIW, there is a Blue Book for boats just like for cars...The accessories portion of it is a little funky, but the basic info is enough to get a good estimate.

This Spro has hauled in quite a few bass...Instant confidence when the frog rod comes out of the locker thanks to this guy.

Anna will be great in April, late April will almost certainly have the fish spawning. Anna can be challenging but that time should be the most lenient on you. Recreational traffic isn't an issue in April unless it happens to be a crazy warm weekend day...Bassboat traffic will be heavy though. I'll be there the weekend of the 21st for a tournament . Uplake, midlake, and downlake are fairly different from each other and fishing is often noticeably different in each section (like 3 lakes in 1 almost). Stripers and hybrid-stripers are also plentiful if that interests you. Deep Creek will probably be fairly cold, the spawn usually is around Memorial Day up there so unless we have really warm spring expect prespawn fishing and cool/cold water temps. DCL is a cold mountain lake and the weather can be very unpredictable, it could be beautiful but it could just as easily be downright nasty...DCL has smallmouth so that might be a deciding factor for you. There's also a nice population of walleye, perch, pike, and pickerel so you tend to get a good amount of bites on a given day - They just won't all be bass. DCL is more of a numbers lake, larger bass are in the lake for sure but are fairly rare. Most of the boat docks won't be in the lake yet, FYI. If you want spawning, sight fishing, and/or shallow largemouth I'd pick Anna. If you want prespawn fishing, smallmouth, and/or a side of multi-species I'd pick Deep Creek. Anna is much bigger than Deep Creek, probably 5 times the size, if that matters to you. Both have less than stellar reputations for bass fishing at times, but neither are really that bad in reality...I actually think both are great and love fishing both, the time of year is definitely in your favor too. Bad weather can strike either, but if you want a safer bet weather-wise it would be Anna.

You guys know that there is a qualification path to both the Classic and Elites that doesn't include the BASS Opens directly right? It also has a footprint out west with a regional on Clear Lake, CA. The Nation path will also qualify some anglers with full rides to an Open Series (including a boat), which in turn can lead to Classic/Elite qualification. No other sport has as many ways for a 'regular guy' to make it big and BASS does more than any other organization to make that happen (IMO). Seriously, what more can BASS do to provide a pathway to being a professional fisherman? Yes, the footprint out west is smaller than what it is in the eastern and central regions...But it does exist. FLW has the Costa Western Series and there are other western tours like WON where a western angler can make a name for themselves outside of BASS - And try to leverage that into sponsorship help in order to make the Opens work if they want to. The one constant in all of this is that it takes time, money, and skill...There is no way around any of those no matter where you live and what path you want to take. The BASS Open Series is the semi-pro trail and primary qualification method to the Elites, it's supposed to be hard. The Nation path is there for the grassroots anglers to still have a shot - Without the larger commitment that is required in the Opens.

I don't think Helix units share mapping over ethernet, so if you want mapping on all three units you'll need individual map chips for each one. The only HB units that share mapping data are the Onix series (and maybe new Solix?)...At least to the best of my knowledge. I doubt you'd need 3 though, since you should only need 1 of the console units to have a map chip. At most you'd need 2 (1 console, 1 bow). The built in base map might be good enough for you on the bow unit also...So if it were me, I'd start with 1 and only add a second for the bow if I felt I needed it. I was a HB user up until this year and that's what I did for my setup (map chip in console, base maps for bow, linked via ethernet to share other data).

The Elite field size is actually bigger this year than in several previous years (maybe ever), so they didn't narrow it.... They changed the Opens format for 2018, but even under the previous format there still wasn't anything out west in terms of qualification to the Elite Series (excluding the 1 spot for the Nation, which could be a western angler)...So it's not like they took anything away from western anglers that existed previously. It sucks for guys out west no doubt, but even if there was a western qualification route an angler that makes it would still need to travel across the country to compete in the Elites....So the travel is going to be a factor regardless.

I didn't plan it this way, but there's just enough silver in my Skeeter to match my truck...I'm OK with it . For me, the color I want on a boat/truck is the one that's got the best deal. Lucky coincidence that both look darn good together (IMO of course ). Speaking only for myself, it's not anything secret or crazy...Work hard, plan, and make it happen. I've owned bassboats since I was 15 and all were the same process. It required discipline, patience, and sacrifice, especially when I was much younger. Nice thing about bass fishing is that you can get in where you fit in, the fish don't know the model/year of your rig. I caught a lot of fish and won a lot of tournaments in boats that were far from the latest and greatest, competing against guys with those latest and greatest rigs. IMO wraps are not very attractive and I don't want the added attention of 'the guy with the wrapped boat'. Wraps can protect the finish underneath, but over time the knicks, scrapes, scratches, etc in the wrap itself will begin to be noticeable. I'd rather just keep the boat clean, but I'm also not one to go crazy matching the colors.

Retie when necessary...Sometimes that means after every fish, sometimes after a few fish, sometimes without even catching a fish at all. I'm not sure why anyone would try to assign a rigid number or schedule to it.

It's just a braided steel cable with soft rubber coating attached to the colored nylon rope pieces. There's a small metal eye on the end that clips onto the main line after looping thru the fish. The cable length is about 10". The rope is just buoyant enough to stay near the top of the well, so it doesn't 'pull' on the fish upwards at all....Which is another issue some might not realize with weaker or smaller fish. You can also use a balance beam very quickly since the cable loop can just by slipped right on the beam. Overall, it's a very non-intrusive tag. I'm glad to hear people use the bags with success...I personally don't see them as helping me since I've got my system dialed in, but more options are always good. This is a very new development and manufacturers have not really caught up to it yet. I'm sure we'll see some great innovation on non-piercing tags and other ideas (like the bags) now that there is an actual demand for them. Here is what it looks like on the fish. Sorry to side track from the Glory Bags!

I recarpeted my 20' Stratos a couple years ago. It's relatively easy skill-wise but it's definitely hard work and time consuming. Remove every lid or panel that can come off the boat, it's a lot easier to work with off the boat. Getting the old glue off can be a pain, you can use solvents but I found that even with chemicals there's still a lot of physical scraping to do. Save the old carpet pieces if you can so you can use them as a template for the new pieces. Make sure you cut all the new pieces from the same direction (grain) otherwise the sections will appear different. I used DAP Weldwood Contact Cement for glue and was very happy with the result. I no longer have the boat, but after 3 full seasons on it there were no issues with the glue failing or carpet coming up. I'm sure it will last many more years for the new owner too. Just be aware that it sets instantly so you have to be sure of your placement! It's a step process for the lids, gluing the flat main part and setting it, then gluing the sides and 'flaps' of carpet before clamping it all down for the full set. You'll want to have lots of clamps and furring strips along with some heavy weights (I used lead dive weights) for working with the compartments and glue. Good time to do a deep clean with all the lids/decking off too... If you mess up the grain of the carpet, you'll be able to notice it...Like I did here . It faded enough to not be noticeable after a season of use. All in all, it's a big job...But everything I heard and was quoted was $1000+ for a professional shop to do this, I got it done for about $350 total (carpet, glue, trim stripping, misc hardware) and a couple full days of working so I'm glad I did it on my own.

I haven't used the bags so feel free to stop reading now if you are dead set on them... We've been dealing with the non-puncture tag rule on the Potomac and Bay for a couple seasons now. I've actually been using the gill-loop style tags for about 10 years anyway so I was ahead of the game. Just as fast as normal tags and no big clips to blocks the fish's face/mouth. They don't ever come off either which is a big complaint about the clips. It's essentially the same thing as what you were doing before with your clips only its a soft wire. IMO, this is the best style tag but unfortunately very few are available commercially. Mine are no longer made, but they should be easy enough to DIY, which is what I plan on doing if these ever break or fail. I've read about the bags, but I just can't see that being a better solution...Open to being proven wrong though, I'll just need to see it first hand.

My daughter is too young to take out fishing for real yet...But she loves hanging out in the boat while I rig tackle and stuff. She loves all things related to fish and water so I'm hopeful that she will enjoy fishing, we'll probably start going on short trips in the boat this season.

Largemouth I'm not sure on, biggest one I weighed was 5-11 (right side in pic) but I got one that I think might have been bigger but I didn't weigh it since it was a practice day (left side in pic, longer and bigger head - but spawned out). The 5-11 was caught flipping a Rage Bug into log jams and the unknown LM was on a Shakeyhead/Trickworm skipped under a dock. Smallmouth is also unknown weight since it was also a practice day, but it was easily my biggest SM of the year. Caught on a Pointer 65 and 6lb line . Spotted bass is yet again unknown even though it was on a tournament day...I just had a 4lb LM that day also so I never bothered to weigh the spots individually. I probably had 5 or 6 spots of similar size to this one also on the same trip...Spots are only found in 1 lake that I fish on a regular basis and they are relatively new to that lake as well. Big spots all came on a Vision 110. I typically only weigh single fish if they are the lunker of a tournament bag. I have a good idea of what the unknown fish weigh but no reason to post a guess .

Google Earth primarily, the the application you install on your computer has more options than the web based Google Maps. There are some other places to get satellite images also, but Google Maps/Earth is the one I use the most.

Long post incoming ...Not everything is applicable to ever body of water, but these are the big things I do when prepping for a tournament. I don't go through every single one of these every time, some bodies of water are more suited for heavy preparation than others for me. Maps/Charts - Navionics online charts have really made things a lot easier, but the old big, folding paper maps are still a good reference to get a perspective of the whole lake instead of just whats on your computer screen. If you are fishing tidal water or the great lakes, look at NOAA charts also, they can show things differently than other maps do. I also make my own maps from Navionics screen shots and print them on 11x17 (half the lake on each side). I'll mark them up with areas I want to pre-fish or explore and also with my own historical notes/spots. The 11x17 is big enough to read and small enough to tuck in the windshield of my boat for easy access throughout the day. It's my cheat sheet so that I don't forget about things I intended to check out or to help refocus myself if things get off the rails a little bit. It's a lot of work and I will update it for each tournament in many cases...But for me it's been one of the best prep items I've ever used. Water conditions - Temperature, levels, clarity, current, dam operations, tides or anything else. All, some, or none may apply depending on the body of water. I try to keep an eye on this in the weeks leading up to the tournament to get a feel for the general trends. This info is not always available, but much of it usually is if you look in the right places. The importance of this data is not in the physical data itself so much, but more of how it applies to the body of water and the way you fish. That part is on you to discover through experience . Weather - Again, I try to check it in the time leading up to the tournament to get an idea for the trend. I also will check on weather in the areas upstream in case it might have an effect on the lake/river I'm fishing. Just remember that forecasts are never exact and often change (sometimes in a big way) on short notice. Make sure to check it once you get to the lake and not rely on what you saw the day before....I've changed gears right before launching because things like wind direction or cloud cover forecasts changed dramatically overnight. I like to use wind direction/speed and cloud cover forecasts primarily for fishing concerns and temperature forecasts to determine how I need to dress . Satellite Mapping - This is huge for me, on many lakes it's my #1 prep tool. Cycling back through historic images will usually show times of low water, better water clarity, or better overall images that will let you see things differently and can reveal things you might otherwise overlook. I like to look for images taken in winter since the water is usually lower/clearer and the leaves are off the trees, both of which will give you a better look at the shorelines. You can also use satellite mapping to see things like where grass grows, if there are sections with clearer/dirtier water, locations of docks, etc...I will put things I find on satellite images on my paper maps so that I can easily check them out on the water, sometimes I'll even create waypoints to transfer to my GPS if's really specific. Many times Navionics or other charts will simply stop or be inadequate in the very backs of creeks or rivers or coves, showing them to appear as just a big flat area of nothing (or unmapped altogether)...It can cover fairly large areas too. I use satellite mapping to find and mark things I'm interested in and then transfer those waypoints to my GPS so that I can target them and/or safely navigate the area. Obviously, all the satellite stuff I do is primarily geared toward relatively shallow water fishing/patterns. Reports/Results - I look at these but don't place a huge emphasis on it. Most reports online are brief and generally just consist of "I got this nice one on a jig...". Most people these days aren't posting specifics in public places (I never do) since they know so many people are looking for that kind of info now. If you look on local forums you can get a general feel for the conditions from "The lake is fishing tough/great" type posts even if there is no specific info in them. There are also the weekly type reports from guides or local sites, but they are often too general or are just canned paragraphs so their usefulness is limited. Results are good indicator of how the lake is fishing, but again take it with a grain of salt since things change all the time and some tournaments/clubs/trails are better than others in terms of results. I probably do more tournament prep than others might want or have time to do, but I enjoy it almost as much as the actual fishing. With repetition, I think it helps you as an angler overall beyond just a specific lake.

This is Mojave, our White German Shepherd. We rescued her 3 years ago. She's not too fond of the boat, but she goes hiking behind the house with me every time I go. She also protects our house from dangerous intruders But is more often than not found somewhere not far from our daughter

The Potomac and Upper Chesapeake are loaded with goldfish...I don't know about spawning, but assumed so since they are so common. I got a pic of one I caught and it does look a lot like OP's fish but brighter.

You get touch screen (but not multi-touch, IE no pinch-zoom) and backtrack with the Elite, but no ethernet capability. You get ethernet, but no backtrack or touchscreen on the Helix. Other than those features, they are pretty similar...Retail price wise, the HB is cheaper. Biggest deciding factor would be ethernet, if you want to connect to another unit via ethernet. If that is something you want, only the Helix has that option. User friendly is a little subjective, I've never used a graph that was 'hard' to use or navigate. I will say as a recent convert from HB to HDS...The touch screen is nice and makes things a little easier.

Couple additional thoughts for you since you've got some good advice already. On an AL bass boat a jackplate is really not as big of a deal as it would be on a glass rig. If a boat has it installed already, great, but if not I wouldn't really worry about adding one. I also wouldn't worry about trailer brakes on this size boat unless you are towing with a small vehicle. If the boat will be stored outside, a good cover is a must-have. Small items like retractable tie-downs are standard on many boats now, but they are also pretty inexpensive comparatively so these would be a non-factor to me - can be added later. For graphs, whatever brand you choose, I would make sure both/all are the same brand for networking purposes. Being able to share waypoints, maps, transducers, etc between the console and bow is a very nice feature to have. This also means getting models that have ethernet/network ability since some brands like Lowrance have models that don't have this ability. You'll want a decent screen size, like a 7-size or bigger, at the console for navigation/mapping. For sonar tech, that really depends on how much you want to spend and what your goals are. I personally wouldn't be caught without the full array of SI/DI/2D sonar, but I have some friends that are content with without SI or even DI because they fish differently than I do. Some people like second consoles, some don't. I hate them personally, they take up more room and don't really offer any meaningful protection (other than maybe a placebo effect) for the co-angler. It also limits floor space for a co-angler's bag/stuff. Being safe is all about making smart decisions on bigger water and in rough conditions. I have several friends with AL boats, including a couple with Rt188's, they all fish the same waters I do and don't have problems...We have big water around here with the Potomac and Chesapeake too. They just make good decisions on those days when the weather turns. Those good decisions are really just common sense things like "don't run out to the main river when the wind is kicking" . Sounds like a 17 or 18 foot AL bassboat is a good choice for you. I took a similar path in that I started working early (at 15 ) with the goal of buying a boat. I ended up with a 17' Tracker and it suited me well for many years....As soon as I turned 16 I started fishing tournaments as a boater did so for many years out of that little boat before upgrading to glass. It was limiting in certain ways, but I believe it made me a better fisherman in the long run.

Bass Mafia box is great for this...I keep my jigs, chatterbaits, and punch rigs in here. There are 5 to 7 jigs in each compartment. I really only use a couple different color variations, but there are probably 80-ish jigs in this box.

The Potomac has plenty of ramps in protected creeks...The Bay has some too, but not quite as many. These creeks are entire fisheries themselves, as big or bigger than many normal bass lakes. The main river/bay are not too bad if the wind isn't kicking, but like fishnkamp said you need to watch out for the mega-yacht wakes even on calm days. Your boat will be fine...Just be smart if the winds are forecast to be 15mph or more. If you do end up coming this way, feel free to shoot me a message... I'll point you in the right direction for either place .

Upgraded the floating tackle box last week, was a little bittersweet dropping my Stratos off since it treated me so well for many years...But that all went out the window when I hitched this beauty up to the truck and drove home . Skeeter ZX250 / Yamaha SHO 250

Are YOU going? I get that you think you're helping but it seems a little misplaced from someone that admittedly hasn't even lived in the state for over 10 years. If hydrilla appears in a lake it's almost guaranteed that the governing body for the lake is going to attempt to eradicate it - they always do. If the plan is to eliminate hydrilla and introduce/encourage native grasses I think it's a good idea. It CAN be a problem to both the lake infrastructure and bass fishing if hydrilla is left to grow unchecked. I don't know if grass carp are a good idea or not...I generally hate the idea of putting them in anywhere...But normally it's homeowners associations or 'friends of the lake' type groups that push for them for aesthetic/non-fishing reasons and not DNR. If DNR is proposing it themselves I'd trust their judgement.

I'm fairly confident that these are all Megabass baits. For sure, the two flat-sides on the right are Flap Slaps. Top-left is a Bait-X. The rest look like Deep-X 100's and Deep-X 200T's...The two on the top-right could be Deep-X 150's, angle makes it tough to tell. The 150's have a more round overall shape than the 100's and 200T's. Most Megabass baits have the 'signature' somewhere, but sometime it fades out to the point where you can't see it. I also have some older ones that don't have it. I doubt they are knockoff's or custom blanks since these are not very popular models. They aren't collector items, but are nice baits...You should fish with them .

My annual post about Fish On Bass Anglers FOBA membership is always open to all boaters and co-anglers. We are a divisional club which means the boaters only compete with boaters and the co-anglers only compete with the other co-anglers. There are no minimum participation requirements or commitments, only 1-time annual dues and individual tournament entries. FOBA promotes learning and sharing so even if you've never fished a tournament or have never fished the locations on the schedule, you'll find that FOBA makes it easy. There is also a fun and competitive atmosphere for experienced tournament anglers. We use a mix of traditional weigh ins and also catch-weigh-release on the water. For the catch-weigh-release tournaments FOBA provides scales for every boat and fish are weighed, recorded, and released...It's MLF-style but still keeping a 5-fish limit. We use this format so that we can have tournaments on waters with funky size limits (like Black Hill) or during C&R-only times (non-tidal waters before June 15th). Traditional weigh ins need no explanation . Our 2018 schedule is below, we fish the most diverse schedule you'll find in this area and hit all of the great fisheries in the region. If have any questions or would like more information feel free to post or message.