Gator Jeaux

I love Castin' Cajun and Sportsman TV, great shows about fishing in Louisiana and the Gulf.

That's true. They try to tell us that NASCAR was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948. That's not true. He bought the rights to what was already known as the National Stock Car Racing Association (NSCRA), which was founded in 1929 by Red Vogt. That specific idea of an organized stock car racing league was created by Vogt. France, with financial help from Raymond Parks, took control of the operation and pushed both Vogt and Parks to the side while "his" NASCAR took the country by storm. Since then, the governing body has been a regime by the France Family with little to no credit given to Vogt or Parks. So yes, it is a sport definitely built around cheating.

Haha Don't worry. It happens to all of us.

I think I remember reading that same thing from you on the first page of this thread.

I grew up watching NASCAR with my mom. I don't know if she was really a fan before I got into it. First race I saw was on TV in 1998. I was 2 or 3 years old, most likely 3 since I was able to talk. She was watching a race on TV, and I asked her what she was watching. She said it's called NASCAR. So I stayed with her a bit watching the colorful cars go around the track. She asked me if there was a car I liked, and I said I like the one with the rainbow on it. She told me that's Jeff Gordon. And from that moment, I was a NASCAR fan, and Jeff Gordon was my driver. We went to our first race, the 2002 NAPA Auto Parts 500 at California Speedway (now Auto Club Speedway), when I was 6 years old. That was the day I got hooked on racing and became passionate about it. We've been going back to the track every year since then. It's the best way for us to bond aside from fishing. We even started going to the Busch Series (now Nationwide Series) race the Saturday before the NEXTEL Cup Series (now Sprint Cup Series) race on Sunday. Then we started going to the track on Friday to watch practice and qualifying making it a full race weekend for us. We've been doing that for many years. But last year was the first year we got the full experience. We went out there from that Thursday for the Hauler Parade to Sunday for the Auto Club 400. We also went to our NASCAR Home Track, Irwindale Speedway, for the first time last year. Race Weekend is my favorite weekend of every year. Cherish the time you spend with your son at the track. Trust me, he'll grow up cherishing it and will always be thankful you spent the time with him enjoying such an awesome sport and bonding as family.

I've been a fan since 1998. I've been going to Auto Club Speedway every year since 2002. I've been to about 20 races by now. I've been to so many that I've really lost count. I watch all the races on TV (even if I'm at the race, I'll go home and re-watch the television coverage). Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series, and Camping World Truck Series, I never miss a race unless I really need to (only race I've missed so far this season was because I attended a wedding). I also follow the K&N Pro Series East and West, Whelen Modified and Southern Modified Tours, and Whelen All-American Series. I visited my NASCAR Home Track, Irwindale Speedway, for the first time last year. My favorite international series is the Canadian Tire Series.

Glad to know I'm not the only diehard NASCAR fan here.

I do see more people use circle hooks when saltwater fishing. That's the fishing I mostly grew up doing. I only did freshwater fishing about 3 times. I agree with you on using it for bass fishing. Right now, I'm watching videos of people bass fishing with circle hooks. I'm not going to find a ton of videos on it because people don't usually specify their hooks when talking about their catches or fishing methods. That's why I started this thread specifically on circle hooks.

I think you can get a bad hook-set with just about any hook. It all depends on how you're using it. I'd use octopus hooks on hard bait lures. I know for some soft baits, I'd have to use a J-hook with a bent shank. But for the most part, I'd prefer to use a circle hook with my soft baits.

That's some great info! I often wonder why tackle companies don't create a circle hook with a bend on the shank that would be perfect for many soft baits. I find myself wanting to use the Carolina Rig more than the Texas Rig. And Kevin VanDam really got me interested in trying the Double Zulu Rig. Another thing I was thinking about was using fresh bait from squid and bait fish. I do a lot of saltwater inshore fishing, and the best bait for that is always fresh bait. Around here, that's usually squid or cut-up mackerel. I did find saltwater-specialty circle hooks, so I assume such bait would be perfect on them.

I haven't fished since before I started high school (which was a long time ago). I've spent the entire summer so far researching everything about fishing from the basics of it to very detailed explanations on how to work a jig and such. When I read about different hook types, I was very intrigued by the circle hook. I'm a sport fisherman who loves catch-and-release, only twice on my young fishing trips did I take my catch home (once when I caught my first shark, the other time when my aunt wanted to eat what I caught). I watch a lot of videos that explain different fishing techniques using all sorts of tackle, but it seems circle hooks are usually saved for discussions specifically on them. I know circle hooks are the ideal choice for catch-and-release fishing, and I want to learn all the options that come with using a circle hook. What rigs will the circle hook work for? What soft bait will work for a circle hook (only thing I've ever seen anyone put on a circle hook is a worm)? Where can you use a circle hook, and where can't you? Are there times when you just can't use a circle hook and it's best to go to something else? Etc. I hope this thread will really provide a lot of information on circle hooks. Talk about ways you like to use the circle hook. Maybe you've noticed certain disadvantages to it as well as some great advantages. I'll really appreciate the information.

Heat and humidity I can handle; I'm from Southern California. Mosquitoes, I can learn to deal with them. Every region has its annoying bugs that can harm you.

I sort of plan on using a monofilament line with a fluorocarbon leader for all of my rigs. Good or bad idea? It should be noted that as for now, I only bank fish. I'd probably get a braided line for when I get a friend who has a boat and we're fishing in thick brush.

Haha I never was much of a college sports fan (except for stock car racing at UNOH). I grew up a NASCAR fan! Hope that's alright with you. ^.^ My father's family was from Nova Scotia. Very few of them settled into Michigan, if I remember correctly. The majority settled into Orleans Parish. I'll visit New Orleans to see where my dad came from, but I'm not a big metropolis guy. I'll be perfectly happy in the small, rural Cajun community of Jeff Davis Parish. I should note that my dad never liked fishing. He always preferred crabbing. haha

Awesome, thanks! I hear great things about Irvine, so I look forward to going there!

Thanks! I currently live in Los Angeles County, CA, but I plan on moving to Jefferson Davis Parish, LA once I save up enough money.

Thanks Jeff!

Thank you so much!

I'm from the Los Angeles area, too. Inglewood, to be exact. I used to go to Alondra Park for my freshwater fishing. Any knowledge on how the fishing is at other lakes? I do have Castaic Lake, Lake Piru, and Pyramid Lake in my list. How about Irvine Lake and Santa Fe Dam? My main concern is finding a place where I can catch and release. I have no intention of keeping any fish I catch, and I know some lakes have a no catch-and-release policy. I'd also hate to go to a lake fishing for something I can catch and release but end up catching something I'm not allowed to release. Some lakes have different policies for each species. Should be important to note I'm just a bank fisherman. I don't have a boat, although I'd love to have a friend who has a boat.

How's the fishing over by Jefferson Davis Parish? Is Lake Arthur any good with fishing? And if not, are there any surrounding bodies of water that are good for fishing?

And this is where my question comes in. It probably sounds like a dumb question because it's never explained. People always just talk about changing rigs and retying them without fully explaining how to change or retie your rig. Let's say my rig is on a leader attached to a swivel. Do I just cut the leader from the swivel? And what if I want to use the same rig but change the bait on the rig, say I go from soft bait to a crankbait. Would I cut the line or try to untie it? And now that I think about it, my leader would get shorter as I change the terminal tackle on my rig. Is it better to just use a new leader and make a new rig? I would hate to feel like I'm wasting fluorocarbon line if I can still use it as a leader.

Thank y'all for the warm welcome!

Yes sir! I am a proud ragin' Cajun who's roots are deep in Louisiana. My ancestors moved there from Canada before the War for Southern Independence. Some of my ancestors bravely fought to defend their home and the Confederacy. My father left Louisiana to join the Navy. He proudly served in the Korean War and is a decorated veteran. He moved to Southern California, a place he often visited as a child, where he met my mother. I do plan on moving to LA to get back to my Cajun roots. There is a place called Jefferson Davis Parish that seems just perfect for me.

Hi everyone! My name is André J. Davillae! I'm from Southern California (Los Angeles South Bay to be exact). Fishing has always been my favorite hobby. I first learned how to fish with my Uncle at a local park lake fishing for largemouth and smallmouth bass. I spent the rest of my years saltwater inshore fishing at some of Southern California's beautiful beaches with him and a lot of times with my Mama. It was a great way for us to bond, and it really helped show me how important outdoor activities are for families. I do prefer freshwater fishing as it's a bit more relaxing than having to deal with loud, crashing waves of the fast-moving ocean, and it's less crowded than having dozens of people jam-packed onto one pier. I'm not exclusively a bass fisherman when it comes to freshwater fishing, but I do prefer bass (especially smallmouths, I hear they put up the best fight). I found this site because I was looking for a forum more active than TakeMeFishing, which isn't very active at all. And seeing how active this site is, I'm hoping I can learn a lot of great things about bass fishing and perhaps make a couple of fishing buddies. Fishing with friends is just as important as fishing with family, and I hope to make some friends with whom I can go fishing.