BigTonyB

On my spinner baits I use a trailer, usually a paddle tail, and a trailer hook. For some reason the fish in the lakes I fish really like short striking. I tried shortening the skirts, down sizing, slow rolling, and popping it, and still got short strikes. I put on the trailer hook and my catch rate went way up! Pardon the pun, but I'm hooked on trailer hooks.

Retired after 20 years in the AF. Now, I'm an Air Force civilian.

My buddy and I normally fish small bodies of water in his 16' aluminum flat-bottom boat with a 50 HP Honda. Our local fishing club was hosting a tournament on Toledo Bend and we didn't think his boat was up to the challenge. No problem though, his father had just bought a brand new 21' Skeeter with a 250 HP Yamaha and he was kind enough to loan it to us. We left the launch and made a short run (a few hundred yards) to our first fishing spot and fished a while. We then decided that because we had this fine fishing machine to shuttle us around the vastness of Toledo Bend we might as well take advantage of it. We got out into the boat lane and he put the hammer down. We made it to our next spot which was several miles south and across the lake in no time. We fished a while and decided to move again. We headed north past our initial launch point. We were moving and I was wearing out my arms holding on for dear life as we approached 70 mph. It was early afternoon and the wind was chopping up the surface of the lake pretty good. When we stopped to fish again I asked my buddy, "Have you ever driven a boat that fast before?" His reply: "Never". Cheers, Tony

I'm lucky. I've got a BPS, Academy, DSG and a few smaller shops within a few miles of my house. The BPS in Bossier City is right on the Red River, a world-class fishery. When given a choice I usually go with BPS for my larger purchases because they have a 10% military discount. There's a boat dealer (Bayou Outdoors Supercenter) that has a small fishing tackle section with some great items. There are also some small mom & pop shops near Caddo Lake, Lake Claiborne, and Grand Bayou that I've been in and several I've not been in. When I travel to the east side of Toledo Bend I usually stop at Toledo Town and there's a small shop near Sam Rayburn that I've visited. My local Wal-Mart Supercenters are not good choices for tackle at all. The inventory is a mess and the prices are not good enough to spend time sifting through the mess. Cheers, Tony

Punching through giant salvinia....is it worth it? I fish Lake Bistineau in NW Louisiana and if you've fished it you know Louisiana is fighting giant salvinia there and other lakes in the area. It's discouraging to come around a bend in the channel and see your favorite fishing hole completely covered in salvinia. Is it worth trying to punch through it and get below it? Would I be wasting my time? Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks, BigTonyB

After retiring from the AF 5 years ago I moved to NW Louisiana and met a great guy who got me into bass fishing. I grew up on Lake Erie fishing for yellow perch and walleye so bass was kind of foreign to me. I'm totally into it now. Living near so many world-class pieces of water has definitely helped. I spend most of my time on Lake Bistineau fishing stumps and creek channels when the giant salvinia allows it. I've made several trips down to Toledo Bend and Sam Rayburn as well. The Red River didn't get much attention from me this season because of the spring floods. Maybe I'll hit it up this fall/winter. I'm a voracious reader and will read everything I can. I've already used some of the information I've gleaned from this page out on the water (drop shotting grass lines on Sam Rayburn was awesome and productive). Cheers, Tony B