Koz

No, you’re not a dumb guy and local tournaments are fun and rewarding. And BTW, Phoenix co anglers aren’t fishing for chump change. Depending upon the event, first place pays $3k - $50k.

I’m not being condescending here because I fish local tournaments as well, but prize money for boaters in even an MLF Phoenix Series event can be $10k to $100k depending upon the event. That changes things a lot.

You’re lucky. Were those local events or MLF or BASS events?

If you ever fished as a co-angler with a boater who constantly turned 90, 180, and 360 with the trolling motor at 75% speed you’d understand. The rules state that the boater cannot impede the co-angler from fishing, but that’s what is going on with 30% - 40% of the boaters and it’s getting worse. It’s so bad that MLF is having problems find co-anglers in both the Phoenix and Toyota series events. I usually fish 6-8 of those events but I quit after 2 events this year. I’m even passing up the big Super Event on one of my home lakes this fall.

Bank fishing off my back yard has been terrible this summer. I think I have caught only 4 or 5 bass. In the spring I catch that in an hour. On the other hand, kayak fishing on smaller lakes has been great. But on the big lakes it has been tougher. Still, it has been a lot better than last year. I am looking forward to the cooler weather when all of the jet skis and pontoon boats pulling rafts are off the lake.

There’s a better way to do it than his setup. You can project the FFS screen from the Active Captain app to your AR glasses without that dumb looking phone frame he has. Then you can set the opacity of that projection so you can still see it but also see through it so you never block your view. FWIW, MLF sent me a survey the other day regarding FFS. My response was to ban it in co angler tournaments and limit it to one transducer and one screen on pro tour events.

That’s a good idea. I’ll look into that. Thanks.

I considered the Connect Ease stuff including the system they previewed at iCast. It looks great, but it’s really expensive. I’m saving my money for a few big additions in 2025. I have some converters already ordered and due in today. I also have some liquid electrical tape on hand. That stuff is great. All my runs already have fuses, so it’s just a matter of cleaning things up. I initially set everything up as temporary because I was moving things around for a while. Now it’s time for a permanent solution.

Well, not really more power but more connections. I currently have a 100Ah battery in the main AP120 battery box for the trolling motor. Then I have another 100Ah battery in a battery box in the tank well. That connects to a Yak Power 5 circuit hub. That hub connects to bow lights, deck lights, my livescope black box, my UHD 93 head unit, and my navigation sensor. Then I have an 18Ah battery that connects to my Helix 7 that I use strictly for mapping. But now I find myself needing ports for cameras and my phone. I have a Yak Power battery box that has two USB ports that I can use for the Helix and cameras, but I am running short on usable space when I load my Blackpack and cooler. So now I’m thinking of changing out my Yak Power 5 circuit to an 8 circuit, but with taxes and shipping that’s another $200. Hopefully I can find a place to put the smaller Yak Power box. I don’t have much room in the rear hatch with the black box and the Yak Power circuit. It’s too big to fit in the front hatch. Regardless, one thing I am going to this week is pull all the wiring and run it again making it a bit neater. That includes using PET sleeves. I’m also going to finally solder my wire connections. When I got started with kayak fishing I never realized how far down the rabbit hole I would go with electrical components.

I ran a Marriott in the Portland - Scarborough area back in the 90’s and lived in Old Orchard Beach and then in Yarmouth. I used to bike ride from both those places to Freeport and Kennebunkport. Route 1 had the bike lanes as wide as car lanes that made for a pleasant ride. My old Assistant GM now runs a hotel in Bar Harbor.

Fall?! We still have heat indices over 100 here. Years ago I lived in Maine and enjoyed the summers and fall, but I was not a fan of the winters and the ice storms. Beautiful countryside, though.

Welcome! Decades ago I grew up in Newtown,

I skip just about every bait in my arsenal using any of my bait casters. I do have a shallow spool Lew’s pitching and skipping reel but I really haven’t used it much. Since I have a dock in my backyard I had a place to practice when learning. It was a little trickier learning to skip while sitting in my kayak. Positioning is key. Spot lock jog helps me with that. But there’s one bait I need to try skipping that I have not practiced yet - a buzzbait. But I will need to find the right trailer to make that happen, probably a toad. Normally I throw buzzbaits without a trailer.

Here’s a photo of my Ketch board with the Ketch Keeper attached to my Blackpack. You can also see the Ketch IDentifier holder attached to the board and the leash attached to my board and seat.

I was waiting for the fish to brush up against him while he was trying to free the line. It was dark and creepy out there and he probably would have freaked out. I know I would have.

My AP 120 has storage for 4 boxes right next to my seat. Then In my Blackpack I have one Plano Edge for terminal tackle, one box for kayak repair, one or two 3700’s for miscellaneous baits, two small boxes for jig heads, and three speed bags for soft plastics. The Blackpack holds six rods , then I have two built in rear rod holders of which one is used for my net. I also have two forward facing built in rod holders, but I use one for my net to block this fish from flipping off during photo time and the other for whatever rod I am using at that time. With that, I bring a maximum of 8 rods but try to keep it between 4 and 6.

I’ll take a picture tomorrow. I picked up this bundle with the keeper, ID, and tether: https://ketchproducts.com/product/board-accessories-bundle/ I attach the tether to the board and my seat strap. Now it’s quick and easy to reach back and grab the board and I don’t have to worry about it sinking if I drop it in the water. Next I’m looking for a swing arm for my phone to make it easier to take a picture to record the catch for tournaments. Or I might set up my GoPro on a swing mount and then I can just say, “GoPro, take picture” then download that to my phone. Taking a picture of your catch for a tournament is a pain and I want to simplify the process.

From the first day I put this together, closed it for a while (empty), then opened it I swear it smells like weed. And no, I don’t do any drugs. I like my Blackpack a lot. The way it’s constructed with the grid holes you can attach other YakAttack accessories to it. I have 6 rod holders on mine plus I attached a Ketch Keeper for my Ketch Board. I may also add the Blackpack short stack for a small top compartment for things like a scale, tools, shear pins, extra prop, etc. If you keep all of your rods clipped, you don’t have to worry about the hooks. I like the hooks. They saved me more than once as I was navigating cypress trees amidst a field of stumps and timber.

Tonight, just after sunset, I took my dog outside and took a few casts while he did his business. I skipped a Jackhammer / Freeloader under my dock with a quick retrieve. Nothing. I skipped it under again , let it sink, and WHAM! I set the hook, cranked, and the battle was on. My Expride rod was bent over and the fish was peeling drag from my Curado baitcaster. I started making progress getting it out from under the dock and tried to tighten my drag and it dove back under the dock, still peeling drag. And then it wrapped around one of the dock posts. It was getting dark and harder to see, so I let out line and tapped on the back window to get my son to bring a flashlight. But it was to no avail. We couldn’t see much. So he grabs a life jacket, gets in the water, and goes under the dock to see what he can do. He hates spiders, and of course there are spiders under the dock. But he braves it out. But he couldn’t get close enough to where it was wrapped underwater. I was going to have to break the braided line. I wrapped the line around a kayak paddle for leverage to snap it, and the line started moving. It was still wrapped around the post, but I was pulling it in. Then I felt the fish fight again. Then the line slacked, the fish pulled again, and the line snapped. I’m not sure what’s worse, losing a big fish or the Jackhammer. Who am I kidding? It’s the Jackhammer. My guess is that it was a pretty big catfish. Maybe it was a gar. I’ve seen some 3 footers here as well. I’ve caught some 20+ pound catfish here, but none peeled drag like this one. Or maybe I can convince myself it was a 15 pound bass 😀 Anyway, it was an exciting night. Except for losing a Jackhammer. That stinks.

The St. Croix Bass X rods are good, inexpensive rods. I have two of them and like them as much as I like my Exprides.

I have the 13x16. Does yours have an odd odor?

My backyard is a lake. When I take the dog out in the morning I’ll make a few casts. In the summer evenings I may go out once or twice for 10-15 minutes at a time. In the spring or fall I probably fish a bit longer since fishing is poor here during the summer. But if I want to fish fish I head out on my kayak.

I’ve been emailing back and forth with one of the Toyota Series tournament directors regarding FFS in co angler competitions. Long story short, MLF emails past participants regarding upcoming tournaments. I emailed back stating I won’t enter unless they clarify the rule they have in place regarding hindering co anglers. While the TD did not provide much detail, he did say they were working on it. My guess is that there will be updated rules next year. It’s too bad they haven’t figured it out this year because I wanted to fish the Oconee tournament since my hotel is on that lake. I also wanted to fish Santee Cooper. But neither are worth the entry fee on the chance O draw a boater that spends the day weaving all of the place at speed.

You’re not in direct competition. Anglers compete against anglers and co-anglers compete against co-anglers. I’ve had some good tournaments as a co-angler when the boater gives me a chance to fish.

It took me months of using it and tweaking my settings to get things just right. It became frustrating to say the least. But the last three weeks have been amazing when I have used it. Seeing my bait and watching the fish chase it and eat it has been a rush. I don’t use it fishing the banks, but I do rely on it in open water whether it’s finding predators or baitfish. If you have a Garmin I’ll be happy to share my settings.