It'sJason

I didnt mean the post as an argument at all, and I'm sorry if it came across that way. I just simply felt like reflecting on some of the differences there seems to be in the little I have been involved in. I cant speak to anything concerning competitions, I have zero experience with any sort of bass tournaments, and the fly fishing tournaments out here are such small time things results arent even posted online, so they mean absolutely nothing in this context.

Hey all, I've really had a great time reading through this subforum. I guess I might be a bit different, as I am a fairly well established (guide, prostaff, etc) fly fisherman (for trout) that has recently started to branch out towards conventional gear bass fishing. I am lucky enough to work with a couple companies that supports both, and they have been GREAT to me. But I've recently been approached by a few different companies on the bass side, and this combined with my previous experience and reading through this subforum, has shown the two worlds are light years apart. In my experience, with fly fishing, there are usually distinct, seperate levels with companies. Promotional staff (at the bottom), field staff (somewhere in the middle) and pro staff (at the top). In this industry, pro staff certainly means PROFESSIONAL, not promotional. As "prostaff" I was always responsible for MUCH more than simply posting tagged pictures on Instagram. R&D/design, reviews, writing articles for websites, how to videos, shaking hands at trade shows, forum sponsorship and activity management, etc. Honestly, I'd say at least 85% of the work done never appeared on ANY of my personal social media outlets. In exchange, Ive been equipped for free. No minimum purchase agreement, no starter packages, not even shipping. And I've always been happy with those arrangements. It seems, and has been said here, "pro" staff on this side of things means, and is, entirely different, with the "pro" meaning promotional (which in general would mean bottom rung in my world). Being approached by companies on the internet stating they would like me on their prostaff, I get excited, cite my work and what I can bring to their company. They'll say that's great, we'd love you to do all this. But it ALWAYS inevitably ends in "great, just purchase our prostaff starter kit for $99, and then..." Hold up. You see things like NPS, and the offers some of these companies have, and I cant help but think there must be a lot of anglers in this scene desperate to simply put a title on their social media accounts. It seems EVERYTHING is highly driven by social media, much more so than Im used to. And it also seems there is a plethora of companies ready to, dare I say, take advantage of young anglers trying to somehow get established in the industry. Is it typical to be offered meager discounts (Ive been offered as low as 10%) in exchange for a willingness and ability to do much more than simply tagging pictures? Granted, every company that has come to me so far has been relatively small, but I'd genuinely love to help a small company grow. I mean no disrespect to anyone that has these sorts of sponsorships, but it seems like pouring hundreds of hours a year into a company would be worth more than seventy three cents off a pack of plastic worms.

Aside from fishing, one of my favorite hobbies is wildlife photography. Figured a fishing forum would have a few people that also like other forms of wildlife, so I thought I'd share a few shots. I specially have a "thing" for mountain lions:

Baby rodent in a craw, frog, or bluegill color.

I like to use 4-8lb flouro for all my finesse spin gear, including DS and ned rigs. For both, I use a 7' ML/F with a 3000 size reel. For the ned rig, I like to step up to a 3000 size reel, and have it be relatively quick. Reason being, a lot of ned rigging is kinda like wacky and flick shake. You're going to get hit a lot on slow, slack line falls. A little bit large reel has a bigger spool, which helps with memory in the flouro a bit, and picks up a bit quicker.

Take special note of the dents, missing fender flare, missing center cap, and left over decal adhesive on the fuel door too, all optional extras! And I assure you, it looks just as bad, errr good, from all other angles!

I use a 1998 Jeep XJ (cherokee). It isnt pretty by any means, but runs perfect and is exactly what I wanted in a fish-mobile. I can hop in with wet waders and muddy boots, throw a scummy float tube in the back or kayak on top, and not think twice about ruining some nice new interior. Got a secret hole up a nasty rocky or muddy road? It's an XJ, no problem, it'll get there. And it will tow a small boat just fine. Bought it for $700 and had it back on the road in 3 days (perks of being an ex-mechanic).

Thought I'd share some pics of my latest trip. I fished Hinkson slough, a smallish pond/wetland area located inside the Mason Valley Wildlife management area near Yerington, Nevada, via a float tube. I went on the 27th, 3 days before they close for the season. Fishing was excellent. I managed about 25 fish landed or so. Most were small, around a foot (thats about average for around here), but I did manage two bass of decent size. Finesse flick-shaking was the key for me! A couple of these cool solid emerald-green largies: A couple others: Getting bigger: The mark of a good day:

19" and that thick could go 5. If you can guestimate the girth, there are calculators you can use. Its always hard to tell in pictures. How large the person is, hands are, etc all play a role. This one was 18" and went 4.1, yes with a scale:

Hi all, My name is Jason, and I'm out of the Reno, NV area. I'm a guide and prostaffer. I can be found around the area cruising for bass in the lakes and ponds, as well as in the rivers fly fishing for trout and smallies. Hope I can learn a few new things, and help a few others as well! Looking forward to getting to know you all, and admiring all those southern bass while I sit up here frozen solid for the next 4-5 months!