Superstition & Rituals

[geo g]

I'm not a superstitious guy but I will not eat or take a banana with me the morning of a trip.  I also do not like catching a fish on the first cast.  Over the years, Too many trips have been a gone south after that!  Did I say I'm not superstitious.

[Catch 22]

Fishing along with no catching,if I tie on diffrent lure and catch a bass on the first cast with it,its done for the rest of the day. Another lure fish first cast ,its done. Had that happen so many times.

No bananas,no alchohol on board

C22

[tstraub]

I always make my first cast short and to a place that I feel is unlikely to get a bite then retrieve it quickly to try to avoid catching a fish.

I never fill the livewell until I need it.

Now I have a question.  They say it's unlucky to change the name of a boat and it's also unlucky to have a boat without a name.  I got my boat used and have no idea if it has a name.  If the previous owner named it they didn't mark it in any way to show is name or the dealer removed the name.  So should I give it a name and possibly change its name or not name it?  Which is the least unlucky?

[Mugs]

Name it "Whatshername". You should be Ok..

[BrianSnat]

I'm kind of superstitious. When I played baseball and softball I would not wash my uniform after I had a good game. Thankfully I was not good enough to have more than 2 or 3 good games in a row.   When I was a serious bowler I had a routine I had to go through before each time in threw the ball.  But fishing?  No. Superstition has never come into play.

[WI_Angler1989]

 

[southernson1989]

I love Copenhagen dip. It seems that I always start catching the bass after I put in my first dip on the water. Even if I'm using the same lure and presentation. So now i dont dip on the way to the lake and pack a hammer when i get to my first spot before i make a cast. That might be a superstition but 9 times out 10 it works out. I even checked my fishing journal and it seems to be validated. Another thing I do is I spit some bacca juice on my soft plastics and rub it in or on the line when I'm retyeing if got a dip in. It seems when the bang and the jj's magic ain't helping the juice will. Kinda makes sense. Who would have thought garlic and coffee scents would work but they do so it's not that far-fetched  to think that tobacco would. Anybody else try this?

[N Florida Mike]

I probably had a chew in when I caught my best fish but I quit a few years later.I've caught several that were almost as big without it.I've probably caught 80% of my bass without it now.Tried Copenhagen once and nearly barffed.And I chewed red man,Levi garret and beechnut,even whitemule.But quit when I was 25.I catch a lot more fish in general now than I did then but I think its just that I've learnt how to fish better!

[Jaderose]

A few I guess....1.)  I always wear the same old beat up ball cap and I don't usually wear hats.  2.) Like a few others, I always thank the fish and God when I do catch one.  2.)  When I catch a decent size fish I always put a slip resistant glove on my left hand so I can handle the fish better.  I got finger hooked really bad once when a fish I caught shimmied while I was trying to remove a stubborn treble and I dropped it...which drove the treble into a finger on my right hand.  The thing is...I DO NOT LEAVE THE GLOVE ON.  If I do, it seems like I never get another bite.  I have to put that glove on after I've boated the fish, unhook it, release it, and take the glove off.  Weird?  Don't care....it works for me.

Another one I thought of....If I'm froggin, on my first cast I will take the time to light a smoke before I ever move the bait.  It's amazing how many times I've cast that first frog out there..let it set while I fire up a smoke..and then have it get hammered right after that first twitch.

[DelcoSol]

I will make my first five casts of the day to areas that "shouldn't" have fish. On days that I have caught fish within the first five casts I always think that it will be great then I either get skunked or something else bad happens to the boat or gear. Also Ice Cube's Today was a good day gets played at least once. 

[RHuff]

On February 24, 2016 at 5:10 PM, Texas_Rig_Aggie said:

Do you have any superstitious practices or rituals/habits that you do to bring good fortune on the water?

When I remove worn out soft-plastics, the ones that catch fish get a special burial/retirement up in windshield of the passenger side of the boat. The failures get tossed to the floor.

I also prefer to fish on an empty stomach--- I want my primal instincts to kick in to make me a better hunter

 

 

I do too, but to avoid having to take a dump while out on the water. 

[Megastink]

The whole banana in the boat thing makes me laugh. I don't allow fruit to dictate my fishing success. 

[JGillyFishing]

On February 25, 2016 at 7:19 PM, Greed said:

My only superstition is if I get bit on my first cast it's going to be a slow day. 

This is about my only one too. It seriously happens every single time. I have never got hit on the first few casts then had a good day. Other than that I have my fishing visor that I always wear. I just happened to catch my PB the first time I wore it. I don't think it's lucky or anything but I just like to stick to tradition

[Ratherbfishing]

Well, I start the day by leaving the drain plug out of my boat.  Then, I make sure to flood the engine by priming it too much.  I will intentionally forget to lift the trolling motor out of the water so as to create a big rooster tail to shower me and my passengers with dirty lake water and finally, for good measure, I will often forget to pull the anchor up and drag it around for awhile-all the while wondering why my boat is moving is so sluggish.  Usually these practices will ensure that I will only fall out of the boat once.

[JLL130]

Ritual for me.    Get good jig or swim bait so badly hung up you have to cut your line,  then offer that to fishing gods as sacrifice for a good catch, all the while cussing them.  At least thats what I've convinced myself, kinda like hitting a golf ball into the lake to satisfy golf gods.  

[the reel ess]

I won't leave home without a Rat L Trap and a plastic craw. I can't think of any real superstitions. I used to wear a particular hat but it has proven to let me down.

[Dye99]

I fished a few tourneys back in the day, and I started my fishing hat theory.

I fish with one hat a year. So beginning each new year, I pick out a new "fishing hat" and wear it for that year when ever fishing.

 

[tstraub]

3 hours ago, Dye99 said:

I fished a few tourneys back in the day, and I started my fishing hat theory.

I fish with one hat a year. So beginning each new year, I pick out a new "fishing hat" and only wear it and it alone for that year when ever fishing.

 

I hope you carry plenty of sun screen if the only thing you wear is a hat while fishing.  LOL

Tyler

[Dye99]

9 hours ago, tstraub said:

I hope you carry plenty of sun screen if the only thing you wear is a hat while fishing.  LOL

Tyler

Hahaha...Yea...the state makes me wear more nowadays!

 

[imagine29028]

dont understand the banana thing....

[tstraub]

26 minutes ago, imagine29028 said:

dont understand the banana thing....

The story I've always heard is that because bananas have such a short shelf life only the fastest ships were used to transport bananas.  If you used a slow boat the bananas would go bad before they reached their destination.  Crewmen noticed that the fishing was poor while transporting bananas and blamed bad luck on the bananas not the speed they were moving.

Tyler

[Breakin heads]

I have one, every time I catch a fish on the first cast the rest of my day is horrible. So before I start fishing I flip my bait about 5 feet out and reel it in quick so I get that first cast out of the way.

[ranger7717]

bananas are really good for you