How well do You deal with getting skunked?

[Smokinal]

[Hook2Jaw]

3 minutes ago, Smokinal said:

 

[Catt]

2 hours ago, Jigfishn10 said:

I grab a can of tomato juice before I hit the water in case I catch the skunk’s spray.

 

Most here will not get that ?

[Trox]

I actually skunked in my first tournament of the year a couple of weeks ago. At weigh in, I just trailered the boat and left. Cried the entire 3hr drive home... 

 

Not really (on the cryin' part) ?, but I did take something away from the beating though so it wasn't a complete loss, which is what counts imo.

[Mr. Bassin II]

6 hours ago, WRB said:

Watch MLF, every top pro who fishes this series ends up skunked at times, couldn’t catch a single 1 lb bass?

Tom

 

I have been fishing D'Arbonne since I was ten years which I have been fishing there for 44 years and even have a lake house there.  One simply gets used to getting skunked when bass fishing there.  

 

Be sure to watch Wednesday because Caney is going to be insane!  It's not if someone catches a 10+ but how many are caught.  Bussey's going to provide a lot of excitement and produce a great final round.

 

Moral of the story is: If you don't like getting skunked, go to different water.

[Bird]

On days that I have that overwhelming feeling that a skunk is inevitable......I'll simply tie on a chatterbait and succumb. 

[Trox]

8 minutes ago, Bird said:

I'll simply tie on a chatterbait and succumb. 

You're gonna mess around and catch something like that if you're not careful lol

[Marco VS]

I have one simple thing I say to myself, usually after a little while kicking the dirt on the track back to the car.... sometimes over a burger on my way home (it helps) and that's always.... 

"hey, could of been a day working in the office" 

All of a sudden, even getting skunked isn't so bad

[Jigfishn10]

8 hours ago, Catt said:

 

Most here will not get that ?

It certainly looks like I got skunked. ?

[ike8120]

I am use to it, just another day of fishing. Hopefully better luck next time.

[ironbjorn]

If I'm getting skunked and there's no signs of promise I'll sit down and pray the rosary or browse on my phone while enjoying the outdoors. 

 

In other words, it doesn't bother me at all. Disappointing, sure, but entirely forgettable and doesn't bring forth any discernable negativity out of me.

 

Same with my other hobbies. 8 ball pool (league play, and for fun) and competitive Call of Duty gaming. If I lose, I lose. I'll never understand the guys that explode in anger or pout or cry and throw tantrums or cuss or any of that garbage. 

[Zcoker]

Watch out for those skunk sessions. Time seems to slow, the mind wanders, mixed feeling rush about, and then, suddenly, the fish of a lifetime explodes on the lure! Are you ready? I've missed some very big fish while fighting the skunk battle. Whether being skunked or not, I've learned to act as a cocked gun until I am completely off the water and finished for the day. Seems to help me through the emotional roller coaster of trying everything and still being skunked. I can worry about the skunked part later on while driving home lol 

[NavyToad]

I never looked at getting skunked as anything more than “just one of those days”.

[Bankc]

I'm very Zen.  I enjoy the act of fishing itself.  I would be more likely to burn out on fishing if I never got skunked.  So in a way, I actually like it.  It means I have more to learn and am not yet at that place where the sport has nothing left to offer me.  

[JustJames]

I should have my wife answers how she handle me when I got skunked which happens on daily basis, because I always come home whining and tell her “honey let’s move, there is no fish in this lake”. ???

[Jmilburn76]

Getting skunked doesn't bother me one bit these days.Im just glad for any opportunity to fish and be in the great outdoors, plus I suck at fishing so I get skunked often.?

[RDB]

IMO, getting skunked is a good thing and one of the motivators to improve our skills and knowledge.  Most questions on this site are about areas of struggle, not success.  Failure is a necessary component of growth.  We grow muscle by tearing it down and building it back stronger.  Without failure, there is really no reason to evaluate and improve.

[SC53]

Happens to the best. 

[Lead Head]

I've said it before, but I'll throw it out there again...

While catching is the goal, I love fishing. I love pretty much everything about being on the water with a rod and reel in my hand. 

Skunks aren't common, but they definitely show up more than I would like. It don't bother me one bit. In fact, if I knew without a doubt I would never catch another fish, I would still go out. Not nearly as often as I do now, but I would still wander out to my "happy place" every now an then.

 

[Choporoz]

17 minutes ago, SC53 said:

Happens to the best. 

No doubt.   But if any one of them isn't upset, they probably should be in a different line of work. 

[FishinBuck07]

I live in Ohio!  It is just part of life!?

[geo g]

It doesn't happen very often, but it has  happened.  I will start practicing the accuracies of my casting.  Can I hit that opening way back in the pad field.  Can I hit that cypress knee under the tree with the bird nest.  Can I hit the break in the weed line with this wind.  I try to find the most difficult, distant, targets to reach.

 

It becomes a game of darts, or target practice, and usually the skunk suddenly disappears.  If I reach my target it is like a personnel accomplishment, go for the impossible, have FUN, forget about the lack of bites!  I go to a range because it's fun, same thing with a lure, hit the target!

[scaleface]

Not catching a keeper is getting skunked on keepers . Not catching anything at all is a true skunking . We counting  keepers or bass ? 

[The Bassman]

11 minutes ago, scaleface said:

Not catching a keeper is getting skunked on keepers . Not catching anything at all is a true skunking . We counting  keepers or bass ? 

Gotta be a 12 incher to take the skunk off of me. My surest recipe for a bad outing is indecision as far as technique choice. Constant bait changing all but guarantees a lean session for me. Some of my best catches have come at times that I only carried one or maybe two baits.

[InfantryMP]

On 2/7/2022 at 3:02 PM, MN Fisher said:

As I stated in another thread....I'm out to enjoy the quiet time on the water....if I catch something, it's a bonus.

 

So being skunked isn't a bad thing, it's just a thing.

This is me as well. If I get skunked, it happens. I am productive in other ways. I will graph over things, maybe eliminate some water. I will always have a good time being out on the water in the boat!