improvement this year

[playmaker47]

What do you guys feel you have improved in your fishing skills this year so far.

i definatley think that i have improved more this year than any other year before. the number 1 reason is this is the first year that ive been on this forum.

the things that i have improved are...

1. i never used to use spinnerbaits before this year. i had no confidence in them, but i forced myself to fish with them one day at a pond and had great success with them, now they are one of my favorite lures.

2. i also started using a drop shot for the first time this year. i never used it before and i tried it one day at a small city lake, and had great success and found that it helps to have the plastic bait hover in front of a fish.

3. i also improved my strong suit. pitching soft plastics. it has always been my favorited, and most succesful technique, but this year i have improved my pitching accuracy by alot. i can now precisly place it easily where i want it, and before this year i could pitch accuratly some pitches, but alot of them were a foot or 2 off sometimes.

One thing i feel however that i have decreased my skills in is fishing weightless soft plastics. i used to use that as my #1 go to technique, but i havent ended up using it so far this year. every time i go out i try and improve somthing that i dont use or do somthing new, and i havent done the soft plastics weightless yet. it used to produce great for me and i caught my 2nd largest bass ever with it, but i have gotten away from it. that is one thing that i want to work on before this year is over.

[roadwarrior]

When I'm fishing one of my ponds I usually take one rod and one lure only. I am completely focused on improving my skills at fishing that lure and that technique that day.

I don't bring along my soft plastics unless I know I'm going to have the time to fish the pond twice around. Otherwise, I know I'll be thinking that I ought to be throwing a soft plastic, weightless! That's my strong suit, too. I'm not trying to get away from soft plastics, but just expand my horizons.

To answer the question specifically, it's jigs for me. Members of the forum have reinforced the overwhelming consensus in the literature that jigs are THE big bass lure. I have fished jigs in the past with some success, but not to the extent I have this year. They are still not my favorite lure, but I am getting a better feel for the bite.

[Pond-Pro]

           I have discoverd how productive softplastics on the bottom is.  The first bait I tried this year was a t-rigged baby brush hog with a 1/8oz wait. I caught a bass on my first cast. I recentley outfished a friend 12 to 8.  I caught bass right where he was fishing a spinnerbait with my creature bait. My main method of catching them last year was a wieghtless stickbait. Now I have learned another productive method.  ;D

[FutureClassicChamp]

ive improved my ability to locate fish and figure out patterns better on unfamiliar water.

[paiged79]

I have learned a WHOLE BUNCH of good information from this message board.  Honestly, this board has advanced my fishing knowledge 10 times.

Right now I am concentrating on learning how to fish senkos.  I still haven't had much luck, but I am sure that I will get the hang of it.

So to answer the question, I have learned a whole bunch of information and am currently in the process of testing it out on the water.

[Shad_Master]

Each year I set one goal for improving my fishing.  Last year it was working on my soft plastics.  This year it turned into two, fishing a jig and buzzbaits.  The reason it was two was that I stuck a couple of fish for the first time with a buzzbait early in the year and have been working on this.  As for the jig fishing this has not panned out as good.  I still need a lot of work in this area and will probably carry this goal over to next year as well.

[Nick_Barr]

This Year i Have learned ow to smallie fish,  Also i Forced myself to fish a jig straight out a whole week and have taught myself how to fish it effectivilly, I have learned to slow down my fishing an how to dissect a lake, and docks. This forum was a big helpin all of it. Thanks Guys

[Rattlinrogue]

I've come back to a lure that I used a lot in the past but got away from it.I've caught more bass on spinnerbaits than I have in ten years.Just started using them again and have had tremendous success.Also,I've never been a big buzzbait angler,but this year I've caught a lot of big fish on them.

[Bass Hammer]

Hey

For me it was really learning crankbaits.

I used to just crank them. Now I'm in tune to structure. I try to get that bait to crash into everything. Suspend a little shake it off and take off running again.

I guess before I was worried I would lose  cranks non-stop.

As my confidence built up I found I was using them more and more.

I'll lose one now and then but I'm having so much fun I hardly even notice.

Hammer

[Guest avid]

I have really improved using jerkbaits.  Watching KVD this year really inspired me to out and do it.

I sure wish I could catch something on a jig.  I don't know what it is, but I just can't seem to get 'em on one.

[goldenmonkey]

before I started reading this forum I was pretty much set in my ways.  pop-rs or spooks in the mornings over weed beds and weightless soft plastics if the topwaters not hitting, then hit off the docks with a trigged baby brushhog later in the day.  and sometimes spinnerbaits too.

these methods have always been very productive to me, but Ive expanded my techniques and lure selections a ton since joining here and has made it much more enjoyable.  not really catching anymore fish than I used to, its just more fun for me to switch up and still catch bass.

before this year, I never used a carolina rig or a jig and trailer.  Im having lots of fun fishing them.  hell I never even heard of a senko.  and my newfound favorite way to fish, crankbaits.  I never really had confidence in them before.  But after reading the articles on here I dedicated a day to just them and did great.  its a great feeling when a bass slams into the crank.  just gotta find a way to keep the stupid white perch off the crankbaits in the evenings  :-/

[KU_Bassmaster.]

I have a lot more confidence in crankbaits.  I have also tried to learn something from everytime out and trying to put together patterns that will hold up on the local lakes I fish regularly.  Then hopefully I can apply what I learn from these smaller lakes to new bigger lakes.  (Try to find my lake in an unfamiliar new lake)  The real test will come this fall.  I think I am going to start fishing tournies for the first time so I'll get to see how really good or bad I am.  I also in the past have had no problem catching fish in the spring and summer, but I struggle in the fall.