Fishing Strategies/Goals for 08 season?

[John J.]

Hey all, just wondering what everyone's strategies, lure choices and goals you are all going to try this fishing season.

Mine include the following:

1.) learn to find and fish deep structure (I am more of a bank fisherman).

2.) Catch me a new PB (obviously everyone's goal!)

3.) Learn more about what my sonar is showing me (structure, cover, etc.)

4.) Find some new hotspots

5.) Try out carolina rig and drop shot rig (Haven't had much experience with these).

6.) Start fishing main lake and secondary points (never done before...)

7.) Increase my trust and technique with the jig

8.) Learn some more patience

9.) Spend more time on the water

10.) Learn more about patterning bass and fishing schoolies.

To accomplish this I plan to search and locate deep cover/structure such as points, flats, creek channels, drop offs, etc. and fish them with either deep diving crankbaits/rat-l-traps, or weighted worms or heavy rigs (drop shot, carolina). I also plan to start my season off in either Late March to Early April (spawning time for Va is April), fishing points and deep structure.

Then this summer I plan to hunt for me a new PB by fishing in places I never covered before, and with presentations and/or lures I've never used before. I am going to find these by getting me a contour map and the map with the help of my sonar will provide me with the information I need to hunt my new PB!

What's everyone else's goals? and how are you all going to accomplish them?

[Popeye]

Ditto to all that! Seems to me you about summed everything I'd like to do in '08 too:o)  Oh, and I need to get me something to get out on the water in:o)

[Catt]

1. Get into better physical condition despite torn ligaments and 2 compressed discs in my lower back.

2. Buy a new boat

3. Fish Swim baits

4. Break that elusive 13# mark for a Share-A-Lunker

5. Retire completely

[Branuss04]

Sounds like you got your hands full for this year!!!!

I got a couple goals

1.New PB

2. Gain confidence in jigs

1.New PB

3.Gain some confidence in Swimbaits

1.New PB

4. Deep structure fishing

[RobDar]

1. get better at deep structure/ drop/ ledge fishing

2. get better with Carolina rigs and drop shots

3. Find a boat and restore it before the season ends

4. Place in the top 30 of our club

6. try to get my back in shape to fish an entire day without suffering

[Wesley]

1.) learn to find and fish deep structure. (Me too)

2.) Catch me a new PB

3.) Learn more about what my sonar is showing me (Ditto!!!)

4.) Find some new hotspots

5.) Try out Drop shot rig, crank baits, and hard jerk baits

6.) Start fishing main lake and secondary points (Have to figure out where to find them first!!)

7.) Work on other baits besides spinnerbaits, rattletraps, and senko's

8.) More Time on the water

9.) Fish more Tournaments.

10.) Find a Fishing Partner. (Fishing alone all day sucks LOL)

[garry77]

1)New Pb

2)catch bass on a c-rig(deep water structure)

3)get better at positioning boat while fishing

4)fish as often as possible

5)be more patient

................6)woulda been catch a fish on rattle trap but fortunately I got that one out of the way in January.

[littlefisher]

Seriously you hit the nail on the head for exactly what I want to do this year lol.  Especially the part about fishing off shore structure.  When the bass are up shallow in the jungle, I can catch them all day long flipping and pitching big baits through mats or into reeds, but once they move to offshore structure I'm almost lost.  

[tfisherman]

I'd like to spend more time with my dad on the water and show him some new lakes and tactics. I hope to spend a lot more time on the water this year as well!

[ejtaylor822]

1.  Fish more / work less

2.  New PB

3.  Fish new places

4.  Fish with my Dad more

5.  Catch fish on lures and rods I have made.

[Daniel My Brother]

1. Take my kids fishing more often

2. Stop obsessing over catching a new PB

3. Enjoy every minute on the water

[Tpayneful]

My goals for 2008

1 Get back to using search baits more because I have gotten away from Jerkbaits and Spinnerbaits

2 Learn to use a swimbait

3 Win my weekly lake tournament once

4 Catch my personal best

5 Catch a citation

[FishTank]

My goals for 2008

1.  Tube fishing:  Not my favorite technique but I want to go back relearn it.

2. Catch more smallmouth

3. Catch more bass on topwater frogs.  I caught a few last year but not many.

4. Try some new lakes/ponds.

[Jake.]

1. Fish every chance I get

2. New pb (about time)

3. continue to improve my jig fishing

[Shadcranker]

1. 8+ LM (would be PB)

2. win my club in boater division

3. make cut in Elite Series Event on KY Lake in June

[brgbassmaster]

#1 fish crankbaits deeper not just in 4ft of water.

#2 use the shakey head more not just power fishing.

#3 build a tackle storage on my boat so i dont have to carry 2 tackleboxes.

[fisher of bass]

hello,

1. learn to use spinnerbaits,

2. crankbaits

3.jerkbaits

4.catch a 6+lb pb is 5.5

5.also learn how to drop-shot in deep water, actually never caught anything deeper than 15 ft except deep sea fishing.  8-)

[Brian_Reeves]

Since I've made an unexpected turn from tournament angler to outdoor, canoe-ing enthusiast, I've had to rework my goals.

My goal for bass fishing is to get back to the basics.  Now that I'm playing in small lakes, ponds, and backwaters, I think that this is a good year to fortify what I already know.  So here's the list.

1.  Re-teach myself the basics of jig fishing.  I've strayed away from pure jig fishing and I think that will hurt me in the long run. Back to flipping and pitching.

2.  Slow down and simplify my Texas rigs.  Before I made the bass boat to canoe switch, I had started adding pegs, beads, rattles, and all sorts of whatchmacallits to my standard texas rigs.  While all of that has a place, I want to see if the old fashioned T-Rig still works.

3.  Shallow cranking heavy cover.  This is another staple of mine that I had gotten away from.  I've been going deeper and deeper every year and now I can't seem to apply this basic technique as well as I ought to.  So it's back to the basics with cranking as well.

4.  My last 2008 goal is to successfully finish testing and then to market my prototype lure.  This is taking the place of new personal best fish.  Sure, I'd like to crank out over a 10lb fish out of a canoe, but more importantly, I want to get the word out on my prototype.  Hopefully it's a huge success and will help my family out.

One more goal (not really fishing goal) is to save enough $$ to make it to the 2009 annual road trip.  I'm missing G-Ville.  I want in on the action next year.  Hopefully I'll have more than a canoe

[frogtog]

I've got about 32 tournaments scheduled for this year. Hope to win a

1/3 of them.

[FD.]

1. learn to pitch and cast left handed so I can make those tough angle shots.

2.  qualify for the ABA regional....

3.  become a better offshore fisherman

4.  finish in the top 25% in all the tournaments I fish

[Jake P]

This will be my first serious year of bass fishing so i cant wait to try everything ive learned from all of you guys in the past 3 months so heres some goals.

1) Learn to fish the c-rig properly.

2) Learn how to fish the right bait at the right time.

3) Catch a new PB of course.

4) Learn to use jigs properly.

5) Find new hotspots at the lake.

[Mobydick]

I have more this year! I want to put to use what i've learned here to become a better angler, now that i'm a more serious angler.

1. Learn to fish dropshot

2. Learn to fish offshore structure better

3. Fish some new areas

4. Show up my dad repeatedly ;D

5. Get my own rig to fish from

6. Have a successful first year for the bass club

7. Teach others to fish

8. Go to at least one C.A.S.T. event

9. Dominate the club touraments

I'm not really concerned about catching a new PB. I am going to try, but it's not at the top of my list. I want to have fun most of all.

[Cigarlover 1]

1. Get into better physical shape

2. Adjust to life as a  new parent. Due date is June 10th.  

3. Get more involved with C.A.S.T.

[THEbassmaster]

1. learn to fish deep...15>

2. catch a 6# largemouth

3. catch a 4# smallie

4. learn to fish swimbaits, which is what i will be trying ALOT this year.

5. win atleast ONE tourney this year!!!

aaron

[Wesley]

2. Adjust to life as a new parent. Due date is June 10th.

Thats the day my first Daughter was born.