GAMBLER

Don't go to a Pro Am weigh in if this bothers you. the Pro Am is a 12 fish box.

Congrats Billy. Trophy brown for sure. It will hold up and hopefully look good on your wall.

As of this morning it is not. Just barley above water.

Happy Fathers day everyone. Going to be a long day sitting at work.

I'm not sure what guys are running for Power Pro. You do not need to change to a twillie tip until the wire cut through the tip. That will take a while.

BP, I would get rid of the mono and go with braid or wire. As for riggers, Flea season is right around the corner. 30lb mono or Flea Flicker line is a must.

Take a 5 - 8' piece of mono or florocarbon and add a swivel to each end. This makes the actual cheater. Fixed cheaters- Let mainline spoon out desired length and clip it in the release. Let the rigger down 10,15,or 20' (What ever distance you want). Clip the swivel end of the cheater to the mainline of the rod, half hitch a size 16 (small)rubberband around the mainline and clip it in the swivel. This will keep you cheater "fixed" at that spot on the main line. When the fish hits, it will break the rubberband and slide down the line to the other spoon. Sliding cheaters- Let main line spoon out and clip it in the release. Let the rigger down to desired depth. Clip on the cheater and the cheater will slide down the main line 1/2 or more to the ball. When the fish hits, the slider will slide down the mainline to the other spoon. I run more fixed cheaters than sliders. I like being able to duplicate the exact spot I took the previous fish on a cheater. Sliders do better when this fish are spread out in the water column.

Sounds like a carb issue. How do the plugs look?

Nice report Mark.

Nice steelhead bear. Hopefully it holds up for you guys.

When we have East winds and upwelling, I head offshore until I start to find stable surface temps. I start fishing there and head North until I find fish. It is not a complete waste of time. Some days are good but it just takes more time and effort to find fish. Fishing for me is about the challenge. Those tough days can be some of the best days. You challenge yourself and you LEARN something.

Only issue with this is teams that run to other ports. If a storm cell goes over the Oak and a team is fishing off the Niagara River with no lightning in sight, Are you going to call that team into port? I agree that the tournament should have some guidelines but it will be hard to put into place when boats travel MILES from port.

ANY used boat get a GOOD survey done on it. A VERY large percentage of older used boats have hull blisters, stringer and transom rot, and other mechanical issues. These repairs are very costly and take a lot of valuable fishing time to repair.

I have run the X4 probe on my boat for 2 season now. Rock solid. Why are you excluding the Fishhawk and only going with the Moor or Depth Raider? All 3 are quality units and will work. Some are just a little easier to deal with. Coated cable, antenna, and the ability to only use it on one rigger turned me away.

Thanks to this post, I will not be eating dinner tonight!

Never say never Tim. Plastic GEARS and BELTS WILL wear out.

Nice job Scott. Way to represent Sandy!

Congrats Jerry. Nice steelie.

Sandy Creek state launch. It is a lot colser to deep water than I-bay or the River.

I say X4. All the brands are good but it is all personal preference. I'm a firm believer in you pay for what you get. If you buy cheaper, you will get cheaper.

Price? Pics?

According to the Trollers guide Big Lake Edition it is 7 feet per oz. with 50 when you let the lure out 50 clip on the release and let 50 more out. There are a lot of variables. Line diameter, line lenghts and boat speed.

Could have been from a bullhead or catfish stinger. By brother had something similar happen.

There are plenty of teenagers with the occasional 20+ around Sandy lately. Just got to know where to look. Angle of the dangle, PM sent.