mudflat

. I think you meant to say before irritating him The look on his face when you hooked into a good fish and threw Barbie overboard might be priceless Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United

Maybe it's time to get Barbie out ??

Come on Nick, Kick him off the boat! Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United

Don't be afraid of a Thompson as long as the stringers and transom are in good shape. I've fished out of a friends Thompson 240 several times in some ugly water and they handle it well, like a tank. They actually have a fairly low center of gravity and are pretty stable with very deep gunnels since the floor is at water level. I would imagine they would be at the upper limit of what you could trailer with a 1500. I'm pulling a 25' Penn Yan with a 2500 and I know it's back there. You should pm Tim Bromund, he ran a Thompson for years and has an islander now so he can probably give you the pros and cons of both.

This year I had the privilege to welcome Tom onto my boat for his first time out salmon fishing. While he had never trolled before for salmon the man knew how to fish. He couldn't believe that we had a Coast Guard escort with a wild ride to the shoot and loved the reception of the spectators on the wall. He commented how different it is now compared to how he was received when he came home from war. We ran west and set up around 100'. Tom was impressed that we could run dipsy rods flat like we do and I assured him that the rod would never fall out of the holder, more on this later. Our first hit came on the Salmon Slam combo, an Ito Fly and a Pro Troll flasher Got one in the box and the pressure is off. I had Tom start picking out what spoon he wanted to run and how deep to set it. Wasn't long and we had one on Tom's spoon, I told you he could fish I had made up a new leader for the Ito fly and put it back out for our 3rd one Picked up a shaker on another one of Tom's spoons and lost a brownie at the back of the boat. I was trolling west with the waves to make it easier on my crew and by now it was pretty bumpy out. While making the turn to head East Tom started shouting "you lost a rod!". The board tether line had grabbed a dipsy rod and pulled it right out of the holder and it was gone, ouch! Tom said maybe the rigger caught it, I'm thinking slim chance of that but when I pulled up the rigger there it was, yahoo! Now Tom really had a story to tell the rest of the guys. Long ride back and we were running close on time so I had to push it a little. I worried about how Tom was going to handle the ride but he was like a kid in an amusement park and loved every minute. He says he can't wait to go again and will definitely come back next year. He's welcome on my boat anytime.

Nick, I don't consider this weekend a "sacrifice" in any way rather it is a privilege and a honor to have these vets on our boat. After participating for 5 years I am convinced that we get just as much out of it as the vets do, maybe even more. I am thankful that 5 years ago when you wanted to "give back" to these men who served our country you took the initiative to get this event going and have kept it growing each year. Theresa and you have made the sacrifice of your time along with the multitude of volunteers who followed your example. I also want to thank Arney's for their hospitality and support, letting us take over the place for a couple of days each year, and to all the sponsors who give so freely. While the main purpose of the day is to recognize our vets and their service the tourney and prizes are enjoyed by all. I'm like some of the vets and can't wait till next year to do it again. Roy

worked on my computer very quickly, faster than youtube