Satisfaxion_Gauranteed

I don't know the details of Iran's policital motives, but I am pretty good with the energy and oil cost. I don't believe the country of Iran can influence fuel costs by 30%. Of the top ten oil producing countries, only three are from the middle east. In order, they are Saudi Arabia(17% of daily production), Iran(6.6% of daily production), and the United Arab Emirates(4.3%). Only four are from OPEC; the above 3 and Venezuela(3.5%). Of total oil production, all of the middle east accounts for roughly 35-40% of total oil production. For comparison, that is about the same as Russia, Mexico, and The United States combined. OPEC's aggreement is to not price combat within countries of the organization. However, it doesn't protect them from price competition from other vendors, such at Russia, Mexico, Canada, China, and The United States. It is also highly unlikely Iran would have the ability to significantly influence pricing since they only produce less than 7% of the worlds daily production. OPEC could make up 7% in production. I completely agree with the point about keeping tabs on our elected officials. The power in a democracy comes from the voters. For more energy/oil information, type department of energy into a search engine. To keep tabs on your elected officials, visit their websites. Most of them have links to their legislation and voting history. Wow, talking about politics/oil/energy! It must be the offseason!

I also fish from an 18' boat, so space and flexibility were my focal points. I added additional non-trolling rod storage for rods not in use. That gave me reason to add two more dipsy rods with Daiwa Sealines and Daiwa rods. They will have 30# spider wire. I also added a couple new compact boxes for spoon storage. I didn't like the big box I had because it was always in the way. I substituted it for a few compact boxes that are size and color coded and fit into better storage areas. I've ordered 4 Berts rod holders with sliding tracks, too. They're not installed yet though. I've been too busy working a couple side projects to pay for the new toys.

There's zero doubt in my mind that the impulse on the the part of energy companies AND their distributors to raise prices is nearly instantaneous. The time to re-adjust those prices downwards takes much longer. Unfortunately, that won't change until the DOE/Congress tackles this issue in a responsible manner. To end on a positive note, high energy prices give other forms of energy a very good chance to be profitable. Once that happens, the open market competition will once again help the consumer to keep energy prices reasonable. It's very frustrating now in the short term, but in the long term things will change for the better. I'd encourage anybody to do some exploring on the the DOE website. It's a pretty good resource to see what available technologies are being developed. Some of us are out there working on long term solutions. If you're interested in more detailed info, then let me know. http://www.energy.gov/ Oh, and the Bears are in the superbowl!!!!

World wide factors have the largest influences on energy costs. First, profit margins have been under intense scrutiny in regards to the energy industry in general. That scrutiny is expected to pick up this year not only in the US, but also abroad. Second, pipelines, drilling platforms, and offshore rigs are seeing good uptime and reliability numbers right now. Third, refineries are seeing good production numbers due to relaxed emissive/air quality standards in the US and from having good upstream supply abroad. These three things have had the largest impact on recent gasoline prices. Supply and demand plays into it, but generally speaking, the energy demand has steadily increased. It has not decreased and is not expected to decrease. On top of that, word wide transportation demand is not very large in comparison to our total energy needs. In the U.S., only about 1/5 of all energy consumption comes from transportation(industrial, general public, and other). For more data, see this link http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/aer/txt/stb0201a.xls To have a true impact on the energy demand, we need to not only turn to autos, but also light bulbs, PCs, heating and cooling, industrial, and energy transportation.

I'm game for free lures.

Sign me up Caz! I had a great time last year and look forward to this year! That's a way cool signature icon, too. I like it.

I bought two Sealines last year and also love them. I've been very happy with all of the Daiwa reels I own. I don't (yet) own any convectors for comparison. You can find the Daiwa Sealine SG47LCA for under 100 if you do a little shopping.

SatisfaXion Gauranteed in my boat's name, so it seemed fitting for a screen name, too. My wife and I thought of the name out of nowhere while we were still dating. It stuck, so that's the name of the boat. Although I like to think of it as if she was trying to tell me something:grin:

Any day works for me, too. I voted Wednesday just because nothing it'll help my mid-week beer R&R :-)

Wow, very good input. Thanks; it is very much appreciated. I did notice last year that often times the underwater currents would pull my lines to one side of the boat even if I was going either directly into or directly against the waves. It didn't take me too long to realize that was very productive! My fishfinder does a pretty good job at marking the thermocline and baitfish schools. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to put off the lure speed/temp indicator upgrade for one more season in the interest of gaining another season of experience. There's plenty of upgrade goodies for me consider blowing cash on! Do you vary your trolling speed based on going into the current versus going with the current? Sometimes it seems that while my gps speed stays the same, the rods dance alot more in one direction as opposed to another. Once again, thank-you for the good input!

Thanks for the reply--good advice. I'll look into the online manuals.

I remember some talk about various lure speed and temp indicators a while ago. I've been looking around at various models such as Subtroll, Depth Raider, and Cannon. Which ones do some of you use/recommend? Anything in particular I should pay extra attention to? How valuable is having one in your arsenal? Is it worth the five bills to have? Thanks!

Shimano gets my #1 nod, but the Daiwas and Penns would be a close tie for second.

I really like the coloring on that one! It'd be a good wall hanger

The dates sound good to me. The only date too early to be on the lake is the date that there's still ice.

I don't mix anything with it either. I normally used the venny burger for things like chili and stuffed shells. I like it because it's so easy to make and doesn't need to be drained. If I make just burgers out of it, then I'll mix it 50-50 at the time I make the patties.

I've used the black and silver x-raps and the pink x-raps. The pink was my #1 producing bait until about mid-way through may. I caught a few on the black and silvers, too. I agree about the hooks. I have a unlucky "lucky" lure in my truck. The baits have a metal rod that runs down the center of them. We were fishing in the fall of 2004 and I hooked into a very large fish. We fought it for a while and it came off. Once we got the lure in the boat, the metal rod was broken through the plastic of the lure and the back hook was bent. I keep the lure in my truck now as a 'lucky' reminder of the importance of hooks!

I know two people who've fallen from tree stands. One guy fell out of his stand at the young age of 17 and is a paraplegic as the result. The other guy fell last year and shattered his femur. He still can't walk without his cane, but is expected to able to walk unassisted before the end of this year.

Wow, you took a picture of the deer prior to shooting it! Are you just showing off now or what??!!??!! Nice looking buck and congrats on the first deer with a bow. It's nicer than my first bow deer.

I normally keep mine fishable through October. Ussually, about the middle of September, I change my efforts to the inland lakes and go after the fall walley and pike.

I wish I wasn't selling it to be 100% honest. The reason I'm selling her is because my wife and I are going to start building a house next year. I have it very close to paid off and the money would really be a nice addition to our savings for a down payment on a loan. I'm at work now, but when I get home I'll look up the filter type and PM it to you. I think you're right that it's probably the same filter. Lund makes a great boat and my next one will deffinately be a Lund. It'll probably even be the same model of the one I'm currently selling. Don't worry about me missing next year's fishing league though. My fishin' buddy has a 1979 22' sea ray outfitted with 4 Penn downriggers, so I'll be back to defend my fish farming!

2003 Lund Fisherman 1700 with 2003 yamaha 4stroke 90hp outboard engine This boat comes with: bow cover bimini top(great for rain or sun) two cannon downriggers with dual rod holders 65lb thrust 24volt minkota trolling motor storage cover Lowrance x51 fish finder with speed and temp sensor Uniden Solara VHF radio with 8' antenna various rod holders installed throughout the boat snap-in carpetting other odds-n-ends such as custom fenders and all neccessary straps/lights The trailer is included and comes with self-storing spare tire and surge brakes. More photos are available upon request. I have a digital camera, so if there is something in particular you'd like to see, please let me know. This boat was bought by me brand new in mid-July of 2003. I am the original owner of this boat, so feel free to ask about any and all history. asking $18500 PM me or email [email protected] if interested

This is my first year with this league and I really enjoyed it. The people I've gotten the opportunity to meet in this league are great. Big 'thanks' to Caz for putting forth the work and effort of organizing this league and doing a good job with it. I hope to see you all again next season. A special 'thanks' to Caz for writing SKUNK in all capital letters next to my name. Another special 'thanks' to Catfish for making repeat 'no fish' at the weigh in....... I'll bet I've got the cleanest lures in my boxes............... Congrats to all of the teams.

I will be camping at Fisherman's Landing this Saturday night. See you all there and good luck!

Thanks for all of the tips. My 'normal' setup is to run a 2'-3' leader between the fly and flasher/spinny. The spinny/flasher is then 4'-6' behind the ball or dipsy. I'll modify my setups my next trip out(maybe Thursday night) based on the advice here. I do fish j-plugs alot this time of year. I also really like lyman lures this time of year. They are exactly like j-plugs, only made of cedar instead of plastic. The action of the lyman lures seems to be much more eractic than that of the j-plugs. They are a bit more expensive though j-plugs/lymans are my preferred setup this time of year, hopefully followed by flies/flashers in the near future:D Go to http://www.lymanlures.com for more info on them. If you're going to buy just one to try it out, I would recomend the all white with red head color. Also, my personal experience is not to run them quite as far behind the ball as you would a j-plug. They move horizontally in the water quite a bit more, which caused me tangle issues. Thanks again for all of the advice!! I appreciate the help!!