Howdy Y'all

Hey folks,

It has been awhile. I see most of the old gang is still here, but can
anyone fill me in on what up. I hope old Bob Rickard is doing ok, as Moe
Conway.

So please fill me in, what's happening to you and yours, and the gang?

--
Craig Baugher

Moe is in Albion, NY now. Bill P.
================================================== ================

"GL3Loomis" wrote in message
...
Hey folks,

It has been awhile. I see most of the old gang is still here, but can
anyone fill me in on what up. I hope old Bob Rickard is doing ok, as Moe
Conway.

So please fill me in, what's happening to you and yours, and the gang?

--
Craig Baugher

"Howdy Y'all"? People in Michigan don't talk like that!

I'd like to know how YOU're doing Craig, I hope you had a good fishin year!

I had a great year & learned alot. I had some experiences that toughened me
up & will surely pay off in the future. They were mostly bad experiences,
but I plan on turning them into positives.

1) I led the State Team Federation tourney on the Potomac after Day 1, then
on Day 2 my rider from Day 1 became a boater & fished my water before I did.
He won the tournament. Lesson learned? The difference between pros &
amateurs. The first thing they tell co-anglers at any pro tourney are told
is not to even tell thier pro partners where they fished the day before.

2) I made a key rookie mistake not once but TWICE on Day 3 of the Everstart
tourney at Champlain. I caught big smallies & in the process of fighting
the fish I loosened my drag. Twice I forgot to re-tighten it & twice my
next hookset resulted in drag slippage that inevitably resulted in lost 4
pound+ bass. Of course both bass were nice enough to jump before coming
unbuttuned.

3) I made a full-out effort to learn crankbaiting in 05, and actually did
well in several tournaments using them. In 06 I plan to revisit the
spinnerbait & finally get comfortable throwing a jig-n-pig.

4) Most importantly I finally "got it done" in a high-level tournament. I'd
been told for a few years that I could do it, but always stumbled a bit.
The Champlain finish was huge for me because I topped every gig-name pro in
the field. Now I can confortably feel on par with guys like LeFebre,
Wendlant, Gluszek, Vida, Clapper etc. Not that I'm a better fisherman than
any of them, they get about 10x more on-water time than I do, but I know
that my passion for the sport & off-water research can compensate for some
of that on-water difficiency. I can compete with them on a given day.

There's lots more, but I don't want to bore ya.

Happy & Healthy New Year to You & Yours Craiger!

Warren
--
http://www.warrenwolk.com









"GL3Loomis" wrote in message
...
Hey folks,

It has been awhile. I see most of the old gang is still here, but can
anyone fill me in on what up. I hope old Bob Rickard is doing ok, as Moe
Conway.

So please fill me in, what's happening to you and yours, and the gang?

--
Craig Baugher

Car sales in Southeastern Michigan are down, big time. So to make a living
you are forced to live at the dealership just in case a serious customer
comes in. Meaning, I have no time to really fish. I sneak in an hour here,
and an hour there. But no tournaments and nothing serious.

Now there is the good part of living at the dealership and slow sales, I
have had the opportunity to study, study, and study more. I have developed
a theory about bass fishing that I cannot wait to prove out. Hopefully 2006
sees an increase in sales so that I can afford to take time off to prove
that theory out.

But I'm glad you worked through the "Wow" factor, so that you can take those
boys head on now!


--
Craig Baugher

Sorry to hear business is tough, I'm sure it's just a down-time & things
will rebound. I went through a real rough time recently with my business,
but things have been coming back somewhat at least.

I'd love to hear your theory, sounds like the makings of a good, wintertime
discussion Craig.

Warren

"GL3Loomis" wrote in message
...
Car sales in Southeastern Michigan are down, big time. So to make a
living
you are forced to live at the dealership just in case a serious customer
comes in. Meaning, I have no time to really fish. I sneak in an hour
here,
and an hour there. But no tournaments and nothing serious.

Now there is the good part of living at the dealership and slow sales, I
have had the opportunity to study, study, and study more. I have
developed
a theory about bass fishing that I cannot wait to prove out. Hopefully
2006
sees an increase in sales so that I can afford to take time off to prove
that theory out.

But I'm glad you worked through the "Wow" factor, so that you can take
those
boys head on now!


--
Craig Baugher

You know some old pro is going to read this and laugh.... I've been doing
that for years and this guy thinks he has stumbled onto something big. Well
the fact is, I too have been doing this to some degree myself, but I think I
have found a sure way to go onto any body of water, in any section, and
after only a few minutes of basic mapping, know the migration routes most
traveled. Almost guaranteeing me that I am going to have an incredible day
of fishing.

Let me first define a few key words so that we have a common understanding.

STRUCTU
The bottom. It's contours; humps, bumps, cracks, groves, holes, bowls,
peaks, valleys, cliffs, ledges, channels, cannels, and its content; muck,
clay, peat, sand, gravel, rock, and boulders.

COVER:
All plant life living both in and out of the water, and objects (docks,
boats, etc.) that provide shade, offer protection, and supports life
(attracts food sources and produces oxygen).

BREAKLINES:
While both cover and structure have breaklines, cover is easiest to define
since it is the physical border of an plant or object and its visual shade
line. Where with structure, it is the border or ridge of a physical
structure feature or an arbitrary line (e.g., following a specific depth).

We all know bass migrate from deep water, to shallow water, and back again
throughout the year. We also know that bass use structure as roadways to
get from point "A" to point "B", and structure features, such as rocks,
boulders, and outcroppings as rest stops; and cover as restaurants and
hotels.
We also know that the length of time a bass hold at a rest stop or stay on a
piece of cover depends on the accommodations (i.e., how good and how much
food is available. How good the security system is - places to hide and rest
without worry of predators, and how comfortable they feel - oxygen, pH,
temperature)

Well before I go too far off on a tangent, we also know, that in the heat of
summer, that the thermocline is the optimal breakline, and where it meets
structure objects and cover, schools of bass will be chilling out sipping on
margaritas and feeding on the buffet.

Well, how about another breakline that is almost as good as a thermocline
and yet, is available year round. One that is well known, but rarely used
by most bass anglers. Transitional breaks - where soft terrain meet hard
terrain. We have all used these features to locate bass along a shoreline,
but from my research, bass prefer these transitional breaks for moving
around, from both deep to shallow, and from feeding spot to feeding spot.
What is not totally understood by biologist is why. Studies have shown
that if bass are given a choice of following a grove/crack, channel, or
transitional line, they will follow the transition. Again, I cannot answer
why, but from all I read they do.

Ok, today we all have sonar with gray scale or flasher units that show the
double echo of hard bottoms. We know bass will follow channels. We know
they will follow a ridgeline of outcroppings (which is a transitional
breakline), and we know they will follow transitional breaks and prefer
them. So if we start mapping an area for these features and notes how they
flow into, through, and out of the shallows, we are likely to stay on fish.
For once we, as anglers, move shallow, most anglers will follow the
shoreline. But now, we follow the transitional breakline or lines. Knowing
where they come into contact with cover and other structural features bass
are likely to be found.

Well, that is the readers digest version. Which doesn't take into account
all the other factors, current, water color/condition, weather, etc. Which
will definitely play a role. But what do you think?


--
Craig Baugher

Dude -- you HAVE been studying )

Have you tried this out yet? It would be interesing to see how this would
apply in different areas of the country, and different bodies of water -
reservoirs, natural lakes, etc.
Where I fish, I have never noticed a transition area like you describe.
Maybe it's there, and I just never noticed it. The lakes, canals, etc in my
area mostly have soft, muddy bottoms, so I'm not sure if the transition are
is there or not.

And you're right about following the shoreline, regardless of what the
bottom looks like. I'm guilty of that, myself.


--
Bass Wishes from South Florida!
Jack
http://www.bassguidesoftware.com




"GL3Loomis" wrote in message
news
You know some old pro is going to read this and laugh.... I've been doing
that for years and this guy thinks he has stumbled onto something big.
Well the fact is, I too have been doing this to some degree myself, but I
think I have found a sure way to go onto any body of water, in any
section, and after only a few minutes of basic mapping, know the migration
routes most traveled. Almost guaranteeing me that I am going to have an
incredible day of fishing.

Let me first define a few key words so that we have a common
understanding.

STRUCTU
The bottom. It's contours; humps, bumps, cracks, groves, holes, bowls,
peaks, valleys, cliffs, ledges, channels, cannels, and its content; muck,
clay, peat, sand, gravel, rock, and boulders.

COVER:
All plant life living both in and out of the water, and objects (docks,
boats, etc.) that provide shade, offer protection, and supports life
(attracts food sources and produces oxygen).

BREAKLINES:
While both cover and structure have breaklines, cover is easiest to define
since it is the physical border of an plant or object and its visual shade
line. Where with structure, it is the border or ridge of a physical
structure feature or an arbitrary line (e.g., following a specific depth).

We all know bass migrate from deep water, to shallow water, and back again
throughout the year. We also know that bass use structure as roadways to
get from point "A" to point "B", and structure features, such as rocks,
boulders, and outcroppings as rest stops; and cover as restaurants and
hotels.
We also know that the length of time a bass hold at a rest stop or stay on
a piece of cover depends on the accommodations (i.e., how good and how
much food is available. How good the security system is - places to hide
and rest without worry of predators, and how comfortable they feel -
oxygen, pH, temperature)

Well before I go too far off on a tangent, we also know, that in the heat
of summer, that the thermocline is the optimal breakline, and where it
meets structure objects and cover, schools of bass will be chilling out
sipping on margaritas and feeding on the buffet.

Well, how about another breakline that is almost as good as a thermocline
and yet, is available year round. One that is well known, but rarely used
by most bass anglers. Transitional breaks - where soft terrain meet hard
terrain. We have all used these features to locate bass along a
shoreline, but from my research, bass prefer these transitional breaks for
moving around, from both deep to shallow, and from feeding spot to feeding
spot. What is not totally understood by biologist is why. Studies have
shown that if bass are given a choice of following a grove/crack, channel,
or transitional line, they will follow the transition. Again, I cannot
answer why, but from all I read they do.

Ok, today we all have sonar with gray scale or flasher units that show the
double echo of hard bottoms. We know bass will follow channels. We know
they will follow a ridgeline of outcroppings (which is a transitional
breakline), and we know they will follow transitional breaks and prefer
them. So if we start mapping an area for these features and notes how
they flow into, through, and out of the shallows, we are likely to stay
on fish. For once we, as anglers, move shallow, most anglers will follow
the shoreline. But now, we follow the transitional breakline or lines.
Knowing where they come into contact with cover and other structural
features bass are likely to be found.

Well, that is the readers digest version. Which doesn't take into account
all the other factors, current, water color/condition, weather, etc.
Which will definitely play a role. But what do you think?


--
Craig Baugher

"GL3Loomis" wrote in message
news
You know some old pro is going to read this and laugh.... I've been doing
that for years and this guy thinks he has stumbled onto something big.
Well the fact is, I too have been doing this to some degree myself, but I
think I have found a sure way to go onto any body of water, in any
section, and after only a few minutes of basic mapping, know the migration
routes most traveled. Almost guaranteeing me that I am going to have an
incredible day of fishing.

Let me first define a few key words so that we have a common
understanding.

STRUCTU
The bottom. It's contours; humps, bumps, cracks, groves, holes, bowls,
peaks, valleys, cliffs, ledges, channels, cannels, and its content; muck,
clay, peat, sand, gravel, rock, and boulders.

COVER:
All plant life living both in and out of the water, and objects (docks,
boats, etc.) that provide shade, offer protection, and supports life
(attracts food sources and produces oxygen).

BREAKLINES:
While both cover and structure have breaklines, cover is easiest to define
since it is the physical border of an plant or object and its visual shade
line. Where with structure, it is the border or ridge of a physical
structure feature or an arbitrary line (e.g., following a specific depth).


Sounds like you have been reading Buck Perry's System for Structure Fishing.
--
Bob La Londe
http://www.YumaBassMan.com

If you noticed, I shot my reply at the wrong target!

Bob

"GL3Loomis" wrote in message
...
Hey folks,

It has been awhile. I see most of the old gang is still here, but can
anyone fill me in on what up. I hope old Bob Rickard is doing ok, as Moe
Conway.

So please fill me in, what's happening to you and yours, and the gang?

--
Craig Baugher

Good to see the Godfather of the r.o.f.b. is doing well. I saw you had a
close call, and had to turn things over to your lieutenant and his pit boss.
They serve you well.

--
Craig Baugher