Billy V

I couldn't be happier with the boat. It was really well cared for, and we're doing our best to keep it that way!

Guess I missed that thread with all the traveling I've been doing Hank. Feel free to take this one down.

I saw this over on another forum today and wanted to get these dates out there so those of us who are interested can set aside the dates. We'll most likely fish the Wilson event, possibly even St. Catherines if time permits. 5 Scotty King of the Lake Tournaments in 2009 April 24, 25, 26 - St. Catharines, On May 8, 9, 10 - Wilson, N.Y. June 26, 27, 28 - Whitby, On August 21, 22, 23 - Oswego N.Y. September 4, 5, 6 - St. Catharines, On King of the Lake will be Crowned with total points accumulated over the 5 tournaments. Entries are $350 Main Event $100 Saturday $100 Sunday $ 50 Big fish Friday Registration will open soon.

Have you in my thoughts & prayers Bob...sorry for your loss.

I fully agree with you Glen. In my opinion, the observer is the ONLY way to guarantee the integrity of the Pro-Am's. And in my experience, finding an observer has absolutely NOT been a problem.

I gotta throw my $.02 in here about the observer. I think its necessary to protect the integrity of the tournament and should not be done away with. We've all heard the stories about guys cheating. I'm more than willing to put up with the hassle of an observer to keep the playing field level. Back before I fished in the pro-am's I used to think that it was going to be a pain in the butt to find an observer and that having an observer on board was pointless. But I decided to fish the events anyway. Finding an observer really wasn't hard at all, and in fact, now I have several guys that have expressed an interest in observing. All you gotta do is ask around. Don't let "I can't find an observer" be the reason you don't participate. Shoot, I once posted here that I needed an observer and got 3 or 4 responses immediately from guys who were excited to serve in that capacity.

I always take my electronics off the boat and store them indoors. Like Tim says, it's cheap insurance!

Hang out here a lot...read what's posted and strap on your learning cap. There are a lot of very talented fishermen here who are more than willing to share info regarding our great fishery. Not sure if you've played with wire dipsys, copper, leadcore, etc. yet, but those are great tools to master. As far as the tournaments go, you're gonna want to read and understand all the rules. The Pro-Am website is a good place to start: http://www.lakeontarioproam.net/rules.html. There will be a couple of Scotty tournaments on the Soth shore this year too, so be sure to check out that website: http://www.scottytournamentseries.com/ Might be a good idea to serve as an observer on a boat or two before entering your own team just so you can get a feel for how they operate. You're in the right place to get all of your questions answered...I don't think there's a better fishing site on the web than LOU!

I have two very lightly used Cannon Planer Boards for sale. These boards collapse to lay flat for storage and are in very nice condition. Local pick up in Ithaca or buyer pays for shipping. $100 for the pair. [email protected] or (607)592-9012.

That's awesome Lou...those boys are HOOKED for LIFE!! Way to go, and great pic...something I'd frame and hang on the wall at home so everyone remembers that great day!

Just tell me what the rules are and when to be there!

That legislation hasn't been passed to my knowledge though. So at this point guys need to have their cards in their hands by April.

They haven't been "officially" announced yet Bob. We should see something soon.

For us its simple...less weight to lift = faster retrieval & less wear & tear on the riggers.

I was joking about being reimbursed, but you can bet your a$$ that it'll be a business expense!!

I run 12# Sharks in the spring when we're fishing shallower, and then when we start to run 100' or more down I switch over to 15 # Sharks. Like YT said, they track beautifully and have very little blowback. If you take a look at this, you'll see that a lot of top boats on the lake run them: http://www.sharkcannonballs.com/sn_2008_winners.html

Way to go! Finally some Kings in Fair Haven!! LOL!!

Way to go Anthony!

I already have mine in hand, but the deadline has been pushed back to April 2009. It really doesn't take that long to complete the paperwork, but you have to go to one of their sites to do so. You also have to go back to the site to pick up your card. Since I live in Ithaca, I had the pleasure of driving 90 minutes each way....twice. Wonderif they'll re-imburse me for my fuel costs?? I went through the Oswego office and had my card back in about 12 weeks.

Put it inside. It's much better for the boat. If you're like me you'll want to protect your investment from the weather. Unless you shrink wrap the entire boat you can't keep the sun's rays or the wind or rain or snow or ice off of your hull, plus I've seen that shrink wrap leak lots of times. I used to store my first boat outdoors under a home made frame and tarp and it worked OK, but I had to do all kinds of maintenance on the hull and to the interior that I don't have to do now because I store my boat indoors. When I stored the boat outside the sun did all kinds of damage to the gelcoat and it needed major buffing & waxing each spring. Plus, with it inside, you can actually get into it and work on it over the off season without having to fiddle with the tarps. With the boat indoors, everything is out of the weather and it's dry. I worry a lot less about my boat over the winter with it indoors and it's in fantastic condition because it's totally sheltered from the elements for 6 mos out of the year.

I'm not sure which Furuno you were looking at Gray Fox but I've had quite the opposite experience. I have a Furuno FCV-585 with a thru-hull triducer and not only can I mark bottom while under power, but I can mark bait & fish while up on plane. I've never seen a clearer more detailed picture than I have with my unit. In my opinion, there isn't a better fish finder on the market. I'm sure that the Lowrance broad band sounder is quite nice, but my guess is that the Furuno you saw was either an older model or one that had some interference issues with the engine. I could mark bottom and bait under power with my old FCV-667, which had half the power of my 585.

First step was to use Starbrite Teak Cleaner and a brass brush. Second step was to hit it with Starbrite Teak Brightener. Amazing that it can be brought back after looking so bad.

Bob, We were out of Fair Haven yesterday for a quick run out into the lake and saw a couple of guys on the piers but there didn't appear to be any action. Given how few fish there have been in Fair Haven all season long I'd give some thought to looking elsewhere. I know that they've been doing really well on Kings in the Salmon River, so that might be a place to head even if it isn't from a pier!

I'll hit it with 00 steel wool in between coats and it'll get the three coats that Sikkens recommends. I was amazed at how much better it looks after just one coat.

Here's a couple of pics of the teak before it came off the hardtop: The teak on top is before I did anything to it, in the middle is after I cleaned/brightened/ and the bottom is immediately after I put the first coat of Cetol on it: I'll post some pics of the finished work after it's back on the boat. Probably be a week or two before I get back up there. Thanks again for the input.