muskiedreams

For trailering, I use a ratchet strap to secure my 15 hp 4 stroke on a Garelick mount so it does not bounce. Bouncing will create excessive strain on all parts. I string the strap through the rear cleat, down and around the motor shaft, through the u bolt on the transom, then back around the motor shaft to the ratchet. Then I also use a heavy rubber bungee cord from the E-Z Steer connector mounted on the motor shaft to the trailer to keep the motor from swinging back and forth. The motor is in the vertical position.

Samson Marine in Red Creek, NY, (315) 754-0050. Your insurance company might want to send their own appraiser.

PS: If anyone finds a transom mount Gaerlick ladder on the bottom of the lake, let me know.

Went to Conesus for ring of fire, a little fishing and recreation. After a long wait at the launch, we were lucky to get one of the last spots to park the trailer. The only fishing action was a low to mid 30s pike that jumped and shook a firetiger bucktail in the northwest corner in about 12 fow. I only fished about 1.5 hr. Ring of fire and fireworks were awesome as usual.

Actually Chad, it has not been rescheduled and will not be rescheduled. We were just considering July 11th as the only possible date to reschedule it for. We discussed it and Brad and Jim would not be available on that date, so we would have needed to find at least one other person to help put on the tournament. We also thought that there might not be enough participation with such a short notice of rescheduling and because of... The Three Rivers Chapter of Muskies Inc. will be holding a tournament the following weekend, on July 18th and 19th.

The changes are more of a clarification than anything else and are stating what can be interpreted from the rules before the clarification. It is an individual tournament. Therefore all fish that an individual logs as a fish he/she caught, must me in fact caught by that person. In other words that person was the only person who handled the rod and fought the fish. Maybe a certain amount of leeway could be allowed for a youth or someone who is physically challenged. Like removing rod from rod holder for someone who cannot do it. We have to rely on the honesty and integrity of all entrants to a certain extent. If someone saw something that was (pardon the pun) fishy we hope they will bring it to out attention. The person(s) you are fishing with are both your partner(s) and your opponent(s). The decisions you make on how and where you fish throughout the day will affect everyone on the boat. It is between those on the boat to decide the rod arrangement. I usually have my rods and my fishing partner has his rods. We each decide what lures we will use and how much line we let out on our own rods. We work together to a certain extent to try to develop a pattern that works. If a fish bites the lure on my rod, it is my fish to fight. If my partner catches all the fish that day, so be it. I still look at a fish caught by the boat as a victory for both of us. This is the way I fish in tournaments or recreationally. In a tournament, if one of us were to win a cash prize, we would split it and/or put it toward the trip expenses. The winner would get the glory. It is up to you and those you are fishing with to decide if you have designated rods or rotate. We cannot dictate that. We just ask that you be honest. I can see the logic behind making it a team event. That would have to require a set number of anglers per boat. I do understand that with the individual format, it would be advisable that you all have designated rods. Of course if you are casting, that is the case. The clarification here is to make sure it is understood that handing off a rod to stack fish for one angler on the boat is considered to be contrary to the rules and doing so can be considered grounds for disqualification and possibly being prohibited from participating in future tournaments. There is not a huge amount of money at stake in these tournaments like there is in many professional bass tournaments so hopefully everyone will stay honest. Word usually gets out about those who are not. Also we have the big fish pool that anyone can win by catching one fish. There are pros and cons to using the points system as opposed to awarding prizes based on 1st, 2nd and 3rd largest fish. We have discussed going to length only in the future.

After careful consideration we have decided to postpone the tournament due to safety concerns based on the weather forecast. The forecast is calling for heavy rain and strong S and SE winds with the potential for thunderstorms as well. There is a potential for high waves based on the current wind forecast. We are considering a rescheduling it for July 11th. I hope to have an answer within a few days. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause anyone.

We have amended the rules for the tournament to provide clarification. The amendments are stated at the top of the rules and highlighted in bold type in the body of the rules. This is just a clarification and not a change in rules. Click on the link below for details. http://www.nymusky.com//wp-content/uploads/New-York-Muskies-Inc-Open-Tx-Rules-2015-6-22-FINAL-v1.pdf Also Jim Reynolds has injured a knee at work and will not be able to attend and run the tournament. I will be taking his place to help Brad run the tournament. At this point I will not be participating. I would consider bringing my boat if there is someone interested in participating with me and sharing expenses. Keep in mind that my boat has only 2 rodholders, but I do have a kicker and a bowmount. My two deep cycle batteries are on their 6th season so they will be somewhat limited. I would also be interested if someone has an opening on their boat. PM me, email me or call if interested. Good luck to everyone in the tournament!!!

One thing I know from a talk that Region 8 Biologist Brad Hammers gave Chapter 69 last year on the diary study for Waneta Lake is that fin clip information is important to them. He said that if they have the length and which fin is clipped, they can tell the year class of the fish. They clip a different fin each year in a rotating pattern. From that, and with data accumulated for the year as well as other years, they can get an idea of how each year class is doing. I would think that the more diary participants there are, the better the overall data will be. Brad also said that knowing the number of fish without fin clips will also give them an idea of how much natural reproduction there is. There are a couple things I wonder about. One is that I have heard that there is not 100% fin clips with every stocking. The other is that muskies will sometimes grow back a fin that is clipped. I don't know if there is any truth to these statements. I am thinking that maybe there was a time that they didn't all get clipped but maybe they now have the procedures under control so that they can make sure all get clipped. If that is the case, Maybe they no longer want to stock unclipped fish in the lake so they can make a more accurate assessment of any natural reproduction. I know that the DEC and the US Dept. of Fish and Wildlife have been working at enhancing the Great Lakes musky habitat in order to try and bolster the already naturally occurring reproduction. I have heard that there has been a lot of work being done to identify the ideal spawning, nursery and rearing habitat. I also believe the DEC is leaning toward trying to enhance natural reproduction in some inland waters through better habitat management. I would like to find out if that is their thinking. If so, maybe we will be able to help support the studies and habitat enhancements that will be needed to work toward that goal. Larry, I have read that they have been supplying muskies to Vermont to stock in a couple tribs of Lake Champlain. I am not sure if it is fingerlings or fry.

I wonder if they are considered to be inferior, like the runts of the batch. If that is the case, it might be undesirable for them to be stocked in a body of water like Waneta, that is used for brood stock (occasionally) and also has some natural reproduction.

I wonder if we could talk them into adding them to what they stock at Waneta or putting them in Lamoka.

Wireless operation would require a transmitter and a receiver that operate on a specific frequency. There is always a possibility of radio interference. The FCC specifically regulates wireless communication devices (including transmission encoding) to eliminate the possibility of interference with (or from) other applications. Interference could cause loss of throttle control which could lead to a collision. That is why I said a kill switch function is important. You would probably be violating FCC regulations if you used equipment designated for use with RC modelling for this purpose. If there was a mishap, all liability would be on you. Also there is not as much safety engineered into RC modelling equipment as there would be in something like this that requires more safety consideration. If you rig up your own system, it would be much safer to use wired controls. Even then, it might be prudent to have a kill function at the control in case of failure. Possible fire or explosion hazard can be caused by any switch or relay contacts that are not sealed as well as some DC motors which have commutators that produce electrical sparks. All of these types of components must be sealed to prevent any sparks that may cause ignition of any fumes that may be present.

There would be marine safety issues such as fire, explosion and throttle control. Rigging a cable throttle would have less safety concerns. Even with that you have to consider safety. Such as, you should not have a remote throttle without a kill switch function. With a servo control, all electrical components need to be explosion proof (sealed so they cannot produces any spark that could ignite fuel fumes).

Planer boards are allowed but you must adhere to all NYS regs including # of rods per angler. Another concern with them might be oblivious pleasure boaters. Girth measurement is not required or used for judgement. Only length. Time of day fish is netted can be important in a tiebreaker. Jaw spreader can be useful sometimes (especially with small, Multi-trebble lures that are inhaled deep) but some should be modified by installing plastic caps over tips to prevent damage to the fish.

The tournament will be on Sat. June 27th. Go to 2015 Chautauqua Lake Musky Tournament for details.