SlowPoke

There's a good chance you'll be dead if a piano drops on you out of the sky too but increasing the likelihood of wearing a PFD of any kind is a good thing. I bought one of those too and sadly, I don't wear it all the time. The fact is, a PFD stored in a compartment in your boat is about as useful as forgetting it at home, yet you're legal! I know better but I'm guilty of that too.

That is correct. It is not considered a flotation device until it's inflated.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1G_Bzu52DY Great quote but it's unfortunate it had to come from the lips of Mel Gibson!

LOL!!! Back in my early riding years I knew a guy that had a couple lap dogs named "Vance & Hines"

How about Bayga? When you want them in from the yard you can yell "Rudy, Bayga come on in" and the neighbours will think you have you garden vegetables trained.

I've been waiting in the garage for my guy to show up.... After 45 minutes I come inside to check OFC.... PM said "sorry, something came up" Anybody else want to go fishing? Grrrrr!

Mangled a prop at Wildwood Two prop hits on Lake St Clair (same rock twice lol) Dredged the mud at Ashbridges Bay West Arm is usually a mine field but never had an issue! I'm afraid next year won't be any better.

LOL Wayne, playing Cessna Tetris again?

You should make the trip someday Roy. BTW, Don and Ruth are going to be down your way next week with Marc.

Open seat for muskie... I have all the gear. Meet in London 5am, back to London mid-afternoon (flexible) Just bring snacks/beverages for yourself and help out with the expense. Brian

We don't have time for a new dog, we brought home a stray we found wandering down the center lane of the highway... We were going to call it Billy Bob but we thought the dog might be insulted.

Well I won't bother with that debate but such a nice looking dog deserves a name derived from beauty, not from something bloated and awkward looking. If that's what you were shooting for, "Pacer" is a nice name.

You should have called her Ram or Sierra

I didn't anticipate buying new. I've always been of the mind to let someone else absorb the depreciation. That is, until the last year. With almost 0% financing and warranty, it made sense to buy my wife's car new versus used. With a massive rebate and a new boat to tow, the shiny black truck got the better of me. The rebate outweighed the depreciation. The boat was the deal of the century. I still can't find one in the U.S. used for less than I paid new in Canada. Which leads me to your question about mark-up. I paid $14,000 below list price, $9,000 below sale prices and $4,000 below what Pt Colborne Marine was selling it for with a used motor (1yr old off lease). The manager told me it was below his cost by $1,600 and another dealer confirmed it by saying "give or take a couple hundred". I suspect you may not find a deal like this every day of the week but they're out there. I don't think you'll haggle $4-5k on current inventory but that's where I would start with non-current inventory. When the snow comes down, so will the 2012 prices. Be warned, selection will be limited. I benefited from buying a big water boat from an area that doesn't move many in that class. His 16'-17'ers were long gone and the leftover 18'er was still over dealer cost ($100 less than my boat).

This is my feeling in general, not just for muskies... With body baits and spoons, it's 50/50... sometimes a pause will initiate a strike, sometimes a jerk will initiate a strike. With blades, I keep them moving.

That looks like a North River. Great boat but only two complaints; - Really noisy when anchored or drifting. Water slapping the hull sides make it sound like you're in a small tin boat. - Casting deck is too small for my liking. That boat will last you a lifetime and well worth the premium you pay for it. Make sure it's the right boat for you!

Good point!!! It would be a 'reel' tough decision for me but would probably come down to... Calcutta 200 TE DC on St Croix LT - super sweet crankbait/spinnerbait/swimbait setup and I shudder to think of what it would take to replace it.

Ok Dax, your boat is sinking and you're holding onto your favourite child with one hand and you can only grab 1 rod/reel combo with the other.... what do you do?

2 Playbooks for us as well. If you're looking for games, look elsewhere. If you're looking for browsing, graphics, MSOffice updating, e-reader, multi-tasking ability and convenient size; you won't find a better value. Another perk is OS updates, not new hardware. The Playbook is a stand alone unit now with OS 2. Initially it relied heavily upon your BB smartphone, now it just compliments it.

Yamaha: http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outboard/accessories/acscitemdetail/5/256/1093/9190/all/1/8045/0/detail.aspx

I'm happy with my GEN II so this is great news for me. I can add another one to my boat at a well discounted price by next spring... Bring on the rebates!! The new unit looks good but I'm put off by touch-screens.

Hehehe, that's not him! Emil hasn't brought a fish in himself all year... he finds them and makes his guests do all the work. Probably over 300 this year! I still think he should give up his day job, put a set of Walker downriggers on the boat and start a charter business.

I can't speak for the transom saver on a Yamaha... my ETEC has one built in. If you want load guides (the horizontal ones opposed to post style), get the longest you can fit/afford. It's nice to have some of the guides out of the water when you're loading. I've seen several of the shorter ones disappear underwater rendering them rather useless.

You should have flossed him. Congrats on your first pin-chinny!

Been there... I just put the jig back into the sauce and it was almost good as new.