Abraxus

Not sure about Marinas and boat rentals, but can tell you the fishing is good! Some HUGE small mouth in there. I caught a 5 pounder their one year. Some big pike too! Ab

I work for an insurance company and all isnt as it appears. People always want to crap on the insurance companies for this and that. Even I, have been guilty of this in the past. My company insures receivables. We even purchase purchase receivables on a non recourse basis. Last year was for our industry, the equivalent of a Hati or Katrina. We generate roughly $30,000,000.00 in sales per annum. In the first HALF of 2009, we had already paid out over $186,000,000.00 in claims. If a company/client/policy holder had experienced three consequtive years in losses and were in excess of thier deductible each time, ya...come renewal, we would often make them an offer they could and would refuse. As previously mentioned. Insurnace companies have to make a profit too! If they themselves fall below a certian threshold, the governing agecies within each country or province will pull their license. The government cannot have an insurance company selling policies when they cannot afford to pay claims its as simple as that. Not to mention, since almost all Insurance companies are publicly traded, the share holders must be answered to and taken care of as well. Everyone thinks that Insurance companies have endless deep pockets. They don't! AIG was one the worlds largest Insurance companies and yet fell victim to the recent Great Recession. Most policies in place, have premiums so low in relation to what an actual claim will cost if one should occur, that it would typically take over 50 years of that one policy/person or busines renewing thier Policy year after year before it would even come close to covering the cost of just one claim. All the while, the insurance company is not gauranteed this will happen. Many people see an increase in their policy premium and are quick to call a broker looking for a competitive quote. Insurance companies rarely if ever have true loyal customers, and so thus seeing the possibilty of one person ever contributing enough premium in their life time to one insurance carrier after stinging them for a sizable claim, is vertually un heard of! If you have multiple claims, you are a high risk. I dont necessarily aggree with them not offering you a renewal option, but would not have any issue if they did offer you a Premium that was rediculously expensive. At least then you would have the option of bucking up and continue being insured or option two, self insure. If you renewed and continue for a period of five years with out claims, then your premium would reflect this in premium reductions each year. That is the fair and correct approach. Anyways, I feel for you! This kinda thing sucks and is never nice to hear when someone has to experience it. The Health Insurance issue on the other hand is absolutely unacceptable. That should pursued legally! Ab

Ya...I live in Ajax now. Remarkably close to Duffins Creek. I walk my dog in there almost everyday now. It is really messed up! I walk around with a poop bag because I clean up after my dog, yet there is trash all over the place in there. 90% of the garbage comes from the guys fishing the pools! It's pathetic! Coffee cups, fishing line, hook packages and beer cans are perhaps the most abundant items to be found! I wouldnt even doubt that some of the same guys that do this stuff, lurk on here once in awhile! That area is a very cool place within the city to get a taste nature, yet morons ruin it all the time! The worst part is, there are garbage cans in the parking lot where they park their cars! Yet they just cannot seem to carry a coke can the 5 minutes it takes to walk back to their car in order to dispose of it properly. The thing that pisses me off most, is the fact that I am not permitted by law to have my dog off leash back there, yet these idiots can litter at will. Just lame! Ab

Yup! There is an area of Vancouver, located out by UBC, which has a ton of beautiful homes built on land leased from the Musquem Native Band. About 7 or 8 years ago, the natives jacked the lease rents on the land as each lease expired. The homes that were built there by non native folks in many cases were upper class. The natives increased the rates by an unacceptable and unrealistic amount, which in turn forced many home owners(whom are not land owners)out. The home owners on the leased land really got screwed. Perhaps this is just a case of the past re writing itself with the shoe on the other foot, who knows and so be it if in fact this was the case. The point is, these leases are rarely worth anything good and unless you want to risk losing something you have worked hard to build, maintain and have become attached to, I would says avoid land leases at all costs! Here is a couple of articles on the Musquem land lease situation. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/1999/01/12/musqueam990112.html http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/msg01831.html It will give you a little insight on how badly some of these things go. B.C see's a lot of these situations and many, if not most non natives have learned their lessons by this point in time. I highly doubt any of them would ever see benefit coming from a land leases ever again. B.C. has seen a lot of greif on deals like this. There is much to be said about where money goes and how it rarely gets accounted for out there. In most cases, the money seldom finds its way to where it was intended to go, but thats a discussion best suited for alternative forums then this one. My advice is simple, unless you want to get yourself embroiled in a mess of future legal crap, these are somee of the common issues you should make yourself of aware of before making a hasty decision on something that looks like a great deal. Ab

Okay! I have to comment on this statement! Yes, I actually do expect the air to be free! I buy gas, ciggarettes, pop, coffe and an assortment of other items from your freaking store, so the least you can do in order to express some resmeblance of customer service and appreciation, would be provide a working FREE air compressor for my tires! Personally I think it is this "me first" and "only if I get paid for it will I do it" attitude that is ruining our society Remember those days when a business owner would actually appreciate your hard earned dollar? You know... when you would go to a service station (They should now be called no service stations) and there would be a person waiting at the pump, ready to fill your tank, clean your windows and top up the oil and tires for you? Society seemed so much nicer then! Now we have jack asses that speak to you through a speaker on the wall telling you to pre pay or fill! It seems as though there just isnt any appreciation for our business or buck any more. It really is a disturbing trend. (This was not directed at you Dara, as I am sure you were being sarcastic.) AB

Ya... dont use the marina. There is a beach on the opposite side of the pond that you can launch from free of charge. The beach is more then adequate for launching a tinny of your size. Be careful going out on the Big O in a 14footer. The water out there can whip up really fast and unexpectantly. It can be as calm as can be in the moring, but the rollers can grow in size quite fast! Be aware of your surroundings and keep your eye on any possible change in conditions. You would not be the first to get caught off gaurd out there. Ab

Dr. Salvelinus is correct. On every 4 Stroke I have owned, the dealership has been quite specific with regards to how you lay the motor down. I have owned two now and perhaps it may only be a Mercury thing, but I was told that the motor should only be laid down on one particular side so that the oil does not drain out into the rest of the motor. If one can, the motor should always be stored in an upright position in order to avoid making the mistake of laying it on the wrong side. I havent really had to worry about the my new motor since it is a 60hp and always remains sitting on my boat. Having said this, you may want to look into this and ask your dealership the question. Otherwise, the new motor looks great! I am sure you will enjoy it immensely! Congrats! Ab

That would get nasty in a hurry! In my early days of aquariums, I made this mistake. I put a very nasty little Pseudotropheus in with a couple of convicts. It was my first African. Oh boy....I can see the convicts now. There wasnt a fin left on any of them! Poor buggers! It was like bringing a starving Mike Tyson to a soup kitchen full of wanna be tough guys. Ab

Wow! Thats nasty! Ab

I have 2007 Mercury 60hp fourstroke EFI and I have it serviced by the dealer twice every year. You should definately change the lower end gear oil and as well give it fresh oil and filter up top. Dont forget that the dealer will know of any recalls that have occurred or manufacturer updates/alerts that need addressing. I take mine to the dealer for a freshen up around june and then before I wrap it for winter. It doesnt cost very much. I think I pay about $150.00 per service. They do a full tune up/ trailer servicing and etc at the same time. I plan on owning my boat for a long, long time, so I think the maintenance is well worth the money. Ab

Yup! I use to be in to Aquariums as well. I once had a 135gallon tank and a 108 gallon tank filled with African Cichs as well. It is an expensive hobby and you just keep throwing more and more money at it. lol I have kept most of my rocks/gravel, wood and filtration systems just in case I get the itch again in the future. The eheim alone set me back crazy dough. Maybe one day when I have more time and even more money, I will start it up again. Ab

I read and enjoy your reports as well. Ab

I have the Clam Voyageur. Most people I have seen, mount old down hill skis to the bottom of the tub. I have and it slides like butter. If you wear them out, you can easily replace them with another set. You can pick up old skis at yard sales and pawn shops for cheap. Ab

That looked like an awesome trip and that one laker is HUGE! Ab

I will agree! You certainly have a valid point! Having said this, that tournament brings in a ton of money. It is for charity, but the number of fishermen that actually buy tags is quite enormous. As such, I think the least they can do is cater to the interests of thier participants. I havent seen many fishermen towing a Lake Ontario sized fishing craft with a Toyota Matrix! lol

At least make it all trucks! Who the hell wants a Matrix! Like anyone would really want a Defective Toyota right now. Thats the most lame prize list I have ever seen them offer up yet! With all the problems Toyota is having, they probably got those cars for rock bottom dollar! What a rip! lol I am pretty sure I will save my money this year and not buy in. Ab

If you are going to Vegas and you happen to be a Gun Enthusiast of any shape or form, you MUST go to The Gun Store Las Vegas. This place is absolutely amazing and a must do while visiting sin city! You can rent ANY automatic weapon that is manufactured either for the civilian, or military and law enforcement application. Everything from an M4A, UZI, AK47, Berretas, Glocks, Bennelli Automatic Shotguns, Colt 45, 357mags you name it, they got it and you can rent it along with as many clips you wish to fire down their range! It is a hoot! Unless you win big on the slots or with the vegas girls, this will be the best $100.00 you will spend in the city! If you happen to strike out on the slots or the girls, this will often assist you in releiving pent up frustration! Here is website if you are interested. http://www.thegunstorelasvegas.com/ Ab

I will offer this to you though as a word of advice. If you bring your own boat, or rent one at the lodge, be very careful on the French! There are a lot of un marked rocks out there. Without a doubt the worst kind to boot! You can be bombing along in 30 feet of water and a rock the size of a bus will just pop up in front of you running just sub surface! Not only that, but if you dont have a GPS unit on your boat, pay very careful attention to your surroundings. Once you get up river, the cabins along the shoreline become scarce and eventually none at all. At this point, everything starts to look the same. There are alot of bays and nooks in the river that can disorient you if you are not paying attention. One would think, how can anyone get lost on a River? Well let me tell ya, you can and people do get lost up there all the time! lol A tank of gas in a boat will only take you so far, and if you run out...it will be quite sometime before someone notices you are missing and sends out help! lol I have heard of several people whom have driven for an hour or more, thinking they are heading in the right direction only to realize they were not. Hanging out to the seat of there pants with only fumes left in the jerry can, they would make it back to the lodge with a story to tell. That's the lucky ones! One weekend I was up there, I saw 5 different boats with shredded props on the same day! lol That river will eat the lower leg of your motor if you give it half a chance! lol Ab

Hey Sneak e pete, I have been to the French several times. If you want a great place to stay, Bryers Lodge is wicked. Not the cheapest, but perhaps the best that we have stayed at. The cabins are really nice and clean and the hosts, very accomodating. They have regular and pontoon boats for rent, and as well all the bait you will need. I kid you not when I say the cabins are beautiful and comfortable to stay in. The scenery is also great! We also stayed once at Wosley Bay Lodge. Their cabins are rudamentry at best. They are cheaper, but much more crowded and not as accomodating as we found Bryer Lodge to be. I would rent a place at Bryer lodge in the future without a doubt! Ab

' This is not really that accurate. I have been using the Abu Garcia C3 and C4 reels and an Okuma ID400LX for Musky fishing for years. These reels are the larger round barrel baitcasters. They have worked great, but just this past year, I picked up the Abu Garcia REVO Turo Reel for Musky. It is a low profile baitcaster that is built like tank and can pull a truck from the ditch. Very nice reel! It is very smooth when casting and fits oh so nice in the palm of your hand. Even better, it isnt rediculously priced like some of the comparible shimanos. I really like this reel. It has all the bells and whistles as well. It comes with the clicker for your drag when trolling and it also comes in two models. One has a smaller spool which holds less line and is much better for casting applications and then there is another model which has a much larger spool for crazy line capacity. I got the one with the smaller spool, but when running 80lb braid on there, there isnt as much line capacity as I would like and if I had it do over again, I would have went with the larger spool model. Other then that, the reel has performed flawlessly for me. Ab

I have a 2002 Nissan Pathfinder. I pull a 16.5 ft Princecraft Holiday SC with a 60hp 4stroke Merc, plus a ton of gear all summer long! Whether just for fishing or for camping. In the winter, I am pulling a 700cc Quad most weekends and a fish trap as well. I work in sales and put an average of 30,000k on the vehicle per year. I cant say enough about the Nissan Pathfinders. It has over 210k on it now and I swear it still has every bit of gumption today as it did when I bought it! Just a fantastic machine! Other then the regular oil changes and basic maintenance, it has not cost me one dime additional. Having said this, I am not sure about the new Pathfinder Model. They changed the motor from a 3.5 to a 4.0. It is my personal oppinion or suspicion (which ever) that this was done because the original 3.5 was just too damn reliable and the people who bought them, didnt need to buy again for a very long time! Not good for car sales! lol Ab

Dude! I don't know what you are talking about! lol The Musky attached below was caught AND released in Rice just 2 Septembers ago! Believe me, she aint no myth or legend, just a big old girl with pearly white teeth! AB

Is that your Superbird? The plymouth was a Superbird and the Dodge was a Daytona Charger right? From what I understand, it is basically the Road Runner but with the areodynamic nose and spoiler ya? That thing owned Nascar until it was banned! Built for the big speed tracks like Talladega Speedway. Thats a nice car! If the numbers match with the original motor, she gotta be worth a bundle to say the least! Ab

Yup! That sure is purdy! I love the old Mopar Muscle! The 67 Darts with the 340 is a specail machine as well. Not to mention the GTX and the list goes on an on! AB Ah...there we go! There she be!

I did 160mph in a 1967 rag top Firebird with a Chevy 350zzr crate motor I dropped into it. Ahh...flow master series 8 exhaust, hooker ceramic headers, aluminum heads, Holly 4barrels, 4 core rad, turbo 400 tranmission and posi rear end. What fun! That was only 8 years ago, so they are not only the good old days! I miss that car! My family hated it! lol They would alaways complain about going to fast. I would tell them that we were only doing 60! They didnt know the speedo was in miles per hour:) I tried to add a picture of it, but it tells me the file is too large. Oh well...she is a beauty though! Ab