Why haven't you landed a #50 yet ??

[Nebe]

its only a number. If i catch one great. If i dont, I wont feel like my misison in life has failed.
I do fish with the right gear to handle such a beast though and I do feel like I wouldnt screw it up if i hooked into one..

[zimmy]

I may have lost one... so my excuse is probably that I didn't know how to stop it in time to prevent it from getting where it shouldn'ta gone. So lack of skill or experience I guess with handling that kinda fight. I know of guys who have gotten em or real close and said they didn't have much in em. So who knows, maybe I lost a feisty forty under tough conditions. Maybe some night I'll take a 50 under mellow conditions and just reel her in without much ado. Time on the water, luck, skill its all part of it

[eelman]

I dont think you label a guy a great fisherman just because he has a 50 or two under his belt..

Luck however only goes so far, The skill is in placing yourself in the right situations and conditions that give you the opertunity and a better than average chance of your next hookup being the holy grail..

All the luck in the world will not get you a fifty pound fish if you consistantly fish the wrong places or the wrong tides the wrong time..Learning the structure those fish like and learning the bait patterns and food supply in the area puts you in the right places..It doesnt always mean the obvious.....

There are guys who catch a fifty doing the craziest of things...But for the most part the guys who do catch those fish are the ones who are students of striped bass in every single aspect...Its the guys who dont overlook the little things, its the guys who use whatever method gives them a chance and not being thick headed about sticking to one thing...

After all that, the most important thing is putting in your time and hoping for the best...Once you have located a big fish spot, then the size is luck, the difference betwen a 40 and 50 in those situations is luck....but its one of those things....sooner or later it happens and all the hard work pays off.