How Many MONSTAHS Did It TAKE,,,,,,,,,,

[NIB]

Originally Posted by numbskull

I think a lot of the above advice is spot and technique specific. Letting a large (and that term is relative to the tackle you are using) fish take a lot of line may work well over sand or with a single hook, but with plugs in strong current or in a shallow boulder fields fighting a fish on a long line stacks the odds against you.

It may help to think of the fight as four stages. There is the take, roll, thrashing bit....where it is easy to get too rough and pull free. The run.......where how much pressure you can or need to risk depends on the strength of your attachment to the fish (i.e., hook/line strength) and what/where the obstructions you will need to deal with lie. The work back.........where keeping the fish coming with its head up while avoiding slack or prolonged pumping that opens hook holes is key. And the landing....... where the angle of pull and degree of tension on the fish changes quickly and some lightening of forces is usually necessary.

When I think about it, however, once you are past the ego stage of fishing where the size of what you catch and kill makes you feel good about yourself there are two main reasons to seek big fish,.......because they are a challenge to find and hook, and because once you hook them they can and often do beat you. So you smile, give them their due, and try again. Not a bad thing.

Good points Geo,I might add to the landing stage there is th last ditch effort.I have seen many fish lost when the fish makes his last run.Usually as they near the waters edge they realize this is not good and will try with all they have left.On a short line this can be bad.I sometimes will loosen the drag a click at this point and cup the spool lightly to keep just enough pressure on em.
I still think about the one over fifty I lost at my feet..As time goes on I think that it is not that important anymore.I don't NEED a 50 lb fish to justify the sport..I have gotten so much from it already...
Releasing one would be the ultimate in Poetic Justice.IMO
When I think about the evolution of my fishing life.I am a long ways away from the kid who threw his rod down in the sand to tackle his first keeper..

[Back Beach]

Originally Posted by NIB

I am a long ways away from the kid who threw his rod down in the sand to tackle his first keeper..

Don't kid yourself....

[NIB]

Originally Posted by Back Beach

Don't kid yourself....

Thanks I think..
My grey beard and creaky body might suggest otherwise.
I'll always be a child at heart..

[Crafty Angler]

BD, at this point I've finally realized that your most important piece of equipment in landing large fish is between your ears.

Tackle failure happens, even to the most diligent. I've always believed that luck is for the ill-prepared but while it doesn't hurt, eventually luck alone will desert you at the worst time. While I say I'd rather be lucky than good, the guys I've fished with who are the most successful - beyond what they've acquired over years of time in the surf - are fully focused and relaxed - in other words, they put themselves in the zone.

How you get there is up to you. Like Cool Hand Luke, you gotta get your mind right after you've got the mechanical nuances down.

Besides, if you were banging big fish without fail every time you went out I think some of the magic would go out of it for me. It's the uncertainty that makes it what it is - if it was a guarantee every time, it would just end up being like having another job for me, personally.

Nothing truly worth having comes easy.

[Pete F.]

Originally Posted by Crafty Angler

Nothing truly worth having comes easy.

Amen

[Sea Dangles]

Tie your knots at home. Use good hooks, F sharpening a 40 cent hook,throw it away. I have listened too long to the referance of the quest for big fish as an ego trip. NOTHING in the hunt for Striped Bass compares to the adrenaline rush you get when fighting a fish you KNOW is a corker. Once you have done it, it will consume you. There is a certain amount of ego involved in all fishing, even the satisfaction the twins get from fooling fish with artificials has an allure. There is a time and place for everything, it's just that nobody knows where and when all the time. Some folks who have made the commitment to learning their waters may make advances one season only to have the following year serve you humble pie. This may be referred to as some as an ego check. Call it what you wish,anything that makes you happy can qualify as stroking your ego.

[numbskull]

Fair enough. I should have said "...once you get past the reputation/fame need to catch and kill big fish.....". Personal satisfaction and ego gratification are always part of fishing and why we fish the way we do, whether we stalk fish with a flyrod on foot, or in a boat with electronics, bait, and lead......and whether we do it anonymously or publicly.

And, Chris, before you get too animated, I do not feel that catching and killing big fish for reputation purposes is anything other than a normal stage most fishermen go through.

[Sea Dangles]

George, we all have egos that need carressing at some point. I have many acquaintances that range from roofers to lawyers,even some doctors like yourself. Some of these doctors don't feel the need to announce their accomplishments or proffession by preceding their surname with Dr., as others choose to for no reason other than ego gratification. So please enjoy your cake today. Happy Holidays, Chris

[Back Beach]

Originally Posted by numbskull

I do not feel that catching and killing big fish for reputation purposes is anything other than a normal stage most fishermen go through.

Very true.....the fisherman's evolution in my mind is as follows....

1. Wide eyed newcomer.

2. Enthusiast/know it all.

3. Accomplished enthusiast.

4. Acclaimed/celebrated enthusiast.

5. Show off/egomaniac.

6. Accomplished pro who realizes he really doesn't know %$%$%$%$ and there really is a lot of luck/chance involved.

7. Humble veteran who would rather not be known at all and does it for fun.