12-18ft this year

Yes and setting tips for different conditions.

Yeah man I love giving stuff to kids. Hopefully they don’t accidentally eat them. 🤣. At one time I had a few subscriptions and have an abundance of stuff that will never get wet. I also spend way too much at Ollie’s in the spring when the put out their fishing haul.

Nathan Sipes What’s your favorite color.. Black #1 Green Pumpkin with a chartreuse dip/pen. #2 and believe it or not a Bubblegum also has paid off and has did work when those struggle. (Zoom Trick Worms are My Favorite)

Kevin Skovenski -Not sure how long you been tourney fishing but you are right proper gear is key. If you plan on fishing tournaments and live in an area with changing seasons. Definitely invest in a good rain suit with wind resistance. I have had a Simms Challenger set for three years now and It still works great. Not to heavy or light weight and mobility in it is good. Also not ridiculously over priced. Perfect for me in the south east.

NC for me all lakes within 1-1.5 hours from me.

Ken Pfeiffer It’s so hard to 💤 on Tournament Eves. I feel like a kid with Santa on the way. 🤣 The morning adrenaline is much better well rested though!

Nathan Sipes - No problem bro. Also if you can, and you got a boat try to get in on some Co angler-Action. I’ve always learned something from every boater even at times good & bad mindsets.

We have all been here and had goose eggs at weigh ins so I feel you on that lonely thought filled ride home. For me I have learned to make sure you have a confidence bait always on hand. This season in my club almost 75% of the fish I put on a scale came off a shakey head. If my box is empty and my plan seems to be failing I’ll usually slow down some and pick up that, catch a few and regain some confidence. (Sometimes if I’m lucky I don’t even put it down) I’ve also tried to make it a habit to research my maps and always pick out 3-5 spots I want to fish…. not too many so I can make it to all of them. “The what ifs” always hurt more after a bad day. In a nutshell my best advice. Go simple, have less lure options on your deck, and shorten your plan or amount of spots you want to fish. This way on your ride home you still have a sense of accomplishment in finishing out your plan. You also have built free time into your day the time to take some risk and try other stuff or different areas……And most importantly go to bed the night before🤣

I fished the NC Division the past 3 years I have fished as a CO and plan to fish my first year as a boater next season. I could fish Piedmont as well but my local club schedule and a few other trails here keep me busy. We have the 5 alives & CATT and I’ll sometimes hop in one of those. I use to fish ABAs but they axed COs last year.