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| Have had this discussion with my partners many times in the past....when to try out the new techniques we hear about, or dream up on our own? Common theory is when things get tough, go with what works....but is that to say when things are going well, ie. at least the right conditions exist, I should go AWAY from the things that have proven themselves in the past, to try something that may or may NOT work? Maybe I don't have the luxury of the time on the water that many others do, but it is very difficult for me to think that I am going to try a new tactic, when everything in me tells me that if I go with proven ones from the past, I know my chances are much greater that I will get onto fish. What do you think about this quandry????
Slamr |
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| Good question. A quote in Dick Pearson's book really got me thinking, it is "if you keep doing what you did, you will keep getting what you got." If you have proven methods that put fish in the boat, go for it. If you are only getting small fish and that's what you want, action, keep doing what you are doing. Experimenting with new methods, presentations, locations you name it to me is part of the thrill of muskie fishing.
When do we change tactics and try new things? A lot of folks experiment when the fish aren't moving. This is the wrong time to try new things. The time to try different presentations, go to new structures, try fishing for suspended fish is when the fish are moving. Think about it for a minute. When the fish aren't on the move, they are not on the move, trying new techniques will probably fail and you will give up on them.
Your valuable time on the water is just that, if you are satisfied with your catch then don't worry about it. You could dedicate a little time out of your day to experiment, you may be pleasantly surprised at what you discover.
We all fish for these critters at different levels. It is a personal choice and sometimes time constraints limit what we can do, or want to do. I've gone on long enough, sorry.
Good luck, Murph! |
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| Hey Slamr,
The absolute best time to try new tactics is when the fish are going, to see if they work. So many times we try the oddball stuff when the proven things aren't working, and it ends out not working. It may be that your oddball stuff isn't all that bad, but when you try them under tough conditions when the proven stuff isn't working, it may be that nothing would work. The fish are just turned off. When you don't have a lot of time on the water, I know it would be hard to try other stuff when the fish are going. Tough call, but you should definitely try it when the fish are turned on.
Chad |
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| This is a tough question. I think a lot of people try new tactics when the going gets tough. When the new stuff doesn't work they decide that it won't ever work and never try it again. The best time is definately when the conditions are right, but with little time on the water it's tough to stray from the tried and true. What I do is decide ahead of time that I'd like to try something new. Then in the course of my next several trips I make on the water decisions when to experiment based on when the conditions seem favorable for the new tactic to work. Whether I was succesful or not I always try the new stuff several times. It's really tough when your time on the water is limited, but my feeling is that I will never really improve if I don't invest the little time I do have into learning new tactics. |
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| I believe the best time to go out and try something new is anytime but decide it before you get to the lake that today I will be trying this and stick with it. None of this halfway through the day to try some new for 1 hour and get back to what you were doing before, you get out there and do it all day long to really find out is this new technique if worth some more times. So go to your best lake during the best conditions and have at it on your best spots.
Part time try outs just will not give you true results as we all know muskies turn on and off all the time. [:sun:] |
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| I really like the quote that Murph posted - "if you keep doing what you did, you will keep getting what you got." How true this is!
I generally make up my mind before hitting the water that I am going to try something new and stick with it. Example would be a new style bait - for me the Bulldawg this past year. I made the decision before the weekend started up North that I was going to fish the Dawg all weekend whether I caught something or not. I worked it all types of ways so I could understand the little things that would help me boat fish. It worked! I had good action all weekend, caught several fish including a 45" pig.
If you don't do things like this, you will be stuck in a rut and hence the quote above. If you force yourself to try new things, you will become a very versatile fisherman. The more baits and techniques you master, the more muskies you are going to catch. |
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| The best time to try something new is whenever your mindset is such that you're willing to go fishless and experiment. Having the guts to try new stuff takes a special level of focus and commitment, that frankly, 90% of muskie anglers haven't got. And that is why the old rule about 10% of the anglers catching 90% of the fish still holds true. Trying something new could be a new tactic, a new location, or a new bait. To me, experimenting keeps things interesting and challenging... it also keeps you one or two steps ahead of everyone else, especially on pressured waters.
When I come up with a new idea and fellow anglers look at me like I'm crazy, shake their head, and tell me it won't work... there is a very special satisfaction derrived from proving them VERY wrong. To truly know if a new tactic, bait, or location is workable, you have to be able to have success in good times and in slow times.
Innovation is the spice of life. Dick Pearson is one of the best innovators our sport has ever seen. I choose to lead by his example.
Steve Wickens |
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| Two sides to this coin Slammr. True, it may not give you a fair trial to try something new when the fish aren't going, but......if
you are tuned in to the water you are fishing and realize that the standard approach is not working, why not try something new??? I mean you can't catch LESS than nothing right?
www.ishouldatriedsomethinnewskunkedtoday.com |
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