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I know that catching fish to eat is not what fishing is all
about but by keeping things in perspective, we can strive to be
better fishermen. The last trout and red fish you caught and
ate probably cost over $100.00 per pound. I know you don't
need to hear this but I do. It's humbling and it helps me to
remember how important it is for my equipment to be in top
condition if I want to catch more fish than the average
fisherman. The following figures are rough but low in most
cases. I'll use my own. Bryan-College Station is 190 miles
from Matagorda. At 10 miles to the gallon , that's 38 gallons
round trip. That's $114.00 for gas at $3.00 per gallon.
Allowing a minimum of $50.00 for boat fuel, and $50.00 for
everything else from food to tackle, I've spent $214.00 to go
fishing. Two trout and one red fish yield about 2 pounds of
filets. That's $107.00 per pound. Fresh fish are good, but I
don't know if they're that good. Ten trout and three red fish
yield about 8 pounds of filets. That's about $27.00 per pound.
Now, they're starting to taste better. Realistically, then, it's
easy to understand that anything that increases your catch
will save you money.
Now, let's talk a little about increasing your catch. Everybody
can be skilled. You can read tons of magazine articles, books,
and fishing reports, study contour maps, and talk to other
fishermen to find out what the fish are supposed to do in every
situation, where they are supposed to be any time of the year,
and what they are supposed to be eating at any given time,
under any conditions. The degree of your skill derived from
preparation is totally up to you. Equally as important as this
preparation is your equipment so that you can actually catch
the fish when you find them. This is where I come in. I assure
you that the people on the pro fishing circuits and guides
fishing for a living blend these two factors and are
consistently more successful than the average fisherman.
Take 2 equally skilled surgeons, one working with a Buck
knife and one working with a scalpel. Obviously, the one with
the scalpel will be consistently more successful. I can
transform a custom rod and/or a clean, tuned reel into a
"scalpel" to surgically remove more fish with less effort.
Reels are like automobiles. They are machines designed to
work properly as long as they are not abused and are
maintained on a regular basis. You cannot submerse your
pickup in salt water and expect it to operate properly without
some pretty costly repairs unless you address a damaging
situation quickly and service it regularly. The same holds
true for your reel. I've proven that it only takes 7 hours for
rust to form on bearings, therefore, it doesn't take long for a
$15-20 reel cleaning to turn into a $50-60 bill, counting
corroded bearings and other salt water damage. Unfortunately
we are all guilty. Preventative maintenance is not the norm. A
$99.00 brake job turns into a $500.00 brake job because we
waited a little longer than we should have.
A little bit of preventative maintenance on your part can save
your equipment and save you money on inevitable repairs.
As I continue to build this site, I will add helpful hints on
equipment maintenance and answer any questions that you
may have. Continue to check back and don't hesitate to e-mail
me.
Tommy