WHAT MAKES A MASTER? - WELLO PT 15/08

[Mullet_Musketeer]

Excellent Post - I am shored based and always completely perplexed when I go to the exact same spot, same time and can't find em.

However sometimes when watching from the banks I can't help thinking how accurate post above is (repeated below):

"I bought my own boat for a reason. The people I used to fish with always thought that the fishing might be better "Over there" Trouble was, they would only stay in the new spot for 10 mins and be moving to yet another better spot. At the end of the day, the statistics would read something like 10% fishing, 90% motoring to another spot."

I think this is absolutely spot on. Hope thats not me if and when I get a boat.

[White_Steenbras]

I think you just have to have good squid jigs to become a master?????

Yup, squid jigs

[woppa]

It's a funny one isn't it! I find it amusing to hear people say you must fish on a certain type of tide and a certain moon... yes I do understand that all this helps but at the end of the day it's up to the fish whether they want to bite or not! According to some, our conditions when we caught our fish on Friday night weren't optimal... but our catch says a different story.

I think the key to good fishing is being able to read your sounder well, good conditions, use bait and hooks to suit the fish you are after and patience!

Happy Fishing!

Mrs Woppa.

[ratherbefishin]

T1, Webby, Solwota, all the others, you're all so right.
It is just a numbers game, and the 'masters' if you want to call them that just have higher hit rates than the rest of us. They do all the things to improve their AVERAGE but in the end it is still just an average and there will be hot and cold patches.
Think of it this way if you have a fair dice and you throw it often enough then each number will come up 1/6th of the time. If you bias that dice just slightly towards, say, the number 6 and keep rolling it, there will still be some 1s, some 2s, some3s etc etc but there should be a few more sixes than normal. That doesnt rulle out the odd time when you foll ten 1s in a row, it can happen. but in the long run there should be more 6s than before and more 6s than any other result.
Thats what being a 'master' is improving your average (biasing your dice) until there is a noticeable number of 6s. And that includes being able to recognise when to play the game and when not to.
Tides/moon/wind not right = someone else's bias on the dice => don't play or your average will fall.
Being a master is not being perfect it's just having an average thats far above everyone else's by consistently making those incremental improvements and recognising when/where to play the game.
Thats what we all aspire to and thats why we are on here sharing our knowledge and tips and trying to improve our sport.

BTW if was all science and no artform, some japanese geek would have invented a computer to tel you exactly how/where/when and then there'd be no fun and no challenge in it. It's a bit of science a bit of art and lot of sport and fun!!!!!

[Murks]

Well T1, I have said it before and I will say it again, this just proves that your human after all
Thanks for all the tips fellas.
My trouble is that the fish are ALWAYS at the spot that I fish irrespective of being in the Broady, Pin or the Bay ............ the problem is we just dont go there on the same days
But I tell ya what, its gunna happen and when it does there won't be any room left on the reports section because my post will be bigger and better than War and Peace [smiley=laola.gif]
(I do live in a dream like state or daze or something)
All the Best
Brett

[Jiggit]

best situation ever witnessed. 100m past the first bar of moreton ,thick bals of sardines , spin up a bonito to the boat ,throw it back just to see a 60kg marlin 1m out from the 4.35 seajay tinnie and cuttin laps arround it , we both dove to the live bait tank simultaneasly, before i could even pull a livie from the tank me mates ratchet is screaming off, hes pulled his hooked it up and his on, all in seconds of sighting it.... marlin on, marlin in the boat 15meters of water.. thats what i call great fishin......master

[Dogbream]

T1,

IM glad you stuck this report up, gives me the chance to say stop buggarising around brissy river and wello point and get ya backside up to the barwons, you'll turn your bag out of 35-40cm squire into bigger, stronger (safer eating) models thats just my opinion when it comes to squire in moreton bay/bris river region

I say bring back the VB singlets, budgie smugglers and get that boat out in the open water

Bring back the biff

Cheers,
The Dog.

[Dirty]

Hey Kel,

Thanks for the advice brother. I appreciate it. I totally agree with you, it has to be safe and in moderation. I don't mind a few from time to time, but I agree with you and whoever the skipper is. Booze of no booze, I will still enjoy myself!

g.

[T1]

Hi All!

Gee, didn't expect this amount of responses to my babble but great work fella's and some great tips too!

SOLWOTA - Richard, i'm still in stitches about the term 'master baiter'! [smiley=laugh.gif] I met one such 'baiter' once! We were at the annual Greenback Tailor comp at Cabarita in the late 90's! At the weigh-in and we happen to be within a meter of the guy that caught the winner and he was about to be interviewed by the local paper for his effort! Well we thought, maybe we can get some tips from the guru so lets listen in! Man, what a load of 'baiting' this guy did! 'Ohh, you just ask my friends, whenever we go fishing, i always catch the fish! I am the guru! I know my sh%t' and on and on! He baited like i'd never heard anyone (sober) before! We were so amused that we hung around for the presentation just to see what volume of 'baiting' he was going to exert in his acceptance speech. To our disappointment, he came up with 'this time it was me, next time it could be you!' Gee, must have gone too hard at the Journo! Still, if they'd had an award for The Master Baiter, hands down it was his!

I note you lived in Bamaga. A good mates bro is the local mechanic up there in Saica - Mark P. Do you know him?

SCALEM: Brian, i agree with what you say wholeheartedly and reaffirm that the list you compiled is just a short one as there's many things we can do better to improve our chances! But i also stick by my comment that sometimes, they simply are just not there! Lets not forget that fish are nomadic, and like us, they're not always hungry! Ever tried to force another chip down your throat after you've just finished a 1kg T-Bone? It's not fun let me tell you!!!!

GOT THE FEVER: I'm with you Kel on the booze - I believe it should be treated no different to Drink Driving on the roads!

RATHERBEFISHIN: I think Bill Gates (American) would have probably founded something first... Only problem would be that you would have to constantly 'reset' your environment because it would continuously 'crash' as you were about to land your 'bigun' >

MURKS: Brett, I look forward to the day when you put that post up! In fact, i'd be more than happy to lend a hand!

DOGBREAM: The Dog, I don't think my fuel tanks have the capacity to get me to the banks! However if you have the vessel and the capability, then i am more than happy to hop on board anytime... Plus, I am not one to take a 4.5m old boat out into open water - I know people do it, but i aint your avergae person! Not worth the risk for a few fins to me... Plus, what's wrong with Brissie river Squire? And where did that twitch all of a sudden appear from?

BABY BREAM: George, you sound like a bloke who'll go a long way in life champ! Look forward to meeting you in the near future!!

Thanks everyone else for your valued input! I hope to catch up with all of you too at some point in the near future We need more M&G's...

Take Care T

[drawn]

My 2 cents worth. I haven't fished QLD for a couple of years now as I'm in SA but the rules are the same as far as I'm concerned. A "master" does come home with the fish 99% of the time because: when their best spots fail to fire they have back up spots, for instance if the wind and tide aren't working together and they feel it is needed for the fish they are after they move to a spot where the tide moves in a different direction to suit the wind, like when it is disturbed around a reef or island or around a bay, or they can effectively fish a wind against tide situation, they have a back up plan for virtually every situation- that's a "master"
oh yeah and I'm not one either

drawn

[Brad_H]

Hi Guys,
I only stick my 2 cents in when I feel its worth it, so here I go
firstly I hate the term 'Master' I reckon it should be put in the same bucket as 'expert' and 'guru', all of em mashed with the muncher and sent out with the burley trail

Fishing is an ever evolving learing experience and if you take note of what you do in your surroundings and the result in your catch effort, then store it away mentally or in a journal of some sort, then you will always be better prepared for the next trip on the briney blue.

Whilst that statement maybe common sense to a lot who inhabit these pages, how often do we see the same guys, going to the same spot at the same time/tide with the same bait/lure and end up with the same result, be that good or bad. The difference between good and bad results is as simple as be open minded and observant, when someone else is catching and you aren't. Case in point is T1 and crew and the excellent reports they post here for 1 and all.

On the otherside of the case is the example of misguided posts about wether certain baits/lures are better at certain times and evrybody will have an opinion to air. Evry fisherman will have a preference as to the personal favourite, which isn't to say thiers is the best, but what works for 1 guy may not work for another.

In fact I saw an excellent example over the weekend of Aug 18-20 when I made 2 trips to Mud Island, 1 at Midnight Friday and the other before dawn on Sunday. Friday night saw 3 of us venture out from Sandgate in ideal conditions 5-8 knots easy trip to Mud and we hit the eastern reef first. The tide was not huge and we figured on fishing thru the change till about 6am.

The first few hours were pretty slow, with a few undersize snapper, a good bream and several moses coming in. We used a variety of plastics, mainly Assassin 5" shads which are our favs for that area, as the larger profile works well in darkness which we had with the small amount of moon left. We switched over to slimmer profile worm style lures, mainly Slider 4' worms and the new Reaction Innovations 4.95" Flirt Worm.

Almost as soon as we switched lures we started getting better results, a 75cm, 39cm and 40cm soon had the three of us smiling in the predawn light. The interesting fact was that the large fish came from the deep water (23') and the 2 smaller fish hit the lures just under the surface as the sun just peeped over the bottom of Moreton Isl. we headed home soon after sun up, happy with our effort.

Armed with that information, a trip on early Sunday was hatched. It was my eldest sons B'day on the Monday and we do a traditional trip to Mud to celebrate it. The other reason was to christen the new boat on Snapper. Whilst we had a good run out of the river, the wind hadn't dropped as much as we had hoped and we arrived a little after prime time to see 18 other boats parked along the reef, all anchored over their fav spots obviously . We on the other hand drifted with the tide and wind whilst casting ahead of the boat.

My first cast was snaffled almost as soon as it hit the water and a nice 41cm Snapper hit the livewell, 3 casts later I was on again, but at 34cm he went back to grow a lil more. Looking around the boats (now numbering 24) and having the odd chat as we drifted past, we saw little activity other that a few well bent rods snagged on the bottom . In fact I hooked up on the bigger fish as we drifted past a bit 6m Quinnie and they watched the tussle with interest. When they saw the fish there were a few claps and well done's called over.

As we adjusted position with the electric we had a chat with them and the couldn't believe we were using such light tackle to catch our fish. Whilst we were outfitted with spinning rods up to 8lb and only using 1/8oz heads, they had the broomsticks and overheads and using up to 4oz snapper leads. We imparted the information about the fish being mid water and they should try drifting with lightly weighted baits, which they sorta looked uncomfortable with and we left them to their spot.

We decide to head on in a little later and as we passed them they gave us a wave, but they were still anchored, still had the heavy weights on and still hadn't scored a fish. WONDER WHY !!!

Anyway before this turns into a short novel In the last 5 trips to Mud, I have never NOT caught a legal Snapper, but does that make me a 'MASTER' I think not, simply a thinking fisherman, who uses all the resources available, including this board, to increase the odds in my favour. Forget about who is good, better,best and share the info, the enjoyment of our sport and the challenge of the chase rather than the fillets at the end

Brad H

[chief]

.I 'll put my 2 cents in as well and well done for bringing up a good question T1
i reckon the only one you need to impress at the end of the day is yourself. Every one to their own, i spent enough time 10 years ago catching fish on cobweb and thinking catching the biggest fish you could catch on rediculous line classes and going through mood wings because i didn't achieve, I'm sorry to some of you guys out there but i've seen to many beautiful fish fought to near death for my fun. i stopped fishing for years ,sold my boat i went hard on motorbikes for 8 years, but always taking a casual trip here and there. mass kills of fish still to me doesn't produce a master either. you take what you need to eat or you release it. If at the end of the day you got a feed and you've had a good time than you've achieved. you take it all in, what you see happening on the water. tides, moon, current lines, seasons and birds and hopefully things might come together. i think it would be s$#t if i knew i was to catch fish everytime that boat left the trailer. I fish to much for that to happen, there are times ive gone to fish when in your gut you know you'd be better off staying at home, your cold wet and shagged ,come home with not a scale but hey even a warm shower then feels like paradise and its all good. you know i've always got fish in the freezer my wife loves fish and will eat it 4 times a week , when its comes down to it sometimes your a winner sometimes your not but let the benchmark be your own personal one and enjoy yourself. Bikes or fishing or no matter what you do attitude will f%#@ it every time. go and have fun and if its not fun then why do it.

[ibbo]

Gday T1, yes I'm back the computer is fixed FINALLY!!!!!!!

Great read mate, I love fishing with you and also really enjoy reading your bloody posts. I think you've become an AUSFISH celebrity.

Now what makes a master? Good question mate.

Is anyone a master of fishing? Harro, Rexy, Starlo, Bushy just to name a couple, are they really masters or do you just see the best bits. These guys spend (or used to) an obscene amount of time on the water so of course they will catch fish.

Spending so much time fishing and talking about fishing will hone anyone's skills, but its the quality of time put into fishing that makes the difference it's not just roll up throw the anchor over bait up lay back and start drinking beer.

These guys know what to look for on sounders, know the right tide for the targeted species, best time of year, know the best bait/soft plastic and know whether to fish day or night for the best chance of catching that fish. Now most times these guys will catch fish, but sometimes they wont, why not? who knows, that's just fishing.

I guess my point is it's all about wanting to learn, and getting rid of bad habits. Anyone can become a very good angler, I really dont think anyone is a master of fishing.

If any of you in Ausfish land every get the chance to go fishing with T1 you will see he is no master, he is just a bloody good bloke, a passionate fisho and a gentleman.

Hope this doesn't make his head swell too much.

See ya soon mate

IBBO

P.S all the best to J1

[castlemaine]

Good post T1. Mate, my father-in-law must come close to MASTER. He has an uncanny ability to fish an area unknown to him and get fish. When I've asked him why he'd chosen that particuler spot, he has a hard time explaining it to me. Natural learned instinct from years of fishing. It is a marvel to watch someone anchor a boat while judging land marks off trees, mountains, houses, and water tanks while still taking into account wind and current (No GPS). He never used burley but always came home with good fish. I still can't do it. It's always his way or no way though. A mate of mine fished with us once and made a comment " he's a great fisherman but has little tolerance for those who aren't". Something for us to aim for.

[richieboy]

Gday
If any of you in Ausfish land every get the chance to go fishing with T1 you will see he is no master, he is just a bloody good bloke, a passionate fisho and a gentleman.

Hope this doesn't make his head swell too much.

See ya soon mate

IBBO

P.S all the best to J1

Well said Ibbo. T you're champ mate. All be it one with a queezy stomach (pidgeon incident). Always great reads when you post. Jsut one thing tho. Get your jigs and hit it with me and Barnsey and then you'll graduate to be the "Ultimate Master". Can't go wrong with good tutorlage.
All aside tho I belive the so called "CURSE" is truly gone. Catch up soon bro.

Rich

PS: Hows the sleep debt going??