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Old 10-03-12, 06:15 PM   #1
bassboogieman
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Default Stick a fork in me....

I'm done. I have no idea WTF I did to have all the crap come down on my head this summer, but it needs to stop NOW, whoever has that VOODOO doll and is sticking the pins in it, if I find you we will talk! That's the funniest thing you'll hear for the remainder of this post.

So today off to the local lake with a friend of mine who is about to buy a kayak, for a test float and a little fishing while we are there. Two hours in and my phone rings - I keep it in a dry box - while I'm trying to rig a rod, so I reach for the dry box [NO, not yet wait a minute] to answer an obviously VERY IMPORANT CALL. I had laid another rod on the back of the kayak and the end of the handle was just over the dry box [HERE it comes], so I lift up the dry box and bump the handle of the rod............... YES - overboard it went. I reached for it, but it was just out of reach and sinking slowly, so I paddle frantically with my hands - yeah, I never use my paddle so I left it in the Durango - trying to reach it as the tip goes under sinking handle first, again just out of reach by an inch and sinking faster. Kistler LTX & Pflueger Patriarch XT (neither of which is still in production and almost ir-replacable), a combo worth about $600 headed for the bottome like the Titanic. Yes I though about going in after it, but I dunked myself a week ago and just didn't feel like doing it again and I didn't have a change of clothes with me. I NEVER PREPARE FOR THE WORST.

OK, terrible day right? Wait, it gets better? BETTER?? Back to the phone call. It was my daughter and her day care had lost it's water service today so no day care, she needed someone to watch her 2 kids - seems I'm the only family member who doesn't work so naturally it's always assumed I'm available to take care of whatever needs taking care of.

So I have to leave the lake early, no major issue because I was in a pretty sour mood at the moment. We load up the kayaks (I borrowed my old one so my friend could try both, he's set on the Pro Angler) and mine sits flat on the trailer and I have two sets of J-bars to carry two additional kayaks on their sides, remember that and try to form a mental picture.

The final straw, I drop of my buddy at my house and I just pulled in my drive which goes slightly up hill. Usually I back the trailer up the drive, that will become important. We unload his stuff and I immediatley back out the drive with the trailer still attached as I want to return the kayak after I'm done baby sitting. HERE it comes.... so I back down the drive (anyone that's backed a short wheelbase trailer knows they turn pretty quickly and tend to jack knife easily if you are not careful. HA! no I didn't jack knife the trailer. But it seems that I had it turned a bit more than I wanted and when it hit the street it was level but my Durango was still inclined with the angle a bit steeper I guess than when I pull out with the trailer behind. How freaking lucky can I get that the nose of the kayak on it's side aligns PERFECTLY with my tail light? Huh, imagine it's PERFECT, so the angle closes the distance between the nose of the kayak and my tail light and the tail light get shattered.

I don't know for sure, but I'm betting that tail light assembly costs about $200. You can't buy just the lens anymore, but you knew that. Any of you old enough to remember buying a tail light lens for about $5.00 back in "the day"? Oh, it was so much easier, not to mention cheaper, then.

So, another day in my crappy life. It's all true, you can't make this sh!t up. I think it's time to sell every thing I own and make my reservation at the Old Folk's Home.......................

The GOOD NEWS - well it might be good news. The lake is in the process of being drawn down about 8 - 10 feet to do some fish habitat installation over the winter. The rod is in 9' of water. I'm going back tomorrow if I can get my Aquaview camera working to see if I can get it - yeah we spent about an hour trying to snag it with crankbaits, it had been a darn tree branch down there we would have hung a crankbait on the first cast. If the camera doesn't work I be hitting the lake every other day or so as the water goes down and see if I can see it then. After the lake goes down about 5' regular boats won't be able to acess the water, it will only be a few kayakers, and they won't be looking for my rod. If do get it back, I'll definitely have to send the reel out for a complete tear down, the rod shouldn't be affected. I hope I have just a smidgen of good luck over the next couple of weeks.

It was a day where I cut a few corners, in what equipment I had with me and in paying attention. Distractions cause a lot of problem and I need to start ignoring the phone when on the water, I can always return a call later. And rod leashes, yeah I need a few of those. And I've got to move those side mounted kayaks farther back on the racks, I thought I had plenty of clearance - which I did with everything on level and in a relatively straight line. Hard lessons learned today.
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Old 10-03-12, 06:43 PM   #2
keithdog
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I'm sitting here clipping my finger nails so short they bleed and hurt like heck, and saying to myself, at least I'm not Bruce. At least I'm not Bruce.

Man, what a year you've had. I hope your able to get that combo back after the draw down. Maybe you will find other goodies while your out there. I don't know if this will help or not but, at least your not a Cubs fan. Or at least I hope your not a Cubs fan.
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Old 10-03-12, 07:28 PM   #3
nofearengineer
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$600.....hmmmmmm....that number sounds familiar......

Damn, Bruce...this has to stop. We need to pray, sacrifice a live chicken....SOMETHING to make the bad luck stop.
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Old 10-03-12, 07:44 PM   #4
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I am not a Cubs fan, that's why this hurts SO much. I am NOT used to this. I've had more bad luck, or whatever you wish to call, it in the last 3 months than I've had in my entire 63 years of life. Whatever the reason, it has been a difficult summer and I sure hope it ends VERY soon. My saniity is worn as thin as my wallet at this point.
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Old 10-03-12, 07:46 PM   #5
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Bruce, that really sucks man...

Try to get one off a wrecked vehicle. It'll save you a ton of money if you do it yourself and that's about the easiest thing to take on and off your vehicle.

When we bought my truck one of the fog lights needed replacing. Called up GM and $$$! My dad's got a website that searched junk yards across the country and we found one in Detroit that had a contract with GM and they received like new cars that were test subjects. Got the fog lamp for about 1/4 of what GM wanted. I'll see if I can get you the website.

BB
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Old 10-03-12, 07:51 PM   #6
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well look at the bright side you got to spend the day with the grandkids. man as they say "if it weren't for bad luck you would have no luck at all". hope you can get your combo back. you might try a place like pick a part you can usually get it a whole lot cheaper there
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Old 10-03-12, 08:36 PM   #7
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Bruce your getting a candle lite in the morning!
We have to get this turned around.

If it was anyone else I'd say, 'At least you got the bad out of the way.....", but til I read it in one of YOUR threads I think I'll stick with the candle.

I truly am sorry to hear about your misfortune!
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Old 10-04-12, 02:17 AM   #8
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Woh, that was painful to read. Very sorry to hear that. We've all had days similar but that one might take the cake.

I wonder if you would consider using this in place of a crankbait... Get a one oz sinker bullet or egg style and put your line through it. Tie on a huge treble. Cast from a position where you can toss it a ways so that it is dragging on the bottom in the approximate area it went in.

Since getting stuck bottom is a great possibility, I would use a line strong enough I could yank to free the treble.

I would also highly consider snorkeling for it.

I hope that you find it sooner than later. Is is possible that the draining might move the rod from its current location? We have stories in my neck of the woods of crab pots even while heavily weighted get moved by current. I wish you the best of luck.
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Old 10-04-12, 07:05 AM   #9
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I have a couple "rigs" for trying to snag it. Hopefully if I can find it with the Aqua View camera I can get it with one of them. I have a small grappling hook that is weighted with about 3 oz of lead. A lure knocker with small chain and some hooks added. And a metal stringer, I open the clips and attach a 2 oz weight at each end with some parachute cord at the center. One of them should work.

But really this event was entirely MY fault, no one hit me or caused my loss other than my own stupidity - or rather not focusing, inattention, or allowing distraction to stymie my common sense. All could have been avoided by engaging my brain, which I am usually fairly good at but yesterday was a brain fart of MAJOR proportion. Hopefully this was a wakeup call, and gets me back on track. As mentioned it's been a tough summer for me, my mind is often thinking (wandering) of issues other that what I happen to be involved in at a particular moment and I do need to get past the last few months and move on and regain my focus. Some are better than others at doing that, so if you have some suggestions I'm open, I just seem to be stuck like the proverbial hamster, spinning in a wheel.
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Old 10-04-12, 09:33 AM   #10
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Try looking in the mirror every morning and saying this http://youtu.be/-DIETlxquzY
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Old 10-04-12, 11:15 AM   #11
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That WILL NOT work for me.
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Old 10-04-12, 06:24 PM   #12
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Well look at it this way. Winter is almost here and the weather will soon be too crapy to venture outside. So find yourself a comfy chair, and relax in front of the tv for the next 6 months. If nothing else, it's good training for future assisted living.
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Old 10-04-12, 06:58 PM   #13
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Can I get some drooling lessons, pal?
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Old 10-04-12, 07:38 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bassboogieman View Post
Can I get some drooling lessons, pal?
Nahhhh, after about 3 months it just comes naturally.
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Old 10-05-12, 03:05 AM   #15
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Hope you get your rig back. I am usually pretty good if I can get my weighted treble on quickly about retreiving overboard outfits. Done it far too many times.
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Old 10-05-12, 08:42 AM   #16
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Jig straight up and down with a compact spoon,if you dont have one take the silver 3/8 in plumbing commode line,pinch one end shut fill with shot ,pinch other end shut drill two holes one each end then attach split ring with treble on one end.It wont flutter side to side will go straight up and down will even catch walleye and sauger or white bass as a bonus.
Thought id clean up years ago at a lake where they were drawing it down to a near mud flat someone beat me to it wearing waders or high boots,outfit was gone.Camera idea is a good one as well as an extended pole that one uses to get back crankbaits attach a crude hook to it out of coathanger wire or something as its long enough or should be to touch.If not you can drag a fence stretcher from a rope about 2 1/2 ft long with three dull hooks one side.
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