Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Lusk @ DFW

Wow, what a time ! Gary & Dave really did it up right ! Thanks Eric & Larry for flying in, it was great to meet you and your input was critical. Bob & Mike make a great team and came in geared up to discuss anything. Free refreshments, lunch, conference room, caps, coffee mugs...the meeting was a huge success. Most of all, I found it invaluable to have Mr. Lusk at our fingertips...for any question, idea, or most of all advice.

The only downside was realizing what we all take for granted. Bob Lusk, this board, and the magazine all in jeopardy...He is already making it "big time" and rubbing elbows with the cream of the crop. (seems they don't fish well, and need advice too !) Let's just hope he remembers his roots !

Thank you Bob for taking the time to attend, I'm still digesting most of your information and already have new ideas to push my pond to the limit ! Most of all, it was great to have you available for 1 on 1 questions.

Gary, you have a lot of power to pull that one off, my Pond Boss hat is off to you my friend !

Mega thanks to Gary Condo for the great accomodations and refreshments. Bob Lusk and Mike Otto were great and provided outstanding info and stories --Thank You !! Thanks to Dave Davidson for helping put the meeting together and a special thanks to Eric West for the great info on genetics and bass production. A great time was had by all. It is a special treat to get together with a group that shares the same passions. Thanks to all who attended.

David Jennings

Eastland,
i'm sure bob lusks head won't get too big, he won't get too big for his britches... his wife will keep him under control; i had the chance to meet bob and his wife (and little yorkie)...she will keep him humble and faithful to us "peasants".
mark

David, It's great to have you as a neighbor, and thank you for the lead today, I will be calling them first thing Monday. I see you have your e-mail listed in your profile, I will be dropping you a line tomorrow asking a few questions ! (hope you don't mind) Also, that plant identification flip chart was killer, where did you get it ?

Mark, I'm worried about those Yankees...you know they are always paying top dollar and generally get what they want ! Have you seen his frequent flyer miles lately ?

I would like to echo what Eastland and Tentmaker said and thank Bob, Mike and Gary for pulling this off. It was terrific.

In addition to great info from everyone, I gained a new appreciation for how different our ponds really are. We have all recognized and talked about regional differences, but even within Texas, I saw today vast differences in what folks are experiencing in their ponds. As Bob kept saying, its all about the water (and really total environment) that the pond sets in that determines how it reacts to management stimulus and change. Of course, we all know that, but what I didn't realize is that the differences seem to be more pronounced than the similarities.

What that tells me is that this pond management stuff is far more complex than I think even us experienced guys think. I have a new admiration for Bob Lusk and those like him, who can go from Texas ponds to New York ponds and come up with the right management technique. My hats off to them.

My thanks to all for a most interesting Saturday.

What a day. It started at 4:15 am and I just got home and the posts are going on the DFW meeting. Great job by all involved esp. Dave and Gary for making it work and Bob and Mike for taking time out at a very busy time to be with us. We need to come up with a plan to report to the other fourm members on the day but that will have to wait until tomorrow. We did cover most of the posted topic ideas. It did reinforce the basic concept that we all sometimes forget , that it all starts with water and dirt and sunlight. All the science starts from there. Great to meet all who were there and I hope all had a safe trip. ewest

Eastland, i said his "little yorkie", not little "Yankee" !! ha (they have an adorable little yorkie dog named Romeo)

I can just hear Bob if his wife complains of him being gone to New York too much..."ooohhhhhh, honey...a dog???? oops, sorry..I thought you meant NEW york."

mark
I wish I could/would have attended the meeting. sounds like it was great.

We had a ball. I learned a bunch. Meetings like this confirm my thoughts that I now know a whole lot less than I thought I knew a couple of years ago. Lusk says he's in the same boat.

Ewest (Eric), thanks for the copies concerning bass genetics. I've read everything twice and have several more shots to take at it.

Several observations from the reading:

The number one predator on small bass is bigger bass.

Bass feed on appropriately sized forage. For the most part, a large bass will snub a small forage fish. They go for food appropriate to their size. Simply not worth the energy expended.

Yes, bass can be selectively bred for either wariness or catchability. Breeding for wariness is geared for those who desire hard to catch, trophy size bass.

Yep, research shows that Florida strain bass and their progeny are harder to catch. It appears from some research that F1's ain't far behind.

Dave :

There are other materials out there I am trying to get. I am having a hard time finding the A&M material online. I have seen it before but can't locate it right now. Some of the info is conflicting . I will start this week trying to post some of what we went over as best I remember what Bob and Mike said. If I leave some out or forget part all please fill in or correct. I will try to do it one topic at a time. If someone wants to go ahead please start. Thanks again for you and Gary setting up the meeting. ewest

I heard at the meeting that feed trained bass can be purchased from a guy in Oklahoma. Can someone give me more information about this.

Thank you everyone for your gracious comments about the DFW meeting. Dave and I had fun making it happen. Those who attended exceeded my expectations. A special thanks to Bob Lusk and Mike Otto. It was a very informative meeting.

Lets do it again down the road. Gary Condo
"Pondrookie"

Gentlemen,
It was truly an honor to be included in the meeting. You guys are amazing, and passionate. Even though the room was loaded with testosterone, you guys truly exemplify our term "pondmeisters".....eager to learn, eager to share, bonded by a common thread of water.
Boy, we went through lots of topics...probably too many. Lots of information to digest and put to work. Ewest...if you want a bit of editing as you write notes about the different topics, toss them my way and I will be glad to embellish, so to speak. If not, that's okay, too. To Eastland, don't worry one bit about those roots. They are firmly planted in the same Texas pond mud they ever have been. Right now, I am on ride that you just can't say "No" to. I will always remember what got me here...those "dues" which everyone seems to pay. You guys here on this forum..you are top notch people, educated, passionate, well-defined people with a purpose. With pros like Bill Cody, Greg Grimes, Cecil Baird...the list is long...this site sits at the top. So, I humbly thank you guys for keeping the perspective we want, and for going to the next level by bringing together this group last weekend.
One thing which struck me...our webmaster, JP Greeson, has told me we have somewhere around 850 unique users every day, and four "lurkers" for each unique user. If this meeting is any indication, JP is right. We had several outstanding guys come to the meeting who rarely, if ever, post on the site. But, they read it with some degree of regularity.
Fish on.....

Bob do you have another meeting planned and if you do what about posting it in Pond Boss?

Big thanks to Gary and Dave for taking the time and effort to put this on.

A huge thanks go to Bob Lusk and Mike Otto for attending and presenting 8 hours of incredible information. It was a unique opportunity to hear how the pro's do it, and how many different ways exist to reach an individual end goal.

Thanks

Great meeting! It is always fun to meet people face to face and share ideas, everyone I have ever met or asked a question too has always been very eager to help. Gary & Dave thanks for setting everything up for our meeting, it could not have been better. Mike and Bob, thanks for sharing your years of expertise with us. I think alot of members or like me and just can't get enough information on my favorite subject.

It would be great if we could all get together at each others ponds from time to time. Maybe fish and barbeque?

Bob :

I will be glad to run my notes through you. I do not want to jump the gun if a PB article is in the works nor do I want to attempt to speak for others who were there . You have a better understanding of how to help the larger PB group and that is the purpose of the efforts. Norm and others expressed before the meeting the need to make the material open to the forum members who could not get there and they added topics to the list. Let me know how you want to proceed . In the mean time I will hold off posting on the meeting . I will send this to you by PM also . Thanks again for your efforts on the meeting . ewest