Greetings from Big Cedar and PB III Conv.



More later as things start up. Please keep this thread on topic.

JHAP: Absolutely beautiful location. We'll take tons of photos (some of which will be appropriate for public consumption, others may need some Brettski photochop work). It is going to be a spectular event. So far forum members that are present: Lusk, Otto, Greg Grimes, Natster and brothers, Theo, Cary Martin, and of course Ewest - who's computer I've termporarily hijacked). More to follow......

Have Ewest sticky to the top of the forum. Nice postcard!

Guess who won the fishing tourney...

Wish I was there...y'all better have fun!

Here are a few photos from this evening. Lynda and I left after JHAP got up from our table to get something -- next thing I knew, a real live skunk ran under my chair. I'm still not sure how he did that.


Bruce still had a couple of hours left on his fishing license, and didn't want it to go to waste. (Yes, his pants are wet from chasing a fish.)

Dang, Lusk is lookin' good!!

Sorry, is that off topic?

I will just have to say that the Big Cedar facility is just simply amazing! Unbelievable.

While the property is first class, the people here are pretty much the best of the best from all walks of life. Even my son and daughter made a new friend. They played with Grimes Sons Wyatt last night until 10:30 pm and as he was walking out the door Mae said, "I just really miss my new friend"!

A few early pics from the events , fishing , ice breaker and show

Note for James H.

Don't worry about a thing here in Southlake. Your lovely wife is in good hands. (wink-wink nod-nod).

You guys have fun. George S.

How about some tournament results and catch details for those of us living vicariously through you all? Sunil started but left us hangin.

I don't know all the names of the team members, but Condello and his partner won the tourney with about 9.5 lbs. or so.

(Note to self: When Shawn Banks produces a 12-pack of Keystone Light at 1:30 AM, run away.)

Note to All #1 ("Bill Cody's Law"): When arranging for a ride with Sunil from the airport, make sure he is flying into the same airport you are.


Note to All #2: When Sunil shows up to start the day at O-Dark-30 after staying up late with Shawn, leave him be until at least mid-morning.

Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris, Bob Lusk, and Bruce Condello

9.5 pounds of what? Largemouth/smallmouth? Bluegill? Blue catfish? Details anxiously awaited by those of us poor slobs who couldn't make it...

Shawn Banks(white shirt) driving his electrofishing boat.



Justin Herman pulling a seine through the water.



A beautiful Longear that we caught in a Mini fyke trap net.

In addition to Chris' great photos, Bruce pulled an unfortunate catfish out of the seine and brought it to the lavage station. Mr. Catfish got his stomach pumped by Justin VanDeHey and Andy Jensen. Most embarrassing for the poor fish, his stomach was empty!

Keep up with the good pics. It's the only way that us poor unfortunate souls can attend!

If nobody's done so already, can someone show 2catmom how to post pictures to the forum?

Surely there are some tournament photos... Right? We know you guys are having a ball there without the rest of us but come on, give us deprived slobs a bone. More catch details!

The conference has been a blast! Fishing was tough for the folks in the tournament, few fish were caught by all but the Condello team.

At dinner last night TomG placed a bomb under my chair that "went off" during dinner. It was a classic act of terrorism that involved the plotting by a shady cast of characters including TomG, Sunil and yes JWHAP. Having cat like reflexes I noticed the bomb after it had been "going off" (alarm clock loudly ringing) a mere five or six minutes under my chair. Sunil says as pennance I must add to my signature line the nick name "Pinball Wizard" as I appeared to be "deaf, dumb and blind" to a bomb that was placed directly beneath my chair. I reject this name on the grounds that yes I apparantly am deaf to a potential bomb and admittedly I was blind to both the placement and detection of said bomb. Dumb I was not, since as at the time of the "explosion" I was chatting up a storm. Unless of course he meant dumb as in a lacking of a basic level of intelligence to allow for protection from improvised explosive devices and well then I guess I'm guilty as charged.

Photos and many more stories to follow....

Wow Bob really does looks good in that photo! Good for you Bob! Now if I could only get my wife to lose that kind of weight!

Live from inside the moderators booth. Otto and Mongo are currently involved in a presentation about building ponds. Condello is playing with his laptop, Theo and Commander Cody are plotting the demise of some third world country. (possibly Uruguay), Chis Steelman (Youngblood) would probably rather be fishing) and as for myself (being left unattended and undersupervised) have taken the opportunity to hijack Eric West's (aka Ewest) laptop to make a quick post.

The quality of the conference is over the top. Old friendships renewed, new friendships forged. I have taken lots of photos and will post a proper report when back in Southern California.

It was a Black Bass only tourney; most of the fish caught were Spotted Bass (I did NOT see any Smallies).

Biggest fish caught that I know of was a 10 pound Flathead that N8ly's Dad landed; he would have won on one fish if Cats had been legal!

Biggest fish that counted was a 3.65 pound Spot caught by Robert Potts (of TX, IIRC)- quite a specimen.

I may have a few far off pics of tourney fishers, if they came out I will post them in the next week. Photography from the party observation barge was somewhat handicapped by the expert boat handling of our captains (Captain JHAP and Captain Morgan), who 1) refused to get any closer than about 75 yards to any competitors and 2) turned the pontoon boat around and headed back to the dock every time it started raining, no doubt out of consideration for the ladies on board (Mrs. JHAP, Mrs. ewest, Mrs. Bing, and Sunil).

I'm at the conference, but nobody will talk to me.

Oh, Bski's Pondapalooza I and II presentations ran on screen at the Mod's booth for a couple of hours this morning and were big hits.

Otto was impressed that both sound and pictures can run simultaneously.

Actually it's a great conference, but there virtually no information on parachute jumping into abandoned wells.

Me neither, Roomie.

More pics

We sold all of the George flies we had and all the SDSU hats and PB III tshirts. B'ski's Pondaplooooooza slide show was a big hit.

Aaron Matos and Dr. Darren Simon


JHAP, N8ly, and Beazer


???, Lusk


Robert Chandler (Bill Dance's son in law) with Bill Dance Signature Lakes, Eric Kraus
Rainman, Todd Overton




SDSU Grad Student Brain Trust





Dirt Expert Panel: Mongo, (Michael Gray), Mike Otto

Thanks for the pics, ewest. Hopefully this is my first (and ONLY) missed conference.

good stuff.

Well the only event left is the final conference banquet and the post banquet consumption of adult beverages at the local watering hole. Hopefully this meal will be 100% explosive free. We've missed all those that could not attend, we shall raise our glass to you this evening in hopes that you will be able to enjoy next year's conference.

The location has been beautiful, the information plentyful, but truly it is the time spend with friends that I have enjoyed the most. Pond Boss is a family and being here again reinforces this feeling once again. It has reminded me how truly blessed we are to have such an outstanding group of pond nuts gather together to share our passion for ponds and out of this common interest we have all become an extended family. The only cloud to darken this event is the realization that after tonight I will not see these wonderful folks until the next conference.

But no time for sadness, time to get ready to enjoy the dinner and the post dinner antics.

Fear not fellow forum members, for those that could not attend we shall share the stories and the photographic evidence of this wonderful event.

And trust me, there are stories to be told and photographic evidence to be posted..........

Leaving Big Cedar now having made a lot of new friends and also having much strengthened existing frienships.

(Note to self: When booking a room for next year's conference, specifically request not to be in a room next to TOM G. Your liver will thank you and you will be less exposed to potential death or disfigurement by dynamite.)

See you next year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

davatsa we wish you were here. FYI my talk on structure included pics from your ponds provided by your dad ( Al - ahvatsa ) and was dedicated to him. At dinner Bob recognized him and noted we were missing Al a family member but celebrated his life.

Much more over the next few days.

What a great gesture! I wish I could've been there to witness your structure presentation and Bob's announcement, but just hearing about it means the world to me. Pond Boss is no doubt a family, and I'm proud to be part of it.

Just got home without my luggage.

DELTA really does stand for Don't Expect Luggage To Arrive.

JHAP is really getting serious in his old age. Before we started eating last night, he got up with the microphone and addressed the group. He did a fantastic job of expressing the thoughts of everyone, and also providing a very well presented "thank you" to Bob, Mike Otto, the Pond Boss staff, and the moderators.

Thank you JHAP.

We headed the opposite direction from home, and are now in Edmond, OK at our son's and DIL's home. We set the GPS on "shortest route." It took us over the back roads of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, including about 2 hours on Route 66. Neat trip. Dave D's jumping worms are still alive in the back seat of our car, and we've still got our luggage.

1. Bob, Bob's staff, Mike and family ALL deserve our hearty thanks. I sincerely hope that attendance was sufficient for the meeting to be a success for them! I don't know if anyone else reported it, but that first morning with a show of hands, it looked like at least 60-70% of the attendees were first-timers! I visited with a couple from Michigan who came because it was "close" to them. :-) I visited with an outdoor writer from Miami, FL, who also has a pond in TN. He came all the way from FL because he had heard it might be a good source of stories. He said he had about 40 stories the last time we spoke. I don't know about the moderators, but because I was wearing a Pond Boss shirt, I constantly had people coming up to me and asking me to be sure that Bob understood their appreciation.

2. Sunil, I'm just darn glad you made it home on the darn airlines, buddy!!

Dave, Sunil,

Glad you guys made it home!

My wearing a speaker's ribbon and PondBoss shirt was quite an honor! Like you Dave, I had a lot of people express their thanks to Bob and the rest of the PB staff for such a great job! Even the skunks in the bar axpressed their thanks for the extra food left behind after the demo feeders were emptied. It was quite a site to see 4 wild skunks wandering between the feet of dozens of people and not get a blast of odor!

BTW Sunil, thanks for the new luggage!

"BTW Sunil, thanks for the new luggage!"

You are very welcome, my friend! But a word of advice.....the boxer shorts will only last another (87) months before they simply wisp away.

I guess I should also caution you to wash them.

Great!!!!

I was HOPING the odor was because you actually CAUGHT one of the skunks!

The SKUNKS! Someone else saw those too? I thought it was just another hallucination.

What exactly was in the drinks they were serving there?

CJ, while many of us were at the Buzzard Lounge at Big Cedar enjoying adult beverages and conversations, no less than 4 wild skunks appeared and ate food amongst the dozens of patrons. One skunk even went indoors at one point. While all of us were a little concerned at first, the skunks were right at home. They would avoid touching any people, and MOST of us avoided touching them. AaronM took many pictures and may have gotten one were I petted the skunk as it walked by my feet were I was sitting. The most surprising thing was the skunks had absolutely no odor and never once did they begin to raise a tail. It is a nightly ritual there. One really friendly skunk was all white with only a small black patch on it's head. You just had to be there to see just how cool it really was!

I asked the assistant director of operations if anyone had ever been sprayed and he told methat no guests and only one employee had ever gotten a squirt. He said an intern grabbed one by the tail to yank it out of the way. They roamed all over the grounds, avoiding actual contact with anyone cleaning up small scraps of food.

Well, by all reports it sounds as if PBC III came off without a hitch. Us "no-shows" will have to carry on with a heavy heart, but the forum will be the medicine we need to heal.
-
Now...let's have one of those "the Sunil we get to the bar, the Sunil we can get this show on the road" stories.

B'ski - a big thank you for the CD (Pondaploooooza) I and II. It was a big hit and drew a lot of Ohhhhs , Ahhhs and wows. Even Otto knew the music. Thanks.

Glad it worked out good, Ewest. Yous guysez are v welcome.

I was real glad Bruce did not bring his angling equipment to the B bar and attempt to do a creel survey on the furry rodents. I could just see a small french fry on a 1/16 oz jig and light line --- can you envision the utter chaos when he set the hook. - -

For those who missed PBConIII and hence missed meeting TJ, he is like all the essence of Fatty McB distilled down to a container 1/2 the size.

Yes, it is scary.

Speaking of appearances, I didn't expect Dwight to be so tall. Dude is like 6' 3".

I was told someone needed to help fill the void created by his absence this year. When our paths cross, and I fully intend they do, I've been led to believe our collective energy would resemble the stability of C3H5N3O9.

TJ...that will be like two hurricanes meeting each other. I can't wait to see that. Call me the next time you are in the Charlotte, Raleigh or Winston Salem area...I'll catch up with you then.

Sounds like a great time and thanks for the updates and documentation of the event for those of us who were unable to attend. I will definitely not be missing PBIV.

I think more like 6'5".

That would be the first sign of the apocalypse.

FatMcB is like eleven feet tall.

Fatty concentrate; just add__________?

The two horsemen of the apocalypse...they looked scary enough, but kept falling off their saddles!

ROTFLMAO!

Sunil, let's be honest here. From our veiwpoint 5'8" looks tall!!!!

What a great weekend! My trip back home was an adventure - got to the Branson airport at noon to try to catch an early flight, didn't happen, so I waited for my 5:30 PM flight that finally left at 10:30 PM. A lot of rain in Atlanta delayed everything - got to bed at 2:00 (in Atlanta) and got back to my house this morning about 11. Seem we had a few sprinkles here in Temple also:


You can see the water marks on the chair, so I figure my TH feeder is in trouble. My BOJO light spent some underwater time also.
Luckily the two drain pipes and spillway kept the water from going over the dam. More rain is predicted, but we can handle it.
I have a couple of picture from an afternoon at the lake at PB III.
JHAP & JWHAP arrive

RANDY!

1. Great meeting you at the conference. Thanks for you kind comments - I am stoked to know I have a new pond buddy in GA.
2. That delay STINKS! You could have pulled a TJ and slept in thinking you'd missed your flight by five hours and been just fine!
3. Awesome pics of your pond! Can you tell me what you think of your Bojo light? From what I've read on the forum, I bet your TH feeder is A-Okay - I hope your light survived too.
4. Great action photos of the conference.

Randy,
I have seen feeders get flooded before and still work. I even cleaned one out with a pressure washer once to get rid of wet/rotten food and it still works. So if the food did not get wet you might be okay. But if some food did get wet you will want to get it out of there before it dries. That food will turn to concrete when it gets wet and then dries. Not sure on the bo-jo. That’s a first for me. But let greg or I know if you need something for it or the feeder.

Nate and Greg sell them and probably have some suggestions for trouble shooting. I realize no one needs this reminder but a city boy like me, but please be careful when dealing with electrical devices in the water!

Randy,

Our sweeneys have flooded on more than one occassion, and they all lived to sling pellets again. My guess is that you'll have the same luck with the TH feeder.

Like mmorgan, we've even had to clean rotten, caked aquamax out of a feeder with a pressure washer. I'm thinking that car wash probably still has a "wanted" poster up with my mug on it.

The TH will be fine. Give it a good cleaning, a good drying out and it'll be as good as new. A friend down in Texas has his flood so bad that the timers were under water, as was the battery. I cleaned it out when I visited a few days later, dried it and it worked fine. Get the food out ASAP. Take the plastic covers off and give everything down there a good cleaning. Wet food + heat + water = a stinky mess!!!

It looks like you had a hammer float onto the pier as well! How much rain did you have??

I even looked up to dwight. the man is a beast.

Just wanted to report in,just got home.Just a couple of quick comments before I go stretch my legs after 9 hrs of driving home.
1)For those of you who couldnt make the conferance we did not have fun.
2)I did not have a cooler full of beer that I was pawning off on everybody.(That I got caught with.)
3)Nobody can prove I had dynamite in my possession at any time during the conferance.
4) Geogre,as per our agreement before I left I (A)did not cause any trouble(that I got caught at),(B) and I was very well behaved(as far as anyone can prove.All of us,however,did miss you.
I gotta go walk around now,it was a burtal drive home.

I had the pleasure of meeting TJ at my project a couple weeks ago and tend to agree with your assessment. When it comes to ponds and everything related, I think the term 'kid in a candystore' is quite relevant. Though, I would imagine that'd be relevant for most of us.

Wow! I had a blast meeting many of you guys and seeing all my friends from the previous meetings!! I have a few pictures to post as well...
Here are the winners of the fishing tournament: Dennis Luby & Bruce Condello 1st Place total weight (9.6 lbs) pictured in the center, 2nd Place total weight Heath Spence & Steve Alexander and Biggest Fish (~3.7lbs) was Robert Potts and the smallest catch prize went to Dr. Jim Morgan [img][IMG]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r50/suemcruz/101_0237.jpg[/img][/img]


Eric West and Shawn Banks


My daughter Shannon - a future pond meister:

our late night friend at the Devil's Pool patio bar

The hands on aeration demo...

Thank you to everyone at Pond Boss,

Notes of change from last year
1) Yip, Lusk is well on his way to skinny.
2) Eric (Ewest)...dude, you look like you took off a bunch of lbs. You look good; almost as good as...
3) Sue Cruz, who is down a few. Yeah baby.
4) I haven't met Shawn Banks, but why do I look at that pic and think of Moses?
5) Condello hasn't lost a single hair, but many have gone to the gray side. I'm also relieved to see that somebody finally found his cat.

I'm gonna post my pics in batches.

Fishing Tournament:

Bent Hook Marina as JHAP, JWHAP, Cody Martin, and I arrived at it. TomG can be seen hurrying off the gang plank. Tournament was delayed until the bomb squad inspected the marina, docks, and boats and pronounced "all clear."


Registration. Walter (Lusk's Utility Infielder) and Lupe (Otto's Right and Left Hand Man) can be seen in the blue and striped shirts.


My tour of Table Rock Lake (just a tiny portion, actually) was conducted by Captain JHAP. He's a pretty good boat handler. Coincidentally, it was a three hour tour.


One of many impressive properties on the lake. We think this is a vacation time share property. They advertise brunch on Saturday and Sunday mornings.


Three of the tourney boats out fishing. Really good eyes can make out Jim Morgan of the Kingfisher Society (Richmond Mill Lake) in the middle boat. He's the tall one.


Weigh-In. L to R are Bob Lusk, tourney sponsor Vertex's Sue Cruz, and (IIRC) a BassPro official.


The winning bag of fish head for weigh in. Who'd have guessed, ehh?

Awesome pics, guys.

I agree with B-ski.

Bob, ewest, and Sue all look great! I better start running...

Auction Pics

Auction Goodies


More Goodies


Even more


Yet some more


Two of the 5 photos by Lusk, printed with a painting apparatus as I understand it. They looked pretty neat.


The piece de resistance of the Auction, a priceless (it says so, right on the label) 2009 Model Bruce Condello Signature Model Pink Cowboy hat.


The furious bidding history on the Condello hat. This sought after item was finally obtained by 2catmom for the princely sum of $25 U.S. Thanks for your donation, Linda.

Outdoor Demonstrations

Shawn Banks electrofishing.


Electrofishing results (2 HBG IIRC).


Herman brothers seining.


It was Justin's turn to do the deep work. There were a lot of big rocks that the net had to be moved past by hand. He can hold his breath for a REALLY long time.


Chris Steelman helps pull the net in (a 100'x8' seine). On his right, in sunglasses and no hat, Scott Tucker of Australia.


Getting close to completion.


Seining results: Fingerling and small adult LMB and a turtle.


Channel Cat from the seine haul.


More seining results, some LES and the turtle.


Steelman's Mini Fike net static display:


Pulling in a Mini Fike net that was in the pond a while.


Chris empties the Mini Fike net. On the right, Norman French (hat) and Todd Overton (sunglasses) look on.


Mini Fike net results: another LES.


Porcupine fish attractor display. On the right, Rainman (in blue) and Greg Grimes.


Bojo Bug Light.


Matt Morgan of Aquatic Environmental Services sections otoliths to age fish. In the foreground, Chad Fikes (with sunglasses) and DJT look on.


Lavage sampling of fish stomach contents.


In the background, Bill Cody samples plankton with a net and a bottle. In the foreground, Shawn Banks listens to Dave Davidson.


Bruce Condello caught his very first Longear Sunfish (LES) during his fishing demo. Then, his second LES. Later on, about his 40th one. On the left in the red hat is pro bassfisherman Stacey King, who came to do some Q&A with all interested parties.

Miscellaneous

Bill Cody prepares to wow the crowd with his talk on hybrid water lilies. We called Bill back for three encores. At Lusk's request, he concluded by singing the entire score from Gilbert and Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore. Only a case of acute laryngitis kept him from continuing on with The Pirates of Penzance.


Dave Davidson's Texas jumping worms.


Bruce Condello fishes for the elusive pool shark. JHAP stands by, ready to document it all for "In Search Of" (in case it ever returns to the airways). Bottom right, rmedgar.


Bruce Condello, Todd Overton, and Walt Overton. Behind Bruce's raised elbow is DJT.

Wow, Randy, that was some welcome home!!

Great conference!! Could have gone at it for a few more days and still not gotten to spend enough time with everyone....there's always next year, though.

Ditto on that Shawn!!

I'm loving seeing the pictures of all the outddoor activities....I never had the chance to see much of the demonstrations from the attendee side. Glad everyone enjoyed it!

Looks like a pile of fun and very informational...

From left to right...
Scott tucker of Australia, Chad Fulmer (cmfulmer) of Conway Arkansas and yet another dentist member, The beautiful and sweet Sue Cruz from, as her lovely daughter Shannon put it, WEST Palm Beach Florida, Super-nice guy Ted Lea of Forever Green in Waynesfield, Ohio (too bad his beautiful wife Terry wasn't in the picture!), and the guy on the far right uselessly trying to slink away from any photographic evidence of his presense is Tom Hudson aka teehjaeh57

TJ, you look a might uncomfortable there.

got that Mary Katherine Gallagher thing goin' on

Haha, that's great.

Made it home!

I'm really disappointed I didn't get to meet you Dwight.

On the other hand with all the ribbing I've given you about your bass it may have been a good thing for me.

And sometimes, when I get nervous, . . .

Dwight good to meet you and Gail ! I hope you guys had fun. Thanks for letting me use the pics of your structure. I hope you did not get to many questions about how to make them.

Sue and Shannon (a future fisheries biologist)



Bill , Ken and wife Lynda, Ricki JWHAP




Sherry , Tom , Dave D,



Sue , Terry , Ted and Greg



Mods booth pre show

Debbie , Theo , Bing , Connie and Ricki on the boat ride



The Hermans (The Grymalas in the background)

I think Nate snagged a supermodel as well. Way to go, Nate!

She is 5 months pregnant in the pic, but she is a keeper for sure!

Congrats to both of you Nate!

Thursday at the ice-breaker and later, Gail wondered if she should have stayed home with Buck and Tan.

Friday she started to understand that there was something going on that was far more than just a party. Oddly, she thought Sunil and Dave Davidson are very cute.

Saturday Gail said to me, “I didn’t understand how big this really is.” Quiet waters run deep, she gets it!

JHAP doesn't seem like a guy that could manipulate offshore tax shelters (a disguise).

Dwight, it was an honor to break bread with you and Gail friday. I hope we meet again soon!

It's unfortunate this is the lone picture of me - I'm sure I was doing plenty of cool stuff all weekend. I can't verify this, but Sturgeon wrestling comes to mind, for some reason...albeit vaguely.

I'll bet there are more, but they're getting saved for blackmail.

I had entrusted my daughters with the camera duties. Unfortunately, they found activities more exciting than ponds to participate in. They CAN'T be my kids!!!!!

Thank you all for the hospitality that was shared in Branson.My wife was impressed.She also confirmed your all nuts.
She is going to sign up and post some pics taken while we were there.
From Mrs. TomG I posted a Pond Boss III album on my Facebook and put it with public access Still learning how to use the Facebook. Had a great time.

TJ, the more I look at that picture, the more you look like a losing football coach in it.

As my Aunt used to say, "looks like he just ate a pickle.".

LIke past PB conference it went quickly. We just got back late last night. We stayed an extra day to tak Wyatt to Silver Dollar City it was a blast for him to ride his first roller coaster. He misses his new "girlfriend" Mae Herman already. The boy has a good eye she is a cutey. I missed to talking to some of you but only myself to blame.

Now onto helping clients best we can with flooded lakes. Randy honestly thought I about you I was afraid worse than that for you. Fairfield Plantation in Carrollton, GA not far from your pond had some major damage. Few unfortunate killed in the area as well, pray for their families. The feeder should be fine. Ok gotta go helpout. Keep pics coming.

With you as her main comparison, us being nuts is a very scary thought indeed!

Thanks for the laughs and dynamite on the door handle. 2catmom asked me if by cance it was real before she removed hers.

The ginger-cookie lady avoided my room the first night surely because there was as stick of dynamite wedged in the door handle.

How does she compare with Howard the Jamaican van driver?

Well, she seems to be more of a voyeur according to Ted & Terri Lea.

There are a lot more pics out there. We have not heard from the PB in-house crew and they took a bunch of pics. So did others. For example I have not looked at Ruth's pics but will.

Dwight tell Gail there are a lot of the PB family who both understand and appreciate that thought and you guys. That is one of the amazing things about this group - we accept people as they are and genuinely like them , unconditionally. Like a family caring for each other. All types and personalities with a common bond. While waters are the nexus the bond is friendship.

Dwight wrote: "Oddly, she thought Sunil and Dave Davidson are very cute."

It was the beard no doubt.

At this point all I can say is WOW! Once the clouds in my brain clear somewhat I should be able to post some stories. I wish now I had kept notes of all the funny events that occurred, I'm sure I'll remember a few. I took quite a few photos, I just copied them to my computer, I need to resize them and then I'll post them.

We renewed existing friendships and made new friends, it truly is the people that make the conference. I am sorry that I didn't get to say goodbye to many folks in person and I also regret that we did not stage a forum members photo (what were we thinking?). Still I have many great photos and I'll get to work on them and post them.

We missed those would could not attend. This event is a must do affair, we feel very fortunate to have been able to attend. This is a highlight in what has been a difficult year for Ricki and I. We arrived home with high spirits, rejuvenated, and with a renewed faith in all that is good in life. Thank you to all that spent time with Ricki and I, it was our utmost pleasure to spend time with you.

Ok enough seriousness, time to sort and resize photos, more to follow.....

Now I DO remember the ginger bread man cookies...at least the crumbs I found in my sheets the morning after. Were they good?

Davidson had a beard?

To explain to non-attendees, the "cookie lady" was this little old lady who would bring a bag of Big Cedar Lodge ginger snaps to your room every evening, IF you believed in her. I guess they were good cookies, if you like ginger snaps.

Condello never got any cookies. I accused him of not believing in the cookie lady and asked if he believed in the tooth fairy. He said he only believed in the tooth fairy because he gets a commission.

OTOH, EVERYONE in the Arlington shuttle believed in Howard, just not in his ability to drive well.

I saw the cookie lady every day we were there,and was forced to watch my wife eat everyone of them with her evening cup of coffee(which she made special just to eat the cookies with) .Personally,I dont think she shares well when it comes to cookies. Also,Im probably dead meat when she reads this post.

Ah yes, but you've been dead meat for a long time now, my friend!

I don't have a beard. I'm just cute. I must be because I've reached that age when Waitresses call me "Hon". That's probably short for hunk.

Back on page 3, I mentioned the light misting we got here is W GA.
My pond level rose to 2' above the dock.

There was debris on top of the arm rest on the lawn chair. The water was 2' up into the feeder and a lot of food was wet. I got it out yesterday (thanks for the advise) and cleaned it, but probably not thorough enough. It didn't work yesterday, but I'll try again today. Haven't checked the BOJO light yet, but I think it will be ok.

TJ, Matt, David & Esshup, thanks for the advise.

Pond Boss Conference 3, from JHAP’s perspective

I shall begin at the beginning as it seems like an appropriate place to start. I’ll break my conference coverage into several posts, roughly separated by subject matter.

Bob & Debbie Lusk graciously invited us to fly in to Dallas on Tuesday and spend the evening at the Lusk Lodge 2. Who could pass up such an invitation? Bob picked up JWHAP and I at the airport and took us to “Uncle Buck’s Restaurant” that is attached to the Bass Pro Shop in the Dallas area. We had a wonderful lunch with Bob (both the meal and the company) and then headed into the Bass Pro Shop. Bob wanted to pick up some tournament bags to hold the fish to be weighed in, and a few miscellaneous other items.

When we approached the checkout line we stopped at the magazine rack. We found Pond Boss Magazine and Bob picked one up and carried it to the cashier. When the cashier picked up the magazine Bob asked the clerk “Do you sell many of these magazines?” The cashier being rather uninterested replied “I don’t know, we sell a lot of magazines.” Bob then asked “How much is this magazine?” To which the clerk replied “$6.50.” Bob then said “Six and a half bucks! I hope it’s worth it” and Bob then turned and winked to Ricki and I. The clerk never noticed what was going on. I wanted to open the magazine to Bob’s photo inside the front cover and set in on the counter but decided that sometimes the best jokes are inside jokes.

We then headed on to Lusk Lodge 2. For those who have never been to Bob and Debbie’s home, let me just say that photos cannot do this home justice. It is absolutely beautiful!

This is a photo standing in the living room looking past the dinning room into the kitchen, we shared several meals with Bob and Debbie at this table and on the final evening (after the conference) were joined by Scott Tucker from Austrilia, who is a fascinating individual.


Our accommodations were upstairs in their daughter’s room. It is a very beautifully decorated room that has a door that opens and looks out over the kitchen area, a very cool feature! In fact if you look at the photo above you can see where the door opens, it is in the center of the above photo, at the top, where the iron railing is. This beautiful staircase shown below winds it’s way to the upstairs at the Lusk Lodge 2.


As many of you know we lost our beloved cat “Conan” a couple of years back. Ricki found Debbie’s cat “TJ” and instantly fell in love. “TJ” is very affectionate and I really enjoyed his company. Here’s Ricki and TJ…


Bob wanted to drive his “Manly Dodge Truck” to the conference and tow his shock boat. He asked us to drive Debbie’s Jeep to the conference. We filled both with conference supplies, and all of our luggage. It rained during the entire drive from Lusk Lodge 2 to Branson. It was a beautiful six and a half hour trip, the scenery along the way is breathtaking. Here’s a photo of us following Bob..


To conclude this part of the story let me just say this. Bob and Debbie Lusk are two incredible individuals. They welcomed us into their home and made us feel like part of the family. They have an abundance of love to share and they do so very willingly. We feel truly blessed to know them.

This is supposed to be the link to my Facebook Pond Boss III album...if it doesn't work you should be able to look it up under Sherry Goodenough on Facebook in Dawson, TX.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=59089&l=3f3990d2fb&id=100000205771225

Wow @ the wood and rock in Bob's place.

Ok so I'm still learning the first link is only to one pictures lets try again. LOL
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=5079&id=100000205771225&l=9b49de500c

It's alright, if you click 'Photo Album' near the top it'll go to the thumb version and you can select the first picture and then pan your way through the rest. Nice album and pics. Like the dynamite.

Welcome, "TomG'sBetterHalf" - a more accurate handle has not yet been used on the Forum.

Table Rock Lake and the Fishing Tournament

First off let me start by saying Table Rock Lake is beautiful and HUGE! Ewest had arranged to have a pontoon boat available to those who wanted to go on a brief tour of the lake. I mentioned to him that I had grown up around boats (physically not mentally) and he asked if I would pilot the boat. Of course I jumped at the opportunity and off we went.

Women are always drawn to men of authority and being the pilot of a lake going pontoon boat is no exception. On the first cruise I was surrounded by JWHAP (not in this photo), in this photo from right is Sue Cruz (who not only is lovely, but is such a warm and kind individual), her beautiful daughter (who is very a intelligent and well mannered young lady and who in a few years will have a line of gentlemen suitors lined up around the block just to spend time with her), Ruth West (who is the epitome of a true southern belle, in fact when you google search Southern Belle, her photo should appear) and the motley but happy Captain. Yep it’s good to be the captain.


So off we went across table rock lake, here’s a few private docks and one of the unbelievable homes that is on the lake.


The lake has a bunch of islands, here is one of the small ones..


This bridge crosses on portion of the lake, I piloted the boat beneath it, just for fun…


And the tournament begins, off the boats go, once they passed the 5 MPH buoy it was pedal to the medal…


One of the tournament boats in action. I believe that the gentleman in the black shirt is Nate’s dad…


Another boat in action…


FISH ON and net ready…


The boats were required to be inside the buoy line by 5:00. At 4:59 they were coming in…


Natester returning to the dock with Otto’s son-in-law Phil (married to Otto’s daughter Jennifer). It was a tough day on the water, rain, wind, and difficult fishing. Still they had fun. Let me take this opportunity to say, that Nate and his family are fantastic folks. His mother and father are friendly and quick to laugh, his brothers are they type of young men that you would love to be able to have as your own sons (in fact I offered to adopt the Herman brothers but Nate’s mom and dad we unwilling to give them up).


TomG walking up the dock. JWHAP and I got to spend quite a bit of time with Tom and his wife Sherry. Both are wonderful people, I only wished we lived closer to them, I can only imagine the trouble Tom and I would get into that Sherri and Ricki would have to bail us out of. I pointed out to Sherry that she should be commended for keeping TomG in line, to which Sunil instantly responded, "I don’t think there is much of a difference between managing TomG and managing you JHAP, both wives should received commendations!" It’s fairly difficult to argue with that logic. Note how Tom deftly manages to carry the tournament bag filled with fish in his right hand and both an open beer and a cooler full of beer in his left hand. I’m telling you the guy is a pro…


2cat poses with a fish and one of the lodge employees. Sue Cruz in the background recording tournament catch information…


Some of the fish that were caught…


Wouldn’t you know it, the smallest fish of the day was a GSF. This is Greg Grimes's son Wyatt holding the magnificent specimen...

Nice work JHAP. I enjoyed our time together...I hope it's the first of many meetings me amigo.

When did Mickey Rourke join PB?

that is wyatt with the "big catch" of Jim Morgan thanks for sharing the pics.

Nice job Jeff.By the way,did you happen to catch the expression on Sues face at the wiegh-in?If you did,please send me a PM.

I'm going through my back pack and just found a cookie from the cookie lady...too bad its just crumbs now but still good with milk!

Some conference antics:

The “Bent Hook” market and marina was a site to behold. There were schools of bluegill swimming around the place. I caught TomG in the middle of planting an anti-personnel mine on the entrance walkway. Once my deathray laser sight illuminated his shirt he promptly surrendered…


Once inside the Bent Hook there was an opening in the floor onto the water below. Through the opening you could see BG and several turtles swimming around. There was a machine filled with fish food that you could buy and throw to the fish. Bruce informed me that he had decided to perform and informal fish food test and that I was going to assist him in this test. He and I walked up to his truck and loaded a zip lock bag with two different types of fish food. He handed me the ziplock bag and turned back his back to close up the truck. When he turned back around, I informed him that the Aquamax tasted like a cross between tuna, salmon, anchovies and beef jerky. To which Bruce replied "Idiot, I intend to test the food on the fish and not you, now give me back the ziplock bag before you eat it all." He then grabbed the bag from my hands. Although I thought Bruce had treated me rather harshly I felt it was a nice snack and well worth some minor humiliation. Little did he know that I had put some in my pocket for later, who's the idiot now Bruce????

We re-entered the marina and approached the fish viewing area. Bruce threw some of the food in and the fun began. Not only did the fish love the Aquamax but out of the depths came a respectable LMB that we had not previously seen. You can't tell from the photo but the guys are looking past a suspended boat into the water below, from the left this is Aaron (taking a photo), James Holt, Bruce Condello and Eric West…


Inside the marina/market Dr. Condello demonstrates the Condello Method of Photography with a can of Mountain Dew. Immediately after I showed this photo to Theo, believing that Bruce had discovered that the rare and elusive 22oz Mountain Dew can, he tackled Bruce and searched his backpack. Theo was not happy to discover that (1) he was taken in by the Condello Method of Photography and in fact the can only contained 12 ounces and (2) it was regular and not diet Mountain Dew. I was careful not to show Theo any additional photos…


Upon realizing that he didn’t win the fishing tournament, TomG asked Sue Cruz if she could hold something for a moment, before thinking she reached out her hand and Tom handed her a stick of dynamite and began to light it. There was an outbreak of nervous laughter by those folks that didn’t know Tom. Those of us that did know Tom, well we ran, fast!

"To which Bruce replied "Idiot, I intend to test the food on the fish and not you, now give me back the ziplock bag before you eat it all." He then grabbed the bag from my hands. Although I thought Bruce had treated me rather harshly I felt it was a nice snack and well worth some minor humiliation. Little did he know that I had put some in my pocket for later, who's the idiot now Bruce????"

Now that is really funny!!!

BTW, I think that is james holt in the picture w/ Brucille, ewest, and AaronM.

More conference antics:

At the auction Theo had arranged for a “2009 Condello Signature Edition Pink Cowboy Hat.” As you can see from one of the posts above (photo of the bid sheet) the bidding was fast and furious. 2cat won the hat and the official hat transfer occurred at Saturday’s conference dinner. Here Bruce reluctantly gives up the hat to 2Cat…


As I had informed you previously, that devious TomG, placed an improvised explosive device under my chair at Friday’s dinner. The device “went off” during dinner. To say that this was a classically funny event is an understatement. Fortunately the bomb didn’t explode, the alarm merely rang.

TomG and I were asked to pose for a photo. This photo was taken immediately after TomG handed me the bomb and whispered to me "JHAP the fuse system is fixed and is now in good working order and you ought to be careful not to shake the bomb or make any sudden movements, in fact you might want to hold still, real still…


During the entire conference, the moderators displayed the highest level of professionalism and integrity…

Mickey Rourke, Mickey Rooney - they're so close.

Just wondering why JHAP thinks we would bail them out?!

Some of the conference room building and the grounds:

This is the registration desk that Pond Boss used to register folks for the conference, pretty classy!!!


This is the fireplace that was right inside the conference center’s main doors, a fire was burning in it each evening. The windows looked out over Table Rock Lake. The view was magnificent.

This is one of the hallways in the conference center. The “flying geese” were a sight to behold…


This one view from the “Buzzard Bar.” I had no idea the bar had a view until we had brunch with Bob and Debbie on Sunday. And that’s all I have to say about that.

Some photos and stories of people:

From left: 2Catmom, JWHAP, and Girlfriendlakechair. Ricki and I really enjoyed their company, the two of them are so very fun to be around. The background is a waterfall that is beside the conference center.


Cary Martin and the Bings. A little known factoid about Cary. He races motorcycles (road racing) and has ridden his motorcycle to over 180 mph during a race. His wife drag races and her car is fuel injected. Cary, after tweaking the car’s injection system, realized that the fuel rail delivery system could be adapted to aeration systems. Cary designed such a system that is in use today. Well known factiod about the Bings. They are a great couple, quick to laugh and enjoy life. Ricki and I really enjoyed spending time with them.


From left Aaron (who lost a great deal of weight and looks fantastic), Catmandoo and his wife Lynda, Randy (rmedgar) and JWHAP. Randy told Ricki that one evening he and Catmandoo were standing side by side and some passerby told them they looked like a couple of winos. Fortunately I am no longer recruiting for Whinoceres World.


Beasly and some of his coworkers having fun…

On the final evening of the conference, we were enchanted by an amazing sunset. This photo does not do it justice. The sky was glowing pink and purple, the sun was a magnificent red/orange. We watched as it dissapeared over the forrest above the lake.


Attending the Pond Boss Conference 3 is an event that I will never forget. Thank you all for the friendship and the good times shared. My only regret is that it did not last longer so that I could have spent more time with you all.

I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to some of you and for that I am sorry. Rather than say goodbye however let us say "see you at the next conference."

Folks these events are epic. Consider attending the next conference, each one is getting better and better.

+1, my friend.

OH SNAP!!!

Hey! just thinking ahead if we don't bail y'all out that leaves us more $ and time to see how much trouble we can get into!

I don't know how to resize or post pictures on PB if you see some on my Facebook you want to put on here feel free to use them.

Really enjoyed meeting and spending time with y'all.

Now I know why Tom spends so much time on here...it's like IM'ing...and I love doing that with friends and family.

Nope, only caught her from behind. The photo I have is in the this thread.

Thanks Greg, I updated the post.

Mickey Rourke, Mickey Rooney, Mickey Mouse - I'm an unusual blend of all three.

Oh you love us and you know it. Just think how peaceful, serene and uneventful your life and Ricki's life would be without Tom and I. Wait on second thought perhaps that it not such a good idea.




We really enjoyed meeting you as well.

It's good that Tom and I spend so much time on the forums. Think how much safer our communities are by having this forum keep us off the streets. Heck the forum ought to charge our communities for this service.

You thinking something like $1 per year?

-- -- --


Bob and Debbie



Greg , Wendy and one tired Wyatt



Eric and Ruth



One big bear




Purple SDSU shirt at the Bent Hook



Marina View



JHAP the Calie driver of the Pontoon



Fuzzy Theo



Red sky at night sailor's delight

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=59114&l=db037acb7d&id=100000205771225


A dollar? Adollar? A dollar?

Do you want me to come visit,or stay home?

I blame the endless iced tea service.

Purple SDSU shirts are a very rare commodity!

Proof that LMB will eat anything...



(From TomG's better half face book photos).

I'm assuming Tom did not board a plane with that thing! It would really turn some heads not to mention put him on all the Cable Nework News channels!

Note: It doesn't have to be current or real for security to get excited!

You forget Cecil,I AM a master at disguise.

My understanding is Tom and his better half drove to the conference with that behind the front seat.

I on the other hand did in fact carry that home on a plane. I completely disassembled it and scattered it amongst two checked and two hand carried bags.

So far no worries.

Well except for the black Ford Crown Victoria that has been parked across the street since Tuesday.

Well, what's one more "watch list" to be added to when you are already on so many's radar?

Point taken.

I guess Jeff hasnt relized yet that I hid a second remote detonating devise in it yet. Im just waiting for the GSA board meeting.

I just want to report that we finally made it back home late last night. Just under 3000 miles of car travel. It was fun letting the GPS guide us on routes we'd never have taken with just a map in hand. Lots of great Americana.

We went from summer to autumn while away. The leaves have really changed color, and the driveway is covered with leaves. It was hot and dry when we left. They predict a high of 57 and rain for tomorrow.

Lots of wildlife settled back in while we were gone. The pond is down a bit, and the tracks on the edges of the pond are incredible. Lots of deer, turkeys, raccoon, fox, and other critter prints I don't really recognize.

... and some low life pond scum stole my game camera!

We sure had a great time at the convention.

Ken and Lynda

Ken,

I'm sorry to hear about the game camera, but I'm glad you had a great trip and arrived home safely.

Sure glad you made that effort to get to conference, Ken.

It was great seeing you two at the conference Ken and Lynda!

This is the first chance I've had to post since the conference.Thank you all who had a hand in making it special.All of the speakers & subjects were interesting, and the forum members I met were just like me,pond lovers. Thanks Walter,for being so friendly,and I hope your son does well in New York City.Introduced myself to Bob Lusk,Drs. Willis & Condello and others. Met Steve(theo),Rex(rainman),Sue Cruz,Ted Lea,Carey,Chris Steelman,and many others. One of my favorites was Bill Cody. He and I shared a continental breakfast saturday morning and I was able to pick his brain a little. After meeting him,his water hardy plants topic was a blast! His duel with lusk was a riot!! Bob had the thankless task of keeping the speakers on schedule,but Bill was not to be denied! The exchange between those two had to rank as the funniest moment of the day. From morning to evening,the days were filled,well worth the expense and time.Thanks again to all who made it special.

Thanks Bernie H. ! I am embarrassed that I missed visiting with you. Next time just grab me by the arm and say lets talk.

I owe apologies also, Bernie H., as we didn't get to meet. Glad you got to see Cody's little dingy!

Time spend with Commander Cody is always a good time. For those who have not met Wild Bill he is an incredibly funny guy, very quick to laugh and just a fun guy to be around. We are incredibly lucky to have him participate in these forums.

I don't know whether or not we met Bernie H, as Ewest said, next time make sure you just walk up to the forum members and say "My name is Bernie H, and I'm a pond nut."

We also neglected to get a photo of the forum members this year, stupid, stupid, stupid!

That's what they get for putting the Mods in charge of the Banquet night floorshow.

I thought we did a tremendous job on short notice and provided a lot of value for the viewers. The show had it all - info , humor , compassion , recognition , suspense , levity and was entertaining.

We did miss the chance to get a group pic. Should have done that Friday at lunch.

GF has a photo of E West & wife, Theo, Sunil and Bill Cody and me in front of the fireplace, maybe you could cut and paste the others in the front! Ha Ha


2Catmom at the PB III Expo




GF Lake Chair by the Falls at PB III




Shawn and crew go fishing




They did catch fish




2Catmom and Pond Boss Lusk (Greg Grimes in background hauling fish to weigh-in)




Bill Cody ,2Catmom and Dave Davidson (DD1) and the pink hat




2Catmom and an embarrassed Bruce exchanging the pink hat




Bob Robinson (Kasco) , Bob Lusk , Ted Lea in background to left




Bill , 2Catmom , Ruth , Sunil , Theo and ewest in front of the big fireplace at Conference Center

Tell GF to email me the photo. I will post it up in the front of the thread if that is what you guys want. I can edit one of the first posts - no problem.

Brenie nice meeting you and glad I was able to point out a couple guys for you. If ever headed more east in KY I will let you know. Sounded like you had a great pond though.

See pics added to 2Catmom's post above.

Bass Pro CEO Johnny Morris gets the " Cover Story" in USA TODAY Money Section.(Sept 30 edition) Great article and pics, states "first national interview in over 12 years" A mention of Big Cedar and Buzzards Bar also. Check it out when you get a chance !!