I am bumping this thread with a tongue in cheek observation on the dangers of Optimal. I started feeding Optimal bluegill 2 years ago. The fish have loved it from the start, no rejection, a few red ear (not many, but some!) eat it, and the growth rates, WOW. Easy ordering and to my door delivery is a sweet benefit too. Now, about that growth rate thing. I manage for LM. Biggest lm so far is just over 7lb and around 24 inches. If you take the standard 1/3 length rule, that means those big bass eat mostly 7-8" bg. My bg are growing so fast to 9-10", I am having trouble keeping them culled down. But, boy, as a fly fisher, those babies are sooo much fun on a 4wt. So far this year, about 25 lbs of 9"+ bg have hit the freezer, mostly bigger males after the first big spawn was done. So, if you are managing for lm, watch your bg close, or they may well outgrow the lm ability to eat them. Then you will have to do more fishing, horrible problem, really. But, your bass may end up looking like Flames, and that would be another issue altogether.
I plan on continuing to use Optimal and suffer the management issue of doing more bg fishing. What about you?
