Thanks for the update, Dean. It's great how you're looking forward to fishing with your son...

Also, congrats on the new writing gig...I enjoyed your drop-shotting write up and look forward to more.

Great pics, Deric.

2015 was going to start out as a spectacular year if things worked out but they didn't work as I had hoped ,did get to fish some places I never dreamed I would get to fish won an awesome kayak and met some more great friends. Hoping to get more time on the water this coming year than I did this past year have a couple of things working with 2 of my buddies that we hope to see great things from in 2016 . Looking forward to getting the Thurs night working mans back rolling again and hoping we have the same success with it as we did last year will be good to see everyone again but most of all I hope everyone has a great Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year !

It was a grind for me this past year. Between trying to figure out a couple of techniques I need more confidence in and becoming more familiar with the all the new water in the lakes I usually fish, I was confused most of the year. At one point I even considered taking up golf again. The good news is I learned a lot about myself and will continue to try to become a better fisherman.

For 2016 I hope to fish a few tournaments whenever my work schedule allows and continue to learn more about the best way for me to catch a few more fish.

1) I want to fish and spend more time with my family and friends.
2) I got off all the staff deals and am going to slow down and fish the way I use to. Slower and for more enjoyment. Some Pro Staff where like family. Some not so much.

NOT AS

AS IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN

I did the glitter boat thing way back in the late 80s and early 90s, then bought kayaks for the family around 2008. We have fished around sporadically, but 2015 saw my interest in LMB fishing renewed in a big way.

For 2016, I'd like to learn a couple of local lakes really well and focus on better understanding my electronics and finding/catching more offshore bass. Of course there is the ever-present goal of a DD bass, but I sure like numbers of 2-5 pounders!!

2015
For me it was a great year thanks to the early flooding. Changed my normal routine I got to fish more new waters than I have done in the past several years. Most of the waters had super clear water and that has always intimidated me. I've now come to love fishing clear water. I had fun running a small tournament series but pretty much put my tournament fishing on the back burner. I also finally got to do my first overnight river trip and it was by far the highlight of my year. I would say 2015 was the return to the reason I got into kayaking year.

2016
I'm torn between my love of tournaments and the joy I found in 2015 exploring new waters. I've always wanted to do a Devils trip but that's hard when you have to prefish and then fish a tourney once a month. As I always say-"So many waters and so little time."

I want to catch a 5 pounder on my fly rod. I managed a few stripers around 4 lbs this year, but none over 5 yet.

For me 2015 was a pretty good year. Caught some nice fish all year including a PB in length 26" (not PB for lbs. thats 10.47). Won some nice tournaments and had some disappointing finishes also. I missed a fish at Tournament of champions in the last 30min that cost me 3rd place and maybe even BigBass. Which would have put about 4000K in my pocket,oh well thats fishing.

2016 focus for me is-
-AOY for a tourney trail
-Get back to Tournament of Champions
-Work on a few techniques
-Stay more active on TFF
-Lose some weight!
-And lastly, get my ACL replaced. Apparently I severed it 3 yrs ago�.blah blah blah. There's hawgs to catch!
-Oh wait �.catch a Sharelunker from a kayak!

Goal #1 - Don't flip my kayak over on the 4th of July
Goal #2 - Don't flip my kayak over any other day
Goal #3 - Invent an unflippable kayak
Goal #4 - Submit the word "unflippable" to Merriam-Webster
Goal #5 - Break my PB record for Blue Cats (36 lbs)
Goal #6 - Break my PB total stringer weight for Blue Cats (9 fish = 110 lbs)
Goal #7 - Get a FF and LED lights for my kayak
Goal #8 - achieve all goals on this list

My goals for this year:
New PB, preferably on a swimbait.
Do more research and planning off the water, as well as keep better notes.
Learn to read my electronics more proficiently.