One Bug Is Fake- 30 Days of Fishing

That guerrilla blogger that has been making the rounds, Brandon Robinson of One Bug Is Fake has agreed to do not one, but multiple guest posts coupled with a contest right here on Fontinalis Rising.  It is my pleasure to introduce......

That's right.  Thirty straight days of Lou Gehrig-Dale Webster-Strom Thurmond fishing.  Thirty calendar days where I drop a line in the water, with the intention of catching fish.  The brains behind the scene here at Fontinalis Rising has agreed to host this ulyssean undertaking, allowing room for a weekly update, succeed or fail, every Thursday for a month.  Oh yeah, and to step it up a notch; I am doing it with glass only, specifically my Eagle Claw Featherlight 4/5 weight rod.

This may not sound like a big deal, but  here are the stumbling blocks I will have to weave around.  It's football season.  I work full-time, with an odd schedule: 1000hrs-1400hrs and 1800hrs-2200hrs, Monday – Friday.  I live in Austin, Tx and this city is still stuck in a record breaking drought.  30 days straight is a lot of fishing...  (In fact 42% of the fishing that Jason (FR) has logged for the year.)  Lastly, I am kind of lazy by nature.  Let's be honest, everyone that knows me is nodding their head a little at that particular confession.

Here is what is working for me.  I know of at least two ponds I can hit between shifts, which should help in a pinch.  I do have weekends off, allowing serious travel time to find the water, and to catch picture-worthy fish.  I also have no life, zero.  No life, no kids, no girl; no other responsibilities outside of work.   To quote the philosopher JZ Carter, “I got 99 problems...”  Austin is creeping towards some semblance of fall, which is good for warm-water fishing.  That also gives me a decent chance for a trout or two as well.  Lastly, my teams are University of Florida and the Miami Dolphins so, not missing much there.

Here are the rules I am laying out:

1.      I must fish for at least an hour for it to count as an attempt. 

2.      I can only fish one day per outing.  In other words, I can't start at 2330hrs and fish until 0030hrs and have that one trip count as two days.

3.      There are no mulligans or do-overs.  No excuses, period.  Not for weather, illness, or work.  If I miss a day, that's it, the party is over and I lose all credibility.

4.      No fishing the same water more than twice in a row.

5.      I will keep track of the various species that I catch.

6.      The fishing count starts the day of this post, nothing earlier.

Why should you care?  Why should you read?  Well, for starters, how much fishing are you going to get done in the next month?  Not enough?  Okay, I am going to sweeten the pot.  Send an email to the FR's Head Honcho including your pick of the succeed/fail date with your mailing address, then comment on this story when you send the email.  (Why the two steps?  I don't want to know when the bets are, I just want to know who is playing.)  There will only be one winner, but two levels of prizes.  I am hoping that FR's resident random numbers girl can help with this...  All correct day bets will be eligible to win.  If your name was chosen, and you got the right number of species, your prize will be upgraded.  Sound good?  Cool, starting now, you have one week to get your bets in!

Correct Date: 1 OBIF “Warning Label” shirt, green, any size.  Gratis.

Or...

Correct Date & Species: 1 shirt off the OBIF: any color, any size.  Gratis.

Recap: 30 days of fishing, with glass, and a prize ( See the shirts here.) at the end.  I'm ready, are you?

See you downstream amigos!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okay, Brandon has thrown down the gauntlet, and now it's your turn.  Send your entries to fontinalisrising@gmail.com with the subject "30 Days of Fishing" and your guess as to the fail date, then come back and leave your comment.  Choose any date between today and November 18.  We'll draw a winner the Sunday after his fail date, or Sunday November 20, whichever comes first.  Make sure you check back next Thursday and see how he's doing.

Be sure and check out his website at onebugisfake.com.  His Best of @OneBugIsFake page is hilarious.

Also, if you haven't already, please give me some love and vote for me (Jason Tucker) in the T.F.M. spotting contest at thefiberglassmanifesto.com.  I had to get another plug in.