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I think I could say this episode might possibly be my favorite!
And it was one of my favorite to film in a long time as well. Just getting some warmer temps to work with made it fun given how cold our winter has been so far. Throw in some great crappie and it was a fantastic trip.
Looks like an absolute riot! Did you enjoy any BBQ in Kansas City?
James, it really adds a lot when you and the others involved are so active in the thread after the show like this…. thanks for taking that extra time.
Jealous! This looks like so much fun, and definitely the kind of bite where a half-hour show can’t record every fish caught. It would’ve been a half hour of just hook-sets I’m guessing. Love the local angle and it was really fun to see you guys go 8-deep from the same spot. Congrats!
Joel
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Looks like an absolute riot! Did you enjoy any BBQ in Kansas City?
I know they did… I seen some posts of BBQ places on facebook when they were down there. That’s also what makes IDO’s shows so cool, 
it was shot weeks ago 
Great show. Loved the over the shoulder camera work of the sonar screen. Really gives perspective to how they are being utilized and how the fish give chase.
Keep it up! I’ll be looking forward to more “usage” in future shows!
Why do I see MONSTER crappies, but think channel cats??
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Why do I see MONSTER crappies, but think channel cats??
You don’t really want us to answer that, do you?
Finally got to watch it and I uttered two words HOLY SMOKES! Ok maybe that wasn’t the exact second word I used but you get the hint. Man I am a crappie lover at heart but if that show doesn’t get your heart pumping even a little bit as an angler, I think you might just be dead. Best IDO show ever, even though I wish it was black crappies, still amazing. Poor James you will be so spoiled seeing those pigs you wont even get excited over a 13 inch boundary water black crappie anymore. That would be a day one does not forget very easily. 
Couple of questions James? When was this filmed and what/when is normal ice season for them? This far south it’s tough for the Minnesotans to judge when you could venture out on the ice down there.
James were you using a noodle and cal a qt ?
Being from Nebraska, it was awesome to see a lake featured that I have ice fished on numerous occasions. Glen Elder is a very special body of water. I will agree that Kirwin can give it a run for it’s money. Last year we caught TWO 17.5″ crappie on the same trip at Kirwin. I think you could have fit a softball into their mouths. Keep up the great work. You put together the best fishing program out there.
It was also awesome to see you talking about the locals and their summer rigs. My dad and I always see the Kansas guys out there with their long rods and they always hold their own. They are also a great group of guys to fish around.
It’s not something you can really plan. Some years they get only a week of fishable ice, some years 2 months, and some years zero ice at all.
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James were you using a noodle and cal a qt ?
I was using a QT as well. My fish were just bigger and made that rod bend like a noodle… 
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It’s not something you can really plan. Some years they get only a week of fishable ice, some years 2 months, and some years zero ice at all.
It was 58 degrees down there two days ago. Since we left most days the temps have been in the 50’s. A Kansas winter is NOT like a MN winter, that’s for sure.
Hi James I want to thank you for the (short rod lessons) and use of sonar it was a real learning experience. I want everyone to no how enjoyable it was to fish a couple days with James & Calvin they do the sport justice. Hope to hook up again and learn more from these good guys(when they are not giving me crap about my long rods). thanks again Randy
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James were you using a noodle and cal a qt ?
I was using a QT as well. My fish were just bigger and made that rod bend like a noodle…
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Hi James I want to thank you for the (short rod lessons) and use of sonar it was a real learning experience. I want everyone to no how enjoyable it was to fish a couple days with James & Calvin they do the sport justice. Hope to hook up again and learn more from these good guys(when they are not giving me crap about my long rods). thanks again Randy
My 1st thought on why you guys fish long rods is due to the ice fishing season in that area. Wouldnt think there is a long lasting ice season.
Welcome to the site.
Hey James I see the last few shows you have been wearing the strikemaster bibs. I have been thinking about getting a pair how do you like them? Comparable to the snosuit you used to wear?
Not really about length of season, we also fish for stripers about 1/2 the time and boy do the give you a fight. And truthfully I had never personally seen the short rods in action and when we could use them to our advantage with the small baits.
fishingforeyes,I use my short rods on wipers at Webster and at Norton all the time. Just have to buy decent rods.
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Looks like an absolute riot! Did you enjoy any BBQ in Kansas City?
Hickory Hut in Salina Kansas. Amazing in fact it was porkalicious
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Maybe I missed it, but why doesn’t anyone fish the main lake? Thin ice?
Most of the locals find no need to fish the main lake as some of Glen Elders best fishing is done away from the midlake. Also the ice season varies so much. I have this trip planned for 3 years and finally they have had good enough ice for us to come down. Thank you Mother Nature.
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Couple of questions James? When was this filmed and what/when is normal ice season for them? This far south it’s tough for the Minnesotans to judge when you could venture out on the ice down there.
This was filmed 1.5 weeks prior to airing. The ice is really hit or miss in Kansas. Keeping an eye on the weather down there or having a local connection to give honest ice condition reports helps a ton. In fact I see that some of the locals we fished with have commented on this post. I would expect to hear more from Randy and the Kansas gang going forward.
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Hi James I want to thank you for the (short rod lessons) and use of sonar it was a real learning experience. I want everyone to no how enjoyable it was to fish a couple days with James & Calvin they do the sport justice. Hope to hook up again and learn more from these good guys(when they are not giving me crap about my long rods). thanks again Randy
Both Cal and I had a blast fishing with you guys as well. And we learned as much as we gave away… count on that.
We’ll be back for both the BBQ and the fishing. You guys take care in the meanwhile.
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Hey James I see the last few shows you have been wearing the strikemaster bibs. I have been thinking about getting a pair how do you like them? Comparable to the snosuit you used to wear?
Hi Kody
I haven’t wore a snosuit in a couple years now but I can make a comparison between the two.
The snosuit is a more heavy-duty, heavily-insulated garment. No question about it. If you want the warmest, driest cold weather gear, snosuit is it.
The Strikemaster suit is a good suit, just not as heavily insulated. It keeps me warm and dry but I do need to layer more than when wearing the snosuit. Early and late in the season when temps are more mild the Strikemaster suit is just about perfect. Midwinter I wish the Strikemaster had some extra insulation.
Hope this helps.
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Looks like an absolute riot! Did you enjoy any BBQ in Kansas City?
Hickory Hut in Salina Kansas. Amazing in fact it was porkalicious
Best BBQ ever !!!
Biggest Crappies Ever !!!
And it’s not every day I get to fish with a legend like Virgil
I haven’t fished a day since this outing..
Great company and I can’t thank you enough for the invite to ride shotgun !!!
I purchased several of the Trigger X Nymphs for my first day on the ice(late ice) for here..
If anyone is looking to try the nymphs… pretty good deal here, with free shipping. I ordered a few to try.
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Couple of questions James? When was this filmed and what/when is normal ice season for them? This far south it’s tough for the Minnesotans to judge when you could venture out on the ice down there.
Understanding when the ice season is like guessing when first ice will occur on a particular body of water. You just have to venture out and check the thickness. Like Cal said he has been trying to plan a trip down here for a few years. Here is the link to Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks information about Glen Elder. I have heard for a long time how good the fishing is there but have never made the trip. Even though I live in Kansas it is still about 280 miles from where I live. Hopefully I will be able to make a trip in the next couple weeks and if not I will definitely make it for the spring run. Can you imagine what those whites will look like when their hormones kick in?
Getting back to ice conditions we don’t usually have more than two weeks of ice fishing in a year and some years we don’t get any ice fishing at all. This year we have been fortunate to have almost six week so far this year. A few weeks ago we had almost 10″ of ice and it almost all melted when that terrible polar vortex came through like a freight train. The winds created huge waves on the main lake that broke up what ice we had left and blew huge chunks on top of the larger pieces. Actually my friend Greg and I were out fishing that day the front came through we went home an hour before it. But there was a portion of the lake we frequent that still had ice and have been fishing it by ourselves since then until today a couple guys saw me with my grandson. 
Oh well it is public water…
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