My point is not to say that I'm concerned about availability on hudds. I know I can order from Ken directly, and I'm sure when I run out of baits that's what I'll do. I have no problem with that, that's just the way the world goes round.

My point is to say that no where else in the fishing industry do you see these kind of "wars" between manufacturers. My example of that is the fact that you can buy a Yamamoto Senko from Bass Pro Shops on one page of their catalog and on the next page of their catalog you can buy a Bass Pro Shops Stick-O. Not only is Bass Pro shops selling a competing product of the Senko that is an exact copy, it's them that's selling it! Instead of Gary Yamamoto getting in a huff over it and cutting off Bass Pro Shops, he continues to do business with them because it's just one more sales channel for him.

But you see in big baits for some of the mfgr's it's not all about making money. The money is a necessary evil, but fundamentally it's about who's top dog, who is numero uno, who is the biggest baddest swimbait maker whose guys catch the biggest fish and the most. And there's all sort of rivalries and loyalties and friendships that come and go depending on who copied who or whose bait is the hot bait of the moment. And there's all sorts of what you might call 'gentlemans agreements' between the manufacturers when it comes to how close one guy can come to copying the other guy without crossing some imaginary line into the zone of "ripping off" the other guy. This has been going on since day one of swimbaits as we know them today, and will continue to go as long as the manufacturers involved continue to have the attitude that it's not about money, it's about who is number one.

Because of this website and the fact that I catch a few big bass from time to time on swimbaits, I've been sucked into these type of disputes in the past. But I'm to the point now where I really don't care. I use whatever lures work best for me, and I'll review any swimbait that people want to send me as fairly and objectively as I can. Taking this path brings me peace of mind and allows me to focus on enjoying my time on the water and enjoying the time and energy that I put into the website here. Today in fact the sun is out and shining and I think I'll take off a little early and go fishin. Boy I feel good.