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Jesse Herbert.
Hey everybody, Id like to take some time to introduce myself. First of all, I want to say that Im extremely impressed with the level of customer service from Bass Cat. To post a question on this message board and have it answered directly by Bass Cat is incredible. Its a great feeling to know that if I ever have an issue with my boat, I can post on this board and know that Bass Cat will do their best to help. Anyway, Im a 22 year old tournament angler from Upstate New York. I purchased a 97 Bass Cat Jaguar with a 200 Johnson Venom at the end of last summer, and I love the boat. I was a little nervous about purchasing an 11 year old boat, but it was very well taken care of over the years and it still looks brand new. Im very impressed with how the boat handles at high speeds, it drives effortlessly. And the 200 Venom on the back runs great, the boat runs mid 60s with a 4 blade stainless steel renegade prop. I think I should be able to get upper 60s out of it with the proper set up, but Im a novice when it comes to setting up a boat. I purchased the boat to pursue a career as a professional angler. Ive been fishing tournaments since I was 16 years old. Like most tournament anglers, I started out at the club level fishing as a co-angler and have worked my way up. Ive been fortunate enough to have quite a bit of success thus far, a couple highlights of my tournament career would be tieing for 1st place in the Bassmaster Elite Series Oneida Lake event last year as a co-angler. And tieing for 2nd place in the 2006 Elite Series event on Oneida. I planned on fishing the Bassmaster Northern Opens this year as a boater but with the way the economy is, its extremely difficult to find sponsors, and I cant afford to fish the Opens out of pocket. So I made a decision this past fall to go back to college and finish my Bachelors degree in business. So Ill be fishing regional and local events as a boater until I finish school. And maybe by that time the economy will turn around and itll be a bit easier to find sponsorship. Anyway, now that Ive introduced myself, I just want to say that Im proud to be a member of the Bass Cat Family. I honestly cant see myself purchasing another brand of boat. If Im ever in a position to purchase a brand new boat, it will be a Bass Cat. Thank you for building a great product, Jesse Herbert
Well Jesse, let me be one of the first to welcome you to the family. I understand you wanting to pursue a career in fishing but I must commend you on going back to complete school. I want to wish you well in your attempt to follow the dream. It sounds as though you are on a good path as you have done pretty well so far. I also have an older model Cat. I have a 1992 Sabre with an Evinrude 150 Intruder that was also well taken care of, still looks practically brand new, and runs pretty darned well if I do say so myself. Im getting 62mph out of it with a 3 blade Raker prop. Im pretty inexperienced at setting up a boat myself. Mine has the manual jackplate set where it was set from the factory and it does fine by me. I have no control problems and very little if any chine walk so Im happy with it. Anyway, good luck to you and welcome.Jim EbarbMany, LA (Toledo Bend Lake)2004 Cougar/ 225 OptimaxHumminbird Helix 12 Chirp SI on BalzOut Mount at bowLowrance HDS 7 at bowHumminbird Helix 12 Mega SI on Ram Mount at ConsoleLowrance HDS 8 in dash at console
Welcome, as you have learned, this forum is a great place to find answers for problems you may encounter. I run a 95 PII with a 96 150 Yama at Lake of the Ozarks, one of the roughest lakes in the country. The boat is as solid as the day it was made. The Jaguar handles this lake great and will handle any lake in the country. Great idea to finish school and fish part time. A fishing career is always there if your skills are good enough. An education is for a lifetime! Good Luck and good fishing. LOZman (OFG member)
Welcome to the family. You know where to ask if you have questions. Good luck in your tournaments this year. KentKent Charles 2002 Pantera Classic & 200 Yamaha VMax
Welcome Jesse, and good luck with your tournaments. Dress warm.
Welcome to the family Jesse, look forward to seeing you this summer hopefully at some of the NYBCF Tournaments. Im planning on fishing all of them. Im pretty easy to find, 2006 P4 red and white. Give me a shout if you see me on the water.
Just go enjoy your new rig Jesse! Get that degree and then you can ifgure out where to focus. BCB
Congrats on the rig, and school Jesse, You sound like a bright young man who is making some decisions wiser than your years ! Im sure youre family is proud of you, and youre BCB family here will be as well. Get your degree and a good job to go with it and good things will begin to happen for you. Study hard, work hard, fish harder. Anybody can accomplish great things with the proper focus. Good luck, D.
Welcome to the family! Enjoy your new Cat! Im proud of you for pursuing your degree. I dropped out of the fishing scene a few years back to get a college degree to have something to fall back on and have never regretted it. There are no pros on the Elite Series that rely on their fishing ability alone. Its too unpredictable. You have to have sponsorship to survive out there. Learn public speaking, marketing, and be able to show sponsors what you can do for them in the future – not just that you can catch fish. Youll be glad you got your degree and will be better because of it. Andy Greene Greene Boat & MotorAndy Greene Greene Boat & Motor 828-286-2290 http://www.greeneboats.com
Thanks for the warm welcome guys! Im looking forward to chatting with you guys on this board, everybody seems to be really friendly and helpful. But yeah, Im happy with my decision to go back to school. I already have my Associates degree in business and I only have a few more semesters left to finish up my Bachelors. Anyway, I do have a couple questions about my boat. What should my boat be running as far as top end speed with the 4 blade prop that is currently on it? I know the motor is only a 200, but its a 2-stroke 3.0 liter so its not lacking in power by any means. Im just curious as to what you guys think the boat should be running, and what its capable of running with the proper set up? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.
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