I really hope today isn't a sign of things to come. Gabe kicked my butt today. Gabe caught fish after fish and I only caught 5 fish in 12 hours of practice. He ended up with about 17 lbs and I had a mere 12 lbs. I'm not sure what happened, but he thought it was the color tube he was throwing. I don't believe color makes that much of a difference, but Gabe offered me some of the tubes for the tournament and I gladly accepted them. He stipulated however, that if I drew out with him, I was not allowed to use them. After the last 2 days of practice I've decided I'm going to throw a tube most of the time. The dropshot bite isn't what it was last year. I caught that first big one on it, but very few ate it after that. I hope I get good draws in this tournament; I'm definitely due. $40,000 would be really nice right now. Just the gas alone to drive here cost $300.