Fishing is always good

[DanL]

Hey! I like those side flipper critters! The secret to using them is to learn to hesitate at the top of your stroke for just a second. This allows the flipper time to assume the position before you do the down stroke. I pretty much put no more effort into it that I would if I was sitting swinging my legs in a swing. The weight of my relaxed leg provides all the pressure that the downward stroke needs. These things are like the trolling motor on the bow of my bass boat and shouldn't be disparaged because they won't bring it up on full plane. There are lots of advantages to moving slow and forward. Also they are a lot more maneuverable than fins just as a trolling motor will turn a boat in a lot smaller radius than the outboard motor. Now I will admit that they are not for long trips and now that I have some better quality dive fins, they will be my primary form of travel. The little flippers will still be what I go to though if I am fishing a shore or weed line because position is everything when you are trying to hit pockets and such in weeds. They are a pain in the butt to get used to but once you get the feel of them they are a lot better than the flippers for fine, slow stalking.

There is ONE little thing that I might mention though. I fish in a lot of gator and snake infested holes and don’t like to turn my back if I need to beat a hasty retreat out of a hole that I have poked my nose into. For EMERGENCY reverse I carry a couple of big ole spatulas clipped to the side of my tube. I used to use a pair of kids cheap flippers but the spatulas look cooler. Given the proper motivation I can make that tube almost jump up one full plane in reverse mode without ever having to turn my back on the critter!
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