It's Here

The new Ranger has arrived!  Last week I got the call saying my boat had arrived at Rapid Marine in Ham Lake fresh from the Ranger Factory.  To say I was relieved is an understatement, as I leave this Thursday for Port Clinton Ohio for my first FLW Tour event of the year.  I knew I would be cutting it close this year with getting my boat in time, so thank you to everyone that hurried the boat along and got it all built and rigged.  Now if the weather would just cooperate I could put the finishing touches on the rigging.  But, it has to actually stop snowing to get that done.

The nice thing about getting a Ranger Boat is they pretty much come water ready from the factory.  Before my boat left the Ranger plant in Flippen Arkansas my electronics were installed and the motors were mounted.  Basically all I have left to do now is put the Cannon rod holders on and it is ready to haul in some of those giant Lake Erie Walleye.

This 2009 Ranger is very similar to my 2008 Ranger, in fact, the color combination is exactly the same.  I really liked my 2008 colors so I decided to go with the exact same combination.  There are a few differences I noticed in this boat from last years with the biggest being the new hitch on the trailer.  The new hitch system on the trailer makes hooking and unhooking much easier as it seems to release from the ball much better.  Also, Evinrude changed the design on the exterior of the 2009 E-TEC  H.O. motors and I think they look really sharp.  You can see the new graphics in the picture on the right.

This season I will be running the Humminbird 1197c SI Sonar/GPS combo.  The 1197c SI has a huge 10.4 inch screen and processes data very fast.  There is a very noticeable increase in the speed of this new unit which makes me really happy.  I have to give Humminbird credit they continue to make a great product better, which is the sign of a great company.  Last year was my first year running a side imaging unit and I got it figured after a couple weeks of use.  I am looking forward to using the side imaging again this year as I feel my comfort level with the technology has increased tremendously.

Well, the sun is shining and it is not snowing today so I am going to get the rest of that rigging done.  I have the trolling rods all ready to go and they are packed neatly in the boat.  I have been through each one of my crankbait boxes and have lots of spinner rigs already tied so a little more rigging and a whole lot of packing and I should be ready to hit the road.  Thursday will come fast enough so I think I better get off the computer and back in the boat.   Hopefully you like the new Ranger!