First of all, a reminder – the US market will be closed on Monday in observance of the Labor Day holiday. Picks are still due on Sunday, by 3 pm.Congratulations to Spiker Steve S on his latest weekly Gold. In reading his report, I especially liked his comments on learning to take profits, not overstaying a profitable trade.

Congratulations to David C in Canada on scoring yet another weekly Gold.

You’ve got to read the report from a Spiker who won Gold last week. He did an impulsive trade – and got lucky. Had it gone the other way (which it did for much of the week) – he would have lost his Spiker spot. Nilton writes that he learned from his adventure and will never do that again. He even sent an apology to Kerry and me – and I believe him.

Congratulations to Nick V in New York on his latest Gold, which lifted him into a Silver position for the current quarter. You’ll enjoy reading Nick’s logical write-up, with very clear charts.Half-way through the quarter, Igor D maintains his Gold spot; 11 out of 15 Spikers are positive.Controlling risk is essential for our survival and success. Spiker Steve S, a frequent winner of Golds, had an unlucky week, with the instrument he traded going against him over 10%. But because of his cautious trade sizing, he lost only 2% and his account remains positive for the quarter. If you are going to lose in a trade, that’s the way to do it.

Congratulations to Spiker Igor D in Estonia on his latest Gold, which vaulted him into the lead of the Spiker group for the current quarter. I am always curious where and how people get their ideas which stocks to follow, and Igor offers a curious example. Notice that it wasn’t a hit-and-run trade; Igor kept trading his newly-found candidate for nearly two months and still holds a partial position.