Sorry to break this up over several posts guys but I have had a very busy couple of days. Phone calls, the local paper interviewed me and I made the 1st page, top HALF of the sports section. Awesome....and if this happens for a divisional win, can you even imagine an All American win, or a Forest Wood Cup win or Classic??? There is a another guy here who made an All American some years back and if memory serves me right (often it doesn't though LOL) he took 2nd???? Some guy named Gutz???? What am I in for Greg?
Anywho...day 2, final day of regular competition and I have over a 6 lb deficit to make up against a guy that flew out and hired a guide to figure this puzzle out.
I told my co angler we were running to an area I had wanted to fish all week but never had the time. An area called Diamond City....even sounds cool huh? Around the Lead hill area. Supposedly all the local tourneys are held there and many are won from right there. It really pays to do your homework folks. I scoured the internet and my maps for months going into this.
However on the way there, I just couldn't go by the spot that gave me up the limit in the waining moments of day one. Never leave fish to find fish right? And it's better to have a small limit in the boat and have that monkey off your back before you go toad hunting. So I stop. Now the lake is much calmer, and noticably warmer.
I pull out the trusty white grub which I have 2 tied on along with the sexy shad series 5, a jerkbait, (never caught a fish on the jerkbait all week) and my PB&J spider grub tipped with a twin tail Chompers garlic grub.
Now about my grubbin rod. I have 2 G Loomis bronze back rods, 7'4" with Shimano Sustains on them. Gifts from a touring pro friend. But when money is on the line I pick one of my oldest go get 'em rods, a $50 Berkley Bionix rod, the old one with ceramic eyelets, that is 7' med light. I have a Gander Mtn guide series reel I bought on clearance for about $30 on it with Berkley 6 lb 100% Flurocarbon line. The light line was key. I broke off a LOT of shaky heads that week, somewhere to the tune of 40-50 but it got the bites. And like I always say, if you ain't hanging up, you ain't fishin where the fish are at.
The grub as I said was a 5" Zoom fat albert in pearl white on a Strike King 1/4 oz unpainted shaky head that was on sale at BPS for their classic. And I sprayed it all down with Bang Garlic.
THERE, now you all now EXACTLY what and how I was fishing.....no secerets here.
I pull up to the corner which I narrowed down to a spot we were casting no bigger than 2-3 boats ties up together. Immediately I start catching quality spots. Bang, fish on. Bang, fish on, so on and so on. By 8:30 only 45 minutes into the day, I have my limit and am sitting at least with 10 lbs. My co angler lands a big smallie, maybe 3 lbs.
I see a boat coming our way, a guy from the eastern.....dang it! He is a true gentleman and goes clear around us. I want to see him do well also, so I tell him what to throw and to try the other corner right next to us 100 yards across the cove. As he is moving around, thump a nice bite. "Get the net.", I say, "This one may cull" Well that big ole boy didn't even know he was hooked. The other boat starts watching close, "WHOA....this IS a big fish. This will be my biggest fish yet. Please lord don't let him come off."
Co puts the net on him....4 lb largehead. Now we have caught all 3 species of bass on the same spot. I cull out my small fish, only problem now is that my bottom 4 fish, all spots are cookie cutters. They look identical. So I start cull tagging, but the batteries in my scale are dead and neither I nor my co have a cull beam. The other pulls up and says "Here, use mine, you need it more than I do. Just get it back to me at check in."
It is now 8:55. I'm probably sitting around 13 lbs and change. I need one more good fish. A few minutes later I catch a nice spot, and he will cull, but which one. I finally determine my small fish and I cull him out. Now looking at my livewell, I would have guessed I had 15+ lbs, but the fish were deceiving. They had all bloated and their air bladders were full so they LOOKED much heavier than they were. So at 9:05.....I was done for the day. Not another fish that would cull. I did get some more keepers but no cullers. Unfortunately, my co only landed 3 fish and lost 3 others.
I kept fishing my but off all day, but the spot turned off and so did everything else. So I asked God for one last fish....to make ME feel better. If it didn't happen then God knew what I needed and I had enough and I would trust him. Like I did at Winnie, I closed my eyes and threw my bait over my shoulder to nowhere land.....no fish. OK God, you know best.
Off to weigh in.
As we sit back stage they put all the division anglers together. I see CT's Mike Kane, who was in 2nd....not a big bag! The day one leader from MA struggle bad as well, pretty sure I got him beat. It begins to dawn on me.....hey, I might have pulled this thing off. Only other angler was the guy who had been right in front of me, Gillie from VT. He had had 9+ lbs on day one and had a similar bag this day. Man it was going to be close.
Up on stage all the cameras, lights, fans....it's like a dream come true. They weighed us in from last to first. My turn.....13 + lbs (don't recall the oz sorry) a new Eastern leader.
Now for Gillie: to take the lead (and I know the division from me) he needs 9 lbs and change...........and the scales say....8 lbs and.......WHO cares...he ain't got it! Awesome, I did it. The last two guys come and weigh their fish and I take my spot as the Eastern divisional champion and a top 6 contender going on to fish on Saturday and a guaranteed spot at the BFL All American in May.
After the show is done, now starts the meetings, press interviews, moving our gear, etc. It's all a blurr. I didn't get my room until 10:30pm, a shower and to bed by 11:15. 4:00 am comes quick, but there will be very little sleep for this angler tonight! I'm fishing for the living the dream package. 14 lbs behind....but hey, David beat Goliath right? Stranger things have happened. I can do this!:blink:
Anywho...day 2, final day of regular competition and I have over a 6 lb deficit to make up against a guy that flew out and hired a guide to figure this puzzle out.
I told my co angler we were running to an area I had wanted to fish all week but never had the time. An area called Diamond City....even sounds cool huh? Around the Lead hill area. Supposedly all the local tourneys are held there and many are won from right there. It really pays to do your homework folks. I scoured the internet and my maps for months going into this.
However on the way there, I just couldn't go by the spot that gave me up the limit in the waining moments of day one. Never leave fish to find fish right? And it's better to have a small limit in the boat and have that monkey off your back before you go toad hunting. So I stop. Now the lake is much calmer, and noticably warmer.
I pull out the trusty white grub which I have 2 tied on along with the sexy shad series 5, a jerkbait, (never caught a fish on the jerkbait all week) and my PB&J spider grub tipped with a twin tail Chompers garlic grub.
Now about my grubbin rod. I have 2 G Loomis bronze back rods, 7'4" with Shimano Sustains on them. Gifts from a touring pro friend. But when money is on the line I pick one of my oldest go get 'em rods, a $50 Berkley Bionix rod, the old one with ceramic eyelets, that is 7' med light. I have a Gander Mtn guide series reel I bought on clearance for about $30 on it with Berkley 6 lb 100% Flurocarbon line. The light line was key. I broke off a LOT of shaky heads that week, somewhere to the tune of 40-50 but it got the bites. And like I always say, if you ain't hanging up, you ain't fishin where the fish are at.
The grub as I said was a 5" Zoom fat albert in pearl white on a Strike King 1/4 oz unpainted shaky head that was on sale at BPS for their classic. And I sprayed it all down with Bang Garlic.
THERE, now you all now EXACTLY what and how I was fishing.....no secerets here.
I pull up to the corner which I narrowed down to a spot we were casting no bigger than 2-3 boats ties up together. Immediately I start catching quality spots. Bang, fish on. Bang, fish on, so on and so on. By 8:30 only 45 minutes into the day, I have my limit and am sitting at least with 10 lbs. My co angler lands a big smallie, maybe 3 lbs.
I see a boat coming our way, a guy from the eastern.....dang it! He is a true gentleman and goes clear around us. I want to see him do well also, so I tell him what to throw and to try the other corner right next to us 100 yards across the cove. As he is moving around, thump a nice bite. "Get the net.", I say, "This one may cull" Well that big ole boy didn't even know he was hooked. The other boat starts watching close, "WHOA....this IS a big fish. This will be my biggest fish yet. Please lord don't let him come off."
Co puts the net on him....4 lb largehead. Now we have caught all 3 species of bass on the same spot. I cull out my small fish, only problem now is that my bottom 4 fish, all spots are cookie cutters. They look identical. So I start cull tagging, but the batteries in my scale are dead and neither I nor my co have a cull beam. The other pulls up and says "Here, use mine, you need it more than I do. Just get it back to me at check in."
It is now 8:55. I'm probably sitting around 13 lbs and change. I need one more good fish. A few minutes later I catch a nice spot, and he will cull, but which one. I finally determine my small fish and I cull him out. Now looking at my livewell, I would have guessed I had 15+ lbs, but the fish were deceiving. They had all bloated and their air bladders were full so they LOOKED much heavier than they were. So at 9:05.....I was done for the day. Not another fish that would cull. I did get some more keepers but no cullers. Unfortunately, my co only landed 3 fish and lost 3 others.
I kept fishing my but off all day, but the spot turned off and so did everything else. So I asked God for one last fish....to make ME feel better. If it didn't happen then God knew what I needed and I had enough and I would trust him. Like I did at Winnie, I closed my eyes and threw my bait over my shoulder to nowhere land.....no fish. OK God, you know best.
Off to weigh in.
As we sit back stage they put all the division anglers together. I see CT's Mike Kane, who was in 2nd....not a big bag! The day one leader from MA struggle bad as well, pretty sure I got him beat. It begins to dawn on me.....hey, I might have pulled this thing off. Only other angler was the guy who had been right in front of me, Gillie from VT. He had had 9+ lbs on day one and had a similar bag this day. Man it was going to be close.
Up on stage all the cameras, lights, fans....it's like a dream come true. They weighed us in from last to first. My turn.....13 + lbs (don't recall the oz sorry) a new Eastern leader.
Now for Gillie: to take the lead (and I know the division from me) he needs 9 lbs and change...........and the scales say....8 lbs and.......WHO cares...he ain't got it! Awesome, I did it. The last two guys come and weigh their fish and I take my spot as the Eastern divisional champion and a top 6 contender going on to fish on Saturday and a guaranteed spot at the BFL All American in May.
After the show is done, now starts the meetings, press interviews, moving our gear, etc. It's all a blurr. I didn't get my room until 10:30pm, a shower and to bed by 11:15. 4:00 am comes quick, but there will be very little sleep for this angler tonight! I'm fishing for the living the dream package. 14 lbs behind....but hey, David beat Goliath right? Stranger things have happened. I can do this!:blink:
