The Latest from My Email and Phone Calls...

I had a phone conversation with Bobby Moore (right) this morning, telling me that when he awoke aboard his houseboat on Sunday after our tourney, there were a dozen or so bass floating belly up in the creek. In talking to Dewey about it, they both pretty well came to the same conclusion: that the fish likely were ones we had released Saturday after weigh-in.

Because none of us are biologists, I don't guess we'll ever know for sure what happened. Both Bobby and Dewey wonder, though, if maybe the problem could have been caused by a difference in water temperature between where the fish were caught and where we released them.

Bobby indicated there already was an unpleasant odor in the air around the marina, so anyone venturing down that way in the next day or two likely will find out for themselves.

This evening when I checked my email, I had a couple notes. One was from Charlie Bruggemann (left), who had a report of his fishing results in Straight Creek today. He boated eight bass, but not the one pictured here. His biggest today was about one-and-a-half pounds, with two that weighed about a pound apiece. The others were dinks.

He also caught a couple of grindle, a few white perch, and, much to his chagrin, another pickerel, which just like the one last week, injured a finger--not the same one, though. This new injury isn't as bad as the last one, but as Charlie explained, his finger "sure bled like a stuck pig."

This morning's topwater bite for Charlie was great from 6:30 to 8:30, but then it was like someone had thrown the switch. He had to change to Senkos, beetlespins and crankbaits to catch fish.

It was getting warm by 12:30 today, so Charlie decided to call it a day. Despite his injury, it was a satisfying day because he feels like he finally has it down pat how to fish a hollow-bodied frog. He said he scores hookups on most strikes now. The drawbacks to fishing frogs, as Charlie sees it, is the fact the fish tear them up pretty bad, and they're more expensive to replace than, say, a Zara Puppy, so he's probably going to be fishing more Zara Puppies than frogs.

Check out all the details and video of Charlie's day on his blog at http://vbfishguide.blogspot.com/. He should have the new entry posted sometime in the afternoon of Tuesday, July 31.

My other email this evening was from Skip Schaible (right), seen here during Saturday's weigh-in. Although he hadn't made any fishing plans before climbing out of bed this morning, he took a notion to hook up the boat and head to Dewey's to see if he could find a few fish. It was 10 o'clock by the time he got to West Neck, so he stayed in the creek and initially made his way up above the bridge.

Given his success Saturday with topwaters, he started today with them, too. He threw several different ones but to no avail. He also tried a Slider and a Senko, all with negative results. It was then that he decided to come back under the bridge, motor about halfway toward the North Landing, and start fishing. He tied on a chartreuse and green crankbait and went to casting. By this time, the wind had picked up and was moving the water pretty good. Working the crankbait about the backside of trees, stumps, etc., Skip put five bass in the boat, three of which were keepers. The biggest weighed about 3 lbs. He also caught a couple white perch.

The worst part of Skip's whole day was cleaning up his boat. "The water was nasty, and I had to use a scrub brush to get the scum off," he said.

Epilog: As John Goodman has pointed out, besides the effects that high air and water temps have on fish kills, another factor is oxygen content of the water both where a fish is caught and where it's released. He pointed out that the area of the weigh-in station very well may have a higher temperature, as well as a lower oxygen content.

July 28, 2012 Dewey Mullins Tribute Bass Tourney

If I had been a betting man when all 21 of us motored away from the dock this morning in our 14 boats, I would have bet you anything that we were going to get another dousing today from Mother Nature, much like the one we all received just two weeks ago. The dark clouds were overhead, and the local weather predictions called for thunderstorms, but as it turned out, not a single one of us saw a single drop of rain fall during our eight hours on the water. Please don't interpret those statements to mean that I was disappointed--quite the opposite. I really wasn't looking forward to waiting another week for my boat to dry out again.

Claiming the first-place prize in today's 11th contest of the 2012 season was the team of Chris and Al Napier, with five fish weighing 14.89 lbs. Second place went to the team of Paul Celentano and Ken Testorff, with five fish weighing 12.15 lbs. Third place went to Jimmy Bauer, with five fish weighing 11.93 lbs.

(L-r) The team of Chris and Al Napier - 1st place, the team of Ken Testorff and Paul Celentano - 2nd place, and Jimmy Bauer - 3rd place.

The other contestants finished as follows: John Matyiko, five fish weighing 10.22 lbs.; Skip Schaible, five fish weighing 10.00 lbs.; Mark London, five fish weighing 9.30 lbs.; Tom Acree, five fish weighing 9.12 lbs.; the team of Jeremy Gatewood and Charlie Reed, five fish weighing 8.29 lbs.; the team of Bob Glass and Randy Conkle, five fish weighing 8.21 lbs.; the team of Steve Bailey and Jason Fittro, five fish weighing 8.20 lbs.; Gary Coderre, five fish weighing 7.11 lbs.; the team of Wayne Hayes and Chris Sims, three fish weighing 6.19 lbs.; and Bobby Moore, four fish weighing 4.86 lbs. The team of Duane and Donny Kessel didn't weigh any fish.

Big fish honors today went to Skip Schaible (left), who caught a bass that tipped the scales at 3.81 lbs. Other participants who weighed big fish were as follows: the team of Chris and Al Napier, 3.67-lb. bass; the team of Paul Celentano and Ken Testorff, 3.39-lb. bass; Jimmy Bauer, 3.18-lb. bass; John Matyiko, 3.16-lb. bass; the team of Wayne Hayes and Chris Sims, 2.40-lb. bass; Tom Acree, 2.30-lb. bass; Mark London, 2.29-lb. bass; the team of Steve Bailey and Jason Fittro, 2.09-lb. bass; the team of Jeremy Gatewood and Charlie Reed, 2.03-lb. bass; the team of Bob Glass and Randy Conkle, 1.85-lb. bass; Gary Coderre, 1.70-lb. bass; and Bobby Moore, 1.40-lb. bass. As noted earlier, the team of Duane and Donny Kessel didn't weigh any fish.

Those 19 anglers who participated in the weigh-in accounted for a total of 62 bass weighing a combined total of 120.47 lbs., for an average of 1.9 lbs. per fish. Adding these numbers to our yearly totals, we end up with a grand total of 478 bass weighing a grand combined total of 885.86 lbs., which leaves our grand yearly average at 1.8 lbs. per fish through 11 events.

Two more anglers today were added to the list of those qualified to fish our season-ending two-day Classic. They include Jeremy Gatewood and Tom Acree. With these additions, we now have 20 anglers who have fished the required four tournaments.

With a front-row seat at today's weigh-in were our West Neck friends (l-r) Jim Rose and Bill Rhodes.

For planning purposes, our next tourney is scheduled for next Saturday, Aug. 4. Start time will be safe light (or approximately 0600). Weigh-in will be at 1400.

For those who weren't around this afternoon when Dewey passed out the money, you missed his lecture about our miserable parking today. He noted that, if we had exercised correct parking habits, he would have been able to fit five more rigs in his limited space. In the future, he asks that the first person to launch on tourney morning make sure to angle (don't pull in straight, then corkscrew at the last moment) their rig as close as possible to the end nearest the ramp. Some folks today got to parking at weird angles, which reduced the amount of overall space available to other patrons. Let's all try to do a better job starting next Saturday. I don't know if he meant it, but Dewey said if he finds the same kind of mess next Saturday, he's going to take his tractor down to the parking lot and rearrange as necessary to make more room. I don't think any of us would be happy if he were to do that.

Granted, Dewey doesn't have white lines chalked on the
ground as you see in this photo, but the alignment here is an
example of what he wants from us.

On a personal note: I'm hoping Paul Celentano and I finally have put our "close but no cigar" habits to a rest with today's 2nd-place finish. Our teamwork was more in sync today than it has been for a very long time. I was nailing keeper fish with various crankbaits, and he was culling them throughout the day with bigger fish on a rubber worm. Our bite basically quit about noon today, and if we hadn't made a last-minute move to a series of finger coves in Albright's, where we spent our entire day, we likely wouldn't have finished in 2nd place. Paul's a great fisherman, and I'm here to tell you I've never seen a fella skip worms up under tight cover any better than he  does. His rod-handling is second to none in my books. I always consider it a privilege to have him in my boat.

According to My Email...

Some of my friends decided to take advantage of the cooler temps we had yesterday and see if they could find something that would put a bend in their fishin' rods. From the looks of their reports, I'd have to say they all were successful.

My first email was from Charlie Bruggemann, who, because of the breezy conditions, took his kayak to Munden Point and launched on the sheltered waters of Oakum Creek. He noted that it mostly was a pickerel sort of day, but because they were bigger than usual, with several weighing more than 2 pounds, he "had a blast." There was one problem, though. It seems that one of the rambunctious toothy critters managed to find a finger. As a result, Charlie is sporting a band aid today and singing praises for having gotten a tetanus shot just last week.

Besides the big pickerel, Charlie boated six bass, the largest a 2-2 that fell for a Senko. A hollow-bodied frog and Zara Puppy worked well for him the first couple of hours, but a tube and Crystal Minnow "reigned supreme," in his own words, after that. To get the full details and video of Charlie's day on the water yesterday, check out his blog at http://vbfishguide.blogspot.com/. He told me he should have it updated with these results by later this evening.

In like fashion, Jimmy Bauer spent the day on West Neck Creek, where he caught a total of five bass. The three best were a 1.4, 1.1 and 1.0, along with a couple of dinks. He also caught several crappie at the West Neck bridge, as well as a few bream throughout the day. His five bass came on a crankbait and a topwater bait. The water temp when he launched was 83, and it read 85 when he called it a day about 3:30. "Didn't see much movement from the fish today," said Jimmy, "not even from the gar."

My third report came from Skip Schaible, who went to Albright's yesterday and enjoyed an all-day topwater bite. He experimented with different topwaters throughout the day. "I even caught a small fish on a Fred Arbogast Jitterbug in a frog color," said Skip. Most of his fish, though, came on a brown and yellow Tiny Torpedo; however, other colors (except for gold) in the same bait also were productive. Like a few other anglers, yours truly included, Skip's normally reliable Pop-R bite has gone south--that's why he's experimenting. Most of his fish were small, but he ended up with five or six keepers--the largest weighing about a pound and a half. "All in all, a fun day" is the way he described it.

My last email was from John Goodman, who told me about an encounter he had Tuesday, July 24th, while "swimming" his lab at Munden Point. He said he met up with two gents in a light-colored Alumacraft who were trailering their boat and offered to show him a near-citation fish. He agreed to have a look at what turned out to be a 7.55-lb. bass, according to the hand-held Rapala scales they were weighing it on. John suggested they drop the fish back in the water, but they informed him they planned to take it home and have it for table fare.

Anytime you have items like these, please feel free to send 'em my way. Jimmy told me in his note that he saw Joe McDevitt and Tom Acree yesterday, too, but they didn't tell me about their day. Perhaps that's because they know I'm a blabbermouth.:-)

A Not-Too-Shabby Day

(Top row, l-r) 1-3, 1-1
(Bottom row, l-r) 1-8, 1-1, 1-3

These 5 fish were my best for the day. If they were the only ones I had boated, I'd be a bit disappointed. However, there were 12 more bass to go with these today, along with a big bowfin and a white perch.

All 19 fish came on just 2 baits: a bullfrog-colored Baby Torpedo and the firetiger Bandit Footloose I repaired over the weekend. The Baby Torpedo accounted for 9 bass and the bowfin, which were caught between 6:30 and 10:30 this morning. The other 8 bass and the white perch were boated on the Footloose between 10:30 and 2:45. And every one of the fish came from working both shorelines between marker No. 4 in West Neck and the mouth of the creek. I had 5 or 6 fish come unbuttoned today as I was bringing them to the boat, including one that was taking some serious drag.

I often catch fish in the area I fished today, but I seldom catch as many there as I did today. The fish were active all day--perhaps because the water was in the low 80s. It was only 85.3 when I quit today.

I had an email from Charlie Bruggemann waiting for me when I got home, telling me that he had a nice day in the Alton Creek oxbow. He caught a total of 13 bass--the biggest weighing 2-0, with 2 more tipping the scales at more than a pound. His "killer" bait today was a Zara Puppy in frog colors. He also got his first bass on a hollow-body frog. "You really have to wait a long time from strike to hookset to get a good connection," said Charlie.

He went on to explain that his topwater bite died about 10 o'clock. He then tried everything in the book but didn't have much action--"one here and one there" is the way he described it. "I couldn't figure out a pattern or lure that would work all the the time," he said.

At day's end for the 6 hours Charlie was out, he had caught a couple of white perch, several small stripers, and a big gar--about 5 lbs.--to go with his 13 bass. To boat the gar, Charlie used his new gar glove. "Works great!" he said, adding, "Those things are slimier than catfish!"

Charlie also told me that he had one casualty today--the battery died on his GoPro video camera. As a result, he had to use his backup camera, which, unfortunately, doesn't have a wide-angle lens. One thing about Charlie: He always goes prepared for anything. To check out his blog and see the full story of his day's results, here's the link to his site: http://vbfishguide.blogspot.com/.

Epilog: Incidentally, the work I did to repair that Footloose bait wasn't 100 percent effective. It still sinks slowly in the water when I pause my retrieve, but it's evident that malfunction doesn't affect the lure's fish-catching ability, based on today's totals.

The Line Choices We Make and Why

I remember when, as kids, my brother and I would accompany Pop to the local Western Auto store (or once in a while, the local Firestone store) to buy new fishing line. You didn't have a lot of choices back in those days. It was just a matter of picking up a spool with the strength you wanted. My brother and I would circle the display table of line in Western Auto with Pop until he found what he wanted, and when he had paid for it, we'd be headed home to respool our reels.

Sometimes today, line strength isn't even the primary consideration. Anglers often are more concerned about getting the right kind of line to use for certain techniques or conditions.

Fluorocarbon, for example, has low visibility, low stretch, high strength, and it sinks, but some brands are stiffer than monofilament and are more difficult to cast.

Braided lines, on the other hand, are extremely strong and abrasion-resistant but have no stretch, and because they float, their high visibility makes them a poor choice in clear water. Monofilaments are just the opposite; they have low visibility and high stretch, and they also float.

According to one source, older monofilament products account for more than two-thirds of all fishing line sold yet today. The suggested reason for its continued popularity is its cost. One factor all mono users should bear in mind, however, is that cheaper brands usually don't have the same quality-control standards as premium-grade lines. Tensile strength, limpness, abrasion resistance, and knot strength in cheaper brands may be lacking. In short, you get just what you pay for. The best advice anyone can give a hard-core mono user is this: Test several brands and stick with the one that gives you the most bang for your buck.

Before lines made with such fibers as Spectra, Kevlar and Dyneema came along in the 1990s, braided Dacron was popular. It's still used by some catfishermen today, and a few big-game anglers use it for trolling. Anglers who experimented with the early "superlines" were frustrated by low knot strength, backlashes (similar to what you see at left), poor coloration, damaged equipment (I can't tell you how many rods I broke early on and how many reels I had to get repaired), impossible snags, and more. For some, these disadvantages outweighed the benefits of strength, small diameter, and ultra sensitivity, especially when you considered the added costs. However, manufacturers have made giant strides in overcoming many of those early disadvantages.

Lures dive deeper and faster with superlines, and because of their smaller diameter, are less visible to fish than monofilament. The little to no stretch of superlines means more positive hooksets when fish strike. Another benefit is longer casts. Their high breaking strength and low stretch make superlines the choice of many when it comes to manhandling big fish.

Fluorocarbon is nearly invisible in water because it has an almost identical refractive index (an indication of the degree at which light refracts or bends as it passes through a substance). It also resists deterioration by sunlight, gasoline, battery acid, and Deet (a common ingredient in insect repellents). Another positive characteristic is that it doesn't absorb water.

Fluorocarbon fishing leaders originated in Japan, where anglers are known to be particular about their bait presentations. American anglers started using fluorocarbon leaders for the same reason as the Japanese--low visibility. Their popularity grew when the anglers reported catching more fish. While the original fluorocarbon leaders were stiff and very expensive, new technologies have produced more flexible fluorocarbon at more affordable prices.

Fluorocarbon shines in clear-water situations where fish are heavily pressured or slow to bite. Because fluorocarbon doesn't absorb water, it won't weaken or increase in stretch like nylon line. Added density makes fluorocarbon very abrasion-resistant, so it's ideal for rough conditions. Added density also makes fluorocarbon sink faster than nylon lines, so lures dive deeper and faster. And because fluorocarbon stretches slower and less than nylon, especially wet nylon, it's much more sensitive.

All these points only can lead to one conclusion: You might just grab a spool of line off the tackle dealer's shelf and be lucky enough to get one that'll work right for you. But given the many types of line available today, you'll be better served to study each one and its characteristics before deciding what you will fight "bubba" with the next time you have him on.

For the purpose of this discussion, I recently asked all the anglers who fish the Dewey Mullins Tribute Bass Tourney series what lines they use and why, as well as whether those who fish braid also use leaders. I have to thank my kayaker friend, Charlie Bruggemann, for the motivation to do this article.

Until recently, Charlie had been using 30-lb. braid with 3 feet of 12-lb. fluoro leader connected with a double uni knot, then a uni knot to the lure, on his heavy rods. In similar fashion, he had been using 15-lb. braid with 3 feet of 10-lb. fluoro leader connected with a double uni knot, then a uni knot to the lure, on his medium rods. The problem with these two arrangements was that he kept losing big fish when they wrapped in bottom debris, causing the leaders to break. He emailed me, asking if any of the guys in our series uses leaders with braid. The overwhelming response I got when I shared his question with everyone was "no," with a couple of exceptions.

Charlie already has switched his fishing habits to a no-leader scenario and seems to be happy with this new setup. "I don't see any difference in what I expect to catch, so I'll stay with the new setup," he said.

Here is what anglers from the Dewey Mullins Tribute Bass Tourney series had to tell me about their choices in fishing lines:

From Bob Glass - I use PowerPro 65-lb. test with 5-0 superline wide-gap hooks (no leader) on everything I throw. Today (referring to our Sept. 14 tourney), for the first time in 8 years, I used mono on a popper rod--didn't like the stretch, though.

From Jim Bauer - No braid for me. I use an assortment of mono and fluorocarbon--12- and 14-lb. test on the mono and 15-, 16- and 17-lb. test on the fluorocarbon. If I'm slingin' plastics, I'm using fluoro. I use mono for everything else.

From Tucker Blalock - I use Spiderwire braid, 50-lb. test, on all my rods, and I don't use swivels on any.

From John Goodman - I use 10- and 14-lb. Excel monofilament, but 65-lb. PowerPro braid when fliping and pitching. No leaders, ever.

From Gary Coderre - I use 30- and 50-lb. braid with no leader and 12-lb. mono.

From Joe McDevitt - I use 15-to-20-lb braid, no leader.

From Paul Celentano - I use 12-to-20-lb. fluoro for bottom-bumping baits (e.g., worms, jigs, creature baits, etc.). Less stretch translates into better hookups, and it's invisible, so they say, plus there's good sensitivity. Because of the invisibility factor, I also use the same line for crankbaits and jerkbaits. I use 10- or 12-lb. mono for prop baits because the line floats. Because of mono's little extra stretch, I also use it for spinnerbaits. I personally like the idea of giving the fish more time to get the hook. I use 55-to-65-lb. braid when pitching and flipping thick cover, when I'm faced with dirty water, and for frog fishing. Its best strength is that you can feel a fish fart on your bait. Sometimes I'll throw a popper on light braid. When drop shotting, I use 55-lb. braid for the main line and 8- or 10-lb. fluoro for a leader--again because of the invisibility factor.

From Skip Schaible - I use Trilene XL monofilament--usually 14-lb. test. I use 10-lb. test when fishing sliders. I also like the Berkley Fireline fused crystal in 20-lb. test. However, I don't usually use a leader.

From Steve Bailey - I use braid, 30-to-50-lb. test, for everything but crankbaits, with no leader. For cranks, I use 14-to-20-lb. fluoro. I never use mono any more.

From Wayne Hayes - I use P-Line CCS 12-lb. mono, 10- and 14-lb. Fireline in smoke color, and 30-lb.-test PowerPro braid for flipping and frog fishing.

From Randy Conkle - I use PowerPro, 65-lb. test.

From Rob Powell - Until this year, I was pretty much all braid all the time. Now, I mostly use fluoro and mono for crankbaits and winch-cable-strength braid for frog fishing and flipping.

From Al Lemieux - I use 20-lb. braid for flipping and pitching, sometimes with a 3-foot-fluoro leader in 17-lb. test if the water is fairly clear. I don't use any leader if the water is very dark. I use 10-lb. braid for topwater baits, including frogs. If I'm casting worms and creature baits, I use 12-lb. fluoro. For crankbaits and jerkbaits, I use 10- or 12-lb. mono.

From Bobby Moore - I use 20-lb. braid on all my poles.

As for yours truly, I fished mono in my early fishing years. When superlines came along, I started trying many of them. I've been using Stren Sonic Braid for several years now--starting with 30-lb. test but up to 40- and 50-lb test more recently. One of the first braids I fished was white, which worked fine in the tannic water of my home waters--the North Landing River. As I learned the hard way, though, that line made for one very miserable weeklong trip to Lake Gaston. Let's just say I know for a fact fish can see a line that stands out underwater, and that white line stood out like a sore thumb. After the fact, I learned I could color 5 or 6 feet of that white line with a brown or black magic marker and fool a few of the fish. However, I ultimately shifted to using the green-colored superlines, but not before experimenting with some camouflage and other colors.

In the final analysis, nothing earth-shattering has been divulged here. However, the facts presented should steer you to the conclusion that lines are like every other aspect of fishing: It's a matter of finding what works best for you and instills the most confidence in your ability to go out and catch fish. If the truth be known, those "comfort" items for all of us have changed somewhat over the years. That's certainly the case with me. About the only thing that's still the same with yours truly is my Social Security number, and I wouldn't dare even trying to change that because I quite frankly have too many "senior moments" to remember a new 9-digit number.

Tight lines to all!

Epilog: I was digging around the Internet last night after finishing this post and found a related comment in an online forum regarding the use of braided line with fluorocarbon leader. The author said, "I have to be the devil's advocate here... why even bother with a fluoro leader? I gave them up several years ago and have never looked back. One less knot to worry about breaking at the wrong time with a big fish on." He went on to also say, "For those who think bass are line shy... look at the number of fish being caught on an Alabama Rig. It appears that bass are not too concerned about the heavy wire and the heavy pound-test lines used on it." It's just another opinion, which, as we know by now, is like bellybuttons--we all have one.

High Water and Getting Higher

I figured the water was going to be high this morning, and I wasn't disappointed when I rode down to the ramp to have a look before hooking up my boat. The water was spilling over the top lip of the ramp into the drive. If I hadn't known what the weather forecasters were calling for this weekend, I might have turned around and waited for a better day. Instead, though, I just readied the boat, donned my boots, and launched.

I had thought about running to Albright's this morning, but decided to stay in West Neck, in case the predicted thunderstorms moved in more quickly than the forecasters had said. I found no topwater bite at all this morning and eventually started throwing various crankbaits and my new Rapala X-Rap Subwalk. Nothing happened whatsoever, though, until I finally turned into a cove. A few moments later, I boated a small striper and a small largemouth on the Subwalk but then finished fishing the whole cove without another strike.

I came out of that cove and went straight across the creek to another cove but never stirred another fish until I almost had made a complete sweep of it. By this time, I had gone to my trusty Bandit Footloose in firetiger pattern and was cranking it dead slow. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a bass hit it right at the boat. He tipped the scales at 1 lb. 2 ozs. Staying with the same Footloose, I worked my way toward the marina and eventually boated the bass pictured above while barely dragging the lure past a big stump. He weighed in at 2 lbs. 8 ozs.

While I was cleaning up my boat this afternoon, I finally figured out why my firetiger Bandit Footloose pictured here has been taking on water and sinking slowly during pauses, instead of popping back to the surface. I've exaggerated the crack I found by wedging a nail file in the crack. This side is the good side--the crack goes only to about the diving lip. On the other side, it extends all the way up to nearly the eye. When I pried the crack open, water literally ran out of the lure at my feet. I gotta believe that 2-8 bass today had to be putting a strain on that crack.

I have a spare of this particular lure, but I also plan to see if I can epoxy the crack and make this lure watertight again without messing up the way it runs in the water--just in case I ever need a spare. If it doesn't work, I'll pick up another new one the next time I'm in a store that carries them.

Bottom line: I didn't set the world on fire today, but I still had a good time--and more importantly, I managed to catch a few fish. I talked to a couple other fishermen on the water today, one of which said he had boated a couple fish, including a 3-9. The other fella didn't have anything to show for his efforts yet when I saw him.

2012 Dewey Mullins Tribute Bass Tourney Series: Tale of the Scales

After 10 tourneys to date in this year's series, anglers collectively have weighed a total of 416 keeper-sized bass. What do you think the average size of all those bass is? If you guessed 1.8 lbs. (without any rounding up or down), you got it right. In case you don't want to take my word for it, the collective total weight for those 416 bass was 765.39 lbs. Do the math for yourself.

I have to admit I was a little surprised by that average weight. I thought it would be a tad higher.

Our worst single-tourney average occurred June 2, when 43 bass were weighed, with a collective weight of 65.28 lbs. That amounted to an average of 1.5 lbs. Our best single-tourney average occurred April 21, when 33 bass were weighed, with a collective weight of 66.95 lbs. That amounted to an average of 2 lbs.

In case you're interested, here are our statistics for each tourney this season:

March 31 - 19 anglers weighed 52 fish for a total of 103.01 lbs., average 1.9 lbs.
April 14 - 18 anglers weighed 43 fish for a total of 85.92 lbs., average 1.9 lbs.
April 21 - 12 anglers weighed 33 fish for a total of 66.95 lbs., average 2.0 lbs.
May 5 - 10 anglers weighed 25 fish for a total of 48.20 lbs., average 1.9 lbs.
May 12 - 18 anglers weighed 55 fish for a total of 108.52 lbs., average 1.9 lbs.
June 2 - 16 anglers weighed 43 fish for a total of 65.28 lbs., average 1.5 lbs.
June 9 - 14 anglers weighed 41 fish for a total of 77.04 lbs., average 1.8 lbs.
June 23 - 14 anglers weighed 40 fish for a total of 67.78 lbs., average 1.6 lbs.
June 30 - 10 anglers weighed 27 fish for a total of 48.11 lbs., average 1.7 lbs.
July 14 - 19 anglers weighed 57 fish for a total of 94.58 lbs., average 1.6 lbs.

July 14, 2012 Dewey Mullins Tribute Bass Tourney

I think all 21 anglers in today's 14 boats would agree on one point: We all were thoroughly soaked by day's end. As is often the case, the forecasters missed the starting time for the predicted thunderstorms by at least four hours. Nevertheless, we got through the day.

Claiming the first-place prize money was Paul Donnelly, with five fish weighing 12.17 lbs. Close behind, in second place, was the team of Bob Glass and Randy Conkle, with five fish weighing 11.94 lbs. In third place was Steve Bailey, with five fish weighing 8.76 lbs. The other participants finished as follows: Mike Evans, five fish, weight 8.35 lbs., the team of Gary Coderre and Dean Blanchard, five fish, weight 8.19 lbs.; Mark London, five fish, weight 7.85 lbs.; the team of Ken Testorff and Paul Celentano, four fish, weight 7.47 lbs.; the team of Duane and Donny Kessel, five fish, weight 7.22 lbs.; Jim Bauer, five fish, weight 7.10 lbs.; the team of Joe McDevitt and Tom Acree, five fish, weight 6.34 lbs.; the team of Tucker Blalock and Aaron Phillips, three fish, weight 3.78 lbs.; Bobby Moore, three fish, weight 3.03 lbs.; and Skip Schaible, two fish, 2.38 lbs. The team of Wayne Hayes and Chris Sims didn't weigh any fish.

Big-fish honors today went to the team of Bob Glass and Randy Conkle, with a bass weighing 5.71 lbs. Here's how everyone else finished in the lunker category: the team of Ken Testorff and Paul Celentano, 3.42 lbs.; Steve Bailey, 3.17 lbs.; Paul Donnelly, 3.06 lbs.; Jim Bauer, 2.99 lbs.; the team of Gary Coderre and Dean Blanchard, 2.22 lbs.; Mike Evans, 1.93 lbs.; Mark London, 1.86 lbs.; the team of Duane and Donny Kessel, 1.81 lbs.; and the team of Tucker Blalock and Aaron Phillips, 1.59 lbs. Anglers not weighing lunkers were as follows: the team of Wayne Hayes and Chris Sims, the team of Joe McDevitt and Tom Acree, Skip Schaible, and Bobby Moore.

Those 19 anglers who weighed fish today accounted for a total of 57 bass weighing a grand total of 94.58 lbs.

There were no new names added to the list of anglers who have qualified to fish our season-ending two-day Classic on Oct. 13-14 by virtue of having fished four tourneys.

For planning purposes, our next tourney is scheduled for Saturday, July 28. Start time will be safe light (or approximately 0600). Weigh-in will be at 1400.

Epilog: With the soggy conditions that existed during weigh-in today, I didn't break out my camera to take any photos. The picture of Mike Evans at the beginning of this blog entry was taken at our June 9, 2012 tourney. It's appropriate in that he also fished today. My apologies to everyone.

On a personal note: I took one of my two bass today on a Baby Torpedo. The other one came on a Rapala X-Rap Subwalk, a bait I just recently purchased. Also lost a couple bass on the Subwalk. I plan to make this lure part of my regular arsenal, given the way it performed today and its action in the water. My partner, Paul Celentano, took one of his fish on a frog. If I remember correctly, his other bass came on a soft plastic. If you're reading this, Paul, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Nothing Superstitious About Today's Fishing

One of my old bosses was so superstitious that, when a Friday the 13th rolled around, she always took a day's leave and stayed locked in her house--I kid you not, this woman never worked a Friday the 13th in all the years I knew her. However, I've never let that particular occurrence influence my decision to do or not to do anything. I only bring up my old boss here because I thought of her this morning as I was pulling away from the ramp. She was a dear ol' soul who would do anything for someone she liked. She had a ton of sayings, many of which I've forgotten, but I still remember one of her favorites. She'd often say, "I may not always be right, but I'm damn sure never wrong!"

Anyway, I went fishing this morning, just like I said I was going to in my blog post last night. For a while, I thought I had made a mistake by going; however, it had nothing to do with the fact today was Friday the 13th. Rather, it simply was that I couldn't get a topwater bite started. In fact, I couldn't get any kind of bite going for a good spell. For about an hour or so, I seriously was kicking myself for leaving the comfort of my bed so early, just to get on the water and beat it to death without receiving any kind of reward.

My best bass of the day--a 1-9

That all changed about 8 o'clock, when I finally collected my first fish--a white perch. I went on to catch three more white perch before boating my first--and best--bass of the day, which tipped the scales at only 1 lb. 9 ozs. The lure responsible for all those fish, as well as everything else that I boated today, was a Bandit Footloose in white with a black stripe down its back. Until today, I hadn't ever thrown this particular Footloose, even though I've had it in my box for a good spell now. I had been relying almost exclusively on the Footloose in firetiger.

Perhaps I'll alter my future strategy, because this new color accounted for a total of 23 fish today, including 8 bass (only 4 keepers), 7 white perch, 7 bluegill, and 1 crappie. I also lost several fish with the lure, mostly, I think, because the front hook needed upgrading--a matter I took care of today after I came off the water.

I spent the whole day in Albright's, which, for my previous two or three outings there, had been yielding some decent sized fish. Given today's results, though, I'm likely destined for parts farther south when we launch our next tourney in the morning.

I sure couldn't complain about the water temperature today. It was 77 when I started at 0630 and only had risen to 82 when I ended my day at 1400.

They're Bitin'!!!

I'm hanging my shingle out tonight, 'cause come daybreak, I'll either be on the water or will be getting awfully close to being there. After getting two outstanding reports from fishin' buddies this evening, telling me about their trips today, I'm not about to sit home again tomorrow, waiting for Saturday's tourney to arrive. I gotta go see if I can cash in on the rewards of some cooler water. Both friends reported water in the 70s when they launched this morning and only in the low to mid 80s when they came off the water this afternoon.

My kayaker buddy, Charlie Bruggemann, reported catching about 20 bass in Godfrey's today but none over 2-3. The secret to his early-morning success (from 6 to 10 a.m.) was topwater baits--primarily a Zara Puppy and a popping bug. Then the wind came up, though, and he switched to Senkos and shallow crankbaits for the rest of the fish he caught.

Charlie said he talked to a couple other guys who indicated they had caught about 6 fish each today.

Jimmy's 3.6 today

My buddy, Jimmy Bauer, likewise had a great day in West Neck. He said he's pretty sure he boated close to 40 fish all day, including 10 bass, 17 nice crappie (plus a few small ones), 2 small stripers, 1 bowfin, and a few bream. He had 5 keeper bass that weighed in at 3.6, 2.0 and three at 1.0. All the bass, the bowfin, and 1 striper came on topwater stuff. Everything else came while using a flyrod at the bridge. He said the topwater bite basically lasted all day but slowed down a bit after 12 o'clock.

Jimmy's email reminded me of something that Dewey told me yesterday when I saw him. Jim Rose is out of rehab and back home after dealing with some health issues. He and his fishin' buddy, Bill Rhodes, were out today riding around a bit in their boat. That's indeed a welcome sight, and I sincerely hope we see a lot more of 'em in coming days.

Epilog: I talked to Jim today (7/13/2012) and learned that he and Bill weren't just riding around in their boat. They had been fishing and did rather well, too. They loaded an ice chest with crappie.

It's All About Doing Things for the Right Reason

Chris Vitovich, founder and director
of the Steve Gambill Cancer Classic

Case in point: As his best friend and fellow outdoorsman, Steve Gambill, lay dying from cancer, Chris Vitovich vowed to hold a fishing tournament in his friend's honor--one designed to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Only a handful of folks showed up to fish that first Steve Gambill Cancer Classic out of West Landing Marina 11 years ago, but through their own wallets and donations, Chris collected $2,030.

There were just 10 sponsors for that inaugural event, compared to more than 100 who have contributed in some way each of the past few years. And, to date (through the June 10, 2012 tournament), the Cancer Classic has raised more than $100,000 for the American Cancer Society--a figure that Chris finds it hard to believe.

All the money that comes in from these tournaments goes to the Society. Participants are so eager to help that many even donate part, if not all, of their big-fish-pot winnings.

It was his friendship with Steve Gambill (left) that
prompted Chris Vitovich (right) to start the annual
Cancer Classic.

Through all the tourney-day bad weather, date changes, and a declining economy, people still show up to support the Steve Gambill Cancer Classic. Records show 100 anglers were on hand to participate this year--on a day that was blazing hot until the wind suddenly shifted in the afternoon. One year, it rained all day but cleared up just before the awards ceremony began.

The motivation to keep Chris doing this in his friend's memory never leaves his side. You see, Mrs. Gambill gave Chris some of her husband's ashes following his death. Chris subsequently scattered some of the ashes at the site where Steve caught his biggest bass. The rest, however, remain with Chris in his boat.

Another example of what can happen when people do things for the right reason involved one of my wife's former close friends. Shirley, too, was dying of cancer and one day asked my wife if she thought I would mind bringing her a mess of fish. She specifically asked for bass. I agreed, even though I had no idea how I was going to accomplish the task. Bass usually are the focus of my pursuits, but there are a lot of days when I find them pretty elusive. On the day I set out to make good on my promise, though, I'm convinced a much higher power than my usual sprinkling of good luck intervened, and I boated a 4-, 5- and 6-pounder. I also lost one at the boat that I feel certain would have eclipsed the 7-pound mark.

Pop, his dog, and his boat--an
inseparable trio.

Then, a few years ago, when my dad passed, I dedicated my whole fishing year to his memory. As I've already noted earlier in some of my blog posts, Pop always was a fishin' buddy to my younger brother and me. The success I enjoyed during that whole year of West Neck Marina-sponsored tourneys only can be described as "unbelievable." I won every tourney, including one in which a friend and fellow competitor tied me for total weight. We both agreed to let Dewey toss a coin, with my friend calling it, to decide the winner, and as it turned out, he called it wrong, giving me the win.

It was Albert Einstein who once said, "Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile."

Epilog:  Another example of what this story is all about can be found in the Pro Guide 2010 issue of Bassmaster magazine. If you have a copy of that magazine, read the article titled, "A 6 From Tony."

Your Chance to Contribute

As outlined on my new business card, I'm opening the door to your ideas, photos and stories for use on this blog--subject, of course, to my approval. I also reserve the right to edit/rewrite all material submitted for consideration as I see fit. In each and every case, I will give bylines to those whose submissions are chosen for publication, regardless of how much editing/rewriting I may do to the pieces. I don't take credit for anything I don't originate. If you so request it, I will be more than happy to return edited/rewritten items to you for review before publishing them.

My preferred method of communication in all matters is by email. I like to have documentation of what everyone says, in case any questions ever should arise. Please understand, too, that, as outlined on my business card, I make no promises to use any submission ahead of seeing it. And, too, I'm under no obligation to return anything sent to me for consideration.

If you can live with these basic rules and have something you would like for me to look at, please feel free to send it my way.

Father-Daughter Fishing Trip Not Without Bit of Drama

The victims today were in a Bass Tracker, likely
similar to the one pictured here.

While visiting West Neck Marina earlier today, I learned that a fella who stores his Tracker bass boat at the marina had gone out with his daughter for a little fishing. Everything was cool--as "cool," that is, as one can get in the current mid-90s-to-better-than-100-degree heat wave--until the unexpected happened. That "unexpected," in this case, was a short or something that fried the boat's trolling-motor wiring.

As I got the report, the casualty evidently had spread to the wiring for the outboard, rendering the trim and tilt useless, but not before causing the outboard to run to the full-up position. Therein lay the problem.

The boater and his daughter had navigated their way up beyond a low bridge--perhaps to reach a honey hole, or maybe just to get away from the crowd. After all, it is Saturday, and the weekends at West Neck Marina always are busy this time of year. In any event, with the outboard in the full-up position, there absolutely was no way the boat was going to come back through that bridge with the water as high as it is at the moment.

Once Dewey got a call for help from the victims and learned the extent of their problem, he dispatched a couple of guys in a johnboat to lend a hand. The helpers, in this case, were Bobby Moore and Dewey's son, Curtiss Wayne Mullins, who's more than a little familiar with rescue missions (he bailed my butt out of a real jam just last year).

I had to leave the marina before this situation was resolved but, during a phone call with Dewey a little later, learned that everyone involved had made it back to the marina OK. As I understand it, Bobby and Curtiss Wayne were able to jump the solenoid and get the outboard trimmed down far enough to tow the disabled Tracker and its occupants back through the bridge.

Without having talked to the victims, I can't know for sure what their thoughts are, but I have every reason to believe that, as a minimum, they both are thanking their lucky stars that they left the dock this morning with a cellphone. That, at least, was my first thought last year when I got stranded downriver with a boat taking on water and a broken bilge pump.

An old TV commercial used to include this phrase: "Never leave home without it," referring to an American Express Card. I, however, apply that phrase to my cellphone, and I feel fairly certain there are a lot of other people who agree with me--not the least, of which, are the victims in today's drama.

Today Pretty Much Was a Repeat of Last Saturday

(Top row, l-r) 1 lb. 2 ozs., 1 lb. 13 ozs.
(Middle row, l-r) 1 lb. 4 ozs., 1 lb. 2 ozs.
(Bottom) 1 lb. 7 ozs.

With tomorrow being the 4th of July, I wanted to get my licks in before all the pleasure boaters and jet skiers hit the water. My creek of choice today was Albright's. I did so well there this past Saturday, I wanted to find out if I could duplicate my accomplishment then and boat another 9 lbs. of bass. It doesn't take long to figure out that the accompanying five fish--my best of the day--only total 6 lbs. 12 ozs.

The day in whole, however, yielded 12 bass and 2 bluegill. The same pattern that worked for me Saturday was still valid today. I fished the Baby Torpedo in a frog pattern from 6:30 to 10 this morning, which provided a lot of hard strikes but not so many fish. In most cases, I had only momentary hookups. The topwater bite seemed to die after that, so I picked up the firetiger Bandit Footloose I had used Saturday, and just like then, the catching picked up again. It still was on when I saw a streak of lightning and heard some thunder about 2:15 and decided the smart thing for me to do was to tie everything down and head for West Neck.

The water temp today was 88+ again. The level was lower than what we had Saturday, but it had turned and was coming in when I left today. Water clarity was better today, as evidenced by the lack of a discernible scum line on the boat as I started cleanup.

If you haven't already taken a look at the last blog post before this one, you might want to now. It summarizes the latest two citation bass that have come from West Neck Creek. The latest one was boated just yesterday.

2nd Citation Bass from West Neck Creek Since Spring 2011

Michael Bradberry holds his fish
while Dewey Mullins measures it.

Back on April 17, 2011, Michael Bradberry, a Naval Air Station Oceana firefighter, boated a citation bass from West Neck Creek. The fish measured 24 inches and weighed 8 lbs. 4 ozs., according to official records of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Anyone interested in seeing the original photo of his catch can check it out on Dewey's bulletin board in the store. If you can't find it, just ask him for a little help.

While I was talking to Dewey this afternoon, I learned that he weighed another citation bass just yesterday. This latest fish measured 22 1/4 inches and weighed 8 lbs. 8 ozs.

Dewey told me that three guys in a fish-and-ski boat brought the fish to him. When he had gotten all the necessary information to apply for a citation certificate, the anglers released the fish alive off the dock in front of the store. The one thing that had Dewey a bit puzzled was the fact the fish appeared to have just come off a spawning bed. The whole lower part of its tail was missing, and what was left of the tail was all bloody. It would seem to be a bit late for a bass to spawn, but given the weird weather this past winter and all, I suppose anything is possible.

It's not known what either fish was caught on, or exactly where in West Neck Creek they were taken. If I should come by this information at a later date, I'll update this blog post.

Epilog: I promised an update if I got anything new, and I was able to borrow this photo from Dewey long enough to scan it. Nothing new on the latest citation, though.