I Don't Care What Every Little Breeze Seems to Whisper...

It can be Louise, Harry, Sally, or whatever, as long as it blows on a day like we had today. Without it, I'm not sure all 17 anglers in nine boats would have made it through the tournament's blazing conditions. As things turned out, we had one angler who was having some problems when we first arrived at the boat basin for weigh-in, but he soon came around and indicated he was OK to drive home on his own, even though he had offers from fellow anglers to provide transportation for him if he wanted it.

We paid three places today. Here are those who took home money envelopes:

Finishing in 1st Place was this team of (from left) Darryl Dunn and Jim Wilder. They had a limit of five fish weighing 11.55 lbs. Darryl also claimed today's lunker pot with a bass weighing 3.37 lbs.

In 2nd Place was the team of (from left) Don Carter and Rob Peppers. They also had a limit weighing 9.78 lbs. Their big bass weighed 3.13 lbs.

Taking home 3rd Place was this team of (from left) Wayne Hayes and Marty Carey. They, too, had a limit weighing 9.41 lbs. Their big bass weighed 2.53 lbs.

Mystery Weight winners were the team of (from left) Rob Chatham and yours truly. Our four-fish total weight was 5.57 lbs., compared to the 4.95 tab that was drawn. We had no big bass.





Here is how all the other competitors finished the day:

     * The team of Mike Miller and Chris Fretard, five bass, 9.35 lbs. total weight, 3-lb. big fish.
     * The team of Al Napier and Jared Allbritten, five bass, 7.75 lbs. total weight, no big fish.
     * Jim Bauer, five bass, 7.58 lbs. total weight, 3.23-lb. big fish.
     * The team of Gary Coderre and Mitch Portervint, five bass, 6.70 lbs. total weight, no big fish.
     * The team of Randy Conkle and Bob Glass, five bass, 5.64 lbs. total weight, no big fish.

Overall, today's anglers weighed a total of 44 bass for a total weight of 73.33 lbs. The average weight was 1.66 lbs.

Four more anglers became eligible to participate in our season-ending two-day Classic. These additions bring the new total to 26.

Congrats to all of the winners and thanks to everyone who came out to participate under such challenging conditions. And from the bottom of my heart, I also would like to say a big "Thank You!" to all those folks who regularly help me put on these events. Without your lending a hand, none of this would be possible. Take my word for it--no one person can do all the many things it takes to run a successful tournament, without some helpers. I cannot say enough how much I appreciate all that everyone does for me. I sincerely applaud you.

Finally, for planning purposes, our next event is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 27, from safe light (about 6 or 6:15 a.m.) to weigh-in at either 2 or 2:30 p.m.

I truthfully can say that, if I had today to do all over again, I likely wouldn't change a single thing about my game plan. Granted, the bite was slow, but we would have had a limit like all the other boats if not for a lone fluke occurrence--one of those things that just happens.

With our next tournament two weeks away, I will be out testing the waters at various locations to see what locations offer the most promise for that contest. It could stay the same because we caught fish everywhere we went today; we just didn't get all of 'em in the boat.

I was happy to welcome back my regular partner, Rob Chatham, today. From the looks of things, he should be around long enough now to get qualified for the Classic. It's always nice to have a couple of folks in the boat dedicated to a common purpose.