Our tourney anglers were sharing the water today with a group of kayakers, who also were holding a tournament. As usual, however, my diatribe will focus only on our tournament, which consisted of 11 boats and 18 anglers. Our collective total weight was 116.88 lbs., which translates into an average weight per fish of 2.24 lbs. and an average weight per boat of 10.62 lbs. Everyone but yours truly weighed a limit (I caught five fish, but only two of them were keepers).
Those who went home with a pay envelope in their grasp included the following:
And, as Paul Harvey, always used to say, "Now, for the rest of the story:"
* Rusty Girard, 11.21 lbs. total weight, 3.62-lb. big fish.
* The team of Bobby Moore and Steve Bailey, 11.04 lbs. total weight, 3.14-lb. big fish.
* The team of Fred Crawford and Gabe Himmelwright, 10.85 lbs. total weight, 3.02-lb. big fish.
* The husband-wife team of Andy and Diana Morath, 10.03 lbs. total weight, 3.22-lb. big fish.
* Jim Wilder, 9.30 lbs. total weight (after 0.50 deduction for one dead fish), 2.51-lb. big fish.
* The team of Gary Coderre and Dave Anderson, 8.98 lbs. total weight, 2.93-lb. big fish.
* The team of Chris Fretard and Mike Miller, 8.49 lbs. total weight, no big fish.
* Ken Testorff, 3.85 lbs. total weight, 2.83-lb. big fish.
As a result of having fished a total of six tournaments since the beginning of the year, the following anglers now are qualified to fish the season-ending two-day Classic: Andy Morath, Gary Coderre, Gabe Himmelwright, Chris Fretard, Mike Miller, and Ken Testorff.
Congratulations to all the winners today, and thanks to everyone who participated. For planning purposes, the next event is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 8. Launch time will be safe light, with weigh-in at 2 p.m. Hope you'll try to join us.
Can't remember another time since the beginning of the Dewey Mullins Memorial Tournament Series that a kayak tournament coincided with one of our events. Despite the increased number of craft on the water today, though, everyone appeared to be respecting others' rights with no visible problems...the way it always should be.
Gotta say it really got hot once the sun came out this morning. I had hoped the promise of "mostly cloudy" skies would hold throughout the day, but that wasn't the case. Have to admit, though, that I had absolutely no bite at all until it got good and hot. The highlight of my day happened when I found a tiny pocket of super shallow water where a bass appeared to be chasing baitfish. I cast my worm into the middle of the visible fray, then reached down to pick up something from the deck of my boat, only to look up and see my line cutting a path to the right. I quickly took up the slack and set the hook on my best bass of the day.
And last but not least, I want to take this opportunity to thank assistant tournament director Rob Peppers for taking charge of today's event in the absence of Wayne Hayes, who happened to be fishing a Region 7 event elsewhere. It's nice to have seamless backup when it's needed. Might I also say it's nice to just be fishing this year. Can't say I've ever been happier.
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