The Toilet Seat Is Fixed Now!!!

So what does that line have to do with today's tournament? Well, look at it this way. For a period of many months now, those who have needed to avail themselves of the marina store's facilities were forced to face the distinct reality that they might come away from the experience in a bit worse shape than when they started. Why do I say that? Because, you see, the toilet seat wasn't attached, and thus folks were forced to sit real still when taking care of business, or run the risk of ending up in the floor...need I say more?

Thus, there was somewhat of a run on the restroom today, as folks took their turn on the "throne" and, as in that one TV commercial for toilet paper, "enjoyed the go."

 All kidding aside, we do thank the management for making this upgrade to the restroom.

Let me now get down to the real business of the day: letting you know who came away from the tournament as winners and who finished as also-rans. A total of 15 anglers in nine boats showed up this morning. They brought a total of 40 bass to the scales, weighing a combined 72 lbs. That figure translates into an average weight per fish of 1.80 lbs.

Finishing in 1st place was the team of (from left) Steve Bailey and Dennis Dean. They, like all the other participants who weighed in today, had a five-fish limit weighing 13.61 lbs., anchored by a big bass that tipped the scales at 3.98 lbs.

Claiming 2nd place was Heath Parker, who also brought in a limit, weighing 13.29 lbs. His big fish was a 4.81-pounder that also earned him the big fish pot. He further walked away with the 1st side pot.

Taking 3rd place honors was the team of (from left) Ken Testorff and Wayne Hayes. Their bag weighed 9.60 lbs. They didn't have a kicker fish. They also won the 2nd side pot.

Here's how all the other participants finished the day:

     * The team of Andy Morath and Gabe Himmelwright had a total weight of 8.80 lbs. They didn't have a big fish.
     * The team of Bobby Moore and J. P. Twohig had a total weight of 7.48 lbs. after a 0.50 deduction for one dead fish. Their big fish weighed 2.42 lbs.
     * Rob Peppers had a total weight of 6.72 lbs., with no big fish.
     * The team of Dave Anderson and Gary Coderre had a total weight of 6.30 lbs., with no big fish.
     * The team of Craig Jones and Rob Chatham had a total weight of 6.20 lbs., with no big fish.
     * Ken Matthias didn't weigh any fish. He had an emergency at home and had to leave early.

Two more competitors, in the person of Craig Jones and Rob Chatham, joined the list of those anglers eligible to fish our season-ending two-day Classic tournament in October.

Congratulations to all of the winners, and thanks to everyone who came out to participate. For planning purposes, our next scheduled event is set for Saturday, Aug. 13th. Hope you'll make plans to fish with us.

One Last Cast

It doesn't matter how much time you spend pre-fishing. When it comes to tournament day...the time to put up or shut up...one's success more times than not will depend on just how closely the conditions you faced during pre-fishing is duplicated on the big day.

After two successful pre-fishing days, one of which we stayed in the same area all day and one in which we only verified the fish hadn't moved from that area, Wayne and I felt fairly certain we could go back today and come away with a really respectable tournament-day limit.

While some of the pre-fishing conditions were right in line with what we found today, others had changed...and, more importantly, so had the bite. And thus, we were left to ponder whether to stay put or make a move. Considering that we had been able to ascertain that the fish still were there, we decided to stay put and avoid the pitfall some anglers make of leaving fish in hopes of finding other fish.

There undoubtedly are those who would say we probably made a mistake in sitting tight, but Wayne and I both feel our decision was the right one. We both lost a couple of nice fish over the course of the next several hours, but in the end, we ended up with a respectable limit. And the last three fish all came within a few minutes of each other, utilizing those methods that had been so successful during our pre-fishing trips.

In the final analysis, I think both Wayne and I agree we would probably repeat what we did today if we had it all to do over again.

Current Overall Statistics