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Fishing Poles That Fit The Angler

ron presleys outdoor chronicles

Modern day panfish anglers are a little pickier than those that came before them. In days gone by anglers used a simple cane pole, a length of line, bobber, sinker, and hook to catch a few fish for dinner. Today’s demanding anglers and new technology has changed that scenario to include technically perfected rods that are stronger, longer and more sensitive. The results are more fish on the dinner table and in the tournament live well.Fishing Poles That Fit The Angler

B’n’M Fishing is a leader in the evolution of panfish fishing poles. The company’s slogan is “Wherever fishing takes you, B’n’M has been there,” and they aren’t kiddin’. They have been in the business of making all kinds of panfish products for over 60 years. More recently they have introduced specialty rods for catfish and bass.

Much of the demand for more durable and sensitive rods has come from the popularity of crappie tournaments and pro anglers like Whitey Outlaw. He has been tournament fishing for 35 years and watched the evolution as the crappie fishing scene changed. “I fished as a young man with my grandfather and my daddy on Lake Santee,” said Whitey. “There was a contest on the lake that I entered with my best childhood friend. We won that tournament at age 15, and I was hooked!”

Fishing Poles That Fit The AnglerWhitey now follows the American Crappie Trail, fishing all over the U.S. He has won numerous championships and awards in his fishing career. Two he is most proud of are the back to back Crappie Masters Alabama State Championships in 2010 and 2011. That feat had never been done before.

As Whitey progressed in the field of crappie fishing he became a fan and promoter of B’n’M poles and accessories.

Whitey says B’n’M poles have advantages over other manufacturers. “B’n’M has developed different poles for different fisherman with different types of techniques. They make a rod to meet your needs for your type of fishing no matter your preference.”

As pro crappie fishermen like Whitey demanded lighter, stronger, more sensitive rods B’n’M developed rods made of the most recent high-tech materials. Their rods are made in various lengths and styles to accommodate the many methods of crappie fishing. Their fiberglass telescopic rods extend from 10 feet to 20 feet depending on the model, once again matching rods to angers needs.Fishing Poles That Fit The Angler

As a testament to the strength of B’n’M rods, Whitey reports catching lots of catfish up to 30 pounds and plenty of lunker bass as well. Catching these big fish on a crappie, bream and bluegill pole is almost unbelievable. “I have never had one break,” says Whitey.

Whether you are dropping bait in heavy cover, trolling deep water or pushing over shallow flats, B’n’M makes a pole for you. Check them out on their website, www.bnmpoles.com. In addition to their complete line of poles your will find fishing accessories and apparel. It makes pretty good sense when choosing fishing equipment to go with someone who has been there before.

By Ron Presley

New tools for American Shad on the St. Johns River

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I went fishing with Sam Heaton today. Well, not physically, but I carried his B’n’M Sam Heaton Super Sensitive Rod and his new DOA Fresh Water Crappie Kit to the St. Johns River. New tools for American shad on the St. Johns RiverThe new kit has a great selection of different colored Tiny Terroreyz and the little bitty shrimp.

The target was American shad. I tied my normal tandem rig with a DOA Tiny Terroeyz on the bottom and a small (1/32 or 1/16 ounce) pink Road Runner about 12 inches above on a drop leader.  I always like bright colors to attract the American shad, but had some great luck with a clear glitter Tiny Terroeyz today.

Once hooked, the American shad normally go aerial like a tarpon and put on a nice fight. Gear up with light tackle and it is more than a little fun. The shad are only in the river from about Christmas to mid-March, so if you get an opportunity to chase some shad in the St. Johns or in your neck of the woods, just do it.

It was not a banner day, but we put enough fish in the boat to call it a good day. I believe they are just beginning to show up and the numbers will only get better. A little later in the year they will start showing themselves on the surface in larger shcools and you can cast directly to them instead of blind casting like we did today.

We top off the day with an eagle sighting before heading to the house.

Fish with passion.

by Ron Presley

 

Shad Fishing on the St. Johns River

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Early reports from the St. Johns River indicate that the 2017 American shad run has begun. Traditionally they start showing up around Christmas and continue to be catchable through mid-March, sometimes later. 

The best place for anglers to go for this once a year fishing opportunity is known as Shad Alley. This is the portion of the St. Johns that runs generally from the east end of Lake Monroe to the south end of Puzzle Lake. Shallow areas are present, so boaters need to use caution.

Anglers should use light tackle and colorful lures to target the feisty fish. They are a favorite of anglers because of their hard-pulling fight and aerial displays when hooked.

Small Road Runner lures in the 1/16- and 1/32-ounce size are deadly on the feisty shad. Pink and chartreuse are often cited as favorite colors. In reality, any bright color usually works well.

Some anglers like to troll with multiple poles to catch the visiting shad. Be respectful when approaching a trolling boat and give them plenty of room. They may have several lines out.

If you prefer holding the rod and feeling the thump, rig tandem Road Runners with the heavier jig on the bottom and a lighter one about 18 inches above it. It allows you to cover a little more of the water column. Cast across the current in tight bends on the river using various retrieve speeds to pattern the fish. Once you find what’s working, stick with it.

An alternative tandem rig is to tie a DOA Tiny Terroeyz on the bottom and add a small Road Runner above it. Work it in the same manner as described above. If you don’t get bit in one river curve, move on to the next.

Finally, the American shad is a favorite target of flyrodders too. If you like to fly fish, tie up some small colorful flies and have at it on the St. Johns during the shad run. You will find plenty of your compadres in kayaks, canoes, powerboats, and fishing from the banks. Even airboaters like to beach the boat and fish from the bank for the exciting American shad.

Add crappie and sunshine bass to the mix and anglers can generally have a great day fishing on the St. Johns River. Just remember, the shad are here to spawn and then their gone. Don’t delay if you want to experience some great winter fishing on light tackle.

Fish with passion.

 

 

Fishing tackle maintenance and rejuvenation

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fishing, hunting, lubrication, Lucus Oil, preventive maintenance
Lucus Fishing Reeel Oil keeps your reeels running smoothly.

Small enough to fit in your hand but big enough to save your bacon! That simple statement describes two products from Lucus Oil. If you don’t already have them in your tackle box and/or your toolbox you should.

Fishing equipment is subjected to some pretty brutal conditions at times and keeping it running smoothly can be a chore. Take that little line roller on a spinning rod. When your casts seem to be getting shorter, take a look and make sure the line bearing is turning. If it’s not, try a drop of Lucus Fishing Reel Oil to free it up. Your casts will be back to normal in no time. Preventive maintenance is better yet, and a drop of Lucus Fishing Reel Oil [1] on the roller after each fishing trip will keep it working fine. The same thing is true of any moving parts on your reels, whether they are baitcasters, spinners or fly reels.

The Lucus Fishing Reel Oil container is small enough to fit easily in your tacklebox or even your pocket, so it’s handy anytime you need it. The needle type dispensing applicator can lube your equipment one drop at a time, or with a measured flow depending on how hard you squeeze the bottle. The product penetrates, lubricates and protects your valuable equipment.

fishing, hunting, lubrication, Lucus Oil, preventive maintenance
B’n’M Poles prostaffer Matt Morgan and his fishing partner Kent Watson depend on Lucus products to keep their boat and tackle operating smoothly.

Pro crappie angler Matt Morgan recognizes the importance of maintenance and prevention. His fishing equipment is subject to constant use and needs to be in working order all the time. He keeps a bottle of Lucus Fishing Reel Oil on hand to insure smooth working reels. “It is a simple to use product with a user friendly application tip,” says Morgan. “You can apply a drop of oil exactly where you want it. It will free up reels that are hard to spin/turn and each bottle goes a long way.”

The second small but mighty product is Lucus Tool Box Buddy [2]. It is great on the boat for anything that needs lubrication from time to time. Livewell hatches, rod storage compartments, you name it. If it is proned to rust, Tool Box Buddy will improve its operation. It works on nuts, bolts, hinges, steering hardware, trolling motors, etc.

That list is just things on the boat. Imagine all the things you can use it on at home or in the workshop. You can make your own list, but mine includes garages door hardware, bicycle chains, guns, drill chucks, and many more.

Morgan says, “Tool box buddy is the Fix All for anything that is seized up and needs lubrication. It stops squeaks on just about anything imaginable.” He notes that it is also great to use in all air tools for lubrication.

fishing, hunting, lubrication, Lucus Oil, preventive maintenance
Tool Box Buddy has a place in the boat and in the workshop.

Tool Box Buddy is a penetrating, lubricating and rust-dissolving agent. It has the consistency of a heavy oil with the penetrating qualities of a solvent. Just like the Reel Oil, the Tool Box Buddy container allows using a drop at a time or it can be squirted into hard to get at places. The name, “Tool Box Buddy” really says it all. Once you try it you will have a buddy for life. No tool box should be without it.

You can learn more about these and other Lucus Oil products by visiting their website at www.Lucusoil.com [3].

My Kind of Guy

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My Kind of Guy

It started out like a normal, ordinary fishing trip. A trip I had taken hundreds of times before. The early morning crew included a father, Bob, and his two young sons Bobby and Riley. The family had traveled to Cocoa and Lee Wenner Park to enjoy a half-day fishing trip on the Indian River Lagoon.

My Kind of Guy

My Pathfinder cruised smoothly eastbound along the bridge, greeted by a beautiful Space Coast sunrise and all the promise of a new and exciting day. The water was perfectly smooth, although dirtied by a recent hurricane. It was one of those days that you sometimes dread as a fishing guide, because the previous day’s fishing had been really tough.

As we cruised northward, I discover Bob is a very experienced fisherman, with much of it being offshore. We discuss our favorite lures and how we like to use them. Our conversation took place while Riley, the youngest is snuggly seated on the cooler in front of the center consol, bearing the cool morning air without complaint. Bobby is positioned on the leaning seat of the Pathfinder with Bob standing behind him, protectively cradling his son in his arms. Bobby had told me earlier he did not like to go too fast and did not like to turn too fast.

During the morning adventure Bob and the kids enjoyed catching ladyfish on both artificial and live bait. Bobby caught a really nice pompano to add to the excitement. We took a couple of quick pictures of Bobby and the pompano and released him without harm. Bob indicated that he did not enjoy eating fish, just catching them. Favoring catch and release myself I responded by saying, “You are my kind of guy.”

My Kind of Guy

With numerous ladyfish caught, some held for cut bait, we moved to a shallow-water flat where I had caught redfish before. We set the Power Pole anchor and allowed the boat to position itself in the light easterly wind. The rods were baited with ladyfish and we settled in for a little “lazy fishing” with the cut bait. This was a perfect time to relax and enjoy some lunch in the warming Florida sunshine.

I explained to the crew that sometimes this type of fishing will pay off if you are patient and allow the scent from the ladyfish to fill the surrounding flat with the irresistible, to the redfish that is, smell. Fish will actually travel some distance to find the delectable chunks of ladyfish. All my anglers were patient as they waited for a bite.

It was not that long before Bobby’s pole loaded up with a decent strike. Bob was closest and picked up the rod and handed it to Bobby. The circle hook, that was attached to the 20-pound fluorocarbon leader, did its job. Bobby fought the fish for quite a while. He dutifully followed my instructions to pump and reel down on the fish. He began to gain line back on the reel and brought a 24-inch redfish alongside the boat.

Bob readied the net as the fish came near. Then, in the blink of an eye, the feisty redfish changed directions, ran around the bow, and cut the line on the trolling motor that was suspended from the deck.

Everyone was disappointed at loosing the first redfish of the day, but encouraged by the fact that we had hooked one. Since all the other rods were removed from the water, while Bobby fought his fish, we quickly got everything baited up again and back into the shallow water of the Indian River Lagoon.

Soon after losing the first red, Bob caught and boated a nice lower slot sized red. His catch renewed our confidence that there were more reds around. Just like with the pompano, we practiced CPR and went on about our fishing.

Bob’s rod bent over again. He picked it up and handed it to Riley to let him experience the fun of landing the fish. This redfish did not want to give up. It gave Riley the fight his dad had brought him to experience. Riley would gain some line, and the beefy red would take some. Riley succeeded in bringing the redfish to the waiting net handled skillfully by his dad.

This time the circle hood did not do its job perfectly as it had before. The hook was not in the lip, but deep in the throat. It required pliers to remove. We took our pictures and Bob held the fish gently over the side to force water and oxygen through the gills.

My Kind of Guy

While Bob was conducting the CPR with both boys looking on, I prepared the rods for the next round of fishing. Then I heard Bob say, “don’t roll over on me.” I turned around to see shoes and socks lying on the deck. Bob was in the water retrieving the redfish that had rolled over and lay on the grassy bottom. Once again, he began the necessary work of resuscitating the weakened redfish. Success! The fish regained its strength and swam swiftly and strongly from Bob’s gentle grasp. “Bob,” I said, “you are my kind of guy.”

There was no hesitation in Bob’s action to retrieve and revive the fish. “I didn’t come here to kill em,” he said. “just to enjoy catching them. If we don’t take care of them now we can’t catch them again later.”

We didn’t catch anymore fish that day but I knew I had met a man who cares for the lagoon and the experience it brings us as much as anyone else I know. The experience of this day presents a challenge to all anglers who love the outdoors. The challenge is presented not in words, but by deeds. The challenge was amply demonstrated by this man, on this simple fishing trip. Take the challenge and pass the passion on to your children and friends as he does to his.

As the Pathfinder turned and headed slowly west through the manatee zone and towards the channel that would carry us back to the distant boat ramp, Bobby queried the crew. “When can we go fast?”

Morgan and Watson win Crappie Masters Classic for second time

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Ron-Presley’s-Outdoor-Chronicles-Banner-1History was made at the 2016 Bass Pro Shops Crappie Masters Classic in Granada, MS. One team came out on top as always, but it was the first time any team had won the competition twice. The world famous crappie lake saw 187 qualified teams, representing 21 different states, compete for cash and prizes.morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-1st

Anglers enjoyed basically beautiful weather conditions, but somewhat  challenged by north winds and cold fronts that dropped lake water temperatures by 12 to 15 degrees. Those conditions caused the bite to deteriorate as tournament days drew near. Anglers would be charged with figuring out the fish as the bite changed day by day.

Day one left some teams struggling to weigh in their allowed 7 fish. Others found fish and had good weights. Matt Morgan and Kent Watson led the way with an impressive 13.35 pounds at the end of day one.

At the beginning of day two the top 20 teams were within two pounds of the lead to make for an exciting finish.  The weather stabilized, winds lightened and teams were able to produce higher weights on day two. The top ten changed throughout the day as more teams weighed in.

As day one leaders Morgan and Watson came to the scales it was certain that history would be made. Either Paul and Elizabeth Turner would become the first Make/Female team to win the Classic or Morgan and Watson would become the first team to win it twice.

In the end B’n’M prostaffers [4] Matt Morgan and Kent Watson defended their day one lead and claimed the most coveted title in crappie fishing for the second time in their career.

The champs’ two-day total weight of 26.23 pounds came while spider rigging in 4 to 10 feet of water. They fished double minnow rigs on 14-foot B’n’M BGJP poles. Their fish came from various depths in the water column.

The key to victory, according to Morgan, was having patience with increased boat pressure throughout the tournament, especially on day-two.

Morgan and Watson took home checks totaling $33,000.00 which included a $2,000 bonus donated by the Missouri Corn Growers Association and American Ethanol for using E10 fuel in their boat and a $1,000 bonus for using Johnson Shad Tubes and Shad Scales during the tournament. They also received Color-C-Lectors from Spike-It and a pair of Motor Mates for winning the Championship.

morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-2ndPaul and Elizabeth Turner topped off an amazing season by finishing in second place in the tournament. Their second place overall weight of 25.78 pounds also gave them the Male/Female National Championship.

The husband and wife team were also spider-rigging with a combination of double minnow rigs and blue/white/chartreuse jigs on 16-foot Ozark Rods. Elizabeth stated that they were using Johnson Shad Scales on their minnows and jigs to help them catch some of their fish. The Turners, sponsored by Ozark Rods, received a check for $10,000.00, an additional check for $250.00 from Johnson Fishing for using Johnson Shad Scales, a Minn Kota I-Pilot trolling motor, $100.00 Bass Pro Shops gift card and a Navionics chip.

Third place went to Sam and Jason Sandage with 25.52 pounds. Also using 16-foot Ozark Rods. Team Sandage was spider-rigging with double minnow rigs in 4.5 to 5.5 feet of water. They catch their fish high in the water column in calm water then down to 4 feet deep when the wind would pick up. The father/son team received $5,000.00 for their efforts.morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-3rd

Monty Blount and Keith Sullivan finished in fourth place with 25.42 pounds. They received a check for $3,000.00 and a $250.00 bonus for using Johnson Shad Tubes and Shad Scales.morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-4th

Fifth place went to the Bobby Garland sponsored team of Brad Chappell and Brandon Fulgham with a total weight of 25.35 pounds.morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-1

Chris and Camran Younger finished the Championship with a 2-day total of 17.34 pounds and won the Adult/Youth National Championship. The Youngers received a $3,000.00 college scholarship, a Minn Kota I-Pilot trolling motor, and a $100.00 Everhart’s Sporting Goods gift card.morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-youth-adult

Big crappie of the Championship was weighed in on day two by Jeremy Aldridge and Clint Egbert at 2.76 pounds. This slab was worth $2,100.00 and 2 pairs of Zeko shoes.morgan-and-watson-win-crappie-masters-classic-for-second-time-big-fish

Crappie Masters next event is a Big Fish Challenge on Truman Lake on Oct. 15, 2016.

 

Shane Moore and John Eubanks win Crappie USA event

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Crappie USA anglers had their last chance of the year to qualify for the annual Crappie USA Classic. The Saturday Sept. 24, 2016 event was held on Kentucky and Barkley Lakes.

More than 160 anglers in 84 boats and 2 kayaks competed for the various divisions of the trail. Anglrs came from several different states to compete for $13,125.00 in cash and prizes and the opportunity to advance to the prestigious Cabela’s Crappie USA Classic to be held in October.

Weather conditions were more summer like than fall. Sunny skies, humid conditions and temperatures in the 90’s greeted the anglers. Reasonable wind speed of 5 to 10 MPH caused no serious challenge to the competitors.

shane-moore-and-john-eubanks-win-crappie-usa-event-2Pro Division Results

A total weight of 10.91 pounds told the tale as Shane Moore of Milan, TN and John Eubanks of Trenton, TN claimed the first place prize in the Pro Division. The Tennessee team earned $2,200.00 for their efforts.

Moore and Eubanks fished Paris Landing area very close to the weigh-in site. They were using multiple colored jigs, all tipped with Johnson Crappie Nibbles. They reported catching 80 to 100 fish for the day from 9 to 11 feet of water. “If the nibble came off, you were not going to get another bite,” said Eubanks.

shane-moore-and-john-eubanks-win-crappie-usa-event-1The second place spot went to the team of Cliff Edwards of Murray, KY and Jerry Trimble of Hardin, KY. Their weight of 9.9 pounds earned them a check for $1,100.00.

The Kentucky team fished the North end of Barkley Lake in 22 to 24 feet of water. They targeted man-made cover using chartreuse jigs tipped with live bait. They reported landing 24 keepers during the event.

Tim Blackley of Hornbeak, TN and Jackie Van Cleave of Samburg, TN weighed in 9.86 pounds to earn checks for $875.00 and $500.00. The bonus check was for having second place Big Fish.

Blackley and Van Cleave fished Eagle Creek in 11 to 15 feet of water. They were using bluegrass color jigs that were tipped with live bait. That combination allowed them to catch over 100 fish on Saturday. Ther second place Big Fish weighed 1.84 pounds.

Mike Johnson of Milan, TN and Brad Essary of Brownsville, TN claimed the fourth place prize. They had a total weight of 9.76 pounds and earned a check for $600.00. The team caught more than 60 fish. Johnson and Essary used various colored jigs, tipped with minnows, in 9 to 22 feet of water.

The next spot was taken by Dewayne, Robert and Reed McCord. They all hail from Wingo, KY. Team McCord weighed in 9.56 pounds to earn $500.00. They also picked up an additional $250.00 Ranger Cup Bonus.

The team fished Cypress Creek in the North end of Kentucky Lake. They reported catching their fish in 15 feet of water early in the day and moving to 22 feet of water later Saturday afternoon. They used crank baits and some minnows to catch their fish.

Big Fish honors went to Matthew and Brandon Tosh. They weighed in a 1.96 pound fish to earn a check for $1,100.00 and Big Fish braggin’ rights.

Ronald and Terry Barker won the Talon Award of $250.00.

shane-moore-and-john-eubanks-win-crappie-usa-event-3Amateur Division Results

Kris and Terry Mann took first place in the Amateur Division with a total weight of 8.84 pounds. They earned $1,200.00, plus an additional $250.00 Ranger Cup Bonus.

The Mt. Sterling, KY team fished Blood River to Big Sandy in Kentucky Lake. They reported an early bite that ended by noon. Nevertheless they were able to catch more than 200 fish for the day with 80 being keeper size. They fished in 12 to 18 feet of water using Crappie Magnet pumpkin seed color jigs.

shane-moore-and-john-eubanks-win-crappie-usa-event-4Second place went to Sonny Sipes of Moody, AL and Ronnie Bleas of Ohatchee, AL. They had a total weight of 8.72 pounds and earn $700.00 for the day. They fished all over the mid section of the lake in 20 feet of water using live bait. They caught more than100 fish for the event.

Third place went to the team of David and Jerry Rodgers from Georgetown, KY. They weighed in 8.52 pounds and earned $500.00. Unfortunately the team left before revealing their fishing secrets.

Tyler Morrow and Zack Clapp from Mayfield, KY claimed the fourth place spot in the tournament. Their total weight of 8.46 pounds earned them $400.00. The team fished North of Paris Landing bridge in 15 to 20 feet of water. They were pulling blue/silver crappie crank baits to catch more than 60 fish for the day.

In fifth place spot was Jimmy Riley, Jr and David Butler. Both anglers reside in Benton, KY. They weighed 8.15 pounds and earned $300.00. The team fished the North end of Kentucky Lake in 18 to 20 feet of water. They focused on heavy wood cover using live bait to land more than 150 fish for the tournament.

Conserving a precious resource is one of the best things anglers can do. All the teams are commended for taking excellent care of their catch. It takes a little more effort when water temperatures are high to keep the fish in good condition for release. The extra effort to get fish to the release boat and oxygenated water helped the fish recover to fight again.

Kayak Division Results

Corey Wilkerson of Jacksonville, Alabama took first place in the Kayak Division. He measured an 11 1/2 inch crappie and earned $100.00.

Crappie USA Free Kids Fishing Rode

In conjunction with the tournament, Crappie USA held their Kids Rodeo on Saturday morning with several children attending the event. All the participants signed up for a chance to win one of six $1,000.00 scholarships to be drawn for at the Cabela’s Crappie USA Classic.

Crappie USA and their participating anglers have contributed nearly $334,000.00 to the “Crappie Kids” Scholarships since 1997. They report being very proud to be a part of the education process for the youngsters who participate in their tournaments as adult/youth teams and those who fish in the Crappie USA “Kids Fishing Rodeos.

For a complete list of tournament standings and downloadable photos for this event visit www.crappieusa.com then go to Tournament Results also be sure to check out their Facebook page for some great photos from the event.

Crappie USA gave a special thank you to all the businesses around Paris, Tennessee for making anglers and staff feel welcomed. They also issued a special thanks to the folks at Buchanan Resort for all the assistance in housing, weigh-in site, Kids Rodeo site and seminar site for the weekend. “All of our anglers really enjoyed the hospitality at Buchanan Resort,” reported a Crappie USA spokesman.

For more information please call Crappie USA at 502-384-5924. Be sure to check out our website at: www.crappieusa.com and like our Crappie USA Tournament Trail Facebook Page. Both sites contain new and exciting information on our events along with special information for catfish anglers everywhere.

The next CUSA event is the Classic. It will be held October 27 to 29, 2016 on Kentucky & Barkley Lakes, at Paris, Tennessee.

Fish early and late to improve fishing success

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odu_early-morning-bite
The early morning bite can be the best of the day.

It is a scientific fact that fish are sensitive to light and more active in low-light conditions. Recognizing that fact and timing your trip with these conditions in mind can improve your fishing success. It is not by accident that early morning and late evening fishing have historically resulted in better catches.

Especially in the summer time, when water temperatures are higher, the early morning and late evening bite can be strong. With little light available to see your bait the silhouette becomes more important than the color. Chose dark colors and a profile that simulates the natural bait of the area you are fishing.

Topwater baits like the High Roller “Rip Roller” or “Chug Roller” can elicit explosive strikes from aggressive fish. The added disturbance of this type of lure on the water’s surface aids the fish in seeing the bait.

If the topwater bite is lacking try one of the many soft plastic baits available on the market today. Those made by DOA are especially effective. These baits are normally worked below the surface and imitate wounded or disoriented bait fish. A cast – reel – flick the wrist type of retrieve is all that is needed to get a hook up.

As fall approaches and the water cools down considerably you can forget the early morning departure and sleep in. Wait until the sun warms the water temperature a few degrees before venturing out. With a high sun on cooler days you can still fish by low-light rules by searching for shadows cast by seawalls, docks or other structure that provides an ambush point for predator fish.

Crappie Masters Missouri State Championship win to Morrow and Maupin

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The final regular season tournament had ninety-five boats competing in what was also the second and final leg of the Crappie Masters Missouri State Championship on Truman Lake, Mo. Anglers were fishing for more than $22,000.00 in cash and prizes in the August 20, 2016 event. The competition also crowned the 2016 Angler Team of the Year (ATOY).

First place went to Morrow and Maupin.
First place went to Morrow and Maupin.

A cold front and wind showed up the night before the tournament but that did not keep Truman Lake from producing some heavy summertime weights.

Truman Lake was kind to Barry Morrow and Chad Maupin. Morrow and Maupin came to the scales needing to post an impressive weight to take the lead from two other teams that had posted an identical weight of 10.5 pounds to claim the early lead.

The dynamic duo weighed in a 7 fish stringer that pulled the scales to 11.24 pounds. That weight was good to claim the day and win the the Truman event and the 2016 Crappie Masters Missouri State Championship. Morrow and Maupin now hold the distinction of winning the MO championship two years in a row.

Morrow and Maupin were one pole fishing in 3 to 6 feet of water catching their crappie just off the bottom. They used an assortment of jigs including Crappie Town Daddee Shad, Beaver Bottom, and Rocky Top in black and chartreuse color. The team fished from a Ranger boat equipped with a Mercury Motor, Minn Kota Trolling Motor, and Humminbird Electronics.

Ruyle and  Redinger finished in a tie for second.
Ruyle and Redinger finished in a tie for second.

The win earned them a check for $5220.00 which included a $250.00 bonus, donated by the Missouri Corn Growers Association and American Ethanol, for using E10 gas in their boat and a $570.00 check for catching the second biggest crappie of the tournament. Morrow and Maupin are sponsored by Stump Jumper, Crappie Town, Everharts Outdoor Store, Off Shore Tackle, Perotti Rod Holders, Beaver Bottom Baits, Lights Out Jigs, Brush Lunker Custom Tackle, and Huckabee Rods.

There was a tie for second and third place at 10.50 pounds between Brad Ruyle and Reggie Redinger and the team of Jim Dant and Donny Zufall.

Dant and Zufall finished in a tie for second.
Dant and Zufall finished in a tie for second.

Ruyle and Redinger were also one pole fishing in 2 to 6 feet of water. They were catching their fish anywhere from the top to the bottom of the water column on their own Elite Jigs. The colors of the day were black and chartreuse.

Ruyle and Redinger’s equipment included a Minn Kota Trolling Motor, Humminbird Electronics, Mercury Motor, Ozark Rods, and Grizzly Elite Rods. Ruyle and Redinger received a check for $1900.00. They are sponsored by Elite Jigs, Midwest Land Sales, and Ozark Rods.

Dant and Zufall were two pole fishing in 6 feet of water. They caught their crappie just off the bottom using Bobby Garland 2-inch Slab Slayers in the Lights Out color. They fished from a Ranger boat equipped with a Mercury Motor, Minn Kota Trolling Motor, and Humminbird Electronics.

Team Dant/Zufall are sponsored by Bobby Garland, Elite Jigs, Do-It Molds, Outlaw Rods, and Bait Mate. Dant and Zufall received a $1900.00 check for the second place tie.

Aaron and Dylan Clark won the Adult/Youth division.
Aaron and Dylan Clark won the Adult/Youth division.

The Power Pole team of Charles and Travis Bunting finished in fourth place with 9.41 pounds and received a check for $1200.00.

Fifth place and a check for $1000.00 went to Paul Alpers and Brian McGhee.

Big Fish of the tournament weighed 1.81 pounds and was caught by Ozark Rod pro staffers John and Tracy Shannon. They took home a check for $1330.00.

Ozark Rod pro staff anglers Aaron and Dylan Clark won the Adult/Youth division by weighing in a seven fish limit of 7.61 pounds. They were winners of a $100.00 Bass Pro Shops gift card and a $100.00 Everhart’s Outdoor Store gift card.

Cory Batterson and Dianne Stevens won the Male/Female Division.
Cory Batterson and Dianne Stevens won the Male/Female Division.

Male/Female division winners and representing Crappie Town and Bobboy Garland were Cory Batterson and Dianne Stevens. They weighed in 8.28 pounds and took home a $900.00 check for finishing 12th in the tournament plus a $100.00 Bass Pro Shops gift card.

For more results, photos and future events click on the Crappie Masters Facebook page [5] or visit their website [6].

The next Crappie Masters event will be the National Championship [7] on Grenada Lake, Sept 28 to Oct. 1, 2016.

Chris Souders and Joe Cassidy win Cabela’s King Kat at Marietta, OH

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Anglers were greeted by a beautiful day at Marietta, OH. A nice breeze and temps in the 70’s promised a great day for catfishing. “It’s not miserably hot and there’s a nice breeze,” said tournament director Jeremy Coe. “I’m enjoying the morning, hopefully we will see some big fish.”

First place went to Chris Souders and Joe Cassidy
First place went to Chris Souders and Joe Cassidy

The occasion was Cabela’s King Kat [8] Tournament Trail. The tournament traveled to Marietta to fish the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers on Saturday, August 20, 2016. Eighty catfish anglers from 8 different states were competing for more than $7,300.00 in cash and prizes, and the opportunity to qualify for the 2016 Cabela’s King Kat Northern and Southern Championships to be held in the fall.

Anglers were allowed to fish the Ohio River from the Willow Island Lock and Dam, South to Belleville Lock and Dam. They could also fish the Muskingum River up to the Devola Lock and Dam.

Chris Souders from Oak Hill, OH and Joe Cassidy from West Portsmouth, OH brought 84.50 pounds to the scales at Indian Acres Boat Ramp to claim the victory. They also had 2nd Big Kat with a flathead weighing 35.16 pounds. The heavy bag earned them $3,000.00.

Team Souders/Cassidy started fishing as for south as they could in the Belleville area of the Ohio River. Noticing they had a weak fish, they decided to weigh it in early. As they headed back south they began to experience motor troubles, leaving them to fish the Muskingum River.

Souders and Cassidy caught all of their fish early in the morning. They targeted their fish in 30 to 40 feet of water over flats and rocks using different techniques throughout the day. They drifted, drug, and anchored at various times. They had caught 7 fish before heading back to the weigh in site for the final time.

The team used skipjack, mooneye and shad for bait. “Skipjack heads definitely worked the best for the bigger fish,” reported Souders. “The river had a little current which improved the fishing conditions.”

“We had a lot of stuff go wrong at this one,” said Cassidy in a Facebook post. “We pushed through it and got it done!”

Second place and Big Kat went to Neil Craig and Michael Jordon
Second place and Big Kat went to Neil Craig and Michael Jordon

Second place honors went to the Eleanor, WV team of Neil Craig and Michael Jordon. It was a feast or famine kind of day for Craig and Jordon, but they weighed in 62.86 pounds to claim their spot. All of their fish came on the rope. They also had Big Kat of the tournament weighing 38.96 pounds. They earned $1,500.00, plus an additional $900.00 for Big Kat for the day’s work.

The team fished about 5 miles downriver from Marietta on the Ohio River. “We didn’t catch a fish until 10:45,” reported Craig. “From then we caught 7 fish in 45 minutes. After that flurry was over we only caught one fish for the rest of the day. Our fish were caught on cut mooneye in 20 to 25 feet of water. We were anchored down and fishing wood structure. Water was good with some flow which is good this time of year.”

Third place went to AOY leaders Carl Morris Jr. and Rob Parsons.
Third place went to AOY leaders Carl Morris Jr. and Rob Parsons.

ATOY leaders Carl Morris Jr. and Rob Parsons weighed 35.94 pounds to earn third place and earn $700. The finish kept them strong in the Angler of the Year competition with only one tournament remaining. They fished south of Belpre, which is about 20 miles south of Marietta.

Team Morris/Parsons fished off the rope all day. “We were fishing in anywhere from 10 to 30 feet of water,” reported Parsons. “We used a variety of bait including bluegill, creek chubs, mooneye, skipjack and shad. We mainly targeted wood structure that looked like a good place for a flathead to hide.”

Parsons described the bite as very light. “It took a lot of patience to get one in the boat. We caught a couple decent ones pre-fishing, but could not find them again today. The five fish that we weighed in were the only five that we caught. They were just barely good enough to squeak out the third place win.”

“We found fish up shallower early in the morning and followed them out deeper as the day progressed,” added Morris. “There was a little bit of a current, but I would have liked more.”

Morris and Parsons congratulated Souders and Cassidy on their win and for weighing some nice fish.

Fourth place was David Freeman, Skip Martin and Gregory Miller.
Fourth place was David Freeman, Skip Martin and Gregory Miller.

In fourth place was David Freeman of Circleville, OH, Skip Martin and Gregory Miller both of Akron, Ohio. They weighed in 35.38 pounds and earned $500.00 in the first tournament ever for Freeman and Miller.

They started the day fishing at the mouth of the Muskingum where it joins the Ohio River before moving up river later in the day to find their fish. Team Freeman/Martin/Miller used shad for bait to land 8 fish for the day. The team anchored first and drifted later on in the day.

5th Murphy - Snyder
Fifth place went to Anthony Murphy and Michael Snyder.

 

AnthyMurphy and Michael Snyder both of Millersburg, OH took fifth place. They weighed in 33.22 pounds to earn $400.00. The team had 5 fish that included a nice flathead weighing 22.56 pounds. The team fished in the Belpre area. They moved a lot, burning 2 tanks of gas to find their fish in structure. Anthony and Michael anchored in 10 to 15 feet of water. They used mostly shad and suckers for bait.

Justin and Hanna Fraley both of Sandyville, WV won sixth place. They weighed in 33.04 pounds and earned $300.00.

Tournament director, Jeremy Coe, gave a special thank you to Jeri Knowlton and staff at the Marietta-Washington County CVB [9] for once again making this event possible. “I also want to thank Mayor Joe Matthews and staff for their hospitality and assisting with the event. Thank you to Best Western in Marietta for hosting the captains meeting and making all the anglers feel welcomed.”

“We returned to Marietta after a tough tournament in 2015,” said Coe. “This year we had double the boats and better fishing! We are excited to have Marietta, OH on the schedule due to the quality of fish and the hospitality toward the anglers. Marietta rolls out the red carpet for the catfish anglers and we look forward to returning in 2017.”

Anglers qualifying for the 2016 Cabela’s King Kat Northern and Southern Championship will be able to fish the Ohio River or the Cumberland River this fall. The Northern Championship will be held September 23 and 24, 2016 on the Ohio River, Henderson, Kentucky. The Southern Championship will be held September 29 and October 1, 2016 on the Cumberland River (Old Hickory Lake) Gallatin, Tennessee.

The next King Kat event will be on the Mississippi River, August 27, 2016 at Quincy, IL.

For more results, photos and recognitions visit www.kingkatusa.com [10] or the Cabela’s King Kat Facebook Page [11]. King Kat can be reached by phone at 502-384-5924.

For more info on the Marietta, OH area follow them on the Marieta-Washington County Facebook page. [12]

Bruce Midkoff Tournament on the Ohio River surpasses 100 boats

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An Ohio River catfish tournament is named after a KY state catfish record holder. The 2nd Annual Bruce Midkiff Memorial Tournament will be held on August 27, 2016. Midkiff caught the state record 104-pound blue cat and that record still holds it’s place in the record books today.

Wayne King, Connor King and Scott Webb teamed up to win in 2015. They weighed in 134 pounds to claim the first place spot in the inaugural event.Midkiff_2015_winners

“Vanover and his wife has put together a great tournament,” said Wayne King. “The tournament is held at Hawesville KY, which is where Cannelton Dam is and that is where Midkiff caught the KY state record.”

Wayne, Conner and Scott are teamed up again this year to defend their title. “The pressure is definitely on this year,” said Wayne. “There are some very good fishermen coming from all around.”

Their strategy will rely on good bait and favorable weather. “We will be using skipjack and mooneye for bait,” revealed Wayne. “Depending on the river forecast we would like to drag baits or do controlled drifting.”

Big fish in 2015 went to a local Hawesville angler, Eric Doogs, with a 77-pound blue cat. “It felt great!” said Eric. “It was an amazingly strong fish that didn’t want to come off bottom. I caught that fish within 30 minutes after we dropped baits.”Midkiff_2015_Big_Fish

It was the kind of catch that stays with you. “I couldn’t help but open the livewell and admire that catch all day,” joked Eric. “We will go above Cannelton Dam again this year in hopes of finding another fish like that.”

Tournament Director Josh Vanover was on Catfish Weekly where he praised the fishery and hoped for a good bite. “We currently have 102 boats,” reported Vanover. “We have some of the best catfishermen in the country coming. Anglers will be able to ramp from one of three ramps – Hawesville, Cannelton and Tell City.”

“We have capped the number of boats at 150,” continued Vanover. “We’ve been blessed this year with some good turn outs and this one is no different.”

Vanover also publicized a new tournament to be held on Wheler Lake in Alabama on Janurary 28, 2017. “We are going to call it the Paul Strouth Memorial on Wheeler,” announced Vanover. “We are working with some big names in the business and I expect it to be a big one as well.” (Paul Strouth was a well-known catfish angler who passed recently.)

The regular entry fee on Vanover’s other tournaments is $60. “There are a lot of anglers getting in the sport these days,” concluded Vanover. “I want those guys to be able to fish our tournaments.”

With an entry fee of only $25 the Midkiff tournament is very popular with anglers. It will pay out $3,000 to the winner this year.

As the sport of catfishing grows all across the county tournaments like the Midkiff are growing too. Other tournaments that have already announced more than 100 boats include George Young Jr’s Mississippi River Monsters [13] and Aaron Wheatley’s Monsters on the Ohio [14].

For more information on the August 27 tournament visit the Bruce Midkiff Memorial Facebook page [15].

Ronnie Hughes and Johnny Jones win Cabela’s King Kat at Cadiz, KY

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Cloudy skies, north winds at 10 – 15, temperatures in the high 80’s and day-long scattered showers greeted catfish anglers on the Cumberland River and a day of chasing whiskered critters. By all accounts it was a tough day of fishing.  

The occasion was Cabela’s King Kat [8] Tournament Trail. The tournament traveled to Cadiz, KY to fish the Cumberland River (Lake Barkley) on Saturday, August 13, 2016. Top catfish anglers from 9 different states, were competing for more than $5,000.00 in cash and prizes, and the opportunity to qualify for the 2016 Cabela’s King Kat Northern and Southern Championships to be held in the fall.  

First place honors went to Ronnie Hughes and Johnny Jones.
First place honors went to Ronnie Hughes and Johnny Jones.

The winning team of Ronnie Hughes of Madison, North Carolina and Johnny Jones of Stoneville, North Carolina weighed in 69.54 pounds to claim the top spot. They were fishing 4 miles north of Prizer Point Marina [16] on the Cumberland River targeting deeper flats on the Land Between the Lakes side of the river. They were drifting skipjack in 25 to 30 feet of water to land 10 fish for the day.  

The North Carolina team used their first ever trip to the Cumberland River to earn $3,000 plus an additional $385 for catching the Big Kat of the tournament. The Big Kat weighed 28.80 pounds. 

Less than 4 pounds behind the leaders were the Kentucky team of Rob Benningfield and Chris Debow. Benningfield, from Bowling Green, KY and Debow, from Madeira, KY weighed in 66.04 pounds to nail down the second place spot. 

Second place went to Rob Benningfield and Chris Debow.
Second place went to Rob Benningfield and Chris Debow.

“We drug skipjack chunks on flats in 20 to 25 feet,” reported Benningfield. “I was expecting a much better bite. The fish didn’t seem to be in the normal deeper river channel areas for some reason and windy conditions made boat control a chore.” 

“Fishing was as tough as I have seen it,” added Debow. “Rob and I pre-fished on Friday and never boated a fish. We eliminated a lot of the lake before ending up where we did.” 

“Barkley is known to be a great fishery,” Continued Benningfield. “There is continued concern over Asian carp and over harvest of larger fish for sale to pay lakes.”  

“Asian carp were a plenty as well as commercial fisherman,” chimed in Debow.  

Team Benningfield/Debow earned $1,500.00 for the day. They caught a total of 7 fish.  

Team King of Mt. Vernon, Indiana won third place. The husband/wife/son team of Wayne, Jennifer and Conner King weighed in 37.52 pounds to earn a check for $500.00.  

Team King, Wayne, Jennifer and Conner claimed the third place spot.
Team King, Wayne, Jennifer and Conner claimed the third place spot.

“The Day started off pretty slow,” reported Jennifer. “It was very overcast and windy. We didn’t have much luck at our first stop so we moved upriver around 10 miles and was able to get a few more bites. We use skipjack for bait pretty much all day, but we always use shad as well.” 

“We drifted the same area over and over, dragging the skipjack and shad. We only caught four fish but those four fish were enough to get us in the money. This tournament also qualified us for the Cabela’s Classic in Henderson Kentucky,” said a forward looking Jennifer.

“We love doing this as a family,” concluded Jennifer. “This summer Wayne has taught Connor how to take the boat off the trailer and put it back on. We are impressed by how interested he is, at age 12, with nothing but FISHING!” 

Tournament director, Jeremy Coe, gave a special thank you to Bill Stevens and staff with Cadiz-Trigg County Tourism [17] for making the event possible. “Also, a special thank you to Prizer Point for their willing cooperation and contribution to making the whole weekend a smooth running success,” said Coe.   

Anglers qualifying for the 2016 Cabela’s King Kat Northern and Southern Championship will be able to fish the Ohio River or the Cumberland River this fall. The Northern Championship will be held September 23 and 24, 2016 on the Ohio River, Henderson, Kentucky. The Southern Championship will be held September 29 and October 1, 2016 on the Cumberland River (Old Hickory Lake) Gallatin, Tennessee.  

The next King Kat event will be August 20, 2016 at Marietta, OH on the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers.  

For more results, photos and recognitions click on www.kingkatusa.com [18] or visit the Cabela’s King Kat Facebook Page [11]. They can be reached by phone at 502-384-5924.

Bass fishing the Harris Chain with the Frog Ninja

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broc
Foley throws Snag Proof Frogs all year long.

The best time to throw a Snag Proof Frog is everyday, according to central Florida bass angler Broc Foley. “It is all about risk and reward for me,” stated 36-year old Foley. “I can put on a worm and catch a lot more bass, but when I throw my Snag Proof Frogs I know I am going to catch quality fish.”

Foley is an Indiana native, but he is no stranger to Florida. “We made a lot of fishing trips to Florida when I was growing up and I always loved to fish here,” said Foley. When the opportunity arose he took it and moved to Florida permanently. He makes his home in Umatilla. Foley considers the Harris Chain of Lakes and the St. Johns River his home waters.

Bass fishing is very important to Foley. “How bad am I hooked on bass fishing,” asks Foley. “My life in order of importance is God, family and bass fishing. I think that explains it.” 

Broc_Close_ODU
This Harris Chain bass inhaled one of Foley’s frogs.

Froggin’ is Foley’s go to technique for catching big bass. “Whether it is skipping under overhangs, fishing open water or targeting specific structure, I like to fish frogs,” elaborates Foley. “I fish frogs 12 months of the year. I personally carry over 100 frogs in my boat. I have at least three rods rigged with a Snag Proof Frog every time I fish.”

 “I fish frogs because they catch bigger than average fish,” exclaims Foley. “Plus, there is the thrill of the bite. Who doesn’t love a big fish blowing up on a frog?”

To Foley a frog is more than a frog and understanding that helps choose which one to use on the next cast. “Anglers need to realize that a frog represents more than just a frog. Bobby’s Perfect Frog and the Wobbletron, for example, might represent a rodent or other water creature because of the wider profile. Ish’s Phat Frog, because of its profile, skips and walks easily, mimicking baitfish and bluegill in distress.”

Broc_Places_ODU
Foley likes to put them frogs in places others would not consider.

Every cast has a purpose for Foley. He is never prospect casting. Rather, he is throwing to a specific target where he has every intention of catching a big bass. He is so mentality, technically and mechanically dedicated to his goal of casting frogs in unusual places that he has become known among his fishing pals as the Frog Ninja.

The term ninja describes a person who excels in a particular skill or activity and Frog Ninja is the perfect nickname for Foley. The name ninja comes from ninjutsu, a Japanese martial art form that includes stealthy movement and camouflage. Stealth and camouflage could relate to a lot of anglers, but add the ninja functions of infiltration and assassination and you have described Foley’s pursuit of the wily bass.

Foley infiltrates the bass’s surroundings with precision casts that go where none have gone before. It is that risk/reward thing again. “I like to throw way back in the cover,” instructs Foley. “I may not even be able to see the frog. If I get a bite, I set the hook.”

As a result of his aggressive style Foley has hooked alligators and other critters in addition to his intended target of big bass. His covert methods of waging war on bass have earned him the ninja nickname. He truly does excel in his sport.  

“I target a lot of areas that are not frog areas, per say,” comments Foley. “I target areas where there are bluegill, baitfish, or anything that will get a bass’s attention. Bass are predators. They are going to eat anything they can, whether it be a muskrat a duck or a bluegill.”

Fish with Foley for a day and it will become perfectly clear that grass and lily pads are not the only place to catch big bass on frogs. “I fish a lot of laydowns and vertical structure,” explains Foley. “The majority of my fish are not caught in the grass, but there may be some grass around.”

Foley is always looking for something unique, something out of the ordinary. “It may only be a 5 x 5-inch piece of grass mat that drifted up against a stick or a dock piling,” said Foley. “The point is, it is something different than the surrounding water.”

According to Foley way too many people overlook the subtle differences. “Most people don’t think a 10-pound fish is going to set under a five-inch strip of grass. It is a common mistake that average anglers make.”

The Harris Chain of lakes is highly developed with residential housing and boat docks along much of the shoreline. “The main structure on the Harris Chain is Kissimmee grass and boat docks,” explained Foley. “Some of the docks will house boats and others will not. You’ll also find eel grass, lily pads and sea walls. On Lake Griffin, which is part of the Harris Chain, you will be fishing a lot of lily pads, eel grass and lay downs, but it is not nearly as developed as the other lakes on the chain.”

When he is on the Harris Chain Foley mainly fishes shady areas, isolated grass, docks and pontoon boats. His choice of frog usually depends on the season.

“In the spring I’m going to fish canals, areas leading into canals and pockets off the main lake,” instructs Foley. “I look for eel grass and any kind of floating mat, especially in the spawning areas. The fish will be in these areas for both pre- and post-spawn periods. My frog of choice in the spring is Bobby’s Perfect Frog or Ish’s Phat Frog. My favorite spring colors are Fred’s and KC Dragonfly.

When summer rolls around shade becomes the key. “I’m looking mainly for overhead cover in the form of lily pads, boat docks or overhanging brush,” says Foley. “I will also fish a lot of main lake grass, especially if there is a shell bar or some deeper water close by. Baitfish and bluegill will spawn in these areas and draw the bass in to feed.”

“When I say deep water, I’m talking five to seven feet of water. Summer is when the Wobbletron is at its best. The fish are aggressive and the Wobbletron causes a lot of commotion. You can fish it fast and cover a lot of water with it.” Foley’s favorite summer colors are Sticky Green, Tweety and Fred’s.

In the fall and winter Foley starts probing the Kissimmee grass in the main lake. “My target is not the main stands of Kissimmee grass, but the little cuts and holes. These variations in the grass are where bass can chase small baitfish, shiners and bluegill. I prefer the sparse grass or isolated patches because it is a lot easier to dissect and pick specific targets.”

“Fall and winter is the ideal time for Ish’s Poppin’ Frog because you can fish the holes in the grass and it mimics baitfish. It also sounds like the popping noises that a bluegill makes when they are eating bugs in the grass.” 

His favorite fall/winter colors are Papa Midnight, Cali, and Original Green. “I throw Fred’s pretty much all year long,” adds Foley.

Later in the winter season Foley looks for isolated lily pads or other structure around canal entrances. “Typically the bass are going to fatten up in winter preparing for the spawn. I like to target mouths of canals or any spawning areas for any type of structure where they can ambush prey. Typically the prey is not going to just roam in open water so the first piece of structure is where they’ll go and where I want to toss a frog.”  

As far as his equipment, Foley likes a rod with a lot of backbone to pull fish from heavy cover. “I keep it very simple on equipment,” states Foley. “If I am fishing isolated targets, skipping under cover and fishing scattered grass, I use a 7-foot heavy action Vexan Bass Rod [19]. I spool my Abu Garcia Revo 7:1:1 with 60 pound Seaguar Kanzen Braid.”

“When I’m fishing matted grass, heavy Kissimmee grass or open water, I will use a 7-foot 8-inch Vexan Bass Rod with Abu Garcia Revo 8:1:1, also with 60 pound Seaguar Kanzen Braid. I like the longer rod in this application because I can make longer casts and I have more leverage when pulling bass out of the thicker grass.”

Foley attaches his frogs with a Palomar knot and blackens the first couple feet of braid with a magic marker for camouflage.  He adds a little fly-line wax to the line and the skirt on the frog. “The fly-line wax helps float the line and I put it on the skirt to help it flare out more and make it float,” instructs Foley.  

A Snag Proof Frog [20] plays a role in all of Foley’s fishing, whether it is recreational or tournament fishing. “I would say 99 percent of my tournament wins are related to fishing frogs. I am either catching fish with them or locating fish with them. A prime example would be when the fish keep blowing up on a frog but won’t eat it. That is the time to throw a follow up bait because that fish has shown itself to me.”

It is obviously that ninja mentality at work when Foley admits to fishing for only five bites a day. “Honestly, every tournament I fish, January thru January, I always have a frog tied on,” exclaimed Foley. “Frogs are a very versatile bait. I may only get five bites, but they are the right bites.”

Broc Foley is sponsored by River Rat Tackle, Red Dirt Baits, Vexan Bass Rods, Snag Proof Lures and Bill Lewis Lures.

Crappie Masters Angler Team of the Year comes down to Truman

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Four Bass Pro Shops Crappie Masters’ [21] teams still have a shot at the Angler Team of the Year (ATOY) honors. It all comes down to the competition on Truman Lake, Aug. 20 2016.

aaaCox_Hockett
Cox and Hockett go into Truman leading the points race.

Being a measure of consistency over a long year of tournament fishing, the ATOY honor is a prestigious one. Anglers are judged on their best six finishes and one of them must be a One Pole Ultimate Challenge. With one tournament left in the 2016 ATOY competition the outcome will depend on the relative performance of each of the teams.

Cox and Hockett enter the final competition in the lead with 1172 points. They have several different ways to win, but especially if the other three don’t improve enough to overtake them.

“We have to finish better than eighth to gain any points,” explained Cox. “Charlie and Kevin are two points behind and have to finish higher than a 13th to gain any points. Kyle and Rodney are 10 points behind and have to beat a 17th to move up. So we can help our standing by having a real good finish but it’s out of our hands if Team Rodgers or Kyle and Rodney finish high enough.”

“It would be very special to win the point championship against the best crappie fisherman around,” continued Cox. They can seal the deal if they finish 11th or better. It they don’t, it starts to get messy and more teams have a mathematical chance of winning.

The father/son team of Charlie and Kevin Rogers follow close behind with a total of 1170 points. They can wrap it all up at Truman if they can finish in 3rd place or better.

Team Rogers plans a straight forward approach to the challenge. “I plan to fish like it’s just another tournament,” said Kevin. “I will not let the pressure get to me.”

It is actually more than the honor or the prize money for Kevin. “I want to win it for my 73-year-old father. We only have so many years left to fish together. It would mean the world to me to see him win it; he deserves it.”

Kyle Schoenherr and Rodney Neuhaus are next in line. They have 1162 points going into the final day. They have several ways they can win ATOY, all depend on the performances of the competing anglers.

“With four teams being close in the points race, there’s a lot of factors that are out of our control,” said Schoenherr. “We can’t control how productive a day our competitors have, but we’ll be giving it our best shot. We’ll definitely be putting in long hours during practice for the final event.”

“It would definitely be an honor to win it against the tough competition on the trail,” continued Schoenherr. “It would also mean a lot to win it, considering we only fished 8 events. I think that would be a season we could be proud of for sure!”

There has not been back to back wins for AYOY since Dan Dannenmueller and Bill Braswell did it in 2011 and 2012. However, Scott and Billy Williams could repeat if they won the tournament, Cox/Hockett finish 8th or worse, Team Rogers’ finishes 11th or worse, and Schoenherr/Neuhaus finish 8th or worse.

Unfortunately Team Williams has other challenges. They didn’t fish Mark Twain last week, and face issues in their business. “We need to fish Truman,” offered Scott. “Unfortunately, it’s a very critical part of the year for our crops and we can’t afford to be away from the farm right now. We’ve had problems with an irrigation well and those issues are still not resolved. I hope we can attend Truman but it doesn’t look good right now.”

“It would be a monumental moment for our fishing career to pull off a back to back ATOY,” continued Scott. “It has not been done for a long time. I think that if we get to go to Truman and pulled it off, it would lift us to another level in crappie fishing.”

Male/Female Division

Another good race in the 2016 competition is the Male/Female points race. Paul and Elizabeth Turner hold a two-point lead over Vic Finkley and Kim Gray.

Team Turner just won the Male/Female Division at Mark Twain and placed 2nd overall behind the team of Ruyle and Redinger in the event. They have accumulated 1172 points and stand at 6th place in the overall points race. It is definitely going to be a shootout in the division on August 20th.

Team Turner looks forward to the competition on Truman. “We would like to win, but honestly we’re just having fun,” commented Paul.

Finkley an Gray are close behind in the Male/Female Division with 1170 points. “Vic and I work very hard scouting locations and prefishing before the tournaments,” says Kim Gray. “We hope to go to this last tournament and finish with a great score.”

“Whatever our destiny on this last tournament at we at least know we tried our best,” continued Gray. “It would be a great honor to win ATOY, but whoever finishes strong in the end deserves every bit of it. It’s a great honor to fish with some of the best crappie fisherman in the country. We have had a great year and have made some great friends along the way.”

Eight Crappie Masters teams can look forward to a little recognition and prize money following the Truman Lake competition. The AOTY competition pays out the following:

First Place: $6,000 in cash; $1,500 Bass Pro Shops Gift Card; set of Power Poles with Drift Paddles

Second Place: $3,000 in cash; $1,000 Bass Pro Shops Gift Card

Third Place: $2,000 in cash; $500 Bass Pro Shops Gift Card

Fourth Place: $1,500 in cash

Fifth Place: $1,000 in cash

Sixth through Tenth Place: Sponsor Prizes

Top Male/Female Team: $1,000

Top Adult/Youth Team: $1,000

The national points champions will be recognized as Angler Team of the Year at the Crappie Masters national championship tournament at Grenada, MS, [7] Sept. 29 thru Oct. 1, 2016.

“The points race is the ultimate test to determine who is the best out there week in and week out,” said Crappie Masters President, Mike Vallentine. “You have to be consistent, be able to adjust to all conditions, adapt to different lakes, and fish different styles. The August 20 competition on Truman is going to be fun to watch.”

For more information on Crappie Masters Tournament Trail visit their website [7].

Masingale brothers claim win at Cabela’s King Kat on the Big Muddy

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Covington, TN and the Mississippi River was the location of a recent Cabela’s King Kat [8] Tournament Trail event. The affair was one of sixteen tournaments to appear in 10 states across the country in 2016. They are followed by two national championship events later in the year. King Kat tournaments provide local and travelling anglers an opportunity to demonstrate their catfishing skills, fish for cash and prizes, and compete for a berth in the national championship events [22] that come up in Sept.

The August 6, 2016 event allowed anglers from 12 states to fish the Mississippi River from the I-155 Bridge, South to the I-40 Bridge at Memphis, with no pre-fishing allowed from midnight until 6:30 am on tournament day. Tournament fishing began at 6:30 am and continued until 3:00 pm. Anglers had to be in the weigh-in line at Duvall Landing on Coon Valley Rd. in Drummonds, TN by 4:00 pm or be disqualified.

Most anglers commented that the bite was tough and the heat was overbearing. Winds cooperated at 5 to 10 mph out of the NNW, but the river flow changed. “The river had been falling all week,” commented Larry Muse. “Then it went on the rise and scattered the fish. The bite was tough and the temperatures were hot out there today!”

First Place - Darly and Jason Masingale
First Place – Darly and Jason Masingale

Team Masingale agreed, “That heat wiped us out today.” Nevertheless, Daryl and Jason Masingale (Masingale Catfishing) brought in a 81.36 pound stringer to claim the first place honors. The Paragould, Arkansas team earned $3,000.00 for their efforts.

They launched on the Mississippi River at Ramp 19 and fished up to just South of Barfield. Their strategy changed partway through the day as they adapted to changing river conditions. They began by targeting wood structure in 40 to 50 feet of water. When that strategy did not produce they began fishing a revetment bank using skipjack for bait. They landed a total of 9 fish for the day.

“We started bumping but ended up on the anchor,” reported Jason. “We just couldn’t get a bite on the drift.”

Summing up the day, Jason stated, “When you put this caliber of anglers on the river with good, fresh bait and you win the tournament with what we had, yeah, it was tough!” Their first place win included second big fish of the tournament at 30.82 pounds.

Second Place - David Magness and Russell Jackson
Second Place – David Magness and Russell Jackson

The second place spot went to David Magness of Hernando, Mississippi and Russell Jackson of Olive Branch, Mississippi. They came in less than 2 pounds behind the leaders. They weighed in 80.76 pounds to earn $1,500.00.

B’n’M [4] pro staffers Magness and Jackson fished 8 to 10 miles north of the Duvall Ramp. They were fishing main river ledges in 35 to 55 feet of water. They drifted all day using skipjack for bait to land 9 fish for the tournament.

“All in all it went well,” said Magness. “It was hot as heck and the fish did not want to cooperate. They would grab bait, gnaw on it, and let it go. We fished hard and only caught five fish, but it worked out for us today.”

The B’n’M prostaffers were using the new B’n’M Prostaff Bumping Rods [23] that were just released at the ICAST show in Orlando, FL this past July.

Third Place - Glynn Grogan and Walter Hayes
Third Place – Glynn Grogan and Walter Hayes

Glynn Grogan of Arlington, KY and Walter Hayes of Cunningham, KY placed third. Grogan and Hayes weighed in 79.06 pounds to earn $500.00 for their day’s work. The conservation minded team weighed 4 fish earlier in the day and then returned in search of more whiskered critters. They headed south towards Memphis in the morning and then fished at the Duvall Ramp towards the end of the day.

Grogan and Hayes pre-fished north of the weigh-in site, but were not happy with the faster moving current. They found their fish in slower moving water behind sandbars. They used mooneye for bait in 45 feet of water to land 12 fish on the day.

Fourth Place - Gary Campbell and Mike Crews
Fourth Place – Gary Campbell and Mike Crews

A total weight of 78.66 pounds put Gary Campbell and Mike Crews in the fourth place position. The Mayfield, KY team fished North of Duvall Landing using skipjack as bait to land 5 fish for the event. They caught all their fish off the anchor in 25 to 30 feet of water.

Fifth place went to the 2015 World Champions of Catfishing, David Shipman and Brooke Wilbanks. Makaden Barnes, also from Corinth, MS, fished as a third team member. They weighed in 78.42 pounds, which include the Big Kat honors with a fish weighing 34.60 pounds.

Team Shipman entered the tournament after placing second last year. He also recognized the high caliber of the competition. “All the conditions were the same as last year’s tournament, so we did the exact same thing we did last year and had about the same weight. It just didn’t hold up to today’s competition.”

Fifth Place and Big Kat - David Shipman, Brooke Wilbanks and Makaden Barnes,
Fifth Place and Big Kat – David Shipman, Brooke Wilbanks and Makaden Barnes,

The B’n’M team was also using the new B’n’M Prostaff Bumping Rods to catch some of their fish. They used skipjack for bait, targeting structure in 50 to 70 feet of water. They boated 5 fish for the day, finding their Big Kat of the event in 57 feet of water.

Tournament director, Jeremy Coe, gave a special thank you to B’n’M Pole Company and Homer Skelton Auto Group of Millington [24], TN for making the event possible. “We are so happy to have B’n’M Pole Company as a National Sponsor,” said Coe. “They were the first company to introduce a catfish specific bumping rod to the industry a few years ago. Now they have recently released the new Prostaff Bumping Rod, improving on the older model, to become what many call the best bumping rod on the market.”

Anglers were competing for $5,515.00 in cash and prizes, and the opportunity to qualify for the 2016 Cabela’s King Kat Northern and Southern Championship. This year’s Northern Championship will be held September 23 and 24, 2016 at the Ohio River, Henderson, Kentucky. The Southern Championship will be held September 29 and October 1, 2016 at Cumberland River (Old Hickory Lake) Gallatin, Tennessee.

The next King Kat event will be on the Cumberland River at Cadiz, KY on August 13, 2016.

For more results, photos and recognitions click on www.kingkatusa.com [10] or visit the Cabela’s King Kat Facebook Page [11].

Brad Ruyle and Reggie Redinger win Crappie Masters on Mark Twain Lake

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Mark Twain Lake was invaded by crappie anglers competing for the Bass Pro Shops Crappie Masters [21] Missouri State Championship. Sixty-five teams competed for bragging rights and more than $15,000.00 in cash and prizes at the event sponsored by Stren. [25]

The first leg of the MO championship, won by Charlie and Kevin Rogers, was held on Truman Lake in June. The tour will return to Truman Lake on August 20 for the third leg that will determine the 2016 MO champs.

Anglers fishing the Mark Twain event began fishing the August 6, 2016 event at 6:30 am and continued until 3:00 pm. They were required to be in the weigh-in line at Chigger Hill Bait and Tackle in Stoutsville by 4:00 pm.

001_first_Place_Mark_Twain
First Place

The 130 crappie anglers faced tough fishing conditions as the lake rose over ten feet in five days. A State Championship and crucial National AOY points were on the line along with the $15,000.00 in cash and prizes.

Some savvy team always figures out the winning combination and this week it was Illinois angler Brad Ruyle and his Missouri partner Reggie Redinger. They put together an impressive seven fish stringer that weighed 8.05 pounds to win the Mark Twain Lake National Qualifier. Their weight included big fish of the tournament at 1.96 pounds.

The Ruyle/Redinger team was one pole fishing in 6 to 14 feet of water. They were catching their crappie just off the bottom using their own Elite Jigs in shad shatter and great white colors. Their equipment include a Mercury Motor. Humminbird electronics, Minn Kota trolling motor, B’n’M Pol [23]es and Grizzly Elite Poles.

002_second_place_MF_Mark_Twain
Second Place

Ruyle and Redinger are sponsored by Elite Jigs and Midwest Land Sales. They earned a check for $5160.00, which included a $250.00 bonus, donated by the Missouri Corn Growers Association and American Ethanol for using E10 gasoline in their boat. They also earned $910.00 for catching the big crappie of the tournament.

The Tennessee team of Paul and Elizabeth Turner were double winners. Their stringer of 5.15 pounds earned them second place and top Male/Female honors.

Team Turner spider rigged in 12 to 14 feet of water using double minnow rigs. Their fish were coming from 10 feet deep. They used Humminbird electronics, a Minn Kota trolling motor and Bass Pro Shops fishing line. The husband/wife fishing team received a check for $2000.00 and a $100.00 Bass Pro Shops gift card for their second place finish.

003_third_place_Mark_Twain
Third Place

Third place went to the Missouri team of Barry Morrow and Chad Maupin. They were two pole trolling in 12 to 20 feet of water. Their 5.14 pounds of Mark Twain Lake crappie came from 12 foot water on 2-inch Bobby Garland Slab Slayers. The best combination was blue/white jigs tipped with minnows.

Morrow and Maupin are sponsored by Crappietown, Stump Jumper, Off Shore Tackle, Beaver Bottom Baits, Huckabee Rods, Perotti Rod Holders, Rocky Top and Brush Lunker. They earned a check for $1000.00 for their efforts.

The fourth place spot was claimed by Team Taylor. Missourians Rick and Jeremy Taylor earned a check for $850.00 for their 5.08 pound stringer.

004_adult_youth_Mark_Twain
Adult/Youth

Another Missouri team, Chris Dudgeon and Bo Shephard, nailed down the fifth place spot. They earned a check for $725.00 for their weight of 4.92 pounds.

The Iowa team of Aaron and Dylan Clark won the Adult/Youth Division. They weighed 4.37 pounds to finish in the 13th spot overall and claim the Adult/Youth honor. They reeived a $100.00 Bass Pro Shops gift card, a $100.00 Everhart’s Sporting Goods gift card and a $250.00 check for their day of crappie fishing.

For more results, photos and future events click on the Crappie Masters Facebook page [5] or visit their website [6].

The next Crappie Masters event will be the final leg of the Missouri State Championship at  Truman Lake, MO [26] on August 20,2016.

George and David Harrison win Coosa River BCQ event in Georgia’s Rome

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The Coosa River provided catfish anglers some night fishing action from Saturday through Sunday noon. The Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest [27] traveled to Rome, GA for the all night tournament that began on Saturday, July 30 at 6:00 pm and lasted through the night until noon on July 31, 2016.

Fishing extended beyond state lines, but all tournament boats were required to launch in the State of Georgia. Anglers could launch their boats on the Coosa River or any of its tributaries. Weiss Lake in Alabama was legal waters as long as competitors followed the launch rules. Launch time was set for 6:00 pm on Saturday evening.

The best five fish tournament weigh-in was staged in the Kroger parking lot in downtown Rome. The scales opened at 10:00 pm July 30, 2016 and continued through the night until the final team weighed in.

Paul Blackwell from Anderson, SC and Kevin Breedlove from Clarksville Tennessee made the trip to Rome to fish the tournament. “The bite was awful,” reported Blackwell. “Water temps in the mid 90’s slowed things down. We were on good fish all night and could not get them to bite.”

The team caught one blue that weighed about 8 pounds, but later released it. Tournament anglers like Blackwell are very sensitive about the health of the fish they catch. “The oxygen level was low in the water and I didn’t want to take a chance on that fish dying,” said Blackwell.01_Harrison

The father/son team of George and David Harrison overcame the tough fishing conditions to take the lead in the Rome tournament at 3:05 am when they weighed in two big flatheads at 64.95 pounds. After their final weigh-in the team had amassed a total weight of 113.35 pounds to claim the first place spot.

Their 5 fish bag included the big fish of the tournament. David, from Tunnel Hill, GA, weighed in a handsome 40.5-pound flattie to take the big fish honors.

02_Gray_StephensonSecond place went to the Chatsworth, GA team of Brad Gray and Aaron Stephenson. They broke the 100-pound mark at 101.10 pounds. Their big fish weighed 40.30 pounds.

Third place in the Coosa River bout went to the husband/wife team of Lonnie and Dawn Fountain. “We used cut bait,” reported Dawn. “We tried our traditional skipjack, but as often is the case it did not work on this river. We went back to what we knew would work, cut white bass.”

03_FountainThe weather cooperated for the most part. “It came the normal 6 o’clock Georgia thunderstorm just as we were putting in at the boat ramp,” continued Dawn. “That didn’t last long, then it was great weather until it got scorching hot around 10 am. The fish mostly started biting right at dark then again right before daylight. We caught 6 blues and 1 striper. We also lost 3 big fish.”

Aaron Churchwell and Jake Herman came from Acworth, GA to catch their 5 fish limit. Their Coosa River stringer of 95.10 pounds came to the scales at 10:53 am and held up to claim the fourth place honors.

04Churchwell_Herman“Over all the fishing was tough,” said Churchwell. “The river had almost no flow to it, which is unusual for the Coosa, and it had a 92 degrees surface temp. We fished heavy structure with live and cut bream. We marked a lot of big fish, just couldn’t get very many of them to commit.”

“Eighteen hours is a long time on the water,” joked Churchwell. “Jake and I had to cover a lot of ground to catch the fish we did.”

Fourth place went to the Jasper, GA team of Donnie 05_Fountain_GarrettFountain and Grady Garrett. They were the last competitors to catch a 5 fish limit. Their fish weighed in at 35.75 pounds.

If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [28] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

The next tournament will be an individual One Pole Charity Tournament out of Mud Island River Park, Memphis, Tennessee on the Mississippi River. Anglers may only fish with one pole and weigh in only one fish. The entry fee is $100 and a canned food donation to the Memphis Food Bank. For details visit the BCA website [30].

For information on visiting the area you can browse the website at http://romegeorgia.org/ [31]

Cabela’s King Kat at Portsmouth goes to Dan Rothe and Alex Jenkins

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Flatheads and blue cats were the main targets for tournament anglers on the Ohio and Scioto Rivers near Portsmouth, OH. The Cabela’s King Kat [8] event attracted 39 boats from several states to compete for cash and prizes in the July 30 event.

Anglers were allowed to fish the Ohio River from the Meldahl Lock and Dam to the Greenup Lock and Dam. They could also fish the Scioto River up to the 348 Bridge at Lucasville.

Following a seminar and captains meeting at the Scioto County Welcome Center on Friday night, anglers could begin fishing at 6:30 am the following morning and continue fishing until 3:00 pm.

Tournament day started off with temperatures in the low 80’s, clouds and light rain. The skies cleared in the afternoon and temps rose to the high 80’s. Rains on Friday made the river muddy but didn’t affect fishing for most teams.

Well-known King Kat angler, Carl Morris Jr. didn’t mind the rising river. “We love to fish with the river rising,” reported Morris. “We had found a nice group of fish on Friday. We decided to anchor up and walk baits back to them in the current as opposed to drifting thru them. We caught a bunch of fish just not the right ones today.”

1st Rothe - Jenkins
First place went to Rothe and Jenkins

The right fish did come to the scales for Dan Rothe and Alex Jenkins from St. Marys, OH. They weighed in 93.66 pounds to earn $3,000.00 and claim first place honors. Rothe and Jenkins fished in the Portsmouth, OH area, moving up and down river to find fish. They felt the rains that came the night before actually helped them by adding current to the river.

Large skipjack was their bait of choice, with the majority of their fish coming from skipjack sides. They targeted fish in 20 feet of water on the main river ledge to catch a total of 9 fish for the day. Their Big Kat entry weighed 40.16 pounds and was fourth in the big fish competition.

2nd Raines - Vogler
Raines and Vogler claimed the second place honors.

The Manchester, OH team of Anthony Raines and Susie Vogler brought home the second place honors with 89.92 pounds. Their stringer earned, the soon to be married team, a cash award of $1,500.00. Raines and Volger fished their home waters on the Meldahl pool near Manchester, OH.

In a spirit of good sportsmanship Raines and Volger filmed and released a 50 pound plus fish that was getting weak. They wanted that fish to live and be caught again. Protecting trophy cats is obviously high on their conservation agenda.

They tried drifting but were not getting the results they hoped for so they anchored up in 40 to 50 feet of water where they caught a total of 6 fish for the day. They used both skipjack and shad for bait, but noted that their bigger fish came off of skipjack heads. “We anchored today, but the water conditions were perfect for drifting,” added Raines.

Third place went to Nick Conaway and Scott Vice, both from Lucasville, OH. They weighed in a total of 86.86 pounds that included the Big Kat of the tournament at 44.46 pounds. Conaway and Vice targeted fish in the Shawnee State Park area of the Ohio River just a few miles downriver from Portsmouth. They were drift fishing in 20 to 30 feet of water using skipjack, mostly heads, to earn $800 for third place and $900 for Big Kat.

Third place and Big Kat winners Conaway and Vice.
Third place and Big Kat winners Conaway and Vice.

Willie Smith and Nick Anderson claimed the fourth place spot. The Frankfort, OH team weighed four quality fish to pull the scales to 86 pounds and earn $600.00. Their fish came early on what turned out to be a tough day on the water with no fish to come to the boat following those first four.

They fished from an Alumacraft 2072 using skipjack and shad. Like many other competitors the skipjack heads produced best. Smith and Anderson targeted fish in the Portsmouth area in 20 feet of water.

Fifth place winners Pack and Moore.
Fifth place winners Pack and Moore.

 

Curtis Moore from Columbus, OH and Bradley Peck from Monroe, OH teamed up to bring 85.88 pounds to the scales to earn $400.00. and fifth place. Moore and Peck used skipjack in 35 to 50 feet of water to catch 6 fish for the day. They fished downriver between Maysville and Twin Island.

Sixth place went to the Scioto Furnace, OH team of Tom Miller and Ken Craft. They weighed 71.16 pounds to earn $300 dollars on the rising and muddy river.

Miller and Craft finished in sixth place.
Miller and Craft finished in sisth place.

Tournament director, Jeremy Coe, gave a special thank you to the Portsmouth – Scioto County Visitors Bureau [32] for hosting the event and allowing King Kat to use the visitors center for the captains meeting. “It was a rough first year in 2015 with flooding and bad weather,” said Coe. “Conditions definitely improved this year and it turned out to be a great tournament. We saw a lot of quality Ohio River blue cats, which is what Portsmouth is known for.”

The next King Kat event will be on the Mississippi River at Covington, TN on August 6, 2016.

For more results, photos and recognitions click on www.kingkatusa.com [10] or visit the Cabela’s King Kat Facebook Page [11].

BCQ heads for Georgia’s Rome on the Coosa River

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Rome Georgia is one of those great places where even strangers feel at home. Georgia’s Rome oozes with southern hospitality. Of course there is a famous one in Italy and another in New York, but the folks in northwest Georgia like to call their city “Georgia’s Rome [33]” to distinguish it from the others. Distinguishable it is.

 

The Coosa River offers fun for all ages.

That southern hospitality will be on display on July 30 and 31 when the Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest [34] (BCQ) comes to town. Travelling anglers are welcomed by the local anglers, but nothing is held back when the competition starts. It is a known fact that the locals know the water better and are likely to end up in the winner’s circle.

The BCQ chose Rome because of the good catfishing in the Coosa River. Ken Freeman, event organizer described the Rome event as a grassroots series that culminates at the end of the year in a national tournament to crown a champion.

“The thing about this tournament,” explained Freeman, “is that we provide a small town atmosphere where local anglers are able to participate in a national event and possibly qualify for a national championship. It also helps to get the towns involved in the bigger picture of promoting catfishing.”

The three-time BCQ Angler of the Year says it short and sweet. “I love to fish the Coosa River at Rome,” declared Larry Muse. “The Coosa has a nice slow current and very laid back fishing. The local anglers are tough dedicated anglers. They will provide plenty of tough and top notch competition at the tournament. Rome always treats the anglers well and welcomes them with open arms. There are a lot of nice folks there in Rome.”

If last year is any indication, flathead catfish will likely be in the mix for the winner. Team Boatwright won the 2015 affair with more than 90 pounds of Coosa River flatheads. The family team of Troy, Angie and Dylan Boatwright plied last year’s murky waters to claim the first place honors with 91.55 pounds. It was the first time a BCQ tournament had been won with all flatheads.

Then, interestingly enough, the second place team of Kenneth Williams and Aaron Churchill also weighed in all flatheads. They had a five fish stringer that weighed 74.5 pounds. Anglers just may want to have some live or fresh cut bream on hand for this year’s tournament.

The third place in 2015 was the father/son team of George and David Harrison. Their five fish weighed 65.6 pounds. George and David won the Big Cat Quest in Rome in 2014. If they fish this year they will sure be tough competition.

Fourth Place and big fish went to Donnie Fountain and Jeremy Stoker last year. They had five fish that weighed 63.90 pounds. They won big fish honors with a 32.55-pound blue catfish. Fountain, like many other anglers, like cut skipjack for bait except on the Coosa. On the Coosa he prefers shad.

Donnie’s twin brother Lonnie Fountain was in the catfishing news recently. Fishing with Jonathan Long, he won the BCQ Apalachicola River event near Blountstown, FL with 186.30 pounds. Those Fountain boys are always factors to contend with. Congrats to Lonnie and Jonathan on the win.  

Anglers must launch their boats on the Coosa River and/or its tributaries in the state of Georgia. Launch time is 6:00 PM Saturday. Anglers are allowed to fish in Weiss Lake in Alabama and other Bama’ waters but must launch in the state of Georgia.

Registration for the Best Five Fish tournament will be held on July 30, 2016 (day of the tournament) from 2:00 PM until launch time at 6:00 PM. Registration and weigh-in will be held at the Kroger Parking lot, 1476 Turner McCall Blvd., Rome, Georgia 30161. The scales will open at 10:00 PM on Saturday, July 30, 2016. All teams must be in line by 1:00 PM on July 31, 2016.

The Host Hotel is the Quality Inn. Call 1-(706)-291-7797 for lodging reservations. The facility has double parking spaces and hookups for some boats (these are limited). The hotel is located at 40 Grace Dr SE, Rome, GA 30161.

Underlining what others say about Rome, Freeman commented, “There is no better people to work with in the USA. From the largest city we visit to the smallest place we go, Rome is a first class act. It is a great place for anyone to stop in for a visit while travelling, or better yet make it a destination.”

If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [28] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

For information on visiting the area you can browse the website at Georgia’s Rome [31].

Big Catfish Tip from Cindy Stokes

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Big Catfish Tips is a series of tips and techniques for catching more catfish. Today’s tip comes from Cindy Stokes. Her tip relates to how preparation before the trip can improve the final outcome.  

Preparation Pays

Cindy and her husband Lyle Stokes have been tournament fishing as partners for 12 years. Lyle is well known in catfish circles as co-host, with Chuck Davidson, on the Catfish Weekly Online TV show [35].

Cindy enjoys catfishing because of what Larry Muse has called the OOOH factor. “I like the thrill of seeing how big the fish is when you reel it in.,” said Cindy. “I also enjoy meeting old and new friends at tournaments. They become family.”011__Photo_Big_Catfish_Tip_Cindy_Stokes

Cindy follows a regular routine before her next fishing trip with several major elements of preparation. “To prepare for our fishing trip, whether it’s for fun or a tournament, the first thing I do is check maps on Google to find some structure and contour. The locations found on the maps give us a starting place to check out and possibly fish.”

Next, Cindy turns her attention to naturally occurring bait in the area. Once discovered, she concentrates on finding a source of bait for the time of her trip. Sometimes it is a matter of catching bait and other times it a simple process of purchasing the best bait for the area.

An equipment check comes next. Rods, reels, line and terminal tackle need to be checked. “Check out all of your equipment and make sure it is ready to go,” advises Cindy.

An often overlooked preparation and follow up is not overlooked by Cindy. “Make sure you have sunscreen. You don’t want a bad burn from being out on the boat all day. I have a niece that has melanoma and we need to take precaution when in the sun all day. Also check your skin and watch for any place that is questionable and get it checked out”.

From this point on it’s simple. “Have fun and don’t forget to put the plug in boat,” joked Cindy.

Fountain and Long win Florida Big Cat Quest on the Apalachicola River with nearly 190 pounds

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The first catfish came to the scales just before midnight in Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest [28] on the Apalachicola River near Blountstown, FL on Saturday July 16, 2016.

Those first fish were weighed in at Neal Landing by Eddie Huey, Bremen GA and Kevin Breedlove, Opelika, AL. They had 3 fish weighing 70.50 pounds that include a big fish of 25 pounds. The weigh-in continued throughout the night until the contest ended at noon on Sunday.

First place went to Lonnie Fountain and Jonathon Long. Fountain is shown here with one of their cats.

When the scales closed it was Lonnie Fountain of Jasper, GA and Jonathon Long of Talking Rock, GA claiming the first place honors. The GA team had a 5 fish limit that weighed 186.40 pounds. 

“I usually drift fish,” said Fountain. “This river is so shallow though it is hard to drift. It might be 20 feet deep one minute and 2 feet the next. We were just looking for deep holes to anchor up on and fish. Most of our fish came from 10 to 20 feet of water.” 

“We caught about 9 fish for the tournament,” added Fountain. “We used skipjack for bait on a regular Carolina rig. We moved around. We would stop at a place and catch a fish then move on somewhere else and catch another one.” 

Second Place went to the Florida team of Catfish Ronnie and Ed Turk. Their five fish weighed 154.45 pounds. 

“The fish were coming out of deep holes and feeding shallow,” reported Catfish Ronnie. “It was less than 30 minutes that we had our first fish in the boat. We did not want to travel on this low river at night so we motored up river about 5 miles and set up on a section of the river that I usually catch a lot of good fish on. We caught 2 more fish there. The rest of the night we just kept fishing, pretty much everywhere. We got lucky and added a 35 and a 38 to finish out our total.” 

Second Place went to Catfish Ronnie and Ed Turk.
Second Place went to Catfish Ronnie and Ed Turk. Photo courtesy Jerry Lovett.

“The most interesting thing to me was how many fish were released after the tournament,” added Catfish Ronnie. “Down here in Florida they don’t always release them. Big cats are often looked at as a nuisance fish because they eat the bream. I was glad to see them released.” 

“It started out pretty bad for us. We headed for our honey hole and when we got there someone else was already on it. So, we went down river one bend and caught fish. God has his hand on us,” chuckled Turk. 

“We caught our first fish by 6:30 pm, before it ever got dark,” continued Turk. “Then we caught fish all night, probably about an hour apart. By 2:00 in the morning we had 4 fish and at 2:30 we caught our big fish that weighed 38 pounds.” 

“Everything we caught were blue cats. We caught em’ on cut skipjack on a Carolina rig in anywhere from 12 to 24 feet deep. I give all the credit to my fishing partner, Catfish Ronnie,” concluded Turk. “He put us on the fish.” 

Third place honors went to the hometown team of Bill Steward and Jamie Lee with 126.55 pounds.  

Third place went to the hometown team of Bill Steward and Jamie Lee with 126.55 pounds.
Third place went to the hometown team of Bill Steward and Jamie Lee with 126.55 pounds.

“We were pleasantly surprised with the tournament,” said Kristy H. Terry, Executive Director of the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce [36]. “We had a lot of local participation and we had one of our local anglers place high in the event. We were very pleased to have all these great fishermen come and fish our river.”

“There were some good fish caught,” continued Terry. “They were fun to watch. I think they were fun to catch. There is a lot to be said by those numbers of fish that were caught.”

The decision to bring the BCQ back next year has already been made. “Everyone can mark their calendar,” concluded Terry. “We will be hosting the tournament back here on the Apalachicola River next year, in the last weekend in July.” 

 If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [28] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

For information on visiting the area you can browse the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce Website [37]

Big Cat Quest Tournament underway on the Apalachicola River in Florida

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The boat ramp around the Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest (BCQ) trailer was brimming with activity on Saturday, July 16, 2016. Catfish anglers were registering and launching for an overnight encounter with whiskered critters of the Apalachicola River [37]. This is Ken Freeman’s first visit to Florida with the BCQ Tournament Trail.

Locals described the river as low and indicated anglers should be extra cautious as they navigate to their favorite fishing holes. There are plenty of exposed sandbars in the river right now and that means there are plenty of unexposed ones too.

One local and knowledgably angler, Jim Whaley, past president of the National Catfish Association, was on hand for the tournament. “The river right now is on two foot,” said Whaley. “It’s gonna’ be steady, not rising. We are not going to get any rain. This river used to stay on 12 feet, it was normal river at 12 feet. If it got down to 6 feet we thought, it was low. Now, Atlanta and all the places are pulling the water out and the river stays at about two foot.”Big Cat Quest Tournament underway on the Apalachicola River in Florida

Two local anglers, one of which is Whaley reported that they were going to target flatheads in the tournament.

“We scouted our places out and we are gonna’ flathead fish,” suggested Whaley. “I think a lot of these anglers are going to go for the blues and the channel cats, but we think the flatheads are a bigger fish and they are easier to catch.”

“Basically we are going to fish all night,” continued Whaley. “We are going to have a hook in the water from 6:00 o’clock until the time we have to leave. Our boats are lit up and we are ready to go. Fishing ends at noon on Sunday and we have to head for the weigh-in station.”

“If you catch a fish during the night that you want to weigh, Freeman is opening the scales at 10:00 o’clock PM and all the way to the end. That is a good conservation measure if you have a fish in trouble. They won’t weigh a dead fish.”

“We have had some good tournaments down here,” claimed Whaley. “There are a lot of good fishermen in the area. They really know how to fish and the competition is going to be stiff. These out of town boys have got a big challenge on their hands. The local guys are gonna’ bring some fish in, their ain’t no doubt. I think it will take a 120 pounds of fish to win this thing. There ain’t no second place,” said Whaley. “We come down here to win this thing.”

Guy Nichols, Jr., another local angler will be fishing the tournament with his dad, Guy Nichols. They are also choosing to target flatties.

“We are going to start on the river on the other side of Blountstown,” said Guy Jr. “We are going to fish all the way from the boat ramp at Stiff and Ugly back here to the weigh-in site.”

“We will rig up with 6 to 8 ounce sinkers because some of the holes we fish are pretty swift,” reported Nichols. “You are going to have to be able to keep that bait down. A lot of people use a rig where the sinker is at the bottom and the hook is on top. We rig just the opposite. We actually fish with the sinker above the hook because we have found that we get better hook ups that way and we catch more flatheads that way.” 

Nichols uses a three-way swivel with a bait line on one eye and the hook line on the other. “For this tournament we are going to have two poles set up with decent size bream and we will have one really, really big bream on another pole. That way if a big one swims by and he’s hungry he will pick it up.”

“Two of those poles will catch any fish and the other one will hopefully catch something big. We have been prefishing and we have not had a lot of luck with the bluecats. We have caught some 20- to 25-pounders, decent fish, but if you are catching 35 and 40 pound flatheads that is gonna’ be your target,” said Nichols.

“I enjoy catfishing and I have devoted a lot of effort into it,” concluded Whaley. “We are really proud of Ken Freeman for bringing this tournament in here and think it is going to be very big and grow in the future. If it is good this year it will be really big next year.”

If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [28] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

For information on visiting the area you can browse the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce Website [37]

Epilogue: As of this writing Lonnie Fountain of Jasper, GA and Jonathon Long of Talking Rock GA weighed in two fish just after midnight. The two fished weighed 92.10 pounds. (See Photo)

ICAST Cup – the beginning

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Billed as the world’s largest sportfishing trade show, it never fails to deliver. For the second year in a row the festivities began with the ICAST Cup and ICAST on the water.

The ICAST Cup is a fishing event that pairs FLW anglers with an ICAST exhibitor and a media fishing partner. I was fortunate to be on the boat with local FLW angler Ken Lucas. Ken claims Lake Toho as his home waters so I expected to catch some Toho Bass.

My fishing partner from the exibitor ranks was Kevin Bennett, president of Lithium Pro Batteries [38], Kevin’s maintenance free batteries are the perfect fit for marine applications because they can do everything a lead acid battery can do only faster and they are only 1/3 the weight of lead acid alternatives.

Ken’s Phoenix Diamond V was entered as boat number 54 which qued us up for a flight 2 launch at 6:45 from Big Toho Marina. The quite morning water of Toho erupted into a line of boat wakes and bumpy rides as competitors shot off in every direction in search of Toho bass.

Kevin caught the first bass to get us started.
Kevin caught the first bass to get us started.

 

Ken ran for a pretty good distance before pulling up on the first spot. He gave us some expert instruction on the bait we were using and the way to present it to warm weather Toho bass. Then he gave a prediction. “This is one of many spots we will have to hit today,” explained Ken. “Summer fishing and the warm water will make the bite tough. We will visit as many spots as we need to catch a good bag. Some of these guys are going to find out just how tough hot weather fishing is on Toho.”

Ken’ prediction was right on and it did turn out to be a tough bite. Nevertheless, it did not take Kevin long to put the first fish in the net and take the stink off the boat. We were fishing Peter T rigs with a dark purple worm. A slow drag across offshore structure was the ticket to a respectable bag by the end of the day. I managed to contribute a 20-inch fish and a couple smaller ones to our 5 fish bag that we would take to the weigh-in. We visited 10 to 20 of those offshore structure spots to produce our 13 pound plus bag. That weight was good for a top ten finish as we claimed the 7th place spot.

The weigh-in line at the FLW trailer was lined with anglers holding fish bags in aerated holding tanks. FLW goes the extra mile to care for and release fish back into the lake. The tanks hold a large quantity of water and individual hoses that anglers place directly in their bag to resuscitate the fish. There is one goal at the end of the day, that’s to get the fish back in the water for someone else to catch another day.

Following ICAST Cup was ICAST on the water. A large contingency of exhibitors gave visitors a preview to what they would find in their booths at ICAST the following days. Later that day I attended the New Product Showcase where the new and innovative products were displayed. Visitors to the showcase were given a ballot to vote for their favorite new product. Final results of the voting will be posted soon.

The next event is the big show itself. I will be to Orlando to check out what’s new in the fishing industry for 2016. I will be reporting some of the best of the best here in ODU Magazine.

Blue catfish will be targeted at BCQ tourney in Calhoun County, FL

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The announcement of a catfish tournament in Calhoun County, FL [37] is raising the excitement level of local and traveling catfish anglers. For weekend road warriors it is an opportunity to visit and fish in Florida, something almost anyone likes to experience. For local anglers the tournament is a good way to showcase Florida catfishing which is getting better year by year.

"Catfish Ronnie" with a nice blue cat.
“Catfish Ronnie” with a nice blue cat.

In an earlier release it was suggested that the primary fishing would be for flathead catfish. Evidence suggests that there are plenty of the flatties available for catching, but responses from local angers suggested they won’t be the only target. There are also big blues roaming the tournament waters which stretch from Woodruff Dam at Chattahoochee all the way to Apalachicola.

“The water at the tournament boat ramp is not tidal,” said local angler Ronnie Dixon (AKA “Catfish Ronnie”). Dixon lives in Cypress, FL, just about 10 minutes from the river. “As you move closer to the Gulf the river is tidal. Anglers should bring plenty of bait and fish the Apalachicola just like they fish any other river.”

Dixon has plenty of experience on the Apalachicola. “I’ve been hitting the Apalachicola every weekend for about 10 years now,” continued Dixon. “The fish seem to be getting bigger and bigger. More anglers are practicing catch and release. The practice is having an impact on the fishery. I think releases of 80 and 90 pounders will become more common in a few short years.”

Tournament hours include both day and night fishing. Dixon differentiates between daylight and nighttime fishing. “If I am targeting blues at night, I like to set up across from sandbars or flats,” explained Dixon. “The big blues travel from deeper water to shallow at night to feed. During the day I’ll set up on ledges and deep holes.”

Dixon fishes by the “big bait, big fish” rule. “My theory is that big bait catches big fish, so big chunks of skipjack and shad are my go-to baits. I rig Shimano Reels on 7 foot American Spirit Nite-Stiks [39].”

“This river has a lot of snags,” warned Dixon. “I spool up with 50- to 100-pound braid. This allows me to get my sinkers back when snagged. I use 80-pound leader and 10/0 circle hooks with a float on the leader to keep the bait off the bottom.”

Dixon also offered one piece of safety advice. “Use caution while you are running the river. The Apalachicola does get shallow in spots.”Catfish_Ronnie_featufed

The overnight event [28] will be staged on July 16 and 17, 2016. It begins at 6:00 PM on the 16th and ends at noon the next day. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the weigh-in at Neal Landing, 15929 SE River St, Blountstown, FL. The scales will open at 10:00 AM, but most of the check-ins are expected to be closer to the end of fishing around noon.

Trailering is allowed, but fishing must end at noon and anglers must have their boats on the trailer and in the weigh-in line no later than 1 PM on Sunday or be disqualified.

Lodging accommodations have been arranged with the Microtel by Wyndham [40] at 4959 Whitetail Drive, Marianna, FL. Call 850-526-5005 to make a reservation. They are offering a special Big Cat Quest tournament rate.

Kristy H. Terry, Executive Director Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce [36] offered a special welcome to anglers and guests to Calhoun County. “We are proud to host the tournament and look forward to welcoming participants to Calhoun County. We are rich in natural resources here and the Apalachicola River is our life blood. Events like the Big Cat Quest support our eco-tourism goals and benefit our local economy. We invite all guests to #shopcalco while here, and enjoy your time in Calhoun County!”

Mark your calendar and come to the weigh-in on Sunday, July 17th. The scales are likely to be heavy with big flathead and blue catfish. It will be exciting to see who the first BCQ Florida Champion will be.

If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [28] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

For information on visiting the area you can browse the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce Website [37].

Photos courtesy “Catfish Ronnie” Dixon.

BCQ catfish tournament trail travels to Calhoun County, Florida

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The Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce has a new listing on their Calendar of Events. For the first time ever the Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest (BCQ) will bring their tournament trail to Florida. Local and area catfish anglers will have the opportunity to test their skills against some of the best travelling catfish anglers in the business. Interestingly enough, the local anglers usually have the best chance of winning because of their knowledge of local waters.

BCQ catfish tournament trail travels to Calhoun County, Florida

This year’s tour will visit Tennessee, Virginia, Mississippi, Georgia, Illinois, Alabama, Missouri and Texas. Calhoun County is the only Florida stop on the schedule. The Florida stop is part of a grassroots tournament schedule that makes up a national catfishing trail.

“BCQ creates competitions in various cities and towns where local anglers are able to participate,” explained tournament organizer Ken Freeman. “Participation by the local anglers gives them a chance to qualify for the national championship later in the year. The tournament also gives the towns an opportunity to get involved in the bigger picture of promoting the growing sport of catfishing.”

The overnight event will be staged on July 16 and 17, 2016. It begins at 6:00 PM on the 16th and ends at noon the next day. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the weigh-in at Neal Landing, 15929 SE River St, Blountstown, FL.

Three-time BCQ Angler of the Year, Larry Muse, recognizes the advantage of local anglers and views the Calhoun County competition as a challenge. “I’m going to approach fishing in Florida like any new place,” suggested Muse. “I will show up with skipjack and try to feed it to something big. I’ll be depending on my ability to think on my feet and adjust to local conditions to pull off a good finish.”

“BCQ has never been in Florida,” continued Muse. “We have been near, but Eufaula Alabama is as close as I know of. The nighttime part is what will probably beat me because I don’t fish at night. I’m sure I’ll find something to fish that I like. I love a good challenge and Calhoun County will probably be a good one.”

Although Florida is not known for big blue cats, it has a growing reputation for good flathead fishing. Florida anglers like Glenn Flowers are constantly fishing for the big flatheads and showing others what Florida has to offer.

Flowers even goes live on Facebook occasionally with one of his nighttime exploits in search of big flatties. He also operates websites [41] that help catfish anglers learn more about the sport. The passion of anglers like Muse and Flowers are helping propel the sport of catfishing to new and higher levels.

Registration will take place July 16, 2016 (day of the tournament) from 2 PM to 6 PM. Look for the Bass Pro weigh-in trailer at Neal Landing in Blountstown. The weigh-in will take place at the same location on Sunday with scales opening at 10 PM.

Trailering will be allowed for anglers to fish the stretch of river from Woodruff Dam at Chattahoochee all the way to Apalachicola. The overnight fishing ends at noon and anglers must have their boats on the trailer and in the weigh-in line no later than 1 PM on Sunday or be disqualified.

Lodging accommodations have been arranged with the Microtel by Wyndham at 4959 Whitetail Drive, Marianna, FL. Call 850-526-5005 to make a reservation. They are offering a special Big Cat Quest tournament rate.

Kristy H. Terry, Executive Director Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce [36] invites everyone out to witness and welcome the first BCQ tournament to Florida. Mark your calendar and come to the weigh-in on Sunday, July 17th. You just might see the catfish of a lifetime.

If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [28] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

For information on visiting the area you can browse the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce Website [37]

ICAST Must See – MOB+

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With ICAST just around the corner and a recent family boating outing over the 4th of July Holiday I have been having thoughts about water safety. Precious family, kids and friends deserve the best protection we can give them.  Personal flotation devices and common sense on the water are givens, but in this digital world we live in, what new products might be coming to enhance boating safety?

side-view-with-specs

One booth I won’t miss at ICAST is the FELL Marine Booth, #4060. They will be introducing the MOB+ to industry reps and media. MOB, of course, stands for Man Over Board. The + refers to a wireless cut-off switch which adds the ultimate in safety to any boating excursion. Think about it. No human action is needed to start the process of recovering a boat driver from the water.

The set up requires two basic devices to help insure boater safety. One device is installed on the boat and the other is worn as a wristband by the boat driver. Activation is as simple as touching the control one time to pair the two devices. The result is and automatic signal to cut the engine when the wristband hits the water. 

Lanyard Life Style Photo

It sounds simple and it is. With the engine killed the boat will not travel far from the man overboard. The MOB+ allows the passengers on board to restart the engine, regain control and rescue the person in the water. Restart is available after only 6 seconds of the initial kill signal.

The same scenario occurs if the wearer of the wristband ends up 50 feet away from the boat, in the water or not. The engine can once again be started in 6 seconds and a rescue effort can be put in place.

If for some reason the captain does need to go ashore briefly a simple touch and hold of the MOB+ will put the device in MOOR Mode for 2 minutes. After that time, it will automatically reconnect when the wristband comes back in range of the boat.5-ring

At the end of the day you can deactivate the connection with one simple click and then reactivate the system when you return on another day.

Regardless of the focus of your boating and fishing activities there is nothing more important than a safe return to the dock. Products like the MOB+ will support your activities on the water at the highest level of boating safety. Make your family, friends and other passengers on your boat a high priority and check out the new MOB+ from FELL Marine.

It is going to be quite interesting to see this new product demonstrated at ICAST. Many in the media look forward to this time of year when the best of the best products make their way to market after an introduction at ICAST. Bookmark your favorite blogs and webpages were you can expect to gain more information on the new products that will improve your boating and fishing activities.

You can check out a video of this new digital innovation in boating safety by clicking here [42] or you can visit their website at fellmarine.com [43].

 

 

Larry Muse dedicates BCQ catfish tourney win to Paul Strouth

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Anglers fishing the Bass Pro Shops Big Cat Quest (BCQ [27]) launched under rainy conditions and expectations of storms throughout the day in Jefferson City, MO. The July 2, 2016 fishing was scheduled for the Missouri River and its tributaries. Any fishing waters reachable by boat from the tournament launch site at Carl R. Noren Missouri River Access in North Jefferson City were permitted. The launch is also known as Wilson’s Serenity Point. The weigh-in was at the same location.

Larry Muse dedicates BCQ catfish tourney win to Paul Strouth

Anglers could begin fishing at 6:00 a.m. and continue until 3:00 p.m.  All boats were required to be on trailers and in the weigh-in line no later than 4:00 p.m.

Larry Muse dedicates BCQ catfish tourney win to Paul Strouth

The wet weather continued and by weigh-in time the angles were soaked from the daylong pounding rain.  It was a tough and challenging day on the water.

It was a family affair in the winner’s circle. “This was Pop’s first tournament after having heart surgery,” reported Larry Muse. Pop is Larry’s stepdad and longtime tournament partner, Frank Meador. “He did just fine, but he was soaked to the bone.” Larry’s other fishing partner was his stepbrother Dino Meador.

The three-time BCQ Angler of the Year lead his team to the first place win using Gen 2 Warrior Cat Bumping Rods [44]. “It was a tough bite,” said Muse. “It was thick here with fish in the early spring, but I think they may have migrated towards St. Louis. They don’t all leave, but I didn’t mark a lot of fish. I found one little stretch that had some fish and they were hard to get a bait to.”

Muse was referring to the fishing conditions of the Missouri River. “The Missouri River is kinda’ like the Mississippi River,” described Muse. “It has a ripping current and is always a little dingy. It wasn’t like chocolate milk, but it wasn’t far from it. We bumped bottom all day long using 6-ounce sinkers to get what we did. We tried to control the boat speed at about a mile and a half per hour.”

“I was really pleased with the new Gen 2 Warrior Cat Bumping Rod,” offered Muse. “It caught our biggest fish and most of our fish. The weather was awful. It started raining about 9:00 this morning and every thread on us is wet.”

Muse, Frank and Dino Meador, all from Corinth, MS, claimed the first place honors with a total weight of 53.49 pounds. Their big fish of the day was 24.37 pounds.

At the end of the day Muse’s thoughts went to his friend and competitor, Paul Strouth. His recent passing has a huge portion of the catfish community in mourning. “I would just like to dedicate this win to Paul,” said Muse. “Paul Strouth will be missed.”

Larry Muse dedicates BCQ catfish tourney win to Paul StrouthSecond place (picture to the right) went to Clint Geslin, Brunswick, MO and Marty Darrah from Lee’s Summit, MO. They weighed in 51.79 pounds that included the big fish of the day at 30.10 pounds.

“Rain, rain, and a few catfish,” said Geslin. “Unfortunately we only weighed 4 fish. We lost our 5th weigh-in fish on the way to the ramp. We were fishing rock banks on the current side using cut shad. We were anchored up fishing 9 to 14 feet down on 20- to 30-feet deep banks. We were fishing on the slope of the rocks. We did walk a few baits from the anchored position with very little success.”

Larry Muse dedicates BCQ catfish tourney win to Paul StrouthThe third place prize (pictured to the left) went to Boomer Wilson and John Spatafora or Jefferson City, MO. They weighed in a total of 49.11 pounds. Their big fish of the day was 14.79 pounds. They also reported a slow bite. They caught their fish walking baits. Equipment failure threw a monkey wrench into their strategy and caused them to revert to old fashion methods. 

“It was a very tough bite,” reported Spatafora. “We only had 2 fish by 1:30 and caught 6 more by 3:00. We fished channel ledges most of the day, but found most of the fish around trail dikes. Unfortunately, our trolling motor stopped working about the time we figured the fish out.”

“Losing that trolling motor made it a frustrating end to the day,” continued Spatafora. “We were moving the entire time when the trolling motor went out. We pulled the anchor backwards to slow our drift, but had limited boat control. It was still somewhat effective.”

Fourth place went to Danny Salfen from Owensville, MO and Keff Schultz of Florestell. Their big fish weighed 18.46 pounds and their total was 34.48 pounds.

Larry Muse dedicates BCQ catfish tourney win to Paul StrouthJefferson City residents Chris Goff and Paul Henry pulled in the fifth place prize. They had a big fish of 20.53 pounds and a total weight of 28.40 pounds. (pictured to the right)

“We had lots of rain and storms in the area all day,” reported tournament organizer Ken Freeman. “Everyone came back safe and most with fish. The cool down in temp to 70 degrees for the high has been wonderful.”

“We had the use of first class facilities and first class folk here at Jefferson City,” continued Freeman. “This is a great place to visit for a day of entertainment regardless of what you are doing. It could be fishing, taking in a scenic boat or canoe ride, or enjoying some great music. Jefferson City offers great food and fun for the entire family or couple! I want to publicly thank Chris and his staff for everything. This has been a great tournament stop.”

If you have any questions about BCQ contact Ken Freeman at 731-234-1888. Follow the BCQ Website [45] and the BCQ Facebook Page [29] for more information, updates, results and photos from the tournament.

For information on visiting the area you can browse the Jefferson City Tourism Website [46]

By ODU Contributor Capt. Ron Presley

Photo Credit: All photos are from Big Cat Quest