Finding the allure of lures
Staff writer
It read like a Dr. Seuss book: biggest fish, smallest fish, most fish, first fish.
Rather than the opening to a jaunty story about cats in hats, however, those were categories local anglers competed in during Saturday’s crappie fishing competition at the county lake.
The annual tournament began at 7 a.m.
Twenty-four fishermen and one fisherwoman turned out to compete.
Most of the “fun” of the tournament comes from the fact that anglers are allowed to fish only on the heated dock, which is not very big.
“Everyone’s packed in there,” lake manager Isaac Hett said. “It’s a zoo. People are shoulder to shoulder.”
The crowd was such that a couple of anglers dared to fish on the unheated dock terrace despite cold conditions.
Crappie fishing is a marathon rather than a sprint. The contest lasted for four hours, until 11 a.m.
Anglers sipped copious amounts of coffee and energy drinks.
Complimentary donuts and buns, set up on a side table, were consumed at a slower pace.
Chatter was constant as anglers traded jokes about ex-wives and ribbed each other about the size of their fish.
“It’s not super competitive,” Hett said.
While the most prestigious award of the tournament is most crappie caught, a handful of dock regulars competed in a side pot for bluegill.
Jeremy Bialek won the pot with 27, having caught the majority on the terrace.
Contestants reported a good amount of bites, though rates weaned in the final hour.
“There were at least 100 caught here today,” Rick Myers, who measured and tallied crappie, said.
At 11 a.m., competitors filed into the lake hall for pizza, the awards ceremony, and more banter.
Marion bait shop Rally Time Jigs — owned by dock regular Lane Peterson — sponsored the tournament, donating lure boxes and gift certificates for raffle and prize winners.
Suggestions for what the money raised from the raffle should be used for included a second heated dock and a loft above the dock so anglers could sleep there.
Marty Roberts caught the smallest crappie, 6¾ inches long.
J.R. Morris caught the first fish of the day.
Each received $50 and a handful of free lures from Rally Time.
The biggest crappie came in at 12¼ inches and was caught by Ricky Rosenbaum.
Tyler Redford caught the most crappie with 23. The fish had a cumulative length of 186¾ inches.
Rosenbaum and Redford each received $75 and a $25 Rally Time gift certificate.
“It went very well,” Hett said. “It wasn’t the most fish ever caught, but it was up there.”
Participants agreed.
“Good food, good fishing, good company — you can’t go wrong,” Bialek said.