Sometimes 9 Pounds is Enough

The Tin Can gave me a sad look when I headed out to the shop to get ready to
fish The Working Man today. I gave into its sad puppy dog gunnels and moved
the truck from in front of the cat and hooked up The Tin Can.

I got a rude phone call from a vendor just as I started fishing. They cost
me a job (and a client) a while back by putting me off and putting me off on
some materials, and then finally admitted they could not deliver. I quit
doing business with them, and they tried to make like it was somehow my
fault. I tried to be polite and get back to my fishing, but the caller was
pushy and ticked me off before I finally hung up on them (the curse of
owning your own business is you really do have to answer the phone). It
upset me, and I missed the first five bites I got in two different places.

Finally I was able to forget it and focus back on my fishing. Not long
after that I stuck a 3 plus pitching a plastic into a pocket right at a
transitional spot. I tried to focus on that sort of spot, and it was
getting late. At the next similar transition I tagged a 2 pounder (it was
exactly 2.00 pounds at the scale and won the 2 pound pot). I had a feeling
the spot would produce more fish. I flipped 4 more bass within ten feet of
the first one. Three of them were keepers. Just 13.5 to 14 inch fish, but
keepers.

The light level was rapidly falling and I was starting to get desperate for
fish number 5. I worked a popper across a large opening between two tulie
patches and got a violent explosion, but the fish didn't hook up. I worked
the area carefully with the big popper, but it would not hit again. Then I
tried a smaller popper. I got a big loop on the reel after the first cast,
and broke the line trying to pull out the loop. The heck with it. It was
too dark to try and get it and retie, so I picked up my frog rod and cast
over the same spot were I had gotten the blow up earlier on the popper.
(extra heavy, extra fast flipping stick) I got a blow up just as the frog
came over the same spot. Kaploosh! I gave it a second to make sure it had
the bait, dropped the rod, reeled up the slack, and set the hook. CRACK!
My rod snapped just above the front grip. Not even a splinter, but complete
compound fracture. I dropped the butt section and grabbed for the front
section, and then hand over handed up the broken rod to grab the line
directly. I dragged the line and and hoped. As the line straightened out I
realized the fish was still hooked up. Cool. I was able to drag in the
line and land keeper number five in the dark without benefit of a rod. Woo!
Hoo! It was a 13.5 inch fish. ;^) LOL

I spent the next ten minutes trying to untangle rods, and line in the dark
and was finally able to get a working rod free to spend my last few minutes
chunking a big popper hoping for one more bite before heading in.

Funny thing is a I knew I only had 8 or 9 pounds, and didn't think I had a
chance of taking any checks. Still I felt good about the evening. I got
over an upset with a lousy vendor, caught some fish, and even landed one in
the face of adversity. I figured I'ld go make sure nobody had a bag and
then just dump my fish. When I came up nobody had even weighed a limit yet.
Ok. I weighed my fish. My 2 pound entry came in at exactly 2.00 pounds.
Worst I could do on that one was tie. I sure didn't expect to get big fish
with a 3 and a half pound fish, and I definitely didn't expect to win with
8.99 pounds, but I swept all three pots. 1st place, big fish, and closest
fish to 2 pounds.

Just goes to show you. Always weigh your fish.

P.S. It was only a $50 dollar flipping stick, so I can afford to replace it
after tonight.

Bob La Londe
www.YumaBassMan.com

Tournament Director
www.YumaProAm.com