Tri-City Lunkers  

Lake Piru

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote that "a weed is a plant whose virtue has yet to be discovered".  That is precisely how I feel about fishing during Winter cold fronts.  January's tournament was the worst in at least four years and February was almost as bad.  But - cheer up!  Look East!  Look toward the rising sun!  In less than nineteen days we will all meet on the warm shores of Lake Havasu.  Three pound smallmouth will be the norm and at least one of us will capture a five pound plus fish.  All this I promise you.  I am so certain, that Mike Stern and I are making an emergency trip this week.  We will tell you all about it at next week's (March 3) meeting.

The Tournament

Eleven people caught eight fish.  Last month it took thirteen guys to catch eight so things are definitely better.  The bright spot was Don Perez who broke the Lunker Pot with a 6 lb 8 oz beauty.  Don caught two fish in total and obviously won the tournament.  Phil Haines was second with two fish that weighed 6 lbs.  I was third with one fish.  We didn't catch many but the size was good at least four of the eight were over three pounds.

Baits/Methods

Seven of the eight fish were caught on drop shots.  My third place fish was caught with the biggest/ugliest - seven inch long crawfish imitation you will ever see.  With twenty minutes to go in the tournament, I had not had a bite.  With disgust and resignation, I picked up this ugly thing.  On my second cast I had a three pound plus beauty.  All the way home that night I wondered what might have been if I had used that bait all day.  Angler's opens at 10:00 AM on Sunday.  At 10:01 AM they were out of stock on seven inch crawfish.  My garage now has what will probably be a twenty years supply.  It doesn't matter.  I have them and nobody else does.

New Boat

As most of you know I just bought a new Ranger 520Z from Joe Uribe at Angler's Marine.  If you need one, see Joe.  The boat is so stable it is like fishing from shore.  The trolling motor is strong and outboard is quick.  Joe told me that the boat was so great "that you just have to open the live wells and the fish will swim in".  I bought it on that basis.  The live  wells were open all day Saturday and to my surprise nothing much happened.  I know that Joe never lies but he might exaggerate.  Still Joe's assertion seems much more feasible than Dick Cheney's exaggerations.  I am going to keep the live wells open, something good is bound to happen.  Too many people believe Dick Cheney.  I prefer to believe in Joe.

Next Meeting

Our next meeting is March 3 at Larry's Pizza.  The meeting starts at 7:00 PM.  We will be drawing partners for our March 13/14 tournament at Lake Havasu.  New members are welcome and it is not too late to fish Lake Havasu with us.  It is guaranteed to be a good time.

Ed Snell

Here is a real Black Bass.  This Bass was caught at Castaic in July.  The fish was intirely black except for a little white in the gill area.