"In the Boat" presented by Jewel Bait Company |
Tournament: 32nd Annual Bailey's Tournament
April 3rd, 2010
Lake Dardanelle
Anglers: Frank Leone and Terrance Narveson
3rd place - 18.70 pounds - $263.00
Practice: I was able to sneak in a few hours of practice before a dentist appointment. Pardon the
pun, but practice was not like "pulling teeth". With the recent warming trend, cloud cover, wind, and
an approaching front, I figured the bass would be chompin'.... They didn't disappoint. Having
recently received a shipment of Big Bite Soft plastics, I was itching to give them a try. I started
chucking a Big Bite Cane Stick around and the bass were definitely on it. Using a combination of
the Cane stick and a spinnerbait, I had a 16-pound bag within a couple of hours. I was pumped........
Tournament: When I opened my front door on Saturday Morning, I had quite a surprise. A dense
fog had rolled in. Since I was going to launch at Shoal Bay and run to Piney/64 in the dark, this
made me very nervous. Terrance and I discussed all the options and finally decided that our best
bet would be for me to trailer to Piney. I knew it would be close, but I made to Piney with about 5
minutes to spare before launch. We had a short fog delay and didn't launch until around 7:30.
When our number was called, we headed out to the river. It was still quite foggy and it made it
challenging to find our starting location. We finally made it and starting chucking the Cane Stick
around water willow. It wasn't long before I set the hook on our first keeper. Terrance threw down
his rod and rushed to the front of the boat. We got the fish in the net, but there was a problem.
Terrance's rod was flying out of the boat into the water. He lunged after it, and as if he was on a
"slip and slide" ended up in the lake. I threw the fish down and ran to help get Terrance back in the
boat. He was soaked, lost his rod, and his cell phone was fried. I'm sure it was not the way he
wanted to start this tournament. Anyway, within 5-minutes, I set the hook on a good 3-pounder.
Things were looking up and we both started to get pumped. After our first stretch, we headed to an
area where I had caught spinnerbait fish during practice. It wasn't long before I put another keeper
in the boat. It was a small keeper that we would eventually cull, but at least the ball was still rolling.
We then made another location change and caught two small keepers in short time on the Cane
Stick. We had 5 in the livewell, but they would only weigh about 11-pounds. After getting 5, we hit
about an hour and a half lull in the action. There was no breeze and it was cloudy - It was like the
fish just shut-off. We made several location changes and finally the sun came out and the breeze
started-up. At about 12:30 PM, I felt a solid thump and set the hook. It was a solid 3.5 pounder and
it was the first of many keepers we would catch in the afternoon. By 2:00 PM we had culled up to
about 14-pounds, and I knew we needed a good kicker. We were fishing a stretch that had
produced for me in the past and that's when it happened.... I felt one thump my Cane Stick and I set
the hook. "Get the net in a hurry" I yelled to Terrance. We got the fish in the boat and to say the
least I was pumped (to see the aftermath and the cull that it produced, click here for video). The
fish ended up weighing 6.20 and got us up over 18-pounds...........
Keeper count: Big Bite Baits Cane Stick (5-inch; Green pumpkin/Watermelon Red Laminate): 11 keepers
To See a short wrap-up video regarding the Cane Stick, Click Here
War Eagle Spinnerbait (3/8 oz; Sexy Shad): 1 keeper
Equipment: Cane Stick: Dobyns Champion 704 C
Spinnerbait: Dobyns Champion 683 C
Final Thoughts: What can I say? It was a great day on the water. We knew it was going to take
around 20 pounds for the W, but any time you catch an 18-pound stringer on Dardanelle you've
had a good day.
See ya' on the flip side....
Frank Leone
April 3rd, 2010
Lake Dardanelle
Anglers: Frank Leone and Terrance Narveson
3rd place - 18.70 pounds - $263.00
Practice: I was able to sneak in a few hours of practice before a dentist appointment. Pardon the
pun, but practice was not like "pulling teeth". With the recent warming trend, cloud cover, wind, and
an approaching front, I figured the bass would be chompin'.... They didn't disappoint. Having
recently received a shipment of Big Bite Soft plastics, I was itching to give them a try. I started
chucking a Big Bite Cane Stick around and the bass were definitely on it. Using a combination of
the Cane stick and a spinnerbait, I had a 16-pound bag within a couple of hours. I was pumped........
Tournament: When I opened my front door on Saturday Morning, I had quite a surprise. A dense
fog had rolled in. Since I was going to launch at Shoal Bay and run to Piney/64 in the dark, this
made me very nervous. Terrance and I discussed all the options and finally decided that our best
bet would be for me to trailer to Piney. I knew it would be close, but I made to Piney with about 5
minutes to spare before launch. We had a short fog delay and didn't launch until around 7:30.
When our number was called, we headed out to the river. It was still quite foggy and it made it
challenging to find our starting location. We finally made it and starting chucking the Cane Stick
around water willow. It wasn't long before I set the hook on our first keeper. Terrance threw down
his rod and rushed to the front of the boat. We got the fish in the net, but there was a problem.
Terrance's rod was flying out of the boat into the water. He lunged after it, and as if he was on a
"slip and slide" ended up in the lake. I threw the fish down and ran to help get Terrance back in the
boat. He was soaked, lost his rod, and his cell phone was fried. I'm sure it was not the way he
wanted to start this tournament. Anyway, within 5-minutes, I set the hook on a good 3-pounder.
Things were looking up and we both started to get pumped. After our first stretch, we headed to an
area where I had caught spinnerbait fish during practice. It wasn't long before I put another keeper
in the boat. It was a small keeper that we would eventually cull, but at least the ball was still rolling.
We then made another location change and caught two small keepers in short time on the Cane
Stick. We had 5 in the livewell, but they would only weigh about 11-pounds. After getting 5, we hit
about an hour and a half lull in the action. There was no breeze and it was cloudy - It was like the
fish just shut-off. We made several location changes and finally the sun came out and the breeze
started-up. At about 12:30 PM, I felt a solid thump and set the hook. It was a solid 3.5 pounder and
it was the first of many keepers we would catch in the afternoon. By 2:00 PM we had culled up to
about 14-pounds, and I knew we needed a good kicker. We were fishing a stretch that had
produced for me in the past and that's when it happened.... I felt one thump my Cane Stick and I set
the hook. "Get the net in a hurry" I yelled to Terrance. We got the fish in the boat and to say the
least I was pumped (to see the aftermath and the cull that it produced, click here for video). The
fish ended up weighing 6.20 and got us up over 18-pounds...........
Keeper count: Big Bite Baits Cane Stick (5-inch; Green pumpkin/Watermelon Red Laminate): 11 keepers
To See a short wrap-up video regarding the Cane Stick, Click Here
War Eagle Spinnerbait (3/8 oz; Sexy Shad): 1 keeper
Equipment: Cane Stick: Dobyns Champion 704 C
Spinnerbait: Dobyns Champion 683 C
Final Thoughts: What can I say? It was a great day on the water. We knew it was going to take
around 20 pounds for the W, but any time you catch an 18-pound stringer on Dardanelle you've
had a good day.
See ya' on the flip side....
Frank Leone