"In the Boat" presented by Jewel Bait Company |
Tournament: Arkansas Couples
April 6th, 2008
Lake Dardanelle
Anglers: Frank and Erin Leone
27th place - 2 bass - 4.59 pounds
Practice:
April 3rd: I fished Shoal Bay the first day of practice. Although not on fire, fish were biting and I had
multiple patterns going. I fished until noon and caught 4 keepers on a jig and 2 on a Spro Shake N'
Bake (chatterbait type lure). Best 5 would have went around 15 pounds. I was starting to build
confidence in my areas and techniques.
April 4th: I fished the Illinois Bayou on Friday. Fishing was extremely tough under the cold front
conditions. Fished all the strip pits and other areas in the Bayou. The water was flowing and very
muddy in the main section. I caught three keepers; one on a jig, one on a spinnerbait, and one on
the Shake n' Bake. I felt the Bayou was probably not an option at this point because of the influx of
muddy water.
April 5th: I returned to Shoal Bay for my final day of practice. I stayed off of my key areas and
fished only "B" spots. The fish were biting and we caught 6 keepers on chatterbaits by noon that
went around 14 pounds. I was really confident that I had multiple patterns going and could catch a
decent bag in Shoal Bay. I decided that's where we would fish during the tournament.
Tournament Day: We had a great draw (6th) and when our number was called we headed straight
towards Shoal Bay. We started on a flat that was loaded with pad stems and water willow. Caught
two shorts on the Shake n' Bake but no keepers. The second bank had only water willow on it and
within 20 minutes of fishing we had boated 2 keepers on the Shake n' Bake. I really thought the fish
were firing. I headed towards my favorite spot in Shoal and started to throw a jig. No takers. I
headed to another water willow bank and threw the Shake n' Bake. No takers. That pretty much
sums up the rest of our day. We alternated between the jig and the Shake n' Bake and just couldn't
make the fish bite. I don't know what happened, because I thought the patterns were solid. I
abandoned Shoal Bay about 12:30 and spent the rest of the day in the Bayou. No takers there
either. To add insult to injury, I lost my speed control knob for my trolling motor on the way down
river and a bird decided to use me as a toilet as I went under the I-40 Bridge into the Bayou. It just
wasn't our day.
Frank and Erin's Keeper Count: Spro Shake N' Bake (3/8 oz. White): 2 keepers
Final Thoughts: What a disaster. When Vince put his schedule out for the year, this is the one
that I had circled. I thought this would be the funnest tournament of the year, but it didn't turn out
that way. I still haven't figured out what happened in Shoal Bay, but that is fishing. Sometimes there
is no explanation. We just didn't get them..........
See ya' on the flip side,
Frank Leone
April 6th, 2008
Lake Dardanelle
Anglers: Frank and Erin Leone
27th place - 2 bass - 4.59 pounds
Practice:
April 3rd: I fished Shoal Bay the first day of practice. Although not on fire, fish were biting and I had
multiple patterns going. I fished until noon and caught 4 keepers on a jig and 2 on a Spro Shake N'
Bake (chatterbait type lure). Best 5 would have went around 15 pounds. I was starting to build
confidence in my areas and techniques.
April 4th: I fished the Illinois Bayou on Friday. Fishing was extremely tough under the cold front
conditions. Fished all the strip pits and other areas in the Bayou. The water was flowing and very
muddy in the main section. I caught three keepers; one on a jig, one on a spinnerbait, and one on
the Shake n' Bake. I felt the Bayou was probably not an option at this point because of the influx of
muddy water.
April 5th: I returned to Shoal Bay for my final day of practice. I stayed off of my key areas and
fished only "B" spots. The fish were biting and we caught 6 keepers on chatterbaits by noon that
went around 14 pounds. I was really confident that I had multiple patterns going and could catch a
decent bag in Shoal Bay. I decided that's where we would fish during the tournament.
Tournament Day: We had a great draw (6th) and when our number was called we headed straight
towards Shoal Bay. We started on a flat that was loaded with pad stems and water willow. Caught
two shorts on the Shake n' Bake but no keepers. The second bank had only water willow on it and
within 20 minutes of fishing we had boated 2 keepers on the Shake n' Bake. I really thought the fish
were firing. I headed towards my favorite spot in Shoal and started to throw a jig. No takers. I
headed to another water willow bank and threw the Shake n' Bake. No takers. That pretty much
sums up the rest of our day. We alternated between the jig and the Shake n' Bake and just couldn't
make the fish bite. I don't know what happened, because I thought the patterns were solid. I
abandoned Shoal Bay about 12:30 and spent the rest of the day in the Bayou. No takers there
either. To add insult to injury, I lost my speed control knob for my trolling motor on the way down
river and a bird decided to use me as a toilet as I went under the I-40 Bridge into the Bayou. It just
wasn't our day.
Frank and Erin's Keeper Count: Spro Shake N' Bake (3/8 oz. White): 2 keepers
Final Thoughts: What a disaster. When Vince put his schedule out for the year, this is the one
that I had circled. I thought this would be the funnest tournament of the year, but it didn't turn out
that way. I still haven't figured out what happened in Shoal Bay, but that is fishing. Sometimes there
is no explanation. We just didn't get them..........
See ya' on the flip side,
Frank Leone