05-04-2009, 09:00 AM
<br /> Fished the 3rd stop of the Walmart BFL Choo-Choo Division on Wheeler Lake today. I had a decent day of practice Friday fishing out of Strato G&#39;s boat. Today, we launched from Joe Wheeler State Park on the southern end of the lake. The morning began with torrential rain, lightning, and thunder. Shoot...let&#39;s go fishing. My boater and I ran towards the dam and fished a ledge with jigs, Texas rigged lizards, and shakey heads. We both had a limit by 9:00. Stayed in that spot till noon upgrading. Ran about a mile back upriver and fished a flat with Carolina rigged plastics till it was time to weigh in. Ended up placing 2nd on the Co-Angler side with a bit over 13 lbs, earning me a $1050.00 check and a way cool trophy. There were alot of guys fishing shallow. All of our fish were caught in 15-20 feet of water. I needed this tournament to get me back in the hunt for a spot in the Regionals. Thanks to Strato G for letting me practice out of his boat Friday. A big thank you also to my boater Gary Fleming. The best partner I&#39;ve had in a while.<br /> <br /> Things I learned today:<br /> Frog Toggs are for short term rainstorms only<br /> A Zoom Magnum Finesse Worm is killer on a Carolina rig (I was using the watermelon candy color)<br /> Fishing can relieve you of common sense (fishing with lightning cracking all around you)<br /> Don&#39;t get discouraged when your partner has a limit in the boat before you&#39;ve had your first bite ( I outweighed him by almost 3 lbs)<br /> Stay away from the Chinese Garden Restaurant a few miles east of the park. The meat was impossible to identify (Fox Terrier?)<br /> Learn to throw a shakey head. I&#39;m learning from David Marr. He&#39;s a magician with that thing. <br /> <br /> This picture was taken via phone during Friday&#39;s practice. At least they liked the shakey head THAT day.<br />