Indycarpers Invitational '04

by: Dave Moran

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North American Carp Angler

On the way home from the Monroe Fish In a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to fish a few hours at the newly renovated bankside of the White River with Doyle Robling and Carl Rogers. In the true spirit of the CAG, Doyle and Carl shared some tips and expert advice on tactics and baits for the venue and within an hour I had a fish on the bank. The City of Indianapolis is currently renovating this stretch of the river near the heart of downtown and is doing an excellent job of making the venue a very user-friendly location. I knew I had to return for the CAG/Indycarpers Invitational.

Bill Hodge, Cory Bohmann and I agreed to meet at Indy Lakes Campground/Paylake on Friday evening before the event. I had stayed and fished at this fine establishment earlier in the year and as before they were very hospitable. While setting up camp, Rick Slinker and Bob Geldmeier stopped by to visit. It was around 8pm and they had just come from chumming up the venue for the event. After a few wrong turns, (I think they were looking for Cermak) Bill and Cory arrived. We all sat around the campfire and swapped carpin’ stories, then called it a night in anticipation of the upcoming event.

4:45 AM Saturday, we are up and at ‘em, headed for West Side Bait. Bill and Cory needed to get their Indiana Fishing License and we wanted to check out the carp tackle/gear selection. After a few wrong turns (this is pretty much a habit/tradition with me) we arrived to find several other carpers already there milling around. Jim and his crew at West Side were very neighborly and excited to have all of us there. Gilbert Huxley (Indiana Chairman and CAG Treasurer) arrived and started registering everyone. After we signed in most of us gathered up our gear and staged it at the top of the hill overlooking the pegs. Donuts were provided by Jim at West Side Bait. This is one of my favorite parts of these events. Looking over the venue, meeting new folks, greeting old friends, swapping stories and tactics as well as strategizing for the upcoming event.

There were 30+ carpers waiting in anticipation of the peg draw, eager to get set up. This venue has not been fished much and as far as anyone knows it’s a toss up as to which peg may be the best. Bill, Cory and I had decided to take our chances with a separate peg draw. We figured if location was a big issue today, there was a better chance for at least one of us to get into some fish if we separated. I was fortunate enough to draw a peg very near where I had fished a few weeks earlier so I felt pretty good about my chances of catching something. Better yet, I was fishing between some my local Indy buddies. Carl Rogers to my left, Doyle Robling and Charley Napier to my right. This turned out to be even better than I first anticipated since Doyle brought a 12x12-sun shelter. If it weren’t for that shelter, I’m not sure I would have been able to survive the heat and humidity of the day.

This event had a Big Fish side pot, a CAG Big Fish Plaque and West Side Bait provided a Rod Pod for most fish caught, a rod for 2nd place and a baitrunner reel for 3rd place. On top of all that, there was rod pod for first fish caught (my friend Doyle won this and was ecstatic that he now had a rod pod to give to his favorite fishin’ buddy …his grandson.) There were also drawing throughout the day for bite alarms, holdalls, pods etc. and a $20 cash prize for the first mirror caught. Throughout the day, Jim at West Side Bait was went over and above anything we expected. Not only did he provide the aforementioned donuts for breakfast, he passed out sack lunches, provided soft drinks during the heat of the day as well as had pizza delivered to bankside in the late afternoon.

Less than an hour into the event, 3 fish had been caught so it had the makings of a good day. I was especially happy since I had one of the three. Things were kind of slow for the next hour or so and then Dick Laubscher from Ohio lit things up and was running away with the lead. The fishing for everyone but Dick was slow but steady. Most Anglers landed at least one fish and for most of the day there were several of us tied for 2nd place with 2 fish. Bill Hodge made a serious threat at breaking that tie with a mirror carp that came within inches of the net before the hook pulled. This was particularly disappointing since there was a $20 prize for the first mirror caught. Even more disappointing to me was that I was in danger of losing my illinoisnetboy.net status…..I explained to Bill that the net I was using was shorter than the ones we are used to (dang Indiana nets!) and he agreed not to disbar me. Eric Martin, a friend of Ohio CAG Member Rod Mills came up with the biggest fish of the day weighing in at 14+ pounds. This was great news to the regular s at the venue because up until today the biggest fish caught here was less than 10lbs. Eric is not a CAG Member so he was not eligible for the Big Fish Plaque, but he did win the money pool. He has not done much if any carp fishing, but after listening to him talk and watching him battle that fish I feel safe in saying we will have a new member from Ohio. Rod Mills landed the CAG Big Fish Plaque with a 10+ pound fish. Late in the day the traffic jam at 2nd place was broken when I had a screaming run and put my 3rd fish on the bank. Shortly thereafter, Bill Hodge landed his 3rd fish (I successfully netted this one and redeemed myself as a true illinoisnetboy) When the competition ended Dick Laubscher had run away with 1st place with 9 fish! And there was a 2 way tie for 2nd between Bill and me. We agreed that since I had missed netting what would have been a 4th fish for him, he would have the 2nd place prize of a 12’ Carp Rod and I would take the 3rd place prize of a Baitrunner Reel.

A great day of fishing with great bunch of guys! Hats off to Gilbert and the rest of the Indiana Boyz for putting on such a grand event. A big THANK YOU to Jim at West Side Bait for everything he did to make the event so enjoyable. There is a rumor circulating around that there will be 2 of these events next year. If this is true, sign me up right now for both of them!

Our fun didn’t end here. Earlier in the day, Cory had decided he wanted to take a shot at paylakin’ back at Indy Lakes where we were camping. Rod and John, experienced in Ohio paylakin’ decided to join him. Bill and I were interested observers supplying food and drinks for the evening festivities. Unlike the heat and humidity of the daylight, the nighttime offered cool air and a bit of a breeze for sharing stories at bank side. It was a fitting end to an exceptional day.