Well in a word.....Hard....Bloody hard...Tour started at Awoonga....Now you would think l would have this dam sussed....Think again...Dropped one. thats it.....Les caught two..No excuses..So off too Teemburra for the night comp....4pm till 8 am .....16 hours....caught two on poppers dropped one Les caught two...Off too Faust ...First off the two day event.....Day one....Nothing..only seven fish caught and even Lindsay Dobe the guide and Jack Erskine did no good as well.... Day two still fishless....Les caught one....102cm..So on too the Faust night comp...again 16 hours...Fishless dropped one......l learned heaps...and met lots of great people....Thousands of casts and l mean thousands..The last leg is at Tinaroo on Friday/Saturday
Kids need models, more than they need critics."
"In youth we learn; in age we understand."
"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand
Awoonga,
Sorry to hear that the fishing has been hard for you but just remember that is what fishing is all about. If it was that easy to catch them everyone would be doing it every trip and then there would be no excitement in it.
Once all the comp is over and done with I am sure you will slot straight back into catching the monsters back home.
Darryl L
Trev, I know this bloke who can give you a few lessons on casting Alveys, shouldn't of sold the Millionaire.
Trevor,
What can I say mate ........ It happens to the best I see. Never mind theres always next time. I and many others know you can catch them.
Good luck on Friday and Saturday, and maybe we'll catch up on Sunday out at the Dam.
DNO
I wish I had an Answer, but I don't know how many comps I have been in where on the Pre-Fish you nail them and then come Comp start I choke. [smiley=wut.gif]
I think thats the fun of it , [meeting and learning] and the main aim is to forget about the comp and fish for yourself. The last International comp a couple of weeks ago , I know where I went wrong massively by putting to much pressure on myself rather than just sitting back and taking it all in.
14 Hook ups and lost every one by being to panicked about boating it.
Next time I know how I will handle it. There is a lot of pressure on you when you are fishing against some of the big names with big sponsers. But remember they are human like us {well I have been called differently but that's another story [smiley=sneaky.gif] } and are in with the same chance.
Keep up the great work boy's
Brett
Cmon Trev,
We all know you have some big ones left in ya!!
Good Luck.
Cheers
Don.
Ok Trev,
I've dusted the Alvey, Greased the drag washers , changed my line to some relly good Braid I got on special for $5.95 at K-Mart, I have 2 lures left and I an coming your way, so lets show em' that we can catch fish out of comp hours.
See you tomorrow with my rod in my hand [ fishing rod that is ] .
Now will I need good shoes for walking the bank around the ramp or will we be trolling.
Lets get em'
Brett
Yeah brett .... Bring the whites mateOriginally Posted by still-water
Ok Trev,
I've dusted the Alvey, Greased the drag washers , changed my line to some relly good Braid I got on special for $5.95 at K-Mart, I have 2 lures left and I an coming your way, so lets show em' that we can catch fish out of comp hours.
See you tomorrow with my rod in my hand [ fishing rod that is ] .
Now will I need good shoes for walking the bank around the ramp or will we be trolling.
Lets get em'
Brett
Cheers Les
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."
Thats what he has told me to, but does he realise how violent that game can get , when some of those old dears don't score.
I have offered him some steel caps to play in so if he doesn't get close to the jack he can kick the bloody thing out of the arena
I was wondering what he meant about wearing my whites , so I went out and brought some widefront undies with the stubbie holder built in. I thought my other ones I fish in might of offended him.
Looks like local knowledge won out in the end. The BASSPRO fellas still did pretty well. Do you think that guys with a bit of tournament fishing behind them had it easier as they were used to the format/tactics etc.? At the Teemburra practice one last year the locals didn't do so well and the visiting BASSPRO guys did proportionally better.
Smithy ..... talking to a few of the basspro blokes and most of them fish Teemburra a lot and realy love the place and most had a few days pre fish to sus out some spots. I think there Tournament bass fishing experience came in to play..... Blokes like Motty and Gavin Dunne are realy smart fishos full stop.... And to be honest they are better Aglers then myself. Some of it comes down to luck... but most of it is making your own luck. I was a bit disappointed with my results at Awoonga & Faust as i have fished these dams a lot with good results over the years. But when ya get 1 Barra in the boat at Faust and come in 11th and something like 50% of the field did not boat fish over 2 days..... It says it all .... "HARD FISHING " You learn nil when the fishing comes easy ! But learn a lot when its hard. Gunna be even harder at Tinaroo #
Cheers Les.
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."
Guys,
Great thread and I for one am always interested in how people approach fishing whether it be in comps or "on the social weekend".
For me personally it was a great challenge and it's comforting to hear that I'm not alone.
To say fishing was "TOUGH" is an understatement and how ironic it was that between the Faust Day and the Faust Night Comp the weather decided to play "nice" and as a result the fishing was remarkably improved. (3 fish in 45mins)
Tinaroo was the TOUGHEST and locating the fish was the biggest challenge, especially in a dam that size with so many "fishy" looking spots - one day pre fish didn't help much either but such is the challenge. As predicted the local knowledge did win out in Tinaroo and their approach to fishing was something that I haven't seen in my limited experience fishing.
After doing a little bit more reading and speaking to some of the great guys on tour (actually everyone on tour I met were great) what the guys were doing in Tinaroo is very similar to the tactics I've read the guys use down south to win the comps. Basically, they'd pick a fishing spot and flog it for the duration of the comp! They'd look for spots that were likely "highways" for travelling predators (barra) with the thought that sooner or later they'll be travelling through the area and that would be there chance to hook up - they would wait for the fish to come to them! This tactic was used successfully at Faust as well with guys just anchoring up on the weedbeds and casting lures all night in the same spot!
It is completely different to my usual approach on fishing, looking for structure and 'fishy' looking spots and generally moving around.
Part of my enjoyment for fishing is the exploration and discovery of new fishy looking spots so I cannot say I'd be a big fan of anchoring up and looking at the same patch of water for 10 hours but it is a technique that I will keep in mind for the future.
That was something I discovered on tour that was pretty successful for the guys that used it but, you cannot discount the fact that some guys are just really really good anglers and will most probably pull a fish no matter where they're fishing or what they're fishing for!
Regards
Matt Coleman
Matt,
I haven't ever really been interested in the competion scene, although I have fished in the odd one over the years.
I noted that the Daiwa tour seemed to see a lack of barra landed considering the anglers that took part, and the duration of the fishing sessions. Local knowledge holds a massive advantage in any barra comp, and I found it difficult to accept that anyone who entered in the comp could beat Jason W and Gareth on their home turf considering time spent fishing on the lake by Jason, and the ability to plan and think ahead. (Lake Awoonga). In time, it was seen that, this pair kicked butt....as expected. Was anyone else really in the running???? Home advantage sees an unbalanced advantage in all comps, and i'm pretty dam sure that if I visited another northern pond in any comp with a limited day or two pre-fish, it would be difficult to even contemplate a placing!!!???!!
The weekend of the Awoonga comp was great weather for barra, and from Jas and co's results, and from my own personal results from a rec trip and with a chartered trip, the fish were very active and on the chew!(2 afternoon sessions, one exploring trip, and one chartered trip-
46 strikes in total, 29 boated, all sizes.) The fish were available, Jas showed that.
Now, on any lake, it is so easy to be 'off the mark' by miles, or in most cases, only metres from available barra populations! The fishing changes often, and at times when it is easy, anyone can catch one! When it is harder, a select few stay consistent.
Competition fishing I imagine should consist of a major plan, and all this i feel depends on one's background knowledge of barra and their natural movements and daily activities! One big mistake I have noticed is that some competitors trial new techniques during comp time!!! I think this is a big no no! Go with what you know, and if what you know is a plenty, your in with a good chance! Know very little, and if the fishing is a bit tougher, your in for a rough time ahead.
When barra bite well in comps, I feel anyone can win it! When the fishing is a bit harder, that is when the experienced anglers shine through the clouds. I feel they are the best conditions for a competition.
Simply, barra are either stationary, or active and moving. This coincides with a few factors, but one's approach to these time frames should see their fishing techniques alter to suit! Barra have favoured areas in which they visit or hold up in, albeit short periods at times. There are times that the flogg technique will bring results, and times when ground covered will earn you a fish. An angler must 'go to', and stimulate a stationary fish to entice a strike, and moving fish will quite often 'cross paths' with an anglers lure. A varied, an sometimes hourly approach needs close scrutiny. Strategic anchoring as you mentioned will , and has worked as you said! Great idea...... if you know where!
Nothing is better than time on the water, and paying close attention to fine detail. Most answers lay in front of you,,,, but only if you think of the question! Continued sucessful barra fishing is more than just angling!
Johnny M
Lake Awoonga
Johnny M
You've definitely hit a few nails on the head there, I couldn't agree more.
Local anglers and time on the water is hard to beat and the results demonstrated that.
It would be interesting to know what attracts anglers to competitive angling. My attraction to competitive fishing was obviously the challenge but also and more importantly knowledge.
As you mentioned, using the right technique at the right time in the right place would lead you to consistently catching fish which I guess is what most anglers desire to achieve.
The Barra Tour is one avenue that I've used to continue building a "library" of techniques and tactics that I could apply when doing any type of fishing in the future. It was also a great place to meet a good bunch of guys and of course..... have a great time.
I think everyone sets themselves a challenge every time they wet a line, the simple challenge of catching a fish.
Competitive fishing sets you the challenge of catching a fish within a certain time period under certain conditions and, if you choose, the challenge of competing against other anglers.
I can only imagine you would experience similar challenges every day when guiding, the limited time period, weather conditions and also many more challenges when it comes to clients and they're angling aptitude.
With the greater challenges comes the greater rewards, not neccesarily monetary rewards either. Everyone has there Everest! Every angler has felt that satisfaction and reward when finally landing that fish, to me that's what makes fishing a great pasttime, an addiction!
Enough of my rambling, your thoughts and observations are always appreciated, and you've summed up the fishing enigma very well!
"Most answers lay in front of you,,,, but only if you think of the question!"
Tight Lines
Matt
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