Overall, the fishing was tough on both days, but day two treated us a lot better. David and I figured out a fly that worked for us (the venerable carp wooly) and I managed to land five carp on the day while David put one carp on the bank. Jim and Travis struck out again, despite covering a ton of water. Heading in to the check in at three we had only seen one other carp landed and felt pretty good about our chances to win the team event.
Team Event, 5 fish total inches...winner: Team Got Backing? (me, David, Mr. P and Trashfisher), prize was a guided steelhead trip! I was lucky to fish with some all star carpers, and we pulled out the win.
Smallest carp...prize, and Orvis Helios: winner, Mike Gamby (top picture). So cool to see Mike win this rod with his first EVER carp on the fly, a tiny 18 incher! Way to go Mike!
Second smallest Carp...prize, Orvis Access 8 wt: winner, John Montana. I caught the three smallest carp I have caught in a long time, and Mike still beat me by a full inch.
Ugliest Carp...prize, Orvis Hydros reel: winner, David Nakamoto. Nice to see my partner win this reel with a truly ugly fish we called scarface. I called it the second we landed the fish...nasty bugger.
Second ugliest carp...prize, Orvis Access Reel: winner, John Montana. My fish we called Talon...all scratched up from a few run ins with an Osprey.
Biggest carp...prize, Idlewylde swag: winner, John Montana. I lucked into this one. David lost a beast of a fish in the weeds that would have won easily.
This really was a lot of fun, and I got to meet a ton of great anglers. All told there were about 25-30 of us out there, the newfound respect for carp is evident. Thanks again to the sponsors, and everyone for participating. Thanks also to the members of team Got Backing, I was lucky to get to fish with three of the best carpers I know and it paid off. Will see you guys for a guided trip this winter!
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15 comments:
I gotta admit, that was a ton of fun....
and not as nasty as i thought.
Great pic, that dude is sexy!
It's nice to see the respect for carp growing in the US.
The fish has always been revered in the UK. We use larger nets so as not to damage fish fins or scales.
We hold fish with both hands so not to damage them if they fall, and in most cases we do not put them on a hard ground but a soft mat.
These fish can live 60 years or more and can be caught time and time again, so they do need respect and care.
Great to see the sponsers getting involved. Great blog John.
Dang. You guys cleaned house. Nice!
Nice work! Congrats.
We cleaned up Ty...but I had an all star team of carpers. come on...Mr. P, Travis, David? It wasn't fair! hah...
Gamby, we'll have to get you into a carp that you measure in lbs sometime!
Grats guys. I dont think anyone is surprised that you all won though. lol
At least a good time was had and some awesome swag was obtained.
Congrats!! You guys cleaned up!!
Nobody stood a chance and you know it but are to humble to admit it. That is, you and your team. Way to go, envy destination trips!
Gregg
Wow John. Cleaned house is right! Nice job, glad it was fun.
I knew you'd clean house! well done carpfather!
Love the blog. I got into fly-fishing for carp a few years ago and can't get enough of it. We got some nice carp here in Montana in the middle of trout country and slowly folks are starting to catch on.
I run a blog called Bum Trout. http://bumtrout.blogspot.com/
And just put up a post about carp fishing on the Missouri river. There's a lot to learn and I look forward to reading and learning about these fish on your blog.
Congrats by the way on slab of the month, your right it is about time a carp won it.
Thanks Robert! Will check out the blog and get you up on the blog roll...
Why wasn't I there?
- Major Geek
You should have come Paul! I was a lot of fun. Sounds like Orvis will make it an annual affair...
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