HuntingFishing4x4.com

Congratulations to E.W. Lewis with a 43.00 Flathead.
The turnout was great for our last tournament of the
2010 season. The top ten yielded all Flatheads with a
few Bluecats among 21 catfish. The weather was warm
and it was a good day for catfishing. Next up is the
Kids Fishing Day. Remember to mark your calendars for
September 18th. We thank all our sponsors and staff
for making all catfishing events possible.

Take a kid fishing!

Enjoy!

To Your Catfish Success
John Moore, Warren Weston
The Catfish Showdown
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In This Issue
1.Welcome Message
2.Tournament Dates
3.Tournament Results
4.Catfish Tips
6.Subscribe/Unsubscribe

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2.Tournament Dates - 2010 Season

September 18th. - Kids Fishing Day

Open ... Hosted by The Catfish Showdown. Registration
starts 7:00 AM. Fishing 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM. Lunch/Games
11:30 until. Prizes/Awards 2:00 PM. Bring your child.
lawn chairs, and join us for a Free Fun Day.

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3.Tournament Results

August 21, 2010 CATFISH SHOWDOWN TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Warren Weston - President
John Moore - Vice President/ WeighMaster/Boat Inspector
Red Moore - Tournament MC/Staff Secretary
Annette Weston
Fay Watts

Prayer by "Red Moore."

National Anthem by "Peyton Moore."

TOP 10

1st E.W. Lewis 43.00 Flathead + Big Flathead

2nd Jim Yarborough 40.88 Flathead

3rd Monty Thompson 40.00 Flathead

4th Jamie Davis 37.50 Flathead

5th Dennis Martin 36.34 Flathead

6th Wayne Sizemore 34.88 Flathead

7th Tony Milam 32.82 Flathead

8th Craig Dunn 32.22 Flathead

9th Sam Courts 31.58 Flathead

10th Doug Bailey 31.28 Flathead

JUNIOR ANGLER
Boat# - 2, 5, 9, 10, 14, 16, 43, 44, 46, 48, 59.

LADY ANGLER - Boat #16 28.82 Flathead

Big Blue Winner - Michael Wyrick 30.54

Big Flathead - E.W. Lewis 43.00

50/50 Winner - Tripp Christian

Total Anglers - 114

Total Youth Anglers - 17

Total Lady Anglers - 13

Weighed 21 fish - Total 579.25 lbs

Top Ten Weight 360.50 lbs

Average Weight Top Ten 36.05 lbs

76 BOAT CAPTAINS
1. Doug Bailey
2. Charlie Baird
3. Tom Shrewsberry
4. Curtis Walker
5. Wayne Sizemore
6. Keith Waters
7. Brent Inscore
8. Brian Henderson
9. Craig Dunn
10. Jay Christian
11. Allen Conner
12. Michael Conner
13. Todd Swain
14. Jim Yarborough
15. Chris Talley
16. Chan Puryear
17. Dale Lowe
18. Danny Conner
19. Kevin Davis
20. Kevin Hyler
21. Mike Lefrancious
22. Sam Courts
23. Mike Hayes
24. Jimmy Clarke
25. Chris Saunders
26. Patrick Jordan
27. Patrick Jordan
28. Chuck Riley
29. Mitch Terry
30. Jeff Smith
31. Larry Royster
32. Jamie Davis
33. Johnny Jones
34. Monty Thompson
35. Dennis Tatum
36. Ryan Roller
37. James Hudson
38. Dale Glode
39. Dale Glode
40. Chuck Cuneo
41. Zack Turner
42. Junior Pyron
43. Dennis Martin
44. Paul Blankenship
45. Jason McKinne
46. E.W. Lewis
47. Joshua Clayton
48. Drew Hartless
49. Brian Lloyd
50. Charles Farley
51. Casey Owen
52. Forrest Davis
53. Tony Milam
54. Jason Milam
55. Trey Snead
56. Haywood Hughes
57. T.J. Ragland
58. Dylan Sons
59. Scott Martin
60. Michael Reaves
61. Rob Baldwin
62. Wayne Dickerson
63. Ronnie Hughes
64. Jamie Crumpton
65. Norman Hensley
66. Brent Throckmorton
67. Matt Conner
68. Clay Samples
69. Michael Wyrick
70. Johnny Chappell
71. Steven Hensley
72. Raymond Chappell
73. Keith Smith
74. Randy Redd
75. Larry Sullivan
76. Charlie Moore
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4.Catfish Tips

In Loving Memory of Ray "HogHead" Jones.
07/04/45 - 07/27/10

http://www.thecatfishshowdown.com/dup/2010/hoghead.php

Buggs Island Catfish - Where The Rivers Meet

My Interview With Ray Jones
by Steven Boaze

During one of our catfish tournaments, I took
advantage of a few free minutes to chat with Mr.
Ray Jones, known as "Hoghead." I seized the
moment to pick the brain of an angler and valued
sportsman with over 35 years experience fishing
Kerr/Buggs Island Lake.

Here's what Mr. Jones had to say...

Well Steven, so you want to ask me some questions?

Since I have been fishing this lake over the past
35 years, I have had the pleasure to fish with two
types of anglers. One is your professionals and
the others are lucky!

The professionals always caught the most fish.
I've fished everything from Walleye to Grinnell
not too far from this very boat ramp. We caught a
lot of 20-30 lb catfish, not like the size you
see caught today. Back then, the lake was still
young. The catfish you see caught today might be
some of those fish we landed back then. You are
talking about 35 years and 30 lb's more fish now.
That's a big difference.

You asked me how I was introduced to Buggs Island
- that was back in 1974 when I met up with "Mac"
from Mac's Guide Service. We met at the Lake
Hotel, then the next day Mac anchored at the
mouth of Bluestone and then moved up to Bowman's
garage to search for Bass and Crappie. As we
became closer friends, Mac eventually shared his
fishing secrets with me. I learned a great deal
about Buggs Island from a good man that knew how
to fish this lake.

During my trips back to see Mac, I met the
luckiest man in the world when it come to
catfishing. Pappa Smurf and I had some times
catfishing. I remember one trip he landed a 20 lb
white catfish. It was beautiful with pink eyes.
It almost matched Pappa Smurf's grey hair and
beard. He was the luckiest, I thought, because no
matter what kind of fishing we were doing, he
landed the most I've ever seen one man catch. If
it rained, high water, or downright nasty
weather, he caught them over, and over.

We caught the biggest 100 yards up in the Dan
River from the mouth or split at Staunton. It was
a nice 57 lb Blue Cat. Our bait of choice back
then were gold fish, bream, and chicken breast.
Shad was a little scarce so we improvised. Now
you got shad all over place measuring anywhere
from 10-20 inches long and four inches wide. That
makes a huge difference, too, here at Buggs
Island. If you're going to catch big fish, you
gotta use big bait!

My favorite reel is still my Garcia 6500 clicker
on a Garcia Rod, heavy action with 40 lb Trilene
Big Game line. My rig of choice is the "tickle
stick." It's an 18" - 24" stainless hollow rod
about 1/4 inch in diameter. You run your line
through the rod and tie on a egg sinker to the
top of the stick. Run another line to a three way
swivel with a 5'-6' leader. Throw it out and let
it settle, then pick up your rod tip and walk the
stick. This sends a signal to the catfish where
it aggravates them to bite.

All the anglers back then respected one another
at Buggs Island. We have such a great resource
here such as; Duck, Geese, Raccoon, Deer, Turkey
and most of all fishing. You mentioned Smith
Mountain and Kerr Lake, the biggest difference
between Smith Mountain and Buggs Island is the
depth of the water. Catfish thrive in a water
source that's flowing with current. Smith
Mountain does not have river current, it has lake
current and deep water. It makes if very hard to
fish for cats at that depth.

You see, these catfish congregate in the river
channels, and the features are different from the
normal brush piles, points going into a drop off,
adjacent humps, stump fields, dead snags, and
hidden pockets cutting into the bank. The way the
Dan River and Staunton River both dump into the
lake, both have channel ledges and these Big cats
prefer that deep water at the base. They also
like the channel bends, especially during the
spawning season which is happening right now.

These big blue cats and flatheads favor the lake
bottom for quick travel routes between deep and
shallow water humps. They will hold in deeper areas
around the humps during the day, but at night and
on cloudy days, they move into the shallow waters
to feed. That is why you will always find those
bigger catfish that's in these rivers to have the
best of both worlds - the lake and the rivers.
The flatheads like to find a logjam and rest
their belly on top of the log. Set up your rig to
float by with a bream and the fight is on!

You also mentioned the type of boats we see here
at our tournaments, well, let's say that you must
come prepared before you fish in these waters. It
gets shallow in places. These people try to avoid
shallow water, while checking the color of the
river bottom and where the water?s surface is
least turbulent to travel. They can tell where
the current is rushing over the gravel bottom
that causes numerous wakes.

Navigating the Dan River and Staunton River makes
it even more difficult, especially with partially
submerged rocks and logs. They know it can
inflict serious damage to their boats, is why
these most experienced anglers can weave around
rocks and logs by keeping an eye on the surface
of the water. That is why I always mention to say
at every tournament to reduce speed, scout ahead
of time, and be safe out there!

I honestly think if we can keep practicing catch
and release, then we should have something good
for our future generations to enjoy. In addition, I think
technology will make a difference as it will make
the modern gear more efficient. You have got
fishing gear now that's easier to use and
stronger line than ever to land bigger fish. It's
amazing to see all this gear that anglers show up
with, but that's what it takes if you want to
land these big ol' hawgs that are in these waters.

Even though it's difficult to go fishing while in
this wheelchair, I still cherish every moment
I've had over the years fishing with these guys.
A lot of great memories were created not too far
from here at Staunton boat ramp. It is nothing
better in this world than to listen to a clicker
going off. It puts the catfish and me in a "grab
it - eat it mode."

... and after our conversation, I too, was overwhelmed
for having such a wonderful, natural resource right in
our back door. Whichever species of fish you prefer,
you'll want to experience the best tight-lined, catfish
fight of your life at Kerr/Buggs Island Lake where the
rivers split.