Mark "Chief" Torrez (who just took 8th place in the AAA division of the US Open - WTG, Chief!) and I hit up Lake Casitas for a shoreline session yesterday. We were on the water by 6:45am with clear skies, slight breeze that didn't pick up until 10, and temps that started around 59° but rose to about 82°. The water was pretty clear with visibility up to about 12 feet depending on the section of lake we were at.
Unfortunately, it was a very slow day out there. For the first three hours all I could manage were two small bumps and Chief had one bite he missed because he was talking to a rabbit.
Finally, just before 10am, I was dead-sticking a Malibu-rigged 5" Kinami Flash in Mad Melon when I felt another very light tap. Only this time, I felt the fish actually pick up the bait and start to move off with it. I reeled down and set the hook hard ... BOOM! Instantly, my rod doubled over and line started peeling off the reel - I knew right away this was a big fish!! She started taking me under the buoy line on my left, so I moved over to the right to get a better angle on her. We were stuck in a little tug of war, but I slowly made some headway. However, the way she was fighting I was pretty sure I had hooked into a big Catfish. After several minutes, she finally came up and gave me a big head shake ... it was a BIG BASS!Another couple of minutes ensued before I could get her to shore and get a grip on her lip. I put her on the digi-scale which finally settled in at 6 pounds 8 ounces! My PB with an artificial bait!! Chief was about 300 yards down the bank and was running as fast as he could without having a coronary to take a picture. So, in the meantime, I snapped this one with my phone:
Chief eventually made it in time to snap a shot, too. It gives a much better size perspective ... of the FISH, not me!
:
I didn't get another tap the rest of the day. Though, Chief did nail a nice keeper on a Carolina-rigged Brush Hog.
So, although it wasn't a prolific day, it was a great day. Like they say, if you're only going to catch one, make it a good one!
I'll take one like that any day of the week. Congrats to Chief for his great showing at the OPEN as well 
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