Capt. Larry Fowler and Amateur Chris
Taylor
Victorious at SRT Titusville Event
Titusville,
FL- A heavy fog and a stiff wind greeted the Association of Redfish
Professionals as they launched their boats to compete in the March
15th Southern Redfish Tour Pro-Am Tournament in Titusville. The
conditions seemed to benefit many anglers as most reported the morning
bite much better than after the fog left and the wind calmed in
the afternoon. Capt. Larry Fowler and his Amateur partner Chris
Taylor topped all SRT competitors with a total weight of 14.38 lbs.
"The weather actually worked in our favor," said Fowler, who is a guide in the Titusville area. "I had found the fish earlier and I had been mothering them for some time. I think that the bad conditions kept a lot of local anglers off the area we were fishing and we had those fish to ourselves. We were working a school of approximately 500 redfish and we would loose them occasionally. When we did, I would bump'em."
Fowler's technique of bumping the fish required firing
up his outboard and idling around until the fish boiled up and moved
away from the noise. When they bumped them they would then put the
trolling motor down and slowly ease up on the fish.
"I have to give credit to my pro for his ability to know what
direction the schools of reds were moving. He would set us up and
we would be right in perfect position to catch them when the school
moved," said Chris Taylor, Fowler's amateur partner.
"Once we were near them I put the power pole down and my partner caught one on his second cast," said Fowler. Fowler credited the power pole to his success as well as his Minn Kota trolling motor for being so quiet it didn't spook the fish. "That trolling motor has so much torque that it can move the boat while just barely turning," he said. Fowler caught the largest redfish of the tournament, a 7.26lb red, while Taylor caught the second largest fish of the competition with a 7.12lb fish.
Other competitors also located large schools of redfish and found different ways to approach the skittish fish.
"Each school of fish we moved up on was extremely nervous and would occasionally break up when we approached them," said Capt. Bryan Watts, who finished second with a total weight of 12.59lbs. "My partner and I (Robert E. Capman III) caught some smaller redfish out of the schools, but our better fish were taken when we cast to single fish. You had to use a push pole there because a trolling was much too loud for those fish."
Amateur anglers played an integral role in the new format. The SRT Pro-Am has a shared weight format in which the pro and the randomly paired amateur angler work together for a combined weight.
"That's one fishing lady," said Capt. Greg Watts, of his amateur partner Diane Tilly. "She made all the casts she had to make and I was very impressed." "I've fished with a lot of fishermen that couldn't have put the lure in front of the fish as well she did."
Greg employed a technique that is becoming popular with SRT pro's. Since the fish were so apt to be spooked by a trolling motor, he push-poled his partner around the flats and relied on her to make many critical casts to redfish the team had spotted. "That is a technique that can be very successful, provided you have a skilled partner who can hold their own," said Greg, who finished in third place with a total weight of 12.14 lbs.
Anglers used a variety of baits to fill their limits, but Exude Soft Plastic Jerkbaits, Mirrolure Topwaters and Terminator Snapback Plastics were most often mentioned. Twenty-two keeper redfish were caught in total, but many anglers stated that they had several fish outside the slot as well as some trophy sized sea trout and snook.
The SRT would like offer a special thanks to Mosquito Lagoon Outfitters for all their help in making the tournament a success. They can be reached at (321) 267-1200.
For more information on the Southern Redfish Tour please call: (813) 681-2656 or visit www.uneekfishing.com
Sponsors of the Southern Redfish Tour include:
Camp Chef, Castaway Rods, Equalizer Scales and Stealth Charging Systems
Email mrsnook@bellsouth.net