Syracuse.com - Wild Carp Week Triathlon anglers grapple with 75 straight hours of fishing

[HuntingNY-News]

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Tournament director Jason Bernhardt said by 1 p.m. today, anglers had recorded 1,006 fish, weighing a total of nearly 16,000 pounds.

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<p><br />Anglers fishing the 75-hour team event in the Wild Carp Week Triathlon on the Seneca River entered Day 2 today with good catches, coupled with thoughts about they were going to cope with their sleep needs during this year's event.</p>

<p>"Last year, when it was 50 straight hours, I got about 30 minutes of sleep total and actually fell asleep, face first, in my food at the dinner afterward," said Justin Keaton, of Indianapolis, Ind.</p>

<p>"I haven't slept yet this year. It's the motivation, the drive -- the money that keeps you awake," he said.</p>

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<p>The team event kicked off at 7 a.m. Sunday and stretches to 10 a.m. Wednesday, with anglers fishing both day and night. In past competitions, the team event lasted 50 straight hours. Tournament officials added on an extra day, they said, to try and increase the total catch, along with increasing angler satisfaction. Some had suggested there needed to be more fishing time after lackluster catches the past two years.</p>

<p>Thanks to the new practice this year of allowing the anglers to bait their assigned fishing spots beforehand, the action was fast and furious on Day 1 Sunday. It showed no sign of slowing down today.</p>

<p>"Our catch after 24 hours is more than what we caught last year after 50 hours of fishing," said Christine Stout, of Indianapolis, who is Keaton's partner and the lone female in tournament.</p>

<p>Tournament director Jason Bernhardt said by 1 p.m. today, anglers had recorded 1,006 fish, weighing a total of nearly 16,000 pounds. Carp weighing under 10 pounds are not weighed.</p>

<p>"If we did, we would be over 20,000 pounds," he said.</p>

<p>As of 1 p.m. this afternoon, the team of Robert Duprey, of Brattloboro, Vt. and Dmitri Consolati, of Lee, Mass., were in the lead with 73 fish, weighing a total of 1,077 pounds. <strong><em>(Editor's note: I'll update this later this evening when the results from the day are finalized).</em></strong></p>

<p>Meanwhile, the biggest common carp so far was landed by Duke Strache, of Baldwinsville, on whose land along the river that many of the anglers are fishing. His fish weighed 38 pounds, 5 ounces.</p>

<p>The biggest mirror carp, a smaller species in the carp family, was reeled in by the Pennsylvania team of Chris Jackson and Scott Russell. It weighed 21 pounds, 5 ounces. The biggest fish of both species will earn the lucky angler (s) a prize of $1,000, each.</p>

<p>Most of the two-person angling teams interviewed today said they had no sleeping game plan going into the contest, apart from catching catnaps when the fatigue sets in, and having at least one of the anglers awake to watch the team's four poles at all times. Each angler is allowed two poles to fish.</p>

<p>A few, including Keaton, said they were going to try and stay awake through Wednesday morning.</p>

<p>Gary Ruble, of Spartansburg, S.C., fishing to Lions Park with partner, Barry "Red Dog" McPeak, of Easley, S.C. said that's foolish. He said Sunday night he snoozed for a good two hours.</p>

<p>"If you don't get any sleep, you're going to lose all your concentration, your focus, your mental ability, " he said. "If you don't take a little break now and then and keep yourself refreshed, eat food and water, you'll just wear out. You ain't going to catch nothing."</p>

<p>Tim Rumlow, of Sheboygan, WIsc., said he got a lot of sleep the night before the tournament, and has been drinking plenty of coffee, along with trying to stay out of the sun to keep hydrated. As of noon Monday, he hadn't sleep a wink during the tournament.</p>

<p>"Last year, I did 63 hours straight, during and after the tournament," he said. "It was really rough. That was definitely pushing the limits. And with the forecast this week of temperature in the 80s on Tuesday and Wednesday, it's definitely going to be hard. The heat will take it out of you."</p>

<p>Rumlow said he's equipped with a good supply of Frappuccinos -- double expressos.</p>

<p>"You're going to get loopy whether you drink coffee or not. That's how I deal with it," he said.</p>

<p>Last year's winners in the 50-hour competition, Jason Long, of Batavia, and his cousin, Dan Kelsey, of Attica, said they each got 6-7 hours during the contest.</p>

<p>"You push it as far as you can and you hit a wall, and you need some sleep," Kelsey said. "We're not using any coffee -- just adrenaline. That's about it."</p>

<p>Teams are allowed a "runner," a third teammate who can help net the fish, assist in the weighing-in process and do whatever else needs to be done without touching a rod, Some teams have one in this tournament; others didn't.</p>

<p>'The first year we didn't have one and we regretted it," Kelsey said. His team's runner is his brother, Brian, who was with them last year when they won. Did he get a share of the winnings?</p>

<p>"Yeah, I got a case of creamed corn," he said,laughing.</p>

<p>Steve Bailey, of Morrisville, and teammate Chris West, of Syracuse, are using buddy, Jordan Wright, of Red Creek, as their runner.</p>

<p>"He gets right in the water to help net, he clear branches, fights water snakes. The best runner there is," Bailey said.</p>

<p>Following the team competition, a Big Fish competition is scheduled on Thursday and a Big Four (weight of four biggest fish) competition is set for Friday.</p>

<p>Each competition will have individual prizes and a point system will determine the overall winner of all three contests. More than $25,000 in cash prizes will be awarded this week.</p>

<p>For more on Wild Carp Week and updated results, see <a href="http://www.wildcarpcompanies.com">The Wild Carp Companies website</a>, the "Wild Carp Week" page on Facebook or email Bernhardt at <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>. </p>

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