October 20, 2008

46th... 22nd... 7th... 6th.... That was the order of finishes we had during the season this year. We felt like going into the championship, the stars were aligning for a win in Biloxi. Not so fast said the fishing gods. A mediocre 13th place. Not even sniffing the monster redfish that the top 5 teams were catching.

To be honest, after laying an egg at the first event in Punta Gorda, we were more concerned with not having to re-qualify for 2009 than win the championship this year. (Teams that made the top 35 are automatically qualified for next year. We were 15th.)

I will definitely be looking forward to see how the invitational pans out. Over 50 teams all fighting for a chance to be a part of the Redfish Cup in 2009. Word is that some teams have been scouting the area daily for about a month. Plus there are many talented local teams that can use their knowledge to home in those heavy Louisiana reds.

The competition was fierce this season. I would like to think that we were fishing against the top teams in the nation. However, I know that the qualifier will bring a host of talent into the fold for next season. Plenty of new faces to the Redfish Cup are going to make us step up our game or get left behind. Good luck to all the teams fishing in Buras.

Ken Chambers
www.RedfishPros.com

August 21st, 2008 - Hopedale Heroics

Regardless of where you finish in the standings, it’s always fun to go redfishing down on the Bayou. It really is a special place with incredible fishing and good people.

We wound up turning in a seventh-place finish in the Oh Boy! Oberto Redfish Cup event in Hopedale, Louisiana from August 15-17. We were glad to earn a decent check and valuable points towards the Academy Team of the Year presented by Crocs title. The top 20 teams earn a trip to the championship and the top 35 are exempt from having to qualify for next season. We are now sitting in 23rd place and considering we face-planted in the season opener, we will take it.

Louisiana is the Mecca of redfishing. A tournament in the Pelican State is not decided by who catches upper slot fish– everyone catches those– it's won by the team who lands the heaviest. I have never really performed well at this venue until this year and it seems that we finally have begun to figure it out. Finding the fresh water, the heavy redfish, and getting away from pressure from other anglers are the keys to success.

At the Hopedale event, we primarily worked a couple flats that featured deep troughs running through the middle. The fish would use the troughs to travel, working their way into the thick grass beds to feed on crabs and mullet. We sight-fished redfish coming on and off those flats but all of our heaviest fish came out of the deeper water. We only needed to use gold spoons and the simplicity of these lures make it an all-time favorite of mine.

Typically, Louisiana marsh fish have a reputation for eating anything that is thrown to them. And when I say anything, I mean everything— spoons, plastics, shoelaces, and bare hooks included.

But this year, the fishing experiences proved to be different. We were a little stunned to find fish that would spook from any bait and how some showed signs they will not accept a limitless amount of fishing pressure. Hopefully, this is not a trend that will continue.

Ken Chambers
www.RedfishPros.com

August 14th, 2008

The choice? Do we go to spot 1, spot 2, spot 3, spot 4, etc.? With so many redfish in the marshes, we have to decide where to go.

Hopedale, Delacroix, Venice, and Port Sulphur are all within reach. Every area is holding plenty of tournament winning redfish. Even if you have had a lousy week of practice, each team is catching redfish. Heck, you could throw a dart at the marsh and start there and find some.

We have found nice fish in a number of areas. Each one seemed to hold a few fish. There are some spots with large schools but most of those schools have been found by other competitors. Put together a milk run and stick to it. Our plan is to keep moving. Look for these small pockets of good redfish. Catch what we can and move on.

The general thinking is that it will take consistent catches of over 16 pounds to make the cut for Sunday. Those fish are out there. We have seen some redfish with their stomachs so jammed full that you think they might explode. The teams that can catch those redfish and get them to fit in the slot are going to be at the top.

This event will not come down to who can catch two quality redfish. Certainly most teams will catch two good fish. It will come down to a matter of hundredths of a pound. Hopefully the fishing gods are smiling on this team. We are looking forward to the challenge. Now if we can just figure out that milk run.

Ken Chambers
www.RedfishPros.com

September 10th, 2007 - Pensacola Predictions

Got out of St. Augustine without a total disaster. Most practice days were spent not catching redfish. We whacked them on Monday but then only caught a couple the next three days. The night before the tournament, we talked about just not screwing up our chance for the championship. I felt like we could easily blank either or both days there. The fishing during the event was better than practice, but on game day, the focus always seems sharper.

We just wanted to survive the event and maintain our position heading into the championship. Not fishing to win a tournament is a lousy feeling.

There is always a confidence that we can do well. Realistically any two bites can provide us with a huge bag of fish. However, the reality is that sometimes you just are trying to get two fish and move on.

With the championship held in Pensacola, the possibilities are real that we will have teams fishing in four different states. My guess is that 25 lbs. will make the top 5. Those fish can definitely be found in Florida. Rumor is several boats are already poking around Louisiana. Crazy I say. The run will break several boats again just like in the Mid Season Bash. Better tell the service trailers to bring plenty of spare parts.

See you in the Panhandle…

Ken Chambers

August 30th, 2007

We are practicing for the Cup event in St. Augustine and the fishing has been brutal. We are not catching many fish. The tides move 5-6 feet and the fish are really spread out. On the falling tide, action picks up considerably. Add in a full moon and we are looking at a struggle to get a bite. We have heard more crying this week than at a daycare center.

I have landed myself on the injury report for the week. I would be listed as day to day. Tuesday, I poled our Maverick HPX into some skinny water late in the afternoon. The tide fell out like someone pulled a drain plug. All of sudden it was a mad dash to get back off the flat before we spent dinner time waiting on the incoming tide.

I put the push pole in the mud and began shoving the boat forward through the slop. Then the pole found some hard ground and when I leaned on it hard, the foot of the pole slipped and I began to do some type of bird dance by waving my arms trying to maintain my balance.

I pole my skiff for a living so be up 6 feet above the water does not scare me and my balance has always been sharp. But I decided that the safest thing to do was just jump away from the boat and the sharp blades of the propeller below. In the nanosecond that I was in the air, I realized that I was jumping into water about 6 inches deep. Not going to be good.

I somehow managed to land squarely on my feet and I still had a firm hold on the pushpole. I felt a slight pop in my knees and I fell back on my back. I laid there for a second trying to decide if I was hurt or dead. Fortunately, I landed on muddy bottom not oysters or it could have been ugly. Mostly hurt my pride and tweaked my knee.

When John realized I was not writhing in pain he began to chuckle. He told me that since I did not stick the landing, “Mary Lou Retton style”, he would have to deduct points from the dismount. Next time, I will just tuck and roll.

If that is the worst thing that happens on this trip, we will do just fine.

August 5th, 2007

I have heard a few anglers mention that there is a possible format change brewing in redfish tournament circles. These changes always need to be taken with a grain of salt. I have no idea which tours that have considered it or if it ever takes flight but I think it deserves some thought.

The major change would be to go from a team format to a Pro/Amateur format where each pro is paired with an amateur for the day of fishing. This format has been used in bass events for years. This was tried a few years ago by a redfish circuit in Florida. I never entered one of those events but I know that the anglers did not embrace it.

Initially, I thought it was an idea not worth thinking twice about. I mean, redfishing is different than bass fishing. First, one of the most effective ways to catch redfish is to pole the boat in shallow water. Could I depend on an amateur to pole me around in my skiff? Would the amateur expect the same courtesy?

Will my amateur partner stand still and wait for me to make the cast to a perfect fish tailing on an oyster bar? Should I expect them to?

Another major concern is the possession of fish in a livewell. Will we both only have one fish to weigh in? Florida law states the legal limit for possession of redfish is one fish per person. In other states where the limits are higher, could we expect to keep say 3 or 4 fish alive in our livewells all day during the summer? My Maverick HPX skiff has an incredible livewell system but there is a limit to the stress these bronze beauties can handle.

No teammate. Individual glory and failure. Dealing with an angler that may or may not have the experience to fish very shallow water effectively. Or fish very deep for that matter. It has worked for years in the bass fishing world. Will it go over in the salt? Just something to ponder between tournaments...

July 13th, 2007

Welcome to my blog. My name is Ken Chambers. This is my attempt at explaining what it is like to compete on the Oh Boy! Oberto Redfish Cup series.

We just wrapped up the Mid-Season Bash. This was the second All Star event of the 2007 season.

In the three day event, all 30 teams left the launch site on Friday with glass calm conditions that lasted almost all day. We ran over 145 miles one way. We arrived at the fishing grounds with redfish tailing all around. We quickly caught a decent weight and headed back going easy on the throttle.

Completing our 290 mile round trip back to Gulf Shores, I remarked to my partner, John Merriwether, that "today's calm ride was just a tease." I never expected to be right on the money.

Day Two seemed pleasant enough when we got to the launch site. Crossing Mobile Bay was no big deal with only a light chop greeting us. The real changes lie ahead as over half the field ran 50 plus miles per hour straight toward the Biloxi marsh.

As we came through the Dauphin Island bridge on the west side of Mobile Bay, I noticed the chop began to grow and the pounding increased waves. The coastal islands off the Gulf Coast provide decent protection during north or south winds. Saturday's wind was neither – it was due west at about 15-20 mph.

After 100 minutes of pounding through the rough water, we discussed what to do next. It was very apparent that making it to the ponds in Louisiana and getting back to the weigh-in on time was not likely. Some teams would make it but most would fail to make it back and zero. We decided to give up on our plan and go with the second option: scramble.

By now, the Gulf was a washing machine and we were going through the spin cycle. Around 10 a.m., after almost four hours of a mind-numbing, bone jarring run, we made it back to Orange Beach just east of the launch. We fueled up and hit some local marsh areas. They turned out to be a bust, so with about an hour left in our day we headed over to fish a few docks that I had fished in a previous tournament.

Since the head on the trolling motor was a casualty of the rough seas, John sat down next to it and manually turned the stainless shaft, maneuvering us around the dock pilings. My job was to fish hard and make it happen.

Basically, I had to skip my jig as far under the dock as possible. Let it fall, jig it back slowly but with a sense of urgency. Keep constant contact with the line. Retrieve the jig to the boat. Repeat. Over and over again. John tells me it is 2:20 p.m., 10 minutes left before we would have to head in. With five minutes to go, I stick a redfish but as he comes near the net we can see the bad news. This guy is under the slot limit. A dinker. Pretty bummed but we were prepared to catch some small guys on the docks, so we get over it and continue to pound away as the time dwindles.

John is backing the boat up to one final dock and lets me know that it is 2:29 p.m. "Alright, last cast. I never catch one on the last cast," I said. Well, lo and behold, a fish crushed the jig as it settled to the bottom. I wrestled him through a maze of dock pilings that seemed to never end. When the mid slot-sized redfish swam into the net we felt great that there was going to be a decent ending to a roller coaster day. I suppose if the cameras were rolling I would have given homage to Ike with my best "never give up" yell. Instead, I was just glad the beating was over.

Besides, Charlie Thomason told me he gave it a try on the final day. Stay tuned for that.