Fishing Tournament Friday & Norther is Coming!!

[Marilyn]

I'm in a fishing tournament this Friday. This is the big one that we really look forward to each year. We rent a condo right on the water and go up on Thursday afternoon, have a nice meal with lots of door prizes on Thursday evening, up early Friday morning, and weigh-in from 2 to 3 p.m. We have a really awesome guide, Capt. Ken, his website is www.fishmatagorda.com (http://www.fishmatagorda.com).

We always catch nice fish, and last year our boat won the hardware (artificial bait) division. It was so cool. We have gotten trophies the past two years.

Tonight the forecast is fair and the temperature right now at 11 p.m. is 82 deg F. We are getting a norther Friday afternoon, and in advance of the norther, we have an 80% chance of thunderstorms. I'm so afraid we won't be able to go out on the water. If there is lightening, we can't go. We will be wade fishing this trip which means we'd be standing in the water like lightning rods. Since we've had lots of rain lately, the bays are full of fresh water which pushes the fish out farther. We will be fishing right at the mouth of the bay.

So hope the weather holds just until 2 p.m. or Friday. I'm hosting three customers on this trip, so have already put considerable effort into coordinating things and will be doing even more tomorrow in preparation. None of this is cheap either. So we really need good weather just a little longer.

[gja1000]

Oh Marilyn, isn't that just the way it goes, weather interferes with our best plans. I hope the front holds out till you get done fishing. But I fear we will have strong thunderstorms ahead of the front. It is 80 degrees, 100% humidity this morning and it is so gross. I think it will be this way tomorrow too before the front.

We are going to Gary's deer lease tomorrow to fill up the feeders, so we may get wet! At least it won't be blazing hot!

I'll keep my fingers crossed that the weather holds and that you catch the biggest/most fish! :D

[Tiramisu]

I'll hold the front here for you, as long as I can. I hope you get another trophy and a good catch. If you can't go out, get some rest!

[Marilyn]

If we can't go out, I get to hang out at the condo with 3 guys who will probably be drinking beer or Crown and coke. There are others who are staying in the same condo's though, so perhaps someone else's condo will become party central. We can only hope!! Thank goodness these guys are professionals. One is a plant manager, so they shouldn't get rowdy, just boring.

Maybe I should bring some dominos....

[gja1000]

Dominos!!! That sounds just like the ticket!!! :D

[paula1961]

Oh Marilyn.. Sounds soooooooo exciting!! I certainly hope the weather holds out and you have a wonderful trip! Take lots of pictures for us! I hope ya catch a GREAT BIG FISH!! If those guys are annoying... drink some of their beer or maybe have a rum and coke... and then take pictures:D

[paula1961]

And if you don't drink alcohol...... Just hit 'em over the head with a big Fish:p and then take pictures.. That would be soooo funny! Have a wonderful time:)

[DianaB]

I hope the weather holds for you so you can get your tournament over. Take a deck of cards and play poker. Get them sloshed and rake in the winnings!!! LOL!!! It could be a profitable weekend for you after all!!!!! Good Luck!!!

[gja1000]

I don't know if the rain has hit the coast yet, but we are getting buckets of rain here in Austin. It's 61 degrees and the radar looks like it will rain for a few more hours.

Hope you all get some fishing in before it hits down there!

[Blueyes]

The cool front just passed through here. BIG storm!!! I'll bet the weather is fine for your tournament! Sounds like a fun weekend:p

[Marilyn]

Well, the tournament is over and all in all, it was a good time!!

Thursday evening we had the dinner and door prizes. Many of the guys had gotten there early and quite a few were already sloshed!! There were over 180 guys in the tournament. I say guys because there were maybe 3 women fishing, total!! My customers were surprised that so many people know me. When you are one of so few women, you tend to stand out and I've been in this industry quite a while.

Anyway, about the storm, we were in the bay heading back when the storm hit. It started with a cold blast of wind that did not stop. The waves kicked up very quickly. We were in 3.5 to 4 foot swells in no time running straight into the cold wind, and we had been wade fishing, so we were all soaking wet. Then the cold rain started pouring. We had to run about 30 to 45 minutes, that seemed like forever, under these conditions. The storm hit at around 11:45 a.m. We had been fishing since daybreak and weigh-in wasn't until 2 p.m. so we unloaded the boat in the cold rain and headed back to the condo for hot showers.

The guys I was fishing with all drank lots of Crown and coke last night, and this afternoon, but thankfully they all remained very nice and all helped me with the food and moving things around from the truck to condo and back to the truck. Really nice guys.

And the really nice part.......WE WON THE HARDWARE (ARTIFICIAL BAIT) DIVISION!!!! I caught one keeper trout and one keeper redfish. One of my customers won the largest redfish and got $310 prize and a trophy. We also got a trophy for the largest stringer.

All in all, considering the weather, it was a nice time, and the guys were very appreciative of the invitation to the tournament. I'm very tired though. Got up at 4:50 a.m. and will be going to bed pretty soon!! Not bad for a 55 year old though. The guys all think I'm a real trooper.

[Marilyn]

By the way, no pictures while we were out fishing. I would never take a good camera that was not waterproof on one of these outings on a day like this. We were very literally drinched in salt water. There were pictures taken of us with our trophy's though. If I can get a copy, I'll try to post later.

[gja1000]

So glad that you posted! I was thinking about you all day, wondering if you got the tournament in. I'm so glad you won a trophy, and caught two keepers!!! It's great that your customer caught the biggest redfish too.

I bet you are tired! Rest up!

[Marilyn]

Feeling much better today. We're having grilled Redfish for an early supper in a bit. I've been invited to a Mary Kay party at 5:30 p.m. and even though I have lots of things to do here at home, the hostess is somone who needs a lot of encouraging, so I'm headed to the party.

And we are babysitting the English bulldog this weekend. Melissa and Garrett went on a retreat and left Mack with us. He's full grown now and has mellowed a lot but the yorkies still freak out when he's around so we have to keep them separated.

Having a quiet weekend, cleaning and such.

[paula1961]

Marilyn, I'm so glad you had a good time! Congrats on your winning too! I don't know any women who fish in tournaments, I bet you have alot of fun doing it. I'm sure you give those guys a run for their money:) I'm also glad they all behaved. My experience always was if the guys were drinking, at least one of them would do or say something really stupid. Glad that didn't happen to you this week-end.

[DianaB]

I'm glad that you weren't caught in the cold for too long. I'm sure it felt like a long time before you were able to head to the showers!! Congrats to your team for their awards!!! You are a real trooper for going with the guys!!!! I don't think I could do it!

[guekSeaB73]

voted Even though i hate fishing if helps a brother out...

BTW how many people you up against and what do you win?

[Janet]

What exactly did you vote on?






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