Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Winds slow anglers in striper tourney
Mark Taylor is outdoors editor at The Roanoke Times.
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Mark Taylor
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Brutal.
That's probably the single best word to describe the cool, windy, bluebird fishing conditions faced by competitors in the Smith Mountain Striper Club's member/guest tournament Saturday.
"The high winds almost blew us off the water," said Frank Skillman, who ran the tournament and also fished in it.
Good action can help anglers ignore less-than-comfortable weather conditions.
Such was not the case for most teams Saturday.
Of the 20 teams in the tournament, only seven weighed fish. And only one of those teams weighed more than one fish.
That's tough.
Most remarkable on the day was the fact that the winners not only weighed two fish, but one of the stripers was larger than the slot limit.
Dewayne Lamb's Team All For Fun had a 37 3/4-inch striper that weighed 21.34 pounds. They added a 3 1/2-pound fish for good measure, though they didn't need it.
Mike Ratliff's Team Conrad Marine was second with a nice just-under-slot fish that weighed 7.1 pounds. Third went to Steve Fitzgerald for a 4.62-pound striper.
Lamb, a marina owner and fishing guide, said he was pulling alewives on free lines, under floats and on planer boards.
"All five of our fish hit the alewives on the planer boards," said Lamb, whose crew had three fish in the protected slot limit.
The lake's striper anglers get a quick chance for redemption, as another tournament is planned for this weekend.
The Smith Mountain Lake Striper-Fest will be run out of Lamb's Captain's Quarters Marina, with fishing hours starting at midnight Friday and running until 8 p.m. Saturday.
It's also a two-fish tournament. The entry fee is $100, with 100 percent of the entry fees to be paid out in prizes. The tournament also includes an optional big fish pot with an entry fee of $25.
Registrations will be taken Friday from 6-8 p.m. at Captain's Quarters.
For more information on the tournament, call Lamb at 721-1175 or 493-4810.
Trail running guru hosts clinic at Fleet Feet
In the crazy world of ultra trail running, few names are better known than David Horton, who will speak at an ultra and trail running clinic at Fleet Feet Sports in Roanoke on Wednesday evening.
A professor at Liberty University, Horton has put more miles on his legs than some people put on a car. He's logged 110,000 miles -- and counting.
Among other accomplishments, Horton has completed the Appalachian Trail in 52 days and 9 hours -- the third-fastest time ever. He's also an accomplished race director, whose events include the Hellgate 100K and Promise Land 50K.
Even for runners whose aspirations aren't that extreme, Horton can provide insight and tips to help them get more out of their time on the trail.
Call Fleet Feet at 777-1166 for more information.
Bike shop hosting weekly mountain bike rides
The Blacksburg and Roanoke locations of East Coasters have launched free, guided weekly mountain bike rides on area trails.
Gary Wheeler will lead an evening ride every Friday at Green Hill Park in Roanoke County.
The ride, which starts at 5 p.m., is geared toward novice riders and intended to help them get used to riding on single-track trails. The ride will feature a combination of paved and gravel roads, and dirt trails.
The meeting place is the parking lot at the trailhead for the Roanoke River Greenway. Call the shop at 774-7933 for more information.
The Blacksburg rides, which are for women only, will be on the trails around Pandapas Pond on Wednesdays.
Riders will meet at the upper parking lot at 5:30 p.m. and will be pedaling by 5:45 p.m.
For more information, e-mail Jeni Walker at jbwalker@vt.edu or give the shop a call at 951-2369.
Creek Freaks to host swap meet for gear
Members of the Franklin County Creek Freaks paddling club have been loving the past few weeks, as recent rains have kept the region's creeks and streams in better shape than they've been in the past couple of years.
But some paddlers will take a break Saturday for the club's swap meet at Anderson Lawn and Garden Center, which is north of Rocky Mount on U.S. 220.
The swap meet, which will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., is open the public. Club members don't have to pay a fee to display their gear. Non-members can bring stuff to sell, but the display fee is $25, which also happens to be the club's annual dues.
For more information, see creekfreaks.org.
