Does anyone try to “fight” a fish anymore – at least anyone who isn’t trying to set a line-class world record? I don’t think so, and I like to think derby bass fishermen had a lot to do with that. “That” being shorter fights and better fish survival.
Thought of it while reading this article on a guy who caught a world record bluefin tuna in 1976, and still remembers it like it was yesterday. Not surprising since the fish was 11.5 feet long, weighed 1,014 pounds and took 4 and a half hours to get in the boat – and the guy was trying to get the fight done as quickly as possible!
[Side note: Don’t know about you, but in your average 4.5 daytime hours I’m hitting the head at least once.]
Let’s swing this back around to bass fishing: What’s been your longest bass-fishing fight, and what’s the story? Mine was probably about 2 or 3 minutes, a 9 1/2-pound largie caught in New Hampshire (a HUGE fish for that state – I got lucky, a prespawner), but felt like 10 minutes. Caught on a Mann’s crawfish-colored crankbait bought in Wal-Mart (maybe K-Mart?) about 20 years ago. The action on those baits was killer!
> Also read that West Virginia fisherman James Brooks caught a new state record striper – 45.7 pounds – in Bluestone Lake on Sept. 3 using a crankbait. Fight time: 40 minutes.
Bo
September 30, 2010 at 4:00 pm
I can’t believe I still have this…years ago (before Katrina) while fishing out of Venice I hooked a bull redfish with speck equipment and decided to land it. I don’t know how long the fight lasted but judging from the empty beverage cans my partner left it must have been a looong time. The thing pulled us out in the middle of a bay where I almost lost him in an oil rig. Here is our GPS trail…the track leading out in East Bay is all redfish power. http://www.tmtanglers.com/Schedule/2004/Venice/Venice_Map_9_04.pdf
Brian
September 30, 2010 at 8:32 pm
Can’t think of any specific bass that have gone more than a few minutes, but did land a 44.6 pound flathead catfish this summer on a spinning outfit with 8# fluoro while fishing a shakey head for bass that took 1 hr and 42 minutes to land.
Jeff
October 13, 2010 at 4:50 pm
Great Lakes Salmon in the rivers can take 10-20 minutes though is seems like much longer. Carp can take quite a while too. Probobaly Carp have put up my longest fight. I hooked a 15-20 pounder on a river canoe float with 4 pound test on an ultralight fishing for smallies which was probobaly a 15-20 minute fight.