Schools & Sports

If a survey was given to fishermen throughout the state and the question posed, “What do you consider to be the most ‘fished for’ species in the state?”, Which species do you think would rank at the top? I’d think the fish would need to be numerous and widespread, easy to catch and provide the makings of a tasty fish fry. Some would say catfish; it’s hard to beat a big platter of crispy fried catfish fillets and most lakes support a healthy population of catfish. Fishing for largemouth bass is hugely popular but bass are definitely not the easiest fish to catch much of the time and can be challenging for youngsters learning to fish. Besides, few people consider them a food fish these days. Crappies are notoriously ‘good eating’ and definitely widespread across the state but they too can be challenging to locate and catch by the rank and file angler. This leaves the schooling open water species, stripers, hybrid striper and white and yellow bass. Which of these species is most widely distributed across the state? Definitely white bass, I’d say. I think you know where I’m going with this little ‘unofficial’ survey! YES I believe white bass (sandbass) gets my nod as the most popular freshwater species in the state to be targeted by the largest number of anglers. Why? Well, their numbers are high in many lakes and they are easy to catch by even the youngest anglers, once they are located.

I read a news report that stated the following: “….. other gymnasts’ coaches motioned to the crowd to give her (Biles) a standing ovation!” When does something extraordinary like that happen? Why does it happen?

Last week we left Mr. Dan Hill being paid with money by some and valuable goods by others as he “taught” his private school during the summer time.

One big reason I so enjoy going to the State Fair of Texas each fall is spelled— FLETCHER’S! Fresh and steaming right out of the fryer, slathered with mustard, almost blistering my tongue, this delicacy, at least for a few minutes, makes me forget that it is hot outside, plus the yard needs mowing; my legs hurt; there will probably be a traffic jam leaving the Fair area!

I will admit that I do not think I would “totally” enjoy sitting at a race track weekend after week-end to watch long distance racing cars, but I would really like to attend one of the more prestigious events sometime before I die. (I have been at races down on Lawson Road and in the Crandall and DFW areas upon occasions and enjoyed them.) But I do enjoy being able to watch “on the tube,” as my uncle was accustomed to saying, and at one time during my younger years, I could name the winners of major events. Parnelli Jones, Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough, Eddie Rickenbacker, Carroll Shelby, Mario Andretti, Al Unser, and A. J. Foyt were some of my favorite drivers!

Lake Ray Hubbard is in Spring and early summer mode for sure . It has been a busy time on Lake Ray Hubbard since my last report. Thank goodness the COVID news is looking better, people are getting vaccinated and trying to return to a somewhat normal life. The weather was crazy with all the rain, cloud cover and on some days down right cold. Never fear, summer is here and we will be begging for that forecast in the coming heat of our Texas summers.

My love for building a cabin ‘back in the woods’ began at an early age. Two neighbor buddies and I used hatchets to hack down several sweet gum saplings in the patch of woods beside our farm to construct our ‘cabin’. I remember us taking turns with the dull hatchet to down the saplings. Once on the ground, we cut them into 6 foot lengths and hacked notches in them to construct a very crude (heavy on the word CRUDE) cabin. We used that little structure as a headquarters for our squirrel and rabbits hunts and even had a little fire pit outside the cabin door for cooking some simple meals of hot dogs and canned chili. As a young man with a growing family, we couldn’t afford a camper but did spend time camping in our tent. I remember one very cold day back in the late seventies when I got the idea to take the wife and our two oldest kids to my uncle’s place in very rural Red River County for an overnight camping trip. It was late October and an early cold front blew in during the night. We spent several hours in the cab of my Dodge truck with the heater running! I later purchased a homemade pop up camper that re sembled an antique wooden river barge. It was huge for a pop up camper, heavy and pulled like a wooden ox cart. But we had a roof over our heads and thought we were in ‘high cotton’! The camper doubled as a hunting camp in the fall until it finally simply fell apart.

Guide Chris Carey with Striper Express eased the throttle back on the Falcon Super King guide boat and we gently glided up to the windward side of an island. There was just enough light to cast our big topwater plugs. A gentle breeze caused surface ripples on the water and the sky was threatening rain. But we didn’t really care about the rain if it came, just as long as there was no accompanying lightning. A glance at radar on Chris’ phone indicated a break in the precipitation.

Last week, I had a catfishing trip planned with my friend Lake Tawakoni guide Tony Pennebaker. Tony has been sending his clients on their way home with several gallons of those tasty snow white blue catfish fillets on a daily basis. The ‘big fish’ bite for trophy blue catfish has slowed as always this time of year but now is a time of plenty for anglers wishing to target the ‘eater’ fish weighing between 2 and ten pounds. I love to catch big fish but if given the choice, I honestly prefer fishing when the bite is strong for fish that will ultimately wind up in my cast iron skillet.

*The following “Lucky 13” people picked “THE TEAM.”-----Sonya Bannister, Weston Themer, Neal Weaver, Corby Jones, Waylon Themer, Charles Beason, George Venner, Will Themer, Marty Rouvaldt, Richard Jones, Harry Power, Don Themer, Mike Medlin*

May 5: “Viv, I want to take you to the Rangers ballgame and ‘out to eat’ on (preferably) May 7 as your ‘Mother’s Day Outing,’ since we have full days on Saturday and Sunday. I know you have been saying you want to get back out to the PARK.”

*Now, 1st of all before the “meat of the article” begins, I must give credit to Duane Penny for all the information, which I have edited somewhat and submitted. He read my original article and offers this “continuing education” for Forney Folks!*

FACT: Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks GRINS!