The
weather during the 14th annual 'Noosa Family Fishing Classic' went from
good, to very good, to absolutely superb and the 970 contestants certainly
made the most of it. With a record crowd in attendance, especially on
the final day, the atmosphere was festive to say the least. At the live
weigh-in tent, which was a popular venue, Flathead made up the bulk of
the roughly 300 live fish submitted, tagged, measured then finally released
over this sensational long weekend.
As predicted, the leading Jewfish (5.182kg) was finally knocked off it's
perch although it was a near thing as only one fish, albeit a 15.5kg thumper,
was weighed in on Monday and that was only a couple of hours before the
final deadline. Mooloolaba angler Clinton Raven, above left, briefly led
the field on Sunday with the top weight Bream of 1.756kg, only to be knocked
off by a fish that was just 2gms heavier! Not to be denied, and noting
that the leading Jewie was marginally over the 5kg mark, Clinton switched
his target species and set up at Marcus Beach around high tide on Sunday
night. Using Tailor flesh on 2x7/0 gangs, he hooked, and after a 40 minute
tussle, landed the 15.5kg winner. Clinton was kitted out with a 13' 6"
SnyderGlas surf rod and an Alvey 700 reel loaded with 15lb Maxima line
and 40lb Jinkai trace. |
