I know a lot of you have seen this on FB, but I wanted to wait to make the post on here until it was 100% official. Well, I got the call from our 'OWO-Record Fish Commitee' this past Friday, and it's in the books!
My buffalo came in at 40.80lbs, and bumped the former record which has amazingly stood for over 30yrs, which was a 37lb fish taken in Central Ohio.
To say Im EXCITED-thats an understatement!!!
Ill tell ya what guys, theres not many people who really know how much time Ive out into pursuing this fish, but a 'conservative' estimate I came up with was well over 400hrs of fishing time JUST this year, with most of that being poured on starting mid summer. The area I fish is a 2hr drive each way, and I was making the trip almost every week, spending from 2-6 nights per week on the water, fishing solo, sleeping in my truck, passing up hundreds (maybe thousands?) of NICE fish, waiting for that ONE fish that would make it all worth it. There were nights when I didnt fling a single arrow, waiting for that single opportunity that may or may not present itself.
I beat the hell out of my boat, my bows, my arrows, my body. I pounded all of my regular spots, and put in some MILES on the water trying to discover new ones. There were stretches where I would literally run myself into exaustion, stumbling around, blurry vision, motivation fading quickly-but I pushed on. Towards the end of September I realized I was running out of time, and I remebered something I had heard years ago-'The definition
of INSANITY, is doing the same thing over and over, but expecting different results.' I knew I had to change up a few things-I had to step outside of my regular routine, I had to think 'outside of the box'. I wont say exactly what I 'changed', but I will say I saw results immediately....
The 'final' night of fishing started off uneventful. Actually, it almost didnt start at all. It was day 3 of a 4 day trip, and I was pretty close to my limit; my motivation was about tapped-I had pretty much decided this would probably be my last trip of the year. As I sat at the ramp waiting for it to get dark, I realized I needed an hour or so nap-I literally couldnt keep my eyes open! Long story short, my 'short' nap turned into a 5hr siesta! Finally I drug myself out of my truck at 300AM, and set out in the 45 degree weather.
I first checked out two of my 'money' spots, which surprisingly were almost completely devoid of life. I chalked it up to the cold front and decided to just head in, as I didnt have much time until day break, and I was still extremely tired and quickly getting COLD. But after I fired up the big motor and got on plane, I decided to change course and make a quick swoop down a shoreline I had never hit, before calling it a night-a decision that ultimately changed our record books.
As I made my way along the shore, I didnt see much at first-pretty much par for the course. But as I made my way down the final stretch, all of sudden I found myself in a flurry of action! Buffalo were flying everywhere-deep, shallow, towards me, away from me, you name it! Then, from out of nowhere, I saw MY fish-THE fish. She came out of nowhere, from the deep water under my boat, and hit the surface of the water as she tried to speed alongside the boat. (Did she actually think she could outrun the MotherShip?!?
)
The exact moment happened so quickly its still just a blur, but I drew, aimed and shot without thinking......and
then stood there in amazement as I watched the fish 'coast' in the water....with NO arrow in it!!! Thinking I had missed, I threw my bow on the deck and spun around, grabbing my backup bow that was lying across my barrel. But just as I grabbed my backup, I heard my primary bow being drug across the deck-I HAD hit her after all! What I didnt realize was that I had shot completely through the fish, thus the reason I didnt see my arrow, and the reason the fish just kind of 'drifted' for a few seconds.
I gently played the fish for about 5 minutes, then nursed her to the surface where I put a second arrow in her with my backup bow. As I pulled her into the boat my excitement was almost at a critical level-the fish was massive by Ohio standards, but I didnt want to get too excited before I put her on the scale. My fears of coming up short were quickly dismissed-my scale read just under 41lbs!! I had finally done it! I measured the length and girth just to confirm, then I let out a WHOOP so loud Im sure they heard it in Cleveland! That night still seems surreal-the last trip of the year, possibly the final night, hardly any fish to be found, close to daylight and with less than 300yds of shoreline left, I pulled an absolute GIANT out of nowhere. I still cant believe it.
This fish capped off the most SUPREME year I could have only dreamed of. Ive met so many GREAT new friends this year; Ive had some amazing road trips to tournaments across the country, laughed so hard I had tears streaming down my face; I saw my best friend DEMOLISH our state record carp right beside me, on my boat,
and then to finally ice the cake with MY ultimate goal, (and my 2nd state record!) I couldnt have scripted it any
better!
I have the best friends I could ever want, who offered their encouragement, and an awesome girl who ultimately made it possible for me to spend the time needed to succeed. Thank you guys-you know who you are
![Image]()
My buffalo came in at 40.80lbs, and bumped the former record which has amazingly stood for over 30yrs, which was a 37lb fish taken in Central Ohio.
To say Im EXCITED-thats an understatement!!!
Ill tell ya what guys, theres not many people who really know how much time Ive out into pursuing this fish, but a 'conservative' estimate I came up with was well over 400hrs of fishing time JUST this year, with most of that being poured on starting mid summer. The area I fish is a 2hr drive each way, and I was making the trip almost every week, spending from 2-6 nights per week on the water, fishing solo, sleeping in my truck, passing up hundreds (maybe thousands?) of NICE fish, waiting for that ONE fish that would make it all worth it. There were nights when I didnt fling a single arrow, waiting for that single opportunity that may or may not present itself.
I beat the hell out of my boat, my bows, my arrows, my body. I pounded all of my regular spots, and put in some MILES on the water trying to discover new ones. There were stretches where I would literally run myself into exaustion, stumbling around, blurry vision, motivation fading quickly-but I pushed on. Towards the end of September I realized I was running out of time, and I remebered something I had heard years ago-'The definition
of INSANITY, is doing the same thing over and over, but expecting different results.' I knew I had to change up a few things-I had to step outside of my regular routine, I had to think 'outside of the box'. I wont say exactly what I 'changed', but I will say I saw results immediately....
The 'final' night of fishing started off uneventful. Actually, it almost didnt start at all. It was day 3 of a 4 day trip, and I was pretty close to my limit; my motivation was about tapped-I had pretty much decided this would probably be my last trip of the year. As I sat at the ramp waiting for it to get dark, I realized I needed an hour or so nap-I literally couldnt keep my eyes open! Long story short, my 'short' nap turned into a 5hr siesta! Finally I drug myself out of my truck at 300AM, and set out in the 45 degree weather.
I first checked out two of my 'money' spots, which surprisingly were almost completely devoid of life. I chalked it up to the cold front and decided to just head in, as I didnt have much time until day break, and I was still extremely tired and quickly getting COLD. But after I fired up the big motor and got on plane, I decided to change course and make a quick swoop down a shoreline I had never hit, before calling it a night-a decision that ultimately changed our record books.
As I made my way along the shore, I didnt see much at first-pretty much par for the course. But as I made my way down the final stretch, all of sudden I found myself in a flurry of action! Buffalo were flying everywhere-deep, shallow, towards me, away from me, you name it! Then, from out of nowhere, I saw MY fish-THE fish. She came out of nowhere, from the deep water under my boat, and hit the surface of the water as she tried to speed alongside the boat. (Did she actually think she could outrun the MotherShip?!?
)The exact moment happened so quickly its still just a blur, but I drew, aimed and shot without thinking......and
then stood there in amazement as I watched the fish 'coast' in the water....with NO arrow in it!!! Thinking I had missed, I threw my bow on the deck and spun around, grabbing my backup bow that was lying across my barrel. But just as I grabbed my backup, I heard my primary bow being drug across the deck-I HAD hit her after all! What I didnt realize was that I had shot completely through the fish, thus the reason I didnt see my arrow, and the reason the fish just kind of 'drifted' for a few seconds.
I gently played the fish for about 5 minutes, then nursed her to the surface where I put a second arrow in her with my backup bow. As I pulled her into the boat my excitement was almost at a critical level-the fish was massive by Ohio standards, but I didnt want to get too excited before I put her on the scale. My fears of coming up short were quickly dismissed-my scale read just under 41lbs!! I had finally done it! I measured the length and girth just to confirm, then I let out a WHOOP so loud Im sure they heard it in Cleveland! That night still seems surreal-the last trip of the year, possibly the final night, hardly any fish to be found, close to daylight and with less than 300yds of shoreline left, I pulled an absolute GIANT out of nowhere. I still cant believe it.
This fish capped off the most SUPREME year I could have only dreamed of. Ive met so many GREAT new friends this year; Ive had some amazing road trips to tournaments across the country, laughed so hard I had tears streaming down my face; I saw my best friend DEMOLISH our state record carp right beside me, on my boat,
and then to finally ice the cake with MY ultimate goal, (and my 2nd state record!) I couldnt have scripted it any
better!
I have the best friends I could ever want, who offered their encouragement, and an awesome girl who ultimately made it possible for me to spend the time needed to succeed. Thank you guys-you know who you are
