Page 1 of 7 Kentuckyguard.com Unbridled Service About Us Join Us Media & Display Requests Family Programs Benefits & Resources Human Resources Contact Us & FAQ 123rd Contingency Response Group completes successful earthquake-response exercise Kentucky Guard showcases career fields for future Army officers Kentucky anglers make history at National Guard fishing tournament On June 27, 2014, in Kentucky National Guard, Sports, by davidwaltom Story by Capt. Curtis Persinger, 198th Military Police Company
Capt. Curtis Persinger and Master Sgt. Scott Carrier make up the first team to ever make back to back wins at the the 19th Annual Air National Guard Bass Tournament at Lake Patoka, Indiana. (Photo courtesy Capt. Curtis Persinger, 198th Military Police Battalion) Page 2 of 7 Are you into sports or consider yourself a sportsman? Do you play on a team or coach a team? Or maybe you compete in an individual event. We want to hear from you, whether it s football, baseball, soccer, golf, hunting, fishing or whatever. Tell us your sporting story and let us share it with the world. Email pao@kentuckyguard.com with your sporting idea. LOUISVILLE, Ky. This was the 19th Annual Air National Guard Bass Tournament. It is sanctioned by National Guard Bureau, and the Army side just joined three years ago in 2012. Master Sgt. Scott Carrier and I fished the first year and finished 18th out of 65 teams. Last year we won at Lake Guntersville with an astonishing weight of 52lbs over two days (five fish limit per day). We averaged well over 5lbs per fish a day. Day One was 24-7lbs and Day Two we weighed in 27-7lbs. It was an unexpected win. We were on good fish, but we had no clue how big of fish we were on. We ended up winning by 5lbs. Last year s story is important because tournament officials told us there had never been a back to back or repeat champion. That was about to change. We just didn t know it at the time. This year the Indiana Guard stepped up and hosted the tournament at Patoka Lake, which happens to be my home lake. I have about 15 years of experience on it, so when I heard the announcement I was really excited. Scott and I practiced three days on a very tough Patoka Lake. The fish were on a post-spawn pattern and I knew the fishing would be extremely tough. We were only getting about 10-12 bites a day. That wasn t good at all. Capt. Curtis Persinger and Master Sgt. Scott Carrier with their first day s catch during the 19th Annual Air National Guard Bass Tournament at Lake Patoka, Indiana. (Photo courtesy Capt. Curtis Persinger, 198th Military Police Battalion) Day One: We ran about 30-35 spots ranging from 2 to 20 feet deep. We ran about 30 gallons of gas which is over an 8,000 acre lake. Again, the fish were spread out between shallow and deep. I was hoping for more cloudier conditions but every day we received several hours of sun which hurt our bite. We ended up having about 12 bites on day 1. That day we only had 5 fish that met the 15 inch requirement. Our last two fish were caught in the last hour of fishing and if it wasn t for Scott going full force we might have not had a limit. He caught one of my fish in mid-air as it came un-hooked, falling on his back. It could have been an ESPN Top 10 Highlight!
Page 3 of 7 The day ended with us leading by 1 1/2 lbs, totaling out around 15 lbs. We used several different lures, Slongs jigs, spinner baits, swim baits and Carolina jigs. Master Sgt. Scott Carrier and Capt. Curtis Persinger with their second day s catch during the 19th Annual Air National Guard Bass Tournament at Lake Patoka, Indiana. (Photo courtesy Capt. Curtis Persinger, 198th Military Police Battalion) Day Two: I knew this would be even tougher than our first day and it was anything but perfect. We lost power/connectivity in both of our GPS fish finders, so we were basically running around the lake blind. Fortunately again, I knew most of the depths around the lake. Fishing started well. I caught my first fish within the first five minutes and caught another one within the first two hours. We then went through a long dry spell and around noon I hooked a monster estimated between 5 1/2-6 1/2 pounds. I can tell you that I literally went to my knees on the boat. At that point in the day with only two fish in the live well I thought we had just lost the tournament on that big fish. Then Scott saved us in a big way! He caught a nice three pounder. That might have been the most important fish of the tournament. Not only did it give us our third fish, but it got us refocused. Master Sgt. Scott Carrier and the 5.97 bass that ensured the Kentucky Army National Guard s victory at the 19th Annual Air National Guard Bass Tournament. (Photo by Capt. Curtis Persinger,
198th Military Police Battalion) Page 4 of 7 We started fishing and I remember looking at Scott and saying put on a spinnerbait. He kind of gave me the Really? look. I told him, Scott trust me. I ve caught several big ones here on a spinnerbait. With 10 minutes to go I hear Scott say Curtis, fish! I turned around and saw this llama thrashing the water as Scott starts to walk it around the boat. It happened extremely fast. I dropped my pole, scattered for the dipping net and went sliding under Scott and his line to dip the fish on the passenger back side corner of the boat. The next 90 seconds were absolutely chaos as we were screaming, hugging, high-fiving, punching, throwing poles down, trying to find life jackets. For most tournament anglers they have experienced these several times throughout their life. As we headed towards the ramp I knew we were coming in light with only a 4 fish limit, but that big fish gave us a punchers chance to win the tournament. As the dust settled we ended up weighing in 13.75 for a tournament lead of 28.80lbs. The Indiana Guard team came in stronger with a bigger stringer on day 2 but only had a combined weight of 28.27. We had pulled it off. First ever back to back winners, just as the tournament officials told us. We left with a few bumps, bruises, and mentally smoked but we brought back the hardware to the Kentucky Army National Guard for the second straight year and more importantly memories for life. The win and that 5.97 bass for Scott was a hell of a way to celebrate his birthday It goes among some of the best team tournaments I have ever fished 15 years. I remember looking down at my bracelet after Scott caught that huge fish and thinking, Damn. I wear a bracelet on my right wrist that I designed three years ago as a company commander when I took the 940th Military Police Company to Iraq in 2011. My motto was Make a Way. It comes from the Latin term Aut Viam Inveniam Aut Facium, which means I Will Find a Way or Make a Way. We did just that at Patoka Lake! Next year s tournament will be on Lake Martin, Alabama. Scott and I already have plans to make a recon trip to Alabama in the near future to do some fishing. With momentum in our favor, three times champions is on our mind! Tagged with: Annual Air/Army National Guard Bass Tournament fishing kentucky national guard Patoka Lake If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it! Comments are closed. Search for: Search Subscribe unsubscribe Subscribe
Page 5 of 7 Flickr Photostream Archives May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012
May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 Page 6 of 7 Go To Top» "No public Twitter messages." Kentucky_Guard Pages About Us Disaster Assistance Kentucky National Guard History Leadership Wendell H. Ford Regional Training Center Mission Join Us Family Programs
Child & Youth Services Family Assistance Center Family Readiness Support Assistants Kentucky Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program Military Spouse Assistance Resilience Survivor Outreach Services (SOS) Media & Display Requests Public Affairs Office Photos Video Gallery Bluegrass Guard Aviation and Static Display Requests Hometown News Release Benefits & Resources Chaplain Community Outreach Education Benefits Kentucky Army National Guard Substance Abuse Program Kentucky National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Retirees Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Suicide Prevention Assistance Human Resources AGR Management Services Manpower Publications Labor Relations Information Page Equal Employment Opportunity Contact Us & FAQ DD Form 214, Discharge Papers and Separation Documents Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) ID Cards & DEERS (Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System) Teslin Form Family ID Cards Valid Forms of Identification Suicide Prevention Assistance Page 7 of 7 Stay In Touch More Thanks for dropping by! Feel free to join the discussion by leaving comments, and stay updated by subscribing to the RSS feed. 2013 KentuckyGuard