Got my feelings hurt

[Love of the Sport]

Let me start by saying fishermen are known for tall tales of the 1 that got away. This is not one of those tales. this is 100% truth and very fresh on my mind as it only happened a few hours ago.
Today started well with just enough wind to give the water a very slight chop, just enough to get me throwing a lipless crank. Up to this point I had caught several fish and lost several traps, around 5 so far because of sunken christmas trees and sunken piers. The bite went slow for a minute and I was carelessly reeling my bait back when boom, it stopped dead. I thought great, another pier. So I reel up all the slack and try to pull it free, no budge. Then I pull HARD to break the line and my drag starts screaming and in that instant she jumps. I was so in awe at the size of this fish that I actually froze and stopped reeling. This well might have been a new Louisiana state record or at the very least the fish of a lifetime and I missed it because of inexperiance. I must have just stood there on the back of the boat staring blankly at that spot for 15 minutes. I very literaly thought I was gonna cry.

[MallenManson]

Talk about a tear jerker

[cassidyta]

We have all been there. And yes, most of the time we think back and realize that it was our own fault when it happened. I think the ones we missed make us better fishermen then any we land.

[bamabassman]

oh man i am so sorry for you buddy. i know how you feel. i hooked a good one last year at the first get together (ask bb and kingfish) and lost it cuz i wasn't using braided line. but hey, you got to see it right? you now know where it is too. go back and keep trying. look for the biggun's living quarters. it'll be there.

[Love of the Sport]

Originally Posted by cassidyta

We have all been there. And yes, most of the time we think back and realize that it was our own fault when it happened. I think the ones we missed make us better fishermen then any we land.

I agree with this. Until now I had never hooked anything much over the 4lb mark, I had no idea what hooking something that large would feel like. I really thought it was a submerged pylon... and then it moved.

[abu4600]

Man, I know how you feel. I lost a monster a few years ago, and I still think about that fish.

[BigBassin144]

did you pull a Ike and throw you rod on the floor of the boat and scream like a little kid whose parent's won't let him buy some cookies? :P

Really though, that sucks.

BB

[bfd300]

I feel for you i do......I had a similar experience on Manasquan Res. last year.
My daughter and I were throwing traps and i hooked into the biggest smallie of my life........when she jumped out of the water i was like<omg it's huge>. the fight was on ...few seconds later she jumps again spitting the hook. i was crushed.
there was another boat nearby actually was a friend of mine who saw the whole thing and he even said that fish was a monster.

[Bassboss]

Wow! That really sucks man!!!

[jasonfish320]

There are always two ways to look at everything in life...negative or positive...you can only control your attitude!! I use this theory in every aspect of my life, whether it's my relationship/work/fishing or otherwise.....

In this last experience, what did you learn? You obviously did something right to hook a big fish. Big fish don't come easy and a lot of good fishermen lose big ones. I would go so far as to say that the majority lose their first big fish most of the time. It takes time & practice to get the big ones in the boat...personally I struggled to get beyond the 5lb mark, but with every big fish I lost I learned more about their fighting habits and eventually learned how to keep them on the end of my line...

Things didn't turn out how you planned, that's life! Just don't end up in the constant thought of..."what could I have done differently"..instead think "what did I learn and how will I handle that next time", because it will happen again.

[doc]

Treat every fish you hook like the fish of a lifetime, that way when she is on the other end of the line your ready for her.

[woody]

Love of the Sport, I know that feeling and it is a hard pill to swallow. But like others have said the best plan of action now would be to look at this as a learning experience.

As a word of advice, the next time try to anticipate when the fish is about to jump by lowering your rod tip all the way down to the water. The hard part about it is being ready to react. Alot of fishermen know what to do, its just that they didn't react quick enough.


~Mark

[aikenyounggun]

dude that really sux..... i have never felt the feelin of losin a new pb..... caught those 6+ pounders but never lost one....... got to make you better tho...... just go back the next time and try harder.....

p.s. in ten years the stroy will be how you lost the world record bass.... 30lbs..... you know the stories grow

still sux tho

[Rebbasser]

You'll remember that one longer that the ones you do get in the boat.

Several years back I was throwing a Tiki Stick on Choke Canyon. I had the exact setup on the deck next to me but it was spooled with braid and I was throwing mono. I said to myself, "I need to switch" as I made a cast. You can guess the rest. She was over 10. Came up, smiled at me then dove into the hydrilla and snapped the line. I still have bad dreams about that one. Learned a valuable lesson, though: When your gut tells you something, pay attention!

[keithdog]

I really can relate to your story!!! Back when I was 18, too many years ago, I was fishing in water 20 foot deep right off a lilly pad field slow crawling a white spinnerbait along the bottom. The spinnerbait was about 4 foot below me when I had what I would estimate to be a 20 pound plus pike come up from out of the darkness. He moved quickly to the spinnerbait eyeing it nose to nose and then engulfed it right before my eyes. I just froze in shock at what was happening. I couldn't believe what I was seeing!By the time I thought to set the hook he had spit it out. He hung around a while looking it over and with my doing the figure eight trying to get another strike. But after a few seconds of that, he slowing sank back into the darkness and out of sight. I felt that sickness in my gut we've all had. But I sure learned a valuable lesson. REACT for God sake!!! LOL

[Love of the Sport]

Man, its been 3 days and i'm still dreaming about that fish.
Thursday i'm going to try to find that sucker!

[swimbaitkid]

Aikenyounggun has only caught 2, 6lbers, thats why you haven't lost any, the more fish you catch the more you lose, I have lost tournaments because of pigs straighting hooks or just the hook coming out there mouth, but you need to pay attention, you wont have that chance very many times, and when the oppotunity presents itself you have to take it