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Big Easy bonanza
Redfish Cup anglers will find plentiful redfish on this season's third stop
By Rob russow
ESPNOutdoors.com
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CHALMETTE, La. - The third stop of the 2009 Redfish Cup season gets under
way Friday with the Academy Sports + Outdoors Big Easy Invitational out of
Chalmette, La. 

After tough fishing in Punta Gorda and crowded conditions in Kemah, the 56
teams take to the expansive delta system knowing that numbers of redfish are
easy to come and only ounces will likely separate the top contenders.

Local guide and Redfish Cup pro Charlie Thomason expects anglers to find the
same numbers of fish as they have in years past, but predicts the weights
will be lighter due in part to the hurricanes that changed the shape of the
gulf coast fishery.

"Due to Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, the saltwater intrusion killed our
hydrilla and water hyacinths," Thomason said. "Until that comes back, we're
not going to have those fatter fish. I still think that no matter what, this
will be a slugfest with the weights real close."

Last year when the Redfish Cup visited the Louisiana marshes, half the field
averaged 15 pounds a day, with Mark Sepe and Andrew Bostick taking home the
title on the heels of a 16.49-pound final day. Thomason's prediction for
2009 is 16 pounds a day to make the top-five final day cut and then 16
pounds to win.

All teams will fish Friday and Saturday, each looking for their limit of two
redfish between the 16 and 27-inch slot limit. The top five teams after Day
Two will move on to fish Sunday with the weights zeroed. One team will
emerge Big Easy champions.

Team Plano's Mike Frenette spends 200 days each year fishing the fertile
waters of the Delta and he too finds the fishing completely different from
year's past.

"The area between Hopedale and Venice is known for clearer water back in the
ponds," Frenette said. "Right now, the water is dirtier and that hurts when
you are sight casting. Normally, it would take in the upper 15- to lower
16-pound range to make the top five, but I would be surprised if it was as
easy to catch 15 pounds as it has been in the past."

Another wildcard facing the anglers this week is the wind. Strong winds can
dirty up the water even more and make sight fishing for redfish much more
difficult. Forecasts for Day One of competition call for a chance of
thunderstorms with 10 mph winds out of the southwest.

Louisiana native and Cup rookie Sam Swett looks to both sides of the wind
blowing during the competition days.

"The wind is going to be a big factor," Swett said. "Wind can create
current, but it can also stir up the mud and make these fish harder to
catch. When it gets muddy, you either have to put the bait right on their
nose or use a vibrating bait like a Spot, Rat-L-Trap or even a buzzbait."

Swett was born and raised in the area and spent much of his life chasing
bass in the Delta. Turning his pursuits to redfish really wasn't all that
difficult of an adjustment and he applied many of the same techniques to
both species.

More interesting has been the way the region has responded and changed since
the hurricanes. Even though, as Thomason observed, most of the grass was
wiped out, Swett believes it is rebounding.

"I have been pleasantly surprised because the grass is coming back
gangbusters," Swett said. "Even places that didn't have grass before the
hurricane are showing signs of growth. The fishing seems better than ever.

"A lot of guys are complaining about the lighter weights, but having this
tournament in July those fish don't feed as much and don't use their energy
up. The numbers are still good and there are a lot of 7- to 10-inch redfish,
which is promising for the future."

The weeks of practice leading up to the event have not been without
excitement. The team of Joe Crosby and Rick Steckelberg nearly found
themselves air-lifted by helicoper after and getting their boat stuck on a
mud flat while venturing into a shallow marsh during practice.

As Crosby tells it, the team began the day in their bass boat, but after
getting stuck and freeing themselves, decided to change out for their
smaller boat that "should float in spit." Shortly after leaving the launch
in Chalmette, they started getting bogged down in the mud and got stuck
before Crosby was able to get the boat turned around.

"When I stepped out of the boat, I immediately sank down into waste-deep
water," Crosby said. "At that point we tried to get in touch with the Coast
Guard and local sheriffs, hoping that someone could get us off. My cell
phone was running out of bars and my VHF was sitting in the room on the
charger. You don't want to spend the night on the marsh, those mosquitoes
have saddles."

The Coast Guard sent a helicopter out to the stranded pair, but they waved
it away because the sheriff was on his way with an airboat. Thanks to Brian
Clark from the marine division of the Sheriff's office, Crosby and
Steckelberg were able to get back to fishing.

"The airboat was a must because by the time we were able to get help, the
tide had gone down and we were just surrounded by wet mud," Crosby said.
"Even the crabs had left that area. The sheriff was great and all the folks
around here have treated us very well."

When teams launch Friday, they will be fighting for the $40,000 first-place
prize and valuable points in the Academy Sports + Outdoors Team of the Year
presented by Crocs. At the half-way point, the team of Erik Rue and Larry
Puckett has a slim one-point lead with 93 points.

With the sheer number of fish anglers are catching, the top-five positions
this week will be hotly contested and ounces will likely determine who will
have a shot at the final payday. As Thomason put it, "The whole tournament
could come down to whether or not your fish ate a crab that morning."

Weigh-ins will begin at 4:30 p.m. ET at Gulf Outlet Marina in Chalmette, La.
For full coverage of the event, visit RedfishCup.com.