Taylor Triumphs on Faust
The weather improved and so did the fishing from Teemburra two days earlier with anglers nailing improved quantity and Faust’s famous quality at the Sunline Peter Faust 3 x 3 Championship, 16/17th November.
For event winner Cy Taylor it was a continuation of his form from 2009 with the AFC barra gun compiling a 9/9, 746cm three session limit to secure the win. The only angler to catch his full limit for the tournament, Taylor outgunned a talented field of anglers including event runner-up Jason Wilhelm (7/9, 627cm) and fellow AFC anglers Matt Coleman (3rd) and Allan McNamara (4th).
Fishing the western side of the lake Taylor fished and rotated two specific spots. A large wind laden bay and a small submerged island fringed by weed.
The first of his two tournament winning spots, the bay, featured about three metres of water leading up to a prominent weed lined edge.
“The fish would hold and work along the weed edge enjoying the warm water and the food pushed towards them”, explained Taylor.
Using a two lure approach Taylor alternated between a 110mm Squidgy Slick Rig in yakka colour and a purple and white floating 10cm Rapala X Rap. The retrieve for the Slick Rig was standard fair, a slow roll with the occasional twitch, while the X Rap was worked with a three twitch pause retrieve.
The same techniques were used at Taylor’s number two spot, the flooded island, with the bite zone, the weed edge, featuring about two metres of water.
“Getting the lure tight to the weed and keeping the lure in the strike zone as long as possible was important to get the bites”, explained Taylor.
While the Slick Rig and X Rap approach delivered Taylor the fish he needed to win, it was a frustrating first session when he lost multiple fish that he thought things weren’t going to go his way.
“It hurts to lose fish after fish, and you think are these the tournament winning fish that are jumping off. Thankfully though it was only the first session where it was hard to make them stick”, explained Taylor.
The tackle he used to claimed his second Faust win in as many years included a 6’4″ Millerod Camofish Hi-Roller rod, Shimano Chronach reel, 20lb Power Pro & Fins braid, and 80lb Black Magic leader.
The addition of a stinger hook on his Slick Rigs was one of the small additions Taylor made to his tackle, with the Faust champ adding a size 4 VMC treble for added assurity.
Post event Taylor was philosophical about the win and the rest of the tour.
“It was great to win this event for the second year, and while it was disappointing not to get a result at Teemburra, I know that if I fish hard the results will come”, concluded Taylor.
With the southern BARRA Tour now on the radar Taylor will be keen to continue his hot form and add more wins to his tournament CV.
For event runner-up Jason Wilhelm it was another solid performance on the northern leg of the Daiwa BARRA Tour, with the 37 year old Awoonga Fishing Guide claiming the northern AOY title with an 8th at Teemburra and a 2nd at Peter Faust.
Fishing two locations to catch his fish, Wilhelm spent the bulk if his tournament fishing a weedline edge in the Proserpine River, before switching and hitting the main basin late in session three.
“The Prossy River fished well until that final session when it suffered from strong winds and angling pressure”, explained Wilhelm.
Up until then the location had produced a string of quality of fish, including two 100s, a 99, a 71 and an 80. Structural the location was comprised of a long constant weed edge with about 12 feet of water at the base, deep water near by, and active fishing moving through that could be seen with the sounder.
“You could see the fish come through on the Lowrance HDS 10 LSS1, and if you saw them you’d were pretty confident that you’d get a bite”, explained Wilhelm.
The bites were regular, with the barra hitting the lure in a range of different places. From tight to the weed to right back at the edge of the bites.
“The bites would could come anytime during the retrieve so you needed to make sure you maintained the retrieve from the start right through to the end”, explained Wilhelm.
The retrieve involved casting the lure tight to the weed edge, counting it down the bottom then slow rolling it back to the bottom. The lure used of course was Wilhelm’s much loved 130 Squidgy Slick Rig (slimey mackerel). It wasn’t a stock standard Slick Rig however, with Jason rigging the plastic on a 25gram, size 8/0 TT Headhunter jighead, and adding a size 12 Gamakatsu Treble 14 hook as a stinger.
The approach and location delivered Wilhelm four fish in session one, two in session and unfortunately none in session.
“It died in the last session, there were few bites and the fish that we had been seeing on the Lowrance disappeared so we changed tact completed and hit the suspended fish in the main basin”, explained Wilhelm.
Hitting the basin just before dark Wilhelm and team mate Alan McNamara motored around with their eyes fixed on the sounder looking for active fish moving through in the deep water.
“We found a spot in about 80 feet of water that had fish traveling through, so we dropped the electric, put the I-Pilot on Spot Lock and just fished there”, explained Wilhelm.
With fish moving through at depths ranging from 10 feet through to 40 feet Wilhelm would make long downwind casts, sink the lure down to the desired depth then retrieve it back with a slow rolling retrieve.
“The bites were soft and subtle, so as soon as you felt a touch you struck hard to set the hook”, explained Wilhelm.
The approach was spot on with Wilhelm landing all the fish he hooked, including a 106 and a 71.
“Chasing barra in deep water is rarely easy, you can often find the fish but getting them to bite can be hard to say the least. So to hit the basin late in the session and get stuck into a few was very satisfying, especially after struggling upriver early”, explained Jason.
The tackle Wilhelm used to catch his fish included a Shimano T Curve 701 rod, Shimano Stradic C14 reel, 30lb Power Pro braid and 100lb Black Magic leader.
Post event Wilhelm was ecstatic with his result and was looking forward to getting on his home water and tackling some Awoonga barra.
“Faust was one of the events that I really wanted to do well at this year. I haven’t done well here in the past, so to come away with a second is fantastic. Let’s hope Awoonga fishes well and we get a taste of the action we got last year”, concluded Jason.
The Big Barra Prize for the event changed hands many times throughout the tournament will Townsville angler Matt Coleman eventually claiming the Rapala Big Barra Pack with 120cm caught in the final session. Falling to a white 3″ Zoom Swimming Fluke rigged on a 3/4oz TT Revhead jighead, Coleman caught the fish in 40 feet of water on a slow rolled retrieve in the main basin.
“The bites were slow and tentative so I kept the retrieve slow and methodical. The fish inhaled the lure on its first touch and had the lure so far down I had to stick my whole hand and part of my forearm into its mouth to get the lure out”, explained Coleman.
The southern tour now beckons with anglers keen to experience slice of the action they had in 2009. Visit www.australianbarra.com.au to see how it all unfolds.
| Place | Angler | Team | Status | F1 | L1 | F2 | L2 | F3 | L3 | TF | TL | Cash | Prizes |
| 1 | Cy Taylor | Millerods/Shimano/Evinrude | Pro | 3 | 242 | 3 | 242 | 3 | 262 | 9 | 746 | $1,100 | Daiwa Heartland rod & Daiwa Luna reel & Prize Pack + $181 1st Pro |
| 2 | Jason Wilhelm | Shimano/ E-Tec | Standard | 3 | 299 | 2 | 151 | 2 | 177 | 7 | 627 | $700 | Millerod Blademaster Camo rod, Shimano Curado reel & Prize Pack |
| 3 | Matt Coleman | Team of Two | Standard | 2 | 178 | 1 | 76 | 3 | 325 | 6 | 579 | $400 | Shimano Raider rod, Shimano Coriolis reel, Prize Pack |
| 4 | Alan McNamara | Shimano/ E-Tec | Standard | 1 | 89 | 3 | 303 | 4 | 392 | $300 | Spotters Prize Pack & Prize Pack + Big Barra Rapala Pack (120cm) | ||
| 5 | Dean Silvester | Megabass/Mako | Standard | 1 | 80 | 1 | 80 | 2 | 219 | 4 | 379 | $200 | Shimano Catana rod, Halco Prize Pack |
| 6 | Trent Power | Power | Standard | 1 | 82 | 3 | 222 | 1 | 58 | 5 | 362 | Berkley Prize Pack | |
| 7 | Jon Millard | Rapala/JT Reel Repairs | Standard | 1 | 88 | 2 | 152 | 1 | 89 | 4 | 329 | Berkley Prize Pack | |
| 8 | Kerrin Taylor | Millerods/Shimano/Evinrude | Pro | 1 | 84 | 1 | 54 | 2 | 162 | 4 | 300 | Berkley Prize Pack | |
| 9 | Phil Lyons | The Likely Lads | Standard | 1 | 78 | 2 | 218 | 3 | 296 | Bozos Pack | |||
| 10 | Wayne Cox | Team Reef Suzuki Marine | Standard | 1 | 74 | 2 | 129 | 1 | 90 | 4 | 293 | Bozos Pack | |
| 11 | Mike Connolly | ETEC Evinrude HO | Standard | 1 | 96 | 1 | 80 | 1 | 107 | 3 | 283 | ||
| 12 | Matt McArthur | McArthur Customs | Standard | 3 | 282 | 3 | 282 | ||||||
| 13 | Geoff Newby | The Likely Lads | Standard | 1 | 70 | 2 | 175 | 3 | 245 | ||||
| 14 | Craig Griffiths | Rapala Street Team | Standard | 2 | 165 | 1 | 75 | 3 | 240 | ||||
| 15 | Simon Barkhuizen | Samurai Reaction Rods | Standard | 2 | 165 | 1 | 58 | 3 | 223 | ||||
| 16 | Rodney Milkins | Team Maverick | Standard | 1 | 101 | 1 | 111 | 2 | 212 | ||||
| 17 | Elaine Sanderson | Tackle Warehouse Ladies | Standard | 3 | 208 | 3 | 208 | ||||||
| 18 | Leon Parmenter | ETEC Evinrude HO | Standard | 2 | 172 | 2 | 172 | ||||||
| 19 | John Schwerin | Fish Catching Machines | Standard | 2 | 161 | 2 | 161 | ||||||
| 20 | Jake Schwerin | Fish Catching Machines | Standard | 1 | 81 | 1 | 71 | 2 | 152 | ||||
| 21 | Daniel Grech | Rapala/JT Reel Repairs | Standard | 1 | 76 | 1 | 74 | 2 | 150 | ||||
| 21 | Donovan Power | Power | Standard | 1 | 74 | 1 | 76 | 2 | 150 | ||||
| 23 | Steven Wright | Team Reef Suzuki Marine | Standard | 2 | 147 | 2 | 147 | ||||||
| 24 | Matt Hazell | Team Predator | Standard | 1 | 91 | 1 | 91 | ||||||
| 25 | Geoff Busbridge | Megabass/Mako | Standard | 1 | 90 | 1 | 90 | ||||||
| 26 | Spencer Troxell | McArthur Customs | Standard | 1 | 87 | 1 | 87 | ||||||
| 27 | Michael Weick | Neranga Tangs | Standard | 1 | 86 | 1 | 86 | ||||||
| 28 | Lindsay Dobe | Quantum Fishing Team | Standard | 1 | 82 | 1 | 82 | ||||||
| 29 | Simon Black | I’m On Lures | Standard | 1 | 80 | 1 | 80 | ||||||
| 30 | Matt Black | I’m On Lures | Standard | 1 | 79 | 1 | 79 | ||||||
| 31 | Glen Smith | Neranga Tangs | Standard | 1 | 78 | 1 | 78 | ||||||
| 32 | Neville Parmenter | Team Maverick | Standard | 1 | 78 | 1 | 78 | ||||||
| 33 | Nathan Chapman | Dingos | Standard | 1 | 77 | 1 | 77 | ||||||
| 34 | Matt Martin | Team Predator | Standard | 1 | 77 | 1 | 77 | ||||||
| 35 | Katie Sanderson | Tackle Warehouse Ladies | Standard | 1 | 73 | 1 | 73 | ||||||
| 36 | Glyn Barkhuizen | Samurai Reaction Rods | Standard | 1 | 71 | 1 | 71 | ||||||
| 37 | Daniel Roth | Rapala Street Team | Standard | 1 | 51 | 1 | 51 | ||||||
| 38 | Ben Durkin | Gin Gin Hotel | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Cameron Pratt | DC | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Daryl Pead | Dingos | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | David Purdy | Sebile | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Issac Toivanen | DC | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Jack Erskine | Quantum Fishing Team | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Jarrod Dalton | Sebile | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Jeff Eales | Team of Two | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 38 | Rob Wood | Gin Gin Hotel | Standard | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 35 | 2898 | 29 | 2263 | 32 | 2867 | 96 | 8028 | ||||||
| 82.80 | 78.03 | 83.63 |