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Carson Orellana carries the marketing credentials of an adult pro

Photo: Adam Harbottle

By Craig Lamb

Apr 6, 2012

Unless you see B.A.S.S. tournament angler Carson Orellana, you’d never guess he’s just 16 years old. That’s because for somebody that age he carries the marketing credentials of a fully-grown adult pro.  

He’s got a cleverly appointed website (carsonorellana.com), a growing list of sponsors, and a professionally designed logo. That logo is emblazoned across his tournament jerseys and fully wrapped boat.

He aspires to some day win the Bassmaster Classic. Sound familiar? Look out Kevin VanDam, because here he comes. 

Orellana fished the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Open as an amateur on Lake Norman, his home lake. The week prior he competed on Lake Okeechobee at the Junior Bassmaster competition held during the Cabela’s B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Southern Divisional. Prior to that Orellana kicked off his tournament season as a non-boater at the Southern Open held in Florida at the Harris Chain.

He plans to fish the remaining Open later this season.  Check out his website and you’ll find a long list of tournaments fished last year and before. Top five finishes stand out. 

“So far it’s been a good learning experience,” he said. “I hope to keep taking it to the next level.” The pros aren’t in danger yet of the next KVD wrecking havoc on the B.A.S.S. tour. That’s because Orellana, a teenager, is enrolled in high school.

“Sometimes the events have fallen within school holidays and other times we’ve had to arrange makeup days,” said Rick Orellana, his father. “He’s a good, solid ‘A’ student and takes a lot of honors classes. That’s one of the prerequisites we have for him in order to do this,” he added.

Rick works as a fabricator for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) in the heart of NASCAR country. Five years ago he moved the family from Charlotte to Lake Norman. Carson went fishing and hasn’t stopped.  “Carson just took to fishing like any kid, but we quickly realized he had an extreme passion for it,” he said. “He would stay out on the dock for hours and hours.”

Carson, then 11, would become befriended by a growing list of mentors impressed with that passion for bass fishing. The first to step up was Rick’s co-worker Jason Shapiro, an avid tournament angler and JGR car chief for the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota.  He invited Carson to join him as a partner at charity bass tournaments in the area.

Shapiro’s network of fishing industry contacts quickly opened doors for the youngster.  That led to Carson’s joining the Southfork Bassmasters’ junior club in 2010.

It proved to be the turning point in his very tentative timeline as a tournament angler. The club is North Carolina’s largest with 40 junior members. Last year he won angler of the year and state titles in his age division. 

The next mentor to appear was Roy Sanford, a pro and full-time guide at Sam Rayburn Reservoir. The connection occurred as Sanford was casting around the Orellana’s dock during practice for last year’s Open.  “I went down to the dock and started chatting with him, told him about Carson, and he said he wanted to meet him,” recounted Rick. 

Sanford invited Carson to join him during practice and a friendship began. Sanford, a crappie and bass guide, extended an invitation for Carson to travel to Texas. Last summer he spent several weeks as a deck hand on Sanford’s crappie boat.  “I’ve been around this a long, long time,” said Sanford. “He’s hungry for advice, wants to learn. He’s got the potential to become a great pro someday.”

Last summer, Carson mowed lawns and saved up enough money to pay $5,000 for his first bass boat. His sponsor, BOE Marine, has wrapped the boat with his sponsor logos. 

Will he be the next KVD? If you look at his track record so far, there’s a chance.

Stay tuned.

Cory Byrum and Cory Leonard win second event on Roanoke Rapids Lake with 21.33 lbs

On a cool windy day on Roanoke Rapids lake, Anglers were bringing big bags of bass to the scales again. Twenty-five anglers brought over 303 pounds of bass to the scales. When all the scales had settled, Cory Leonard and Cory Byrum took with win with 5 bass weighing 21.33 lbs. The two Corys fished the main lake ditches in the wind catching with spinner baits, crank baits, and swim baits to bring home the winning bag. Chuck Murray and Randy Groves took second place with an impressive 5 fish limit weighing 21.00 pounds even. Murray stated they caught their fish on spinner baits and crank baits on windy points early and culled a couple late in the day off some docks. Mike Barnes and Danny Smith, the home town favorites, had an impressive catch as well with 5 bass weighing 20.49 pounds. Jay Wright and Ricky Balance got back on tract after a bad first tourney on Gaston with another five bass limit weighing 20.33 pounds. Fifth place went to Dennis and Tommy Bradley with a nice limit weighing 16.70 pounds.

Big Fish catches of the day: Jay Wright and Ricky Balance had the big bass of the tourney with a 6.60 pounder. Second big fish went to Cory Leonard and Cory Byrum with a nice 6.24 pounder, Steve Strickland – 6.08 lbs Chuck Murray – 6.02lbs; Mike Barnes – 5.90.

Our next event will be on Sunday May 20th on Kerr Lake out of Flemingtown Landing Ramp. Come join the fun and hope to see you at Kerr.

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March 28-30, 2012

Story By: Chuck Murray

NC B.A.S.S. FEDERATION NATION state team competes on Lake Okeechobee out of Clewiston Florida in the 2012 B.A.S.S. Southern Divisional. Brent Boyette of Kenly NC and from the Five County Bass Masters fishing club advances to the 2012 B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Championship!

Pictured below, Brent Boyette, will represent North Carolina at the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation National Championship later this year in Alabama.

Competing in his very first Southern Divisional, Brent Boyette of Kenly NC took the lead on day number one and never looked back. Although North Carolina teammate, Chuck Murray, gave Boyette a run for his money on the final day of competition Boyette overcame the sudden charge from Murray to walk away with the win, thus putting him one step closer to qualification for the prestigious 2013 Bass Master CLASSIC.

With three Days of Competition, Boyette lead the NC BASS Federation Nation State Team coast to coast. Boyette caught 14 pounds 6 ounces on Day 1, 9 pounds 15 ounces on Day 2 and 16 pounds 8 ounces on the Final Day to bring home the title of NC BASS Federation Nation Champion.

It wasn’t without some last minute worries as 2009 Southern Divisional Champion and NC BASS Federation Nation President Chuck Murray of Louisburg NC brought a large catch on the final day to take the lead with a 20 pound 10 ounce, five bass limit. Boyette would need 15 pounds 4 ounces to take the title and he thought he did not have it. As they were standing on stage waiting for the weight of Boyette’s last day catch, Boyette whispered to Murray, “You got me”, but when the scales settled, Boyette was the NC Champion. Boyette and Murray finished 17^th and 18^th consecutively out of the 98 man field.

Pictured above: Chuck Murray, NC B.A.S.S. Federation Nation President, with a 9 pound 11 ounce bass from Lake Okeechobee.

“Lake Okeechobee is a great fishery and the NC team caught some big bass during the practice days. Most team members reported catching many fish in the six to eight pound range. Murray reported catching his largest ever, a 9 pound 11 ounce Okeechobee TOAD”. “That is the largest bass I ever caught” stated Murray. It was huge!

Boyette now advances to the Federation Nation National Championship on Lake Wheeler in Alabama later this fall where he will have an one out of 8 chances in making the Largest BASS Championship in the world, “ THE BASS MASTER CLASSIC and a chance at a $500,000 payday!” Good Luck Brent.

In the Youth Competition, Carson Orellana took 3^rd place in the 15-18 age group with a 5 bass limit weighing 13 pounds 5 ounces. Most of the adult qualifiers were glad they did not have to compete against the youth, do they may have been in trouble. The youth only fish one day and that is the final day. Chris Carnes competed in the 11-14 age group and caught 5 bass weighing 5 pounds 12 ounces.

Overall Standings

Chuck Murray and Randy Groves win first event on Gaston with 21.54 lbs

On a beautiful sunny day on lake Gaston, Anglers were bringing big bags of bass to the scales. Twenty-five anglers brought over 303 pounds of bass to the scales. When all the scales had settled, Chuck Murray and Randy Groves took the tourney win with an impressive 5 fish limit weighing 21.54 pounds. Murray stated they started the morning cranking but could only catch male bass. At 10:00am, we had about 11 pounds in the boat. We decided to move shallow on some stumpy flats and caught a 5 pounder and a 6 pounder in about 15 minutes. We culled a couple late in the day off some docks and that secured the win.

Steve Brinkley and Rodney Smith had a huge sack as well with 5 bass weighing 20.44 lbs taking second place. They reported catching their fish on jigs in about 20 ft of water. Mark Robertson and David Ball took third place with another big bag of bass weighing 19.61 lbs. They reported catching fish on crank baits and jigs. Fourth place went to Cory Leonard and JT Palamore with 17.21 pounds and they also had the second big bass of the day with a 6.01 pounder.Eric Schell and Todd Smith took fifth with 16.92 lbs and had the big fish of the tourney a monster 6.20 pounder and Neil Roberson and Powell Kemp took six place with 15.75 lbs.

Big Fish catches of the day: Eric Schell 6.20lbs; Cory Leonard 6.01 lbs; Randy Groves 5.96lbs; Mark Robertson 5.65 lbs, Greg Creech 5.40 lbs

We had a great turn-out today with 27 team participating. Our next event will be on Good Friday, April 6^th on Roanoke Rapids Lake out of the City Ramp. Come join the fun and catch some HOGS on the old lake! See you there.

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NC Wildlife fish surveys from all over NC for all kinds of species.

http://www.ncwildlife.org/Fishing/LearnResources/MonitoringSurveys.aspx

During a recent NC B.A.S.S. Federation Nation annual meeting members of the NC Wildlife Resource Commission reported on the current largemouth bass status in the coastal regions of North Carolina. These areas were hit hard by hurricane Irene in 2011 resulting in massive fish kills. Kevin Dockendorf, Coastal Research Coordinator, provided a detailed presentation that covered post hurricane Isabel (2003) findings, including research data from a massive restocking effort in 2004, with additional detailed information from studies conducted in the years following, continuing through hurricane Irene. To see the slideshow (PDF File) used during the presentation click below.

View Presentation

Coastal Game Fish Proposal Before Special Legislative Study Committee

The 2011 North Carolina General Assembly deferred action on the Coastal Game Fish Bill (HB 353) that would have designated speckled sea trout, red drum, and striped bass as coastal game fish.  Coastal game fish status would mean that these three fish could be taken only with hook and line and could not be sold. These fish are already game fish in inland waters where they occur but when they venture into joint or coastal waters, they are subject to commercial net fishing under liberal rules designed to maximize catch for sale, which has led to overfishing and depleted numbers.  Sport fishermen protested vigorously over the failure to act, which led the General Assembly to set up a special study committee to review the case for coastal game fish status and several other issues related to management of our marine fisheries.
The issues being considered by the Marine Fisheries Study Committee can be found at this link under the Marine Fisheries section.  The main issue about which NC Camo is alerting members is the proposal to create coastal game fish status for red drum, speckled sea trout, and striped bass; but, you may be interested in the others too. The findings and recommendations of the Marine Fisheries Study Committee will be reported to the General Assembly this Spring for action in their Budget Session.
Red drum, speckled sea trout, and striped bass account for only 3% of annual commercial finfish landings in NC by weight and account for only 2% of the dockside value to commercial fishermen.  In 2010, only 250 commercial fishermen had more than $2,000 in landings of these three species, separately or in combination, and less than 30 had landings that equaled or exceeded $10,000.  These figures as collected and presented by the Division of Marine Fisheries show that red drum, speckled sea trout, and striped bass are relatively minor components of the commercial harvest in NC by weight and by value to the commercial fisherman.
Conversely, figures from the Division of Marine Fisheries on the value of recreational fishery for these three species show the annual value to NC’s economy to be over $140,000,000.  This value comes from expenditures of recreational fishermen as they buy fishing equipment and supplies, travel to favorite fishing spots on the coast, and support thousands of small businesses and jobs in the process.  Sales of Coastal Recreational Fishing Licenses show that well over 1 million people fish in our coastal waters each year.  Recreational fishing is big business for NC and can be even bigger.  The great thing about this source of growth in our economy is that no capital investment is required and it is truly “green” growth.  All we have to do is protect our fisheries resources and allocate them to their highest and best use for the people of NC.
The first meeting of the Marine Fisheries Study Committee was held on January 5, 2012 and was attended by dozens of recreational and commercial fishermen.  The agenda was mostly introductory for the committee members and no discussion with real substance occurred.  The next meeting is scheduled for February 2, 2011 at 1 pm in the Auditorium of the General Assembly, 116 West Jones Street.  The agenda for this next meeting is designed to give sport and commercial fishermen the opportunity to voice their concerns and ideas to the Marine Fisheries Study Committee on the issue of coastal game fish status for red drum, speckled sea trout, and striped bass and the other topics before the Committee.
NC Camo encourages all recreational fishermen who can to attend and speak in favor of game fish status for speckled sea trout, red drum, and striped bass.  The case for conservation of these three fish via coastal game fish designation is given in the NC Wildlife Federation’s Fall Journal and can be read at this link beginning on page 2.

Interested sportsmen can catch up with the history of the coastal game fish proposal and keep up with new developments on the North Carolina Sportsman Magazine website at this link.  Also, a hot link to the e-mail addresses of every member of the Marine Fisheries Study Committee is included.  Use them to contact the members to let them know you favor game fish status for speckled sea trout, red drum, and striped bass.
Finally, NC Camo has prepared a Take Action message you can send to your elected State Representative and Senator as a part of this alert.  Read it over and if you agree that speckled sea trout, red drum, and striped bass need and deserve coastal game fish status, send it out with a click of your mouse.

NC Camo Coalition is a project of the NC Wildlife Federation.

Recently 5 out of 6 members of the Fayetteville Bassmasters, currently in Afghanistan, got together for a photo. Left to right are Jim Sheehan, Dave Robison, Kip MC Nemar, Mike Updike and Mark MC Cowan. Not pictured is Eric Lochner. Lochner, MC Nemar, Updike and MC Cowan are members of the 3rd Special Forces Group at FT Bragg. Sheehan, a government contractor, and Robison, a Department of Defense Civilian, are both retired Special Forces members providing support for Special Operations Troops in Afghanistan. The six will be joined by a seventh member of the club, Ron Erb in April.

Let us not forget the individuals, such as these, that provide the freedom that allows us to enjoy the simple things in life, such as outdoor activities including hunting and fishing.

We wish each of these individuals a safe and speedy return home.

Houston, Texas – The 2012 Oakley Big Bass Tour will feature tour stops in Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.  The nation’s premier big bass tournament series will play host to the following tournament events:

March 10^th & 11^th – Oakley Lake Conroe Big Bass Classic – Lake Conroe – Texas

April 14^th & 15^th – Jamie McMurray Big Bass Classic – Lake Norman – North Carolina

April 21^st & 22^nd – Blue Ridge Big Bass Classic – Smith Mountain Lake – Virginia

May 19^th & 20^th – Kevin VanDam Big Bass Classic – Table Rock Lake – Missouri

June 2^nd & 3^rd – Quantum Big Bass Classic – Ft Gibson Lake – Oklahoma

September 15^th & 16^th – Kelly Jordon Big Bass Classic – Lake Sam Rayburn – Texas

September 29^th & 30^th – Jason Williamson Big Bass Classic – Lake Murray – South Carolina

October 13^th & 14^th – Gerald Swindle Big Bass Classic – Lake Guntersville – Alabama

October 20^th & 21^st – Rusty Wallace Big Bass Classic – Douglas Lake – Tennessee

October 27^th & 28^th – Georgia Big Bass Classic – Clarks Hill Lake – Georgia

“We are excited to announce the schedule for the 2012 season,” said Louis Wellen with Oakley Sports Marketing.  “We’ve added some outstanding fisheries to an already strong schedule and 2012 promises to be an incredible year for the tour.” added Wellen.

Information regarding tournament entry fees, payouts and event registration can be found at www.oakleybigbass.com

About Oakley Big Bass Tour: The Oakley Big Bass Tour is the nation’s premier open big bass tournament series designed exclusively for amateur anglers.  We provide anglers of all skill levels an exciting tournament format and event experience on some of the nation’s best bass fisheries.  Established in 2007 our tour is focused on the promotion of bass fishing and bass conservation at the amateur level.