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| This article was published in the May 2002 issue of Rod And Line fishing magazine. |
For ladies to go fishing in car-toppers, a very complicated problem
arises – privacy. It is easy for you guys as it is a matter of just standing
up, balancing yourselves and then contributing a minute rise in the level of the
river. For those not so agile, empty mineral water bottles do come in handy.
The catchword now is recycle, man. Our brain storming session came up with a
very simple solution for the ladies. An empty powdered milk tin and a sarong
helped solved the whole problem. Easy as that!
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| My wife, Siew Mooi, beaming proudly with her 3 kg toman. |
With problem solved, James, Poh Yean, my wife and I were
cruising excitedly along the Simpang Pulai road to collect the 14 footer
fiberglass boat from my friend’s house in Batu Gajah. Suddenly, we were flashed
persistently by another vehicle from behind. As it was still dark at 6.00 in
the morning, stopping to investigate was a bit too foolhardy. Slowly, the other
vehicle drew abreast and signaled us to stop. You don’t argue with a police
patrol car, do you?
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| See what I meant? Just 3.6kg and he bent backward to pose. |
After asking us a lot of questions and shining their torches
into our faces and car interior, we were waved cheerily on. We suspected the
reason the police picked us out was the home made rod holder on top of James’
car. In the dark it really looked like a rocket launcher. How could we blame
our keepers of the law for being suspicious as the Janalek Incident was still
fresh in everyone’s mind?
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| This one was Siew Mooi's personal best of 5 kg. It was worth all the discomfort and hardship. |
Anchoring our boat at a spot where we liberally ground
baited, we set up our tackle. All the toman seemed to have gone on vacation. In
the calm cool morning, the silence on the pond felt as though you could cut it
with a knife. After almost half an hour, James’ bait was the first to be taken.
A 3.5 kg brute was released after a bruising fight. Five minutes later he
released another smaller toman. My wife and I were getting restless, as James
seemed to be getting all the attention from the tomans. The smug look on his
face when he posed for the photographs really got on my nerves. Add on the
running commentaries when he was fighting his fish, he really was rubbing it
into us.
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| This was the rod holder that caused us to be stopped by the police. |
The action stopped as suddenly as it had begun. The inaction
lasted for more than half an hour. Getting impatient, I declared that there was
no more fish here anymore. Before we could pull up the anchors, the line from
my wife’s reel began slowly moving out through the guides. Closing the bail
arm, she struck, and the kilo plus toman was subdued and released unharmed.
Almost immediately my wife tied on again, this time a giant. This brute just
kept going with the reel screaming in protest. Suddenly the rod snapped back
and the fish waved goodbye. On closer examination the line was rough. It could
have been cut by the hundreds of rawais criss-crossing the whole area.
Again the lull set in and we changed place. This new place
was very promising, as the water was neither too deep nor shallow. Our boat was
secured near a huge patch of floating vegetation, which we suspected, could be
home to some huge tomans. Our suspicions were proven right. Poh Yean connected
to one brute that did not know how to stop. The knot tying the line to her reel
parted with a loud crack when her spool was emptied. We could only look at each
other with wide eyes and drooping jaws. Taking the chance to gain some fame,
James declared that that brute must be more than 10 kg. (Now you know why the
public always ask for the photos when anglers tell ‘the big ones that got away’
stories). What followed was the landing and releasing of countless tomans
weighing between 1kg to 2 kg. For the ladies, it was good fun and plenty of
practical experiences.
When another fish ran with the bait, my wife was pointing
the rod directly at it. “Lift up the rod to pump,” I advised her. “I can’t,”
She gasped. Thinking that she must be exhausted from all the actions, I tried
to help lift up the rod. It was my turn to gasp. I could feel the energy on the
other end of the line, which was shooting out quite fast despite the drag.
After taking quite some line that fellow swung to the left. Cranking like
crazy, my wife gained some line back before losing them all out again. Slowly
but surely the fish was being brought back to the boat. It suddenly headed
under the boat and my wife dipped the rod tip into the water. Our worst fear
was realized when that smart fellow wrapped the line around the anchor rope.
After stalemating for some times, the fish somehow untangled
itself from the rope and headed out to the right. In the end a 5 kg toman was
landed and release. We congratulated my wife for besting her personal record of
a 4.2 kg barracuda caught while trolling near Pangkor.
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| James struggling with one of his catches. |
When I was busy helping my wife with another fish, I heard
some clattering sound behind me. James shouted that his rod had dived into the
water. While giving a helping hand to Poh Yean, James left his rod unattended
for a short while. That few seconds were enough for Murphy’s Law to work.
Looking around, I could see a bubble trail caused by the
fleeing toman with a set of tackle in tow. After releasing my wife’s latest
catch we gave chase. When James reached out to grab his rod handle, which by
now as floating in the water, it shot out of reach again. There was nothing we
could do but to wait. Suddenly the rod popped up some twenty meters away.
Cruising slowly over, James made no mistake this time around. What surprised us
most was the 1 kg p.us toman was still on the line……
