Hooked on Crappie

By Samuel Obair II

 It was Thursday evening September 19, 2002. My parents and I had come in from fishing with one of their friends. We had caught a fair amount of Bluegills and a hand full of Crappie. As usual, we thought we had done pretty well out on the lake that day. We had begun cleaning our days catch at one of the lakes cleaning station. About a quarter way through the cleaning, a Chevy van attached to a Bass fishing boat pulled up to the station. A distinguished gentleman in a baseball cap and oversized glasses approached the station with a bucket in hand. My mother began her usual inquiry about what kind of fish and what size the fish were. When the bucket was poured onto the cleaning table, we were all amazed at the number of Crappie the gentleman had caught. After talking for a while, the gentleman went back to his boat and pulled out some of the largest Crappies that I had ever remember seeing and I have been fishing since at least 6 years old (33 years). My parents and I were used to seeing 11 or 12 inch Crappie coming out of Lake Lopez, but the Crappie that this gentleman showed us was almost 15 inches. Anyone who knows about Crappie can tell you that 3-inches in length can translate into almost a pound to 1 1/4 pound difference in size. As I stared in amazement and asked every imaginable question about the fish, my mother had already talked the gentleman (Mr. Eric Webb) into taking me out fishing with him the following day.

 God must have been smiling down on me as he usually does, because that next day was September 20^th my birthday. Eric told me that I needed to meet him at the loading ramp by 5:30 a.m. the next morning. The next morning, I was up early and ready to go. Eric had checked over my fishing gear the previous day and said that I would need to borrow one of his rigs to catch the big ones. We left the dock and went to one of Eric’s secret locations. It was pitch dark on the lake and we were rigging and baiting by flashlight. Eric put his pole in the water first and before the bait hit the bottom, he was reeling in a monster Crappie. I kept watching Eric, as he pulled in Crappie after Crappie as fast as he could bait the hook and throw it out. As Eric did this, he was cueing me on what to look and feel for. My moment had finally come, Eric caste out the rod and handed it to me. I followed Eric’s guide, and the next thing I knew, I had a 14 and ½ inch Crappie that was in the boat. It was the greatest birthday gift that anyone could ask for, and I did not stop celebrating that catch for a while. My heart must have been doing 100 plus beat per minute, from the thought of landing my largest Crappie ever. I was also amazed because we were not using a net to land these huge fish. Eric and I fished the rest of the day. I knew that I had made a friend for life. 

We did not see Eric for about 7 to 8 months after that fishing trip. Eric had convinced me, that my family and I should look into buying a used boat, so that winter, my parents looked and found a nice used boat. Eric met us on the lake right after our maiden voyage. We were fishing right next to Eric and he was bringing in fish left and right, we even tied off on to his boat and still did not catch a Crappie. Finally, Eric took my mother and put her on his boat and showed her how to look and feel for the Crappie. By the time he finished with her, she had brought in at least five monster Crappie within 5 minutes. It was now my father’s turn to go onto the boat and within 5 minutes, he too had at least five monster Crappie. Eric showed my parents how to set up their rigging as well as what bait to use. Eric even gave us the right jigs so that we couldn’t mess up. My parents and I were so pleased with the results of that trip that we still talk about it to this day. Not a fishing trip goes by now on Lake Lopez, that we don’t use Eric’s technique for the Crappie, and come back successful. Eric also gave us pointers on how to find the larger fish and what to look for on the fish finder. Eric’s patience is amazing, even with my mother asking one hundred and one questions. Even though Eric did not know us at the time, Eric took the time to make sure that we caught Crappie. Today, I still see Eric doing the same things with other fisherman that he meets on the lake. Eric goes the extra mile with fishermen, when he is pulling all kinds of fish into the boat and others around him aren’t catching a thing. 

Eric is a great teacher when people listen to what he has to say. People often have trouble following directions, but I have seen Eric’s system work on multiple occasions. As long as you listen and do exactly as Eric instructs you to do, you will come back with fish. Eric’s sense of humor always makes you feel relaxed so that you will enjoy the time that you spend with him. Eric is truly one in a million and if you ever get a chance to go fishing with Eric, you will understand exactly what I am talking about. SoCalCrappie.com is number one in my book for bringing in the big ones, guaranteed! Give SoCalCrappie.com a chance and you too will be hooked