September 15, 2005
Scaled-back catfish slips away from the record book
Inaccurate scales kept Monrovia angler from breaking 39-year-old state catfish record, DNR says.
Not big enough: Donald Kershaw (left) and Doug Rush display what was thought to be a record catfish. But inaccurate scales kept Kershaw, Monrovia, from breaking the 39-year-old state catfish record. -- Photo provided by Donald Kershaw
By Tania E. Lopez
tania.e.lopez@indystar.com
Donald Kershaw will always wonder about the one that got away.
He has the fish -- a huge flathead catfish -- tucked away in a freezer outside his home.
What got away was a 39-year-old state record Kershaw thought he had broken when he hauled in the behemoth last month at Cataract Lake.
Department of Natural Resources officials this week determined that the scales used to measure the Monrovia resident's catch were inaccurate. Instead of a record-breaking 85 pounds, the flathead weighed 66 pounds.
Randy Lang, DNR fisheries staff specialist, said Kershaw, 45, went through the proper channels to make sure the fish he caught was certified. And he is still eligible for the DNR-sponsored Fish of the Year program, Lang said.
"It's still a heck of a catch and a heck of a fish. But maybe this could help the next guy recognize good scales," Lang said.
Anglers who wish to submit their fish for state recognition should make sure the scales used to weigh the fish are certified by the Weights and Measures division of the Indiana State Department of Health, said Lang.
There are about 50 fish species open for state records or Fish of the Year awards in Indiana. The state record for the biggest fish is a 106-pound spoonbill catfish, also known as a paddlefish, caught in Knox County in 1996.
Dima Beach, a clerk at Wilbur (Ind.) Corner Shop, weighed Kershaw's catch.
"I've never seen one that big in my life. And I was thrilled to see how much it weighed. I thought, 'Wow, look at the fish,' " said Beach. "I didn't know we didn't have certified scales at the time. After that, we got certified."
Kershaw, who zealously guards his secret bait, harbors no hard feelings toward Beach. He is confident he'll eventually catch a state-record-sized fish.
"In my own mind, I know it was a record. I know it was," said Kershaw. "It may not be this year, but next year I'll be contacting you to tell you we've got one."
http://cmsimg.indystar.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=BG&Date=20050915&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=509150437&Ref=AR&Profile=1006&MaxW=200&Q=80&Border=0
Scaled-back catfish slips away from the record book
Inaccurate scales kept Monrovia angler from breaking 39-year-old state catfish record, DNR says.
Not big enough: Donald Kershaw (left) and Doug Rush display what was thought to be a record catfish. But inaccurate scales kept Kershaw, Monrovia, from breaking the 39-year-old state catfish record. -- Photo provided by Donald Kershaw
By Tania E. Lopez
tania.e.lopez@indystar.com
Donald Kershaw will always wonder about the one that got away.
He has the fish -- a huge flathead catfish -- tucked away in a freezer outside his home.
What got away was a 39-year-old state record Kershaw thought he had broken when he hauled in the behemoth last month at Cataract Lake.
Department of Natural Resources officials this week determined that the scales used to measure the Monrovia resident's catch were inaccurate. Instead of a record-breaking 85 pounds, the flathead weighed 66 pounds.
Randy Lang, DNR fisheries staff specialist, said Kershaw, 45, went through the proper channels to make sure the fish he caught was certified. And he is still eligible for the DNR-sponsored Fish of the Year program, Lang said.
"It's still a heck of a catch and a heck of a fish. But maybe this could help the next guy recognize good scales," Lang said.
Anglers who wish to submit their fish for state recognition should make sure the scales used to weigh the fish are certified by the Weights and Measures division of the Indiana State Department of Health, said Lang.
There are about 50 fish species open for state records or Fish of the Year awards in Indiana. The state record for the biggest fish is a 106-pound spoonbill catfish, also known as a paddlefish, caught in Knox County in 1996.
Dima Beach, a clerk at Wilbur (Ind.) Corner Shop, weighed Kershaw's catch.
"I've never seen one that big in my life. And I was thrilled to see how much it weighed. I thought, 'Wow, look at the fish,' " said Beach. "I didn't know we didn't have certified scales at the time. After that, we got certified."
Kershaw, who zealously guards his secret bait, harbors no hard feelings toward Beach. He is confident he'll eventually catch a state-record-sized fish.
"In my own mind, I know it was a record. I know it was," said Kershaw. "It may not be this year, but next year I'll be contacting you to tell you we've got one."
http://cmsimg.indystar.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=BG&Date=20050915&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=509150437&Ref=AR&Profile=1006&MaxW=200&Q=80&Border=0
