CLARKSVILLE, Va. — Virginia's Edward M. Fore was the very last person in line during the second-day weigh-in of the BASS Federation Nation Mid-Atlantic Divisional, but when the scales settled he sat at the top of the leader board.
"I'm just catching a limit each day," Fore said.
Fore's 11 ½-pound limit pushed him to a 19-9 total, nudging out fellow Virginian Ivan Morris by less than a pound.
"I think the weather has helped me because it eliminated the deep-water bite going on down the lake," he explained.
However, fishing has hardly been frenetic for Fore.
"I'm probably catching 15 (fish) a day, but I'm only getting five keep bites a day," he said. "I did have another good one on today that I lost, but I'm not getting a lot of keeper bites."
Fore said he was planning to stick with his pattern, which called for fishing water no deeper than 10 feet.
"I've got one area that I'm putting the trolling motor down, and I'm not leaving it until my partner says it's time to go to his waters," Fore said. "I've been able to catch a limit every day I've fished this area, so I still think I can catch a limit (tomorrow).
"But it's going to be tight."
Anglers aren't just fishing for the overall win: Twelve anglers from each of the six states in the division also are competing for the top state spot, with each state winner earning a berth in November's BASS Federation Nation National Championship on Kansas' Milford Lake. At stake during the championship is a coveted Bassmaster Classic invitation for each division winner.
Joining Fore as state-team leader after two days of fishing were Delaware's Greg Alexander, Ric May of Maryland, Pennsylvania's Ken Baumgardner, New Jersey's Timothy Roach and Greg Downey of West Virginia.
Also on line is a $30,000 fully rigged Alliance boat package for the state team that accumulates the most weight. Leading that competition after the second day was Virginia with 128-1, followed by West Virginia with 93-15.
Rounding out the team rankings were third-place New Jersey with 87 pounds, Pennsylvania with 82-10, Delaware with 80-14 and Maryland with 70-2.
The tournament wraps up tomorrow, with a 6:45 a.m. launch from Occoneechee State Park followed by a 3 p.m. weigh-in.
