CityView Magazine

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Benefit Catfish Tournament & Expo is something different. This year’s was the biggest yet – 109 teams – and Jackson’s team had beaten them all. Their haul weighed more than anyone else’s, narrowly edging out two runners- up. But the win isn’t official until the polygraph says so. And here’s the hook: isn’t this fraternity of tall tale tellin’ good ole boys based on spinning a good yarn or two? Bait and beer and the one that got away are the stock and trade of any good fisherman. But a tournament is as old as the hunt itself and cheaters aren’t allowed. There’s a code here on the river. For Fayetteville, the Cape Fear is both familiar and foreign. It’s been the city’s lifeblood for generations, but its banks seem isolated and remote. Just yards from downtown, it’s possible to cruise for miles without seeing a single building, just a rudimentary rope swing or chairs pulled around a favorite fishing hole. Trees throw a canopy over the dark water, which is wide and peaceful. It’s sometimes hard to believe that this was once a highway of sorts, the main thoroughfare from Fayetteville to the coast. For the fishermen in the St. Jude tournament, it still is. When this year’s competition began early on a Saturday morning, back when everyone was a potential winner, boats lined up at Campbellton Landing, waiting for their turn to back into the black waters. Teams had come from all parts of North Carolina, plus Virginia, South Carolina and Georgia. A regular flies in from Oklahoma every year, renting a rig when he gets here. Simple camouflage john boats shimmied for space next to gleaming speed boats. One team hauled its boat on a trailer splashed with sponsor names and no fewer than 25 fishing poles. But even the simplest setup could be worth thousands in fishing equipment. Trucks and motors were gassed up with enough fuel to make it to Wilmington and back, if necessary. Fancy trappings to chase one of the world’s ugliest fish. The prey these fishermen stalk gets its name from its long cat-like whiskers. Catfish are also unusual because they have no scales; their slick, “naked” and bony bodies are capable of growing to enormous sizes. A catfish pulled out of the Mississippi River weighed more than 100 pounds, but varieties in Asia are huge, weighing hundreds of pounds. For these fishermen, five decent fish would do. The rules were clear: all anglers had to fish during the same hours and start somewhere on the Cape Fear. Some stayed close to Fayetteville, hugging secret spots. Others, like Kevin Jackson, made their way as far as Wilmington. Robert Kitchen patrolled the river that Saturday, a cell phone propped between one shoulder and his ear. Already there had been crises: a broken axle, a blown motor and a tire blowout on the interstate for a fisherman on his way to the tournament. Now, rain had started to blow in. “That’s what separates the men from the boys,” Kitchen said, grinning. “These guys are serious. There’s not anything they won’t do to get a hold of a catfish.” He happened on a boat with fishing lines pointing in all directions. The rig looked like a ruffled porcupine. Kitchen cupped one hand around his mouth and shouted across the water, not wanting to risk a wake by coming any closer. “Catch anything?” “Ain’t no size,” a man hollered back. The tournament is the brainchild of the Swamp Boys, a group of friends and outdoor enthusiasts who first banded together about 10 years ago. The name comes from Swamp Road where the friends would get together with their trucks and all-terrain vehicles to ride and tailgate. They held barbecues on Sunday nights, and of course, took trips down the river whenever they had the chance. A few of them once strung together a boat made out of 55-gallon barrels with a plywood platform, a pop- up tent and chairs. When they floated it down the river, the game warden stopped them and asked, “What the hell is that?” Top | Robert Kitchen, right, measures an angler’s haul with the help of Freddy Baker. Only the five biggest fish are accepted in the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Benefit Catfish Tournament & Expo. Above | And a win is only official when the polygraph says so. Kevin Jackson, the tournament’s top finisher, waits for his results. CityViewNC.com | 51

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