Sometimes a beautiful fall day can make for some of the years' best fishing. However, that was not the case for this tournament. Light winds and temperatures in the upper seventies proved counterproductive to fishing success as the usually abundant bass of Loch Raven Reservoir again failed to show up for the tournament.

     Still, the team of John Barron and Tim Blevins made all the right decisions as they were one of only four teams able to squeeze a limit from the Loch. John and Tim brought eight fish to the scales weighing 14.85 pounds and walked away with their first ever Metro Reservoir Anglers, Inc. title.

     Barron and Blevins, fishing in their first season as a team,  were able to coax the lethargic largemouth from the deep grass beds adjacent to the Dulaney Valley Road Bridge. Their 3.44 pound largemouth bass was the "kicker" that put them over the top. The victory also makes them eligible for the Tournament of Champions on November 20 and 21 of this year.

     Bobby Clark and Ed Naill made their second appearance in the top five this season thanks to their eight fish weighing 13.81 pounds. That was enough to give them a two pound advantage over third place finishers Larry Barger and Bill Wilson. Larry and Bill will also make it to the Tournament of Champions courtesy of their limit of fish weighing 11.82 pounds.

     The pairing of Larry Bertholdt and George Wilder finished in fourth place for the second consecutive tournament. Their seven fish weighed 10.22 pounds. Scott Erisman and Kim Rutley secured fifth place and a T.O.C. spot by bringing the last                  limit of eight to the scales weighing 10.09 pounds.

     The largest fish of the year was brought in by the hottest team of the year. Bruce Corbin and Rob Corbin only had one bite all day and they still win a prize! Bruce hauled up a 5.33 pound largemouth to claim the Lunker award for the day and knock the 4.53 pounder of Haugan and Smith out of the season lead.

     The Metro Reservoir Anglers, Inc. would like to recognize our tournament sponsor, The Keelty Company, for its' generosity. Also we wish to thank Precision Tune Auto Care for the trophies our first three finishers received. Again, we are especially pleased to thank Exide Batteries for their generous donation of a deep cycle trolling battery that was given away and will be distributed through Beck's Gunsmithing.  Also, we gave away four more tackle packs valued at thirty dollars each courtesy of all of our tournament sponsors. The Finishing Touch was kind enough to join us as our refreshment sponsor once again. Thanks again to the staff of the Loch Raven Fishing Center for accommodating us again.

     Not to be forgotten is our Ray Electric Outboards, Inc. update. Our Season Sponsor will be glad to know that the unbeaten string continues. All five of our tournaments this season have been won by teams with Ray Motors. In addition, the second and fifth place teams for this event also choose Ray Motors as their primary power provider.

     Rob Bertazon and Larry Herdegen, close in their last attempt at Prettyboy Reservoir, nailed down a victory in the final qualifying tournament of the season. Two months after being edged out by a pound and a half by the team of Corbin and Corbin, Rob and Larry were able to claim their second victory on the Metro Reservoir Anglers trail in as many years. Both of the victories have come at Prettyboy Reservoir.

     A limit of eight fish weighing in at 19.46 pounds gave Bertazon and Herdegen better than a two pound cushion over their nearest competitor. Primarily fishing the outside breakline of a mid-lake hump, Larry and Rob used an assortment of crankbaits to secure the victory. "The morning rain and overcast was the key to our success. Once the heavy overcast broke, we stopped catching fish" said Herdegen.

     Second place was taken by the team of John Barron and Tim Blevins with a 16.73 pound limit of fish. John and Tim had just two weeks prior won our event at Loch Raven Reservoir. Third place was taken by another previous winner this season, the team of Ralph Fowble and Glen Fowble. Fishing on the opposite side of the same hump Bertazon and Herdegen fished, Ralph and Glen managed five fish that weighed an impressive 14.04 pounds.

     Fourth place was awarded to the team of Charlie Gardner and Mike Isaac whose five fish weighed 12.56 pounds. Fifth place went to the team of David Kirk and Wes Parrish after catching a limit of eight from the shallow upper reaches of the lake that weighed 11.84 pounds.

     With all three of the top finishers already in the Tournament of Champions, the fourth, fifth and sixth place teams secured spots into the fall event. Therefore, the teams of Gardner and Isaac, Kirk and Parrish and Brad Beach and Mike Gamber will fish for our top prize.

     Brad Beach and Mike Gamber make the list with a three fish stringer that weighed an astonishing 10.62 pounds. Among those fish was the largest fish of the season, a 5.44 pound largemouth caught by Mike.

     We would like to thank the Cinder & Concrete Block Corp. for being our tournament sponsor. Modernized Plumbing, Inc. was very generous in donating the trophies for our top three finishers in this tournament. Thank you to our refreshment sponsor, ANM Carpentry who was responsible for our doughnuts and sodas today. Also we would like to thank Exide Batteries, who through Beck's Gunsmithing has generously donated a 12 volt Deep Cycle Battery at every tournament we held this season. Again, we gave away four tackle packs courtesy of all of our tournament sponsors throughout the season.

     One very special thank you is due The City of Baltimore and the Department of Public Works for Baltimore City. Thank you for letting us hold our tournaments on the lakes and especially for the work done on the ramp area at Prettyboy Reservoir, without which we would not have been able to hold this last tournament. The staff of the Department of Public Works should be commended for their professionalism. We also thank them for the support and confidence they have shown in our organization.

     Our deepest gratitude goes to Ray Electric Outboards, Inc. who has loyally stood behind the reservoir fisherman for years, and has revolutionized the electric outboard motor for the reservoir fishermen. Thirty three of the forty four boats that fished in the Metro Reservoir Anglers circuit in 1999 were propelled by Ray motors. In this last tournament the second, third and fourth place boats were powered by Ray Motors. For the season, Ray motors accounted for five first place finishes. Also Ray motors had four second places, four third places, three forth places and three fifth place finishes.