Kayak fishing – it’s good exercise and it’s fun. Fishing with family is also fun. But competitively? That’s rare. When family members register for events it is often a father-son team (the Bells, the Chavis’s, the Griecos come to mind). We rarely see siblings compete together on the water.
The name Brooks Lanier is a familiar one to CKA competitors. He’s been a force in our club for many years, no stranger to the stage and he is always a threat to cash a check. One could reasonably argue that he is the most accomplished CKA angler who has yet to win 1st place in a tournament. He’s been close several times, and yesterday was no different – he finished 4th overall in a tough field that was bunched together at the top of the Fishing Chaos leaderboard.
But it was another Lanier – his younger brother Clay – who won the tournament. It was Clay’s fifth CKA event. That isn’t to say Brooks didn’t play a role in it – he persuaded his younger brother to fish. In Brooks’ words:
“Clay has always been a big fisherman, but it took a lot of convincing from myself, Will [Lambert] and Sammy [Wilson] to get him into the kayak bass fishing game. This was the first tournament where he took the time himself to find his own area to go and pre-fish and I couldn’t be prouder of him. Like any good angler he questioned everything about the good day of pre-fishing he had and that motivated him to have an air-tight plan going into Saturday morning. “
“Seeing him develop as a bass fisherman and to do it all on his own has been great for me to watch and he has the natural drive to succeed from his background in competitive cycling. More than anything I am excited for him to join myself, Will, and Sammy on our out of town travel tournaments. Iron sharpens iron!”
The Laniers caught their fish around emergent grass. They were joined by 5 or 6 other anglers who launched at the grueling Holleman’s Bridge ramp, where an unforgiving lot leads down a nasty hill. In all, that area produced four of the seven limits that paid out in the standings.
20 for 23 Event Heats Up
The Laniers aren’t finished competing in CKA events this month. Both are registered for the monthly -online event. Because they caught numbers as well as big fish at Harris, they vaulted to the top of the standings. In doing so, they blew open a 2 man race between Wilton Rogerson and Hank Veggian. Now, it’s a four way race, and a fifth angler – Garriett Chavis – has gained ground to keep everyone looking over their shoulders.
Sign up for the April online is open, and with Lake Gaston heating up for event #3 on the CKA Trail, it’s time to enjoy the spring bite, post more fish and keep grinding out qualifying points!
Additional Info
Up next: April 22 on Lake Gaston presented by Greensboro Gardens. There won’t be any spots caught there! Register here: https://app.fishingchaos.com/tournament/cka-2023-lake-gaston
Click here for complete CKA standings from Shearon Harris
CKA’s 2023 Season is brought to you by Dakota Lithium Batteries
Click here to see the full 2023 schedule.
Click here to become a member.
Erratum: an earlier version of this article stated it was Clay’s first event instead of his fifth.
All content and photos © Carolina Kayak Anglers LLC, 2023.
