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Randles Outdoors

The Making of A Legend III

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New Faces Mark A Special Occassion
 
Hands whir frantically about the reels, lines, and lures that spill from tackle boxes across the cabin's wooded floor like jewels from a pirate's treasure.  Watches are synchronized and deadlines are set. Violation results in forfeit. Forfeit results in cooking and all the ego-bruising comments that accompany such an occupation in such an environment.
Sunrise. The quiet waters of Swan Lake come alive. Waves of laughter carry promises of victory, great expectations, and, most importantly, an unspoken bond. These are the waves we come for. The boats slide free from the docks and move with casual urgency to the nooks and crannies where fish are rumored to rival Cadillacs.
John, one of several rookies, is accused of moving his boat like a school bus, going and stopping with little thought of strategy or patience. The ribbing begins. No one is immune.
As the sun begins to set, a few boats collect alongside the docks, veterans looking at their watches, speculating what the others are doing. "Where's Ruben?"
Soon the bodies are sprawled lazily across the cabin's furniture and floor. Again come the waves. Kenny demands the return of his soul--lost two years previous on a poorly played poker hand. Sean's eyes dart from side-to-side; are those rumors of initation true? and Seth listens intently to Tim who recounts how a cooler-hiding snake slithered without notice over a beer-seeking hand. The waves of laughter fill the night.
The Third Annual Jeep Randles Fishing Derby was held at the end of June in Swan Lake, Montana. The event was marked by an influx of new and much welcomed faces--Seth, Ruben, John, Sean, and Scott Rasmussen. In addition to the green horns, the veterans were also present--Tim, Scott, Danny, Destry, Mike, and Kenny.
As in the past, there was a lot of fishing and a lot of laughter. The Fourth Annual Jeep Randles Derby is slated for the last weekend in June. The organization of the event rests with Scott Randles. Comments and suggestions are always welcomed. 

The Making of a Legend--Jeep Randles Fishing Derby

The Making Of A Legend
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Randles Boys, Lake Pend Oreille, Summer 2002

Evening and it is warm. We stand on the dock weighing fish. "Scott, damnit, you know those fish don't weigh five and a half pounds!" Jeep demands as his eyes peer in disbelief at the numbers on the scale.
Even with the help of sinkers, we cannot overcome the small mouth bass Destry has hooked from the northern most waters of Lake Pend Oreille. Tim, Jeep, and Destry pose shoulder-to-shoulder, the bass taking center stage. As they hold their fingers as if to declare, "We're Number One!" a flour-white, rounded moon rises, nay, pushes itself into their team photo. A second moon appears (much more supple than the first) and the close-knit conquerors look down to see that they've been infiltrated by a pair of lilly-white bottoms.
We spent Memorial Day Weekend on the waters of Lake Pend Oreille. Jeep, Tim, Kevin, Kenny, Scott, Danny, Mike, and Andy made the journey to Hope, Idaho for the purpose of fishing, drinking, lying, and, above all else, laughing. Those who slept did so at their own peril as moons would rise as quickly as eyes would close. By the time the smoke cleared, Destry emerged as the derby's first legend. His small mouth bass topped the scales at 4.5lbs, topping Danny's four-pound sucker by a half-pound.
The derby was appropriately re-named after our brother Jeep whom we lost a few weeks after the outing. Jeep's passion for family, fishing, and volcanic laughs epitomize the purpose for this tradition.
The tradition continues next year, tentatively, scheduled for central Idaho, July 24-26. Deposits to secure spots are to be given to Danny at Christmas.
Pictures from this year's event will be forthcoming.

The Day's Winner Is...
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"Team SDM" Dominated The Field And Ate A Delicious Lunch

Damon Holds Mike's Catch
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MIke afforded Damon the chance to hold his fish. Your welcome, Damon