Healing Heroes on the water in Arkansas

Cliff Crochet and Bryan Gray prepare to get started in the OPTIMA Batteries Healing Heroes in Action Tour presented by General Tire. The event, coordinated by Edwin Evers, puts together Elite anglers with Purple Heart recipients for a one-day tournament.

This event was held on an irrigation reservoir in the rice country of Northeast Arkansas near Jonesboro, Ark. Farmers utilize the water to flood rice fields.

In the heat of the summer, it was obvious the reservoir was low. Typically the level would be well into the rip-rap along the banks.

Crochet and Gray would start early with a catch.

And it was obvious it was a big fish by the splash and bend in the rod.

And even though it was the wrong species, Crochet would get extremely excited at the catch.

As would Gray as they almost chest pumped and celebrated like they had just won the Bassmaster Classic.

The two would show off the big catfish, and it was obvious this event was as much about having fun as it was about the competition.

Minutes later, though, and Fray and Crochet would get on the board with the right kind of fish.

The hefty largemouth deserved an admiring look for Crochet. It was the largest Gray had ever caught at that moment.

Gray, who lost a thumb in an IED explosion, gives Crochet what he calls a “high four” after the fish is brought aboard.

And the two celebrate again.

And a few minutes later, Gray adds another one.

Crochet lips the fish and Gray’s big fish seems to be growing.

They show the fish off to the Bassmaster LIVE audience.

And once again celebrate like they had just won the Classic.

Across the reservoir, Evers hooks up with one of his own. In this event there was a five-fish limit, only two of those could be caught by an Elite angler.

This one appeared to be one of the two Evers would definitely keep.

And it would put on a show for Evers and his partner Chris Ritchie.

Evers would lip the fish in a splash of water.

And show it off for the live audience viewing on Bassmaster.com.

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And it wouldn’t be long before he added another.

Another one in the boat and Evers was starting to get dialed in.

But first he had to run back to his truck and grab more tackle.

With new gear Evers and Ritchie get started again.

And the two take off casting down the bank.

Part of the event includes two “average Joe’s” who have bid for the opportunity to fish against the Elites.

These anglers were Mark Boling (on the deck) and his son Jared. Both were good fishermen and jumped out to an early lead in the 6-hour event.

Both fish local events in Arkansas and were no strangers to the sometimes finicky nature of fish in rice field reservoirs.

They would weigh every catch and keep a log of each fish so they could cull quickly.

And they culled many times.

Bringing in quality fish consistently during the event.

The Bolings outbid hundred of people on Edwin Evers’s Facebook page for the opportunity to spend two days with the Elite anglers and the Purple Heart recipients.

While they spent the evening before playing Ping Pong and pool with all of them in a fun night of fellowship, when they got on the water it was all about winning.

It was the same for the Elites as well, even though Crochet and Gray spent as much time having fun as they did fishing.

Brent Chapman and Joseph Secrease were certainly intent on winning.

The pair would catch several like this one and slowly inch their way up the standings.

Secrease would show off the catch with a thumbs up from Chapman.

And the two would just keep catching them.

Bringing in an eventual stringer that would weigh close to 18 pounds.

On every catch, Chapman and the other Elite anglers would be close with a helping hand.

Secrease, who lived nearby the area, was injured when an IED tore through his Humvee in Iraq in 2007.

Despite his injuries, he had no problem reeling in fish after fish.

And of course, neither did Chapman.

While Chapman and Secrease caught the largest five-fish stringer, they also caught the largest fish ever in Healing Heroes in Action Tour. Their first fish of the day was a 50-pound flathead catfish.

Not sure if they weighed the catfish, but they did weigh every one of their catches to make certain all their culls were right.

And then they’d share the front deck as they made their way around the reservoir.

While the catching wasn’t fast and furious, it was consistent and provided some exciting moments, like this one. Jared Boling shields his face as a hefty largemouth sends a spray of water on a jump nearby.

The fish made it in the boat on the 95-degree day. Because of the heat, Mark Boling added a towel to cover his neck.

Or it might have just been to shield the threat of two Elite anglers behind him.

While the temperatures were in the mid 90s, the heat index was around 115. Crochet was able to talk his cameraman, Eric Kaffka, into giving him a cool bottle of water to the neck.

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After Kaffka cooled down Crochet, he got a moment to fish while Crochet ran the camera.

And while Crochet was joking around, Secrease and Chapman slip in behind and hook up.

Chapman would move into position to lip the fish.

And Secrease would expertly bring it to him.

This would be their last cull and give them the cushion they needed to win the event.

Crochet and Gray would add one of their own.

And Evers and Ritchie would be looking to add to their weight of almost 17 pounds.

The two anglers would finish second to Chapman and Secrease by a 1-pound margin.

But not before a bit of trash-talking with Crochet and Gray.

This photo was taken earlier in the day, but by the end of the day the trailer in the background was part of weigh-in with a feast, provided lakeside by The Rack Pack, which consists of professional barbecuers Dewayne Daniel and Chris Newman of Jonesboro.