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NCO competes in national fishing competition

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Anastasia Wasem
  • 319th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  Tech. Sgt. Eric Tilton, 319th Force Support Squadron, took 19th place in a national fishing tournament at Devils Lake July 29 to 31.

Sergeant Tilton made his debut appearance in the Professional Walleye Circuit by competing in the Forest L. Wood Walleye Tournament, fishing against nationally renowned walleye fisherman.

The tournament consisted of two days of fishing with five fish allowed for weigh-in at the end of each day. The weight for both days were then added together with the top 10 fisherman continuing to fish on day three for a chance at the $35,000 grand prize.

"Awesome," was Sergeant Tilton's response when asked how he felt about the outcome. "I had four goals, to not make a fool out of myself, to weigh-in five fish per day, to place in the top 20 and to beat my idol Pete Harsh; I achieved all of these goals."

Sergeant Tilton pre-fished for six days prior to the event. At first, he explained, that he was struggling but a few days before the event he had developed a pattern by fishing in shallow water instead of his normal 25 to 45 feet of water, and felt much more confident by the beginning of the tournament.

Day one Sergeant Tilton's combined weight for all five fish was 11.19 pounds. Day two his combined weight was 13.56 pounds, making his total for the competition 24.74 pounds.

"It was a very tight tournament and there's always next year!" said Sergeant Tilton.