Newspaper Page Text
OUTDOORS
Roach still
the king
of walleye
fisherman
By Bill Vanderford
For the Forsyth County News
North of the Mason/Dixon line,
Gary Roach’s name is synonymous
with walleye fishing, but here in the
South, his name is no quite as recog
nizable.
He is. however.
highly regarded by
his peers as one of I ■'
the most knowl- I
edgeable walleye
anglers in the JB
world. ' IB
In famous fj
fishermen like Al
Lindner speak of ri M I
Roach in reverent Roach
terms.
"He is the best walleye fisherman
that I have ever known.” stated Hall
of Fame angler and TV star Al
Lindner.
"He has more knowledge about
walleye movement, and he’s had
more experience. Gary has probably
fished more diverse walleye situa
tions north, south, east, and west than
anyone, and he's a super gentleman
and a wonderful friend.”
Though the relationship between
Lindner and Roach spans more than
30 years. Roach’s fishing experiences
began long before. As with most of
us who chose fishing as a career.
Gary Roach was introduced to
angling as a child.
"1 acquired my love of fishing
from my Dad.” said Roach. "He
worked in the iron ore mines in
Minnesota, and built a little cabin on
Mission Lake so that we could enjoy
the outdoors.
"Every time a new kid was added
to the family. Dad would cut timber
and add on to the cabin. It got to be a
pretty big place.”
After high school. Roach served a
tour of duty in the military, then
returned home and ran a gas station
business for about 10 years. His love
of angling, however, kept pulling him
away, so he finally sold everything
and just went fishing.
“I retired and went fishing when I
was 30 years old," admitted Roach.
“Along with Al Lindner and some
other guides, I guided for Marv Kelp.
Then I began fishing professional
tournaments and helping Al promote
his unique fishing products all over
the country.
At that time, I had an old. beat up
Plymouth and Al had an equally old
Ford station wagon.”
Gary Roach won his first bass
tournament and some walleye tourna
ments during those early days in
Minnesota.
During that time, he continued
pushing Lindner’s fishing inventions
and remained with In Fisherman for
17 years.
“There was a gap between what
people -saw on TV and the dealers, so
we worked with those people and
helped the dealers by showing the guy
on the street what to buy," said Roach.
“It worked because we were filling a
niche that no one else was doing.”
Since those early days, Gary
Roach has been a major part in the
growth of both professional and fun
walleye fishing all over the country.
He has been inducted into the
National Freshwater Fishing Hall of
Fame, and though Al Lindner is bet
ter known, Gary Roach is considered
the father of modern walleye fishing.
“I believe that everybody kids
Gary about being the ‘old man’ of
our sport,” stated Al Lindner. “But, I
don’t know anyone in our industry
who has met this wonderful man who
doesn’t love him!”
Bill Vanderford has won numer
ous awards for his writing and pho
tography, and has been inducted into
the National Freshwater Fishing Hall
of Fame as a Legendary Guide. He
can be reached at (770) 289-1543,
JFishsl@aol.com or at his Web site:
www.fishinglanier. com.
Sports
Forsyth County News—Friday, February 20,2004
lA I ith another soccer season under way
i ) VV in Forsyth, varsity teams from around
/ the county are stretching their legs in antic-
’ SN ipation of what could be another banner
I \ <| year. ,rr 2003 > three teams made it into the
| sta te tournament, with the Lady Dawgs of
i Forsyth Central reaching the Elite Eight.
This season, even more squads could ‘
make the move into the postseason, with
each boasting talented, tested lineups.
Last year showed Forsyth could play with
15 /y DJT Cl anyone. Will this be the year that Forsyth
I I climbs to the top of the mountain?
Ljl X J Whatever happens, it should be an exciting
f-J LJ Iff IW Iff 2004 soccer season.
hIERE
RF Illustration by Mitch Pike
War Eagles
shooting for
banner year
By Morgan Lee
Sports Writer
After a hard-fought but inconsistent 2003. the off
season brought many changes to South Forsyth's soc
cer programs. Both the War Eagles and Lady Eagles
underwent coaching changes after their first season of
AAAA play —a campaign that included some big
wins for both teams but left South’s girls one agoniz
ing win short of State.
But one thing certainly hasn’t changed at South:
Success is still an expectation. And each team should
again challenge for postseason glory.
Senior-laden War Eagles ready for big season
With nine battle-tested seniors and eight juniors
anchoring his squad, South Forsyth head coach Matt
Fiedler knows that his team could be on the verge of
something big.
“If there was ever a year [to have high expecta
tions], this could be it," said Fiedler.
And why not?
This season. South will field almost the exact same
team that had a chance to upset eventual State co
champs Dalton in last year's first-round of State. And
now they have an extra year of experience under their
collective belts.
Yet the War Eagles also know that with playing
in one of the toughest regions in the state nothing is
certain and that they must continue improve during the
season if they are to realize their postseason hopes.
Forsyth Central Bulldogs back in the hunt
(m
3 ■
Lady Bulldog
midfielder
Katie Perea,
left, will help
lead Forsyth
Central's
campaign in
2004, as they
look to get
back to the
state playoffs.
The Lady
Dawgs have
been to the
Elite Eight
round two
years in a
row.
Photo/File
B ' ** ODm* er
J/Iter
* 111
Photo/File
North Forsyth’s Phillip Sanders, left, and
South's Greg Bova, right, will look to get their
teams to the top of Region 6-AAAA in 'O4.
"They’re willing to get better." said Fiedler.
After playing together on club and high school
level for years. South’s biggest strength may be its
team chemistry. Each player knows and respects each
other and the team thrives on the drive of their large
senior group.
“The seniors have been good leaders so far.” said
Fiedler. “That makes it easy on us."
The War Eagles will stick with the same base 4-4-2
See SHOOTING, Page 2B
By Morgan Lee
Sports Writer
Once again, the Forsyth Central
Bulldogs both boys and girls may
be among the elite class of the county’s
varsity programs.
Both sets of Dawgs entered last sea
son knowing they had targets on their
chests but still managed to sweep their
way to the mythical county championship
and pick up two state playoff berths
Central’s Lady Dawgs making it all the
way to the Elite Eight.
Yet even with the losses of some key
players on each team, the Dawgs are
again solid bets to revisit the state tour
nament.
Dawgs cautiously optimistic
Looking at the numbers, it would be
easy to understand if Forsyth Central soc
cer coach Matt Weneta was nervous about
the upcoming season.
That's Racin', 5B
Could be
tale of two
seasons for
Raiders
By Morgan Lee
Sports Writer
For the soccer programs at North
Forsyth! last year's foray into AAAA
play yielded both peaks and valleys.
While the Raiders clinched a
watershed win against South Forsyth
their first-ever over their cross
county rivals they also dropped
several one-goal region games and
finished a disappointing 6-8.
Meanwhile, a youthful Lady
Raiders squad found tough going in
the new region, winning just two 6-
AAAA games. Coach Erik Moore's
squad picked up valuable playing
experience but also suffered some
lopsided defeats in finishing 5-11.
With the 2004 season upon them.
North’s teams are both excited and
nervous about their upcoming
prospects.
And while one team could be on
the verge of something big, the other
may be in the midst of a rebuilding
season.
See RAIDERS, Page 4B
Seven players, including six starters,
graduated from last year’s 12-4-1 team
that lost just two games in the highly
competitive Region 6-AAAA and
reached the state tournament.
But don’t look for any panic from
Weneta, who still returns five starters
four of them All-County selections.
“We’ll be looking to play an attacking
style of soccer,” noted Weneta. who also
hopes to get back to the postseason after
last year’s surprising first-round loss to
Rome.
“We’re looking to qualify for State
again and learn from last year.”
And with a cupboard full of rising tal
ent. Weneta’s goal appears well within
reach.
The Dawgs will again be strong in the
attack with returning striker Bailey Slijvo
—a 2003 all-county selection leading
the way. In fact, Central will actually
See HUNT, Page 2B
□