Fishing partner Chris Smith and I started the afternoon out fishing below Ft Loudon Dam. The stripper fishing was the best of the year with several fish pushing the 20 pound mark. Most everyone was catching a few strippers and we kept a few for Chris to practice mounting on this winter. 
Reeling in all those strippers made the time go by fast and it was time for us to leave if we wanted to get to our smallmouth spot before running out of daylight.
We throw netted about fifty, 4 to 5 inch threadfin shad for bait and headed to Tellico Lake.
As usual we started off with a little friendly competition. I started strong 3 to 1, when Chris got a strike and the rod and reel that I had loaned him was jerked out of his hand and on the way to the bottom of the lake. After pausing for a few seconds I could see by the puzzled look on his face that he was not going in after my rod & reel. Over I went, catching it before it was out of sight.
As I returned to the surface with rod and fish in tow, I could see that Chris was still bewildered. While handing the rod to Chris, I informed him that this fish does not count towards the bet. I lifted my self into the boat finding a seat and catching my wits and breathe. This is when I asked why it took him so long to react? He replied