The Man We Honor
Christopher R. Caris was an aspiring professional bass fisherman who was dedicated to the sport. Chris was only a couple days away from learning that his life long dream was coming true when he lost his life. Chris embodied the true meaning of a sportsman. Not only did he love his sport but he cared for others. The bass fishing community is a big family and Chris was a big part of that family. Simply put, he was the best of friends and the best of men.. 

The area fishing community recently endured the loss of a good friend, Smalljaw forum member and avid angler, Chris Caris.  His life was taken by a senseless act of violence and Team Smalljaw has been established in his honor.

Caris represented everything a fisherman should be, including being a role model for children and being willing to help others in need.  He fished for the love of the sport and treated all with the utmost respect along the way.

This average man yearned to fish professionally and had begun his fishing career without a sponsor by entering the Wal-Mart BFL (Bass Fishing League) tournament trail before his tragic death.This was no easy task financially, Caris struggled from the begining, but Caris was on the verge of realizing his dream of making it to professional fishing's "big stage."

The memory of Chris Caris serves as an inspiration to all anglers, because he was well on his way to proving anything can be accomplished "if you follow your dreams."

 

 

 

 

The 2010 season has been set and looking forward to a great year out of the anglers and most important them having fun. I would like to personally welcome our newest members to the co-angler side of the Mountain Division. Matt Alliston & Jeff Canterbury. Team Caris is growing and and hope to add more anglers in the years to come. I know thwy will make Chris and his Family proud.  

                           2010 BFL MUSIC CITY DIVISION SCHEDULE

                                            3/6 PERCY PRIEST

                                            3/27 CENTER HILL

                                            4/24 KENTUCKY LAKE

                                            6/12 OLD HICKORY

                                            10/2-3 OLD HiCKORY

                                            REGIONAL 10/14 – 16 LAKE GUNTERSVILLE

Meet Kevin Yorbrough:

Kevin Yarbrough was selected as the first Team Smalljaw sponsored angler. Kevin has been fishing tournaments since 1985 and has successfully competed in several levels of competition from local clubs to regional events with 200- boat fields Kevin finished 3rd in the overall points in 2009 Music City BFL and made the regional on Clarks Hill in North Carolina. Kevin has had a very successful year finishing in the top 20 in 3 out of 4 tournaments with more to come.

 

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Meet Sonny Smyth

Sonny Smyth will be the newest member for team Smalljaw in 2009. Sonny has fished tournaments since age 17 and formed his own bass fishing club during his junior year in high school. Sonny has competed in local and regional events all over the southern part of the United States. Sonny also worked for the Bass Tubs of Oklahoma in the late 1990's traveling to sport and boat shows doing fishing seminars. Sonny is well versed in product representation and will be a valuable asset to Team Smalljaw.

 

 

 

                           2010 BFL MOUNTAIN DIVISION SCHEDULE

                                            3/20 DALE HOLLOW LAKE

                                            4/10 LAUREL RIVER LAKE

                                            5/8 LAKE CUNBERLAND

                                            6/19 BARREN RIVER

                                            10/18-19 BARREN RIVER

                                            REGIONAL 10/7-9 LAKE BARKLEY

 

2010 Newest addition to Team Caris: Meet Matt Alliston & Jeff Canterbury

Meet Matt Alliston

Being an athlete my entire life and being fortunate enough to play on the collegiate level, you can imagine how competitive I am by nature.  I’ve fished several tournaments over the past 4 years and have done pretty well in some of them.  I actually won my first big tournament on Kentucky Lake.  There was about 44 boats and my partner and I (the guy who forced me to go to Dale Hollow lol) were fortunate to come in 1st place. 

I later joined in and fished the “Derbytownn Bass Club” tournaments for 2 years.  I came in the money several times but never won a tournament in that series.  I fished the Bassboatcentral tourney last year on Dale Hollow and came in 1st place as well as the rally this past spring on Kentucky Lake coming in 3rd out of 39 boats.  I really enjoy being able to compete again in a sport that I am so passionate about..To be able to represent Team Caris means a lot to me for a number of reasons.  I too share the passion and desire that Chris had.  And I too love to compete at everything I do. 

 

 

Meet Jeff Canterbury (Far Left)

I am a college graduate,I received a degree in Business Management degree from Marshall University while playing collegiate basketball on a college scholarship during my first three years at Concord College.  I continued to fish for fun whenever possible, catching my personal best smallmouth in April of 2001.  Once out of college I moved to Louisville, KY to pursue a career in the Mortgage Industry focusing on 1st time home buyers and Purchase applicants at New Equity Financial, a young start up company who grew rapidly and had a good core base.  As you might know the financial market has taken a huge hit over the last 3 or more years  and my company seised operations in the spring of 2007.  After scrambling to find a position and trying again at a small Mortgage firm called Statewide LLC, I landed at Chase Bank were I currently work as a Personal Banker. 

During my time as a mortgage broker I fished frequently, restored my first boat a 1989 Stratos 181 from the trailer up.  From 2003-2006 I started fishing small tournaments and fun fishing anytime I got the chance.  In 2006  I decided I was going to make a run at the BFL's as a co angler in the Mountain division to learn the techniques and the waters of these highland reservoirs.  After the first two tournaments my guaranteed boater dropped out and I was stuck on the waiting list.  Rather than driving all the way to London from Louisville during the third tournament and worrying about not getting in I decided to scratch the rest of the season and come back as a boater the following year. 

 In 2007 I had put my deposits down for the the first two tournaments and decided to go as a boater in the LBL division, getting my confidence to compete there after winning a 41 boat  BBC Tournament in the spring of 2006.  As my first  BFL tournament came I was ready, so I thought, I ended up with two fish for 4lbs and lost a few that would have made a good showing.  Next tournament I went down prefished two days and found a good area holding lots of 3-4lb fish.  Going into the tournament day the winds shifted I made it to my spots south of 68 bridge from the KY Dam area but do to the position of my fish I found myself fighting the winds all day long.  My co angler ended up catching 17 lbs and getting second place and cashing a nice check. 

Well, before my next tournament entry fees were due, my company New Equity Financial decided to shut its doors and I was out of a job.  In a panic I called my co angler and made sure he could find another boater and decided to scratch the rest of the season to make sure I could manage my household until I found a solid position .  It has taken me at least two years to recover from not having a steady income for those 6 months  while I was getting set up with Statewide Mortgage.   After being with Statewide for a year and a half I left for steady pay at JP Morgan Chase in the fall of 2008 and have been here ever since.   Just recently due to the banking industry meltdown I have had my pay incentives have decreased.  Forcing me once again to try and find another career path.