The silver and bighead carp are alien invaders that are
cousins, but only one of these Asian carp jump. The silver carp are the airborne
missiles of the Illinois River and are originally from Asia. They were brought
over here with the thought of controlling the pollution and debris that are in
the farm ponds that raise catfish. They are used as filter feeders. They use
their gill rakers to filter food from the water which moves
through there gills and catch plankton and not other fish. Mother Nature decided
to change the location of these fish and freed them from there ponds in Arkansas
using the flood of 93. The Mississippi River overflowed her banks and released
the couple hundred fish that now some 14 years later grew in the 100 millions.
Now the reason Asian Silver Carp jump isn’t so complicated. Two
years ago in the summer of 05 on the Illinois River, Chris Brackett was doing
some Bowfishing for some big heads by the dam above Pekin IL.
Brackett drove around looking for some bigheads to shoot and these little silver
fish kept jumping behind the boat and the
simple reason that they are scared
of the boat and motor. Chris loving to shoot anything that moves had told all
the guys there that he would shoot one out of the air. The boat erupted with
laughter, 12 shots later history was made and a new sport was created. EXTREME
AERIAL BOWFISHING!
Since that day, Extreme Aerial
Bowfishing has spread like wildfire across the country. A
DVD was created, shows were filmed, and the fish are getting
bigger and meaner! The silver carp are prolific breeder in that they spawn twice
a year and have millions of eggs per spawn. Silver carp eat 80% of there body
weight a day and are the fast growing fish in North America. Since the first
fish was shot by Chris that hot summer day in June, it has become the most
exciting sport the outdoor industry has seen in the last 20 years.Vibration and
water turbulence is what drives the silver carp crazy. Crazy enough that they
shoot out of the water at an alarming rate and soar to heights of over 10 ft.
Chris has mastered the phenomenon of getting the fish to jump and Brackett is
better known to some people as “The Flying Fish Guy”. If you hear Chris yell
“get ready” you better duck or draw your bow because he sees something the
average person doesn’t. Whether it’s a swirl
or a wake made by the fish and almost on command the hundreds of fish erupt from
the water. Chris’s dad, Charlie says, “Their like popcorn
popping up, pop, pop, pop....and they just keep coming.” Then as fast as it
started, it ceases. By Chris putting the boat into neutral and letting everyone
in the boat gain there composer and throw out the dozen or so fish that
voluntarily jumped in the boat. Call and book your appointment today!
To book an Extreme Aerial Bowfishing Experience you need to first pick the day or days you would like to shoot and then call and see if there is availability. We run June 1 through Aug. 31, seven days a week. There are two boats available daily which accommodates up to 8 shooters, 4 per boat. The cost for learning how to shoot these fish is $1000 dollars per 4 people. This includes all the equipment. The Extreme Aerial Bowfishing Experience takes place on the Illinois River in Peoria Illinois.
Contact info Chris Brackett 309-369-5614
Brackett Outdoors
4523 Misty Isle Pt.
Mapleton, IL 61547
309-369-5614