Fishing at the World Champs
It has taken Shane over 20 years of competitive fishing at provincial and national level to reach his current ranking of fourth in the country
Local bass fisherman Shane Estran has made it in the ‘big league’ as part of the South African team. The team took part in the World Champs this year and finished second overall, which is a wonderful achievement. The rest of the team is made up of Kieran Samkin (captain), Brendon van Zuydam, Greg Schluep, Hennie Korf, Rob Fisher (manager) and Trevor Brown.
Now 42 years old, Shane says he has always loved fishing and joined the Ladysmith Bassmasters as soon as he left school. It has taken Shane over 20 years of competitive fishing at provincial and national level to reach his current ranking of fourth in the country. His achievements include being Natal champion three times and coming close to being national champ on many occasions.
To qualify to go to the World Championships, you have to be selected among the top six bass fishers in South Africa. The 2013 Bass World Championships were held in Cordoba, Spain, at Lake La Breña. The team flew from King Shaka Airport to Dubai and then on to Madrid. It was a short overnight in Madrid and then a high-speed train ride into the interior of Spain to Cordoba. Excitement mounted as teams from all over the world started to arrive.
Teams from Russia, Spain, Venezuela, France, Portugal, Mexico, Germany, Italy, Swaziland and Croatia, as well as South Africa, all competed at the World Champs.
The Bassmasters competition was held from October 29 to November 4 and after two days of practice on the lake, the team was faced with three days of competitive bass fishing against the world’s best anglers. Shane and his partner, Greg Schluep, finished with a boat weight that placed them fifth overall. Together, as team South Africa, they came second overall, bringing home the silver medal. Russia finished on top, with France in third place.
The biggest bass Shane has caught was a 5.1kg large mouth bass caught at Goedertrouw Dam about five years ago. Shane has fished most of the top bass fishing dams in South Africa, as well as Namibia, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. He has also fished the Zone 6 Bass Tournament, which is a tournament for the African continent that has been held for the last four years. SA won the tournament in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
Shane would like to thank his family from Five O’ Labels for giving him time off work to go and fish, and for all the support during his bass fishing years. He has big plans for the future. “I would like to do well in Natal, then represent the national team and also fish internationally again,” says Shane.
