Bristol Resident Earns Place In TWRA Fishing Record Book With Unique Catch

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Trey Taylor proudly displayed his outdoor journal to a visitor recently. The meticulous notes included dates, times, companions and highlights of his many adventures.

One entry stood out, and for good reason.

On Dec. 13, Taylor earned a coveted spot in the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency record books.

“I was looking at fishing records on the Internet with some friends this spring,” Taylor said. “I checked in North Carolina, Virginia and various other states.
“I wanted to break a record of some sort.”

Taylor, 27, soon found his target. It was a baitfish, called a gizzard shad, with a wide body and low-profile.

“At the time, the state record in Tennessee for the gizzard shad was only like one pound and an ounce,” Taylor said. “I thought to myself,  “Man, I could do that.”

The quest for fame led Taylor to a fertile-spot on the Holston River near Kingsport in Sullivan County.
However, a snag emerged several weeks later. After catching a shad weighing two and a half pounds, Taylor checked with a TWRA fisheries biologist in Morristown, Tenn.

“The man from the TWRA told me that the record for gizzard shad had already been broken last April, and it was now three pounds,” Taylor said.

Taylor reeled in several sizable shad before the big day arrived for the Bristol, Tenn., native.

“I was duck hunting that morning,” Taylor said, referring to Dec. 13. “While my friends were taking up the [duck] decoys, I made about four casts and worked the [record] fish kind of slow.”

According to his journal, Taylor used a T.D. minnow to catch at three-pound, three-ounce shad measuring 19.5 inches in length.
That bettered the previous record of Knoxville’s Roy Hawk, who caught a three-pound gizzard shad that measured 17¾ inches on April 3 while fishing on the South Fork of the Holston River.

“My friends said they were going to come back the next day and try to break my record,” Taylor said. 

The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Taylor was a standout athlete at Tennessee High, yet more fame came after the TWRA listed his achievement in a press release on Feb. 3.
Taylor’s has been asked often about the gizzard grab during his daily duties as owner-manager of Charley’s Grilled Subs on the Volunteer Parkway in Bristol, Tenn.

“I would have much rather set a record for a game fish like a smallmouth bass, but it’s rare to catch a state record – especially in this area,” Taylor said. “I just happened to find the right place. I didn’t even work that hard.”

Like many fishermen, Taylor has loads of colorful photos and even more colorful stories from his outings in the woods and streams of the south.
He has caught a 50-pound striper last year on Boone Lake, won a sailfish tournament last year in Palm Beach, Fla., and has reeled in a 13-pound rainbow trout.

Taylor credits his success to his father, Preston Taylor, Jr.

“I’ve been fishing my whole life, and everything I know came from my father,” Taylor said. “Dad has definitely been my guiding light when it comes to fishing.
“I tend to fish really hard and take good notes. It’s just something I’m ultra serious about.” 

And Taylor continually strives to share his passion with folks of ages. His fishing friends have landed everything from a 54-pound paddlefish to a 14-pound brown trout.

“There’s no better place for a kid that out on the lake fishing or in the woods hunting,” Taylor said.

Taylor is eager to add more entries to his well-worn outdoor journal. For the time being, he’s happy to savor his rare record.

“It’s unusual to catch a gizzard shad on a rod and reel, but it happens every now and then,” Taylor said.
“This record was just something I was doing for a challenge and for fun. I may work to try to set a bigger record someday.”

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Who: Trey Taylor
What: Established the Tennessee state record of gizzard shad on Dec. 13
Where: Holston River in Sullivan County
Age: 27
Home: Bristol, Tenn.
Fast Fact: Taylor played baseball and football at Tennessee High School. He also played baseball at Brevard College and Emory & Henry College.