There's catfish in that there lake.
And once again residents from Cary
set out to catch them and to do so by bare hand.

Noodling, the ancient art of wrestling catfish to shore by using bare hands, was first introduced to Cary by Bud Lakesteer, a native a Mississippi. He brought the tradition when he moved to Cary 20 years ago.

"The water in that Meyer pit is great for noodlin'," he said with a grin. The pit, which resides next to the Fox Trails subdivision, is the site of the annual Cary Noodling Competition, held every August. The water in that lake, although originally expected to be deep, is just the right depth for the ancient sport.

"We expected a deep lake when we started digging," said Joe Meyer, a spokeman for Meyer Material Co. and the 4th winner of the competition. "However, we struck clay and the vast lake never materialized."

Bud Lakesteer recognized that the murky, waist-deep water would be great for noodling and had river catfish imported from his native state. Then, he taught courses at the high school and soon the sport caught on with Cary residents.

One of the first students was none other than the current mayor of Cary, Stan Loamal.

"He was a quick learn," said Bud, who was the first winner of the annual competition.

He was so taken by the sport, Mayor Loamal was able to secure Village funds to construct a wooden staircase to bring people down the steep 50 foot embankement into the pit. Last year, the village installed a funicular.

"It's a very popular event," said the mayor, holding the 18 pound catfish. "And now, with the funicular installed, more people are able to venture down into the pit and either observe or participate."

This was the 11th year of the competition, which is held every August.