Ohio River Blue Catfish Sets West Virginia Weight Record at 72.75 Pounds

Tyler Harmon took his son fishing hoping to put a little catfish on the end of his line. Instead, three generations of his family wound up in an 18-foot jon boat with a West Virginia record.

Harmon's Ohio River blue catfish weighed 72.75 pounds on a certified scale and measured 48.15 inches long. It topped the state's previous 71-pound weight record. West Virginia keeps a separate length record, and this catch did not break that one.

The Ravenswood angler was fishing with his son, Walker, and his father, Rodney, using cut sucker for bait. When the fish surfaced, Walker thought his dad had hooked a shark. Landing it took both adults, and the weight bent the handle of their net. That is a family fishing story with some staying power.

They arranged an aerated holding tank, got the fish weighed and measured with a state fisheries official the following morning, and returned it alive to the river. A possible $20,000 state-record promotion payout was still under review when the story was published, so that money is not a confirmed prize.

The best part does not depend on a payout. A father asked his boy if he wanted to go fishing, Grandpa joined them, and an ordinary trip turned into something none of them will forget. You cannot catch that sitting on the couch.