Smallmouth Buffalo - David Hanson
While researching this article I hoped to speak to the current Bowfishing Association of America (BAA) World Record holders for the 3 common buffalo species. I tracked down David Hanson first. His 106 pound fish is truly a giant and has stood in the top spot since 1999. Listed as the top Bigmouth Buffalo in the US on the BAA website, I couldn’t wait to get the story.
A few messages to David to set up the interview and I realized that we had a discrepancy. David’s fish was a Smallmouth Buffalo and was erroneously credited as a Bigmouth. I alerted the BAA to this and they made the updates on the website, creating a void in the Bigmouth record – more on that later.
David was an avid bowfisherman during the time that he took his record. From 1995-2000 David was as competitive as you can get in the bowfishing world. He and his teammate Kevin Tidwell fished major tournaments together and did very well. Winning their fair share and nearly taking BAA team of the year honors in 1996. That year Kevin also set the BAA World Record for Alligator Gar at 220 pounds (see insert below).
However, the night that David stuck his monster Smallmouth Buffalo they were just out for a little fun. They launched on Lake Hawkins, an 800-acre man-made lake near the Sabine River, in hopes of landing a few grass carp and gar. The date was October 16, 1999 and the weather was cool. The water was clear enough to see to the bottom near the shorelines.
As the duo rounded a bend they both spotted the fish lying in about 4 feet of water. Kevin hesitated, thinking that the outsized fish was a catfish, but David recognized it as a buffalo (albeit the only one they have seen in this lake) and the shot from his Oneida Tomkat/AMS Retriever combo found the mark. The Muzzy-tipped arrow buried deep into the fish and stunned it, making the overall fight not very impressive. They wrestled the fish aboard and continued to fish.
David knew he had an outsized fish due to its massive girth, especially compared to other fish he has landed in the past which topped the 50 pound mark. The next day he headed to a local scrap yard to have the fish weighed on a certified scale. It was recognized as the BAA World Record shortly thereafter. Local taxidermists wouldn’t touch the fish though, claiming that the amount of fat on a fish that size would ruin the finish over time. So David decided to have a replica made and he donated it to the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center where it is currently on display.
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World Record Profiles
David's Rec0rd has stood for nearly 16 years. In his hayday, David was in his own words "hell on wheels". He also held the BAA World Record for Gizzard Shad at 3.47 pounds for a short period of time.
David struggles to hold his giant Smallmouth Buffalo record. In 1996, his fishing partner Kevin Tidwell also had the WR Alligator Gar (220#)