The Toyota ShareLunker program in Texas is having a great February already. After Willie Pipkin of Austin caught a Legacy Class lunker on Feb. 5 from Lady Bird Lake — the first in a decade, Christian Gladfelter of Albuquerque, New Mexico, hauled in the 13.01-pound ShareLunker 673 from J.B. Thomas the very next day (Feb. 6) bringing the total for 2025 to four.
To qualify for the Legacy Class, a bass must be 13-pounds or more and it must be caught during the first three months of the season: Jan 1 to March 31.
Gladfelter’s fish joins Pipkin’s 14.05-pound Sharelunker 672, Dylan Sorrells’ 13.64-pound ShareLunker 671 (Richland-Chambers Reservoir) caught on Jan. 26 and Brady Stanford’s 13.13-pound ShareLunker 670 caught on O.H. Ivie on Jan. 2.
According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), which runs the ShareLunker program, Gladfelter began fishing on J.B. Thomas around 3 a.m. He fished all morning before he hooked into his big catch.
“She was about 30-feet in front of the boat,” Gladfelter said. “I designed a jig for this lake that I have my clients use, and [it’s] what we’ve caught these big fish out of J.B. Thomas on. I put that down to her and presented it in front of her face and the fish took the bait. She landed on the boat and the second we saw her we knew she was going to be close. It was an exciting deal.”
A quick weigh on the boat revealed the bass was over 13 pounds, so Gladfelter decided to call it in to the ShareLunker program, which he’s done before, but this is his first Legacy Class entry.
“The experience with the ShareLunker program was awesome,” he said. “I think for us, as bass anglers, especially this time of year, it’s our dream to…catch a fish of that class and to be able to be a part of the ShareLunker program. It’s great to be able to donate the fish to the program and then have those genetics pass along to the lake and others in Texas. I love every minute of it.”
There are four classes of bass in the Toyota ShareLunker Program — anglers who catch, submit, and donate a bass 13 pounds or heavier to the program during the spawning months from January through March earn Legacy Class status, the top class, which comes with prizes and entries into drawings with cash prizes and shopping sprees as awards.
The angler-reporting aspect of the Toyota ShareLunker program, operated in conjunction with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), provides vital data to fisheries biologists, helping them continue to create bigger, better bass in Texas.
Anglers who reel in a 13-plus pound bass from Jan. 1 to March 31 can loan it to TPWD for the ShareLunker selective breeding and stocking program and report their catch via the ShareLunker 24/7 hotline at (903) 681-0550. Once certified, the catch earns Legacy Class status.
