Losing a rod to a fish?

[Al Agnew]

Only one I ever lost that way...when I was a teenager I went on a vacation trip with the family of a good friend.  The plan was to go to Wappapello Dam and fish below the dam for a couple days, then relocate to Clearwater Lake.  While we were fishing at Wappapello, I snagged a rod.  It was one of those old Snoopy Zebco rod and reel combos.  I cleaned it up and discovered it still worked, and I could cast about 40 feet or so.  

So when we moved to Clearwater, we took out the boat and went up to the head of the Black River arm and parked on a gravel bar to fish for catfish and carp.  I baited up the little Zebco with some corn and tossed it out the regulation 40 feet and propped it on a stick...and a minute or so later it went flying out into the lake, never to be seen again (carp are notorious for that).  Easy come, easy go!