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Big MouthOnce a year, Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, is home to the Okie Noodling Tournament, a 24-hour race to bring in the biggest catch using an unusual—and sometimes dangerous—technique. Unlike traditional anglers, noodlers forego the rod and reel and take on massive catfish with their hands, pulling them from holes by their toothless mouths. The American Festivals Project was on the scene to capture the action in 2009. Read more about the Okie Noodling Tournament from the American Festivals Project blog.

Photograph by Andrew Owen, American Festivals Project

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Okie Noodling Tournament

See photos of the 2009 Okie Noodling Tournament in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, in this American Festivals Project travel photo gallery from National Geographic.

April 5, 2010