Fishing for LMB with 8 lb test at the Roanoke pond last year, was not expecting to hook into this grass carp. I did not have a scale, but I would say it was decent... Fought it for about 10 minutes, thought it would never wear out. for size reference, I am 5'11"

Nice fish! You have to be careful with those. They're very sensitive fish and can die just by being out of the water a few minutes. Oftentimes they're stocked by the pond owners/the state and illegal to kill (intentionally or accidentally). If you hold them by their gills you only increase the rate of fatality as it's such a large fish. I don't expect you to get a mat or weigh sling for these fish, but for your sake and the fish's please do hold them properly if you happen to luck into one in the future. Tight lines!

Yeah, unfortunately when setting the hook, the hook grabbed onto the first set of gills. Had no idea what I had even hooked at first. Fortunately the fish survived and my daughter and I occasionally see him/her swimming around in the shallows when I take her to the nearby park.

Sucks about the hook hold but glad to hear she's still kicking! It's not always the perfect hookset regardless of what you're using. Last time I went out one of my buddies accidentally hooked a carp in the eye and he was using a rig/technique specifically designed to catch carp in the lower lip. I'm sure the fish fought like crazy, and if you're interested in catching more of 'em I'd definitely give the Carp FAQ in the Rough Fish section a look-through. Just FYI, Grass Carp fight the least out of the carp/buffalo species, but they sure do get big!

Someone on the Rough fish/Carp section might be able to make a good guess about the weight.

I bet that was fun.

Nice fish