Forest Lake ice fishing contest still on!

There was a story in the Star tribune saying that the Golden Rainbow contest that is put on by the Hopkins Jaycees closed up shop. They were going to move to Grand Rapids, but decided to bring it to an end.

The good news is that the Forest Lake VFW is bringing a new contest back to Forest Lake. They’re calling it Fishapalooza 2008.

I was bummed out when they announced they were done, but now this new one sounds like it’s going to be really big and a lot of fun.

You can get info on it by googling fishapalooza.

Wow! Great news, looks like it will be quite an event. I think I might have to be in.

John

I was sorely disappointed in all the cheating that goes on in that contest. Not saying the contest isn’t for a good cause, just that there is flagarant cheating going on. My wife and I had a group of guys fishing around us that were constantly running up with perch to register, however we never once witnessed them actually pull one up the hole. Nobody else around was catching them, go figure! That was the same year they found out the big winner was a fraud….too bad because it is a great event otherwise.

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I was sorely disappointed in all the cheating that goes on in that contest. Not saying the contest isn’t for a good cause, just that there is flagarant cheating going on. My wife and I had a group of guys fishing around us that were constantly running up with perch to register, however we never once witnessed them actually pull one up the hole. Nobody else around was catching them, go figure! That was the same year they found out the big winner was a fraud….too bad because it is a great event otherwise.

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And now we have this.

7. All fish entered must be brought to the weigh-in tent immediately.
The fish must be ALIVE. Any fish that are dead, frozen or have been tampered with will be disqualified.
Fish may only be registered by their rightful owner, but exceptions are made for the handicapped.
This is a catch and release contest. Please bring your fish to the weigh-in tent in a bucket or bag.
Any contestant that tampers with the weight of the fish will disqualified from the contest.
Judges have the right to verify that the fish were caught legally.
Top prizewinners will be subject to a polygraph test.
In the event deception is detected or the contestant refuses to take the test, the contestants ’ prize will be forfeited.
The decisions of the judge are final. Top prizewinners will be subject to a polygraph test. In the event deception is detected or the contestant refuses to take the test, the contestants ’ prize will be forfeited.
The decisions of the judge are final.

Nobody likes a nark…. except for me. If you witness someone cheating, tell a contest official. It’s in your best interest.

I would’ve, but it was a LONG walk and I didn’t want to leave my wife alone with those hoodlums.

New story in the Pioneer Press about the new contest.

Opps!

Here is it.

Story by Chris Niskanen

Forest Lake has lost one big ice-fishing contest but landed another.

The victim of thin ice and debt, the Golden Rainbow Ice Fishing Contest is gone for good, but two Forest Lake fishing buddies have scheduled a replacement.

The Fishapalooza Ice Fishing Contest, set for Feb. 16, is the brainchild of Jim Woods and Dan Luger, avid ice anglers who didn’t want to see Forest Lake without a major ice-fishing contest.

“We were actually sitting in a fish house having a cold beer when we thought of it,” Woods said. “Our theory was to keep a big contest in Forest Lake.”

For more than two decades, the Golden Rainbow Ice Fishing Contest was one of the largest ice-fishing contests in the nation, attracting up to 8,000 people to Forest Lake, which had hosted the event since 1987.

But after poor ice conditions forced four cancellations since 2002, organizers decided to scrap the event. Its sponsor, the Hopkins Area Jaycees, planned to hold it this winter in Grand Rapids, Minn., but the group faced large debt after last year’s cancellation. The Jaycees decided to give up on the event entirely.

Woods and Luger formed a corporation with a new sponsor, the Forest Lake VFW Post 4210. Fishapalooza is scheduled three weeks later than the Golden Rainbow event in hopes of avoiding thin ice.

Woods, a truck driver, said he is hoping for 10,000 entrants and wants his event to compete with a Brainerd contest that bills itself as “the world’s largest ice fishing contest.”

The

Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza attracted more than 10,000 anglers last year, organizers say. It is scheduled for Jan. 26.

The Hopkins Jaycees bought the Golden Rainbow contest in 1995 from Bert Momsen, of Woodbury, and used the event as a fundraiser.

The prize money was good – up to $100,000 in cash and prizes and a first-place prize of a new pickup truck for the largest fish. Anglers also won prizes in a popular raffle.

Thin ice forced the contest’s cancellation in 2002 and 2003, and again in 2006 and this year.

Earlier versions of the contest were held on other Twin Cities lakes. The origins of the name trace back to when organizers released tagged rainbow trout and gave prizes to anglers who caught them. The Department of Natural Resources made the practice illegal to discourage indiscriminate releasing of fish.

Fishapalooza will offer prizes and cash worth $130,000, including a new Ford pickup for the largest fish caught. Other prizes include a new all-terrain vehicle, fish houses and fishing equipment.

Woods said Fishapalooza will be a fundraiser for the VFW post, which supports a variety of charities, including the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Helping Hands Foundation. Tickets are $30 until Jan. 27, when they become $40.

Chris Niskanen can be reached at [email protected] or 651-228-5524.

Fishapalooza information: icefishingforestlake.com or 651-249-1091

Does any one know if this will be on the same part of the lake?

Didn’t get an answer, so I researched the fishapalooza contest myself.
Yes. Same area on lake 1 of Forest Lake.
Sound like it’s going to be an awesome contest. I see they have a 2008 Skeeter boat on there prize list as last place.
Last place? The boat is as good as mine. I’m good at coming in last.
Can’t wait! I’ll be there! Plus it helps out out vets.

Anyone else going??

Should be a good time. I am going to try to get a bunch of guys to go to this event.

Stopped by the ice show yesterday and paid these guys a visit. Nice guys! I talk to one guy who was helping them out. He said he posts on this site a lot. His name was ferny and he gave me the low down on the contest and the all charities its going to help. Plus they gave me a tip on where to get the best deal on a St. Croix ice rod, which was capras right behind them.

thanks guys

I haven’t read or heard much chatter about this contest.

I don’t want to win all that stuff by myself.
Who all is going?