Clouds and Rain Help Yarman, Kemper to Indian Lake Win
By Steve Weisman
GNWC Publicity Director
Only .08 of a pound separated the top two teams at the Grand National
Walleye Cup’s (GNWC) Ohio Region tournament held on Indian Lake, Sunday, May
22.
The team of Scott Yarman from Mt. Vernon, OH and Tom Kemper from Marion,
OH weighed a six-fish limit weight of 16.17 pounds to bring home the $1400
first place check. Placing second and cashing a check for $700 was the team
of Dave Helton from Fairborn, OH and Jason Toadvine from Springfield, OH
with a six-fish limit weight of 16.09 pounds.
“Wow! Was this ever a close race,” said GNWC Tournament Director Lyle
Heidenwith. “We had 25 teams weigh six-fish limits. That’s quite a turn
around from the way the pre-fishing had been going for a lot of the teams.”
Sometimes cloud cover and intermitent rain can make all the difference,
at least that’s the way Yarman and Kemper felt as they talked about their
victory. “It was warm and sunny yesterday. We really struggled during
practice on Saturday, and we were nervous as the tournament began. When the
rain came and the breeze kicked up, everything changed,” said Yarman.
The winners began the day fishing back in the canals but after catching
only a couple of legal fish, they took a huge gamble. “We ran to the dam,”
said Yarman. “We caught a lot of short fish there during pre-fishing and
only took one legal fish there yesterday, but I think the rain and clouds
made the difference today.”
Yarman and Kemper trolled Jr. Thundersticks and small Husky Jerks at 2.7
miles per hour in four feet of water and found active fish trolling both
directions. They also found active fish on both the inside and outside
turns. “We ran out 60 feet of line for the Thundersticks and 25 feet for the
Husky Jerks,” added Yarman.
Helton and Toadvine also trolled in four to five feet of water using
both #5 shallow running Shad Raps and 1/4-ounce Wally Divers. According to
Toadvine, they fished an area called One Mile Channel. “We worked a 100-200
yard stretch of the channel where it widens. The wind was blowing into the
area and concentrated the baitfish and walleyes in that one area.” So,
instead of working the length of the channel, they targeted that one
stretch.
Their trolling speed was an amazing 3.5 to 4.0 miles per hour. “I ran
the Shad Raps 20 feet directly behind the boat and Dave ran the Wally Divers
without a planer board 10 feet back. What we like about the Wally Divers is
that they still run true at high speeds,” added Toadvine.
Mark Hull from Youngstown, OH and Steve Bartolone from Westerville, OH
caught a six-fish limit weight of 14.21 pounds to take the third place $520
check. They also caught a 7.11-pound walleye to take the Cabela’s Big Fish
Award and a $200 Cabela’s shopping spree, along with $370 for the optional
Big Fish Prize.
They caught the big fish 10 minutes into the tournament trolling with a
#5 clown colored Shad Rap only one to two miles north of the take-off site.
“We really struggled pre-fishing, and we had only taken small fish from this
area on Saturday. However, we knew that there were a lot of fish there and
figured there had to be bigger fish there, too,” said Hull. They trolled 2.0
to 2.1 miles per hour and ran their Shad Raps 20 feet behind the planer
boards.
The Yo So Close Award, provided by AMFYOYO, manufacturer of the
innovative stowable folding landing net, went to the three teams just
finishing out of the money. They include Keith Walters from New Middleton,
OH and Terry Hovance from Cortland, OH in 11th place; Chuck Sabatose from
Brockport, PA and Rick Fike from Farmington, PA in 12th place; Matt Davis
from Marion, OH and Kelly Buckenroth from Kenton, OH in 13th place.
With the second tournament in the books, the team of Mike and Tom
Defibaugh from Bellefountaine, OH is now in the lead in the race for the
Ohio Region “Yamaha Team of the Year” honors with 10 points. The team of
Keith Walters from New Middleton, OH and Terry Hovance from Cortland, OH
sits in second place with 17 points.
Next up on the Ohio Region is the Tappen Lake qualifier on Sunday, June
19. For those interested in entering this or the final tournament at Lake
Erie on Saturday, July 16, call 1-800-890-FISH (3474), or email the GNWC at
[email protected].
GNWC Executive Director Bernie Barringer said, “I encourage people to
check out our website at http://www.walleyecup.com. As we approach the middle of
the season, I think people will find it extremely interesting to see how the
races are stacking up in each of the seven regions.”
Major national sponsors for the GNWC include Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
Outboards, Lowrance Electronics, YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO, Aqua-VU,
Aqua Innovations, Cabela’s and UpNorthOutdoors.com. National championship
sponsors are Towtector Shield and the VIB”E” Lure Company.