Minnesota State Championship of Walleye Fishing Set for Lake Bemidji
By Steve Weisman
GNWC Publicity Director
Since the final regular season tournament on the Minnesota Region of the
Grand National Walleye Cup (GNWC) in late July, the top 30 teams have been
anxiously awaiting this year’s Minnesota Championship of Walleye fishing.
Now it’s showdown time as they head to Lake Bemidji on September 10-11 to
see who will come away with the guaranteed $5000 for first place.
In addition, the winners will receive the Lowrance “YOU WIN!” award of
two Lowrance LMS-332C color sonar/GPS units valued at $1400, making the
total first place purse worth $6400.
Leading the way will be the Yamaha Outboards Team of the Year, Michael
Marushin and Jeffrey Clem from Minnetonka, MN won the title with 35 points.
“These two guys were consistent performers all year,” said GNWC Executive
Director Bernie Barringer.
“There are a lot of opportunities on Lake Bemidji. It is noted for its
walleye fishing,” noted Barringer.
Ron Bostic, owner of Taber’s Bait, agrees. “The walleye fishing has been
excellent, but the fish are relating to the weeds and are in the shallows. A
straggler or two might be caught deeper, but right now people are fishing in
14 feet of water or shallower.”
Trolling chartreuse, nickel or florescent orange blades tipped with
either a shiner or a nightcrawler have been working now, but Bostic predicts
that will probably change by mid-September, if the water cools down as it
normally does.
“If the surface temperature gets into the upper 50s and low 60s, the
bite should change to a jig bite,” noted Bostic. “The fish will be relating
to deeper structure in 30-35 feet of water. There is structure all over this
lake. However, there are little humps and log piles that aren’t on the
regular maps. They will be holding fish.”
Although the tournament competition begins on Saturday, September 10,
the activities for the Minnesota teams actually begin at 5:30 on Friday
evening with supper and rules meeting at Bemidji Marine, the local
Skeeter/Yamaha dealer.
The Minnesota Championship competition headquarters for take-off and
weigh-in will be at Cameron Park. Saturday’s action begins at 7 a.m. with
the opening ceremonies and take-off. Weigh-in will be at 3 p.m. Sunday
follows the same time frame with the weigh-in festivities beginning at 3
p.m. Sunday’s weigh-in will determine who will walk away with the Minnesota
Championship of Walleye Fishing title.
“The Minnesota State Championship of Walleye Fishing is going to be an
exciting two-day event,” said Barringer. “Weigh-ins begin at 3 p.m. each
day. The first day will be a day of positioning, but the second day will be
for the title. Plus, on the second day, we will find out from the top teams
what strategies they used to catch their fish. I invite folks to come out
and be a part of the Championships.”
Special awards will be give out at the Championships including the
Cabela’s Big Fish Award of a $200 shopping spree for the team that catches
the largest walleye during the two-day Championships. In addition, an
optional Big Fish Pot will go to the team catching the overall big fish
during the Championships.
Skeeter Boats is offering an additional $3000 above their GNWC winnings
to any owner of a Skeeter boat who wins the Minnesota Championship of
Walleye Fishing while fishing in the Skeeter. In addition, the top-finishing
Skeeter owner will receive $1000. This extra $1000 is above the $3000 for
winning.
YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO will offer the Yo So Close Award of an $80
folding net to the three teams finishing just out of the money.
TowTector, maker of the premium boat protector for towing vehicles, will
offer the Towtector Comeback Award of a Towtector Shield valued at $269 for
the team advancing the most places from day one to day two.
The FoodSource Lure Company is sponsoring $200 in FoodSource Lures for
the top placing family team.
Those interested in checking out the standings, reading the releases
about any of the seven regions or simply learning more about the circuit can
access the GNWC website at http://www.walleyecup.com.
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 FoodSource Lure Corporation.