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TOURNAMENT UPDATES
Grand Rapids duo cruises to Chamber Classic victory Entering the second annual Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce Walleye Classic, the duo of Sean Colter and Dave Hernesman thought that 45 total pounds of walleye caught in the Catch, Record, and Release Tournament would be enough to win it. They were right with that assessment and then some. The duo recorded seven fish with a total weight of 50.56-pounds to win the tournament by more than 12-pounds. "There is a good possibility with a lake as healthy as Pokegama that it’s a good possibility anybody can do very well there," Hernesman said. "We kept plugging away trying to get our goal of five fish over 25-inches. We accomplished that and a little bit more and it worked out very well for us. We figured between 40-45 pounds would win the tournament and it would have which is nice. We caught a few nice ones at the end of the day that pushed us over the top." "It was really a great opportunity to bring in some big fish. The tournament used the Catch, Record and Release format and all the anglers that I talked to were excited about it," Colter said. "What it allows you to do is to catch the seven biggest fish and the team that catches the seven biggest fish gets rewarded with a first place prize. We were fortunate enough to catch some real big Pokegama Lake walleyes and claim the victory." The duo of Tony Jerulle and Dale Anderson recorded six fish with a weight of 37.79-pounds to finish in second place. The team of Gordon Fothergill and Brad Rasmussen finished in third place with a total of 33.75-pounds after catching seven fish. It was the first year that the Chamber Classic used the new Catch, Record and Release format in recording the size and the weight of the fish. The method used to record the fish enables walleyes to be returned to the lake to help maintain the health of the fishery. "The tournament is well run and the format that they did this year with the catch, record and release worked out very well," Hernesman said. "Everybody was pretty satisfied with it and we didn’t lose any fish which is pretty nice for the lake." The duo of Randy Topper and Brock Anderson came in fourth place at 33.62-pounds and in fifth place were Dan Olson and Jake Olson with a total weight of 32.02-pounds. But the duo took home the $1,000 prize for biggest fish when they hauled in a 29.75-inch walleye. It was one of two 29- inch walleyes caught in the tournament. "There were a lot of nice fish caught in this tournament and a lot people catching their biggest fish which is fun for everyone involved," Hernesman said. "There is good forage in that lake and always a chance for people to get trophies." Colter and Hernesman’s biggest fish came in at 27.75-inches; however, their average of 7.22-pounds per fish set them apart from the competition on Saturday. "The big thing is we just understood what the fish where doing. I spent a lot of time out there and we concentrated on were the biggest fish were. The key on Pokegama with the clear water is playing the wind to your favor," Colter said. "We had done a fair amount of pre-fishing and guiding the last two weeks, certainly was an advantage. We did a lot of looking around with a camera and finding big fish with the underwater cameras and that is a great tool." Colter said that he and Hernesman were able to find their big fish in the 12-16 foot range on the lake. "We were pulling night crawlers on lindy rigs and spinners and just jumping around looking for active fish," Colter said. "It seemed like every time that we stopped we would get one or two and fortunately they were big." The Chamber Walleye Classic helps to showcase Pokegama Lake and the type of fish that can be found in the unique body of water. "Pokegama Lake is clearly one of the best bodies of water that I have ever been on as far as big fish goes," Colter said. "To be able to bring seven fish averaging over 7.5 pounds to the scale is just incredible. It was really neat to see a number of teams catch a big one. To have those kind of fish being caught- we are doing everything we can to have the tournament take off a little bit better and I think we will see this tournament turn into a really big event." The 2010 event had 25 boats and Colter says the next step for helping the tournament grow to that next level is to get a full field of 50 boats. "I really think the next step is getting the field full of 50. There is interest locally and there is also interest from people in Bemidji and the Minneapolis-St. Paul area," Colter said. "Hopefully at some point, we will get to 100 teams out there and bring in a lot of dollars to this community. This is a great event for the community of Grand Rapids and it brings a lot to the table." Both Colter and Hernesman appreciate the support they received from the tournament and the local sponsors in the event. For more information on the 2010 Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce Walleye Classic visit http://www.grandrapidschamberwalleyeclassic.com
2008 International Angler Young Angler Champions
Sean's Story About the Angler Young Angler Tourney The dog days of summer have certainly hit the northland over the last couple of weeks but the fishing for those willing to change things up continues to shine. This last weekend I had an opportunity of a lifetime, fishing the International AYA Championship in Kenora, ON on Lake of the Woods with my 6 year old daughter and family friend Tyler Danielson. The trip started on Thursday for us as we took the 5 hour trip north to Kenora. The AYA International Championship was 19 teams fishing for 1 prize which was a two tiered trip for six starting at an exclusive trip to a Wilderness North lake in Thunder Bay, On and from there the winner would head to Disney land in Orlando, Florida. The value of trip was reported at $50,000.00. So with a huge opportunity on the line and the kids full of excitement, the 19 teams hit the water with winning clearly on top of there mind, including us! My daughter Jordyn was extremely excited as she kept reminding me that she wanted us to win because she wanted to go to Disney. As the anglers pushed away from the docks Saturday morning, Lund and Mercury provided each of the 19 teams with an 1825 Lund Explorer with a 90 horse 4 stroke Mercury. The boats were looking professional as Gemini sports marketing had professional wrapped each boat, making the field equal from the look to the equipment. With a 45 minute TV shoot and boat parade, we made our way down the lake and through what was called the Devils pass, (small narrow part of the lake filled with islands and rocks.) Once getting through the Devils pass, it was now time to see what team could put together a winning bag of fish. Each team could only weigh its three largest walleyes. The tournament hours again would be equal and we started fishing around 9:30 am and we had to be back to this starting point no later then 3:30 pm. Our first stop would find three quick ones ranging from 18-20 inches. We were fishing spinners on 2 oz bottom bouncers tipped with crawlers at 1.5 to 1.8 MPH. We then made a run to the West to find a bunch of 20-24 inch walleyes sitting actively in some current between two long islands. With a very good bite, we would find that the camera guy would stay with us for the remainder of the day as the feeling of us winning had started early amongst us and the others. So now about 1 to 1 ½ hours into the day and three decent fish in the boat, we headed to the big fish area that we had located on Friday prefishing. With the first pass Tyler would find a 25 incher, that would upgrade the 20 incher in the livewell. On the very next pass I caught another 25 incher. Now we had two 25" walleyes and a 24". About 10-15 minutes would pass before I would find one of the two gigantic walleyes that we would bring to the scale. It was a very-healthy 30 inch walleye. Then about 3-4 minutes later, Tyler would find another 30 incher. Tyler did everything perfect and I was very proud of him as this was his largest walleye to date and no better time then now as the trip to Disney was on the line and looking to be ours. So with the pure adrenalin running through us and the nerves finally settling down after putting those two huge walleyes in the boat, we were looking for maybe one more 30 incher. Sure enough another bite in the exact same way and I set the hook to have another huge walleye come to the boat, but at the last second the fish turned and as it turned it broke my line. Our chance to bring three 30" walleyes to the scale quickly vanished. So now pushing 1:30 pm with only 2 hours to go, the excitement was building for us and the mid-day heat was as well. We would end the tournament fishing with two 30" walleyes and a 25" walleye. So as we headed back to the dock, we were unsure of how we would end up until finally our time had come to hit the stage. 16 teams had already weighed there fish. With us and two others remaining, we would see the PWT Angler Tom Backer and his team also waiting to weigh. Our three fish topped the 21.80 mark. With my wife and the Danielson’s sitting in the front row, we all were nervous to see what the final team would weigh and as Tom Backer and his team approached the scale, my nerves were shaking, but Backer and his team from Devils lake would only weigh 17.10 lbs, making us the International AYA Champions. The entire event will be on numerous TV channels in the upcoming months and I will certainly update my website at www.seancolter.com and this column as the programs start to air. The AYA (angler young angler) tournament is truly about getting young kids involved in fishing and this event was and is the most impressive event that I have been apart of. The kids feel like they are professionals from start to finish and if you’re looking to do something with your kids, get involved with the AYA program. We will be hosting another AYA tournament again next season on Lake Pokegama and the winner of this event will get the invite to next years trip to Kenora for the Championship. I want to thank all the sponsors in the Grand Rapids area for the Regional event along with the sponsors that help make this International event successful. A special thanks to Lund Boats, Andrew Klopak, Michelle Trudeau and Tom MacNair and all of there staff, along with Scott and Marty Glorvigan, and Charlie Moore from Gemini Sports Marketing. See you on the water in a Lund Boat.
Sean Colter
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