August 1-2, 2009 - 22nd Annual Cats Incredible - North Dakota/South Dakota Catfish Tournaments - Catfish Tournament Discussion - Montana Cats - Message Board

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August 1-2, 2009 - 22nd Annual Cats Incredible

Author	Comment
spotty		#41	[-]
Posts: 197 (08/05/09 03:00 PM) Stone Cat Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	So does the Red get deeper and wider the further north ya go? Ive only fished it near ND's armpit.(Wahpeton) I could not imagine using a big walleye boat down there. (from what I remember) And I am assuming the catfishing gets better the further north. I don't remember catching too many cats in the two yrs I was there. And is the slot a ND or Minn regulation or is it a tournement thing. And WOW!! 90# with a slot pretty impressive.
Big Cat Dad		#42	[-]
Posts: 706 (08/05/09 07:55 PM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Yeah.....it gets much deeper the closer to Grand Forks you get. The 20 mile section of river we fished probably averaged 15-20 ft. in the channel with 30-35 ft holes. The further North you get the better the cattin' gets. The slot rule is a Red River regulation....a combination ND/MN regulation. You can only have 1 cat per person in your possession over the "24 inch mark. It is really shallow near Wahpeton.
Big Cat Dad		#43	[-]
Posts: 709 (08/06/09 12:27 AM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I forgot to note that we were in 100th place after day 1 and moved up to 55th after day 2. I thought we might be in the running for the Kyllo Comeback award ($200), however, that went to the Christensen/Christensen team. They caught over 46 pounds of fish on Day 2 and moved up from 106th to 27th......very impressive.
mudd		#44	[-]
Posts: 4 (08/06/09 08:11 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	no kiddin,that was impressive.if we cld have found slots on sunday like we did sat it wld have been a very good day.but oh well,always next yr.
Katchin Whiskers		#45	[-]
Posts: 633 (08/06/09 08:46 AM) Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I'll add a couple thoughts to Cat Dad's post. First off, I've always enjoyed this tournament. It's been a challenge...and really puts the catfish mind in overload trying to figure the fish out. I love the challenge and I love going up against some very knowledgable catfisherman. Even though we had a poor day one, I think our thoughts on location were close. We had a bad day of fishing and what bothers me most is it was things in our control. Specifically boat positioning, being precise, and being a little more patient. Day two we were much more focused and did an excellent job on those. We also made some tackle changes and did a good job with our bait changes. I also switched hats and used my favorite rod to turn luck in our favor. Superstitious. Outside of the fishing aspect, it's always nice to see familiar faces and talk catfishing with other fisherman. It's defenitely an event I recommend anyone to give a shot. I think if you want to grow as a fisherman, tournament fishing will teach you a lot, although it can sure be a humbling experience. Bottomline is nothing can replace time on the water, trying new ideas, and continuing to learn.
mudd		#46	[-]
Posts: 5 (08/06/09 10:11 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	very well said katchin.we changed alot of things but not enough.we found spinners with a from produced well close to shore but the fish were still large ones.over the week we changed so many things i really cant remember them all.met alot of new people and met up with alot of our old friends up there.gave alot of info to others and a cple of the ones we thought wld give some back just walked away with their noses up.but oh well all part of it....
CaptainBrad		#47	[-]
Posts: 1 (08/06/09 02:24 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Hi guys, I wanted to thank you guys for coming up to Grand Forks/East Grand Forks and address some of these issues you brought up. Big Cat Dad wrote: Cats Incredible positives: 1. 150 teams every year.....so impressive. TRUE!!! 2. Great people and we get the opportunity to meet new catfisherman and see old friends. TRUE!!! 3. The Red River is the best Channel Catfishery in the world....monster cats caught every year. 22 lbr. was the tourney's biggest this year. I'm surprised we didn't see a bigger one but awesome none the less 4. I think they work hard to try to make this a premier social event and I think they accomplish that goal. Numerous volunteers put in long hours to make this thing work. Running a tournament with 150 teams I'm sure is a logistical nightmare and they do the best they can to accomidate the fisherman. The committee does a great job putting this together. It is to the point where I would like to see more effort to the tournament and less to the social event. Cats Incredible negatives: 1. Payouts are junk. It's pretty much a money making event for the Grand Forks Chamber and I guess that's all right, but just don't plan on winning any money on the weekend if you are an out of town team. You will probably have to place top 5 to make any money. This is true and always has been but when you sell out every year I guess that is just the way it is. If anglers quit showing up because of the payouts it would go up. 2. Weigh-ins from about 3:45-4:30 are super crowded and long wait's before you can weigh-in. Some people wait a good 1/2 before weighing in their fish. We witnessed 15-18 lb cats in about 6" of water for over a 1/2 hour. Disgusting. Something needs to be done to improve this process. How many of those fish are weighed in alive and then swim off to die a couple of hours later due to high stress? The fish are post-spawn and stressed already. This system has always bothered me but as soon as someone comes up with a better method we are listening 3. The boat launch acess is horrible. You have to arrive at about 5:30 A.M. the morning of the tourney in order to ensure your boat will be in the water before the start of the tourney at 7:00. Not sure what to do about this, although they do have another boat launch about 2 miles upstream that we used on day 2 (although we kind of got in trouble and were told we weren't supposed to use that ramp). You have the ability to leave your boat in over night (which we did on Friday night), however, when you park your boat on shore you have to deal with huge cement rip/rap with rebar sticking out all over the place. Not a very boat friendly environment. Until 2003 fishing the Red River was not the cool thing to do. With new found respect for the fishery things are slowly improving. Lots of work being done for new double ramps, docks, and a more angler freindly shoreline. 4. The no-culling rule. I don't have a problem with the rule if it was enforceable. I think it's extremely difficult to have a rule that you're sure many in the tournament aren't following. There is really no way to enforce this rule unless you have a tournament official in every boat. The rule is because of no culling laws (as you know) I quit fishing the tournament simply because of the cheating or potential cheating. I could not live with myself for cheating. I like the no culling rule and wish it could be enforced more. I'm sure I could think of plenty of other positives and negatives. I'm not trying to be overly critical of the tournament because I do think they do a pretty solid job there. It's a super intriguing tournament because it such a challenge. The conditions are different every year and I really haven't done that well there for 2 days in a row so we'll see what the future holds. I'm sure Brenner, Jason and Nate would be able to add to this post of their thoughts on the event. If anyone else has any questions about the tourney, feel free to post below. I think it would be awesome if we could have a few Montana teams go over each year and compete. It really is fun, although it can be extremely frustrating when you aren't catching fish. Again, thanks for coming to GF. You have gotten to experience some of the best channel cat fishing in America. Although our tournament is not perfect it is one of the best there is. I just wanted to put in my 2 cents.
Big Cat Dad		#48	[-]
Posts: 711 (08/06/09 04:49 PM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Thanks for the insight Brad. It was really nice to finally meet you and Kent. I know it's a tough deal with the boat ramp stuff. The area is just not set up to handle 150 boats. I know everyone is doing there best to think of solutions and I'm not necessarily complaining, just stating the obvious. Nate brought up the possibility to have an "Express" weigh in line (a second line behind the stage) that would shuffle through the teams with lesser weights through faster in order to speed up the weigh-in's from about 3:45-4:30. I think this is a great idea and one that should be explored. Just complaining and not thinking about solutions is just not cool. I know we are thinking of suggestions that could better improve the above concerns and work with the Cats Incredible tournament committee to improve this tournament. Again....I've always enjoyed this tournament and hope to finish in the top 10 or what the heck win it .
BigSkyCatMan		#49	[-]
Posts: 1017 (08/06/09 08:23 PM) Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Welcome to the board Brad!
BigSkyCatMan		#50	[-]
Posts: 1021 (08/07/09 01:37 AM) Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	First of all let me start by saying I have a ton of respect for the Cats Incredible and everyone who puts the time in to make the event run smoothly. It has a 150-team field that fills on the first day, which is unbelievable! It is unquestionably the most popular catfish tourney in the entire nation, and might be the longest running as well? You guys touched on my 2 biggest problems and that is the payouts and the weigh-in situaion. Unfortunately I think we will always be fighting an uphill battle to get more sufficient paybacks at the Incredible till the end of time. You have to give props to the Chamber though for getting it off the ground 22 years ago.... They obviously wanted to get something going on the big river and utilize the great catfishery they have right out the back door and they have!, however, I am sure they also seen dollar signs when they decided to start it too. I would be willing to bet it is the number one money maker for the Chamber all year! Its too bad that the most popular tournament in the nation, has potentially the lowest payback (60%) Brad is right for sure.. the anglers continue to show up year in and year out. I wouldn't mind seeing another hike in the entry fee. How about $300? I think it would still fill the 150-team field with no problem... plus they could payback the entire $100 added to the entry fees back to the fisherman. This could turn it into more like a 70% payback right? Supply and demand. When you have 190 teams signing up the 1st day you might as well raise the price of addmission. The Weigh-ins are inexcusable in my opinion. I am a conservationist at heart, and I just think a tourney with 22 years of experience needs to come up with an alternative. There is simply no need to interview every team in the whole tournament. An express lane could work wonders for those lower weights that are getting weighed in. Could it speed the whole weigh-in process up by an hour? Maybe... definitely worth a try. There isn't a need for a "culling" rule on the water if we are going to kill half the fish after weigh-ins anyway. Too many 10 - 22 lb. cats are sitting in inches of water for an hour, and are returned in a state that they may never recover from. Would it be possible to have a handful of volunteers near the weigh-in lines with a lot of extra water and holding tanks? I think that Karry "Catfish" Kylo is going to do an excellent job as the new tournament chair and that he will work hand and hand with the chamber to make positive additions and subtractions into the future. I look forward to what the future holds for the Incredible over the next 22 years... much like the last 22. I encourage everyone on this message board to give the Cats Incredible a shot as soon as you get the chance. It is truly an unforgettable experience! Or in my case this year... a forgettable one! haha One thing for sure is that you meet a lot of great people around the catfishing scene and never is it more prominent than at Cats Incredible. Lots of great people coming from all over the United States and good hospitality from the locals. A must for all you serious catfish anglers out there! Brad, I am on the outlook for all the past results of the Cats Incredible (spanning all 22 years). I called the chamber and they thought they only had the last 5 years on record. We would love to add a spot on the site for all the Cats Incredible enthusiasts out there to come and remember the past years. It sure would be nice to recognize all past winners/participants. Do you have any ideas on where I could come across this information? Grand Forks Herald Archives? Past tournament chairs? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Big Cat Dad		#51	[-]
Posts: 713 (08/07/09 07:55 AM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I actually don't think the interviewing actually takes the longest. It's the measuring and weighing of each fish individually and the interview just takes place at that time, however, it might add some time with the interview.
CaptainBrad		#52	[-]
Posts: 2 (08/07/09 08:25 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Guys I will tell you now that I personally am against tournaments (even though I am on the committee for Cats Incredible) for a couple reasons. First I think they bring out the worst in some people in the fact that they only fish when there is money on the line and not because they love it. Example is a handful of catfish league guys will not fish the river again now that the tournaments are over for the year. Second I am so concerned about the well being of the fish. I agree with all of your concerns about weigh ins. I LOVE the idea of an express lane for weigh ins. A perfect example of my caring for the fish is when I guide I have it written in the waivers that the client agrees to release all fish over 24" even though the law states it is legal. I have had some concerns of finding dead fish this week. So far I have not seen any yet. I hope it stays that way. Captain Brad Durick Brad Durick Outdoors LLC
Katchin Whiskers		#53	[-]
Posts: 636 (08/07/09 03:12 PM) Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I don't think taking better care of the fish is all that hard. The feeling I get from a lot of people though is they don't care. It's something that should be preached during the opening meeting and by the person monitoring the weigh in area. If a team doesn't have enough water in their container, send them back to the river. Also, BigSky's idea of a tank near the weigh in would be perfect. If someone shows up with a low amount of water, fill it from that tank. If the tank gets low on water, have people dump their water back in when they're done weighing in. Otherwise, I say make it hurt a little bit. A team shows up with insufficient water or too small of a container, impose some type of penalty. 25% loss of weight, who knows. People will start caring if you make them. Brad, I love tourney fishing. It's more about the pride than the money though....money is just a bonus. I love catfshing though too. I think you learn alot from tourneys, from talking to other fisherman and just being under that pressure to catch fish. I do agree with your statement though, it can bring out the worst in some people. Us Montana guys wouldn't be coming if it was about the money, we'd have to place top four every year to come out ahead. But it's a great tourney...we'll keep coming back...and I think Kyllo is going take it to another notch also.
mudd	red	#54	[-]
Posts: 6 (08/07/09 10:03 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	thats no kiddin,if it were for making money us iowa guys wouldnt be comeing either.its about the friends we have made over the yrs and continue to make each and every time.and of course WE LOVE TO CATFISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.to bad that each and everyone of us knows that there is some cheating going on out there.
Big Cat Dad		#55	[-]
Posts: 718 (08/08/09 11:22 AM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Just thought it would be interesting for everyone to check out the Day 1 standings 22nd Annual Cats Incredible catfish tournament team rankings as of Saturday, as ranked by total fish weight: 1st place: Troy Srnsky & Zach Srnsky, Warren, Minn., 46.88 pounds 2nd place: Jerry Sersland & Kevin Frohlich, Grand Forks, 43.29 pounds 3rd place: Pat Carter & Travis Carter, Elk Point, S.D., 42.05 pounds 4th place: Brandon Oby & Chris Dolan, St. Thomas, N.D., & Minneapolis, 41.59 pounds 5th place: Paul Cariveau & Mervyn Rud, East Grand Forks, 39.39 pounds 6th place: Larry Borrow & Joel Borrow, Lincoln, Neb., 38.66 pounds 7th place: Alex Vournas & Eric DeBilt, Thief River Falls, 38.41 pounds 8th place: Mark Swenson & Jerry Wenzel, East Grand Forks & Randall, Minn., 37.78 pounds 9th place: Kevin Gietzen & Ryan Kemnitz, East Grand Forks, 37.47 pounds 10th place: Darwin Lunski & Brian Nord, Grand Forks, 37.43 pounds 11th place: Ken Cremers & Greg Cremers, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 36.56 pounds 12th place: Ryan Rupert & Chris Koon, Grand Forks, 36.39 pounds 13th place: Brian Rud & Kevin Grove, Grand Forks, 35.45 pounds 14th place: Don Oster & Ryan Oster, Grand Forks, 34.46 pounds 15th place: Casey Clement & Dave Clement, East Grand Forks, 34.33 pounds 16th place: Ernie Friedrichs & Kristie Friedrichs, Eden Prairie, Minn., 33.97 pounds 17th place: Greg Micko & Scott Garner, Cottage Grove, Minn., & Cambridge, Minn., 33.94 pounds 18th place: John Sonstegard & James Nordlof, Baudette, Minn., 33.77 pounds 19th place: Ryan Rogalla & Dane Vigen, Thief River Falls & Grand Forks, 33.41 pounds 20th place: Ben Moen & Mitch Johnson, East Grand Forks & Fisher, Minn., 31.69 pounds 21st place: Brad Nelson & Kevin Thompson, East Grand Forks, 31.68 pounds 22nd place: Brent Riddle & Kayla Riddle, Chllicothe, Mo., 30.90 pounds 23rd place: Victor Moreno & Duane Restemayer, Hoople, N.D., & Edinburg, N.D., 30.58 pounds 24th place: Tony Weber & John Anderson, East Grand Forks, 29.59 pounds 25th place: Ken Coauette & Jim Perkins, East Grand Forks, 29.80 pounds 26th place: Richard Guillemette & Jeff Kostrewski, Argyle, Minn., & Crookston, 28.83 pounds 27th place: Andre Fortune & Mike Peterson, East Grand Forks & Grand Forks, 28.06 pounds 28th place: Randy Ostgard & Jacob Ostgard, Grand Forks, 27.78 pounds 29th place: Merle Hoverson & Jeffrey Zak, East Grand Forks, 27.42 pounds 30th place: Tom McDonald & Sarah McDonald, East Grand Forks, 27.41 pounds 31st place: Billy Cariveau & Marty Cariveau, Fargo & East Grand Forks, 27.40 pounds 32nd place: Perry Gagnon & Alfred Gagnon, Grand Forks, 27.24 pounds 33rd place: Mike Howard & Jeremy Snohl, Grand Forks, 27.09 pounds 34th place: Marv Robinson & Todd Biederman, Battle Lake, Minn., 27.04 pounds 35th place: Bradley Nelson & David Nelson, Drayton, N.D., & Moorhead, 26.95 pounds 36th place: Fred Liebsch & Dustin Lunski, Larimore, N.D., & Grand Forks, 26.69 pounds 37th place: Jeff Heath & Eric Heath, East Grand Forks & Alvarado, Minn., 26.64 pounds 38th place: Kevin Boushee & Bennett Boushee, East Grand Forks, 26.52 pounds 39th place: Jason Hilde & Donn Hilde, Grand Forks, 26.50 pounds 40th place: Jeff Zejdlik & Randy Zejdlike, Grand Forks, 25.97 pounds 41st place: Lee Bell & Paul Tomaselli, Grand Forks, 25.72 pounds 42nd place: John Nordine & Tammy Nordine, Grand Forks, 25.65 pounds 43rd place: Gordon Graetz & Cody Graetz, Arvilla, N.D., 25.43 pounds 44th place: Phillip Jeffery & Jason Kalt, East Grand Forks & Warren, Minn., 25.40 pounds 45th place: Jesse Weber & Troy Weber, East Grand Forks, 25.21 pounds 46th place: Marty Berg & Jon Brundin, Grand Forks, 25.00 pounds 47th place: Lee Adamson & Chris Hams, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 24.99 pounds 48th place: Brian Block & Allen Hilligoss, Lincoln, Neb., 24.78 pounds 49th place: Chad Erickson & Jeremy Grove, Climax, Minn., 22.76 pounds 50th place: Terrence Anderson & Steven Keller, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 22.68 pounds 51st place: Scott Anderson & Eric McWalter, East Grand Forks, 22.13 pounds 52nd place: Rod Heinitz & Todd Diebert, Hillsboro, N.D., & Grand Forks, 21.82 pounds 53rd place: Tyler Messelt & Danny Messelt, East Grand Forks, 20.83 pounds 54th place: Bob Anderson & Wade Anderson, East Grand Forks, 20.59 pounds 55th place: Carter Narum & Chris Narum, Grand Forks & Horace, N.D., 20.42 pounds 56th place: Ray Lee & Eric Thompson, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 20.27 pounds 57th place: Todd Mischler & Larry Mischler, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 19.94 pounds 58th place: Jimmy Yowell & Jeff Yowell, Chillicothe, Mo., 19.92 pounds 59th place: Josh Burgett & Michael Eisbury, Oslo, Minn., & Grand Forks, 19.92 pounds 60th place: John Lindquist & Daniel Lindquist, Grand Forks & Thief River Falls, 19.39 pounds 61st place: Shannon Martin & Curt Quesnell, Thief River Falls & Newfolden, Minn., 19.18 pounds 62nd place: Ryan Gregoire & Riley Gregoire, East Grand Forks, 18.84 pounds 63rd place: Karry Kylio & Pam Kylio, East Grand Forks, 18.70 pounds 64th place: Randy Galstad & Jason Mack, East Grand Forks, 18.61 pounds 65th place: Lee Reed & !* Hinrichsen, Sioux City, Iowa, & Akron, Iowa, 17.88 pounds 66th place: Terry Meland & Christian Meland, Grand Forks, 17.62 pounds 67th place: Andrew Erickson & Ben Litzinger, Grand Forks, 16.94 pounds 68th place: Larry Yowell & Steve Mowry, Kirksville, Mo., & Kansas City, Mo., 16.60 pounds 69th place: Wade St. Germain & Phil Sillanpaa, Argyle, Minn., & Newfolden, Minn., 16.53 pounds 70th place: Kris Newman & Brian Stennes, Grand Forks, 15.88 pounds 71st place: Curtis Havig & Jeff Johnson, Grand Forks, 15.63 pounds 72nd place: John Howard & Ralph Miller, Grand Forks, 15.63 pounds 73rd place: Shawn Aaker & Mike Messelt, East Grand Forks, 15.54 pounds 74th place: Jeff Jordheim & Scott Jordheim, East Grand Forks, 15.48 pounds 75th place: Allen LaFave & Chad LaFave, Grand Forks, 15.40 pounds 76th place: Mike Taylor & Chris Taylor, East Grand Forks, 15.33 pounds 77th place: Randy Miller & Randy Helgeson, Grand Forks & Crookston, 15.17 pounds 78th place: Tim Pesch & David Pesch, East Grand Forks, 15.14 pounds 79th place: Tom Gradzieleski & Matt Maguire, Drayton, N.D., & Grand Forks, 15.10 pounds 80th place: Beau Abbey & Jarid Boushee, Grand Forks, 15.06 pounds 81st place: Wilbur Vanderhoff & Justin Huebner, Glendale, Ariz., & Grand Forks, 14.47 pounds 82nd place: Tommy Walters & Alex Heng, Nebraska City, Neb., 14.09 pounds 83rd place: Heath Hodgson & Bill Murray, East Grand Forks, 14.07 pounds 84th place: Lee Kohl & Mike Stauss, Emerado, N.D., & Grand Forks, 13.96 pounds 85th place: Darrin Abernathy & Brooke Abernathy, Grand Forks, 13.91 pounds 86th place: Shelly Schumacher & Harvey Akridge, Reynolds, N.D., & Grand Forks, 12.82 pounds 87th place: Gary Grosz & Darin Grosz, Grand Forks & Elbow Lake, Minn., 12.57 pounds 88th place: Kevin Weber & Kyle Weber, East Grand Forks, 12.43 pounds 89th place: Clifford Peterson & Scott Slusar, Lancaster, Minn., & Hallock, Minn., 12.31 pounds 90th place: Rich Longoria & Tim Brooks, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 12.16 pounds 91st place: Christopher Hanson & Randahl Hanson, New Hope, Minn., & Crookston, 12.11 pounds 92nd place: Aaron Johnson & Tony Mitzel, Grand Forks & East Grand Forks, 11.15 pounds 93rd place: Mark Soeby & Joshua Soeby, Grand Forks, 10.49 pounds 94th place: Marv Feltman & Shane Feltman, Grand Forks, 10.41 pounds 95th place: Bob Wasylow & Cody Wasylow, Grand Forks, 9.83 pounds 96th place: Tony Lorentz & Kim Nelson, East Grand Forks, 9.65 pounds 97th place: Richard Nelson & Michael Levy, Grand Forks, 9.35 pounds 98th place: Marc Kurz & Brent Nesdahl, Thompson, N.D., & Emerado, N.D., 8.89 pounds 99th place: Michael Haney & Daniel Hasley, Beatrice, Neb., & Fairbury, Neb., 8.51 pounds 100th place: Brady Flaten & Nate Molstad, Glasgow, Mont., & Havre, Mont., 8.31 pounds 101st place: Jeff Sime & Jade Sime, Grand Forks, 8.27 pounds 102nd place: Gary Johnson & Shane Johnson, McVille, N.D., & Grand Forks, 8.20 pounds 103rd place: Gerald Litzinger & Steve Walsh, Grand Forks & Meckinock, N.D., 7.44 pounds 104th place: Pat Bushaw & Janell Bushaw, Manvel, N.D., 6.88 pounds 105th place: Shawn Mager & Ken Narlock, East Grand Forks & Grand Forks, 6.71 pounds 106th place: Dave Christensen & Erin Christensen, Maddock, N.D., & Garfield, Minn., 6.54 pounds 107th place: Gary Mounce & Bonnie Mounce, Nebraska City, Neb., 6.41 pounds 108th place: Tyler Dokken & Paul Selid, Williston, N.D., & Grand Forks, 6.38 pounds 109th place: Tom Westra & Ann Westra, Moorhead, 6.36 pounds 110th place: Darrell Utzinger & Jeff Twomey, East Grand Forks & Mendota Heights, Minn., 6.12 pounds 111th place: Daryle Gomez & Tim Gomez, Lincoln, Neb., 6.12 pounds 112th place: Mike Laschkewitsch & Steve Pich, Grand Forks & Mandan, N.D., 6.07 pounds 113th place: Bill Crocker & Joel Tangen, Grand Forks, 4.39 pounds 114th place: Dwaine Rud & Greg Winskowski, Stephen, Minn., 4.32 pounds 115th place: Travis Walden & Andrew Vigen, East Grand Forks & Grand Forks, 4.17 pounds 116th place: Larry Vanderhoff & Linda Vanderhoff, Grand Forks, 4.13 pounds 117th place: Rob Raymond & Jack Johnston, East Grand Forks & Grand Forks, 3.48 pounds 118th place: John Knauf & Abraham Belew, Grand Forks, 3.19 pounds 119th place: Martin Magnusson & Dan Rerick, Grand Forks, 3.13 pounds 120th place: Brent Melsa & Calvin Anderson, Crookston, 3.02 pounds The remaining 30 teams did not catch fish on Saturday. The tournament concludes Sunday, when teams can weigh up to five additional fish to add to their weekend total. The top-catching team wins a $4,000 prize.
hanson		#56	[-]
Posts: 125 (08/30/09 01:11 PM) Sumo Cat Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I'm probably a bit late to the heavy discussion here but I have one thought on the payouts, sponsorship, and tournies in general. This year was probably one of the worst financial/economic years since the Great Depression. I don't need to tell you that but that has played a HUGE role in general tournament participation regardless of species. Considering how bad the economic climate has been, for the Incredible to still fill a 150 team field on the 1st day speaks wonders to the quality and reputation of the tournament. To be honest with you guys... I don't think most folks really care about the money. Maybe they do?? I don't know. Myself personally, I want one of those trophies and my name in the books, money would be a bonus. I think I said that to some of you when they were handing out the awards even. My experience on the FLW Walleye Tour this year and paying close attention to walleye tournaments in general says we've got a long way to come. The walleye tourny world is suffering this year. The fields aren't full, they are about 70% filled on the FLW. This really drops the payouts down bigtime. FLW now has a lawsuit filed against BRP (Evinrude) as they haven't paid a cent to the FLW this year for sponsorship or contingency money even though they are one of the major 2-3 sponsors. The new AIM series is struggling to get anglers to fish their circuit. What else... Mercury Marine is having a fight with their union and may be relocating production from Wisconsin to save costs. The bottom line... the fishing industry is suffering huge from this downturn in the economy. Heck, Nature Vision which owns Aqua-Vu & Marcum Technologies has now gone out of business and a receiver is selling off the assets. Increasing the payout can be done 1 of 2 ways- increased entry fees or sponsorship money. Increase the entry fee too much and you lose participants. When you lose participants, the payout falls anyway due to not having a full field. Or attract more sponsors. I have a feeling they might be coming as this tourny is damn popular. Cabela's now has their name tied to and I think that is a great partnership. Cabela's is also now a major sponsor of the FLW as well. All I can say is I LOVE this tournament! My dad looks forward to it every year. I'm not sure what he'll do when we don't make the lottery one year. I know it'll happen, we've gotten pretty lucky so far.
Big Cat Dad		#57	[-]
Posts: 732 (08/30/09 02:52 PM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Hanson wrote: Increasing the payout can be done 1 of 2 ways- increased entry fees or sponsorship money. A third way to increase the payouts is stop taking 40% off the top. This is one of the worst payouts for a tournament I've ever seen. The Chamber uses the tournament as a money making event and I guess I just don't agree with that. All the tournaments the Montana Catfish Association runs are 100% payback. We use the sponsorships we receive to actually fund and improve our tournaments. Taking advantage of fisherman just because you can to me is pretty disappointing. Hanson....I think you are misunderstanding our complaint about the payouts. We don't fish this or any tournament for the money...it's all about the challenge and the fun of it. We all know there is no money in catfishing. The only thing that stinks about the whole thing is an out of state team that has to travel a significant distance would have to take top 4 to break even on the weekend. It's expensive, plain and simple. It would just be nice to know that you'd actually have a chance at breaking even or taking home a little cash if you placed top 10. My point is this: I'd rather see the fisherman take home more of that money rather than the Chamber. It's the fisherman, volunteers, community and Red River that make this tournament special, not the chamber. Do some number crunching and find out how much money they take home from this event....it's pretty ridiculous and that's not even including the sponsors they have for the event. Just because there are crazy bastards like us out there that will fish it every year regardless of the paybacks....doesn't make it right. Last Edited By: Big Cat Dad 08/31/09 10:09 AM. Edited 2 times.
Big Cat Dad		#58	[-]
Posts: 734 (08/31/09 08:18 PM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	$30, 000 collected in entry fees. $17,400 paid out 1st through 35th place. That equals 58% payback. Add on the $1500 for big fish awards (which are actually sponsored by Budweiser) and that's 63%. That doesn't even include what the numerous sponsors kick in for the event. That my friends is highway robbery. Let me state again......THIS IS A GREAT EVENT AND TOURNAMENT, that doesn't mean we should bend over for the Chamber. Last Edited By: Big Cat Dad 09/01/09 10:17 AM. Edited 2 times.
CaptainBrad		#59	[-]
Posts: 10 (09/01/09 01:33 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Big Cat Dad wrote: $30, 000 collected in entry fees. $17,400 paid out 1st through 35th place. That equals 58% payback. Add on the $1500 for big fish awards (which are actually sponsored by Budweiser) and that's 63%. That doesn't even include what the numerous sponsors kick in for the event. That my friends is highway robbery. Let me state again......THIS IS A GREAT EVENT AND TOURNAMENT, that doesn't mean we should bend over for the Chamber. It sounds to me like you are not going to be coming back? Captain Brad Durick Brad Durick Outdoors LLC
Big Cat Dad		#60	[-]
Posts: 735 (09/01/09 08:52 PM) Administrator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	No that's not what I'm saying Brad. Maybe you should re-read the sentence I wrote right above yours that states "THIS IS A GREAT EVENT AND TOURNAMENT". I'm suggesting improvements for the tournament. I wish the paybacks were better....don't you? I'm responding to a post that hanson wrote, that is suggesting that I'm into fishing tournaments for the money. We all know that is obviously not the case. I just posted facts in regards to the paybacks. I'll call a spade a spade. I'm not going to beat around the bush on the issue. I've posted numerous times the great things the tournament has going for it and I don't feel the need to re-post them. Nate and I plan to enter the lottery again next year. Hanson I also LOVE this tournament. It is probably one of the funnest tournaments I fish....I guess that's why I've fished it 5 times and will continue to go back. My purpose of my initial post and my reply's was not to complain but to offer ways I would like the tournament to improve if possible. Last Edited By: Big Cat Dad 09/01/09 09:55 PM. Edited 1 times.

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