A Great Saturday for Families in the Wisconsin Outdoors
Aug 8th, 2013 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Aug 8th, 2013 at 12:00 AM
Last Saturday was the 13th Annual “Take an Adult Fishing Tournament” at the Wilderness Fish and Game store in Sauk City, Wisconsin. The purpose of this family-orientated event is to get children under 18 years old and their brothers and sisters fishing on local waters with their parents, grandparents, and guardians. Teams can have as many people as can legally be in a boat or if they fish from shore even more family members can fish and be part of the team. This summer there were 80 teams which are about normal for the tournament with close to 200 participants.
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The tourney is usually held at the end of July and this year it was on July 27th which usually means warm or hot weather and hopefully, no thunderstorms. But, this year the weather was more like September or October and the opening of duck or pheasant season! The tournament has a rules meeting and brief prayer by local teacher, Bill Been, before the 6:00 am starting time. I was up at 4:00 am, so that I could be at the Wilderness Fish and Game store parking lot by 5:00 am to make sure that everything was ready for the teams. All the windows in my house were open and my furnace even “kicked in” in this unusually cool July morning. I wish that I had worn long pants and a “hoodie” instead of shorts and a summer shirt! Temperatures in the low 50’s aren’t the norm for the 27th of July.
The employees and fellow helpers were all at the store and ready to go well before the first boats arrived at about 5:30 am. The children and many parents looked a little “sleepy eyed” at this early hour, but it didn’t take long for the teams to get fired up for the day’s fishing.
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The tournament rules are simple; teams could fish any lakes, rivers, or streams as long as they were back for the 2:00 pm weigh-in. The teams had to follow all the rules and regulations from the Wisconsin Hook and Line Fishing Regulations booklet. There were six different categories for the event; walleye/sauger, catfish, roughfish, panfish, trout, and bass (both small and largemouth). The top two largest fish in each category won a trophy and a rod and reel combo. Every team also received a “goodie” bag when they registered chock full of fishing related gear and equipment. The event is run on the honor system and we haven’t ever had any problems with cheating or not following the state’s regulations that I know of in the 13 years that we’ve had the event. We also had Conservation Warden, Greg Stacey, on hand to talk and mingle with the crowd. Greg does a great job for the DNR and we have always been able to count on Greg and his expertise!
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Caption Title (Credits)
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Wilderness Fish and Game does a wonderful job in promoting this event and that is the reason that it has continued in a world with so many other events going on every summer weekend. The new owner of the Wilderness Fish and Game store, Tom Lochner, has continued this “tradition” and it has become one of the summer highlights in this area of the state. People plan their vacations and weekends around the date of the tourney and look forward to this first-class event which puts our young and their parents and relatives together for a day fishing and having fun in our “Great Outdoors.” Few states have the natural resources and opportunities that we do in Wisconsin. But, it is paramount that we continue to strive to get children outdoors and away from the cyber world and cell phones for at least a day. The sooner that you get our youth on the water and or participating in outdoor activities the better because then kids see and can participate in something that they can continue to be a part of their lives forever. The wonder, beauty, and fun that can be part of a child’s life is tough to beat, but children must be introduced to the wonders that Wisconsin has to offer at an early age.
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There are many people that must be mentioned and thanked for being a part of this event. Thanks to Tom Lochner and his staff who have helped me since the event’s beginning. They include; Larry Wipperfurth, Wayne Whitemarsh, Wally Banfi, Dan Zenker, and Chuck Pohlman. The National Professional Anglers Association contributed t-shirts and was well represented my members Jim Kloth, Duffy Kopf, Wally Banfi, Captain Terry Frey, and Gary Engberg who along with the stores employees ran the show. The N.P.A.A. is an association of professional angler, guides, manufactures, and people who are just interested in fishing. The group runs dozens of events across the Midwest promoting youth fishing and being involved in the outdoors. Their slogan is “It’s All About the Sport.” Check out their website (npaa.org) and think about joining this fantastic association.
Companies who helped and contributed to make this tournament happen are; Off Shore Tackle and Bruce and Nick DeShano, Fuch’s Trucking (Scott Fuchs has given us the top-notch stage to use every year), Arlington Agronomy (trophies), Pure Fishing, DDO Communications and Darrell Ott, Rapala, Quantum, Northland Tackle, Mueller Chemical, Vortex Optics (donated 2 pair of their great binoculars valued at $250.00 a piece), Ballweg Chevrolet/Ford, Daiwa, Don Becker Law Office, and the Wisconsin DNR. Getting gear and equipment for the children is a tough job these days and these companies should be thanked for their contributions to the youth of today!
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Here are the winners of this year’s “Take an Adult Fishing Tournament”; Bass; 1st place Noah Frey, #32, with a 4.59 pound largemouth bass and 2nd place Abby Kerl, # 15, with a 3.30 pound smallmouth bass. Walleye; 1st Austin Breunig, #60, with a 1.8 pound walleye and 2nd place Lance Walker, #27, with a 1.52 walleye. Trout; 1st Cooper Gordon, #12, with a 1.33 trout and 2nd Mich Endres, #2, with a .69 trout. Panfish; 1st place Owen Diehl, #48, .84 pound bluegill and 2nd Logan Walker, #28, and a .79 pound bluegill. Catfish; 1st place Elliot Ruhland, #25, a 5.48 pound catfish and 2nd place Jayden Ward, #29, with a 4.47 catfish. Roughfish; 1st place Hunter Higgins, #45, with a 3.80 pound carp and 2nd place Brady Boeck #63. These two anglers tied and flipped a coin for the winner.
Major sponsor, Don Becker, also gave rods and reels to Autumn McDonald for the biggest smile, Owen Diehl for the largest bluegill, and Kiera Ruhland for the largest fish caught by a girl. People like Don Becker do wonderful things for our young and it’s greatly appreciated.
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Thanks to all who helped make this possible and we hope to see you next year!