Notes from Akaska, South Dakota
Category: Tournament
Aug 16th, 2010 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Aug 16th, 2010 at 12:00 AM
Ten observations from the fourth AIM event in South Dakota.
1. South Dakota has some serious walleye fishing fans. It seemed as though EVERYONE in the state was interested in this event.
2. Cell phone coverage in SD is not quite there yet. Our GPS units used for the Top 5 tracking on the final day use cellular data service to send position data back to our web service. They lose signal consistently around the area of the 212 bridge and cell service is inconsistent at best elsewhere along the system.
3. Mike McMaken is a true pro. His scorecard did not match the image for one of his fish – a 23 incher. Since the scorecard is the official record, the transcription error resulted in the loss of the fish and a reduction from 2nd to 8th in the standings, a several thousand dollar mistake. Mike was disappointed, but calm and highly professional throughout the entire process – I was impressed.
4. CRR works. It is crowd, angler, and most importantly, fish-friendly.
5. The weather is crazy in South Dakota. It seems as though you can always see a thunderstorm somewhere on the horizon.
6. Is there a better place to watch a meteor shower?
7. The Akaska Bait Shop has the best hash browns anywhere.
8. Skarlis is one heck of an emcee. I haven’t heard that many one-liners since the last time I watched Step Brothers.
9. Bring your camera.
10. South Dakota is a beautiful state – I will be back sometime when work doesn’t require me to be there.