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What a difference a month makes. Eighty-two Cabela’s MWC teams faced
tournament conditions on the Detroit River and Lake Erie that were the
absolute antithesis of what many experienced just a few weeks earlier
in Spring Valley, Illinois. Picture perfect weather and a hot bite made
for a happy field of competitors. Nearly 90% of the field weighed in
the allowable ten-fish limit over two days.
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“As each team came on stage they were so excited about catching 30 or 40 or 50 fish a day – or more! Add two days of 70-75 degree temperatures with calm waters and you have a recipe for one of the best tournaments an angler could hope for,” shared Kurt Beckstrom, editor
of North American Fisherman magazine and emcee for the event. “It also helps when Lake Erie shows the quality of her fishery with the
winning weight at just over 65 pounds!”
Michiganers Nathan Seiferlein (Marine City) and Jason Kaniszewski (Augres) caught 80-90 fish on Saturday and another 50 on Sunday. While that may sound like a lot of fun – it was hard work that paid off $14,992 for their first place finish of 65.40 pounds. Or should we say Mr. Seiferlein and Mr. Kaniszewski, please. The two professional anglers are also school teachers, one teaching fourth grade and the other fifth. “The kids often make us good luck cards before each tournament,” offered Nate. “They’ll be really excited when we bring in our trophies on Monday.”
The duo trolled spinners in front of Luna Pier on Lake Erie both days in 9 to 11 feet of water. They scouted out some stained, warmer water with lots of bait fish present, and used clown colored No. 6 blades. Scraping the bottom was key, which created a lot of work, as they constantly picked up zebra mussels and were having to clean baits continuously. Teachers, and professional anglers, aren’t afraid of a lot of hard work. “We’ve taken a few MWC seconds” continued Seiferlein. “It feels great to get a win!” Seiferlein and Kaniszewski came in second place for Cabela’s MWC Team of the Year in 2006 behind Jeff Manz and Greg Yarbrough, and second at Saginaw Bay last year, behind Paul Curmi and Mike Jurik. “We’ve been so close – this feels good!” added Kaniszewski.
The field brought in 758 fish over the two days weighing 3,316.25 pounds – a very nice 4.3 pound average. Most of the anglers chose to travel to Lake Erie rather than fish the river, staying inside the Michigan boundaries. In the past the anglers would have made the run to the Islands in Ohio for Lake Erie trolling, but the restricted boundaries due to the APHIS federal order regarding VHS made the field get creative. They certainly proved that there are a lot of fish on the Michigan side of Lake Erie as well, if there was ever any doubt. Kevin Dahl and Steve Stack from Muskego, WI weighed the largest basket of the tournament at 38.81 pounds on day one. They ended up in 7th place after a less productive day on Sunday, still cashing a check for $2,330. An additional $1000 was added to Dahl’s check by MWC sponsor Toyota. “I love my new Tundra, it’s a great tow vehicle for my Ranger Boat, with lots of get-up-and-go!” Toyota is offering a $1,000 bonus for the highest finishing angler towing their boat with a Toyota Tundra.
Doug Yohe and Tim Waltz from Bradford and Williamsport, PA, respectively, won $3,182 for their 4th place finish plus Yohe won an additional $1,000 from MWC sponsor Ranger Boats for being the top angler in the Ranger Cup. This was Yohe’s first tournament in his new Case and Zippo wrapped Ranger.
Other sponsor prizes included two new Ice Armor suits to Canadians Denis & Tony Kreze. The father and son team of Larry Rhoads, Sr. and Larry Rhoads II from Oregonia, OH and Burlington, KY won two new PFDs from Farm and City Insurance Services. The biggest fish of the tournament was caught by the second-place finishing team of Shannon Robinson (Standish, MI) and Craig Gushow (Midland, MI). Their 9.69 pound fish on day two was worth a $700 cash bonus, and their second place finish cashed an additional $5,888. Robinson and Gushow weighed ten fish over the two days for 61.84 pounds.
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