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| WalleyeFIRST outdoor writer and reporter Ralph Mucilli will be covering the Bay De Noc event beginning tonight. Photos and reports will be added every morning and evening! | |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | This is going to be a lot of fun, hopefully there will be a big crowd of WF regulars at the weigh in each day!
Coverage will begin today and my arrival time looks to be later this afternoon.
If any of you are around and not fishin, look me up and we can at the very least have a nice chat. I always look forward to meeting regulars face to face....
And, our own Zach B is fishing this event, so, it is not a real far stretch to tell who I am rooting for to win....:)
Now, if the weather would cooperate............
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Location: Chicago IL. | Alot of my friends are fishing there, and I cant weight for the weigh in. If any should read this. GOOD LUCK AND BE SAFE.
John Mannerino
npaa#473 | |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | With the new dawn, comes the opening moments of the 2004 Cabela’s National Team Championship. Coming to you out of Escanaba MI, the anglers have all of Little Bay de Noc and Big Bay de Noc to search for that winning weight and the win.
The Delta County Chamber of Commerce, UP State Fairgrounds, Bays de Noc Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Downtown Development Districts of Escanaba and Gladstone will host this year’s event.
The 2004 event has gathered anglers from 33 states to compete for cash, value-added prizes and the chance to be named National Champions. With more than 30,000 acres of water available to the qualifying field, there should be plenty of fish and as many ways to catch them.
Right on cue, Mother Nature had her hand in this seasons Championship. Early in the week anglers enjoyed favorable weather, warm temperatures and a great “Walleye Chop” on the water. Many also report finding not only cooperative walleyes, but some nice fish as well!
Enter Mother Nature! As if it was planned, Wednesday dawned and brought with it a cold front. Falling temperatures and a fluctuating Barometer are sure to change a few plans. Fortunately the angles had a chance to spend a day and a half under the new weather pattern figuring out the fish.
What will the first days weigh in show? Who will have the best weight and biggest fish? Will it be a pattern that has remained despite the weather, or will it be fish that were found by a teams ability to adapt?
The possibilities are as endless as the locations to fish.
And, Walleye First will be there with up to the minute reports, information and photographs to keep you informed.
Cabela's Championship Website-
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/content/community/inthefield/fiel...
Edited by Nofish 6/13/2004 11:40 AM
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Nice report Ralph!
How many boats are entered in the contest? And how did they qualify? | |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | The Gladstone and Escanaba areas are no strangers to hosting World Class Walleye Tournaments, and that's great news for the teams in this years competition. However, there will also be plenty on tap for spectators, family and friends to fill the void during the tournament hours.
With events such as Destination Delta tours, lumberjack shows and other activities for anglers and their families and fans, there is truly something for everyone. There is also no shortage of shopping and restaurants between Escanaba and Gladstone.
“The community will roll out the red carpet and do everything we can to provide a positive experience,” said Jalene Polkey, tournament coordinator and chairperson of the Delta Chamber of Commerce.
If the weather permits, there are more than 200 miles shoreline, beaches State Parks, Forests and shoreline parks that beg the outdoors enthusiast to come and explore the historic Green bay and Bays de Noc shoreline area.
This link will take you to more information about the Tournament area and happenings.
http://www.deltami.org/cabelas/pressreleases.html
And for more information about the Bays De Noc area click here.
http://www.deltami.org/index.html
Edited by Nofish 6/13/2004 11:43 AM
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Here is the Schedule of events........
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/content/community/inthefield/fiel...
More to follow....... 
Edited by Nofish 6/10/2004 6:38 PM
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Friday dawned to partly cloudy skies, seasonable temperatures and a stiff breeze.
With favoravble weather and half the boats being launched in Gladstone and the other half launched at the new Escanaba River launch site in Wells, all teams were in the water and ready to go at their designated blast of times. The first flight left the Escanaba River at 7:00 am with the second flight leaving Gladstone Harbor at 7:30 am.
There is one downside to the current conditions.
Cabela's made the decision to invoke the foul weather boundaries right away this morning. Due to the already brisk winds and forcasted winds in excess of 20 knots, all teams have to stay within Little Bay de Noc,doing so, anglers with fish going in Big Bay de Noc could not make the run around the point to their fish.
The winds are forcasted to remain out of the east and increase to 20 + knots today, with the possibility of rain tonight.
This afternoons weigh in on the State Fair grounds in Escanaba wil begin shortly. How will the safety decision to stay in Little Bay de Noc effect the weigh in? Check in right here and find out.
Edited by Nofish 6/13/2004 11:45 AM
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Day one of the Cabela's National Team Championship was an eventful and exciting one. Despite the Foul Weather Boundaries being in place, anglers brought many a fine limit of walleye to the scales.
The buzz at the end of day one at this year’s event, centers around how well several local teams have placed on an otherwise uncooperative body of water. Despite the bumpy ride, stronger winds and sizeable waves, 5 of the top 15 teams are local anglers. In fact, 4 of the top 10 are all local teams that call the Bays de Noc their home waters.
Craig Nagy and Troy Hodges are holding the top slot with a hefty weight of 23.91 lbs of fish. Their 5 fish limit was enough to eclipse Tom Polkey and Bob Therrian who took and held an early lead in Fridays Competition. Glenn and Carol Chenier took the 4th position and the top ranking in the husband and wife teams who have qualified for the event.
Several anglers credited the wind for their success and several others admonished it for keeping them from their fish. “We got our limit, got wet and got beat up. Other than that, it was great,” mused Tom Polkey on the rougher water and their days success.
They were not alone. Many anglers had similar reports of the good and the bad of the rough conditions. Most anglers expressed their support for the decision to use the foul weather boundaries. The teams were not able to cross a boundary placed from the Delta County line, across to the tip of Stonington Peninsula.
Teams also expressed both a desire and a hope that the conditions will allow the foul weather boundary to be lifted and grant them access to Big Bay de Noc.
As far as what tactics are being used to catch the fish, most teams were rather vague, with the promise of more detailed information to come at the last day’s weigh in, Saturday.
The top 20 teams are as follows.
1) Troy Hodges - Craig Nagy.....5 fish.....23.91
2) Jeff Iverson – Kevin LeBoeuf.....5 fish.....22.12
3) Tom Polkey – Bob Therrian.....5 fish.....20.66
4) Carol Chenier – Glenn Chenier.....5 fish.....20.55
5) James Lass – John Lass.....5 fiish.....18.89
6) Steve Draissey – Kurt Oliver.....5 fish.....18.77
7) Donald Olson – Michael Olson.....5 fish.....18.70
8) Lynn Hanisko – Glenn Wangerin.....5 fish.....18.11
9) Corey Meincke – Dan Siewert.....5 fish.....18.09
10) Greg Osborne – Jeff Osborne.....5 fish.....17.68
11) Jason Vowers – Ryan Vowers.....5 fish.....17.65
12) Paul Horwath – Dennis Sesek.....5 fish.....17.39
13) Corey Blair – Mike Richetta.....5 fish.....17.32
14) Scott Beck – Brian Brinkman.....5 fish.....17.19
15) Arnie Elliot – Dave Klassel.....5 fish.....17.17
16) Tim Bliss – Ted Merdan.....5 fish.....17.14
17) Clay Price – Todd Wacaser.....5 fish.....17.12
18) Jeff Russell – Troy Walwood.....5 fish.....17.01
19) Jason Kaniszewski – Nathan Seiferlein.....5 fish.....16.93
20) Don Solis – Bert Wilson.....5 fish.....16.78
Edited by Nofish 6/12/2004 10:15 PM
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Day two started with renewed enthusiasm for the NTC anglers. The overnight rains lifted and the skies cleared, with the forcast calling for lighter winds out of the Southeast. The forcasted weather conditions allowed the foul weather boundary to be lifted, thus allowing anglers to reach their fish in Big Bay de Noc.
"This should really open things up a bit," stated veteran anger Tom Polkey. The mood among many contestants that could not reach their fish yesterday, was noticibly brighter.
Today's weigh in, beginning at 4:15 pm at the UP Fair Grounds in Escanaba, will decide the competition and crown not only the new Cabela's National Team Champions, but will also name this years top 25 All Americans.
Check in here for results and photos to follow the weigh in.
Edited by Nofish 6/12/2004 10:18 AM
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Location: Rhinelander | The Chenier's TAKE it!! Ralph is on his way home to his high speed connection to upload the day two results and images. | |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Glenn and Carol win the Cabela's National Team Championship and are the 2004 Champions!! The Cheneir's also took top Husband and Wife honors in the event. In doing so, the pair earned $25,000 in cash, a new Ranger boat and several other prizes for their hard work.
Allowing the anglers to use the regular tournament boundaries as well as the ever changing wind made for a very challenging tournament. Today the Chenier's landed only 7 fish, but their 25.46lb, five fish tournament limit was big enough to get the job done.
Glenn and Carol, with one of the biggest fish of the event, and one of the heaviest single day weights, were able to move up from their 4th place standing on Friday. "It was pretty intense. We had to anticipate what the fish would do when things on the lake would change," commented Glenn.
The second place team of Derrick and Mark Dedeker Had the largest fish of the event and the largest single day weight, both weighed today. The Father son team was able to move up from their 26th place standing from Friday. In doing so, they took the heaviest fish and largest weight honors away from the Chenier’s.
"I'm just trying to figure out how to breathe right now," commented Derrek Dedeker. Derrek and his Father weighed a whopping 28.4lb, 5 fish limit on Saturday. Derrek further commented that he was proud to be competing with his dad in the Championship.
The 3rd place team of Iverson and LeBoeuf brought a 21.01lb, 5 fish limit to the scale today, dropping them from their second place standing on Friday. However, the local anglers hung on to their top 3 position with two very consistent, large 5 fish limits each day.
There was a very strong local showing with 4 of the top 5 teams in the Championship calling the Escanaba area home.
Here is the top 5 teams total weight for the event.
Cheneir N Chenier.....10 fish total.....46.01
Dedeker N Dedeker.....10 fish total.....44.27
Iverson N LeBoeuf.....10 fish total.....43.13
Hanisko and Wangerin.....10 fish total.....42.91
Solis and Wilson.....10 fish total.....39.79
More to come...
Edited by Nofish 6/13/2004 11:49 AM
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That picture is worth a million bucks!!!!! | |
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Member
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Location: Appleton wi | Anyone know where the best fishing was up there for the tourny? Just wondering about basic locations, Thanks
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/content/community/inthefield/fiel...
No Chagrin for Victorious Chenier Team
Second Place Decided with a Coin Toss
By Frank Ross
June 12, 2004
Back to 2004 NTC
Escanaba, MI - One of the unique aspects of any sporting competition is putting together back to back days of championship quality. This is especially true in fishing, where the fish control the main factor in the equation—the bite.
When it comes to team tournaments, particularly when they are produced on a scale as grand as the Cabela's National Team Championship (NTC), leading on the first day can be both bad news and impending doom. For the third year in a row a team from the field has overtaken the day one leaders following a major setback in their game plan.
While yesterday was earmarked by high winds, prompting tournament officials to invoke the foul weather boundaries, today's weather forecast promised milder winds and many of the field took off at 7:30 a.m., headed for their unmolested #1 spots in Big Bay de Noc. The consensus among anglers was Big Bay held the biggest and most easily caught fish and spots in Little Bay had been hit too hard by the entire field being restrained to a limited number of productive areas. Curiously enough, anglers that continued to fish in Little Bay fared far better than those that spent yesterday lamenting the limitations. Many of those teams that made the long-awaited run reported their fish had vanished, while others were able to locate their coveted quarry only to find they had become lip-locked, forcing a time-wasting return to Little Bay.
As the drama of the final day of Cabela's National Team Championship progressed through the 250-boat field, it became readily apparent that many of the competitors in this high-stakes event were losing their footing on the slippery slopes of team walleye angling's high peak, including local favorites.
Following numerous light basket weights, and tales of woe, a significant local team fell, the leaders. Troy Hodges and Craig Nagy were toppled from their briefly held perch atop the world of walleye team tournaments, by a self-inflicted wound. An obviously disappointed Hodges and Nagy weighed in less than half their day-one-weight today, adding a scant 10.06 pounds to Friday's big basket weight of 23.91 pounds. Hodges said that they made the gamble and went to their Big Bay spot first and spent three hours there with no fish, then ran to the spot where they had success yesterday only to come up short.
Glenn and Carol Chenier, of nearby Gladstone, replaced them in the number one spot with the second largest basket of the day. While both teams weighed five fish both days, the Chenier's were more consistent, with baskets of 20.55 and 25.46 pounds. Today, the Chenier's only caught seven fish, but five of them added up to the right numbers for a victory of less than two pounds.
Consistency has been the hallmark of the Chenier's, who were awarded dual titles on the 2003 MWC tour, grabbing Team of the Year as well as the Husband and Wife Team of the Year honors. Further validation of their consistent performance under pressure is documented by the fact that they have won the husband and wife Team of the Year title on the MWC five times.
The level of excitement of both anglers and the audience rose and fell with the amount of walleye filling each of the translucent weigh-in baskets that crossed the huge stage, off-set with a gigantic Jumbotron TV screen. While contestants, fans, and their families enjoyed seeing their faces displayed on the billboard-sized screen as they stepped on stage, it was a medium that cut both ways and quickly revealed the emotion in angler's faces as they moved down as well as up the tournament tally.
The basket that created the most excitement today was brought in by a Larsen, Wis., father-son team that came close to snatching the prize away from the Chenier's. Derrick and Mark Dedeker made their run at the title from 26th place with the largest basket of the day, weighing 44.27 pounds. This basket also contained the big fish of the tournament, which tipped the scales at 9.78 pounds. For the Dedekers, the excitement started early and fast and was actually decided by a coin toss.
Derrick related their strategy by explaining they had two good spots, one in Big Bay and one in Little Bay. As they sat waiting for the start, they decided to flip a coin and when the quarter came down it was Little Bay that won. Once they arrived they immediately started pulling spinners in 10 to 15 feet of water at 1.5mph. Within minutes their first fish was landed, a 28-inch beauty. No sooner than they had it re-baited and back in the water, three rods went down and they were stumbling over gear to get them all under control. When the chaos was over three walleye lay in the bottom of the boat, a 25-, 27- and 29-inch fish. Derrick said they were both so nervous at this point that both he and his dad's knees were shaking. Speaking on stage, after hefting the winning Stihl Chain Saw Big Fish in the air, there was an obvious quaver in his voice that revealed the emotions that had been building throughout the day. Off stage, father and son exchanged the obligatory high-five, and then Mark put his arms around his son and gave him a big hug.
When the trophies were handed out, Glenn and Carol experienced their peak of excitement as they were awarded the two huge trophies, $25,000 in cash and a new Ranger boat. The first thing Carol wants to do now is have a beer and get back to reality, and kids baseball games, for a while anyway. They'll certainly want to keep their angling skills honed for next year's Cabela's NTC.
For the remaining 249 teams, it will be a long drive back home where they will meld back into the field of 60,000 anglers that all want to qualify to fish the 2005 Cabela's NTC.
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | In listening to and talking with many of the anglers, the usual suspects were the culprits here. By that, spinner rigs accounted for the lion’s share of big fish that came from both Little and Big Bay de Noc this weekend.
Being able to get to big Bay de Noc did not necessarily mean one caught big fish. or ANY fish on Sunday. Several teams that did make the run had not much more than an interesting boat ride to show for it.
Still others who made the run, made it count. Several teams came from very low weights on day one to 17 pound plus limits on day two.
Further, several teams, including the Chenier’s, remained on the west shore of Little Bay de Noc, far to the south, the Ford River and beyond.
Watch for a photo gallery from the event as well as an article done with the Chenier’s. I will be interviewing and chatting with Glenn And Carol today and will get the resulting article posted soon.
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| Wow -- big HUGE congratulations to Glenn & Carol. Getting to the Cabela's NTC was a earned as MWC's Team of the Year -- and we are SO glad that they captured this win. Way to go!
Awesome job!
Kristine
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Location: Gladstone, Michigan 49837 | Ralph, you done a great job covering the Tournament. As I sit here overlooking the lake here another storm is brewing!
Again a great job and congrats to the Cheniers!
Capt. Marty
http://www.littlebaydenoc.com | |
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| Hurray for my local boys! Local anglers (Nate S and Jason K) 6th place and first day leaders Troy Hodges and Craig Nagy from Davison and Lapeer Michigan finished a very respectable 21st...Good Job guys! | |
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Location: mind: Delta County, Butt:Lansing | Was visiting my brother in Rapid River and had no idea this event was going on. So we decided to check it out and I was impressed by the whole thing! I used to walleye fish Big Bay when I lived there some years ago, kinda got away from it and sold my boat, but this event re-newed my interest. Looking for another boat! | |
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First class work Ralph! | |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Follow the link to the Photo Gallery of the 2004 NTC....
http://walleye.outdoorsfirst.com/board/photos/photo-thumbnails.asp?... | |
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