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Dock Talk - Winter 2007-2008

Bassmania Classic Winners to Compete in 2008 FFCBC

By Doug Cain
Jay Short of Ajax and Chris Walter of Cobourg, winners of the 2007 Bassmania Classic, will compete in the 2008 Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship (FFCBC) as Team #138. Under the terms of a reciprocal agreement between FFCBC and the Competitive Sport Fishing League (CSFL) announced in March the 2007 Bassmania Classic Champions were awarded entry into the field of the 2008 FFCBC. The 2007 FFCBC winning team of Joe Thrun and Jim Moynagh are invited to compete in the 12th annual Bassmania Classic to be held at the Bay of Quinte starting on August 29th. 2008.

In order to compete as a 2007 Bassmania Classic participant entrants had to qualify by competing in one or more of five regional circuits. Each circuit is comprised of four single-day events. Teams or individuals are ranked by finishing positions. The 2006 Classic Champions had an automatic berth in the 2007 event.

As many as 116 boats could qualify. If anglers qualify in more than one circuit they are ranked according to their highest finishing positions. Team rankings take president over individual rankings. After duplications and eliminations 80 teams qualified for the Bassmania Classic in 2007. There were 69 two-angler teams and 11 single-angler teams.

Short and Walter qualified in the Bassmania Eastern Tour Division. They finished in 13th place (188 points) with 16.22 pounds at Rice Lake on July 2nd.A weight of 3.48 pounds at Sturgeon Lake on July 5th earned them a 68th place (133 points) finish. At Lake Scugog on August 11th Short and Walter placed in 32nd spot (169 points) with 10.96 pounds. The team fi nished the 2007 season with a tie for 2nd place (199 points) with 16.12 pounds at Balsam Lake on August 12th.

Short and Walter also competed in a Wildcard Qualifying Event on the Bay of Quinte on August 5th. They finished in 64th place (137 points) with 10.66 pounds. Under CSFL rules teams are allowed to use the points earned in a Wildcard Event to replace a single regional tour event. The team’s season total of 693 points placed them 17th place in the Eastern Tour and earned them a Classic spot. They also participated in and won two events in the BM100 Tour: a special tour with a limit of 115 horsepower. They won the BM100 event on July 1st at Canal Lake with a weight of 14.98 pounds as well as the Seymour Lake event on August 6th with a weight of 21.86 pounds. Short and Walter were ranked in 66th position for the Bassmania Classic XI. The Bassmania Classic is a three-day event that was held in 2007 on Lake of Bays with the weigh-in at Dorset. Neither team member had fished the lake in previous years. Jay pre-fished immediately prior to the tournament for three days, two of them with Chris. He found the spot that held most of their fish while he was taking a phone call during pretournament practice.

A Day One weight of 17.08 earned the team third place; less than a pound out of first place. On Day Two Short and Walter weighed 16.66 pounds, the fifth biggest weight of the day to move them into second place. During the first two days they used jigs, jigging spoons and dropshot techniques to catch smallmouth bass in 30 feet of water. Chris says “you couldn’t catch two fish on the same presentation. They got educated really quickly. If it was in the boat – it got used” On Day Three the fi eld was reduced to the top twenty teams. There were 18 two-angler teams and 2 single-angler teams on the water. Jay and Chris started the day 1.52 pound behind the leaders. The weather changed, the fish they had been targeting moved and the wind had picked up. They changed to flipping docks and trees with Punisher jig & pig combos made by their friend Jarrod Dean of Toronto.

Short and Walter won the Bassmania Classic by weighing 17.4 pounds, the second biggest weight of the final day, to give them a total three day weight of 51.16 pounds; 3.22 pounds more than the second place finishers. Jay and Chris, both in their early 30’s, have fi shed together competitively for three years. Chris says, “We’ve been best friends since grade five. We’re more like brothers than friends”. Chris is the president of the Kawartha Lakes Club of the Canadian Bass Anglers Federation. He suggests that anglers considering competitive fi shing “join a club, practice, develop confi dence and remember to have fun – it’s just fishing.” The team plans to practice on Rainy Lake for three or four days, making the fishing and the 1100 mile trip part of a family holiday.