Juls
03-28-2009, 09:58 AM
It's a chilly start to the MWC tournament season here in Spring Valley, Illinois on the Illinois River. Weather reports are predicicting 4-7 inches of snow, starting later this afternoon and into tonight,. That didn't stop the 97 teams who left the launch this morning with calm winds, and a nippy 32 degrees, from having a good time! Spirits and excitement levels were high, to say the least!
There were a lot of smiles to be seen this morning, and the excitment of starting another new tournament season could be felt. Everyone was glad the weather forecasters were just a little off on the timing of this system coming in today, and felt this would give them at least part of t he day to enjoy the fishing without dealing with some nasty wind, rain, and snow mix. Most likely, that will fall right around weigh in time!
I asked several teams what their plans were today, and what the conditions have been like. Here are their replies:
Boat # 55: Josh Wiesner - Fond Du Lac, WI & Jason Wiesner - Fond Du Lac, WI:
"It's going to be a tough bite, I think. There are a few fish coming in...I don't know, we're on some fish...we've got a couple spots and that's it, and we'll see what happens. The weather could change things up, big time!"
Juls: Are you a team that's pretty versatile? Are you set to change things up if need be....ie: jigging, handlining...etc? You don't need to tell me exactly what you're doing out there, of course.
Josh: "All we do is jig. So, if they aren't biting jigs, we're screwed!" (He laughs)
Boat # 34: Chad Kinkade - Waverly, IA & Tommy Skarlis - Waukon, IA
"Well, you know it's going to be a battle out there. It's going to be windy, it's going to be cold, it's going to be the team that keeps their attitude up that going to be the one that comes out on top. We just hope that we just get 5 really good bites today. We had three yesterday, and we think we got it going on, but you know things could change with this water level dropping and the current flow changing...things could change real quick."
Boat # 7: Jess King - Hatley, WI & Dave Kreger - Hatley, WI
"We'er starting off handlining, and try to get a limit. And, then we'll go for some bigger fish, or "kicker fish" jiggin."
Juls: What are the conditions like on the river right now? There's been a lot of talk about it on the message boards this past couple of weeks. Tell the WC readers what you're experiencing here, please.
Dave: "It's not that bad at all. The clarity is pretty good....you know, other than the water being up, it's very fishable. You're going to see, or should see, some really nice bags coming in today."
Boat # 30: Dennis Lantzy - Warren, MI & Steve Vande-Mark - Linwood, MI:
"Today we'll probably be conentrating on jigging, and live bait rigging. I'm anticipating a slow bite, due to the recent cold front that came in. So, I feel we're just going to work out high percentage spots and just hang in there all day and hope for the best."
Juls: What is your take on the conditions here right now?
Denny: "I think this morning until about noon it's going to be very f ishable... if the bad weather is going to come in this afternoon... So, you have to get the right bites before noon and you'll be in good position for tomorrow, because I don't know if we'll have this tournament tomorrow, or if there'll be a day two with the forecast (snow and everything) that's coming in."
Boat # 29: Jeff Koester - Brookville, IN & Scott Rhodes - Traverse City, MI:
"The river's been dropping everyday...the water clarity is really starting to clean up nice. I think we'll start out this morning, handlining, trying to get our 5, and then we're going to switch over to jigging and pole-lining". (He was forced to move his rig, so the interview ended abruptly)
Boat # 16: Steven Poll - Oshkosh, WI & Michael Mccardle - West Bend, WI:
"We're going to probably do some handlining, and a little three-waying, and maybe some jigging, but mostly three-waying and handlining. It looks like it's supposed to rain and turn to snow. I'm hoping that waits till about 4 or 5 O'Clock (laughs) If we're lucky!"
Boat # 3: David Kolb - Ada, MI & Jim Preissner - Hastings, MN:
"I think we're going to boat a few fish today. The water's dropping a little bit more. The fishing's not real great. It's tough. I hope we can get 5 and put ourselves in good position for the second day."
The weather forecast:
Today: A slight chance of rain before 1pm, then rain and snow, possibly mixed with sleet. Some thunder is also possible. High near 40. Breezy, with a east wind around 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Total daytime snow and sleet accumulation of around 1 inch.
Tonight: Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Some thunder is also possible. Low around 31. Blustery, with a north wind between 20 and 25 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of around 5 inches.
Sunday: A 50 percent chance of snow before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 37. Breezy, with a northwest wind between 15 and 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
Join us here on Walleye Central this afternoon as we bring you the LIVE coverage of the weigh in. Just click the link for the "Illinois River" in the MWC current event to see the leader board results at http://www.liveleaderboard.com
There were a lot of smiles to be seen this morning, and the excitment of starting another new tournament season could be felt. Everyone was glad the weather forecasters were just a little off on the timing of this system coming in today, and felt this would give them at least part of t he day to enjoy the fishing without dealing with some nasty wind, rain, and snow mix. Most likely, that will fall right around weigh in time!
I asked several teams what their plans were today, and what the conditions have been like. Here are their replies:
Boat # 55: Josh Wiesner - Fond Du Lac, WI & Jason Wiesner - Fond Du Lac, WI:
"It's going to be a tough bite, I think. There are a few fish coming in...I don't know, we're on some fish...we've got a couple spots and that's it, and we'll see what happens. The weather could change things up, big time!"
Juls: Are you a team that's pretty versatile? Are you set to change things up if need be....ie: jigging, handlining...etc? You don't need to tell me exactly what you're doing out there, of course.
Josh: "All we do is jig. So, if they aren't biting jigs, we're screwed!" (He laughs)
Boat # 34: Chad Kinkade - Waverly, IA & Tommy Skarlis - Waukon, IA
"Well, you know it's going to be a battle out there. It's going to be windy, it's going to be cold, it's going to be the team that keeps their attitude up that going to be the one that comes out on top. We just hope that we just get 5 really good bites today. We had three yesterday, and we think we got it going on, but you know things could change with this water level dropping and the current flow changing...things could change real quick."
Boat # 7: Jess King - Hatley, WI & Dave Kreger - Hatley, WI
"We'er starting off handlining, and try to get a limit. And, then we'll go for some bigger fish, or "kicker fish" jiggin."
Juls: What are the conditions like on the river right now? There's been a lot of talk about it on the message boards this past couple of weeks. Tell the WC readers what you're experiencing here, please.
Dave: "It's not that bad at all. The clarity is pretty good....you know, other than the water being up, it's very fishable. You're going to see, or should see, some really nice bags coming in today."
Boat # 30: Dennis Lantzy - Warren, MI & Steve Vande-Mark - Linwood, MI:
"Today we'll probably be conentrating on jigging, and live bait rigging. I'm anticipating a slow bite, due to the recent cold front that came in. So, I feel we're just going to work out high percentage spots and just hang in there all day and hope for the best."
Juls: What is your take on the conditions here right now?
Denny: "I think this morning until about noon it's going to be very f ishable... if the bad weather is going to come in this afternoon... So, you have to get the right bites before noon and you'll be in good position for tomorrow, because I don't know if we'll have this tournament tomorrow, or if there'll be a day two with the forecast (snow and everything) that's coming in."
Boat # 29: Jeff Koester - Brookville, IN & Scott Rhodes - Traverse City, MI:
"The river's been dropping everyday...the water clarity is really starting to clean up nice. I think we'll start out this morning, handlining, trying to get our 5, and then we're going to switch over to jigging and pole-lining". (He was forced to move his rig, so the interview ended abruptly)
Boat # 16: Steven Poll - Oshkosh, WI & Michael Mccardle - West Bend, WI:
"We're going to probably do some handlining, and a little three-waying, and maybe some jigging, but mostly three-waying and handlining. It looks like it's supposed to rain and turn to snow. I'm hoping that waits till about 4 or 5 O'Clock (laughs) If we're lucky!"
Boat # 3: David Kolb - Ada, MI & Jim Preissner - Hastings, MN:
"I think we're going to boat a few fish today. The water's dropping a little bit more. The fishing's not real great. It's tough. I hope we can get 5 and put ourselves in good position for the second day."
The weather forecast:
Today: A slight chance of rain before 1pm, then rain and snow, possibly mixed with sleet. Some thunder is also possible. High near 40. Breezy, with a east wind around 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Total daytime snow and sleet accumulation of around 1 inch.
Tonight: Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Some thunder is also possible. Low around 31. Blustery, with a north wind between 20 and 25 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of around 5 inches.
Sunday: A 50 percent chance of snow before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 37. Breezy, with a northwest wind between 15 and 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
Join us here on Walleye Central this afternoon as we bring you the LIVE coverage of the weigh in. Just click the link for the "Illinois River" in the MWC current event to see the leader board results at http://www.liveleaderboard.com