Presented by Yamaha Motor Corp USA and Warrior Boats Inc.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 6, 2023
Contact: Denny Fox, 920-505-0122
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™)
AIM Heads To The Mississippi As 2023 Season Resumes
In Minnesota Qualifier At Hager City Sunday
“Everybody Into the Pool!” is a common mid-summer saying, but in this case, it means that the AIM Weekend Walleye Series 2023 season Part 2.2 of Sunday’s (July 9) double-header returns to the Mississippi River’s Pools 3 and 4 for the Warrior Boats/The Boat Center Open, the third of this season’s state qualifiers.
“We’re welcoming you back in style and with a flurry, Fan Nation, as the Mississippi and Hager City are eager to see AIM’s Catch-Record-ReleaseÔ format return to the river. That also applies to our second game Sunday that’s a bit to the west on North Dakota’s Devils Lake,” said Denny Fox, AIM national tournament director. “Here’s the lineup and the low-down on the river. Who’s gonna crack that 30-pound barrier, and by how much is the question.”
One of the teams looking to break it bad is that of Evan and father Steven Rosemore. Evan’s from North Branch, Steven from Cloquet, and Rosemore Outdoor Gear is one of AIM’s sponsors. They were on the water from Saturday to Tuesday and will be at it again Friday and Saturday, and they’re reporting lots of fish, and a few things “figured out.”
“It’s been a pile of fun. We haven’t dialed in the big fish yet but if you’re going to catch eaters, 15- to 20-inchers, you could limit out every day. Those aren’t the ones we need,” Evan said. “We did get a couple things figured out that we want to expand on, and saw a couple big fish caught, and caught one we’d like on the card, so we need a few more days to pick that apart.”
He’s hoping their Mercury 300 Pro SX and Garmin-equipped boat will bring them to the spots that will lead to the podium.
“Sometimes, it can only take 30 pounds to win it, but it could be 50 because there’s enough big fish in the system that someone could have a good day. It’s a little unpredictable. But you’ll see a lot (of bags) around that 15- to 25-pound range,” Rosemore said.
LiveScope will come into play a lot here, he said, and in more ways than it’s traditionally used.
“There’s going to be a lot of trolling on the lake, and you can use LiveScope trolling to make sure you’re right on the break lines. And, there’s a pile of wing dams here and you’ll be able to pull up and see how many fish are holding on the dams. It’s going to be key.
“What I end up doing is, I see a lot of fish that move from the boat. By looking forward 100 feet I can get a more accurate representation of what’s in the water column. You’ll see fish sink to the bottom, or they’ll push off to the sides. You can see them without them being affected by the boat. It also eliminates a lot of the snags and lets you be more efficient on the water,” Rosemore The Younger said. He’s also hoping the pair will gather more Yamaha Motor Corp. Team Of The Year points leading up to the final qualifier at Otter Tail Lake in mid-August.
Todd Hamer hopes to hammer some gold on the river with Luke Monnens. Both are from Lakeville, and they’ll be in a Mercury 300 Pro XS-powered platform. Hamer says he’s just familiar enough with the system to be dangerous. Reached at midweek, he said many locals like the trolling bite of Lake Pepin, but he’ll be looking at wing dams.
“The next couple of days I’m going to try wing dams. We don’t have a big fish pattern figured out yet. I just think the way everything is now, it’ll be won by someone jigging or finding fish and using their electronics. You can sure eliminate some wing dams with forward-facing sonar. Someone’s going to win it with a jigging rod in their hand. There’s some really good river sticks down there,” he said. He’ll be back pre-fishing through Saturday.
He also reports that those go-to river live bait critters, willow cats, are hard to come by right now. Scented plastics are available, so perhaps that’s the way to go for Sunday.
“Crawlers and plastics, and I think crawlers will probably be in my boat. I think the fish are pretty well spread out now. You can for sure troll harnesses and catch plenty of fish in the lake. I’m sure that some know backwater spots that are full too. I’ve been up in a couple of them and have had some success, but we’re anticipating a long run in the boat. I’ll probably be in the southern part of Pool 4, but that’s quite a run, 30 miles, something like that. We’ve got a few days to figure it out, hopefully closer to the launch point,” Hamer said.
Blake Jablonski from Elko will be with Trevor Schuster of Prior Lake in their Mercury 300 Pro XSl-pushed boat, with Garmin aboard. They’ll also be on the water through Saturday.
“We’re trying to avoid the lake trolling thing because there are probably teams who are better at it than us. But to get the ones to keep you at the top, I’m probably low in confidence trolling. Our plan is to fish Pool 3, checking some of the wing dams south of Lake Pepin and targeting individual spots on the lake,” Jablonski said.
“You have to lock up to Pool 3, and if you commit, you spend a lot of time locking up, and locking down. It’s kind of a risky deal. You’ve got to come back plenty early, or if you run late, it really gets risky,” he said, reminding everyone about the barge traffic that can jam up locks for hours that your boat must also go through. Tournaments have both been won, and lost, that way when boats couldn’t get back in time.
So, he said, a combination of casting cranks, drifting willow cats, if they can be had, or if they can’t, big minnows or leeches, is for them.
“I think that not being river people, if we can do the mid-30-pounds we’d be feeling real good, but I’m assuming someone will come in with the low 40s,” Jablonski said.
Who’s going to find those fish? Swinging bait across those wing dams? Trolling Pepin? Or spot-locking on some big-uns and casting to them? There’ll be plenty of that to bring to bear, too, particularly by a couple of those “big sticks” who will be there Sunday. And we’ll also see who can time those lock-throughs without getting caught.
Fan Nation, the fun begins at 5:30 a.m. at the docks at Everts Resort on the river at Hager City for team boat inspections. The first flight of boats leaves Everts at 7 a.m., and the second 15 minutes later. Boats must begin returning to the dock at 3 p.m. The awards ceremony begins at 5 p.m. at the Bluffs Bar and Grill in Hager City. Good luck, all teams!
Watch all the action from the water when you tune to AIM’s Facebook site updates.
And attention, all you wannabes. There are still more qualifier events in Wisconsin along with the new Rivers Division. Learn how you can register for the next events at aimfishing.com.
You know you want to. You know you can.
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™) is a unique tournament organization created and owned by many of the most accomplished and recognizable professional walleye anglers, along with others who share the mission of advancing competitive walleye fishing and making it sustainable into the future.
AIM is committed to marketing excellence on behalf of its tournament competitors, the tournament host communities, and the brands that partner with it. AIM is also committed to maintaining healthy fisheries across the nation by the development of the exclusive AIM Catch-Record-Release™ format which is integral to its dynamic events and unparalleled consumer engagement. For more information about AIM™, AIM Pro Walleye Series™, AIM Weekend Walleye Series, AIM sponsors and AIM anglers, visit www.aimfishing.com.
AIM Presenting Sponsors: Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A. and Warrior Boats inc.
AIM Supporting Sponsors: Mercury Marine, Garmin, Navionics, Power Pole, Worldwide Marine Insurance, Off Shore Tackle, Gemini Sport Marketing, Moonshine Lures Shiver Minnow, JT Outdoors Products, McQuoids Inn, Rosemore Outdoor Gear, Outdoor Authority fish house rentals, Island Bar and Grill, Bait Box on the Rock, Oconto County WI, Odyssey Battery.