Presented by Yamaha Motor Corp USA and Warrior Boats Inc.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 17, 2024
Contact: Denny Fox, 920-505-0122
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™)
Big Fish On Big Stone: AIM Sunday Double-Header Heads To Minnesota For Part Two, And Weed Presentations Top List
Outside of the upcoming Warrior Boats National Championship Shootout in less than two weeks on North Dakota’s Lake Sakakawea, Sunday (May 19) could be the AIM Weekend Walleye Series’ biggest date of the 2024 qualifier season. There’s a double-header on deck, with one in Wisconsin, and this one, on Big Stone Lake in Minnesota.
“We are hearing definitely great things waiting for our teams on Big Stone,” said Denny Fox, AIM national tournament director. “The fish we saw when we were last here in 2021 have all grown up, and that means predictions into the 40-pound range for a podium spot. Our two double-dips, this one and the Wisconsin qualifier on Petenwell Flowage, are the last events before The Big Show on Sakakawea, and that one’s for that beautiful Warrior-Yamaha boat package worth a ‘ku-ell’ 100K. Let’s head’em up, and move’em out, Fan Nation!”
One of the teams movin’ ‘em out is captained by Blake Jablonski of Elko and co-piloted by Trevor Schuster of Prior Lake. They’ll be in a Mercury 400 Verado-powered boat. This is their first-ever visit to Big Stone, and they’re pumped.
“We’re excited for it. After seeing the results of other tournaments here, the weights were really impressive compared with the last time AIM was on Big Stone. The fish have grown up, and anglers are figuring out how to find them and get them out of the weeds,” Jablonski said. That’s a heads up for all, as weed growth seems to be the order of the day here because of an early spring and lack of wintry weather, as it was last week on Lake Audubon in North Dakota.
“It doesn’t seem like there’s a whole lot outside of that. The lake’s about 90 percent weeds, so you’re going to be fishing in, around and above them,” he predicted.
“From those I talked to the last couple of weeks it sounds like they were fairly high two weeks ago, and I’m assuming they’ve put on some height the last two, so I’m guessing they’re going to be grown up,” he added, but that ain’t no never mind to Jablonski and Schuster.
“We like casting. We probably won’t have a trolling rod in the boat, so we’ll try and find them doing what we like to do,” and that means tossing both live bait and plastics.
“We’ll try both. Anytime we can fish plastic in the weeds it’s a little more efficient, but we’ll try both,” he said. Hooking some with plastic, he said, will be especially fun this time: he and Schuster have been working on a new plastic design.
“We’ve been messing around with it and we’re kind of excited about it. We’re calling it the ERL lure for now. We’ll see if we can make it play this weekend. That would be fun. It looks to be really windy Saturday (Sunday, too). We’ll have leeches and some minnows aboard. Bait may be a little tough to get in the area, so we’re hoping we can make it happen with what we’ve got,” Jablonski said. Sunday’s weather will be cranking a bit, with winds 6-15 mph, gusting to 23 predicted.
On the water starting Thursday, and some weeks before, too, are Tim Juba and Brian Fenske of Alexandria, about 90 minutes from Big Stone. They’ll have Garmin LiveScope in the mix aboard. While he’s familiar with the lake’s panfish, he’s not caught a walleye here until a few weeks ago, but he’s ready to meet a few, especially the hefties he’s heard about. And he’s also seen more weeds than usual.
“With the early ice-out, it’s definitely accelerated the weed growth,” Juba said, and right now, he’s spending most of his time trying everything from spotting fish with his LiveScope to trolling.
“I wish I could tell you what’s going to work. Hopefully we’ve got a couple more days to figure it out, but it’s been kind of random, getting a couple trolling, a couple pitching jigs. But we’ve had some glimpses of what this lake can do. There’s no doubt that there’s some really healthy fish in here,” he said.
“Two weeks ago at a major tournament there were some really impressive bags. That’s what you’re always shooting for. I would not be surprised there’s a potential to put up a 40-plus-pound bag. If they’re around, our division is so competitive that someone’s going to figure out how to get five. We’re putting the puzzle pieces together.
“I think this will be an event that’s going to set up that trollers could do really well and teams using their LiveScope could do well, which is good. It makes a more level playing field.”
John Gildersleeve from Frazee and Pat Manteuffel of Oakdale will be testing Big Stone in their 300 Pro XS-powered boat. Gildersleeve agrees that the lake has potential to produce, but he also agrees that it’s one that will take as well as give. He’s been on it off and on for a few weeks now.
“It can be tough. I’ve got something going, but you’ve got to take the lake with a grain of salt. It can be one tough bugger,” Gildersleeve said. One issue is those weeds. They can grow up from 14 feet below your keel, but when the water warms, they die, and the fish leave for greener pasture, literally.
“I’ve fished this enough through the years that when you’re confident you can do good, you don’t. I’ve placed in quite a few tournaments but there were days when I’ve completely bombed when I thought I’d do well.
“The curly pondweed (an invasive species) goes up fast and it’s starting to die now. Whenever the weeds die it creates dead zones and the key is finding the greener weeds. Fighting through them is not easy. The teams using forward facing sonar are going to be the ones who do well, but I’m not counting out the trolling bite. You need to find all bases here, fish in the weeds and find a couple of trolling runs. If the lake stays windy you might have good luck in the weeds and if it calms down, grab your trolling rods,” Gildersleeve recommended.
“It’s fair to say the fish are in a transition period. They’re moving. It’s not easy. There’s times when you can put a hurt bag on them and others when a lot of tournament anglers really struggle. But it’s good to make them struggle. It makes a person work hard,” he added.
“The big fish are spread out. Some really good local teams will be in this, but it’s got the potential for 35 pounds and could go to 40,” he said. That will be determined come Sunday when all boats are in.
But before that, here’s what they’ll be doing. After Saturday evening’s online meeting, teams gather for Game Day at the Ortonville boat ramp for inspections on the lake’s Minnesota side starting at 5:30 a.m. Boats will leave from the launch starting at 7 a.m. and must report back at the launch starting at 3 p.m. The awards ceremony will be at Riverside Park in Ortonville. Good luck, all teams!
Then less than two weeks later, starting May 31, with the finale on June 1, 80 anglers in 40 boats from across the Midwest vie for who will go home with that decked out Warrior Boat worth $100,000 after doing battle with North Dakota’s Lake Sakakawea at New Town. Follow all the fun at AIM’s Facebook page. Go to aimfishing.com to join in the most affordable , lucrative walleye tournament there is.
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, Power Pole, Worldwide Marine Insurance, Off Shore Tackle, Gemini Sport Marketing, JT Outdoors Products, McQuoids Inn, Rosemore Outdoor Gear, Outdoor Authority fish house rentals, Adventure Recreational Finance, Oconto County WI., Forever Barnwood