Photo Contest – December · windblown points. So that day we decided to change tactics and “run and gun,” hitting only points. The running didn’t take long. On the first point

Photo Contest – Decemberby Brad Waldera, Photo Editor • [email protected]

You may have noticed a trend in the Member Photos sent inthis month. Members sent me a few more “scenic” shots than fishshots recently, which is nice. There are only so many ways to holda muskie in a photo, and I’m sure many of our readers reallyenjoy seeing the sunset and wildlife pictures, as do I. Rememberto take a moment now and then while on the water to notice yoursurroundings and see some of the other aspects of muskie fishingthat we sometimes overlook or take for granted. You may bepleasantly surprised at what you’ll find.

Thanks to all of you who have sent in photos this year, andplease keep them coming. Good fishing, and be sure to take somepictures while out on the lake, or for some of you, out on theICE! v

Photo Tip of the Month – Take Time to Enjoy the Scenery

Tribute This member photo features long-time South SideMuskie Hawks member Chuck Wortz. On August 18th, while onhis way to fish one of his favorite muskie fishing spots, Chuckpassed away in an auto accident. He truly loved the sport ofmuskie fishing, which is clearly evident in these two photos.Chuck was a long-time Muskies Inc. member, and will surely bemissed by many. Chuck’s wife Karen informed me that their sonBrian was also injured in the accident, and is still recovering.Karen also mentioned that she’s sure that Chuck is in Heavencatching those 50-inch muskies; I know she’s right.

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Take a second look I used to fish Beers Lakein Maplewood State Park in Minnesota all the time, butI never bothered to take a walk on any of the trails theyoffer. Boy was that a mistake. Three times in the pasttwo years I’ve left the fishing gear at home and tookmy camera to Maplewood instead. With the great fallcolors, I sure wasn’t disappointed. I’m sure many ofour readers often fish near similar areas. Next timeyou do, set a few minutes aside to explore a little. I betyou’ll be glad you did. – Brad Waldera

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December 2008.....MUSKIE 1www.muskiesinc.org

DepartmentsIFC Photo Contest,

Brad Waldera

2 President’s Message,Dan Narsete

3 Magazine Notes,Juris Ozols

4 MUSKIE News

6 Figure 8, Kevin Richards

8 Lunge Log, Jim Bunch

27 Chapter News and Views

32 Index of Advertisers

34 Member Photos,Brad Waldera

Features7 Sport Show Locator for 2009

12 Muskies on Boards, Gary Engberg

14 The Not-So-Terminal Man, Lynn Polyak

16 5th Annual Bob Ellis Row Trolling Classic,[Photo Montage]

18 Derby Day on the Beaver Pond,Todd Berg

20 Denise Murphy’s Big Muskie,[Photo Correction]

24 It’s Beginning to Look a Lot LikeChristmas, Patricia Strutz

32 $25 Lure vs. $6 Lure,Larry Robinson

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MAIL TO MUSKIES, INC. 14257 Waters Edge Trail,New Berlin, WI, 53151

1-888-710-8286

Regular Membership: q 1 Year-$35.00 q 2 Years-$65.00 q 3 Years- $95.00

Family Membership: q 1 Year-$47.50 q 2 Years-$90.00 q 3 Years-$132.50

Junior Membership (Under 18): q $20.00

q For Muskie Research $________q Automatic Renewal

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(to find the number of the Chapter you wish to join, see the Chapter News & Views section)

(to find the number of the Chapter you wish to join, see the Chapter News & Views section)

ContentsMUSKIE • VOL. 42, NO. 12

Join Muskies, Inc. ...or give a membershipas a gift.

q VISA q Discoverq AmEx q MasterCard

MUSKIE is published monthly and is the OfficialPublication of Muskies, Inc. International Office: RonGroeschl, International Sec., 14257 Waters EdgeTrail, New Berlin, WI 53151. Ph: 888-710-8286.© Copyright 2008 by Muskies, Inc. All rights reserved.

InternationalOfficers

President, Dan NarseteEmail: [email protected] President/Fundraising, Jim ShannonPhone: 612-670-8943Email: [email protected] President/Fisheries, Research & Youth,Dr. Tom Betka, MDPhone: 920-544-5868Email: [email protected] President/Internal Affairs,Perry PetersonPhone: 253-850-5889 Email: [email protected] President/Membership & Marketing,Dale VercauterenPhone: 920-680-6093Email: [email protected] President/Communications, Jay ZahnPhone: 920-660-7655Email: [email protected], Kathy GoonPhone: 419-945-2940Email: [email protected] Only Fishing Contest, Jim BunchPhone: 715-226-0295Email: [email protected] Master, Ron GroeschlPhone: 262-271-1002Email: [email protected]. Administrative Secretary, Ron Groeschl14257 Waters Edge Trail, New Berlin, WI 53151Phone: 888-710-8286 or 262-271-1002Email: [email protected]

At Large Directors Term Expires

Brad Waldera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2009Dick McPike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2009David Rautmann . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2009 Diana Mindar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2009Dan Narsete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2009Tom Betka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2010Dale Vercauteren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2010Bob Timme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2010Jim Shannon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2010Gerald Bucholtz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2010Adam Walsh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2011Jay Zahn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2011Fred Brogle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2011Brett Knight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2011Rory Potter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2011

Iwould like to start off thanking the Daniel Boone Chapter (#52) for their hard workand amazing hospitality for the Fall Board Meeting. Larry Besant, Scott Smalley, FrankSaxton, Eric Shultz (Twin Cities) and Lance Caesar all helped to make my stay fantas-

tic! If you get a chance to visit those guys in Morehead you will not be disappointed!The fall board meeting was a success as we passed the bylaws and are reducing our

board of directors from over 75 to 20 voting members. This should help make us muchmore efficient and be able to help individual chapters with the many needs we all have. InApril 2009 we will have the Spring Board meeting in Spirit Lake, IA; anyone in MI is wel-come to attend.

Heading into the deep freeze we are now entering sports show time. There are showsand opportunities to fish all over the US in addition to exciting changes you will see in ourown organization. This month I will travel to meet our new friends in Albuquerque, NMand I am looking forward to breakfast burritos and tiger muskies! Next month I plan to bein Chicago for the Tri-Esox show and will make a pit-stop by the Fox River Valley Chapterto say hello. If you get a chance stop by our booth and introduce yourself; I love meetingfolks from all over. Having said that please let me know if you would be interested in hav-ing me visit your chapter - I am here to help and am very dedicated to building MI.

Another person I would like to put in the spotlight is our own Jim Shannon. He hasbeen a part of MI for a long time and is currently working as our VP of Finance. Jim doesa great job, but is only one person and needs your help. If you have any ideas or can be ofassistance to him, please e-mail him at [email protected].

I want you to know that your dues and financial contributions are making a difference!We are moving forward in our efforts to get a 54” minimum placed on Green Bay, and areworking on funding a research project for a graduate student at Carleton University. Thisstudy would be on catch and release for muskies - potentially a great scientific study for MIto be a part of. In my own vision I would like to get us back to supporting chapters andgrowing MI through lobbying efforts with local, state, and federal entities. Already, thisyear, we have had the early muskie season squashed and got a 50” minimum passed on theChippewa Flowage. Please don’t forget that it was Muskies, Inc that first introduced theconcept and philosophy of “catch and release.” That phrase alone has permeated through-out the US and the world at large, changing how people view conservation and muskies -something we are working on everyday.

Tight lines, Dan v

ThePresident’sMessage

ThePresident’sMessageby Dan Narsete

Muskies, Inc.International President

Email:[email protected]

2 MUSKIE.....December 2008

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MUSKIE Magazine Staff

EDITORKevin Richards7618 Sunrise Ridge RoadHenley, MO 65040Phone: (573) 280-2300Email: [email protected] EDITORJuris OzolsPhone: (612) 747-0178Email: [email protected] CONTEST EDITORBrad WalderaPhone: (701) 642-1952Email: [email protected] LOG EDITORJim BunchPhone: (715) 226-0295Email: [email protected] SALES TEAMContact Kevin Richards, EditorPhone: (573) 280-2300Email: [email protected] ACCOUNT MANAGERSunray Printing Solutions, Inc. - Dawn LarsonMAGAZINE DESIGNSunray Printing Solutions, Inc. - John WindschitlILLUSTRATORS/CARTOONISTSRichard Gross, Charles WeissFIELD EDITORSPatricia Strutz, Colby Simms, Sean Landsman,Adam Glickman, Bob Chochola,Steve BudnikEMERITUS EDITORSRod Ramsell, Keith Ogden, Jim SmithMUSKIE is published exclusively for the mem-bership of Muskies, Inc. and subscriptionscome with a paid membership. Muskies, Inc. isa non-profit organization. Membership classesand associated annual dues are listed on theform at the bottom of page one. Copies ofMUSKIE magazine are available at $3.00 eachfrom the Muskies, Inc. International Office.Contributors grant rights for M.I. to publishonce in MUSKIE Magazine, both the print andon-line versions, including archives and on theM.I. Web site.

Submissions toMUSKIE Magazine

Persons interested in submitting articles forpublication are directed to our websitewww.muskiesinc.org for a link to MUSKIEMagazine, where you will find links on the leftside of the page providing information neces-sary for submissions to MUSKIE Magazine.Further questions will be answered by KevinRichards, Editor. Submissions may be sent to:7618 Sunrise Ridge Road, Henley, MO 65040or email: [email protected]. Phone:(573) 280-2300.

ABOUT THE COVERWhen he caught that 52-incher, myboat buddy Jerry Bucholtz achieveda personal best for both of us. It’sthe biggest fish he’s ever caught, andthe biggest one I’ve ever netted andindeed even seen close up.

Jerry got that muskie while trollingon the fifth day of our houseboat tripto Lac Seul in October. We hadcaught numerous northern pike up tothen, but no muskies, running mileafter mile all over the lake in Jerry’sRanger boat. We had concentratedon trolling shorelines, drop-offs,vertical walls, and all of those greatlooking spots which Lac Seul offersin profusion. No muskies.

However, the previous day we had started really getting into northerns onwindblown points. So that day we decided to change tactics and “run andgun,” hitting only points.

The running didn’t take long. On the first point just a few hundred yardsfrom the houseboat (top picture on the cover) I got a 43-incher. The nextpoint, only a half hour later and still within sight of the houseboat, Jerry gothis big muskie.

It’s an amazing fish with an enormous belly. You can tell by the expressionon his face that he’s straining to hold it. We didn’t get a girth measurementbut you have to figure that it’s over 40 pounds. And it’s as clean and prettyas any muskie you ever hope to see.

Incidentally, the spot where Jerry caught his monster is an absolutely classicmuskie spot. The second photo shows editor Kevin Richards and his part-ner Joe Crossley trolling “Jerry’s spot” a few days later. After we told ourhouseboat crowd about it, they all seemed to show up there regularly.Given it’s proximity to the houseboat, everybody stopped there on the wayout and back.

And indeed (this is a true story) on the last hour of our last day Joe Crossleygot a 44-incher right there. Jerry and I were going make a final pass, but Joewas a hundred yards ahead of us and caught “our” fish on “our” spot.

And I’m delighted. I got almost a hundred beautiful pictures of Joe bringingit in, netting it, and releasing it – a classic photo op with the calm water andthe sunset in the background. You’ll see one of those on the cover of the2009 Muskies, Inc. calendar.

But I’m also delighted to have been there when Jerry got that big one – awonderful fish.

Juris v


M.I. Re-organization Moves Forward atOctober 2008 Board Meeting in KYfrom Fred Brogle

At the October Board Meeting the new M.I. bylaws of region-alization were passed following discussion and changes on a fewissues. David Cates will re-write those motion changes and we willshare a more detailed summary in a future issue of MUSKIE. Oncethose are complete chapters should look closely at the new bylawsand will be able to submit motion changes as we have done before,with motions submitted at least 45 days before each meeting.

The first “reduced” Board Meeting of MI under the new“regionalization” will occur in the Spring of 2009. This will be thefirst meeting with the Executive Committee (EC) and the RegionalDirectors. All members are invited, as in the past, but the votingboard at this time will be the EC and Regional Directors. RVPs willstill provide chapter input, but this will be done at the Fall Regionalmeetings.

We will continue a transition phase of meetings and staffchanges which may take 2 years. The current 15 At-large Directors(ALDs) will become Regional Directors, then the number of

Regional Directors will be reduced to 12. Eventually there will be3 Regional Directors from each of the 4 Regions and an election ineach Region. Take a look at the new Regional Map (see below).

As for the continued efforts of the SPC, we will be working onthe guidelines for the regions to conduct business, such as the host-ing of meetings; we will also continue to work on policies and pro-cedures.

Board Meeting Logistics, Fishing,and Thanks!from Scott Smalley

From all the feedback I have received about the M.I. BoardMeeting, we put on a good show and the weekend was a success. Thiswas a chapter effort and could not have been pulled off without allthe help from many Chapter 57 members who donated their timeand efforts.

Thanks to all who brought their boats and graciously guided ourboard members from around the nation. We had 38 people who reg-istered to fish. Dana Smith from Seneca, IL fished with MikeTackett; they boated 4 fish and came in 1st in our outing with a 393/4” and a 35 1/4”, total 23 points. Mark Fangman of Morehead(and Chapter 52) came in 2nd with a 45 1/2” for 20 points. ScottSmalley of Maysville (also Chapter 52) came in 3rd with a 45” for 19points. We used the Muskies, Inc. scoring system

Special thanks to Scott Salchli, Cave Run Guide Service, and toMike Tackett, Cave Run Pro Shop and Guide Service, for their gen-erosity and continued support of our chapter by helping us with ourouting prizes of a BullDawg Rod and Ambassador Reel. What a greatweekend!

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A note from Perry Peterson - Vice President for Internal AffairsDear Muskies, Inc. Members,

Let me say that I am truly exited about this opportunity to serveas your Vice President for Internal Affairs. I want you all to knowthat although this will be “new” to me, I will give it 100%. Here’s alittle more about me.

I grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I started muskie fishingat a very young age with my father who was also my favorite “fishingbuddy”. We first started fishing muskies in Northern Minnesota,but quickly switched over to Wisconsin and the fabled Hayward area.My father was from that area originally and that I think that madehim biased toward that area. For many years we had a place on the“Big Chip” and I still have many wonderful memories of those timeswith my dad. Growing-up and through my college days my twobest memories are of playing hockey and muskie fishing inWisconsin with my dad. I am an alumnus of Minnesota StateUniversity – Mankato . . . Mavericks!

I first learned of, and joined, Muskies, Inc. in my early twenties.I have always thought Gil Hamm was a genius for the creation of the“Catch and Release” Philosophy...I still do! I can not imagine whata hard sell that must have been in the beginning. I know that educat-ing anglers out here in Washington about our “Tigers” has been agreat challenge in itself!

I am one of the Founders and President of Chapter 57 out herein the beautiful State of Washington. We have some great peopleout this way and we have achieved many great milestones already.One of our goals that I am most proud of, is our new “50 inch min-imum” law change this year. We were able to get this change madewithin a year! We went from a 36 inch minimum to a 50 inch min-imum thanks to the work of our many NW TIGER PAC members.I am very proud of them!

I will be networking with past Internal Affairs V.P.’s so I can tryto get a thorough education about my duties. I understand that somegreat people have served in this capacity so I will have the best men-tors. I am looking forward to serving you and a great year ahead.

A note from Kathryn A.Goon – M.I. Treasurer

In August 2008, I was asked to returnas the Treasurer for Muskies, Inc. Since Ileft Muskies, Inc. in 2004, I have beenvery busy. I finished my degree fromAshland University and received a Mastersin Business Administration. I left my 10-year position with the Ashland ScaleCompany, Inc. to become a CertifiedBusiness Advisor with AshlandUniversity’s Small Business DevelopmentCenter. I work with new and existingsmall businesses to help them get startedor improve their business practices. Theservices are free since the Small BusinessAdministration and the Ohio Departmentof Development fund us.

In 2007, I started teaching theIntroduction to Entrepreneurship class asan adjunct. I am also a Certified

ProAdvisor for QuickBooks. I volunteer as the Treasurer for theDauch College of Business & Economics Relay for Life Team.

Having played softball for 4 years in college in the early 90s, Itry to stay involved in the sport. I am a pitching coach for fast-pitchsoftball and have helped some male friends coach 10-12 year old girlswho are learning to pitch; my experience seems give me a bit morepatience.

I have still managed to get out a few times during the summermonths to fish. We dock a boat on Leesville Lake in Ohio and fishsome out of Clearfork. I was even in the boat fishing this past Junewhen I was 8 months pregnant. The only trick was trying not to top-ple into the water while trying to cast off the platform in the back ofthe boat.

I have been married for 15 years on October 30, 2008 to JimGoon and we now have a 3-month-old son named Braylon Matthew.We reside in Polk, Ohio. I’m glad to be back working again withMuskies, Inc.

M.I. Hall of Fame Nominationsfrom Keith “Releaser” Ogden

The Muskies, Inc. Hall of Fame Committee is requesting nom-inations for inductees for 2009. Nominations should be submittedby January 15th.

For previously submitted nominations we will need updates.Just like the Baseball Hall of Fame, sometimes it takes multiple nom-inations before a candidate is selected.

You know a person who has dedicated their life to the bettermentof M.I. - please send a brief nomination for this very special person.Please include the years they have dedicated to the M.I. mission, thepositions they may have held with their chapter or at the nationallevel, notable accomplishments, and any other special attributes.

Let’s get these people recognized! Please send nominations via“snail mail” to:

Keith Ogden9110 143rd Ave NECavalier, ND 58220

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From My Soapbox . . . Right off the bat I want to make a few important things quite

clear. I’m really proud of Muskies, Inc. I’m really proud of ourstrong catch-and-release philosophy. I’m proud to be a 31-year (life)member of this fine organization. I’m amazed at the long-term con-tributions of so many wonderful M.I. volunteers at the chapter andnational level. I’m extremely grateful to the many outstanding vol-unteers who make MUSKIE Magazine possible; folks like JurisOzols, Jim Bunch, Brad Waldera, and all the chapter reporters whocontribute to MUSKIE on a regular basis. Thanks to all.

I also realize that our editorial team, with me at the helm, makessome mistakes from time to time. Sorry, but I have learned thatwhen you publish a magazine every month which attempts to pulltogether input and photos from an average of 30 to 40 writers, offi-cers, and members, some typos will occur and some photos or words

could have been better. We will always strive to improve and we willalways welcome folks who want to assist or want to offer construc-tive criticism or positive feedback.

With that said, there are some things I will never understand.Over the years I have run into a handful of “muskie extremists” in themuskie fishing world; folks who take their passion to what might beconsidered an unhealthy or counter-productive level. Often thesefolks are unwilling to thoughtfully discuss differences of opinion in acalm manner.

In the past year I have seen outbursts from some such folks whenthey didn’t like a photo, especially if it involved a harvested muskie,regardless of the circumstances. But I’ve also felt their wrath if wehappened to publish a photo of a novice angler, young or old, hold-ing a small muskie for even a quick photo before mandatory release.

Misguided passion can leave to unnecessary alienation. Supposea “muskie extremist” runs into anovice angler who has just caughtand kept their first muskie, quitepossibly their “fish of a lifetime”.Perhaps that muskie was a very legal40-incher in some state like myown. There are two very differentways to handle this encounter. Onewould be to go off the deep end,screaming at the angler, insultingthe angler’s catch, the decision toharvest the legal fish, and theirintegrity. It is highly unlikely that anovice angler treated in this way willhave a positive view of other muskieanglers or of Muskies, Inc. We haveprobably lost an opportunity toeducate this novice about catch-and-release. The other approach isto acknowledge the legal catch andharvest, to explain how rare themuskellunge is, to explain the greatsize potential of the species, and toencourage the angler to considerC&R next time. I’ve done this withvery positive results.

What about informed harvestof a large, legal muskie? Sometimesa muskie will die after the fight; in

8 8Figure 8by Kevin Richards

[email protected]


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that case and in my opinion, if the fish is legal, keep it. Sometimesan angler with a strong C&R history will decide to keep that legalfish of a lifetime. Believe me, the various state and provincial muskiebiologists have taken this into account as they are modeling popula-tions and writing harvest regulations.

In the past 14 years M.I. anglers have released a very high per-centage of the legal 50 to 60-inch muskies they have caught. Never-the-less some of these big muskies have been kept as legal, personaltrophies. We don’t want to reverse the great strides we have made inthe public acceptance of C&R, but we also have no right to belittleanother angler for legally harvesting a fish of any species. We mustcontinue to work with our fisheries agencies to ensure all waters aremanaged with suitable regulations.

Earlier this year I read an editorial by Ken Taggart, editor of theMuskies Canada Release Journal. Ken wrote about well-respectedanglers in each of our countries that caught big muskies that diedduring attempted release. Ken said both anglers “actually receivedhate mail for keeping the fish.” I’m not surprised at this, just sad-dened, as was Ken.

I’m sure that my editorial may stir some negative comments,especially on the various Internet forums and bulletin boards. So beit, I don’t follow those boards too closely anyway. But, if you wantto share your personal perspective on these or any other MUSKIEMagazine issues please don’t hesitate to contact me.

After the thrill of catching your next muskie do your best tocarefully release it to fight another day; the future of our muskieresource will literally be in your hands!

– Kevin

SPORT SHOW LOCATORCalendar of upcoming events in 2009

EVENT NAME/ &DATES WEBSITE LOCATION CITY STATE PHONE

Jan. 9-11 Chicago Muskie Show Harper College Palatine IL 847/328-6200www.chicagomuskieshow.com

Feb. 13-15 Milwaukee Muskie Expo Wisconsin State Fair Park West Allis WI 608/445-4645www.muskieexpo.com

Feb. 20 -22 Rockford Fishing & Indoor Sports Center Rockford IL 815/877-8043Outdoor Expowww.showtimeproduction.net

Feb. 27- Madison Fishing Show Exhibition Hall at the Madison WI 608/245-1040Mar. 1 www.madfishexpo.com Alliant Center

April 3-5 Minnesota Muskie Expo Concordia University St. Paul MN 763/786-6031www.minnesotamuskieexpo.com

HELP WANTED!We currently have 2 positions in Muskies,Inc. for which we are seeking dedicated andfocused individuals.

Assistant TreasurerThis individual will work directly with the M.I.Treasurer. For additional information pleasecontact Treasurer Kathryn A. Goon at:

419/945-2940 or at: [email protected]

Advertising SalesRepresentative

This individual will work directly with the Editorof MUSKIE Magazine to solicit paid advertisingto support our publication. Commissions willbe based upon the value of paid ads sold. Foradditional information please contact EditorKevin Richards at:

573/280-2300 or at: [email protected]

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Michael Ehlers!Double Nickel! Twice!

Mike is from Wausau,Wisconsin and chapter 26 which isthe Central Wisconsin Chapter. Helives near the major waters of VilasCounty, Wisconsin but he spends alot of his muskie season in Canada onthe French River. I think if youchecked out the resort he stays at itwould be owned by Art and BrendaBarefoot and is called Bears DenLodge. That name should ring a bell.

Michael is not real heavy intonumbers, except one number, he nowhas 16 fifty inchers in the Lunge Log.This summer on August 22nd hecaught a 55 incher (42.6 pounds) onan Eagletail. Mike said he is 67 yearsold and has been fishing muskiessince he was 8, and that this one wasa very special fish to him. This onewould make anybody’s year (or per-haps muskie-fishing life).

However on the 29th he did itagain by catching yet another 55inch. This one had a 23 inch girthand was probably in the upper 30pound range. This muskie wascaught on an Eagletail Bucktail. Ifyou look him up in the Lunge Log,you will see that he believes in theEagletail.

One of the last things he saidstruck me very hard, “I fished for twoweeks and only caught two fish, both55 inches.” Michael over the last fewyears is not a record setter; howeverhe is fishing a great area and isbecoming very dangerous. Mike isfishing the Delta section of theFrench River just before it goes intoGeorgian Bay.

the Lunge Log

by Jim Bunch

Michael Ehlers, Chapt 26. 55 inches, 8/29/08.French River, ON. Eagletail. Fish I.D. 259843


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Mark Podobinski Again!Last year this man reported a 60-inch muskie.

Because the pictures of this muskie did not do itjustice he got some heat. I sat in the middle of thisand really hated that this was the case. I have beendoing this Lunge Log thing since 1985 and anytime an angler catches a really big muskie they getheat about its legitimacy. I tell each member whodoes catch a really big fish to prepare for that; wehave managed to live with it over the years.

Good morning, hello, he’s back. Yes, he wentto Lac Seul again. He cast, he trolled and he did itagain. This one was not quite as big as last year butat 56.5 X 27.5, wow (you know the formula,LxGxG/800). Those figures put this over 53pounds and I like how this picture matches up with53 pounds. Podobinski, get used to him, this manis dangerous.

(Continued on page 10)

Mark Podobinski, Chapt 03. 56.5 inches, Lac Seul, ON. Jake. Fish I. D. Pending


Muskies, Inc.Past

PresidentsGil Hamm

Edward T. PeterkaRobert Hill

Robert ShoopFrank Schneider

Peter HadleyDuWayne Bakke

Lou CookPeter HadleyBob Schmidt

Larry RamsellLou Cook

Keith OgdenBill Davis

Steve StatlandJohn Hotle

Jim BlaubachSteve Budnik

Jim SmithPaul Framsted

Perry SmithGreg Wells

David Cates

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Lyn Yerman!Lake St. Clair, Again!

There is a reason that if you look at theleader in the Women’s Release division andwhy we have these pictures. Lyn is fromPittsburgh, PA and the Three RiversChapter. She now has 120 entries in theLunge Log and all but one of them is fromLake St. Clair. Back in 2007 she did man-age a 52 inch on LSC. So now here it 2008she has done it again, and 5 days later again.Yes on July 2, 2008 she trolled up a 50.5inch muskie which is the one you are look-ing at. Then 5 days later she did it againwith a 50 inch on July 7th. She believes inthe Wiley Crank Bait, as both came on thisand the Lunge Log shows her faith in thisbait.

Leah Rosset!Chicagoland

Now 300 Entries!Leah Rosset has been around forever in

my mind. Since I can remember she hasbeen the Chapter Contest Chairperson forthe Chicagoland Chapter ofMuskies, Inc. almost from thebeginning of time. In some of theold days I would present her with anaward almost every year. I rememberwhen she and husband Dean wouldchase the longest Illinois releaseevery year. Years come and go andLeah has many behind her, she isnow winning the age thing overmost of us. However she has (as ofOctober 13, 2008) caught her 300th

LUNGE LOG(Continued from page 9)

Lyn Yerman, Chapter 1650.5 inches, 7/2/08Lake St. Clair, ONWiley CrankFish I.D. 255282


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muskie in the Lunge Log. It happenedon the Fox Chain and it was 35 inches.There are only 3 other females in thehistory of Muskies, Inc. who havecaught more muskies than Leah. Ithought that was neat for a lady fromIllinois. I then discovered that two ofthem above her are from Illinois and theother is from Pennsylvania. Isn’t thatamazing?

Now even more amazing, husbandDean has 321 entries, so as a team theyhave 621. I do not have a list of most fora husband and wife team at my disposal,but I would imagine that few are abovethem. This is amazing because a numberof years ago Leah wanted to know if shecould enter their muskies as Team Rossetinstead of Leah and Dean individually. Ihave had breakfast with them inMinnesota, Illinois, Pennsylvania,Wisconsin and elsewhere. I cherish thisevent tremendously.

Jim [email protected]@charter.net715 226-0295


MISSIONSTATEMENT

“Muskies, Inc. is an active,service-oriented, non-profit organ-ization with the single focus ofimproving the sport of muskie fish-ing for men, women, and children.

Our mission is to unite allmuskie fishing interests for thepromotion and protection of ahigh quality muskellunge sportfishery in the United States andCanada.

We will accomplish this bysupporting conservation practicesand research based on soundscientific merit, and carried out byauthorized federal or state agencies,appropriate academic institutions,Muskies, Inc chapters, and theirmembers.

We are committed to theabatement of water pollution;maintenance of records for muskiehabits, growth, and range; and thedissemination of muskie informa-tion to everyone.”

Adopted, April 2002


Most of my fishing and guiding, inthe past, has been for walleyes andsmallmouth. But, lately I’ve been

spending more and more time fishing formuskies. Living in Wisconsin, you have basi-cally two choices, you fish for walleyes or youfish for muskies. Wisconsinites are luckyenough to have an abundance of Class Amuskie lakes and also many rivers that alsohold big muskies.

The range of the muskie has expanded nationally, but the heartof muskie country is Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, and Ontario,Canada. I can fish for Mr. Esox right out my backdoor on theWisconsin River or I can take a 30 minute ride to Madison and fishthe Chain of Lakes (Lakes Mendota, Monona, Wabesa, Kegonsa, andWingra.) All of these waters have stocked muskies and last fall theDNR stocked Leech Lake strain muskies in the Madison lakes. Fishclose to 50 inches are caught, but the average fish is about 40 inches.

Lately, I’ve been using a technique that has produced largemuskies and northerns during the hot months of summer when manyanglers find it necessary to fish at night. I’m not knocking night fish-ing because it is very productive and is a viable method. I’m just try-ing to give the muskie hunter another option and tactic.

I found the technique that I’m going to tell you about by acci-dent. I then tinkered with it a little and added a few stronger parts andpieces to make this new method more successful for me. I was trollingoutside the coontail and cabbage on one lake of the Madison Chainwith larger walleye size crankbaits and Off Shore planer boards (OR-12s) with the OR-14 black releases. I was using Stren originalmonofilament, 12# test and green color to match the lakes summeralgae bloom. My rods were G. Loomis 941 walleye planer board rodswhich are 7’ 10” and help to get your baits away from the boat. Therods have a fast tip, but there is plenty of strength in the rod to catchbig fish.

For this type of fishing, I use Daiwa SG27 Line Counter reels, sothat I know exactly how much line is out and how deep my baits arerunning. Accidentally, I got too close to the weeds and I was soontrolling over the top of them instead of outside the weedline. Guesswhat happened?

I started catching muskies and northerns that were buried in thethick weeds of summer with my crankbaits that I had running highin the water column. My baits were running over the weed tops andthe fish were coming up out of the weeds to hammer my baits. Thesewere not small fish, but a 40” muskie and a 45” pike. I also lost a cou-ple of nice fish that broke off my 12# monofilament. After a fewhours of trying this technique, I was sure that I found a pattern thatworked not for walleyes, but for big pike and muskies.

I planned to try this new tactic the nextday, just to see if this was a fluke or a real pat-tern. I beefed things up a bit to try to catchmost of the striking fish. I switched my line toStren’s Big Game 30# mono and put OR-19clips on my Off Shore boards. The OR-19sare made for muskies, salmon, and big trout.I used the same rods and reels as the daybefore. I also switched to a Banfi CustomLeader about 24” inches long to connect my

line to the lures that I was trolling. Now, I was set!The weather was hot, humid, and overcast with a slight breeze.

During these hot weather months, I’ve found that many muskiesroamed the outside and inside of the weed beds while looking for for-age. They also cruise the scattered weedy flats when looking for aneasy meal. The rest of the time these big fish buried themselves in thethickest weeds they could find and only came out to feed.

My “new” pattern worked again! I trolled Mann’s Stretch Minus1’s, Bucher Shallow Raiders, and Smitty shallow running crankbaitsover the weed tops, enticing these hawgs to come out of the weeds andhit my baits. We had to clean weeds off out lures regularly, but the fishhit with amazing power. We managed to boat three fish from 34” to41” in four hours. Also, try putting a small split shot 2 to 3 feet infront of your bait to help prevent collecting most weeds on your baits.

The other location where you can find summer muskies is sus-pended over deeper water chasing shad, cisco, smelt, perch, or what-ever the forage fish happened to be in the lake that you’re on. Openwater trolling (where legal) is rarely used for muskies, but it’s a goodmethod and will continue to become more popular as more anglersare exposed to it. Off Shore planer boards are the key to getting yourbaits away from the boat and staggering your lures in the water col-umn. If your state allows it, try trolling with planer boards for muskieseither over the weed tops or out in deeper open water. Speed is theother factor to consider. Speed will definitely trigger big fish, so trytrolling at speeds from 2 to 3 MPH, or faster if your crankbaits aretuned properly. If you want to have some fun trying this differentsummertime technique you might want to put planer boards on yourholiday gift list today!

You can reach Gary Engberg at:Gary Engberg Outdoors10106 Hwy. YMazomanie, WI 53560Phone/Fax: 608/795-4208E-mail: [email protected] site: www.garyengbergoutdoors.com

If you want to have some funtrying this different summer-time technique you mightwant to put planer boards onyour holiday gift list today!

Muskies on Boardsby Gary Engberg

How many of us, when we are out muskie fishing, ever stopto think, “what if I could never do this again? What if Ibecame incapacitated in some way and couldn’t make my

annual trip to my favorite lake? What if I contracted a life-threaten-ing illness and had to just hear the tales of other anglers, instead ofbeing able to actually go fishing?”

I recently had the privilege of meeting a rather amazing fisher-man and his wife. This is his story.

Clem Hojnacki went muskie fishing for the first time in his lifewith his friend and personal physician, Robert Strnad, M.D. It wasquite a trip. They went up to Lake of the Woods for approximatelyeighteen solid days of muskie fishing, both day and night.

For the first eight days they were there, they saw absolutely noth-ing in the way of muskies, though they did catchsome northern pike and smallmouth. After theeighth day, things started picking up a little whenClem landed and released a 39” muskie.

Meanwhile, Doc Strnad was showing himsome of the finer points of fishing for the elusivemuskellunge, and in the process, turning a walleyeand smallmouth fisherman into a muskie addict.As the days went by, Clem started really enjoyingthe art of muskie fishing and also became more adept at it. He beganto bring up more muskies, and even missed a few, until on theeleventh day he caught and released a 47” lunker.

Things were beginningto look up for Clem. This wasreally turning into a great tripfor someone who had neverfished for muskies before. Justwhen he thought thingscouldn’t possibly get any bet-ter, Clem landed and releaseda 48” fish on the thirteenthday. Who said that thirteen is unlucky? Clem would argue about that.

By the fourteenth day, things were starting to slow down again,and try as he might, Clem couldn’t get any muskies. On the fifteenthday, things started out slowly again, but sure picked up in a hurry

when the impossible happened and Clem nailedand released a 50” monster.

Was this a really strong case of beginner’sluck, or what? Every muskie fisherman strives toget that 50” fish, and not everyone succeeds, butto have it happen to a beginner is almost unheardof. After catching the 50” beauty, Clem decidedhe better slack off a little so that he wouldn’t out-fish his mentor. Doc had been very patient with

instructing him, except when Clem caught pike less than 40”. Docwouldn’t allow any pike less than 40” in the boat. Clem learned veryquickly how to release them at boat-side. Now however, he was hop-ing that Doc would finally start catching some larger muskies.

At this point, he could have really teased Doc about it, but hedidn’t want to push his luck too far. Maybe Clem could have given afew pointers to the doc. (Hee-hee, gotcha, Doc!). It turned out to bequite an exciting trip for Clem, and one that he will long remember.

Later, Clem and Doc went on another fishing trip to catch pea-cock bass in the smaller tributaries of the Amazon River. That trip last-ed for a week during which, they lived on a houseboat and would takea smaller flat-bottom boat up the small channels that appear when theAmazon is in flood stage. Their guide had to use his machete to hacktheir way through the overgrowth of jungle in order to get them intoa small, calm lagoon to fish for the bass. They fished along the shore-line of the lagoon and Doc managed to tie into a beautiful 19 lb. pea-cock bass, while Clem nailed a 13 lb. spotted bass. Clem said that henever had a fish that fought as hard as that bass, and it took him a halfhour to land it. He was really tired after fighting that bass, and said thatit pulled so hard and continuously, that he thought he had a whale onthe end of his line. All fish were released after a few pictures, and areprobably still swimming in that same lagoon.

By this time you are probably thinking that Clem took a coupleof nice fishing trips, but there is nothing really amazing about that.Yes, he was lucky and skillful enough to land four muskies during hisfirst-ever muskie trip, but that isn’t really amazing, as some othershave probably done it too. Catching a 50” fish puts him in a selectgroup, but again, that isn’t really amazing either. Put everything thathappened together, and it still falls a little short of the amazing cate-gory. So what really makes Clem such an amazing man? He really goesfor the gusto in life, though he is living with terminal cancer.

A little over four years ago, Clem was diagnosed with prostate can-cer, which had metastasized. He had already been fighting colon can-cer since 1990, but he was informed that it had also metastasized. Inaddition, he was diagnosed with lymphoma and lupus, yet in spite ofbeing told by doctors at over seven different hospitals that he had only


The Not-So-Terminal Manby Lynn Polyak

Clem is living with hisdiagnosis and has madehis health problems apart of his ongoing life.

six months to live, he is still very muchalive and enjoying life to the best of hisability. Occasionally, he has had to missfishing trips due to being hospitalizedand/or having problems due to thechemotherapy, but he still bounces rightback and picks up where he left off. Clemis living with his diagnosis and has madehis health problems a part of his ongoinglife. In effect, he has said to his disease,“You can come along for the ride, but Iam not letting you stop me from doingwhat I want to do. You have given it yourbest shot, but right now, we are at astand-off, and that’s where I want it to stay. I am not giving you aninch, because then you will take a mile. You may occasionally take aninch, but I am grabbing it right back as soon as I can.”

One cannot help but admire his courage, attitude, and spirit, buthe takes no credit for it, instead giving all of the credit to his doctorsand the friends who keep him busy. He is especially grateful to Dr.Strnad, who has really fought for the life of his patient after others hadgiven up on him. Clem said that he owes his life to Doc, and that is adebt that can never be repaid.

Clem’s wife of 45 years, Jackie, provides strong support. Shemakes detailed notes of all of his trips after he returns from them, thuskeeping them fresh in his memory. She encourages him to go on thesetrips and to thoroughly enjoy himself, while she stays home and wor-ries about his health. However, when he is fishing with Doc, she does-n’t worry quite as much, because she knows that Doc will do every-thing in his power as a physician and friend, to make sure that Clemreturns home safely. Doc has all of the latest in communication devices

on his boat so that should Clem needheavy-duty medical attention, help canbe summoned quickly. Clem can goanyplace where medical help is only ashort float plane trip away.

A little bit off the track, but aninteresting side note, is that Clem’s 9years-old grandson, Michael, uponhearing how sick his grandpa was,asked his dad for permission to give allof the money he had, $103, to cancerresearch to help find a cure for hisgrandpa and others who were sufferingfrom the disease. His dad allowed him

to give $50 of his total savings, but for Michael, this wasn’t enough, sohe asked his dad if he could give the additional $3, and his dad acqui-esced. This kid really knows how to bargain, and Clem and Jackie saythat he is an old soul in a child’s body.

I asked Jackie how she copes with the worries about Clem’s healthissues when he goes on these trips, and she replied that although sheworries, she also has confidence in Doc being able to bring Clem backsafely, as has been the case. His happiness is very important to herhappiness, and she stated that when he cannot go on a scheduled tripbecause of a medical problem and/or hospitalization, she is probablymore heart-broken about it than he is. She realizes how importantthese fishing trips are to him, and wants him to be able to go as oftenas possible.

They are a lovely couple, fully devoted to each other. Thoughgiven a diagnosis of terminal cancer a little over four years ago,through the work and faith of both of them and their doctors, Clemhas proven to be the not-so-terminal man. v


Ben Ruffing won the Bob Ellis Classic when hecaught and released his first muskie, a fine 42-inchertrolling a Baby DepthRaider. Here his dad Jeff holds

the fish before releasing it back into Crab Lake.

Ben Ruffing, 2008 champion rowtroller, with the BEC trophy. Hisfather Jeff reported that he tookit out of the box several times on

the way home to admire it.

Bob’s brother Stan Ellis row trolling in the lateafternoon sun on Papoose. This was one of

Bob’s very favorite lakes.

Many of the Ellis relatives attended the Bob EllisClassic V. Bob was inducted into Hayward’s

Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame this year as aLegendary Angler. Pictured here is Bob’s sister-in-law Patt (Stan’s wife) and Bob’s brother, Dave, at

the Papoose Lake boat landing.

Linda Rikkers (Capitol City MI) and Patricia Strutz(Headwaters MI) rowing and smiling, by now in sunshine.

The morning fog burned away by noon and the rest ofthe BEC took place in a beautiful late-fall Wisconsin day.

The traditional “Group Shot” taken in the parking lot of Skyview Lodge. These are only some ofthe 30+ boats/rowers that participated. Rich Molchan’s extraordinary Whitehall Spirit is the focal

point.

Father and son Jeff & Ben Ruffing from Kaukauna,Wisconsin, new row trollers preparing to go out

into the morning fog of Crab Lake.The “Bob Ellis Classic Revolving Trophy.”

Last year’s winners and this year’s champi-on need to be added yet. The trophy show-cases one of Bob’s handmade crankbaits.

Ben Ruffing won the Bob Ellis Classic when hecaught and released his first muskie, a fine 42-inchertrolling a Baby DepthRaider. Here his dad Jeff holds

the fish before releasing it back into Crab Lake.

Ben Ruffing, 2008 champion rowtroller, with the BEC trophy. Hisfather Jeff reported that he tookit out of the box several times on

the way home to admire it.

Bob’s brother Stan Ellis row trolling in the lateafternoon sun on Papoose. This was one of

Bob’s very favorite lakes.

Many of the Ellis relatives attended the Bob EllisClassic V. Bob was inducted into Hayward’s

Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame this year as aLegendary Angler. Pictured here is Bob’s sister-in-law Patt (Stan’s wife) and Bob’s brother, Dave, at

the Papoose Lake boat landing.

Linda Rikkers (Capitol City MI) and Patricia Strutz(Headwaters MI) rowing and smiling, by now in sunshine.

The morning fog burned away by noon and the rest ofthe BEC took place in a beautiful late-fall Wisconsin day.

The traditional “Group Shot” taken in the parking lot of Skyview Lodge. These are only some ofthe 30+ boats/rowers that participated. Rich Molchan’s extraordinary Whitehall Spirit is the focal

point.

Buckshot Anderson and his son Chris at theSkyview Lodge. Another legendary row

troller, Buckshot Anderson, has guided outof a row boat for 58 years. The Andersonshail from Sayner, Wisconsin. Buckshot was

awarded the “Bob Ellis ConservationistAward” which is presented each year tosomeone who has promoted the sport of

row trolling, muskie fishing in general, andconservation.

Scenes From the 5th Annual Bob Ellis Row Trolling ClassicPresque Isle, Papoose, and Crab Lakes, Wisconsin – October 18, 2008

Geoff Crandall (Capitol City Chapter) singinga couple of row trolling songs that he com-posed. Great thing was, everyone joined in

singing the lyrics!

Ron Schara’s camera man, Mike Cashman,filming rowboats going out into the fog at

Crab Lake landing.

arking lot of Skyview Lodge. These are only some ofh Molchan’s extraordinary Whitehall Spirit is the focal

point.

The awards ceremony and dinner Saturdayevening at Skyview. Mike Cashman also filmedthis for use in the “Legends of Rod and Reel”

show.

Geoff Crandall (Capitol City Chapter) singinga couple of row trolling songs that he com-posed. Great thing was, everyone joined in

singing the lyrics!

Mike Cashman from “Legends of Rod andReel” filming Patricia Strutz (Headwaters MI)and Linda Rikkers (Capital City MI) as theyrow troll in the fog on Papoose Lake. The

Bob Ellis Classic will be featured on anupcoming episode of the television showwhich is a Ron Schara production. Dave

Hardt provided the “Camera Boat.”

Ron Schara’s camera man, Mike Cashman,filming rowboats going out into the fog at

Crab Lake landing.

The view from the back of a fine two-personwooden Row Troller. Note the profusion of

equipment – four oars, four trolling rods, andone piece of modern equipment, a depth finder.

arking lot of Skyview Lodge. These are only some ofh Molchan’s extraordinary Whitehall Spirit is the focal

point.

A close-up shot of Dave Mittlesteadt (front) andVern Nesser (back) after many hours of rowtrolling on Presque Isle lake. But yet their

spirits are high. Dave and Vern are featured inthe December page of the 2008 Muskies, Inc.calendar, with a photo taken in the snow two

year’s ago at the Papoose boat landing.

l Bob Ellis Row Trolling ClassicLakes, Wisconsin – October 18, 2008

MAMAS, DON’T LETYOUR BABIES GROW UPTO BE MUSKIE TROLLERS(Sung to the tune of “Mamas, Don’t Let Your

Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys” by Willie Nelson)

Mamas, don’t let your babiesgrow up and be muskie trollers.

Don’t let’em troll hookers anddrive them old trucks

Have them fish bluegills andcrappies and such.

Mamas, don’t let your babiesgrow up and be row trollers.

They’ll never stay home & they’llfish through a storm

Even with lightnin’ above.

Row trolling pits man or woman in a small,unpowered craft against the wide expanse of

nature and the ever-elusive Muskie.

The awards ceremony and dinner Saturdayevening at Skyview. Mike Cashman also filmedthis for use in the “Legends of Rod and Reel”

show.

Throughout the morning, a light rainplayed tug-of-war with patches of bluesky and puffy clouds. Ponchos, rain

jackets and windbreakers dotted the shorelineand virtually HUNDREDS of kids formed aring around the small lake, ready with everyimaginable piece of tackle and about every kindof lure known to mankind. The weather didn’tdeter any of them. Smiles and laughter punctu-ate the early morning as each of them expects to“land the big one”! The starter horn blares outthe signal, baits are cast- and almost immediate-ly kids yell out for judges that they’ve got a fishto be measured….

On the second Saturday of August eachyear, the ritual is repeated. Fox River ValleyChapter # 39 from Elgin, Illinois puts on theannual Bartlett Kids Fishing Derby. A tremen-dous amount of help comes from Dan Mitchelland his staff at the Bartlett Park District. Theyare a critical source of support and honestly wecould not stage the event without theirimmense contribution. We also count on andreceive annual support from local merchants,businesses and chapter sponsors from theChicago area.

Between four and six hundred youngstersturn out to fish the Beaver Pond in Bartlett,Illinois for a four-hour derby. Daughters fishwith dads, sons with moms, grandkids withgrandparents. Families connect, the outdoorstakes center stage, and connecting with naturehas meaning once again.

For a few hours, fishing competes with, and wins, over otherinterests and pastimes. For just that little sliver of time on a summermorning, kids remember that fishing and the outdoors should have

a place in their lives.Conservation is demonstrat-ed to and by the kids in waysthat helps them understand.Maybe it’s releasing a bigbass or even a small bluegillto fight again another day.Maybe it’s explaining to thekids that when they practiceCPR, they can put a smileon another young angler’sface sometime down theroad.

Kids “get it” and there’s

nothing more gratifying than seeing a young-ster carefully handle a small crappie, bluegill orbass so it isn’t injured going back into the waterafter a careful measurement. Smiles are all overthe place and the fun is absolutely contagious.

Before the derby begins, the youngsters aregrouped in age brackets and a rules meeting isheld prior to the blast of the air-horn signifyingthe start of the derby. Volunteers roam thebeaver pond, measuring devices in hand, to getaccurate lengths on all fish caught. Leaderboards are marked and put on easels for all tosee (the kids get a big kick out of seeing theirnames on the stage).

Started from humble beginnings in the1990s as the brainchild of a board member ofthe FRV chapter, the Kids Derby has now takena central role in the chapter’s commitment tothe youth component of the Muskies, Inc. mis-sion. Over the years, the derby has seen partic-ipation continue to grow into an event that hasbecome so successful it requires huge coordina-tion by chapter members and officers. MikeZaborowski, co-director for the chapter’s youthprograms and the driving force behind thederby, starts by laying out a budget and present-ing it to the chapter’s board eight months priorto event.

While getting commitments from mem-bers and non-member volunteers, Mike workstirelessly throughout the year to successfullyorganize the details of the derby. Coordinating

with vendors and sponsors toarrange donations and prizes,planning out derby age brack-ets, organizing volunteers, andproviding liaison with the ParkDistrict are just a few of thetasks at hand. The list goes onand on. Mike has shown thathe can organize with the bestof them. Watching him smilethrough the entire event as hemarshals chapter volunteersand organizes the activitiesmakes one wonder who’s hav-ing more fun, Mike or thekids!

Several years ago as thederby tradition really started

Derby Day onthe Beaver Pond!

by Todd BergFox River Valley Chapter #39

For a few hours, fishingcompetes with, and wins,over other interests andpastimes. For just thatlittle sliver of time on asummer morning, kidsremember that fishingand the outdoors shouldhave a place in their lives.


taking root, the event became a fun com-petition with some measuring of fish andbragging rights thrown in for fun. Today,that fun level of competition has grownto include Mike setting up the derbyexactly like the chapter’s semi-annual“Challunge On The Chain” fundraisingtournaments. Chapter President RichGallagher tows his boat into the beaverpond park for show and tell. Rich alsodoes a masterful job as Emcee of theevent from a stage with a sound system. He purposely dresses in fulltournament gear and with sponsor banners flying, interviews kids upon stage on a live microphone as prizes are awarded, and gets tacticsand tips from them on their success. The kids get the feel and excite-

ment of fishing an actualtournament. When you see a9-year old take a micro-phone and start talkingabout how they caught thatcrappie, bluegill, bass or cat-fish and how hard that fishfought you can’t help butsmile. The smiles and hugsand applause give us theenergy to start planning fornext year nearly as soon asthe current event is over!

As the event has grown in size and attendance, it became clearthat the kids absolutely loved the fishing but were “over-the topCRAZY” about the awards ceremony afterward. They compare noteson who caught what, using what baits, and where on the pond theywere fishing. Expanding on that theme, Mike organized a presenta-tion which includes prizes for nearly every single kid who fishes theevent. Rods, reels, tackle packs, lures, clothing, hats - you name it,are all given out as awards.

Mike is a first class youth director and when he asks chaptersponsors for support and tells them the cause it’s hard for them to sayno to the kids!

Like other M.I. chapters who work hard at fulfilling our mis-sion, we are indebted to our sponsor partners. Without them, eventslike this would be impossible to pull off. The Fox River ValleyChapter of M.I. graciously acknowledges the donations and ongoingsupport of Cabela’s, Bobbie Baits, Dicks’ Sporting Goods, ScottWaligurski and Kurt Eltvedt of Northwestern Mutual Financial

Network & Musky Tales. Our thanks toFrank Bottiglieri for building a custom-made spinning rod for our raffle. Hats offto our own “Big Goomba” Rich Gallagherfor donating a 1/2 day guided fishing tripon the Fox Chain of Lakes and for beingthe very capable Emcee for the event. Toall of them we issue a heartfelt thanksfrom us and from the kids who they helpmake so very happy. v

Looking for gifts for your fishing friends?

Get them...

2009Muskies, Inc.CalendarsOrder today and sendyour order with a checkfor $12.95* for eachcalendar ordered to:

Muskies, Inc.14257 Waters Edge TrailNew Berlin, WI 53151*Includes shipping & handling

Name: ___________________________________Address: _________________________________City: ____________________________________State: _______ Zip: ______________________


Remember this great photo from the October 2008 issueof MUSKIE? It was submitted by Sean Murphy and itwas 52-inch muskie with a 26.75-inch girth – WOW!

However, a few days after the October issue came out I received thismessage from Sean, “I just opened my MI mag to see a wonderful pictureof my wife (Denise) and Jody Mills holding a giant fish. Great pic,thanks for posting it . . . The fish was caught by my wife, Denise, out ofJody Mill’s boat, fishing in Georgian Bay. I would love to take creditfor the fish, but I didn’t catch her!”

Thinking I was in big trouble, I responded to Sean right away andsaid I hoped that Denise was a VERY understanding wife.

Sean wrote back, “Don’t worry, Denise got a kick out of it! Mybiggest worry was that the article indicated that the fish may have beencaught on Big Sand Lake . . . I wish they were that big in there, but theyare not.”

Sean sent me “the rest of the story” and stated that Denise caught thebig just as a full moon was rising and the sun was setting. CongratsDenise!! Here’s the full story, enjoy!

On October 24th, my wife Denise, and I, made our annualtrip to Georgian Bay to fish with guide Jody Mills. We nor-mally only fish for three days with Jody in search of a

Georgian Bay giant, knowing all to well that three days in search ofa fish of a lifetime doesn’t exactly put the odds in our favor, especial-ly on a low density body of water such as Georgian Bay. We dounderstand, however, that in order to catch a giant, you need to fishwater where they actually swim. Hence, ever year, especially in thefall, we find ourselves trying to figure out how we are going to get upto Georgian Bay to fish with Jody.

As Jody often says, “It is amazing that we ever catch these fish.There is always way more working against you, than for you.” Theonly thing that we do have any control over is when we go.

Generally, the fish will be bigger later in the year, and generally,fishing a new or full moon pushes things in your favor. So, this yearwe booked three days beginning with the October full moon. Theother thing, of course, we had going for us was the countless hoursthat Jody has spent on the Bay. One look at his Lowrance tells thestory...countless icons, waypoints, trails, etc., all helping to make very


Denise Murphy’s Big Muskie[Photo correction]

+Proper Muskie

Holding Techniquesfor MUSKIE Magazine Photos

including Covers, Article Support,Photo Contest Entries

& Member Photos

big water at times almost seem small. We hit the water late morning,ran about a half an hour to a large bay. The end of the bay heldmusky spawning grounds, while the mouth opened the gates tomighty Lake Heron. In between was a puzzle - thousands of acres ofaqua-green water as deep as one hundred feet with stunning visibili-ty, with a series of humps. We spent much of our time trollingaround the humps that Jody had found in the past to hold bait andmuskies. Some of the humps in the bay consistently disappointed,and we would occasionally run over them just to verify there status,“Can’t say I understand it, but this hump just never seems to holdfish”, Jody would say.

We were fishing under high pressure and blue bird skies. At onepoint we were happy to see four small clouds in the horizon. Buteven they didn’t stay around for long. As the day went along, we evenlost what little wind we had. We hadn’t had a pull all day. We hadn’tseen another boat either. There was only one cottage on the wholebay and it looked closed up for the winter. We had the entire bay tooourselves. A few of the bumps were holding bait and a few muskies.“With this high pressure, all we are doing is zeroing in on where weare going to fish this evening at moon rise.” What Jody was referringto was the 6:14 pm moonrise, which promised to be spectaculargiven the clear skies. We were also holding on to the fact that sun setwas only minutes after moonrise. “If something is going to happen,an hour before moon up, to an hour after gives us our best chance”.

Because the sun was so low in the horizon pounding the skywith color, the giant moon peaking over the tree-covered horizonwasn’t easy to see. As a matter of fact, if we weren’t looking for it, Iam not sure we would have even noticed it, despite how big it was.A few minutes passed and the moon in its entirety had cleared thehorizon. Wow. Even though this iswhat we had been waiting for allday to trigger a fish, our attentionwas more on what was happeningin the sky than what was happen-ing on the Lowrance. We lookedto the west as the sun slid lower.

For the first time all day, weweren’t even thinking about fish-ing. I was thinking how lucky wewere to love a sport that offeredmore rewards than just catchingfish. It was just awesome. For amoment, both the sun and themoon, at complete opposite endsof the bay, were exactly the samedistance from the treetops. I feltfor a second like the three of uswere at a tennis match as welooked to the west, and then theeast, and then back to the westagain. All we could say was,“Wow.”

I thought how cool it wouldbe if we had a camera that had awide-angle lens wide enough toactually capture this! “Hey, Jodyand Denise, wouldn’t it be cool ifwe had a camera that could....”Pow! One of the down rodsunloaded! Jody yelled, “fish!”

I trade the financial markets for living. As strange as it maysound, I think there are many similarities between trading and fish-ing. When I was young in the business my boss gave me his take onbeing a trader, he said, “Most of the time it is like you are at school,at recess... every once in a while there is a pop quiz, and if you fail,you are kicked out of school”. Well, it was pop quiz time on Jody’sboat!

Between clearing lines and moving rods to the front of the boat,making sure bolt cutters, pliers, tape measure and cameras were readyto go, there wasn’t a whole lot of talking going on. I did hear Jodysay, “Nope, you have to stand up to fight this fish”. I later askedDenise about this and she said, “Oh yeah, he said that to me as hewas pulling me to my feet. The fish had pulled so hard I went downon one knee.” Good lord! The fish came to the boat, looked to behooked okay and rolled hard. The first thing we noticed was hergirth, the second, the fact that the bait was no longer in her mouth,but lying against her side. She had rolled the bait out and was onlybeing held by one roll of the line around her belly. We were horrified!Ready or not, with one deliberate scoop, Jody had her in the net!

She laid perfectly still for a quick easy measurement. 52 x 26.75.Wow, a solid 45-pound fish at least. A handful of pictures and shewas back in the water. When she decided to go, she powered awaystrong.

“It is amazing that we ever catch these fish”, still rings loud inmy head. Sometimes, all it takes is choosing the right hump, on theright day, at the right hour, with the right bait at just the rightspeed...looking east to the moon, and then west to the sun, back tothe east again, and...Hang on! v


Chicago MusJoe Bucher Jim Saric Steve Heiting Steve HerbeckSpence Petros

Partial Exhibitor List

Friday, January 9th •MuskyMayhem Tackle LLC Day

1:00 BRAD HOPPE Sponsored by Musky Mayhem TackleDinnertime: Musky Style

2:30 LEE TAUCHEN Sponsored by Esox AnglerForty Is The New Thirty

4:00 LUKE RONNESTRAND Sponsored by Musky BusterModern, Shallow Water Muskies

5:30 BOB MEHSIKOMER Sponsored by Simply FishingCalling Out The Hawgs

7:00 PAUL THORNE Sponsored by Crazy CrankNew Wave Muskie Tackle

Saturday, January 10th • Musky Hunter DayAll Speakers Sponsored by Musky Hunter Magazine

10:00 STEVE HEITINGMuskies: Go With The Flow

11:30 JOE BUCHERLure Color Doesn’t Matter

1:00 JIM SARICTough Tactics For Rough Conditions

2:30 MIKE HULBERT Poolside Demonstration4:00 SPENCE PETROS

Blade Bait Tricks For More Muskies4-6 p.m. OPEN POOL Sponsored by Musky Innovations

Featuring All Exhibitors5:30 CHAD CAIN

Choose the Right Lure For The Right Situation

Sunday, January 11thRollie & Helen’s Musky Shop Day

MC Pete Stoltman10:00 STEVE HERBECK and ROB MANTHEI

Sponsored by Andy Myers Lodge & Fibber’s RestaurantCanadian Tactics: Small Things That Big A Big Difference

11:45 POOLSIDE DEMOS MC Ken Jackson and Russ WaryeMultiple Manufacturers

1:30 SCOTT KIEPER Sponsored by Musky InnovationsWisconsin Monsters In Pressured Waters

1:30-3:30 OPEN POOL Sponsored by Musky InnovationsFeaturing All Exhibitors

3:00 KEN JACKSON Sponsored by Rollie & Helen’s Musky ShopArc On The Lake

• Retailers: Rollie & Helen’s Musky Shop, Thorne Bros., Smokey’sMusky Shop, Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, Crash’s Landing, Pastika’s,Kurt’s Island Sport Shop

• Publications • Resorts & Guides• Custom Rod Makers • Taxidermists & Artists• Boat Dealers: Bedford Sales: Ranger, Stratos; Basas Marine:

Lund, Crestliner; Broken Oar Marina: Yar Craft•

FREE SEMINARSMusky Mayhem Tackle LLC Seminar Hall

Manufacturers: American Hardwood Lures, Bait Rigs TackleCo., Joe Bucher Fishing, Crane Baits, Crazy Crank, DadsonCustom Rods, Custom Spinners, DeLong Lures, Du-BroProducts, Duck Tail Lures, Eagle Tail Lures, Frabill, FudallyTackle, Fishing Pool Tackle, Gooch Tackle, Grandma Lures,Hellraiser Tackle, Hi-Fin Tackle, Holcombe Tackle, J.D. Lures,Lee’s Lures, LeLure, Meat & Potatoes Tackle Co., Musky

Innovations, Musky Magic Tackle, Musky Mania Tackle,Musky Mayhem Tackle, Musky Mojo Tackle, NimmerSwimmer Lures, Red October Baits, Ryan’s CustomLeaders, Shack Attack, Shimano, Shumway Tackle,Slammer Tackle, Smitty Baits, Smoker Tackle, Spanky

Baits, Suick Lure Manufacturing, St. Croix Rods, TrueGlide, Wishin Lures.

PoolsideDemos

14th

Annua

l JANUARY 9-10-11, 2009

FREE DRAWINGS!Daily Door Prizes for Early Arrivals

Friday: Hourly giveaways of one custom-tied Cowgirl.Courtesy of Musky Mayhem Tackle

Saturday: Free drawing of Musky Hunter Jacket.Courtesy of Musky Hunter Magazine

Sunday: Free drawings of four all-new Ambassadeurreel and St. Croix rod combos to attendees at theconclusion of the poolside demos. Courtesy of Rollie &Helen’s Musky Shop

GRAND PRIZE: Musky tackle box filled with 40 choicemusky baits! All paid attendees (Friday-Saturday-Sunday)are eligible. Winner need not be present.Many additional prizes donated by exhibitors at the show!

Chicago Muskie Show-2 pager:Chicago Muskie Show-2 pager 10/24/08 8:58 AM Page 1


Chicago MusJoe Bucher Jim Saric Steve Heiting Steve HerbeckSpence Petros

Partial Exhibitor List

Friday, January 9th •MuskyMayhem Tackle LLC Day

1:00 BRAD HOPPE Sponsored by Musky Mayhem TackleDinnertime: Musky Style

2:30 LEE TAUCHEN Sponsored by Esox AnglerForty Is The New Thirty

4:00 LUKE RONNESTRAND Sponsored by Musky BusterModern, Shallow Water Muskies

5:30 BOB MEHSIKOMER Sponsored by Simply FishingCalling Out The Hawgs

7:00 PAUL THORNE Sponsored by Crazy CrankNew Wave Muskie Tackle

Saturday, January 10th • Musky Hunter DayAll Speakers Sponsored by Musky Hunter Magazine

10:00 STEVE HEITINGMuskies: Go With The Flow

11:30 JOE BUCHERLure Color Doesn’t Matter

1:00 JIM SARICTough Tactics For Rough Conditions

2:30 MIKE HULBERT Poolside Demonstration4:00 SPENCE PETROS

Blade Bait Tricks For More Muskies4-6 p.m. OPEN POOL Sponsored by Musky Innovations

Featuring All Exhibitors5:30 CHAD CAIN

Choose the Right Lure For The Right Situation

Sunday, January 11thRollie & Helen’s Musky Shop Day

MC Pete Stoltman10:00 STEVE HERBECK and ROB MANTHEI

Sponsored by Andy Myers Lodge & Fibber’s RestaurantCanadian Tactics: Small Things That Big A Big Difference

11:45 POOLSIDE DEMOS MC Ken Jackson and Russ WaryeMultiple Manufacturers

1:30 SCOTT KIEPER Sponsored by Musky InnovationsWisconsin Monsters In Pressured Waters

1:30-3:30 OPEN POOL Sponsored by Musky InnovationsFeaturing All Exhibitors

3:00 KEN JACKSON Sponsored by Rollie & Helen’s Musky ShopArc On The Lake

• Retailers: Rollie & Helen’s Musky Shop, Thorne Bros., Smokey’sMusky Shop, Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, Crash’s Landing, Pastika’s,Kurt’s Island Sport Shop

• Publications • Resorts & Guides• Custom Rod Makers • Taxidermists & Artists• Boat Dealers: Bedford Sales: Ranger, Stratos; Basas Marine:

Lund, Crestliner; Broken Oar Marina: Yar Craft•

FREE SEMINARSMusky Mayhem Tackle LLC Seminar Hall

Manufacturers: American Hardwood Lures, Bait Rigs TackleCo., Joe Bucher Fishing, Crane Baits, Crazy Crank, DadsonCustom Rods, Custom Spinners, DeLong Lures, Du-BroProducts, Duck Tail Lures, Eagle Tail Lures, Frabill, FudallyTackle, Fishing Pool Tackle, Gooch Tackle, Grandma Lures,Hellraiser Tackle, Hi-Fin Tackle, Holcombe Tackle, J.D. Lures,Lee’s Lures, LeLure, Meat & Potatoes Tackle Co., Musky

Innovations, Musky Magic Tackle, Musky Mania Tackle,Musky Mayhem Tackle, Musky Mojo Tackle, NimmerSwimmer Lures, Red October Baits, Ryan’s CustomLeaders, Shack Attack, Shimano, Shumway Tackle,Slammer Tackle, Smitty Baits, Smoker Tackle, Spanky

Baits, Suick Lure Manufacturing, St. Croix Rods, TrueGlide, Wishin Lures.

PoolsideDemos

14th

Annua

l JANUARY 9-10-11, 2009

FREE DRAWINGS!Daily Door Prizes for Early Arrivals

Friday: Hourly giveaways of one custom-tied Cowgirl.Courtesy of Musky Mayhem Tackle

Saturday: Free drawing of Musky Hunter Jacket.Courtesy of Musky Hunter Magazine

Sunday: Free drawings of four all-new Ambassadeurreel and St. Croix rod combos to attendees at theconclusion of the poolside demos. Courtesy of Rollie &Helen’s Musky Shop

GRAND PRIZE: Musky tackle box filled with 40 choicemusky baits! All paid attendees (Friday-Saturday-Sunday)are eligible. Winner need not be present.Many additional prizes donated by exhibitors at the show!


Friday, January 9 . . . . . . . . . .12 p.m.-9 p.m.Musky Mayhem Tackle LLC Day

Saturday, January 10 . . . . . . . .9 a.m.-7 p.m.Musky Hunter Magazine Day

Sunday, January 11 . . . . . . . . .9 a.m.-5 p.m.Rollie’s & Helen’s Musky Shop Day

and theChicagoland Muskie Hunters& South Side Muskie HawksChapters of Muskies, Inc.

Presented by:

For show & hotel information, call (847) 328-6200 • www.chicagomuskieshow.com

Muskie ShowAdmission Prices

The Chicago Muskie Show is sponsored by:

JANUARY 9-10-11, 2009

Convenient, Easy-To-Find Location

FREE PARKING!Over 2,000 FREE Parking Spaces Available!

HARPER COLLEGERoselle & Algonquin RoadsPalatine, IL

Daily: $103-Day Pass $20

Children under age 13 FREE



Time to hang the stockings and trim the tree. During thesetight economic times, choosing gifts that are truly needed isespecially important. Want to please the musky fishermen

on your list? Here is my annual list of great ideas.

Always NeededIntroduce someone new to Muskies, Inc. Purchase a year’s

membership for them and bring them to your chapter’s next meet-ing. Get involved in one of the outings together...work together onone of the fundraising activities...peruse the latest magazine issue.Share the fever! www.muskiesinc.org (888) 710-8286.

A care package of Atsko products. Most of us have tried theirSno-Seal waterproofing beeswax on our boots, but did you knowthey know have a 10-ounce aerosol that touts permanent water andstain repellency on synthetic materials such as Gore-tex? It is guaran-teed to remain effective and dries odor free. Also, try their Pro-techskin cream—a beeswax based product that will keep the blusterynorth wind from chapping your face and hands. Available at MillsFleet Farm or at www.atsko.com

Send your better half ’s reels in to Sportsman’s Repair Shop ofMosinee, Wisconsin. Owner Chuck Brod will clean, oil, and main-tain them at a reasonable cost and in reasonable time. This is truly atreat as it usually takes me two full days to work on all of my reels,and then I need to order parts! (715) 693-6634, www.sportsmansre-pair.com

You can never have too many leaders. Gene Seuring handcraftsa premium quality variety of them—from quick strike rigs to 100-200# fluorocarbon or 40-150# 19- and 21- strand stainless steel.You have your choice of length (8”-18” for casting, 24”-54” fortrolling) with ball bearing or Rosco swivels and double loc or stay-loc snaps. Available at Smokey’s Muskie Shop,www.smokeysmuskieshop.com. Order directly through Seuring [email protected]

No need for an expensive line winding machine, check outPowerPro’s new EZ Spool packaging. Makes spooling your own reelsreally simple; find dealer list or order direct at www.powerpro.com

You’ve Been a Good Boy Want to be able to burn a Cowgirl without blowing out your

reel (or your wrist?!) Brett Erickson, owner of Thorne Brothers,remarks, “Most of the guides around here have switched to usingShimano’s Trinidad 14. This saltwater reel is durable and has a highspeed ratio (6.2:1) with a large spool capacity. It takes in a hugeamount of line per crank of its oversized power handle and has highefficiency gearing. It takes some getting used to because they don’thave a line guide and you have to manually flip the lever to engagethe spool. One trick is to only fill it about 3/4 full of line.” Availableat www.thornebros.com

Surprise your husband this holiday season with a Hooker, baitthat is!! One of my favorite trolling lures, this oversized crankbaitlooks like it should be artwork hanging on the wall. But, make nomistake—it is one of my top hawg catching lures in late fall.Available at select Gander Mountain stores.

Now, do you need a large tackle box for that big Hooker, Plow,Bigfoot Depthraider, and oversized bucktails? There’s nothing betterthan “The Extreme.” Built in Wisconsin, this box is 19.25” high andeasily keeps all extra large lures organized,

www.lakewoodproducts.com

You’ve Been a Good Girl Don’t You Wish Your Girlfriend Could Fish Like Me? Great

saying, eh? You’ll find it on the back of our WOW! Women on theWater tee shirts now availablein both sky blue and lightpink. Front side displaysWOW logo and The MuskyShop logo; available atwww.ablondandherboat.com

Your own pedestal seatand tackle box...a pedestalpal, senior! This innovativelure storage fits snuglyaround the base of yourbutt/bike seat. It’ll keepyour favorite lures, sun-screen, and other necessitiesonly an arm’s length away.And, it’s portable. So, take itout when you leave so yourhusband doesn’t borrowyour favorite lure! Availableat The Musky Shop inMinocqua or visit

www.lakewoodproducts.com

Stocking StuffersWant to keep in contact with your better half as they traverse

throughout musky country? The new Satellite Personal OutdoorTracker (“Spot”) is capable of sending alerts to family, friends, andeven 911. Built to work in just about all conditions, in very remote

It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas....by Patricia Strutz


locations, this is a fantastic safety device. Available at Bass Pro Shops,www.basspro.com

Mustad’s Elite Series treble hooks are awesome! The unique shapemakes for a great hook-up percentage and their “ultra pointrange” means a hard, sharp point that is nearly impos-sible to dull. Stock up on 2/0 and 3/0 sizes, the36329BLN hook is my choice. Available at manyretailers or, order on-line at www.bassdozer-store.com

For early and late season fishing, I stillfind monofilament line the best choice. I’msold on Cortland’s Endurance super premiummono. It’s highly abrasion resistant, making it agreat trolling line. Find a dealer close to you atwww.cortlandline.com

ThermaCELL’s mosquito repellent cartridge. Oneof my clients brought this product into the boat this pastsummer and I was really impressed. Lasting 12 hours, each mat(refills available) repels black flies, mosquitos, and no-see-ums pro-viding a 15’ x 15’ bug free zone. It runs on a butane cartridge and isavailable at Cabela’s or check it out at www.thermacell.com

Away in a Ranger...Long time Muskies, Inc. supporter Red Wing Lodge is offering

a 10% discount to M.I. members who book a cabin in January,February, or March for a week during the 2009 season (some restric-tions apply). Contact Mike at: (888) 488-5601 or visit www.red-winglodge.net

Looking for something a bit different? Try a few days of muskyfishing on the Pipestone-Clearwater Chain near Emo (Ontario,Canada) and then add in a couple days of remote big pike, smallie,and lake trout fishing on a outpost lake. Vince Pennarun ownsClearwater Lodge and a remote cabin on Dash Lake, accessible onlyby a land portage over a waterfall area. You’ll hear elk bugling andfind complete solitude, visit www.clearwaterlodge.net for info.

If you’re looking to visit the famed Northwest Angle of Lake ofthe Woods, give new camp owners Lori and Kevin Luksik a call.They operate the Northwest Angle Resort and offer a variety ofaccommodations—from basic, inexpensive fishermen’s quarters tothe rustic elegance of a stunningly decorated log cabin. All cabins arestocked with the necessities of life (bedding, towels, dish and cook-ware, etc.) A 10% discount offered to MI members making reserva-tions before the new year, www.northwestangleresort.com

Want to head to across the lake? Long time Witch Bay Campowners Steve and Gail Hockett host a great fishing camp in a greatlocation...in fact, it’s not too far from where I got lucky and caughtmy 50-pounder! For the diehards, they even have a housekeepingcabin open through November. Call for fall season specials, (807)548-3076, www.witchbaycamp.com

Ring in the New Year with New Riggings Is it time for a new trolling motor? I’ve been so pleased with my

Minn Kotas the past ten years. I love the Terrova. It’s electric steer,autopilot, and copilot make it the perfect hands-off motor to run. It’salso extremely easy to stow and deploy—a feature you’ll certainlyappreciate when you are pulling it up for the fortieth time. If you pre-fer a cable steer foot pedal I’ve heard good things about their newestmodel, the Fortrex. Read about it at www.minnkotamotors.com or

visit Boater’s World in Schaumburg, Illinois, and talk to MI member(and store manager) Mike Gregg.

Humminbird’s 700 series has been named best display in 5”screens in the industry. It’s crystal clear 640V x 640H pix-

els provide the captain and the crew to clearly see thepredator marks and structure from any direction.

Available at Dick’s Sporting Goods and manyother retailers.

XM satellite radio and Humminbird havepartnered to bring musky fishermen currentweather and radar images directly into theirelectronic units. XM NavWeather is compati-

ble with Humminbird’s 700, 900, and 1100GPS combo units. With a flexible subscription

plan, users pay only for the months they use theservices, www.humminbird.com

Silver & GoldRoberts Outdoors is offering dazzling chrome patterned

Depthraiders that big muskies won’t be able to resist! Available in sixcolors, including green/silver and purple/silver, call The Musky Shopin Minocqua to order, (715) 356-6011.

Six time tested lures packaged together into a Lunker Kit. Tryout the Mepps gold Giant Killer or silver #5 Aglia; take advantage oftheir website’s December specials. Free shipping and 20% discountsprice the kit at only $62.88—and they’ll throw in a $16 gift card,too, www.mepps.com


Let’s eachmake a New Year’sresolution to intro-

duce a new angler toour sport and our

organization.


Chasing The Winter Blues AwayEmbrace winter with a WARM ice fishing outing. Sound like an

oxymoron? Try out Frabill’s new R2-Tec insulated and fire-retardantportable shelter. Utilizing a cutting edge fabric produced by 3M,Frabill touts this product as “able to beat back liquid nitrogentemps!” Available at Scheels stores or find a dealer atwww.frabill.com

Curl up with a good book; read “Pro Tactics: Muskies” by JackBurns and Rob Kimm.This tome covers strategies for a vast array ofsituations, and, helps fishermen adapt to changing conditions.Available at www.basspro.com

Baby, It’s Cold OutsideKeep your toes toasty by checking out Wolverine’s large array of

quality boots. My personal favorites are the Ridgelines. Offered inboth men and women’s sizes, I wear these insulated gore-tex water-proof boots to row troll in November; www.wolverinebootsand-shoes.com

2008 was VERY WINDY! Get prepared for the elements nextyear by purchasing a lined wind shirt at The Musky Shop,www.muskyshop.com

Rockin’ Around the Xmas TreeBrian Schram is a rocker who also musky fishes. Check out his

band’s CD of rock n roll fishing tunes...The Next Bite, Musky

Maniac, Walleye Today...great songs! Available atwww.petemaina.com or www.shramband.com

Joe Bucher strums a guitar as well as he sets a hook. Jazz up yourholidays with his East Wind Blues CD; available atwww.joebucher.com

Lumps of CoalJohn Laimon, owner of Smokey’s Muskie Shop in Pewaukee,

Wisconsin, is upset that Abu Garcia reels are now made in China.So, he’s blowing out all his inventory—20% off all AG reels instock, call:

(262) 691-9659

Merry Christmas!Merry Christmas to all my fellow Muskies, Inc. members. It is

my sincere hope that you enjoy a wonderful, safe, and blessed holi-day season. As I reflect on the many blessings in my life one thingthat I’m very grateful for is this brotherhood of musky fishermen thatI’m a part of. It’s a tremendous fellowship; full of camaraderie and ashared passion.

Let’s each make a New Year’s resolution to introduce a newangler to our sport and our organization.

Hope to see you on the water in ‘09!

- Patricia Strutz v

Patricia Strutz is a Field Editor for MUSKIE Magazine. She canbe reached at:

[email protected]


IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOKA LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS(Continued from page 25)

Special Events

2009–– Deadline for Chapter Reports! ––

The deadline to send chapter reports

to the editor is the 25th of each month,

approximately 5 weeks before the

magazine is mailed to members!

March 7

Pomme de Terre Challenge with

Shawnee Muskie Hunters, Pomme

de Terre Lake

October 2-4

35th Annual Pomme de Terre

Muskie Tournament

No. Chapter, Address Phone #01.....Twin Cities, 414 Division St., Excelsior, MN 55331..........................................952-380-121802.....Fargo-Moorhead, Box 2021, Fargo ND, 58107................................................701-298-903203.....Chicagoland Muskie Hunters, 7600 Kilbourn Ave, Skokie, IL 60076 ...............847-677-001704.....Titletown Muskies, Inc., 3097 Inverness Lane, New Franken, WI 54229 .......920-866-970505.....Pomme De Terre, PO Box 5, Hermitage, MO 65668 .......................................417-993-003506.....First Wisconsin, PO Box 122, Chippewa Falls, WI 54729 ...............................715-726-889607.....South Side Muskie Hawks, 5211 S. Narragansett Ave., Chicago, IL 60638......773-581-865008.....Capital City, PO Box 8862, Madison, WI 53708...............................................608-669-504609.....West Virginia, 1270 Federal Road, Little Hocking, OH 45742 .........................740-667-357110.....Heartland, 239 8th St SE, Mason City IA 50401..............................................641-424-082711 .....Mississippi Valley, 5301 11th Ave “C”, Moline, IL 61265 ..................................309-797-180312.....Headwaters, PO Box 652, Eagle River, WI 54521...........................................715-477-291313.....Hayward Lakes, PO Box 609, Hayward, WI 54843 .........................................715-634-454314.....South of the Border, 28926 W. Big Hollow Rd, McHenry, IL 60050.................815-385-902615.....Star of the North, 29957 La Plant Rd., Grand Rapids, MN 55744...................218-326-495816.....Three Rivers, 119 Bus Lane, Renfrew, PA15136.............................................724-789-786617.....Quad County, PO Box 185, Plano, IL 60545....................................................815-695-149418.....Hopedale, 15 Township Rd 125, Dillonvale, OH 43917 ...................................740-769-726919.....Akron-Canton Muskie Maniacs, 10957 Northwood Ave NE, Bolivar OH 44612.330-874-277320.....Between the Lakes, PO Box 61, Sheboygan, WI 53085-0061 ........................920-564-322621.....North Metro, PO Box 41216, Plymouth, MN 55441 .........................................952-469-215522.....New Jersey, http://www.mi22.com/ ..................................................................................TBD23.....Cleveland, 5608 Brave Chief Lane, Ravenna, OH 44266 ...............................330-296-239824.....Brainerd Lakes, 9143 Lone Pine Road, Brainerd, MN 56401..........................218-821-366926.....Central Wisconsin, PO Box 263, Medford, WI 54451 ......................................715-748-487427.....Central Illinois, 1191 Sandra Lane, Monticello, IL 61856 .................................309-264-373028.....Shawnee Muskie Hunters, 61 W. Jennings, Wood River, IL 62095.................618-610-500329.....Upper Great Plains, 1788 Hwy 4, Estherville, IA 51334...................................712-362-250130.....God’s Country, PO Box 1461, LaCrosse, WI 54601 ........................................608-786-406231.....Penn-Ohio, 309 Spring St, Jamestown, PA 16134...........................................724-932-581532.....Flatlanders, 5776 Vesper Drive, South Beloit, IL 61080 ..................................815-389-462233.....Lake Superior, 2031 Hwy. 33 S., Cloquet, MN 55720......................................218-879-271235.....Milwaukee, PO Box 28842, Greenfield, WI 53220...........................................262-442-626037.....St. Cloud, 312 18th Avenue N., Sartell, MN 56377 ..........................................320-656-116038.....Vikingland, 2909 Wicken Lane NW, Alexandria, MN 56308.............................320-846-797539.....Fox River Valley, 1253 Cobblers Crossing, Elgin, IL 60123.............................847-741-977141.....Central Ohio, 870 County Road 9, Fremont OH 43420...................................419-992-450442.....Hoosier Muskie Hunters, PO Box 501371, Indianapolis, IN 46250 .................317-577-805044.....Colorado, 3739 Sawgrass Trail, Castle Rock, CO 80109 ................................303-668-408945.....Kentucky, 212 Linden Ave., Southgate, KY 41071...........................................859-441-166646.....Bemidji/Cass Lake, 11551 Misty Meadows Rd, Bemidji, MN 56601................218-759-009847.....Michigan Muskie Alliance, PO Box 512, Caledonia, MI 49316 ........................616-447-168848.....Arrowhead, PO Box 603, Tower, MN 55790 ....................................................218-753-261249.....Webster Lake Musky Club, PO Box 670, No. Webster, IN 46555 ...................574-834-166950.....Penn-Jersey, 372 Kingwood Rd., King of Prussia, PA 19406 ..........................610-962-063252.....Daniel Boone, 813 US 62, Maysville, KY 41056..............................................606-759-761053.....Huskerland Muskie Hunters, PO Box 394, Valentine, NE 69201.....................402-376-274354.....Southern Crossroads, 1524 Country Club Rd, Albert Lea MN 56007 .............507-373-181856.....SW Ohio Muskie Ass’n, 524 Sterling Meadows Place, Brookville, OH 45309 ..937-833-183357.....NW TigerPac, 10517 SE 214th Place, Kent, WA 98031 ..................................253-850-588958.....Lake St. Clair, 22206 Kramer, St. Clair Shores, MI 48080...............................586-778-9136

Special events listings are provided atno charge to Muskies, Inc chapters.

To list your chapter's event, email to:[email protected]

or by ground mail: Kevin Richards,7618 Sunrise Ridge Road,

Henley, MO 65040

Please send announcementsat least 2 months in advance.

Chapter News and ViewsATTENTION

CHAPTERCONTACTS:Please make sure

your chapter addressand phone number

is correct on this pageAND on the M.I. website.

Whenever you updatechapter information on

the website, please send anemail to the Editor so we can

keep this page current. Thanks!

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www.muskiesinc.org December 2008.....MUSKIE 27

GRATITUDE FOR A GREAT YEAR!The 2008 Year Comes to a Close

It is the season to express gratitude to those who have doneand reported the happenings that are reported in this column.Thank you all.

Chapter #1’s Board of Directors and President Shawn Kellettthank all those who made 2008 a successful, growth year that ben-efitted the members, the community, the fishery, youth, andresearch. Our best holiday wishes to you as you get ready for anexciting new year that includes the 2009 Winter Banquet.

PLANS FOR THE 2009 WINTER BANQUETThe Winter Banquet Committee has been diligent and target-

ed in their planning. In working with the arrangements for the 2008Banquet, the Committee realized the need for more spacious facil-ities. Its lengthy search resulted in satisfying the criteria theCommittee established: near the twin cities and yet in the southerntier of suburbs. Another important search, finding the right promi-nent speaker, was satisfied, superbly. The Committee continuesto plan for the improvement and growth of the Banquet activitiesthat include games, raffles, and auctions. You are assured that agreat time is planned for all. Please mark your calendar:

Date: February 21, 2009Time: 5:30 pmLocation: Minnesota Valley Country Club, BloomingtonSpeaker: Jim LinderFor tickets and directions:

[email protected] or 612 201-0209

Yes, the speaker is Jim Linder of the famous Linder family ofoutdoors enthusiasts, fishing experts, magazine publishers, TVfishing pioneers, and entrepreneurs. The Chapter is pleased tooffer such a quality speaker to those attending the Banquet.Please join the excitement and fun on February 21st.

Vince Trotta

Greetings Thrill Seekers, the season is coming to a closesooner than we may like but a great deal has been learned. Mostrecently, Len Szulc, president of the Muskies, Inc. South of theBorder Chapter shared his 19+ years of knowledge and experi-ence fishing Lake of the Woods, Ontario, Canada. What a greatpresentation as Len detailed specific areas and the reasons whyand how to catch a 50-plus incher in these areas. Great job Lenand Thank You!

The club outing to Long Legged Lake in Ontario was a suc-cess with all who were able to make it. Our “on the water” meet-ings were well attended as well. Now is the time to think about aday trip or week trip next year with Chicagoland Muskie Hunters.

Chicagoland Muskie Hunters has some great speakers linedup for the balance of the year so join us as we learn a little some-thing, eat a little something and have a chance to ”talk fishin”.

Tip of the Month: The highest probability of catching anyspecies of fish is by bumping structure, ripping weeds or changingspeed/direction…unless you are using live bait. Every 50-plusinch muskie I have caught has been by bumping the bottom or rip-ping through cabbage weeds.

Meetings are the first Tuesday of the month at the Park RidgeVFW located at 10 W. Higgins Road at 7:30pm with pizza beingserved about 8:00pm. All are welcomed. Keep the calls comingwith questions about joining Chicagoland Muskie Hunters. By theway, we have some really good looking jackets for sale and fishingtapes and DVDs to loan out at no charge. As always, feel free tocontact Dean Rosset at 847-677-0017 or [email protected] me at 847-434-1400x100 or [email protected]

Take care, Kevin M. Lynch

Fall has come and gone in Missouri and for the most part itwas pretty dismal from the muskie fishing standpoint. High waterin Pomme let to unpredictable fishing and low catch rates. Evenmore stable water conditions in the fall didn’t seem to help.

Our Guide for a Day activities in September and October arenormally very productive but fishing during those events was veryslow. There was very good turnout (especially for the Octoberdate) and everyone seemed to understand that if this was an easysport it wouldn’t be nearly as rewarding. Our thanks to all themembers that help make these events a success.

Please come to the December meeting on the 6th at theMasonic Hall and help plan the next year. We are always lookingfor new events and different things to do. We also need some helpimplementing events and leadership in the chapter. If you volun-teer for any job we guarantee you we will not just dump it on youand run, you can get plenty of help through a transition period tomake sure you and the event are a success.

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NOTE TO CHAPTERS: We hope you like the newlook of Chapter News and Views. We would like tosee an increase in the number of chapters sharingnews each month. We are also offering you a chanceto submit 5 to 10 photos of chapter activities so wecan feature your chapter on the banner above. Forthis first month we started at the beginning, by featur-ing Chapter 1. – Kevin & Juris

Twin Cities414 Division St. • Excelsior, MN 55331

952-380-1218www.twincitiesmuskiesinc.org

Meets 2nd Tuesday 7:00 PM, Knights of Columbus, 1114 W79th St Bloomington,MN, near the SE corner of the intersection of I-494 and I-35W.

01

Chicagoland Muskie Hunters7600 Kilbourn Ave. • Skokie, IL 60076

847-677-0017 – Dean [email protected]

Meets 1st Tuesday 7:30 PM, Park Ridge VFW 10 West Higgins Ave., ParkRidge, IL.

03

Pomme de TerreP.O. Box 5 • Hermitage, MO 65668

417-745-2381 – Carl Markswww.missourimuskies.org

Meets: Various days-Call for schedule

05

Pomme de Terre Muskie Tournament ResultsMost of the folks in southern Missouri thought that the early

October weekend was beautiful; blue skies, little breeze andtemperatures in the upper 70. There were, however, about 130people that were hoping for cloud cover, cooler temperatures andsome wind so the fish would be active and there would be largecatches during the 34th Annual Muskie Tournament on Pomme deTerre Lake sponsored by the Pomme de Terre Chapter of MuskiesInc.

Friday’s fishing results reflected the good weather with rela-tively few fish caught.

1st Place- Dave Admire, Nick Admire, 371/4, 371/2 inches2nd Place- Kurt Eustice, Sara Eustice, 42 inches, Big Muskie3rd Place- Carl Marks, 42 inches4th Place- Luke Miller, Tyson Miller, 41 inches5th Place- Matt Ginnings, Jim Wilson, 30, 36 inches

Other catches: Steve Kolbeck, Tony Kolbeck, 40 inches; CharleyRhinehart, Keith Rhinehart, 34 inches

With separate payouts for Friday and Saturday/Sunday,everyone was off to a fresh start and Saturday’s results were a lit-tle better, but still not what everyone hoped for.

Jim Wilson, Matt Ginnings, 351/2, 401/4, 361/2 inchesGary Pearson, TJ Sawyer, 33, 403/4 inchesJim Brown, Joey Rissell, 411/2 inches, Big MuskieDave Admire, Nick Admire, 33, 331/4 inchesPeter Robinson, Andy Humm, 373/4 inchesSteve Worstell, Todd Hardin, 361/2 inchesJohn Krasson, Mike Sullivan, 36 inchesLuke Miller, Tyson Miller, 351/2 inchesMike Anderson, Mark Boone, 341/2 inches

Sunday’s catch (fishing just a half day) was not great either.Brooks May, Charles May, 38 inches, Big MuskieBilly Pitts, Robert Sawyer, 37 inches

Final standings for the Saturday/Sunday event were as follows:1st Place- Jim Wilson, Matt Ginnings2nd Place- Gary Pearson, TJ Sawyer3rd Place- Jim Brown, Joey Rissell4th Place- Dave Admire, Nick Admire5th Place- Brooks May, Charles May

It takes a lot of effort to put on a tournament of this scale andthe chapter would like to thank all of its sponsors including Bass ProShops, www.basspro.com and Sebile USA, www.sebileusa.comBass Pro provided lures and other merchandise and Sebile provid-ed a boxed set of seven lures for each of the boats plus some morefor giveaways.

Fishing is not all that the tournament is about. Our banquetwas held on Saturday night at the Senior Center in Wheatlandwhere the food and service was great. During the evening therewere five different raffles for tackle boxes, weekend getaways,GPS units, custom rods and more. There were lots of door prizesand everyone in attendance came away with a lure, magazine sub-scription, motor oil or other great prize.

Wayne Humphrey

The October meeting of the South Side Muskie Hawks gotunderway with Vice-President John Daley presiding. Fishingreports were heard from several of the members, and a lot of jok-ing comments were passed back and forth. An announcementregarding our upcoming fundraiser was made, followed by a shortbreak during which members purchased tickets for our regular raf-

fle, and also for a ‘split-the-pot’ raffle.Following the intermission, John introduced our speaker for

the night, Dr. Robert Strnad, who talked about the methodologythat he used to catch a 58” muskie on Lake of the Woods this pastsummer.

Doc explained that he likes to find out where the muskies arebefore fishing for them, as he said that the larger ones are sus-pended out in deeper water during the day, but come in to feed atnight. He looks for places where there is current, as this is wherethe baitfish will be found. The larger muskies wait for the baitfish tobe carried to them by the current, and this usually occurs at night.Large muskies, he said, are too lazy to be chasing baitfish, andwhile they are suspended in deep water during the day where youwill be awfully lucky if you find them, they come into the shallowerareas at night to feed on the baitfish. Doc must know his stuff,because he has boated 57, 58, and 59-inch muskies.

Another point that he brought up was that color makes no dif-ference to him, as he does most of his fishing at night, but scoutsthe areas during the day. Furthermore, when talking to Ministry ofNatural Resources officials, he was told that muskies do not haveany rods or cones in their eyes, so they do not see color at all.They follow vibrations in the water to hone in on their prey

Doc also stressed that he keeps a clean boat. In other words,because he fishes at night, there can be no lures, nets, rods, oranything else on the floor of the boat. Everything has to be in itsproper place, so that there is no chance of injury from stepping ortripping on something while fighting a fish.

Bob went on to comment that he uses the same lure all nightlong, a smaller crankbait, though he does keep an extra rod in theboat with a jerkbait on it. He also uses a 7’ medium-heavy actionSt. Croix rod. He added that the hard part is finding the muskies,and that once you have found them, they may not stay in the sameplace for more than that night.. Doc does most of his muskie fish-ing on Lake of the Woods, and it is easy to understand why whenhe told us what the conservation officers told him, that they havenetted several muskies of over 100 lbs., but that you will probablynever see them because they are suspended in deep water.However, Doc keeps trying. Do you blame him?

Don’t forget to get your tickets for our annual Christmas party,which will be held in the smaller banquet room at Mama Luigi’s onthe evening of Wednesday, December 17th.

The South Side Muskie Haws meet on the third Wednesday ofevery month except July, in the banquet room of Mama Luigi’sRestaurant, 7500 South Harlem Avenue in Bridgeview. Meetingsstart at 7:00 P.M. All are welcome, as we are a family-oriented,multi-species club. Come out and join us for a meeting.

Respectfully submitted,Lynn Polyak, Vice-President

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www.muskiesinc.org December 2008.....MUSKIE 29

South Side Muskie Hawks5211 S. Narragansett Ave. • Chicago, IL 60638

773-581-8650

Our meetings are held every third Wednesday of the month at MamaLuigi's located at 7500 S. Harlem in Bridgeview, IL starting at 7:00 pm.

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The weather was hot but the fishing was not at our SeptemberNorth Bend Lake Tournament. Only Kevin Kelley caught qualifyingfish, a 32” and a 30”. A few smaller muskies were boated but mostof us were shutout. Many thanks to Dave Moser who served aschairperson and to the McCauley’s who arranged for hot dogs withside dishes and desserts.

On September 19 we met in West Union at which time thedrawing was held for the Rod Raffle and the 2009 Tournament /Outing schedule was established. Tentative dates pending permitapproval is as follows:

Spring Mail-In March 28 – 29Odie Cutlip Memorial Stonewall Jackson Lk May 2 – 3Ohio Lakes Tourn. Salt Fork Saturday, June 6

Piedmont Lake Sunday, June 7Burnsville Lake June 27North Bend Lake Sept. 19Fall Mail-In Oct. 31 – Nov. 1The lucky winner of the Fig Rig Rod was Darlene Kelley. We

appreciate your generous donations to the Rod Raffle which is ouronly major fundraiser other than the auctions and raffles at theAnnual Dinner Meeting.

WV Chapter Members are catching some really big fish thisseason. Charley Carpenter’s 56.5” from Mille Lacs in Minnesota isthe second largest release ever by a chapter member. In August,Bernie Klug registered two over 50” from Stonewall Jackson Lake.The longest, a 53.25” exceeded the WV length record of 52.7” fromStonecoal Lake by Glenn Boyd in 2003. Of course, since Berniereleased the fish and no DNR measurement was taken, it will notbe recognized in the official record book. Congratulations Berniefor a great fish!

Thanks to all who helped with our booth at the annual WVHunting and Fishing Days Celebration in September at StonewallJackson State Park. This event offers exposure to numerous peo-ple who otherwise would not know about us and gives us theopportunity to make contact with lots of impressionable children.Specie identification coloring books, crayons and other free giftswere distributed in hope of developing youth interest in fishing. Aspecial thank you to Bob Hoce who coordinated this effort in theabsence of President Jim Moore.

Looking ahead, our chapter will be involved in a habitat proj-ect at East Lynn Lake near Huntington this winter. Member JasonWright, working with others in the area and in cooperation with theWV DNR and Corps of Engineers; has organized a project to placediscarded Christmas trees in the lake as fish attractants and habi-tat. Soon after the holidays, we will need member help to collect,transport and then physically locate the trees in the lake. DNR willprovide weights to sink the trees. Otherwise manpower, and pos-sibly boats, is about all that will be required to complete this greatproject. Thanks to Jason and all from that area who have workedto bring this about. East Lynn has produced some nice fish thisyear and this should improve fishing in the future.

John Kaltenecker, Secretary

Headwaters Chapter 12 has been busy this fall. At our Octobermeeting the following directors were re-elected to a two year term.

Bill Jacobs, Elmer Jensen, Jim Chamberlin, Al Schroeder, FredBrogle, Roger Sabota, Jim Heffner and John Schmidt. Thanks toall the directors who support and keep our club running.

On October 25th Paul Hansen and Bill Jacobs co-chaired ourannual fall 2008 Enduro Outing. This is our last outing of theseason and we had less then pleasant weather conditions.

We had a total of 64 members attend with 50 members fishingthe cold, rain and windy conditions.. The camaraderie on thewater was fantastic with much word of wit and joking from boat toboat. We had 14 fish registered which is a 28 % success rate.

Congratulations to Al Schroeder with a 45 inch, the largest fishcaught. Debbie Westfall who caught her first musky at 40 inch.Colton Plonsky our newest junior member caught two muskies, a38 inch and a 33 inch. Paul Hansen also caught two muskies, a43 inch and a 391/2 inch. Bob Jacobs caught a 43 inch musky.Carla Paroline caught a 42 inch musky. Leroy Kibble caught a 361/2inch musky. Linda Jacobs and Jennifer Durst each caught a 36inch musky. Bill Pabst caught a 34 inch musky. Glenn Matulacaught a 301/2 inch musky and Jill Helgeson caught a 30 inchmusky. Following our day on the water a great banquet was heldat the Eagle Waters Resort where everyone enjoyed a fun evening.Thanks again Bill and Paul for a well run event.

Members mark your calendars for our annual Christmas Partyto be held on January 3 2009 at the Eagle Waters Resort.

Individuals and families looking to join a great club please visitour website at: www.HeadWatersmuskies.com for information andapplications.

Glenn Matula , Secretary

The activities for the Hayward Lakes Chapter are windingdown for the year. Our last event is our Christmas party and thedate has not yet been set as of this writing. We usually have theparty on a Sunday evening early in December. The exact date willbe set by the time you read this magazine, if you’d like to join uscall Mike at 715-634-4543 for date time and location.

The entries in our member’s contest as of October 26th : Youth– Alex Spezia 1 fish-21pts.- a 47”!!! Anthony Spezia 1 fish-20pts.-a 46”!!! Women – Caroll Chinock 1 fish-14pts., Roz Smith 1 fish-9pts., Sandy Hackbarth 1 fish-6pts. Men – John Ryan 15 fish-275pts. includes a 50.5 and a 55.5!!! Emmett Brown 7 fish-60pts.,Kris Gottwald 4 fish-29pts., Brian Smith 2 fish-29pts. Tom Kirsten 1fish-20pts; a 46” from the Chip. Masters – Ted Muntz 27 fish-236pts., Mike Persson 12 fish-120pts. Senior Masters – TomMuntz 61 fish-537pts., Larry Ramsell 30 fish-526pts. including 50,50.5, 51, 53.5, and 55.25”!!! Dick Minnick 67 fish-451pts. We willaward trophies and plaques, as we do each year, at our annualawards banquet at the beginning of March.

To enter your fish please try to do it electronically through theMuskies Inc. website, if you need help call Mike at the phone num-ber above. If you wish to send the paper form, send it to HaywardLakes Muskies Inc P.O. Box 609 Hayward WI. 54843.

Good Fishing, Mike Persson

The Muskie Maniacs held their last tournament of the seasonat Leesville Lake on Oct. 11th. We had 16 people enter the tourna-

West Virginia1270 Federal Road • Little Hocking, OH 45742

740-667-3571http://westvirginiamuskiesinc.orgMeets: No definite schedule-call

09

HeadwatersP.O. Box 652 • Eagle River, WI 54521

715-477-2913 – Paul Hansenwww.headwatersmuskies.comMeets 1st Wednesday 7:00 PM

12

Hayward LakesP.O. Box 609

Hayward, WI 54843715-634-4543

13

Akron-Canton10957 Northwood Ave. NE • Bolivar, OH 44612

Gordon Selden - 330-874-2773http://[email protected]

Meets 3rd Monday 7:00 PM, Belgrade Gardens, 3476 Massillon Road, Akron,OH.

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ment with only two legal fish caught. John Bentz caught the win-ning fish with a 32.5” fish and received a gift certificate and somecash for taking the big fish pool. Congratulations John! GloriaRoberts took second place with her 31” fish. We also had a Rodand Reel Raffle and Kevin LaRoche won the rod and reel combo.

Our club releases so far this year is 378 muskies and we arehoping to increase this figure before the end of the year. Fishingis pretty slow but it should turn on with the cooler water tempera-tures. We want to congratulate John Dennis and Tom Johnson forwinning our clubs Lunker of the Month awards for the month ofAugust and September. John caught a 47” fish and Tom caught a45” fish.

From all of us from the Akron/Canton Chapter, we want to wisheveryone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!Kevin Proffitt

Akron-Canton Chapter 19 Tournaments for 2009April 11-12: Leesville LakeMay 9-10: Salt Fork Lake Chapter ChallungeJune 6-7: Salt Fork LakeJuly 11-12: Westbranch LakeAugust 8: Leesville Lake Nite BiteSeptember 5: Westbranch Lake Memorial TournamentOctober 3: Leesville Lake

Our Fall Chapter Challenge took place September 28th onLake Hopatcong. Rain and low lake levels slowed the start but didnot put a damper on the fishing. Approximately 20 boats attended.Dinner was held at Pavinci’s Restaurant with prizes donated fromSmokey’s Musky Shop, ABU Garcia and Lakewood Tackle boxes.Results:

Chapter 22 takes back the Crown!!!!Big Fish: Kurt Gould 47”Most Fish: Mike Melfa 45.5”, 37”, 31” Other notable catchesTyler Johnson/Dave Christinzio 45”Matt Lysek/Tom Long 39”Chuck Graf/Mike Marzo 30.5” Hybrid

Thanks to all who came out for helping stock NJDFW finger-ling muskies at Greenwood Lake at our fall outing, Oct 12th thanksto Craig and the hatchery staff for all their great work. We had agreat time with some good looking fish and a fun get together andlunch afterwards.

Our Christmas Party is set for Dec 12th Friday at 7pm at theArrowhead Lodge. Contact Chuck Graf to help out and pleasebring a dish for the potluck dinner.

We decided at our September meeting to have an education-al/ informational table at the Garden State Outdoor Sportsmen’sShow at the Raritan Center Jan 8-11, 2009. Contact KevinJohnson for more info or to volunteer, 201/563-2554

Our chapter president was busy measuring the hatcheryponds to be fitted with the anti-predatory nets. Next will be to pur-chase the nets and then a work party at the hatchery to run thewires and hang the nets. If interested in helping please contact PatMarshall. We also set dates for 2009 Musky School, May 17th atGreenwood Lake.

Welcome New Members: Frank Dell Fera and Joe Kohler.Don’t forget to check the website at: www.mi22.com

Kevin Johnson

The Marathon County Department of Parks and Forestry isplanning on no longer supporting the aerator operation on the BigEau Pleine Reservoir. That is very unfortunate since the Big EauPleine is drawing down faster this year than last year when it hada winter kill despite having the aerators operating. We have invest-ed $1000 in fall fingerlings that were stocked in the fall of 2007.For more updates contact Jerry.

There are some speakers that are willing to give talks on thefollowing subjects: Photography; Off-season conditioning formuskie fishing; and “Do it yourself lure building. However, we needto get a decent turnout to justify the speakers, time, expense andeffort. At our next meeting we need to choose a place for the ban-quet since Molitors has moved from Abbotsford to Marshfield. TheMarshfield location has been suggested by Jason and we are cer-tainly open to other suggestions.

Jerry Bucholtz

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! We will be hearing that quite a bit inthe next couple of weeks. The Board of Directors would like to sendyou all their best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy NewYear. We hope you get to spend time with those that you love andcherish and have a terrific Holiday Season!

This month we will be joined by Lee Tauchen. It has been afew years since he has visited us and he always provides a veryinformative presentation.

Please remember to bring a donation of Non- Perishable fooditems for our donation to the Elgin area woman’s shelter. Lastly inDecember is our annual Lure and Equipment Swap before themeeting.

DO NOT FORGET next month we will have a custom madepresentation by Joe Bucher. One of the most respected and knowl-edgeable people in our sport. Check the website and the newslet-ter for the date and details. You will not see this presentation any-where else.

To the membership of Chapter #39, Fox River Valley. As I fin-ish my final term on YOUR Board of Directors as the RegionalVice President and M.I. magazine Media Director I would like tosay Thank You. Thank You, for letting me share my thoughts andopinions at the Club Board Table. Also for entrusting me to takeYOUR thoughts and opinions before the Muskies Inc. InternationalBoard of Directors.

I have been fortunate to share the Board table with some high-ly qualified and highly motivated individuals. Using YOUR input asthe general membership these people are the ones who take yourideas and comments and turn them into reality. Speakers for ourMonthly meetings, merchandise for the raffles, The Spring and FallTournaments, Muskie stocking in area lakes, the website, ClubOutings the Youth program....... in short, everything that the clubbrings to you, the members. Each of these areas has a director

New Jerseyhttp://www.mi22.com/22

Central WisconsinP.O. Box 263 • Medford, WI 54451

715-748-4874 – Jim Jacobswww.centralwisc.co.nr

Meetings at Happy Joe’s on Hwy. 13 in Medford, WI at 7:00 PM on the firstThursday of the month .

26

39Fox River Valley

1253 Cobblers Crossing, Elgin, IL 601230847-741-9771 – Rich Gallagher

www.frvmuskie.com

Meets: 2nd Wed (Exc June/July) Poplar Creek Country Club, 1400 Poplar Creek Drive,Hoffman Estates, IL.


In today’s world of muskie fishing, we have lures that are so natu-ral looking they appear as if they could swim, eat and breathe.The manufacturers have really done a fan-

tastic job of making them realistic. As I readthe bulletin boards on different websites I seequestions like, “What’s your favorite lure? “ or“ If you could only have three lures which oneswould they be?”

These are interesting questions, but theyare NOT the answer to catching a “toothy crit-ter”. When I came back to musky fishing a number of years ago, theaverage price was around $6 for a lure. As craftsmanship improved,manufacturing processes got more complicated, and raw materialcosts increased, so the price of lures had to go up. Nowadays it’s notuncommon to pay $20 or $25 for a lure. Of course, if you have themoney and the desire, you can buy one for $200 plus.

My question is, “Does a $25 lure catch more fish than a $6 lure?”

What if you took a $6 lure and fished it exactly like you do a $25lure? Which one would catch the most fish? If you answered the $25lure, why? If you answered the $6 lure, why?

Lures do not catch fish!! To prove that statement, try this: takeyour favorite lure, bucktail, jerk, crank, glider, topwater etc, what ever,toss it into the water. Now don’t do a thing, just let it sit there, or sink,or whatever it wants to do. Don’t do a thing. Wait, wait. wait, wait -are you tired yet? What happened? Probably nothing! Lures do notcatch fish!!

Fish strike at lures because of the ACTION the lure is perform-ing. Action emits noise and light flashes, generating excitement for themuskie, by anger or hunger.

Why are some lures more successful than others? Some lures areeasier to impart action to than others, action may be given to lures by

many means, such as trolling, jerking, cranking, stripping (a fly-fish-ing term), pumping, tapping, bumping . . . add your own term!

We make the lure come alive, by ourmethod of imparting motion. Some folks havea knack for fishing jerk baits, because they havepracticed and know a Suick requires a differenttechnique than a Cobb or Amma Bamma, etc.

The size of the lure makes a difference inthe retrieve, the larger the lures the longerpause between actions. We become proficient

in these techniques by using them over and over, and because we catchfish using them we gain confidence. It becomes a cycle, use-catch-build more confidence, use-catch-build more confidence.

Trolling is similar, put on a lure, try different speeds, let out dif-ferent amounts of line until you know where your lure is, and that theaction it is performing is correct (in your opinion). You do this witheach lure until you gain that knowledge then you get confidence,become proficient, then the cycle begins, use-catch-build more confi-dence.

Casting crankbaits may be the most misunderstood of all themethods used. Many times the name is applied and that is all. Castout, crank in - cast out; crank in.

This will put you to sleep in a hurry, but you are imparting actionto the lure and every now and then BAM - Mr. Esox is hungry enoughto hit and what happens? You are awakened from your sleep, you setthe hook, the lure comes out of the water misses your ear by 2 inch-es, hooks your boat partner and you are both using words you don’twant your children to hear.

There are many ways to make a crankbait “come alive in thewater”, here are a couple: cast to a likely hiding spot, log, weed lineedge, hole in weeds, stump, rock, etc. If your are lucky “ole toothy”will see it coming and strike just as it hits the water, if not let the luresit there on top for a few seconds, twitch it, (twitch, according toWebster - to move jerkily.) I use my rod tip, move the lure 2 or 3 inch-es very quickly, pause 3 or 4 seconds, then twitch 6 or 8 times, crankline in, pausing about half way, twitch, crank in, make a figure 8,repeat. Repeat sometimes to the same spot, if it looked especiallygood (this is how I normally fish Crane baits).

Another way, is cast to the likely hold area, just as soon as the luretouches the water begin cranking, fast but not too fast, retrieve about4 feet then pause, let the crankbait rise toward the surface, but notbreak the surface, twitch two or three times then crank in line, paus-ing in mid-retrieve, then figure 8 at boat side.

Now back to my original question, “Does a $25 lure catch morefish than a $6 lure?” The answer is maybe not; it all depends on theaction the fisherman imparts to the lure. We get confidence in luresby catching fish with them, so we use them more, which means we getbetter with them and they are in the water more so we catch more fishon them. A $6 lure that we know how to “make come alive in thewater” will catch many more fish than a $25 lure, which we don’tknow how to use.

So the moral of all this is what? Buy lures that fit your style offishing, learn how to use them effectively. Also learn how to use theones you already have in your tackle box. You may be surprised at thetreasure you are toting around but not using. v

My question is, “Does a$25 lure catch more fishthan a $6 lure?”

$25 Lure vs. $6 Lureby Larry Robinson


INDEX OF ADVERTISERSFITTANTE REPLICAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

GEORGE SELCKE’S PERSONALCOLLECTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

INDIAN LAKE LODGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

LAX REPRODUCTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

MUSKIES, INC. 2009 CALENDARFUNDRAISER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

MUSKY HUNTER TV PROGRAM . . . . . . . . 13

TAYLOR COUNTY TOURISMCOMMISSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

TRI-ESOX PRODUCTIONS (CHICAGO) . . 22

YOUNG'S WILDERNESS CAMP . . . . . . . . . 5


who is responsible for making these programsviable. Take a moment next time you are on thewebsite or read the newsletter and see who thesepeople are. They deserve your recognition.

All of these people are donating their time andeffort to make Chapter #39, Fox River Valley one ofthe TOP FIVE Chapters in the Nation !! This is nosmall feat and something you should be proud of.

As I step down I would like to encourage allwho are reading this to get involved with YOURClub at some level. That could be attending themonthly meetings , the Awards Banquet, theSpring and Fall “Challunge” Tournaments or sittingon the Board of Directors. Speaking for myself, Ican assure you the rewards of this involvementhave allowed me to meet, interact and fish withsome of the top Muskie fisherman involved in thesport.

Lastly, I have made friendships that will spana lifetime and go far beyond spending the day in aboat together. Give it some though, then get your-self involved. You WILL NOT be disappointed!!Thank You Chapter # 39, see you on the water.

Our regular club meeting dates are the sec-ond Wednesday of the month at 7 PM at thePoplar Creek Country Club.

Until later, return ‘em to the water healthy andremember our troops.

JT

We have a correction to our September entryin MUSKIE magazine. The photo that was sentwith the article was not the winners of the Jack andJill tournament. Here is a photo of the winningcouple, Ken and Tonia and their fish (at upper rightof page).

They have been members for only a shorttime and have already become a force to be reck-oned with. They won our Jack and Jill tourna-ment at Mayfield, then Ken placed 2nd at ourMerwin club event, then Ken and his dad took2nd at our state open tournament at Mayfield.Ken and Tonia are prime examples of MI principlesof Catch and Release and they involve their wholefamily in fishing. Great job Miller family!

At our December meeting we will be electinga bunch of new board members like all the otherclubs and discussing ideas for the coming year’sactivities.

We would like to wish everyone HappyHolidays and a short winter so we can all get backto fishing!

Bill Green, RVPChapter 57

NW TigerPac10517 SE 214th Place, Kent, WA 98031

www.nwtigermuskies.orgemail: [email protected]

Hot line: (253) 850-5889Perry Peterson, President

57

CHAPTER NEWS & VIEWS(Continued from page 31)

Here’s another great shot, this one of a group of loons taken by Chapter 8 member Jeff Pomplun.He was on northern Wisconsin’s Rainbow Flowagewhen he saw them, and says this was the largest

group of loons he’s seen during the summer.

Another shot from Michael Winther, this one featuring some muskie rods ready to be put into

action. This photo was taken while on an outing toMinnesota’s Lake Vermilion.

Gary Teske sent in this shot of his stepson, Chapter 23 member James Scates reeling in his

first muskie. James picked out a lure he had a goodfeeling about, and about 5 minutes later was reeling in

a muskie on it (see related photo on this page)

Donald Hempler and Dennis Hempler Jr. with a beautiful 44 inch Tiger from WashingtonState’s Merwin Reservoir. I never get tired ofthese Tiger pics from Chapter 57, thanks for

sending them guys.

Chapter 57’s Don Hempler with a nice 43 inch Tiger. This one was also caught from Washington’s

Merwin Reservoir.

Here is the first muskie for James Scates, a 52 inchbeauty. James was using a Wiley crank called “Smoke”,

and caught this fish on Lake St. Clair August 31st. James,I’m not sure when you’ll be reading this, but I’d say

Christmas came early for you this year! Congratulations!

A shot from Jeff Pomplun, ablack bear that had just been takinga swim. Jeff was disappointed thathe missed getting a shot of him in

the water, but this is still good

Capitol City member Michael Winthersent in this shot of a nice muskie being quicklymeasured on a bump board. Mike says it wascaught on Lake Vermilion in July, possibly on

the B.S. Wiley Creeper nearby. Nice shot Mike

Brainerd Lakes Chapter member Tracy Wohl caught this33.5 inch fish from Cass Lakeshortly after her son caught his

first muskie ever.

C.J. Wohl, a member of the Brainerd Lakes Chapter caught this nice36 inch Cass Lake fish. It was his first

muskie, but I’ll bet he’ll be putting morein the boat in the future. Great job C.J.

MUSKIES, INC.14257 Waters Edge TrailNew Berlin, WI 53151

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

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Photo Contest – December · windblown points. So that day we decided to change tactics and “run and gun,” hitting only points. The running didn’t take long. On the first point