Winners of the Brainerd Jaycees Extravaganza
news GULL LAKE - In 11 years of competing in the Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza Jerry Ellefson of Rochester has hooked one fish. While his production is low, his longevity makes him an expert in fishing the contest.
While his production is low, his longevity makes him an expert in fishing the contest. He, like many others have tried it all, in order to win it all at this, the world's largest charitable ice fishing contest.
Professional and novice ice anglers gathered by the thousands on Gull Lake's Hole-in-the-Day Bay Saturday afternoon with a goal of winning one of 150 major prizes.
Ellefson and others shared their thoughts on how to catch the whopper.
"I pretty much empty my tackle box," he said. "We try everything."
His wife, Chris, was on hand to help in the endeavor this year.
Jim Stueve of St. Cloud is also a veteran of the contest and has worked for about 10 years to catch a fish. He and his family, which joined him on the ice, caught a couple fish over the years, but he's never won anything. He uses very precise techniques to lure in the fish.
"I change the lure every hour," he said.
And in the past, deep water and shallow water didn't help land a lunker, so this year they moved to the mid-depth water, right around 50 feet.
While that may be a solid technique, Stueve admits that the truth is, the contest is all about chance.
"It's more about luck than anything," Stueve said.
The first place winner of the event, Steven Baumgarten, who landed a 6.73 pound northern pike, agreed, saying it was luck that he happened to move just before the close of the event to find where the big fish was lurking.
The real winners
With excellent temperatures around 35 degrees, no wind and lots of cheese curds to go around, it was a perfect day on the ice.
"This is almost like winning," Ellefson said, just pleased to be able to sit on the ice in January without getting frostbite.
It was so warm, it was not uncommon to see shorts, T-shirts and a plethora of holes that were not frozen over.
The chair of the Extravaganza, Sarah Stenerson was proud to see everything fall into place after a year of planning. She was ecstatic that the Brainerd Jaycees were lucky enough for such good weather.
"The people are really coming out of the woodwork," Stenerson said. "We have more volunteers than usual and that's what helps make the difference."
Typically about 25 percent of the contest tickets are sold the day of the event, according to event co-chair Angie Nelson. So the nicer the day, the better chance of big crowds.
Based on estimates and the hum that could be felt off the surface of the ice, it appeared this could have been a record setting year.
"It's more than everything I hoped it would be," Nelson said of the event participation.
Nelson noted that she hadn't seen such a long weigh-in line for at least three years.
The line stretched for a couple hundred yards for much of the first hour of the event.
It's all those thousands of anglers coming out to fish and party on the ice that makes it possible for more than 40 area charities to raise major funds in just one three-hour event a year. It's those charities, which volunteer in all areas of the event, that really win, Stenerson said.
They've been lucky enough to win the contest for 25 years.
Dressed as superheroes, Seth Clayton (left), Patrick Hermann and Nolan Swenson walk onto the ice Saturday for the 25th Annual Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza on Gull Lake in Nisswa.
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Topic: Winner Brainerd Jaycee Extravaganza (Read 3435 times)
