Bass Master Classic Berth of Canadian Anglers

Shortcut to the Bassmaster Classic for two Canadian Series!

CSFL Release

January 28, 2014In the bass fishing world the pinnacle of achievement has always been and continues to be a berth in the Bassmaster Classic. For most of us as serious as we may be about our beloved sport, participation in the Classic has always been an unrealizable dream. Though qualification routes exist through the Bass Nation and their regional chapters in Canada, an angler must succeed at 5 different levels of competition to earn a spot at “The Show”. Furthermore, the Canadian culture of competitive bass fishing has been entrenched in the team tournament format and qualification through the ‘Nation would require you to participate at each level alone. This is about to change.

With the introduction of the Toyota Bassmaster Team Championship, North America’s most successful fishing teams will soon be able to prove their skills against competition from throughout the Continent.

2013 CSFL Classic Anglers

Here is the list of the qualified angler who will battle it out for three days.

Position	Angler	Co-Angler	Qualifying Points	Title
1	PETE GARNIER	ROB LAFLEUR	763	CLASSIC CHAMP
2	MIKE BROWN	CASEY RUTTAN	746	REGIONAL CHAMP
3	BARRY GRAVES	JASON GOUGH	788	TOY WILDCARDS
4	WAYNE MISSELBROOK	DAVE KENNEDY	785	TOY CENTRALS
5	ERIK LUZAK	TOM HARDY	784	TOY NORTHWESTERN
6	RYAN CROWLEY	JAY SHORT	784	TOY BM100
7	JEFF MIFSUD	BOB ADLER	782	TOY EASTERN
8	KIRK SULLIVAN	LINDA ROYAL	758	TOY GREAT LAKES
9	DEREK STRUB	MIKE DESFORGES	587	TOY SOUTHWESTERN
10	JOE MUSZYNSKI	SCOTT MURISON	789
11	JOHN MACDONALD	STEVE HAWKINS	581
12	JASON GREENTREE		752
13	DAN MIGUEL	BRYAN LOW	768
14	STEVE ROWSWELL	MATT CAMPBELL	706
15	CORY JOHNSTON	CHRIS JOHNSTON	785
16	PETER TUZ	MIKE TUZ	744
17	JASON CHRISTIE	JOHN RYCHELL	793
18	COADY GRANT	MIKE ALLEN	744
19	BRIAN GARDY	MIKE BLEWETT	769
20	BILL TODD	BRIAN MOORE	773
21	RYAN JOHNSON	CALLUM JOHNSON	728
22	CESARE RUSCIO	MIKE QUESNELLE	757
23	DAVE CHONG		724
24	BILL DUNLOP	RYAN JAYNES	751
25	ERNY JANZEN	FRANKLIN JANZEN	554
26	JAY SHORT	CHRIS WALTER	770
27	KAL VAISANEN	BILL WALKER	772

2013 CSFL Classic Weekend!

2012 CSFL CLASSIC on Rice Lake Preview

Starting tomorrow, 68 of the best teams on the CSFL tour will compete for honour of being the Classic Champs. Along with the prestige of winning comes with thousands of dollars in cash and prizes. This year the Classic will take place on famed Rice Lake, south of Peterborough, Ontario.

Rice Lake has a long tradition as being a Classic destination for many tournament circuits. It has wealth of largemouth and smallmouth. Anglers love this lake for its vast array of cover and structure. Part of the famed Trent-Severn Waterway, water funnels from the Otonabee River, through the lake and out through the locks in the town of Hastings at the lake's furthest eastern portion.

September is an awkward time of year. Making the transition from summer to fall can cause turmoil  the bass and the anglers who are trying to catch them. Summer's heat has lowered water levels eliminating key shoreline cover yet it hasn't gotten cold enough to trigger aggressive feeding. Fish can be in transition in early September making finding and locating them difficult. Whomever wins this Classic will have to work hard for every bite.

IBASSIN contacted Dave Chong (via cell phone while he practiced) about his chances of winning on Rice Lake. Dave will be fishing with his tournament partner Danny Dunn. Note that this pair won last year on Rice, so they know what it take to win here.


Lake Conditions
"Practice is tough today (Thursday)" explains Dave. The water has been brown in most of the lake but some areas are now having some sort of green algae bloom."  When I asked him to describe the water colour, he make an off-colour remark about how terrible the brown water looked.

With several practice days in on Rice Lake,
Dave Chong is hoping for a Classic win.

He is focusing on water from 2 to 25 feet of water. When I pushed for a more focused answer, he giggled and said that it was the truth because fishing has been so difficult it was hard to develop a strong pattern. He has a few ideas on what to do but still hasn't found a really solid, repeatable pattern yet.

Strategy
"Smallies like to disappear!" laughs Dave
That is why he is targeting both largemouth and smallmouth. He feels that it is a must to focus on both. Fish are not ganged up yet. Dave has found some pods of bass but other areas he will focus on during the tournament are only good for one or two bass max.

"I don't have a feel for how big or how many bass are in these good spots." Dave says optimistically. This is referring to the fact that he hasn't hooked a bass nor stayed too long in a productive area. He did say that a week ago, several of the bass he did hook were over 4 pounds apiece.

Winning Weight?
Dave feels that between 55 to 57 pounds should be enough to win the three day event.

Weather
A front is approaching on Friday and they are calling for rain and thunderstorms all day Saturday. Sunday will have isolated showers with a high of 19 but a low of 9 degrees C. "We are going to really try and get the heaviest bag on Friday and then catch average bags the other two days." reveals Chong. Worried that the post-front conditions will make fishing difficult, he feels that his best chance at a very heavy catch will be Friday as the front approaches.

Good luck

STAY TUNED TO IBASSIN THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND FOR UP-DATES AND THE LEADER BOARD

CSFL EASTERN TOUR: Farlow and Skreet Win Bay of Qunite

BAY OF QUINTE,   BUSTER ALYEA PARK, TRENTON – AUGUST 4, 2012

CSFL Lake Muskoka: Ruscio and Quesnelle Win!

COMPETITIVE SPORT FISHING LEAGUE

BASSMANIA   TOURNAMENT TRAIL – NORTHWESTERN TOUR

LAKE MUSKOKA,   GRAVENHURST – JULY 29, 2012

Bassmania Classic XV Day 3: Lynn Johnston and Travis Vivien Classic XV Champions.

BASSMANIA TOURNAMENT TRAIL - CLASSIC XV FINAL STANDINGSCongratulations to Lynn Johnston and Travis Vivien the 2011 Bassmania Classic XV Champions.

COMPETITIVE SPORT FISHING LEAGUE
BASSMANIA TOURNAMENT TRAIL - CLASSIC XV
SEPTEMBER 2, 3 & 4, 2011 - RIDEAU FERRY

Position Angler Co-Angler Day 1 D1 BF D1 Pen Day 2 D2 BF D2 Pen Day 3 D3 BF HP Total Points

1 LYNN JOHNSTON TRAVIS VIVIAN 16.2 15.35 14.15 250 45.7 200
2 KAL VAISANEN (PA) BILL WALKER (PA) 14.55 15.45 15.5 150 45.5 199
3 CHRIS VANDERMEER (PA) JEFF SLUTE 15.15 14.1 15.35 3.65 250 44.6 198
4 DOUG BROWNRIDGE MIKE DESFORGES 13.6 15.1 15.6 250 44.3 197
5 RYAN CROWLEY TODD CROWLEY 16.15 15.25 11.8 150 43.2 196

BASSMANIA TOURNAMENT TRAIL : THE CASEY CUP - LAKE SIMCOE

COMPETITIVE SPORT FISHING LEAGUE
BASSMANIA TOURNAMENT TRAIL
WILDCARD - THE CASEY CUP - LAKE SIMCOE, COUCHICHING PARK, ORILLIA - JUNE 26, 2011

The Casey Cup is the first big Canadian Bass tournament of the year. It is held on famed Lake Simcoe where giant smallmouth abound. The two man team format is always a big fish battle. Considering these are 5 fish limits, these weights are staggerings. Twenty pounds, a 4 pound average, only landed you in 25th place. Big largemouths are here but this is a smallmouth tournament and these anglers are some of the best in the world.

Position Angler Co-Angler Weight HP Big Fish Points
1 JOE MUSZYNSKI SCOTT MURISON 25.85 300 BM300 200
2 BARRY GRAVES JASON GOUGH 25.65 300 199
3 CHRIS VANDERMEER JEFF SLUTE 23.8 250 198
4 NICK CUSIVIS HENRY VANDELAAR 23.6 225 197
5 WAYNE MISSLEBROOK DAVE KENNEDY 23.3 250 196