This is a pretty good read.
Lake Erie crowns new BASS champion
By Forrest Fisher
Article Source - The Sun News - NY
For 37-year-old Birmingham, Alabama resident Kotaro Kiriyama, the Lake Erie waters between Buffalo and Barcelona provided the stepping stone to winning $100,000 and the title of 2008 ESPN2 Empire Chase Elite Series Bassmaster Champion. Kiriyama also won an additional $14,500 in bonus cash winnings for his monster bass catches displayed before 10,000 screaming fans at Buffalo Small Boat Harbor on Sunday, Aug. 2.
The champion ran from Buffalo to waters near Barcelona each day to fish one of four hotspots he located with forage over rocky bottom structure. There he landed more than 93 pounds of smallmouth bass in four days of world class bass fishing competition. The total is a new Lake Erie professional record.
Kiriyama used a drop-shot rig to entice the giant bronzebacks found in 30 to 80 feet of water, bringing in five-fish limits of 25 pounds or greater on each the last two days of competition. Bassmaster emcee, Keith Allen, said, “Koto, you found a way to best your competition by a very large margin, and that is very difficult to do.” Koto answered, “I love Lake Erie, the greatest bass fishing in the world.”
Koto had a three-day whopping total of 67 pounds, 13 ounces, giving him a commanding 3-pound, 8- ounce lead over Aaron Martens, in second, and an additional ounce over Edwin Evers, last year’s Empire Chase winner, who finished third. To say the least, the final day of the Empire Chase, presented by Farmer’s Insurance, was incredibly exciting!
The final day started Sunday morning at the Buffalo NFTA Small Boat Harbor launch where the 107 best anglers in the world had been pared down to 12 qualifiers for the last day of competition “fish-off.” The boat send-off was preceded by the national anthem, and more than 500 fans greeted their favorite anglers with words of good luck and expressions of “let’s win!”
Koto said he ran about three hours to reach his hotspot, fished for a little more than one hour on some days, then took the same time to return. Upon arriving at the dock in Buffalo 45 minutes early on the last day, smiling humbly, he said, “I just came back early because I didn’t think I could catch anything bigger than what I had and I didn’t want to take a chance on being late.” Koto had made a long run with his boat and both he and his cameraman were sore from the rough, windy ride.
He said his fishing tactics were fairly common, using an Owner Model 5115-101 (size one) hook tied 15 inches above a 5/16 ounce sinker on seven-pound Gama Drop-Shot fishing line. He used a four-inch soft plastic Jackall Crazy Ninja hooked through the nose to imitate the small baitfish that he was able to see on his graph. His Ninja lures had been pre-soaked in Berkley Gulp! Alive! and he credits the liquid substance for allowing the bass to hang on to his lures longer, so he could detect them and set the hook. When the water was rough, Koto said he switched to a three-fourth ounce sinker. “It didn’t matter on most days,” he explained, “Each day, I caught over 40 bass in a very short time.”
The most common bait used by pro-anglers fishing Buffalo was Berkley Gulp! Alive! Goby Minnows in various color shades.
Each of the final 12 bassmaster experts that took center stage at the final weigh-in had one thing to say, “What an incredible bass fishery you have!” The applause they received was deafening. They also said that it is impossible to fish Lake Erie without good electronics. They all credited their sonar with allowing them to find fish. Note that all 12 finalists use Lowrance sonar/gps.
For the pro’s, fishing in Buffalo was important for two reasons: Elite Series points and Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings (AOY). The Empire Chase tournament in Buffalo not only helps decide who wins AOY, but the top 36 automatically qualify for the 2009 Bassmaster Classic. It is hot competition right now, too.
The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year program acknowledges and rewards those anglers who fish the most consistently over the Elite Series season. Along with the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Classic title, the Angler of the Year is the most sought after award on the BASS circuit because it recognizes hard work and credibility. Professional anglers consider the title of Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year as the most meaningful achievement in the sport of fishing.
The trail to the trophy and collect the top AOY prize of $250,000 requires consistently high finishes throughout the grueling 11-event Bassmaster Elite Series. If they falter even once, they may be out of the running. What’s more, the competition is staged at 11 different lakes in different parts of the country and in winter, spring and summer – all of which favors the most versatile bass angler.
Angler of the Year is based upon the total number of points accumulated during each Elite Series event. The system awards 300 points to the winner of each tournament, with a five-point decrease per position through fifth place, a four-point decrease from sixth to 10th, a three-point decrease per position from 11th to 15th, a two-point decrease per position from 16th to 99th and a one-point decrease per position thereafter.
In addition, five bonus points are added for each day an angler leads a tournament, while anglers who do not catch any fish in a tournament do not receive points. The program pays the top 50 anglers, with $250,000 awarded to the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year. The total prize purse for this award is more than $1 million.
Kevin VanDam, or KVD, for short, is the always-focused 40-year-old, three-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year and may be the most famous name in modern professional bass fishing. VanDam was in the AOY lead before Buffalo, but Todd Faircloth has surged into the lead now. For Faircloth, one of the top 12 in Buffalo, the final day was all about cushion he had for AOY, as he passed VanDam. Faircloth came into the Buffalo event 16 points down and is now up by 21 points over KVD in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race.
For both anglers, Oneida is a wildcard that could go in any direction. KVD finished third there in 2006 and Faircloth was in 36th, but despite the big gap, he was just a few pounds behind. Anglers will be sure to count every ounce at Oneida. For all the Elite Series anglers, Oneida Lake practice started on Monday morning.
In talking with KVD after day three, it is easy to see what makes this fishing legend so great is that he has an explanation and understanding for anything related to his fishing style, he takes nothing for granted and he is never satisfied. His 18th-place finish in Buffalo is below par for him. KVD will be ready for Oneida and the last event in the AOY race should be fun to watch. See it next weekend on ESPN2.com on the live webcam or on ESPN2-TV the following Saturday morning at 9 a.m.
Over the course of the Empire Chase on Lake Erie from Buffalo, some 1,328 bass were landed to total 4,138 -pounds, 6 ounces. There were 258 limits of five bass per day caught by anglers and more than $673,150 in cash winnings awarded. By the way, this was a catch and release tournament and all fish were released after weigh-in.
ESPN2 has estimated the economic impact to the Buffalo area at plus $700,000, with primary positive effects to eatery’s, hotels, gas stations and food stores. Cost to the Buffalo CVB to get ESPN2 and the Elite Series here was $60,000. Sounds like a great buy! Buffalo CVB should note that fishing tournaments are a big boost for the Niagara region! BASSmasters will return here in 2010.
This Saturday, Aug. 9 look for the 2008 Empire Chase Lake Erie E
SPN2 production show to be aired at 9 a.m.