EverStart Series Northern Division to host event on Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain offers mix of both smallmouth, largemouth bass
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The EverStart Series is headed to Lake Champlain June 23-25 for the first of four stops in the Northern Division. The tournament will feature as many as 300 pros and co-anglers competing for top awards up to $35,000 plus a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard for the pro and a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard plus $5,000 for the co-angler.
“With the full moon coming this week, the bass are going to be spawning next week,” said IAMS/Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio. “I would look for the bass to be on beds in about 5 to 12 feet of water. They normally like those subtle and small points, especially the smallmouth.
“Some of the bass might be postspawn as well. You’ll want to find some deeper humps for those fish. I would mainly use tubes as a primary bait,” Vatalaro added. “You don’t necessarily need a largemouth to win the tournament, but a mixed bag definitely makes a difference on Champlain. There are going to be a lot of fish caught. It should be a fun tournament.”
Anglers will take off from Plattsburgh Boat Basin located at 5 Dock Street in Plattsburgh, N.Y., at 6 each morning. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 2 p.m. daily. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Walmart located at 25 Consumer Square in Plattsburgh starting at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
Pros will fish for a top award of $35,000 plus a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard if Ranger Cup guidelines are met. Co-anglers will cast for a top award consisting of a Ranger 177TR with 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $5,000 if Ranger Cup guidelines are met.
The EverStart Series consists of five divisions: Central, Northern, Southeast, Texas and Western. Each division consists of four tournaments and competitors will be vying for valuable points in each division that could earn them the Strike King Angler of the Year title along with $5,000 for the pro and $2,000 for the co-angler. The top 40 pros and co-anglers from each respective division will qualify for the EverStart Series Championship that will be held on Kentucky Lake in Buchanan, Tenn., Oct. 27-30.
The EverStart Series tournament on Lake Champlain is being hosted by the City of Plattsburgh.
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