Weather forces cancellation of day-two action
A windswept Lake Champlain, adverse weather wipe out second day of EverStart Northern Division competition
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Due to excessively high winds and dangerous conditions, tournament officials have cancelled Thursday’s EverStart Northern Division competition on Lake Champlain. With winds generally in the 20 mph range, and with wind gusts approaching 30 mph in some areas, conditions were obviously too severe – even to the untrained eye – to risk sending anglers out onto the open water.
Although some anglers voiced frustration over the ill-timed wind surge, others simply expressed amazement.
“I walked outside today and the first thing I saw were 3-foot waves hitting my cottage,” said Mark “The Z-Man” Zona, an EverStart pro hailing from Sturgis, Mich. “Right now I’m glad I’m not fishing.”
A quick scan of Mooney Bay Marina painted an ominous picture. Just outside the harbor, huge waves could be seen breaking over the jetty while white caps were visible throughout greater Lake Champlain. The wind was so strong, in fact, that it was difficult for some anglers even to maintain their balance while traversing the narrow docks leading to the end of the marina.
At approximately 6:45 a.m., EverStart tournament officials issued a statement outlining a preliminary plan to indefinitely delay today’s competition.
“The tournament, at this point, has been delayed until midmorning,” said EverStart tournament director Chris Jones in the first official announcement of the morning. “We will make a decision at that time whether to send the competitors out. A strong wind advisory has been issued. And right now, that wind has created dangerous waters for our anglers.”
However, by 9:45 a.m., it had become clear that the weather and tremendous wind surges wouldn’t have permitted safe enough passage for the anglers – some who had initially planned to make one-way runs greater than 70 miles – on the open waters of Lake Champlain. As a result, tournament officials decided to cancel today’s competition and resume EverStart action with the semifinals on Friday.
“Because it became apparent that the wind wasn’t going to let up, we’ve cancelled today’s activities,” said Jones.
Although the EverStart semifinals normally feature the top 20 anglers in each division, due to extenuating circumstances, tournament officials said there will be one minor change to the format for tomorrow’s competition.
“We’ve decided to go with the top 21 pros and co-anglers for the semifinals because we had three co-anglers tied for 19th place,” said Jones. “But everything else is scheduled to go on as planned. Boat check will be 6:15 a.m. tomorrow and takeoff will begin at the scheduled 6:30 a.m. start time.”
As a result of Thursday’s cancellation, Wednesday’s results will be used to determine the top 21 anglers in each of the Pro and Co-angler divisions who will get to advance to Friday’s semifinals.
Currently Brian Gates of Mendon, Vt., is in first place in the Pro Division after landing a 19-pound, 3-ounce catch in yesterday’s competition. Tom Monsoor (second) of Lacrosse, Wis., Thomas LaVictoire (tied for third) of West Rutland, Vt., Sam Newby (tied for third) of Pocola, Okla., and Patrick Martin (fifth) of Carver, Minn., round out the top five pros.
The top five co-anglers after yesterday’s competition are as follows: Johnathan Dingle (first) of South Meriden, Conn., Troy Sprague (second) of Lincoln, Neb., Dean Meckes (third) of Clayton, N.Y., Bob Melanson (fourth) of Springfield, Mass., and Philip Borsa (fifth) of Redford, Mich.
Friday’s semifinal takeoff is expected to take place at 6:30 a.m. at Mooney Bay Marina, located at 15 Mooney Bay in Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Vital statistics:
Sunrise: 6:44 a.m.
Temperature at scheduled 6:30 a.m. takeoff time: 53 degrees
Expected high temperature: 66 degrees
Water temperature: 65-68 degrees
Wind: from the southwest at 20 mph, with 25 mph gusts
Relative humidity: 86 percent
Day’s outlook: showers
Related links:
Photos
Scheduled day-two pairings
Day-one results