Shaffer slows down, still slays them in Detroit

Stren Midwest anglers make 20-pound sacks norm despite reported tough bite on day two

TRENTON, Mich. – Despite a widely reported tougher bite, Stren Series Midwest Division competitors continued to milk the Detroit River and lakes Erie and St. Clair for eye-popping numbers of bass, as 17 anglers – 10 of them co-anglers – brought in sacks weighing more than 20 pounds. Clearly, a rough day around here is still a mighty fine place to be.

Wednesday’s leader, Dick Shaffer, did not bring in one of the 20-pound sacks, coming in just shy with 19-11 on day two, but he still retained his lead with a two-day total of 44 pounds, 11 ounces. Shaffer was one of several leading pros who reported slow going and tougher conditions out on the water today, and indeed his weight did fall by more than 5 pounds from day one. Nevertheless, the five he brought in were solid, and he will go out in boat No. 1 on day three.

“That’s all the fish I caught,” Shaffer said of his five-bass limit. “I had seven or eight bites and caught five of them. I had them by noon, and I didn’t have to go running around, although I was getting ready to move when I caught a couple.”

Shaffer’s day-two producer was not the sweet spot that gave him three 5-plus-pounders yesterday, though he did say he caught one fish from his day-one haul out of the spot he fished today. Like most leaders, he’s fishing Lake Erie using the standard baits – an ISG tube and an ISG goby.

Different theories abound as to what made the bite slack off today, and Shaffer’s opinion was that it had a lot to do with the wind. Though the wind stayed calm today, for which most competitors were grateful, it did change course, which altered the way the fish related to structure.

“The wind switched around, and the current switched around,” Shaffer said. “They were positioned on the structure differently today. If the weather holds, I should be able to catch them tomorrow.”

Balog bounces to second

Joe Balog of Harrison Township, Mich., moved up from seventh to second with a day-two catch of five bass weighing 21 pounds, 15 ounces, a limit that was half a pound heavier than what he brought in on day one. His two-day catch totaled 43 pounds, 6 ounces, and he, too, found the fishing to be tough today.

“Yesterday was a really good day of fishing,” Balog said. “I caught them early, and I caught a lot of fish. Today it was much more difficult. There was a lot more pressure where I was fishing.”

Like Shaffer, Balog weighed in the only five fish he caught today, but even though his day two was tough, he is optimistic about the final rounds.

“I’ve got an area I’ve been saving,” Balog said. “If the lake stays calm, I think I could do well, and I’ve got a backup deal if it’s rough.”

Balog, too, is fishing Lake Erie – “I always fish Erie” – and said a drop-shot goby worked well for him and his partner early in the morning. The drop-shot goby that he used was of his own design, but it was a variety of baits that allowed him to finish day two in the second spot.

Trombly to third

Yesterday’s No. 10 pro Mike Trombly of Perrysburg, Ohio, moved up to the third position with a combined two-day weight of 43 pounds, 4 ounces. He improved his day-one catch of 20-13 by just over a pound and a half, bringing in a limit worth 22 pounds, 7 ounces on day two.

“It was a pretty good day – every good fish I had on made it in the boat,” Trombly said. “I kept adding to my stringer because, with the quality of guys here, I felt I needed to keep catching them. Everything turned out well.”

Trombly caught his fish today drop-shotting and tubing in Lake Erie.

Coats, DeVries round out top five

In the fourth position is Amherst, Ohio, pro Bryan Coates with a two-day total catch of 42 pounds, 12 ounces. His 22-pound, 4-ounce catch was nearly 2 pounds heavier than his day-one haul, and he brought them in from Lake Erie on an ISG tube and goby.

“I had a really good bite early today,” Coates said. “With the weather being nice, I could do whatever I wanted. Plus, the water’s clearing up.”

Behind him in fifth is John DeVries of Fishers, Ind., with 42 pounds, 8 ounces of bass over two days. DeVries ended day one in fourth with 21 pounds, 14 ounces and followed that up today with another limit weighing 20 pounds, 10 ounces.

Rest of the best

The top 20 pros made the cut into the two-day final round starting Friday. The cut weight settled at 36 pounds, 5 ounces.

Rounding out the top 10 pros after day two on the Detroit River:

6th: David Hayward, Sylvania, Ohio, 10 bass, 41-9

7th: Kevin Snider, Elizabethtown, Ky., nine bass, 41-3

8th: Vic Vatalaro, Kent, Ohio, 10 bass, 40-13

9th: Chris Cox, Belleville, Wis., 10 bass, 40-11

10th: Patrick Goodman, White Pigeon, Mich., 10 bass, 39-10

Parker tops co-anglers

Leading the Co-angler Division after the opening round is Dick Parker of Amherst, Ohio, with a two-day catch of 42 pounds, 3 ounces. He played it steady the first two days, bringing in 20 pounds, 8 ounces on day one and following that up today with a similar catch of 21 pounds, 11 ounces.

Co-angler semifinalists take note – Parker brought in his leading haul today from the back of Bob Snyder’s boat, and Snyder let Parker do the navigating. The fact that he produced both days indicates some serious Lake Erie knowledge.

“My partner gave me free reign to go wherever I wanted,” Parker said. “We headed to Pelee.”

Pelee, of course, is Pelee Island, the famed fish factory that regularly produces Stren Series winners at this tournament. According to Parker, his success today can be attributed to his knowledge of how the bass are bunched up.

“I think they are schooled up on top of the humps, and we beat on them all day,” Parker said. “Instead of being spread out, they’re hanging tight to structure.”

Parker caught his bass today dragging ISG tubes.

Richardson stays in second

Yesterday’s No. 2 co-angler, James Richardson Sr., kept his seat warm today, bringing in 41 pounds, 9 ounces of bass over two days to remain in second place. He caught 22-14 yesterday but caught only 18-11 today.

“I could see the same area I fished yesterday,” he said. “Today I stayed with one bait all day, and that seemed to work for me. That bait was the tube.”

Richardson, too, struggled with a slower bite and blamed that on the weather, which brought a thunderstorm yesterday afternoon during weigh-in.

“The bite was a lot slower today due to that front that came in yesterday,” he said. “That’s why they bit better for me yesterday.”

Kuphall moves up to third

Moving up from eighth to third on the co-angler side is Caleb Kuphall of Mukwonago, Wis., thanks to his day-two catch of 20 pounds, 12 ounces that brought his two-day total to 40 pounds.

“I was basically just throwing tubes all day,” said Kuphall, adding that he caught his fish out of Lake Erie. “This (success) is because of my boater, no doubt about it. Tomorrow I’m just going to keep cracking away and doing the same things I’ve been doing.”

Kuphall fished today from the back of Chuck Willis’ boat.

Hasty, Narrin complete top five



In fourth place on the co-angler side is Charles Hasty of Toledo, Ohio, a former Stren Series winner here. His day-two catch was almost 10 pounds lighter than what he brought in on day one, but his accumulated weight still totaled an impressive 39 pounds, 3 ounces.

Behind him in fifth is Barry Narrin of Fostoria, Mich., with a two-day total weight of 37 pounds, 9 ounces. Narrin vastly improved his day-one catch of 15-1 by bringing in 22-8 today.

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers after day two on the Detroit River:

6th: David Hasty, Toledo, Ohio, 10 bass, 34-10

7th: Mike Drain, Purcell, Okla., 10 bass, 34-2

8th: Timothy Vieth, Marthasville, Mo., 10 bass, 33-15

9th: Todd Kuipers, Lafayette, Ind., 10 bass, 32-13

10th: Ron Fabiszak, South Bend, Ind., 10 bass, 32-5

The top 20 co-anglers advance into the next round. The co-angler cut weight settled at 28 pounds, 13 ounces.

Into the cut

Day three of Midwest Division competition at the Detroit River begins as the semifinal-round field of 20 boats takes off from Elizabeth Park in Trenton at 7 a.m. Central time. Anglers’ weights are reset to zero for Friday, and winners in both fields are determined by the heaviest accumulated weight over the next two days.

Friday’s weigh-in begins at 4 p.m. Central time at the Wal-Mart store located at 23800 Allen Road in Woodhaven.