Ready in Red Wing

Big names lead EverStart semifinalists onto Mississippi River

RED WING, Minn. – The anglers looked as familiar as the weather in EverStart Series competition in Minnesota Friday morning. In what could have passed for almost any Wal-Mart FLW Tour takeoff, the top-20 field heading out onto the Mississippi River for the semifinal round of the first Northern Division tournament of the season contained a handful of pro fishing’s heavy hitters.

And, of course, it’s still raining.

In addition to past FLW winners Dave Lefebre, Wesley Strader and Pat Fisher, fishing today are perennial FLW finalists Bill Chapman and Chris Baumgardner. Notably, none of them hail from the North except Lefebre, who incidentally also won the last EverStart event here on the Mississippi River.

Additionally, Canadian TV fishing personality Bob Izumi also made the cut, adding a camera-friendly element to the mix.

But balancing out this seemingly imposing list of big-name pros is the usual lineup of relative newcomers, mostly locals, who are essential to any EverStart event. Indeed, it was a local pro, Jeff Ritter of Prairie du Chien, Wis., fishing in just his second Northern Division event, who led the charge out of the opening round. He and fellow top-fivers Jason Leuenberger of La Crosse, Wis., and Aaron Larocque of Wabasha, Minn., as well as their fellow Minnesota and Wisconsin semifinalists, could be the most intimidating factors on the water the next two days.

Judging by the talk of barge schedules at the dock this morning, you can bet your bottom dollar that almost every single boat locked down to Pool 4 after takeoff. The leading stringers have all come from the lower pool over the first two days, mostly because the water’s a little cleaner in Lake Pepin.

The pros have been topping out around 12 pounds per day in the opening round. Despite the onslaught of more inclement weather at takeoff, the forecast – if you can believe it – is actually calling for a break in the clouds and rain as the day wears on. Whether that will improve catch weights remains to be seen. There are a lot of bass in this part of the river, but one gets a sense that the no-cull rule – not to mention the miserable weather – has kept the weights down somewhat over the first two days.

Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 295 Tyler Road S. in Red Wing beginning at 3:30 p.m. Central time.

Weights are cleared for the semifinal round, and anglers compete for one day to determine who will advance to Saturday’s final round. Only the top 10 pros and 10 co-anglers compete Saturday, and the winners are determined by heaviest two-day weight.

Friday’s conditions:

Sunrise: 5:25 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 59 degrees

Expected high temperature: 72 degrees

Water temperature: 66-71 degrees

Wind: from the east-southeast at 15 mph

Maximum humidity: 76 percent

Day’s outlook: scattered strong storms