Motown mayhem

Shaffer leads as 21 anglers bust 20-pound mark at Stren Series Midwest closer in Detroit

TRENTON, Mich. – Rain soaked competitors and onlookers at Wednesday’s Stren Series Midwest Division weigh-in, but a heavy shower did little to dilute the competition – an incredible 21 pros and co-anglers weighed in bags that topped the scales at more than 20 pounds. While the numbers definitely reflect an awesome day of fishing, those who know the Detroit River and accompanying fish factories Erie and St. Clair say it was just another day on the water.

Dick Shaffer of Rockford, Ohio, currently sits atop the leaderboard with 25 pounds, but Kentucky’s Kevin Snider is dangerously close behind with 24-13. All in all, 129 of 137 pros caught fish, and 88 of them caught five-bass limits. The heaviest bass of the day, a 5-pound, 15-ouncer, belonged to co-angler Dave Knutstrom, who currently sits in sixth place in his division.

Seeing Shaffer’s name at the top of the list is no surprise, as the veteran has racked up a slew of top-10s here in both the Stren Series and Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League. Indeed, he attributed his day-one success not to thorough practice but simply knowledge. That familiarity handed him not only the lead but also an incredible fish-catching experience.

“I went to a lot of spots,” Shaffer said. “The last spot I went to, I caught three 5-pounders on back-to-back casts.”

Sure enough, Shaffer weighed in a five-bass limit that included a 5-2, a 5-5 and a 5-6. While no doubt impressive, for Shaffer, it really was more like luck of the draw.

“I had to move around a lot,” he said. “I’d catch one or two here and one or two there. I never even practiced on part of my spots. They’re either there or they’re not.”

Snider close behind in second

No. 2 Snider wound up nipping at the leader’s heels, but at the beginning of the day, he wasn’t quite so fortunate.

“I lost three big ones right off the bat,” he said. “My co-angler had a limit by 9 (a.m.), and I didn’t have a fish in the boat.”

Snider acknowledged that things eventually went his way, thanks mostly to his straight vertical presentation to fish in Lake Erie. His tackle was nothing flashy, either – just regular Lake Erie go-to baits.

“I was fishing tubes – that’s no big secret – and gobies,” he said.

Morgenthaler third, closes in on AOY

Chad Morgenthaler of Coulterville, Ill., is no doubt on a high after bringing in a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds, 4 ounces on day one to sit in third, but perhaps even more thrilling is the fact that he may have fished his way to the Midwest Division Angler of the Year title.

Current points leader William Davis faltered today, bringing in one bass weighing 2 pounds, 14 ounces to sit in 123rd after day one. No. 2 points man Jim Jones didn’t fare much better, ending the day in 108th with two bass weighing 6 pounds, 12 ounces.

That left Morgenthaler, who entered this week’s event third in the points race, and he capitalized with a day he described as one of the best of his life.

“I had all these fish by 9:30,” he said. “It really surprised me. It was a perfect day – the wind blew where I could stay on my fish, and it happened pretty quickly. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow.”

To bring in the bounty, Morgenthaler first had to travel 55 miles to Lake Erie and navigate 3-foot waves – rough, but tame by Lake Erie standards.

“This is stuff I found yesterday because the wind laid down,” Morgenthaler said of his hot spot. “I have three or four places, and I didn’t have to go to any other place today. I lucked out and hit the good one first.”

Morgenthaler said he was dragging tubes and throwing drop-shots using light line.

Vatalaro, Devries tie for fourth



Stren Northeast Lake Erie winner Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio, and Indiana pro John Devries finished the day tied for fourth with 21 pounds, 14 ounces.

“Coming up to Lake Erie is outstanding,” Vatalaro said. “This lake never ceases to amaze me.”

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 pros on day one at the Detroit River:

6th: David Hayward, Sylvania, Ohio, five bass, 21-9

7th (tie): Joe Balog, Harrison Township, Mich., and Ben Felton, Marshall, Mich., five bass, 21-7

9th: Jon Bondy, Windsor, Ont., five bass, 21-6

10th: Mike Trombly, Perrysburg, Ohio, five bass, 20-13

Co-angler Hasty in familiar territory – in the lead in Detroit

Last July’s Stren Series Detroit River co-angler winner Charles Hasty of Toledo, Ohio, returned to the top of the leaderboard today with a five-bass catch weighing 24 pounds, 7 ounces. The limit put him ahead of his nearest competition by 1 pound, 9 ounces.

Hasty fished with No. 2 pro Snider today and nearly made an enemy out of him when he had a limit before Snider had caught a keeper.

“I was just lucky,” Hasty said. “The fish were in the back of the boat instead of the front of the boat.”

By the end of the day, though, the Snider-Hasty matchup had brought in nearly 50 pounds of bass, making them a pretty happy pair.

“We had a fantastic time,” Hasty said. “He was getting upset, but it turned around the other way. He’s from Kentucky and I’m from Ohio, so we’re like brothers now.”

Richardson lands in second

One year ago, James Richardson Sr. of Harrison, Ohio, finished third in this very tournament, and he’s at it again this year, ending day one in second place with a limit weighing 22 pounds, 14 ounces. To bring them in, Richardson played it close and played it safe.

“I used two standard techniques – drop-shotting and tubing,” Richardson said. “Nothing real special – I think it was more the area. We were probably within four miles of the launch ramp.”

Ling, Fabiszak, Parker bust 20-pound mark to round out top five

In third place is Eric Ling of Pittsboro, Ind. Ling’s day-one five-bass limit tipped the scales at 21 pounds, 14 ounces.

Current co-angler points leader Ron Fabiszak did himself no harm today by coming in fourth with a limit weighing 20 pounds, 13 ounces. While he’s still on top, his closest competition – No. 2 Bud Strader – came in 14th, so Fabiszak still has work to do to wrap up the title.

In fifth place is Dick Parker of Amherst, Ohio, with a limit of bass weighing in at 20 pounds, 8 ounces.

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers on day one at the Detroit River:

6th: Dave Knutstrom, Stronghurst, Ill., five bass, 19-13

7th: Todd Kuipers, Lafayette, Ind., five bass, 19-6

8th: Caleb Kuphall, Mukwonago, Wis., five bass, 19-4

9th: Tim Morris, Lake Orion, Mich., five bass, 18-3

10th: Jesse Wolfe, Nelson, Wis., five bass, 18-1

Day two of Midwest Division competition on the Detroit River begins as the field of 137 boats takes off from Elizabeth Park at 7 a.m. Eastern time Thursday for the second half of the opening round. Following tomorrow’s action, both fields will be cut to the top 20 anglers apiece based on two-day total weight.