Invitational Tournament Trail
Lake Monroe

The sixth 2003 IBF Invitational Tournament sponsored by Galyan's Trading Company was held on Lake Monroe on September 7, 2003. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Galyan's for their support of the Indiana Bass Federation and the Invitational Tournament Trail. We had an hour and a half fog delay, but the day improved to partly cloudy skies and warm temperatures making for excellent fishing conditions!

We have a new Tournament Director! Rob Worthy has agreed to become the Indiana Bass Federation Invitational Tournament Trail Tournament Director. Rob and his wife, Jerrie, will do a great job. Sandy and I wish them good luck and know that the fishermen will give them the same support that was so graciously given to us.

WILD CARD TOURNAMENT: The Wild Card Tournament will be held at Salamonie Reservoir, Dora-New Holland Ramp, on September 14, 2003. There will be NO OFF LIMITS period as in the past. Registration starts at 5:00 a.m. You can register and pay your entry at the ramp. Please be there early if you plan to fish!

If you do not finish in the top 40 as either an Angler or a Co-Angler and you fish 5 of the 6 regular season tournaments, you will qualify to fish the Wild Card Tournament. We will take the top 5 Anglers and top 5 Co-Anglers from the Wild Card Tournament for entry to the Classic where you will have a chance to win cash prizes and a Ranger Boat.

EDDIE GILSTRAP MOTORS TRUCK GIVE AWAY: On Saturday afternoon, Paul Phillips, Dale Fess, Andy Nickels, Aaron Hochstedler and Phil Cotten were drawn and each was given a key that would possibly open the Ford truck door. The only draw back was that they had to wait until the end of fishing on Sunday to see if their keys worked. The lucky winner of the 1-year lease on the Ford F150 XLT pickup truck was Phil Cotten. CONGRATULATIONS PHIL!!!!

CLASSIC: The top 40 Anglers and top 40 Co-Anglers will be getting a Confirmation Letter and Information Sheet sent out the same time as this Newsletter (Monday). Please fill out the Information Sheet and return it to us as soon as possible and no later than September 20, 2003. We will be sending an additional letter regarding final details to all the qualifiers closer to the Classic.

We had 202 fishermen start out for a fun day of fishing with partly cloudy skies. At weigh in we had 87 fishermen bring 129 fish to the scales with a total weight of 289.98 pounds. Specifically, 62 Anglers weighed in 101 fish weighing 223.62 pounds and 25 Co-Anglers weighed in 28 fish weighing 66.36 pounds.

On the Angler side, Marvin Parton won the tournament with 3 fish weighing 12.76 pounds. He received a first place plaque and a check in the amount of $2,908. Second place went to Bob Bayless with 5 fish weighing 11.36 pounds. He received the second place plaque and a check in the amount of $1,435. Bernie Miller finished third with 4 fish weighing 9.60 pounds and received a check in the amount of $869 and the third place plaque. Finishing fourth with 3 fish weighing 8.38 pounds was Rodney Hardwick. He received the fourth place plaque and a check for $623. The fifth spot went to David Willsey with 2 fish weighing 6.86 pounds. He received a check in the amount of $397 and the fifth place plaque. We paid out 16 places on the Angler side.

On the Co-Angler side, Charles Fox won the tournament with 1 fish weighing 7.44 pounds. He received a first place plaque and a check in the amount of $1,297. Second place went to Gilmer Addington with 1 fish weighing 6.60 pounds. He received the second place plaque and a check in the amount of $640. Todd Thompson finished third with 1 fish weighing 5.90 pounds and received a check in the amount of $387 and the third place plaque. Finishing fourth with 3 fish weighing 4.21 pounds was Steve Lehman. He received the fourth place plaque and a check for $278. The fifth spot went to Norman Pelfrey with 1 fish weighing 4.04 pounds. He received a check in the amount of $177 and the fifth place plaque. We paid out 15 places on the Co-Angler side.

We now have two big bass pots for Anglers and two for Co-Anglers. There is the Regular Big Bass Pot and it operates the same way big bass pots always operate. The Angler and Co-Angler who catch the biggest bass (by weight) win the regular big bass pots. The second is the Progressive Big Bass Pot. The winner of this pot must catch a big bass that meets or exceeds the pre-established target weight.

The Angler Regular Big Bass Pot was won by Marvin Parton with a big bass of 6.06 pounds. He received a big bass check in the amount of $420. The Co-Angler Regular Big Bass Pot was won by Charles Fox with a whopping big bass of 7.44 pounds. He received a big bass check in the amount of $194. The target weight for the Progressive Big Bass Pot for this tournament was 5.75 pounds. As you can see, it was hit and hit hard this tournament!! Marvin Parton was awarded $2,500 for his fish weighing 6.06 pounds and Charles Fox won $1,374 for his 7.44 big bass. What an ending to a season of fishing!!

The highest finishing Angler and Co-Angler mentioning Solar Bat Sunglasses and wearing them while weighing in received a bonus of $50.00 for the Angler and $25.00 for the Co-Angler. Bob Bayless received $50.00 and Charles Fox received $25.00 from Solar Bat Eye Protection Systems.

The Angler Of The Year for 2003 is Mike Stetich with 491 points. The Co-Angler Of The Year for 2003 is Steve Lehman with 443 points. CONGRATULATIONS Mike and Steve for a great job of fishing. The competition this year was tough and "neck and neck" all the way to the end for the Anglers and Co-Anglers.

Sandy and I want to take a space in this Newsletter to thank all of you for your support during our past three years of running this tournament trail. We have had lots of fun and enjoyed the fellowship with you. The success of this tournament is dependent upon the fishermen making it happen. We aren't going away - we are just changing hats. I will be fishing in the tournament and Sandy will be at my side supporting me in the sport of bass fishing.

I also want to thank my support staff: Bryan LaLone, Wendy LaLone, Dexter Cloud, Joe Spalding, Ed O'Conner and Ken Gibbs. Without their hard work and dedication, the trail wouldn't be what it is today. They did an excellent job and I can't thank them enough. Again, thank you the fishermen for making our jobs so much fun for the last three years!!

We were pleased with the participation and excitement of the fishermen throughout the 2003 season. The Tournament Crew and I had a great time this season and hope that you had a great time fishing with us. We really appreciated your support. Please feel free to call Sandy or me if you have any questions.

God bless and good fishing to you all!!

Dan Simmons
Tournament Director