Masters Walleye Circuit ready
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| Workers at Barto Landing in Spring Valley are putting the final touches on setting up for the Master Walleye Circuit that is set to begin Saturday with the first of the boats launching at 7 a.m. There will various things there to do for everyone including fishing clinics for kids and a free bike give away. (BCR photo/Brad Martin) |
SPRING VALLEY — The weather looks like it will be in the mid 40s Saturday and Sunday with the possibility of rain, but it will definitely be a better fishing environment for the Masters Walleye Circuits fisherman than it was in 2007.
“We talked for a long time last year about whether to cut the tournament to one day or to even fish at all,” site coordinator Mike Hurless said. “The decision wasn’t a real popular one to cut to one day, but the flooding was so bad we were lucky to even get that much in.”
There will be just more than 300 fisherman and 156 boats entering the Illinois River, which is sponsored locally by the Spring Valley Walleye Club and nationally by Cabella’s.
The 156 boats are down from previous years, and Hurless said there is an easy explanation for that.
“Gas prices are really forcing guys not to travel,” Hurless said. “Now it’s trickling down to tournaments such as this. People can’t afford to drive all over the country like they used to.”
The entry fee is $700, and the top fisherman will bring home around $24,000 for the top prize.
They fish from the Starved Rock Dam at Utica to the Henry Bridge. If boaters need gas during the tournament hours, they are only allowed to fuel up at the Spring Valley Walleye Club.
There is a limit of five fish per day per team, and after the weigh-in, the Department of Natural Resources places the fish back into the river.
This is the 22nd annual tournament and is the longest such tournament in the circuit. Half the teams launch their boats at 7 a.m. and fish until 2 p.m., and the other half go from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The fish size is required to be at least 14 inches and over, otherwise it’s a state violation and will result in disqualification from the tournament.
Hurless also said that the pros will be conducting fishing clinics on Saturday and Sunday, and weather permitting, there will be a kids’ fishing day at the Dalzell Rod and Gun Club.
The details will be announced at the clinic on Saturday. This is to teach the kids how to use the equipment they get on Saturday.
Toyota donates a $500 bike fully rigged for fishing, and 50 rod and reel combos will once again be given away as well as 50 equipped tackle boxes.
The tournament gives a lot back to the communities such as donating $5,000 annually to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and $3,500 to the Hall Township to assist in the dredging of Barto Landing.
There is one very important note for spectators. There will be no spectator parking at Barto Landing. All spectators may park at Hall High School, and a free shuttle service will be provided to and from the landing.
There will also be food, drink and bleacher seats at the landing. The fisherman start to weigh in each day around 1 p.m.
Last year’s winner was Mickey Stuefen of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Stuefen’s winning fish weighed in at 2.71 pounds and gave him a prize of $61,630 in prize money.
Also on the list of activities is the 22nd annual Walleye 5K Run. The run will start and finish at Hall High School. Registration will begin at 6:30 a.m., and the race will start at 9 a.m.
T-shirts and refreshments are available to all runners.
For more information, call Lori Guerrini at (815) 664-2495 or go to starvedrockrunners.org and click on Walleye Run.
This is the first of the Starved Rock Runners circuit races.
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