Syracuse.com - Wild Carp Week gets wilder with 75 hours of straight fishing

[HuntingNY-News]

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The action in the catch-and-release style tournament will start at 7 a.m. Sunday morning and end 10 a.m. Wednesday. Teams are entered from throughout the country, Canada and Europe.

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Cousins Jason Long, of Batavia, and Dan Kelsey, of Attica, were last year's winners in the 50-hour Team Challenge. They're coming back this year to defend their crown.</span>

<span class="byline">Ellen Blalock | [email protected]</span>

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<p>Competitive carp fishing returns next month to Central New York with the Wild Carp Week Triathlon, presented by JGB Enterprises, on the Seneca River in Baldwinsville.</p>

<p>This year’s competition, set for May 18-24 and featuring $18,500 in prize money, includes several changes from last year’s contest, according to tournament director Jason Bernhardt, of Wild Carp Companies.</p>

<p>“Last year’s team challenge featured 50 hours of straight fishing,” Bernhardt said. “This year, that has been increased to 75 hours.”</p>

<p>The action in the catch-and-release style tournament will start at 7 a.m. Sunday morning and end 10 a.m. Wednesday. Teams are entered from throughout the country, Canada and Europe.</p>

<p>He explained that one of the big complaints from anglers in previous competitions is that “lots of times with carp fishing Day 1 is slow, Day 2 you’re just starting to catch up and by Day 3 things start getting hot and the tournament is over.”</p>

<p>Bernhardt said by adding the extra day of fishing, that complaint will be addressed “and hopefully we’ll get some record-breaking numbers as far as the total haul.” The winner is determined by total weight caught by a two-person team.</p>

<p>The week’s schedule also includes the separate, one-day Big Carp Challenge (biggest fish) and Big Four Challenge (total weight of four biggest carp caught), on Thursday and Friday, respectively.</p>

<p>Bernhardt said currently registration for the 75-hour team challenge, the Biggest Carp and Big 4 challenges, are full, with a waiting list. He said this year only 31 teams have been allowed to register as opposed to more than 40 last year.</p>

<p> “I capped it at 31 teams because the pegs (designated fishing spots) were too close together,” Bernhardt said. “I’m going to get out again on the river and see if we can’t squeeze a few more pegs in.”</p>

<p>Two-person teams are paying $700 to compete in the Team Challenge and individual anglers are paying $175 each to compete in the Big Carp and Big 4 challenges.</p>

<p>Last year’s winner of the 50-hour team challenge -- cousins Jason Long, of Batavia, and Dan Kelsey,of Attica -- are returning to fish again this year, he said.</p>

<p>Winners of the 75-hour team competition will get $3,000, with second place receiving $2,000 and third, $1,000. Winners of the Big Carp tournament will win $1,000 ($500 for the biggest mirror carp) and $2,000 for the Big Four.</p>

<p>“If a team won all three competitions, they’ll walk away with $6,500,” Bernhardt said.<br />For more on Wild Carp Week, see<a href="http://www.wildcarpcompanies.com"> www.wildcarpcompanies.com</a> or email Bernhardt at <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>.</p>

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog