Category: Tournament News

Barn Burner in Belgrade

June 10, 2021 0 Comment

The Belgrade lakes region of Maine, known for its plentiful bass population, saw an influx of kayak anglers this past weekend, as 65 anglers and many of their family descended upon Lake Messalonskee and Long Pond for the second Elite Kayak Fishing event of the season. Brought to you by Three Belles Outfitters and Bixpy, both anglers and fish were fired up for this event!

Most anglers rented cabins or rooms at Snow Pond Center for the Arts, tournament headquarters on the shores of Messalonskee, and word on campus was that pre-fishing went well for most.

Once the anglers hit the water Saturday morning, as big fish kept hitting the leaderboard, it was clear that this one would be a barn burner.

At the end of the day, 427 scorable bass were submitted. Out of 65 anglers, 63 of them caught fish, with 49 putting up a five-fish limit. Nearly a quarter of the 427 fish caught were 18 inches or longer.

The Bixpy Big Bass of the event was caught by Justin Lacasse, measuring 21.25 inches, tying Adam Rourke in the race to win a Bixpy motor at the end of the season.

Not surprising, the top ten anglers found themselves scraping for upgrades in a tight race for the payout spots. Third and fourth place found themselves in a tie, which came down to a third-largest fish tie-breaker; and fifth and sixth were also decided by a tie-breaking fish.

The event was won by New Hampshire’s Jake Angulas, who measured 95.25 inches of bass—four largemouth and one smallmouth. Rounding out the top ten was Mark Donio in second (92.50), John Ferreira in third (92.25), Mike Morcone in fourth (92.25), Jonathan Richardson in fifth (91.75), Ken Wood in sixth (91.75), Brady Ouellette in seventh (91.25), Simon Morgan in eighth (90.5), Shawn Marston in ninth (90.25), and Sean Dwyer in tenth (90.00).


The winner, Jake Angulas

Elite Kayak Fishing would like to thank Mike Guarino and Snow Pond Center for the Arts for their unsurpassed hospitality while hosting this event and the anglers.

Special thanks to our title sponsors, Three Belles Outfitters and Bixpy, as well as Dakota Lithium, Jackson Kayak’s Orion Coolers, and Savur Outdoors for their incredible support.

And thanks to everyone who made the trip, whether you were fishing the event or just visiting!

We’re heading to northern Pennsylvania for the next Elite Kayak Fishing, which will take place on Lake Wallenpaupack on July 17. Registration is open now on Fishing Chaos! Sign up here.

Friday Night BBQ and State Weed Inspection

May 30, 2021 0 Comment

It’s still early, but as of right now the weather leading up to and on the day of our Lake Messalonskee/Long Pond event is looking great!

Forty anglers are already registered! If you’d like to take part in this event as well, register here.

If you’ve already registered or intend to, don’t forget the Friday Night BBQ and state weed inspection.

Maine law requires all kayaks to be inspected, so head on over to Snow Pond and eat some great food at a great price ($12.96 per person) while your kayak is inspected. You can sign up for the BBQ here.

Cash bar will also be available!

Looking forward to seeing everyone this weekend.

Lake Added to Our Next Event!

May 18, 2021 0 Comment

Based on the number of anglers that fished our Cayuga Lake event—which was on Mother’s Day weekend and had less than desirable weather—we had concerns that we would go over our cap for our next event on Messalonskee Lake.

To avoid any potential roadblocks and dumping a very last-minute decision into the anglers’ laps, we reached out to the state and acquired an additional permit for Long Pond, which is connected to Messalonksee Lake via Belgrade Stream (separated by a dam).

Long Pond fishes very similar to Messalonskee and has many of the same characteristics, though its shoreline is much more undeveloped and natural compared to Messalonskee.

Anglers will now be able to fish either lake (or both)! We hope this is enough notice to anyone planning to fish the event.

You can register on Fishing Chaos up until 5 PM on June 4.

Big Limits at the First-Ever Elite Kayak Fishing Event

May 13, 2021 0 Comment

Elite Kayak Fishing, brought to you by Three Belles Outfitters and Bixpy, kicked off its inaugural event this past weekend as 75 anglers traveled to compete on the world-class bass factory Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York.

True to her reputation, Cayuga Lake produced!

The event kicked off Saturday morning, in cold, rainy conditions. Throughout the day, anglers submitted 286 catches, with the largest, caught by Adam Rourke, measuring in at 21.25 inches! The competition remained close right up until the end of the fishing window. The top ten anglers were only separated by 5.25 inches. Things were even closer between the top two competitors—Three Belles Outfitters team members Joe D’Addeo and Jason Gardner—with both finishing within a quarter inch of each other.

Anglers from across New England and as far south as New Jersey and Pennsylvania found success targeting fat, pre-spawn bass with vibrating jigs and other reaction baits. With some fishing shallow and others in deeper water, competitors were also faced with navigating bass boats from another event being held that day.

Ultimately, with 95.25 inches and having not pre-fished, Joe D’Addeo was able to edge out Jason Gardner and take home the victory in the first-ever Elite Kayak Fishing event. The top ten was rounded out by Mike Elrick (93.00), Josh Smith (92.75), Ryan Melia (92.50), Nick Audi (91.75), Jake Coucoulues (91.00), Adam Rourke (90.50), and Rob Sinker (90.00) and Tricia Angelini (90.00), with Rob hauling in the big-fish tie-breaker.


Jason Gardner and Joe D’Addeo

This event proved what kayak bass anglers from this region have been saying for years now: the Northeast is primed, ready, and deserving of its own regional trail!

Elite Kayak Fishing wants to thank Justin Hausner and New York Kayak Bass Fishing for their assistance in making this first event such a success. To Ketch, for the amazing trophy—thank you! And to the sponsors—Three Belles Outfitters, Bixpy, Dakota Lithium, Jackson Kayak’s Orion Coolers, and Savur Outdoors—for helping make this vision a reality. But most important, respect and gratitude to the anglers, without whom this trail does not exist.

The next Elite Kayak Fishing event will be held on June 5th on Messalonskee Lake and Long Pond in Maine. Registration is open now on Fishing Chaos!

Jackson Kayak’s Orion Coolers Sponsors Elite Kayak Fishing

April 27, 2021 0 Comment

Elite Kayak Fishing is proud to announce Jackson Kayak’s Orion Coolers as a series partner for the 2021 fishing season!

Jackson Kayak is widely regarded as an industry leader in quality and innovation, and like their world-class kayaks, Orion Coolers delivers unparalleled performance and durability in the outdoors industry using the same quality materials to create high-performance, roto-molded coolers.

These coolers offer two inches of insulation throughout, ensuring your food or beverage of choice stays cold longer. Certified bear-resistant by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee, Orion Coolers meet bear-resistant food storage regulations on public lands in grizzly bear habitat. Each cooler comes with a variety of features like built-in bottle openers, non-slip feet, and tie-down points, making sure your cooler is with you every step of your adventure.

Jackson Kayak’s Orion Coolers offer a wide range of options for anyone seeking to be Outdoor to the Core, and Elite Kayak Fishing will be giving away via random draw one 35-quart cooler at each regular-season event and two 45-quart coolers at our championship event on Lake Champlain!

See you on the water!

Like and follow Orion Coolers on Facebook and Instagram, or check them out online at Jackson Adventures.

Lake Wallenpaupack Replaces Lake Hopatcong

February 7, 2021 0 Comment

When we found out we would not be granted a permit for Lake Hopatcong, we looked at other locations nearby, most of which unfortunately turned out to be reservoirs used for drinking water. After much research, our next best option seemed to be Candlewood Lake in Connecticut. We even alluded to this on our Facebook group page.

Another choice was the Delaware River, and others suggested the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania, but neither was the right choice. The former being tidal and having a reputation as a mediocre fishery; the latter being too far out of the region in which we want to host these events (for the time being).

We had all but committed to Candlewood when someone suggested a large reservoir in northeastern Pennsylvania. Lake Wallenpaupack.

After some research, we decided this was a better option, as it would allow us to keep an event down in that part of the region rather than holding it on Candlewood over two hours to the north.

Danny Fontaine and Brian Thomas of Central Jersey Kayak Bass Fishing Club went to work securing a permit, which was just approved, so it’s official: our July 17 event will be held on Lake Wallenpaupack in northeastern Pennsylvania!

Check out the event page for more details.

Championship Qualification

January 13, 2021 0 Comment

Our inaugural trail series leads to the mighty Lake Champlain, a world-renowned bass factory that splits the borders between New York, Vermont, and Canada. The first-ever Elite Kayak Fishing Championship will take place on that world-class fishery on September 11, 2021, and we have no doubt you want to fish it.

However, while our first four events are open to all anglers, you’ll have to earn your way into the championship.

In addition to qualifying for our championship, anglers also have the opportunity to qualify for the KBF National Championship as well as the All-American Kayak Classic.

Here’s how…

ELITE KAYAK FISHING CHAMPIONSHIP

• Place in the top 10 at any of our first four events
• Accumulate 800 Angler of the Year points during our first four events

Click here to see how our points system works.

KAYAK BASS FISHING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

• Place in the top 10% at any EKF event, championship included

ALL-AMERICAN KAYAK CLASSIC

• Place in the top 10 in the EKF Angler of the Year race

Courtesy of the All-American Kayak Series, we will also be giving away the Ben Spangler Sportsman Award to one deserving angler. Ben, who sadly passed away last year, was a beloved angler in our growing community, a friend to many, so it will be our pleasure to award this honor to someone.

And that covers everything. Pretty straight forward.

As always, feel free to reach out to us with any questions or concerns.

Lake Hopatcong Permit Denied

January 11, 2021 0 Comment

When we put this trail together, we had a feeling one event may cause us some issues. Originally scheduled for April 10, we moved the Lake Hopatcong event to July 17 to avoid travel and public gathering restrictions, which we anticipated would be an obstacle that early in the year.

Unfortunately, despite Brian’s and Danny’s best efforts, we were unable to secure a permit for Lake Hopatcong.

We know a lot of you were looking forward to fishing that lake, especially since the KBF Trail Event scheduled to take place there last year had to be moved at the last minute. That was one of the main reasons we wanted to host an event there.

Looks like we’ll have to wait until 2022.

Anyway, we will be moving the July 17 event to another location. We won’t announce the lake until we have a permit in hand, but it is a great fishery.

This lake is farther north than Hopatcong by about two hours. Not what we wanted to do, but every lake in that area of New Jersey is either too small or it’s public drinking water and off limits to fishing, so we had no choice.

We apologize for the inconvenience, but hope you understand. This was simply beyond our control.

We don’t anticipate any issues with any of the other locations.

Reach out if you have any questions.

Kayak Anglers Announce New Northeast Tournament Series

January 3, 2020 0 Comment

KAYAK ANGLERS ANNOUNCE NEW NORTHEAST TOURNAMENT SERIES

What started as a simple idea for a one-off tournament has evolved into Elite Kayak Fishing, a full-blown tournament series for kayak anglers in the Northeast, with five events scheduled for their inaugural season, including a championship on the mighty Lake Champlain.

Founded by Jason Gardner, Ken Wood, and Adam Rourke, with the assistance of Matt Charette, Elite Kayak Fishing is a kayak fishing organization aimed at creating more opportunities for anglers to compete at a higher level without having to travel thousands of miles to do so.

For years, some of the best anglers in the country, performing on the biggest stages that kayak fishing has to offer, have come from the Northeast. “When KBF decided to scale back and drop their regional trail series, we created EKF to fill that gap,” said Ken Wood, when asked why there was a need for another tournament series. “We want to offer the highest level of competition in this region because many of the anglers are already competing on that level, only now they can do it much closer to home.”

Jason Gardner added, “Without a way to compete regionally, we feared this level of competition in the Northeast could go stagnant.”

Leveraging the various fishing groups and dedicated kayak fishing ambassadors throughout the region and country, Elite Kayak Fishing represents a collaborative effort to expand the sport of kayak fishing in a region that has less support than any other in the country.

“It was important to us that we work with other directors and kayak fishing groups in the region,” Adam Rourke said. “Not only is their knowledge and input invaluable to our success, that success will hopefully have a positive effect on their groups and more importantly their anglers.”

Indeed, for this inaugural season, Elite Kayak Fishing has partnered with five of the biggest tournament groups in the region: New York Kayak Bass Fishing, Maine Yak Anglers, Central Jersey Kayak Bass Fishing Club, New Hampshire Kayak Fishing, and Adirondack Kayak Bass Fishing.

“The goal is to work with new groups each season.” Jason Gardner pauses, then adds, “And possibly one day expand into other regions. Time will tell. But for now the focus remains on the Northeast.”

Elite Kayak Fishing has also partnered with Kayak Bass Fishing, as the first-ever Partner Trail Series, and will provide anglers with opportunities to qualify for the annual Kayak Bass Fishing National Championship.

In addition, Anglers will also be given the chance to qualify for the All-American Kayak Classic.

The culture of Elite Kayak Fishing is simple: expand the sport of kayak bass fishing and have fun doing it.

For more information, visit them online. For media and sponsorship inquires, please contact Matt Charette at matt@elitekayakfishing.com

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