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Superman Comics writers once created a mythical place
called Bizarro-world in which all earthly things were
the opposite of normal. Not surprisingly, Superman had
serious difficulty performing his normal heroic feats
there and daily life became quite frustrating.
Everything the super-hero had come to expect disappeared
and his environment seemed totally foreign. So what the
heck does some weird comic book story have to do with
fishing tournaments?
Lake Geneva’s fishery has been so outstanding in recent
years that it had many anglers feeling like
super-heroes. 20+ pound stringers in practice and
tournaments were pretty common and the confidence levels
of most anglers were sky high. But over the last 2
seasons, things have been changing for most anglers.
Many reliable baits and “old faithful” areas have lost
their luster. Making adaptations on the fly, even more
so than in normal lake cycles, seems to have become the
key to success. In order to succeed in Bizarro-world,
Superman was forced to do things outside of his comfort
zone…think outside the box and regain his super powers
to save the day. Tournament fishermen have had to do
the same on Lake Geneva…and those who haven’t are
starting to feel like they’re a long way from their
“home lake.
So far this season, the Lake Geneva Super-heroes making
all the right moves seem to be Marc and Jeremy Hewkin of
Zion, IL. In fact, they’ve performed so well that a few
competitors are referring to the dynamic duo as “The
Hewkinators.” The pair weighed in an eye popping limit
at 23.91 pounds which earned them 1st place
and $1600. Their catch was anchored by a beautiful 4.77
lb. kicker largemouth which was rumored to have been
caught early and deep. To secure their victory, reports
also had the Hewkins fishing diverse patterns discovered
during an intense pre-fishing period. Mark and Jeremy
are sponsored by
“HAWG-N-SONS.” Congratulations to this father and son
team on another victory and good luck to them in their
quest for anglers of the year.
Taking home $1,200 and 2nd place honors with 20. 81
pounds was the familiar team of Brad Rubin from Antioch,
IL and Matt Vose from Aurora, IL. The pair confirmed
that despite their continued success, they believe
cashing a check on Lake Geneva is becoming more and more
difficult. They attribute their success to hard work,
persistence, and adapting to the conditions. Vose
commented that “Even though we did not win this
tournament, I think it was one of our best. We worked
extremely hard in practice, threw the entire tackle box
at them, and found a few things that gave us a chance to
win. But when conditions changed on tournament day and
things got tough we fought tooth & nail to make
something happen.”
Brad remarked that he was grateful for the support of
his family and sponsors which allowed him the time and
resources to compete. Congratulations to the reigning
classic champs on another top finish and good luck to
them as they try to recapture their September magic from
2009. Rubin is sponsored by: Action Marine,
www.dirtyjigstackle.com,
www.Davesreelservice.com,
www.webeewaxin.com,
www.collettipt.com and Captain’s Boat Wiring. Vose
is sponsored by: Xtreme Lubricants,
www.Talonlures.com, KicknBass Fish Attractant, and
www.Matthewvose1.com.
Rounding out 3rd place was another team that
has been making repeat appearances in the top 5, Vaughn
and Chris Capasso. Their familiarity with cashing
checks speaks volumes about their ability to catch fish
in all seasons and under all conditions. This time
around the brothers took on a tricky Lake Geneva to
amass 19.68 pounds of beautiful and healthy largemouth
bass. Both Capassos appreciate the support of their
friends, families, and local 597 Pipefitters Union.
It’s probably only a matter of time before the Cappassos
break into the Big Bucks Bass winner’s circle on Lake
Geneva!
Thank you to Big Bucks Bass, Julie Palmer and her family
who ran another successful tournament. The on-the-water
weigh-ins are running smoothly with the fish and
fishermen being sent home quickly. Hopefully September
finds the fish biting on Lake Geneva as we all fine tune
our hooksets for the annual October classic. Thanks to
Action Marine, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Outboards, the Main
Street Tap and www.badhabitfishing.com for their
sponsorships. C’mon out for our last tournament of the
season to see if you can be a 1st place Lake
Geneva Super-hero, win the roll-over pot…or better
yet…both. If you’ll check out the weights on the
results page you’ll see that tournaments on this lake
are loads of fun and the fishing is still tough to
beat. We hope to see you on 9/12/2010! |
