DAN SWEAT AND JEFF ASTURIAS WIN BBT OPENER AT BERRYESSA
Friday afternoon the weather was perfect at Berryessa, 70 degrees with a light breeze, a big change from the weather forecasted earlier in the week as we were to have low temperatures and rain. Some of the BBT anglers arrived at Pleasure Cove Resort and Marina and came inside the BBT trailer to sign up for the first tournament in the Northern Region. This allowed them more time on Saturday morning to get prepared for the event. As the evening approached, the temperatures began to drop rapidly but no clouds were seen, only stars in the night sky.
The temperature was 33 degrees and there was no rain in sight as anglers started arriving at 4 AM to sign in for the tournament on Saturday, anticipating where to start off their morning of fishing and the techniques to use. Talk was between partners and not a lot of information was shared among fellow anglers. Some anglers enjoyed the hot coffee and mini cinnamon rolls. Boat compartments were checked by our staff then anglers launched their boat, parked their vehicle and were ready to blast off as safe light approached. One of the last teams to sign in was Jack Diangson and his partner Bob Sotelo so while they were at the table, Randy asked Jack to draw the boat number for the first boat out in the Big Boat Division and number 33 was chosen.
After the rules were announced, details of how the weigh-in was to take place and check-in times were given to the anglers, boat 33 blasted off behind the eight small boats to their first destination, followed by 34, 35 and so on followed suit.
As the anglers were out fishing, pop-ups were put in place, set up began for the weigh-in station, sponsor banners were hung, bump tanks were filled with water as the staging area for the weigh-in was set and payback was put in order.
As the morning passed, wind came up with gusts that were strong enough to clear tables off and during the weigh-in our new pop-up flew up then came down and landed hard on the cement, bending two legs. Wind was not just an issue for our BBT set up, anglers alike talked about how the wind influenced how they fished and the locations they moved to, to avoid being blown all over the lake. Temperatures dropped because of the wind- chill factor. A few teams came to the scales to weigh in earlier than 3 PM as the wind was not their friend.
The scales were officially closed at 4:15 PM and Awards Ceremony began immediately after the payout was put in order for the winners, shortly after the weigh-in ended.
First Place in the Big Boat Division was the team of Dan Sweat from Pleasant Hill and his partner Jeff Asturias from Livermore. They came to the scales with a beautiful limit weighing 24.31 pounds anchored with the Big Fish of the tournament weighing 7.47 pounds, caught by Dan, giving him the first BBT Lunker Club sticker of the 2013 season. They told the crowd they fished rock piles in the north end of the lake using A-Rigs, crank baits and jigs down 1 foot to 25 feet of water. For their efforts, they took home $3,055.00 in winnings. Congratulations to this team!
Second Place went to the team of Kris Sisto of Cottonwood and Robert Thornton of Auburn who weighed in a limit that they caught using jigs, swim baits and weightless worms as they fished locations all over the lake. Their limit weighed 18.65 pounds with their largest bass weighing 4.10 pounds, not enough to place in big fish money however they took home $1,360.00 for their day on Lake Berryessa. Nice!
Third Place and Third Place Big Fish went to the team of Joseph Durling from Santa Rosa and Anthony Crivelli of Point Reyes Station who showed off their largest bass weighing 5.38 pounds and their limit of 17.10 pounds. They told everyone they fished slow in the north end of the lake dragging jigs and used the Alabama Rig for their bass. They took home $1065.00 for their time spent on the water. Sweet!
Fourth Place was the Brad and Brad team! Brad Ford from Fairfield and Brad Saurage from Roseville came to the scales with their limit weighing 17.02 pounds and their toad weighing 6.03 pounds, which gave them Second Place Big Fish for the event. They took home $975.00 in winnings. Not bad for a windy day on the water!
Fifth Place went to the Ruiz brothers, Fred and Emilio from Patterson who had a limit of 15.02 pounds. Their largest bass was 4.07 pounds, not enough to place in the big fish pool however they did take home $420.00 to share. Thank you guys for coming out and fishing in the Northern Region at Berryessa!
Honorable mentions: The father and son team of Jesse L and Jesse M Roach from San Pablo caught the Fourth Big Fish of the event weighing 4.88 pounds. They had a tough day and weighed in 6.71 pounds for two bass. We have your winnings of $145.00 since you had to leave prior to the Awards Ceremony and will hand it to you at the next tournament you fish. Congratulations on your win!
Fifth Place Big Fish went to the husband and wife team of William and Donna Rosch from San Jose who had a limit of bass weighing 10.70 pounds and their big fish weighed 4.80 giving them $70.00 for their time fishing. Congratulations to this team! It is so nice to have husbands and wives sharing the sport of bass fishing in the BBT events.
CHRISS CABODI AND RUSS OLSON TAKE THE WIN IN THE
SMALL BOAT DIVISON
Last year Chriss Cabodi from Roseville and Russ Olson from Orangevale were the first BBT Anglers of the Year in the Small Boat Division in the Northern Region and were not able to attend the TOC because of work so it was nice to see them again fishing and taking First Place in this division on Lake Berryessa. They came to the scales with 12.17 pounds for their limit, all cookie cutter size. They fished the north end of the lake drop shotting worms for their limit. Nice team work guys! They were all smiles when they received their TOC prizes from the 2012 TOC. They both received an Abu Garcia Vendetta fishing rod, a special BBT Anglers of the Year hat and a Berkley tackle bag. They will receive their BBT jackets at our next tournament as they were left hanging in the closet at the house by mistake.
For the teams in the Northern Regions who would like to fish Lake Berryessa again, the BBT Delta/ Wine Region will have their season opener on March 23, 2013 at the same location, Pleasure Cove Resort and Marina. This is a great opportunity to pick up another tournament to qualify for the TOC if you are not sure how your season will go with your points in the Northern Region.
The Twentieth Place winners were not present to receive their Eye Surrender 20/20 Award – Both team members were to receive a pair of Eye Surrender Sun Glasses, so they were forfeited and will be awarded at the TOC.
Thirtieth Place was a tie, the teams of John Kalafatich & Rob Hodges both from Sacramento and the team of Darren Vieira & Andrew Stanz both from Martinez, had the same weight of 11.70 pounds and won sponsor gift bags containing Optimum Swim Baits, Berkley Power Baits and Berkley Havoc’s, Timber Tiger and Poe’s crankbaits, as these teams were present to win.
The Irwin – Lenox mystery weight for this tournament was 10.57 pounds and the team closest to this weight without going over was not present to win the Irwin – Lenox tools. This team weighed in 10.43 pounds. This prize will be given out at the TOC in October.
Boat number 53 was drawn however they left before the Awards Ceremony so another boat number 68 was drawn and were present to receive their Abu Garcia reel.
Boat number 3 Small was drawn and were present to win the “Wear It California” campaign life vest.
Congratulations to all the winners of this tournament and thank you to all the anglers who stayed for the Awards Ceremony to support your fellow anglers.
If you are not present when your boat number is drawn or your name is called, you forfeit your prize and it is donated to the TOC as you MUST be there to win prizes. If you happen to win money during a tournament and you leave before receiving it, you will have to meet up with your tournament director as winnings are not sent through the mail.
Sponsor Tackle Store Receipts Program – If you purchase tackle valued at $20 OR MORE from our Sponsor Tackle Stores or go online to make purchases through the Optimum Baits and ima websites, you will receive a discount for being a member of the BBT. Keep your receipt and write your name and phone number on the back of it then place it in the bucket, which is at every tournament check-in. You will have opportunities to win prizes during the Awards Ceremony after each weigh-in. Remember you MUST be present to win. At the close of the Awards Ceremony, all receipts drawn are placed back into the bucket for more chances to have them drawn at future events in addition at the TOC. If you are not present and your name is called, you forfeit your prize and it is donated to the TOC.
Remember to support the sponsors who are supporting you in bass fishing whenever you can. A list of our sponsors is below and is also located on the Sponsors page of the Best Bass Tournaments website www.bestbasstournaments.com
Thank you for coming out and supporting the Best Bass Tournaments. It was great to see familiar faces and meet new anglers who will be fishing the BBT this season! We appreciate each one of you. If every angler would ask one friend to join and fish the BBT, you will have additional anglers to compete against and have more opportunities to win larger paybacks. Let your friends know that they will also be eligible to win prizes in addition to saving money on fishing tackle when making purchases through our Sponsor Tackle Stores.
Best Bass Tournaments would like to personally thank the sponsors who are supporting us and the anglers alike: Emerald Premium Snacks, Berkley, Abu Garcia, Lowrance, The Fishing Instructor, Yakima Baits, Technology Integrators, Hildebrandt, Poe’s Plugs, Timber Tiger, Ima, Optimum Baits, KLGD Graphics, Hooked on Adventures, Continental Tires, Irwin – Lenox and Helly Hansen, Eye Surrender Sunglasses, Out of Bounds Speed & Marine, AGS Apparel, Port of Subs, Oroville’s Best Value Inn & Suites, Clearlake Cottages, Applebee’s – Oroville, Central Valley Sportsmen’s Boat & RV Show.
Best Bass Tournaments sponsor tackle stores:
Mel Cotton’s Sporting Goods/ San Jose, Walton Pond/ San Leandro, Guns, Fishing & Other Stuff/ Dixon, Coyote Bait & Tackle/ Coyote, CA, Clearlake Bait & Tackle/ Clearlake, Clearlake Outdoors/ Lakeport, Tracy Oasis Marina/ Tracy, CA, C & C Marine/ Modesto and Sacramento, Jim’s Pro Tackle/ Paso Robles, Bait Barn/ Waterford
If your company would like to be a sponsor of the Best Bass Tournaments, please contact Randy Pringle at www.bestbasstournaments.com or call 209-543-6260.
We would like to thank our Northern Regions Staff - JD Mc Millian, Patrick Mateo, Zane Wiley, Rich Reeser and Kevin Ryan for a great job helping the anglers in the morning, at the weigh-in, Awards Ceremony and placing all the BBT merchandise back into the trailer once the Awards Ceremony was completed. You all are an asset to the BBT and our tournaments could not run efficiently without each and every one of you!
The next tournament in the Northern Region will be held on Lake Oroville on April 13th. We look forward to seeing you there! Sign-ups will take place in the BBT trailer on Friday afternoon from 4 PM to 6 PM in the parking lot of America’s Best Value Inn & Suites – Oroville as a convenience for any teams who would like to take advantage of signing up early so on Saturday you will just need to drive up to the Spillway to get your boat checked with our staff before launching. This is not mandatory, just a convenience if you are in town and would like to do it then. If you show up on Saturday to sign up, it will take place in the parking lot of the Spillway in the BBT trailer starting at 4 AM.
If you need to make reservations, please call America’s Best Value Inn & Suites Oroville at 530-533-7070 located at 580 Oroville Dam Road Oroville, CA 95965. You must tell them you are BBT anglers fishing Best Bass Tournaments with Randy Pringle for special room rates. You will be getting the AAA rate of $67.50 plus tax for your room for a king bed room or a 2 double bed room. If you call early, you can request a Non- Smoking room or a Smoking room if you prefer.
We look forward to seeing you at the next BBT tournament you fish.
Randy and Sheri Pringle