Plattsburgh-based fishing tournaments scheduled for Lake Champlain this summer:
Walmart FLW Tour: July 8-12
Northern Bass Supply: July 18
ABA Weekend Series: Aug. 1
ABA Weekend Series: Aug. 15
Bassmaster Northern Series Open: Aug. 20-22
FLW Stren Series: Aug. 27-29
National Guard FLW College Fishing: Aug. 29
PLATTSBURGH — The City of Plattsburgh will host seven fishing tournaments this summer.
It all starts with the Wal-mart FLW Tour July 8 through 12 and wraps up with the FLW Stren Series Aug. 27 through 29.
FLW President and CEO Charlie Evans said Lake Champlain remains one of the tour's most popular destinations, for two main reasons.
"First is the tremendous fishing," he said.
Lake Champlain is a premier, top-of-the-line fishery, he said, where the competitors always catch big fish, both smallmouth and largemouth bass.
Evans praised efforts by wildlife-management personnel in New York and Vermont for making it such a vibrant bass population.
Secondly, more of the anglers bring their families along on vacation to the Plattsburgh events, he said.
"When we announce Lake Champlain on the schedule, it always brings a smile to people's faces."
The region provides a great combination of beautiful scenery, quality fishing and a warm welcome to fishermen and tour officials, he said.
Evans likened Lake Champlain and its fishing to the California gold rush, adding that fishing could bring hundreds of thousands of people to the region. There's even an advantage to gold, he said, as fish are a renewable resource that will last forever if taken care of and respected.
WEIGH-IN CROWDS
Plattsburgh-North Country Chamber of Commerce Vice President for Marketing Michele Powers said it's always exciting when the summer fishing tournaments are announced.
She said the one concern that tournament officials have with the events on Lake Champlain is the lack of crowds at the weigh-ins.
"When they pan the crowd with a camera, there are not enough people."
Some FLW weigh-ins in rural southern areas draw more than 10,000 people, Adirondack Coast Visitors and Convention Bureau Group Marketing Specialist Kristy Kennedy said.
Kennedy is a recent addition at the chamber, and one of her big responsibilities is to work with fishing groups, whether tournament officials or fishing conventions and trade shows.
Powers said Kennedy is building on the phenomenal work Rick Perry has done for the City of Plattsburgh in bringing tournaments to the area, capitalizing on the relationships he has built with tournament organizers.
PROMOTIONS
One promotion in connection with FLW, Kennedy said, involves admission tickets. They will be sent to the chamber's Adirondack Coast Visitors and Convention Bureau for distribution to local non-profit agencies and organizations.
Those groups can hand out the tickets and will receive $1 for every ticket that is turned in at the FLW event.
"The weigh-ins are free anyway, but this is a way to give back to the community," Powers said.
FLW will have its Family Fun Zone and Outdoor Show at the Plattsburgh State Field House July 11 through 12.
It features free family activities, such as Ranger fishing-boat simulators, obstacle courses, a trout pond and fishing-themed games, with prizes for children.
The first 300 children age 14 and younger will receive a fishing rod and reel, and one person will win a new Ranger fishing boat and motor.
Evans said the grand-prize winner needs to be present to win.
The fishing tournaments have a tremendous economic impact on a host community, he said. Getting large crowds to the event brings free advertising to a region from the television coverage, seen world wide.
"If you invest the time and dollars, it will produce results."
E-mail Dan Heath at: dheath@pressrepublican.com
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