For Immediate Release
Lake Oahe Next Stop on South Dakota’s Gander Mountain GNWC Circuit
By Steve Weisman
GNWC Publicity Director
The massive expanse of Lake Oahe is the next challenge for the South
Dakota Region teams on the Gander Mountain Grand National Walleye Cup
(GNWC).
Scheduled for Sunday, June 6 at the West Whitlock Recreation Area, this
third of four tournaments is a very pivotal one for the top teams fighting
for the crown of the South Dakota Region Team of the Year and for the teams
looking to make the top 30 and to grab a berth for the Regional
Championships in late August.
Currently, the team of Kevin Molengraaf from White, SD and Lewis Valentz
from Volga, SD has a four point lead in the Region Team of the Year race.
Even though the water levels are extremely low, the walleye fishery is
turning the corner, and is once again looked upon as one of the quality
walleye fisheries on the tournament circuit. According to GNWC Executive
Director Bernie Barringer, pre-fishing is a huge key in the West Whitlock
tournament. “Weather, of course, plays a major role in the strategies that
these teams will use. If the weather is right, we could see teams run south
all the way to Pierre or north to Mobridge. They are limited by only how
much time they want to spend running and gunning, versus time spent
fishing.”
Barringer added, “Lake Oahe at Gettysburg has been on a tear lately,
with quite a few larger fish being caught, something we haven’t seen much of
the last couple years. This one is likely to be our largest South Dakota
tournament yet, both in terms of numbers of participants and in numbers of
fish weighed in.” Openings still exist for the Lake Oahe qualifier
and Barringer encourages interested anglers to contact him at 1-800-890-FISH
(3474), or email the GNWC at [email protected].
According to Barringer, competing teams should be at the West Whitlock
Recreation Area between 6-6:30 Sunday morning to sign in and participate in
mandatory boat inspections. However, the tournament director will have the
GNWC trailer at the check-in site from 6-8 p.m. on Saturday evening to
answer questions and to take any late registrations. Host bait shop and
lodging will be Bob’s Resort.
The tournament hours are 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Weigh-in begins precisely at 3
p.m., with awards to follow. “Fishing Lake Oahe is a tremendous experience,
and I know South Dakotans love their river. So, I hope to see a lot of
people at the weigh-in on Sunday. There is a lot to see and learn as the
teams bring their baskets to the scales,” added Barringer.
Anglers interested in checking out the standings, reading the releases
about any of the eight regions or simply learning more about the circuit can
access the Gander Mountain GNWC website at http://www.walleyecup.com.
Title Sponsor for the GNWC is Gander Mountain. Other major national
sponsors include Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Outboards, the Sportsman Channel,
Berkley, Aqua Innovations, YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO, VIB”E” Lure
Company, TowTector Shield and UpNorthOutdoors.com