The New Hampshire Bass Federation held it's annual Mid-Summer Open on July 8, 2007 out of Ames Farm on Lake Winnipesaukee. This is the first time the New Hampshire chapter of the TBF has visited Lake Winnipesaukee for the Summer Open. This event traditionally takes place on the Connecticut River out of either Hinsdale NH or Bellows Falls Vt. A total of 46 teams showed up at Ames Farm on Sunday morning to find that the weatherman had pulled a fast one on them. The predicted sunshine and heat wave had been replaced by a backdoor cold front drifting down from Canada. Ill prepared anglers were sent scrambling for warmer clothes and raingear. Rain and cloud-cover dominated the conditions during tournament hours. Winds stayed light and variable as temperatures struggled to reach the mid to upper 60's. Lake temperatures were in the 66F to 70F range. Both species of bass appeared to be in the post-spawn transition period.
Many teams were thrown a curveball with the change in weather and had to adjust patterns on the fly. The rainy conditions put largemouth bass on the minds of many teams. Still it was a straight limit of 8 smallmouth bass that would wind up winning this event. Local legends and Winnipesaukee smallmouth experts Steve and Joe Lucarelli checked in with 21.80 lbs to take the $1400 first place price. They had cookie-cutter 2.5 to 3 lb. Fish, which they targeted mainly in 22 to 28 feet of water on Yamamoto Hula Grubs in shades of green. Joe reported that the Father and Son team caught fish all day long and on a variety of different baits, but the Hula Grub was their go-to lure. Steve and Joe also pocketed $500 for being the highest finishing Ranger Cup team.
Finishing just behind the winners with a total weight of 21.47 lbs. was the team of Dave Swett and Mike Plouffe. This veteran duo targeted mainly largemouth bass in 10-12 foot cabbage beds with Πoz. green-pumpkin Mike Plouffe Custom jigs. They reported catching only 10 keepers on the day with their lunker of 4.28 lbs. anchoring their creel. Their second place finish netted them $1000.
Finishing in third place was the Massachusetts team of Ed Rivera and Bill Lentine Jr. Ed and Bill weighed in a mixed bag of 4 largemouth and 4 smallmouth bass that totaled 21.39 lbs. They targeted largemouth bass with Senkos in 3-5 feet of water around cabbage and coontail weeds. Their smallmouth bass were holding in 12-15 feet of water and mainly fell for spinnerbaits and Carolina-rigged lizards. Their third place finish earned them $700.
Reigning NHBF Team of the Year Dave Andrews and Scott Leppanen grabbed 4th place with a mixed bag limit of 20.11 lbs. Dave and Scott targeted mainly largemouth bass on shallow weed flats with a variety of top-water baits. Their big fish all fell for Lucky Craft Sammys. Included in their catch was the lunker smallmouth bass, which weighed 3.79 lbs. Andrews and Leppanen relied on 12 lb Gamma Copolymer line, with it's long cast and low-stretch capabilities aided in their hook to land ratio with the top-water baits. Their 4th place finish earned them $500.
Finishing in fifth place with a total weight of 19.81 lbs. was the team of Kevin Phaneuf and Henry Boon. They too weighed a mixed bag of bass and had a 4.28 lb. Largemouth anchoring their limit. Kevin and Henry targeted largemouth around shallow docks with black-blue Senkos and smallmouth in deeper cabbage with Spinnerbaits and Senkos. Their big fish grabbed a shaky head worm in 13 feet of water. They earned $300 for their 5th place finish.
Finishing in 6th place with 19.72 lbs was the team of Scott Smith and Pat Kennedy. Seventh place went to the team of Gildea and Burrell with 19.45 lbs. Winning $420 for being the first team out of the money was John Diaco and Mark Anthony with 19.31 lbs.
Lunker Largemouth of the tournament weighed 5.40 lbs and belonged to Steve Graham and Matt Dupree. Lunker smallmouth was 3.79 lbs. and went to Andrews/Leppanen. Both teams earned $210 for their big fish.
A total of 305 bass were weighed in on the day and all but 9 were returned alive and well to the deep water outside of Ames Farm. New Hampshire Fish and Game officials were on hand at the weigh-in, as they continued their tagging study of Lake Winnipesaukee bass. NH F and G quickly and expertly tagged and released 284 bass. The data that these fish will provide with regard to post-tournament dispersement over the next few years should be enlightening.
Next up is the Fall Open, which is scheduled for Lake Winnisquam on Sunday October 14, 2007.
As always we appreciate the support of our NHBF/TBF sponsors: Shimano, Castrol, Minn Kota, Plano Molding Company, Northeast Prop Repair, Ranger, Yamaha, Quantum, Lowrance Electronics, Berkley Powerbait, Northern Bass Supply, Keep Alive, Mepps/Mister Twister, Lil Hustler Tackle, J&D Screenprinting and Embroidery, Tournament Force, Rocky Ledge, National Guard, Aqua View.
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