While most of the “hot stove” talk for outdoorsmen these days centers around hunting deer, ducks, geese and other animals and gamebirds, some attention has been given to bass fishing interests, particularly the popular evening tournaments that have been around for at least three decades around here, at Henderson Lake and around Morgan City.
Five Teche Area bass fishermen got together recently to plan a Wednesday Night Hawg Fights Bass Fishing Series for 2018 that will feature tournaments in and around the Atchafalaya Basin.
Four of the five board members met Nov. 1 at Pelicans on the Bayou in New Iberia, finalized rules and regulations and a schedule, including the date for a Hawg Fights Classic, then launched a Facebook page this past week touting the mini bass tournament circuit, according to one of the board members, New Iberian Mike Sinitiere.
Sinitiere said he is excited about the upcoming tour, one that gets underway at 5:30 p.m. March 21. His fellow board members are Mike O’Brien, Keith Price and Jacob Shoopman, all of New Iberia, and Gregory Bourque of St. Martinville.
Bourque was unable to attend the organizational meeting but kept in touch throughout the planning period, Sinitiere said.
“We’ve got a very good mixture of personalities and knowledge and experience,” Sinitiere said about the five outdoorsmen who are responsible for operating the new circuit.
He was proud of the Facebook page designed by veteran bass angler Chris Vedrines of New Iberia. Go to www.facebook/com/hawgfights/.
“We’ve had nothing but positive feedback about how professional everything is,” Sinitiere said. “We still have a lot of work to do. It’s in the beginning stages.”
The WNHF Bass Fishing Series plans to hold the tournaments every other Wednesday out of Bayou Benoit Boat Landing or Myette Point Boat Landing, both in the Atchafalaya Basin; Marsh Field Boat Landing at Lake Fausse Pointe, and the Franklin Canal Boat Landing. And there might be one wild-card “mystery” site, Sinitiere said.
The rest of the schedule is as follows: April 4; April 18; May 2; May 16; May 30; June 13; June 27; July 11; July 25, and Aug. 8.
To qualify for the Hawg Fights Classic, anglers must fish five of the 11 regular-season tournaments. Entry fee is $60 per boat, whether there is one angler or two anglers in the boat.
Participants must sign a waiver before the first tournament. Entry fees must be paid before 1 p.m. the day of the tournament at Cajun Guns & Tackle, which also is the location of Price’s Blue’s Archery business in New Iberia.
Sinitiere said $10 for each boat will be taken out and put aside for the Hawg Fights Classic pot. Also, the Angler(s) of the Year will win $300.
The organizers have committed to keeping an open line of communication with anglers who fish the series, he said. They welcome calls and feedback, he said.
For more information, call Sinitiere at 321-1178.
DON SHOOPMANis outdoors editor of The Daily Iberian.