The Follow Up- February 2018 First Wisconsin Chapter of Muskies, Inc. Website: http://firstwimuskiesinc.org If you have anything you would like added to the newsletter, please email travis.sharer@hotmail.com. Dates to Remember: February 2 Winter Fest & Games Lake Altoona February 5 General Meeting Fill-in Station Dan Lazzeroni will be speaking on live bait and trolling February 9 Milwaukee Muskie Expo muskieexpo.com February 10 4 th Annual Jigs Up Bluegold Ice Fishing jigsup.org February 12 Tournament Meeting 6:00 29 Pines February 19 Board Meeting 6:30 VFW 305 February 24 Fishing Electronics Seminar Zachos Sports Center 10:00 to 12:00 March 2 Wisconsin Musky Expo wimuskyexpo.com March 3 State Muskie Inc. Chapter Annual Meeting March 5 General Meeting Fill-in Station Guest Speak Pete Rich March 9 Minnesota Muskie Expo mnmuskieexpo.com March 12 Tournament Meeting 6:00 29 Pines March 16 Wisconsin Sports Show wisportshow.com March 17 Intermediate and Advanced Muskie School March 19 Board Meeting 6:30 VFW 305 April 2 General Meeting Fill-In Station Chippewa Falls April 16 Board Meeting 6:30 VFW 305 Check the EVENTS tab on our website for more dates @ http://firstwimuskiesinc.org
Lunker of the Month MOFC SEASON RESULTS
42 nd Annual Muskie Tournament Planning will soon be underway for the 42 nd Annual Tournament. If interested in helping plan, support, or help out at the event, please contact Travis or Don. Gil Hamm Tournament We will be sending 2 teams up to the tournament again in the coming year.
Pit Tagging information Pit Tagging All forms need to be sent to Joe so the report can be sent to Joe G., Hugh Becker, and Muskies Inc. for follow up for helping support. Joe Gerbyshack recommends that if you have a Pit Tag Scanner, to remove the batteries and store them separately. Store the scanner in open air and not in a sealed bag or container. Any tagging info needs to be sent to Scott ASAP and all Pit Tag reports need to be sent to Joe ASAP Gander Mountain Rods After Gander Mountain went out of business, they opened up a great deal on some rods and offered to Muskies Inc Chapters. The club purchased a few extra rods for its member is there is interest. $55 Gander branded 8 6 Hevy action rod. It is the same blanks as the Musky Innovations rod but have the Gander sticker on them. Contact Joe Heil if interested in buying one. Trolling Motor for Sale MinnKota Powerdrive V2 55lb, 54 shaft, also has US2. Comes with 2 foot pedals. $300 Contact Dave Jann at 715-577-3395 Rice Lake Meeting We had a good meeting and a good turnout in Rice Lake. Adam put on a good seminar about river fishing, complete with video footage! We had over 40 people show up, some from as far as Tony, with many commenting on how they enjoyed having meetings in the Moose Lodge. Thanks to everyone for showing up! We will be sure to start including more meetings and outings in the future based on the good turnouts and response. February Guest Speaker! Dan Lazzeroni caught muskie fever when he was 10 along the banks of the Eau Claire River in the Chippewa Valley. Dan has been chasing muskies ever since then. Dan has been an active member of Muskies Inc in the Headwaters Chapter and spends a lot of time guiding around the Eagle River area.
3 rd Place! Big Congratulations to our National Award Members! Brian Wright and Fischer Smith both ranked 3 rd on the MOFC on the National Level in their respective divisions!!!
Muskies Inc. Special! Hillcrest Cottages is a family owned resort on Big St. Germain Lake in Vilas County. We are a family with several Musky fishermen and regular participants in the Musky National Championship. As fellow Musky enthusiasts, we would like to extend a special offer to members of Wisconsin Musky Clubs. If a member of one of the Musky Club's Alliance contacts us to stay at Hillcrest Cottages, we will provide them a 15%-20% discount on their reservation. If a club would like to have a club outing (we can accommodate groups up to 42 persons) we offer group rates and additional discount based on the size of the group. Hillcrest Cottages located on the north side of Big St. Germain Lake and offers nearby access to numerous high quality Musky Lakes within a 30 minute drive. We offer the perfect combination of convenience, privacy and amenities, with nearby access to St. Germain, Eagle River, Minocqua, Sayner, Mercer, Conover and Boulder Junction. http://www.hillcrest-cottages.com/
Board Meeting Minutes Secretary s report: -Nothing new to report. The new board member contact roster is being created and will be posted and added to the newsletter once it is finalized. Treasurer s report: -The report was given, all is well financially, and the report was approved by the board. The new budget was discussed, everything was accounted for. No corrections needed. 2018 budget approved and passed. Chapter Rep Report: - There is a growth goal from national to raise membership by 1,250 new members this year, retain 7% of 1-2 year memberships. - All of the Gil Hamm funds weren t used last year. They would like to use all $15,000 allotted this year for various funding of programs. - Muskellunge Mangement Joe has the book from last years symposium. If anyone is interested in reading through, contact Joe. Membership: 208 members Fisheries Report: - ¼ fish per acre is looking like it will be the new normal stocking amount. - Adopt-a-muskie program was adopted by the Hayward chapter to help raise funds for stocking and various other programs. For $10 a fish, you get a letter in the mail each time the muskie is caught with information on growth and other information chosen to be shared by the person who caught it. It is a program under consideration with our chapter. If you have any thoughts on it, please feel free to voice your opinions to any member of the board. Tagging: - Almost all Pit tags are back in, reports need to be sent in to Gil Hamm and to the DNR to provide reports to those who support us. - There are 3 tagging units left, if anyone is interested in tagging, contact Scott. - We approved to purchase more PIT tags for the upcoming year. We are purchasing an additional 300 tags. Outings / League: - We are discussing a good time to get together and have a club outing in Rice Lake around the June timeframe.
Fundraising: - Wausau show coming soon! Youth: - Youth outing coming up in June. We will be needing volunteers, boats, and gear for the event. Programs: - February Dan Lazzeroni - March Pete Rich - April TBD Potentially a question and answer forum with a local fishing panel. Merchandise: - New Duluth Trading Company Jackets are in the works. Contact Don if interested in them. Newsletter: - There has been a phishing warning (no pun intended) coming with the Newsletter on Gmail accounts. If you are receiving this warning, please add the email address to the safe sender list to avoid in the future. - If there is anything you would like added to the newsletter, please send to Travis. Items for sale, birthdays, muskie pictures, events, send away! New Business: - Advertising if you know of a business that is interested in advertising, please contact John Imm. - If there are any events that you would like to see added to our website, please contact Joe Heil. Old Business: - We are still seeking a new home for our Muskie Aquarium. If you know anyone interested in displaying it in a high traffic area of fishermen and women, please let us know. Election of Officers: - Chapter President: Nomination: John Imm, John accepted. Motion approved. - Chapter Vice President: Nomination: Joe Heil. Joe accepted. Motion carried. - Chapter Secretary: Nomination: Travis Sharer. Travis accepted. Motion carried. - Chapter Treasurer: Nomination: Jack Gerlach. Jack accepted. Motion carried. - Chapter Representative: Nomination: Tom Riedel. Tom accepted. Motion Carried
Volunteers Needed We are always looking for more volunteers to help with various events, youth outings, board members, and chair persons. If interested, contact anyone on the board for more information. There are multiple positions on the board that will be coming due next year and the following. Some of the current board members would like to pass the reigns to others so we can continue to have a great club. Please contact any member of the board with interest. Tamarack Island We will have a Tamarack Island raffle again this year as before. 200 tickets at $10 a piece. Ticket sales will begin at the banquet.