2009 PMTT Ranger Boat Championships

My partner Bill Carlson and I ended up in 7th place for the tournament with a beautiful and fat 43" taken on Lake Monona trolling. We also ended up the 2009 season as the #9 Top Gun Team.

Here is a recap of the tournament.

Congrats to Gary and Carson!!!!!!!!!!!!

Absolutely Priceless!!! The words that best describes the finish of the 2009 season for the #1 musky tournament circuit in the country, PMTT – Ranger Boats World Championship. Gary Lehnherr and his 7 year old son Carson from McFarland, WI were absolutely dialed in and completely untouchable during this event. They caught four fish in all and not only will they carry the coveted title of 2009 PMTT Ranger Boats World Champions, but they also won a brand new 2010 Ranger Boat 619 Fishermen, Rangertrail Trailer and Mercury powered Opti Max for first place valued at around $40,000.

The anglers had more to compete against then each other as Mother Nature also added some tough conditions. Snow, wind, clouds changing to sunny and lake turn over to name a few. There were a total 26 muskies caught between 34”- 45.25” in these ever changing conditions with the water temps in the mid fifties. To make matters even worse, the winds were blowing out of the northwest at about 20mph, making the 28 degree morning air temps seem bitter frigid.

Gary and Carson trolled crank baits and spoon plugs in their Mercury powered Ranger Boat just off the deep breaklines in the 18 to 22 foot range at about 4mph, while they tried to keep the baits as close to bottom as possible even making contact with the bottom as they trolled. When a fish would hit, Carson reeled them in while his dad Gary handled the net. Keyes Outdoors TV Show captured the winning fish and all the excitement on film as they hooked up with the final fish while conducting an interview with them. Absolutely priceless watching this 7 year old crank in the fish and his dad putting the net under the $40,000 musky.

The really enjoyable finish at the awards ceremony was seeing all of the anglers watch as a proud father shared a great moment in musky fishing history with his son and hearing the story. This is unbelievable as some of these fish were over 20 pounds. A lot of the anglers in the room had butterflies in their stomachs seeing this unveil. It was awesome as any parent can relate to the great bond these two will always share through the great sport of musky fishing.

Second place went to two well known anglers who are no strangers to winning. Jason Summers of Lino Lakes MN. and Troy Bilbrey of Wyoming, MN. caught 3 muskies that were 38.75”, 36.75” and 35.25”. The two anglers were also the Ranger Cup winners worth $1,000.00 which is awarded to the top finishing registered Ranger Boat owner. The two anglers used crank baits trolling 3-4 miles per hour in close proximity to the bottom.

Third place went to Dewey Stewart of Pawnee, IL. and Forrest Kay of St. Charles, IL. These two fishermen used Rapala Xrap crank baits and Jake crank baits that were chartreuse in color to entice a 35.25” and 43” muskies. The two also received $500 for the big fish on Sunday.

Fourth Place winners were Dan Sheehan of Harford, WI and Scott Gindt of Jackson, WI. These anglers trolled crank baits over deep gravel areas to entice muskies that were 41.75” and 35” in length. Fifth place went out to Aaron Templin and Joe Anderson of Bemidji, MN. used cowgirl buck tails and manta jerk baits on weed flats on break lines. The muskies they caught and released were 38” and 34”.

The prestigious Top Gun Team of the Year went down to the wire with lead changes the last day of the trail! This award goes out to the team who is most consistent in catching fish throughout the trail season. Scott Donovan of Carbondale, IL and Chris Riebe of Montgomery, IL. is your 2009 Team of the year edging out Jason Summers and Troy Bilbrey by one point. Third place went to the father and son team of Ron and Rich Weidner of Spring Grove, IL.