Tuesday, June 28, 2016

2016 Tournament ReCap

Our new DPC Champ! Dillon Brooker (Kind of a Big Dill)
Every year immediately post-Pickle, I feel a huge sense of relief that we got through another successful Pickle and also a real bummed out feeling that another year is in the history books. 
I'm so thankful for each and every one of you that came out to be a part of our growing "Fun-raiser" that has put a fun, ethical spin on tournament angling on Lake Champlain. With the FLW tournament going on simultaneously out of the NY side of the lake, there were plenty of anglers competing all over the lake. It was great to see so many fly anglers and Pickle shirts as I cruised around different parts of the lake!
In all, there were 72 teams and 163 anglers that showed up to the Pickle Family Reunion this year. A large jump from 134 anglers in 2015!
We were pleased to roll out the DPC Tournament App for this year's event. Well over 100 anglers downloaded the app and we got some great reviews from the field. Service can be spotty on N. Lake Champlain, but we were still able to collect 2 updates on Day 1 and a lines out update on Day 2. I spoke with several anglers that made adjustments to their strategies after seeing the first updates of the event. Send us your feedback and look for more fine tuning of the app and scoring process as the Pickle progresses.
We did hear of some Picklers that went to the wrong venue for the awards. All the details were listed on the 2016 DPC page, so apologies for those of you that didn't look that over. There's even a map on the page.
Lake Champlain was about 3 feet lower than last year, which surprised many anglers that found dry ground that was once underwater structure. It was also hot, hot, hot this weekend with air temps in the 90's both days. The wind really blew on Sunday, so a large chunk of the field struggled just to find areas out of the gusts.
After the scores were tallied, it was a 1 point difference between 1st and 2nd place individual, and Dillon Brooker (Kind of a Big Dill) was able to squeak by Jeff Faulkner (Imbassiles) and take home the win with 27 individual points! Dillon took home the DPC trophy, the Jackson Kayak and the Samantha Aronson print! Way to go Dillon!
Jeff Faulkner and John Cooper (Imbassiles) were a close 2nd and third place, with Jeff (26 points) taking home the Orvis Recon Outfit and John (23 points) taking the Pat Cohen fly selection and Peak Vise donated by Green Mountain Troutfitters!
Dillon Brooker and Dan Russell (Kind of a Big Dill) worked hard to put points on the board and soon learned that every point would count! Their 49 points combined were enough to put them in a tiebreaker 1st place podium spot and unseat 2-time champs, John Cooper and Jeff Faulkner of team Imbassiles! Dillon and Dan's 1st place spot earned them a pair of Orvis Hydros reels, Julbo sunglasses and a couple Chloe Salamone prints!
Cooper and Faulkner are a force to be reckoned with and don't go down easy, missing 1st by a hair and taking homea pair of Orvis Clearwater Outfits! Ben Wilcox and Michael Woulf (DSTP) posted 39 points for a 3rd place team finish and a pair of Rock River Rods!
This year we set a record with our biggest pickle yet, a 21.75" largemouth landed by James Kontos (Gyros & Perogies)!! For that 1 fish, James took home a big check for $1410.00!!!!
James Kontos also took home a brand new Sunny Brook Landing Net for landing a 35" sheepshead that would trump the exotic category!
In a complete turn of the tide, previous Big Pickle winner Jim Anderson foudn himself instead the recipient of the Nick Mayer bass print for the smallest bass award.
Our top paddler was Jeremy Clapp (Hartford Yard Goats) who took home a Fishpond sling sponsored by Green Mountain Troutfitters.
Marc Guy (Old Dirty Basstards) landed some nice fish, including a 34" Northern Pike which ended up being the largest of the weekend and worth a Redington Predator fly rod!
In our Junior category, Max Hogg was able to put some quality fish on the board for a total of 11 points. Max won an Orvis Hyros Fly Line and also had the 2nd biggest pickle (20") of the weekend!
We also had our youngest angler of Pickle history, 7 year old Finn Barden (Record Rock Bass)! Finn was awarded Tunaskin gift cards.
Some incredible team names as always! This year it was Chloe Salomone and Daunte Hueckstaedt from team, I Like it on Topwater that won the best team name and a pair of $50 Cheeky gift cards!
There were plenty of boat troubles, but the Breakdown Award went to Team AJ, who ran aground at 30mph and did some serious lower end damage! We hope the bottle of Whistle Pig Whiskey eased their pain!

A huge shout out to our great sponsors that make this all possible! Mark your calendars for the 2017 Ditch Pickle Classic on June 24/25, 2017!
Our new DPC Champ! Dillon Brooker (Kind of a Big Dill)
Jeff Faulkner (Imbassiles) - 2nd Place Indy
John Cooper (Imbassiles) - 3rd Place Indy
1st Place Team - Kind of as Big Dill - Dan Russell & Dillon Brooker
2nd Place Team - Imbassiles - John Cooper & Jeff Faulkner
3rd Place Team - DSTP - Michael Woulf & Ben Wilcox
Big Pickle (21.75" Largemouth worth $1410!) James Kontos (Gyros & Perogies
1st Place Junior Angler - Max Hogg - Bassholes
Smallest Bass - Jim Anderson - Swedish Pimples
Best Exotic - 35" Sheepshead - James Kontos (Gyros & Perogies)
Largest Northern Pike - 33" - Marc Guy (Old Dirty Basstards)
Top Paddler - Jeremy Clapp (Hartford Yard Goats)
Best Team Name - "I Like it on Topwater" - Chloe Salomone & Daunte Hueckstaedt
Youngest Pickler - Finn Barden (7 years old) - Record Rock Bass
Breakdown Award - Team AJ

Individual Standings...
1Dillon Brooker27
2Jeff Faulkner 26
3John Cooper23
4Dan Russell22
5Jake Borgeson21
6Ben Wilcox20
7Jeremy Clapp19
8Mike Woulf19
9Nathan scott19
10Jay Modry18
11John Synnott18
12Barry Parker18
13Tom waidlich17
14Jared17
15Curt Carter17
16Matt Dickstein16
17Jim Anderson16
18Charlie Carlson16
19Matthew rogerson15
20Brian Zinger15
21Blake hackerson14
22Austin Coles14
23Jeff Dybinski 14
24Dana evans13
25Evan Potter13
26Lorenzo LaBrusciano13
27Mike Ryan13
28Andrew Pierce13
29John Dziedzic12
30Kevin Welch12
31Jay Aylward12
32Ryan Beaulieu 12
33Marc guy12
34Steve stanley12
35Gerry Herrera 11
36James kontos11
37Max Hogg11
38Jonathan Rose11
39Scott Edwards11
40Adam Mapes11
41Shawn ricker10
42Sol Lakey10
43Brian Mcallister 10
44John Berry10
45Jon debono9
46Elliot Thomas9
47Ken Capsey 8
48Dillon Snell8
49Quinn Jenkins8
50Kevin Favreau8
51Reed Kennedy8
52Taylor Marton8
53Zach Favreau8
54Ben Senning7
55Darin Shirk7
56Pat Sharrow7
57Sam Potter7
58Dan Dziedzic7
59Shreve soule7
60Brendan barden7
61Jon Ams6
62Andrew fraser6
63Brian cadoret6
64Zak Robinson6
65Jeff Guilmette5
66Brian forrest5
67Brian lang5
68Dan Romanelli5
69Janie McKenzie5
70Ryan Whitney5
71Max Haendler5
72Tim Davis4
73Matt lapointe4
74Adam Kormuth4
75Brandon Trombly4
76Daunte Hueckstaedt4
77Tim4
78Tommy Burchard4
79J. Seals 4
80Jamison Haskins4
81Kyle Patten3
82Tyler wood3
84Finn barden3
85Tim Birmingham 2
86nick mayer2
87Charles Sargent2
88Chris Lynch2
89Brandon Weaver2
90Nate Carter2
91Logan Mapes1
92Chris Nuckols 1
93Chris gagne1
94Chris boucher1
95Zack Griswold1
96Josh Rosetti1
97Andy white1
98Jeremy Carter1
99Brad Bowes1
100Leo Nerbak0
101John Trombly0
102Chloe Salomone0
103Peyton Bowden0
104kelsie0
105Asa Sargent0
106Kevin Sorin0
107Matt Cain0
108Taylor Bohannon0
109Mike kontos0
110Tom Potter0
111Shane Carrier0
112Kemener Whalen0
113Mike Hulvey0
Team Standings...
1Kind of a Big Dill49
2Imbassiles49
3DSTP39
4SS Minnow34
5Wet Dreams34
6Castaways33
7Plan B29
8Bassachusets29
9Bassackwards28
10Hartford Yard Goats28
11Outcasts 26
12Gryos & Perogies 25
13Old dirty basstards25
14Breaking Bass25
15Bed Bass and Beyond 24
16Team Sally22
17Go Bass Or Go Home21
18Shaw's Law21
19Pickle Ticklers20
20Swedish Pimples20
21Slap n' Pickle19
22Flies Down Worm Our19
23Kosher Dills19
24Bugs, Bugger & Crawfish19
25Make America Bait Again17
26Record rock bass17
27Popper Pimps16
28Deep in the Bass15
29Swampbass 15
30Rising Tide Anglers15
31We're Gonna Need A Bigger Bass13
32Bucket Loaders13
33Hard Candy13
34Bass King in the sun12
35Hoggers12
36Bassholes 11
37Team aj10
38Piscius Maximus10
39Sagging Bass9
40slab slayers8
41Just The Tippet8
42Cash, Bass or Grass7
43Bass to Mouth6
44Life in the Bass Lane4
45I Like It On Top Water4
46Happy Hookers3
47Pop-A-Top2
48Bassectomy2
49Inglorious Basstards1
50bloodbass1
Big Pickle...
1James kontos21.75
2Max Hogg 20
3Jeff Faulkner19.9999
4Lorenzo LaBrusciano19.75
5Ben Wilcox19.5
6Jay Modry19.25
7Dillon Brooker19
8Jeremy Clapp19
9Kevin Favreau 19
10Adam Mapes19
Exotics...
1James kontosSheepshead35
2Chris gagneBowfin30
3Shawn rickerBowfin29
4Charlie CarlsonBowfin24.5
5Austin Coles Bowfin22
Northern Pike...
1Marc guy33
2Sam Potter29.5
3Brian cadoret25.5
4Matt Dickstein25
5Tom Waidlich25
6Zack Griswold25
7Austin Coles24.5
8Jeff Guilmeete24.5
9Jake Borgeson23.5
10Brendan barden22