June 8, 2013

Year # 3

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• Youth event is 100% FREE!!!

• Michigan's only annual youth bowfishing tournament

Michigan’s third youth

bowfishing event is in the

books. On Saturday, June 8,

fifty children and teenagers

gathered at Echo Point launch

on Lake Allegan for a day of

bowfishing and archery.

Hosted by volunteers from the

Bowfishing Association of

Michigan, the intent was to

introduce our next generation

to the great sport of bowfishing.

The event was 100% free and

all prizes were provided by

donors.

Why Shoot Carp?

The Format

This event was developed for

kids from the ground up. The

format is very similar to adult

Big 10 bowfishing tournaments

with two exceptions: 1) adults

are not allowed to shoot and 2)

the kids are scored individually.

The kids love the idea that Dad

can’t beat them to the fish!

Typically, kids haven’t

developed an eye for spotting

fish in the water, so they

frequently get beat to the

punch by other shooters in the

boat. Since adults aren’t

allowed to shoot during the

Prior to this year, BAM

teamed up with the Allegan

DEQ to co-host carp-

removal events. The

Kalamazoo Total Maximum

Daily Load Implementation

Committee and the Allegan

Conservation District

hosted their annual “Lake

Allegan Carp Derby” for

several years. BAM

teamed up in 2011 to host

their youth bowfishing

event alongside the carp

derby. The joined events

brought dozens of people

to the shores of Allegan to

reduce the carp population.

The youth shoot and carp

derby were planned in

conjunction with the DNR's

free fishing weekend. The

goal is to reduce the over-

abundant carp population

on the lake. However, the

carp derby did not take

place this year. For this

reason, we didn’t have as

many young participants as

expected, but I think it’s

safe to say that all of the

kids had a great time!

event, it gives the kids

some extra shot

opportunities that they

may not normally get.

They also receive the

adult’s full, undivided

attention.

All children 17 and under

were welcome to

participate. Trophies were

awarded to the top three

places for each division.

There were three divisions

for both boys and girls as

well as an overall winner

for each. The top spots

were awarded to the

heaviest three fish for each

division. Additional prizes

were also handed out for

big fish, small fish, and

highest 3D score.

There was also a 3D

archery range where kids

could shoot a round of 10

shots for a chance to win a

trophy. Since this is a

bowfishing tournament, if a

child shoots a fish, he/she

would beat the target

shooters.

Carp are not native to America, but they have managed to establish a firm foot-hold throughout the continental U.S. They range from central Canada to central Mexico and they can be found in most lakes, rivers, and streams across the U.S. The common carp is one of the most widely distributed fish species in North America, and it’s also one of the most detrimental. Carp are bottom feeders and their feeding habits are very destructive to

the waters that they inhabit. They “root” down into the bottom much like pigs do when they are searching for food. This activity stirs up sediment and uproots aquatic plants. This sediment gets suspended in the water column. The murky water gets so muddy that light cannot penetrate. The lack of sunlight kills plants that are necessary for underwater life and the whole food chain gets affected. Carp have also

been proven to eat the eggs of more popular game fish. Millions of dollars are spent each year by the DNR agencies across the country in an attempt to control the carp population. Bowfishing plays an important role since we can selectively harvest these destructive fish while leaving game fish unharmed.

B.A.M. Youth Shoot Page 2

On the morning of the event, the sun was shining and there was a projected high in the mid-seventies. Once again, we were blessed with great weather for the day’s festivities!

After a brief morning

meeting, the kids grabbed

some munchies and hit the

water at 9:00am. Luckily, a

fancy boat is not needed for

this event. This is a

daytime tournament, so

lights are not needed and

any old fishing boat works

great. In fact, a smaller

boat can be an advantage.

Airboats and jon boats with

tall platforms cannot fit

under the M40 bridge, so

they’re confined to the lake

and cannot take advantage

of the good fishing up river.

The Kalamazoo River runs

directly through Lake

Allegan, so water clarity is

largely dependent on river

runoff. On the day of the

youth event, the water was

very muddy and it added an

extra degree of difficulty for

the young archers.

Most of the fish were in the

pre-spawn stage, and all we

needed was some hot

weather to hit the beloved

spawn. It didn’t get hot

enough to trigger the spawn,

but some splashing activity

could be found.

Many teams scoured miles

of shoreline looking for the

invasive targets. Other

teams found carp spawning

in the lilly pads and parked

the boat to wait for the fish

to surface. The method of

waiting for the fish can be

quite effective. It can also

be very frustrating when the

fish are splashing out of bow

range! Another effective

method is spot-and-stalk

bowfishing. Most of the kids

that shot a full 3-fish stringer

did so by wading in the

shallows. Armed with their

bows and stringers, several

kids had great success spot-

and-stalk hunting carp.

Lunchtime was 11:00am to

2:00 pm. Jill Gilson and

Craig Vugteveen made sure

that everybody had plenty to

eat and the popsicle station

was a huge hit, as always!

weren’t as lucky, they still

had a great day on the lake

with Dad or Grandpa!

After the dust settled at the

3:00 weigh-in, 8 kids

brought a full three fish

stringer to weigh-in. Riley

Becker, Riley Schofield,

Morgan Helsel, Hunter

Riggins, Salena Gilson, and

Christopher Russell all

earned 1st place in their

division. The biggest fish of

the day was shot by Riley

Schofield with a Lake

Allegan giant 11.30

pounder! The big fish

earned him a new Retriever

reel from AMS Bowfishing.

The best shot of the day

was made by Haiden

Kowalewski with a 1.39 lb

fish to earn him the small

fish award. The top 3D

score with 96 points out of

100 was shot by Connor

The 3D range is also very

popular with the kids. B.A.M.

member Tim Smith helped the

kids shoot their ten shot round

for a chance at a trophy. After

the child shot his/her round,

the range was available for

open shooting all day.

Many young die-hard

bowfishers opted to skip lunch

and stay on the water all day.

For some kids, it was a good

choice and they brought back

over 10 fish. For others that

Merren. And, last, but

certainly not least, our

overall winners were Riley

Becker in the girls division

with 2.69 lbs and Riley

Schofield in the boys

division with an

impressive 16.09 lbs. We

certainly have some

talented young archers

and we look forward to

seeing all of them next

year!

Let the fun begin!

Page 3 B.A.M. Youth Shoot

Girls 10 and Under

Place Name Age Fish #1 Fish #2

Fish #3

Total Weight

3D Score

(Perfect: 100)

1 Riley Becker 8 2.69 2.69 43

2 Delaney Bryce 10 51

3 Ally Bruursema 10 33

4 Karley Kowalewski 7 28

Boys 10 and Under

Place Name Age Fish #1 Fish #2

Fish #3

Total Weight

3D Score

(Perfect: 100)

1 Riley Schofield 9 11.30** 2.70 2.09 16.09 70

2 Gage Lundquist 10 3.00 2.66 2.64 8.30

3 Easton DeRoo 10 2.00 2.00 38

4 Eian Kowalewski 5 1.47 1.47 25

5 Riley Stout 10 82

6 Mason Stahl 10 54

7 Jordan Stafford 8 46

8 Matt Miller 6 45

9 Owen Handwerk 8 40

10 Avery Bruursema 5 40

11 James Miller 10 35

12 Tanner Wolters 7 35

13 Gavin Fritz 10

14 Mason Lundquist 4

15 Jaiden Taylor 10

Girls 11-14

Place Name Age Fish #1 Fish #2

Fish #3

Total Weight

3D Score

(Perfect: 100)

1 Morgan Helsel 12 79

2 Ashleigh Jarrard 12 74 (2X)

3 Skylar Wezell 12 72 (1X)

4 Sydney Huddleston 12 72

5 Katelyn Helsel 12 68

6 Makenzy Heinzelman 11 40

*= Small Fish **= Big Fish ***= Highest 3D Score

Final Standings

B.A.M. Youth Shoot Page 4

Boys 11-14

Place Name Age Fish #1

Fish #2

Fish #3

Total Weight

3D Score

(Perfect: 100)

1 Hunter Riggins 11 3.84 2.99 2.89 9.72 86

2 Jacob Jenkins 14 3.19 3.17 2.55 8.91

3 Nick Tarman 14 2.43 2.05 1.96 6.44 82

4 Hunter VeltKamp 14 2.27 2.03 1.94 6.24

5 Haiden Kowalewski 11 1.39* 1.39 56

6 Connor Merren 14 96***

7 Kevin Skorupa 13 89

8 Noah Merren 13 87

9 Alec Crums 14 84

10 Jayden Bennett 13 80

11 Zach Bryce 13 56

12 Justin Stout 13

13 Nolan MacMillen 14

Girls 15-17

Place Name Age Fish #1

Fish #2

Fish #3

Total Weight

3D Score

(Perfect: 100)

1 Salena Gilson 16 2.48 2.48

2 Sara Vugteveen 17

63

Boys 15-17

Place Name Age Fish #1

Fish #2

Fish #3

Total Weight

3D Score

(Perfect: 100)

1 Christopher Russell 15 4.41 4.07 3.72 12.20 86 (1X)

2 Tanner Edewaard 15 2.25 2.08 1.76 6.09 84 (1X)

3 Hunter Smith 17 3.16 3.16 80

4 Artam Rank 17 2.76 2.76

5 Seth Heinzelman 15 1.51 1.51

6 Christopher Jones 17 1.44 1.44

7 Cameron Bennett 17 74

8 Tyler McQuaid 16 70

9 Kyle Buhrmann 16 65

10 Kody Wilcox 15

Final Standings Continued…

*= Small Fish **= Big Fish ***= Highest 3D Score

Page 5 B.A.M. Youth Shoot

“I don’t care if I don’t get any more

fish. I’m just glad I shot this

one!!!”

Easton DeRoo after he shot his

first fish

(10 years old)

*= Small Fish **= Big Fish ***= Highest 3D Score *= Small Fish **= Big Fish ***= Highest 3D Score

B.A.M. Youth Shoot Page 6

Future of Michigan Youth Bowfishing Championship

The Bowfishing Association of Michigan is dedicated to promoting,

educating, and protecting the sport of bowfishing. An affiliate of

Michigan United Conservation Clubs, BAM and MUCC work together

to preserve our sportsmen’s rights.

About Our Organization…

Bowfishing Association

of Michigan

Brian Gilson

E-MAIL: MIYouthBowfishing@gmail.com

We’re on the Web!

See us at:

BowfishBAM.com

Facebook.com/MIYouthBowfishing

Special Thanks To Our Generous Donors!

Currently, we are leaning towards

Fisherman’s Landing on Muskegon

Lake. If you have any ideas, let us

know and we’ll check it out.

We are also considering pushing

the event back one week to

Father’s day weekend as well as

upping the maximum age to 18

years-old like the Youth World’s

Bowfishing Championship. This is

your event, so let us know what

you think!

Thanks to a fantastic crew of

donors and volunteers, this event

will continue to grow and always

be 100% FREE! Download high-

resolution pictures and stay

updated on our Facebook page!

Facebook.com/MIYouthBowfishing

Also, check out BowfishBAM.com

for information on next year’s event

as the details become available.

“For better outdoors, take a kid

hunting and fishing. It’s our

future.” Randy Woodward/ Youth

Bowfishing Assoc.

2013 was a breakout year! We

originally teamed up with the DEQ

to help get our youth event off the

ground as well as help the DEQ

remove some carp from Lk.

Allegan. In previous years, many

kids showed up to rod & reel fish in

the carp derby and shoot the 3D

range in our bowfishing event.

Since the derby did not take place

this year, our participation should

have dropped considerably.

However, we tied last year’s

participation number, so that

shows growth in the number of

young bowfishers! Every

participant showed up on Saturday

to bowfish! Now that the awesome

duo of carp-killing events has split,

we are no longer obligated to host

our event on Lake Allegan- the

home of miniature carp. Echo

Point launch works well for a few

dozen participants, but we are

searching for a venue that will

allow our event to expand to a

couple hundred or more.

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