WAOW - Newsline 9, Wausau News, Weather, SportsAnglers get ready for World Ice Fishing Championships

Anglers get ready for World Ice Fishing Championships

By Heather Sawaski

RHINELANDER (WAOW) -- Anglers from 11 countries will soon be vying for the biggest catch in the Northwoods. The 2010 World Ice Fishing Championships are in Rhinelander this weekend. It's the first time this tournament is being held on American ice.

They say practice makes perfect, and the anglers hope the saying rings true. It's pre-fishing time at Boom Lake in Rhinelander. Since most of these guys traveled from halfway around the world, it's important for them to understand the lay of the land.

Brian Gaber, Team USA's Operations Director said, "They'll go along the sectors when they're practicing and they'll check depths, they'll catch some fish in certain areas on both sides of the zone, and match up and kind of get an idea of where things are happening."

For the anglers from Team Russia, fishing on North American ice is a first.

"We've never seen Crappies, we've never seen Blue Gills," explained Igor Chinyakov. "Perch is the only fish we know."

But the differences don't stop at species. At the World Championships, anglers aren't allowed to use electronics of any kind.

"There are no power augers, there's no sonar, no radar, no GPS, no nothing," explained Team USA Communications Director Mike Michalak. "So it's all intuition, it's all knowledge, it's all experience that's going to get these guys fish."

While the recent warm weather is making things a little messy, tournament leaders say there's still 30 inches of ice, which is perfect for tournament action.

"The depth of the ice is something a lot of these guys aren't used to it," Michalak said. "They're used to maybe a foot, maybe a little bit lower." -

"This time of year the weather here in Rhinelander is like Russian weather in the Moscow area," Chinyakov said.

 Events kick off Friday night with a Parade of Nations through downtown Rhinelander. Competition begins Saturday morning at 8:55 a.m.

Online Reporter: Heather Sawaski