TRENTON, Mich. (Sept. 29, 2003) - Kevin Vida of Clare caught 10 bass weighing 42 pounds, 4 ounces to win $6,370 at the Bass Fishing League Michigan Division Super Bass Fishing Tournament, on the Detroit River near Trenton. Vida bested 102 Boater Division competitors and earned 300 points at the tournament, which was the fifth and final Michigan Division event of the regular season.
Vida caught five bass Saturday weighing 18 pounds, 13 ounces and caught another five weighing 23 pounds, 7 ounces Sunday to win the event. He caught his tournament-winning bass on a green pumpkin Mizmo tube. He earned a $1,000 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program, and he earned another $1,000 from Garmin for using a fixed-mount Garmin Fishfinder or combination GPS/sounder during the event.
Rounding out the top five boaters are David Reault of Livonia (10 bass, 37 pounds, 8 ounces); Don Amari of Fort Wayne, Ind. (10 bass, 36 pounds, 7 ounces); Derek Cummings of Leslie (10 bass, 35 pounds, 15 ounces); and Jim Liechty of Fort Wayne, Ind. (10 bass, 35 pounds, 13 ounces).
Amari tied with Jim Parker of Jonesville for Boater Division big-bass award honors. Both caught a 4-pound, 10-ounce bass that earned them $510.
Bill Schroeder of Jonesville led 102 Co-angler Division competitors on day two to claim $3,185 as the Super Tournament co-angler winner. He caught five bass Saturday weighing 13 pounds and followed that up Sunday with another five bass weighing 15 pounds, 13 ounces to earn the win. He caught his tournament-winning bass dragging a brown and purple tube.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Richard Erskine of Lincoln Park (nine bass, 28 pounds, 11 ounces); Homer Stephens of Noblesville, Ind. (10 bass, 28 pounds, 2 ounces); Michael Syjud of Elmhurst, Ill. (10 bass, 27 pounds, 15 ounces); and Jeffrey Zuhlsdorf of Bowling Green, Ohio (10 bass, 27 pounds, 13 ounces).
David Valentine of Wolcottville, Ind., and Jason Madigan of Southgate tied for co-angler big-bass honors with a 4-pound, 12-ounce bass. Each earned $255 for their big bass.
Vida is the Michigan Division's Yamaha "Be the Best" points leader, winning $1,000 for the 1,068 points he earned during five regular-season tournaments. Stephens is the Yamaha "Be the Best" points leader in the Co-angler Division. He earned $500 for his division-leading 1,051 points.
The top 30 boaters and top 30 co-anglers in the Michigan Division will advance to regional competition Oct. 7-11 on Chautauqua Lake near Jamestown, N.Y., where they will go up against top competitors from the Buckeye, Northeast and Shenandoah divisions for a shot at qualifying for the BFL All-American, one of the most lucrative postseason tournaments in competitive angling.