Bomber Swag!

We know you've seen them, have friends that have some; and you've been wanting to get your hands on a pair. Well, some lucky chums will be getting the opportunity to pull the trigger on some of some of MK's bombproof swag. This year Mountain Khakis has given the DPC nearly $200 dollars worth of MK pesos to distribute as prizes! That's right, those Granite Creek Convertibles or Oxbow Skirt you've been eyeballin would have y'all lookin good for DPC 2013.

MK is based out of Jackson Hole Wyoming and a company that stands behind their products, offering a 1yr Warranty defect free .They take pride in their grassroots marketing approach in offering the best of the best in customer service.

MK's Soul Statement

"Inside us all exists an adventurous soul - a wild heart that is called from nature to live authentically and free from modern society.  For many outdoor and mountain enthusiasts pure freedom and rugged adventure has become a way of life.  Mountain Khakis were developed specifically for this lifestyle."

The DPC crew gives big thanks to MK for sponsoring this years DPC!

BP

Solitude Reels put the brakes on...

Its that time and from here on out expect seeing some of the fantastic sponsorships that we are so lucky to have behind us!! Kicking off DPC 2012 is Solitude Reels. Solitude Reels has graciously given us one of their top of line show stopper reels, the Solitude 5. The reel is steezy, Matte gold, and silent drag so you can land your fish without alerting the world. Of course its a fully sealed drag and saltwater safe, they don't mess around over in Washington. Solitude has developed their reels to stop the screamers, and the drag system they have hidden behind that frame; you'll have to see it for yourself. This is going to look good on your rod and a bass on the receiving end. Made right here in the U.S.A.!!  Give thanks to Solitude Reels for supporting DPC 2012!

BP



https://www.solitudereels.com/about-solitude-reels-fly-fishing-reels/#



Don't Miss the 2012 DPC !

2012 Pickle Plans



2011 DPC Champ Brian Lang



July 14-15th, 2012
Missisquoi Bay on Lake Champlain
Swanton, Vermont

The time and place has been set for the 2012 Ditch Pickle Classic
 Catch-Photo-Release Fly Fishing Tournament!!

  

For 2012 we've decided on a new format for the DPC that will fully take advantage of the best fishing hours.  This years event you'll notice is spread over 2 days.  The tournament will start at 12pm on Saturday, 7/14 and end at 12pm on Sunday, 7/15.  This will allow anglers to fish right until Sunset on Day 1 and get an early start on Day 2.  Day 1 results will also be posted at the end of the day, so you'll be able to see how you stack up to the others going into Day 2.

We realize that it can be difficult to secure two days for an event like this, which is why we are providing as much notice as possible.  Those of you that fished the DPC last year know that this event is not to be missed and 6 months should be enough time to secure your availability on the 14th & 15th.  We are working on some options for group camping for those of you travelling from a distance, so please stay tuned.

This year we are very happy to have secured the Larry Greene Access Area as the location for pre-tournament check-in.  There is plenty of parking and a very nice launch at the site.  The Larry Greene Access is located on Rte. 78 and directions can be found HERE.

Like last year, each angler's $25 registration fee will translate into a $15 year-long membership to Friends of Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge.  The remaining $10 will get each angler an official Ditch Pickle Classic t-shirt!  We plan to hold the "Post Pickle BBQ" at the Refuge Headquarters on Tabor Road, just down the road from the Larry Greene Access Area.

If you have any questions regarding any aspect of the Ditch Pickle Classic, please direct them to

DitchPickleClassic@gmail.com

For a review of last year's Ditch Pickle Classic CLICK HERE

If you would like to register your team for the 2012 Ditch Pickle Classic, you can do so at any time

HERE

In the meantime, please bookmark our Official Tournament Page at http://www.ditchpickleclassic.blogspot.com/ and check back frequently!

 

Your Awesomeness Captured!





To all of those that participated in the "Capture Your Awesomeness" contest thank you! This was a ton of fun and we got to see all the creative and interesting shots! Both the good and the bad.. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did! A big thank you to Idylwilde for supporting this contest and giving us the opportunity to fish with some of Kevin Price's bad ass creations! A big thanks to Kevin Price for digging out of his box to donate to the DPC this year, the lucky winner gets a dozen of his ties in box given to us by the New Haven River Anglers Association ; along with a $25 gift card from J. Stockard Fly Fishing! The pics will be going to Idylwilde soon so stay posted and keep your eye out on their blog and site...Let the voting begin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                              

                                                       http://www.idylwilde.com/index.php

                                 http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Idylwilde-Flies/200386215282

Another Pickle Has Passed

I can’t believe that the 2011 Ditch Pickle Classic is a part of history and we’ve got to wait a whole year until the 2012 DPC, but believe me when I say I couldn’t be happier with how things went down on Saturday. 



Check-in



The fishing was far from fast and furious and I could have fried an egg on the deck of the boat it was so hot, but most anglers caught fish despite the conditions and one common theme across the board was that everyone had a great time both on the water and at the awards BBQ! 

The final entries were 35 anglers divided amongst 16 teams.  We had anglers from Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut all wanting to get their mitts on that trophy and the incredible pool of prizes up for grabs.  Vessels ranged from canoes to jon boats to full on flats boats and we had a mixed field of contestants, some of which were guides, some that never casted a fly rod and others that just wanted to enjoy a great day on the water with friends. 

The fishing was definitely tough!  Bright sun…85 degrees…algae blooms…relentless wind, but damn was it fun being out there and taking part in such a great event!  The action was pretty consistent for most anglers in the field…consistently slow!  Most teams put at least a couple fish in the boat and we only had a handful or so of 16”+ fish weighed in.  It was those multi-point fish that carried the winning individual anglers and teams to the podium.



2011 DPC Champion Brian Lang



In the end it was Brian Lang from team “Lucky Bassturds” that took home the trophy, pontoon boat and title of “2011 Ditch Pickle Classic Champ.”  I would imagine that Brian spent the remainder of the weekend cleaning off a nice place on the mantle for his shiny new trophy AND pondering the many things he could buy with his “Big Pickle” winnings of $320!!!!  If that’s not enough, you might see Brian out on the lake with his teammate Shreve Soule of the 2011 DPC’s 1^st place team, “Lucky Bassturds” slingin’ some of their new (HAND TIED BY THE MAN HIMSELF!) pike/musky flies donated by pike legend Barry Reynolds!  As the winning team, Brian and Shreve also each took home autographed copies of “Bass: The Movie” by Jamie Howard and a couple Buffs for those bright sunny days.



Matt Cain proudly displays one of the bass that
landed him a 2nd place spot on the podium



In the individual ranks we had Matt Cain of team “Good Luck Charlie” taking second place with a pair of real nice smallies.  Matt took home the Sea Level Fly Rod and Scientific Anglers Pike Fly Line.  Our 3^rd place individual finisher was Tom Getz of team “Hair of the Dog.”  Tom put 4 nice fish in the boat and walked with a Fishpond Guide Pack and $25 gift certificate to J. Stockard Fly Fishing.

Tom Getz and his teammate Arne McKinley also brought home the 2^nd place team award for their team, “Hair of the Dog.”  They were awarded some fly lines donated by Barry Reynolds as well as a brandy new Buff for each of them!

Matt Cain and Mike Ryan’s team, “Good Luck Charlie” were the 3^rd place team finishers and took home a copy of Barry Reynolds’ “Urban Warfare.”



Drew Price with his "gar-gantuan" 1st place exotic entry



Drew Price of team “Bass-assasins” swept the exotic species category with his 46” longnose gar!  Drew was awarded a fly reel donated by Ken Capsey’s Pike Adventures and Barry Reynolds movie, “Urban Warfare.”

Graig Smith of team “Good Swift Kick in da Bass” was awarded a very small Redington fly reel for catching the smallest fish of the day at a whopping 7”.

The post-event awards ceremony and BBQ was held at the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters on Tabor Road in Swanton and I really cannot say enough great things about Ken Sturm of Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge and Paul Madden of Friends of Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge!  These gentlemen made us feel right at home in a venue that couldn’t have been better for the DPC and I’m very much looking forward to a continued relationship with Paul, Ken and the refuge.  It’s an amazing slice of heaven up there and we’re lucky to have it right out the back door!

The 2011 DPC was a success on many different levels.  First and foremost it brought together 35 individuals on one of the finest warm water fisheries in the country.  The DPC demonstrated that a fishing tournament can be friendly and casual in nature.  It displayed a new set of tournament ethics that documented success with photographs rather than live wells, 35 anglers went home with prizes of all shapes and sizes and $555 found its way to a great cause!



Awards Ceremony / BBQ



I want to send sincere thanks out to everyone that made this crazy idea a reality.  Thanks to all 2011 competitors for showing up and acting like real sportsmen.  Thanks to some of the best names in the industry that showed their support through sponsorships of varying degrees.  Thanks to Paul Madden of the Friends of Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge for providing us the opportunity to demonstrate what the DPC could do for his great organization.  Thanks to Ken Sturm for opening the doors to the refuge headquarters and celebrating a great day with us.  Thanks to Hanna, Naomi and Hillary for all their help and hard work preparing food and making sure everyone had a full belly at the BBQ.  Thanks to Brian Price for his amazing grillin’ skills and devotion to making the DPC cry heard across continents.  Thanks to Mike Kontos for handling the permitting process, assuring the DPC would comply with all statewide tournament guidelines.  Thanks to Ken Capsey for suggesting this big’ole venue up north called Missisquoi Bay for the home of the DPC.  Thanks to Brendan Hare for his vision of what the Ditch Pickle Classic could be and his perseverance to make that vision the reality it is today.

The Winners Circle : Arne Mckinley, Tom Getz, Shreve Soule, Brian Lang,
Matt Cain, Mike Ryan, Drew Price

From here on out you might wanna give second thought to attending that distant cousin’s wedding in New Jersey or that family cruise Aunt Hilda’s been trying to get you on for years.  There’s a new summer-time holiday we like to celebrate in Vermont…..it’s called the Ditch Pickle Classic and it might as well be called Christmas!

See ya on the pond!

                               ~Chris

Barry Reynolds?????????

Barry Reynolds????What???!!!!!
Thats right folks...Barry sent a package full of ?????? for your enjoyment, and has hooked us up! Why aren't we telling what he sent? Because it's fun, thats why! Barry has had more fishy fingers than a teenage...I'll leave the rest for your imagination..

In 1994, Barry wrote and directed his first video, The Flyrodder’s Guide to Pike which was then followed with the production of an instructional DVD, The Fly Rodder’s Guide to Carp. The last four years has found Barry quite busy completing two full length fly fishing documentaries. In Pursuit of the Water Wolf, taped in Hi-Definition in Western Alaska and Canada, takes a look into the passion and expertise that drives Barry to successfully chase some of the biggest pike in the world with a fly! In his latest and most recent DVD, Urban Warfare, Barry takes a look at fishing close to home and the growing popularity of chasing carp on the fly in the inner city of Denver, Colorado. Currently, Barry is busy doing the “rough cut” on his latest adventures in a new, action packed and cinematographic masterpiece shot in Hi-Definition by TG Lewis entitled “Pursuit,” which takes a look at fly fishing opportunities, culture, and travel destinations across the world-- and right here at home. Pursuit is scheduled for release in 2010.

Need  more????

Want more? Show up tomorrow and put your fish pants on sucka's? See y'all in the A.M...lucky ......