ABOVE: More and more ice houses are popping up on Fairmont’s frozen lakes. This Saturday the Fairmont Lakes Foundation, Inc. will host an annual ice fishing tournament.
FAIRMONT– Now that the lakes have frozen over, the Fairmont Lakes Foundation, Inc. is preparing. (FLF) to host its annual ice fishing tournament, which will take place this Saturday. Proceeds from the tournament go toward the foundation’s mission of improving the quality of Fairmont’s lakes, raising awareness of the lakes and maintaining their quality.
Jim Utermarck, a board member and organizer of the event, shared that this is the eighth year for the ice fishing tournament. He admitted that the foundation did not know for a long time whether the tournament would be held this year.
“Considering January 1 there is open water in all the lakes, we don’t know what we will do. But then we saw that it was going to get cold and we prayed for ice,” Utermarck said.
Today, there is about 10 to 12 inches of ice covering the lakes so the contest is on.
“We expect to get about 100 anglers. Many people have supported the ice fishing tournament over the years, Utermarck said.
While many of the participants are from Fairmont and Martin County, Utermarck said a good number are from Iowa and some are even from the Twin Cities area.
“Not just members from our local community. It’s nice to see other people coming,” Utermarck said.
There is no age limit to enter the tournament and participants can fish any of Fairmont’s five lakes although Utermarck said Budd is one of the more popular to fish because it is a great lake to catch Yellow Bass.
Registration cost is only $30 per angler. Utermarck said the money will go toward a few different things. The foundation has plans to stock the lakes with Perch this spring.
“We will be planting plants in the western part of Sisseton. Some of that money goes into that and that helps our clean water initiative,” Utermarck said.
People can register for the tournament online at fairmontlakesfoundation.com or opt to register the morning of the tournament at the Gomsrud Park Shelter House. Check-in is from 7 to 8:45 am and fishing begins promptly at 9 am with weigh-in starting at 1 pm
There are a number of exciting prizes for those with the most or biggest fish.
“For Yellow Bass, you can catch as many pounds as you want,” Utermarck said.
First place will receive $750, second place will receive $350 and third place will receive $200.
Whoever catches the biggest walleye and biggest panfish will receive $100 each. Other prizes include an Otter Ice House, Vexlar Flaher, Marcum Flasher, K-Drill and Strikemaster 24V Auger.
“This year, Mark Fujan from State Farm is giving away a $100 gift certificate to the Baitshop for the biggest Crappie,” Utermarck said.
He expressed gratitude to the community and its support of the tournament over the years.
“We couldn’t do what we do without the support of the Fairmont community. We have 30-some sponsors who pay anywhere from $150 to $350 and sponsor us throughout the year for our fishing tournaments, lake cleanups and anything else we do,” Utermarck said.
Overall, he said the community supports the Fairmont Lakes Foundation, Inc. and everything it does.
There are about 20 life members and about 90 members. Any member is welcome to join the monthly meetings, which take place on the second Monday of the month at 5:30 pm at the Southern Minnesota Educational Campus (SMEC).
Utermarck and the rest of the board are excited for the ice fishing tournament this Saturday and hope people will look at it both as a fun event and a way to support the local organization.
“People are taking it seriously and that’s great but we just want everyone to have fun, enjoy themselves and keep coming out and supporting the Lakes Foundation,” Utermarck said.
