Welcome to BassFan's Dock Talk section, where you will see brief, newsworthy items that for one reason or another can't be made into full-blown news articles. Despite the name, and in keeping with BassFan's editorial policy, every effort will be made to avoid publishing outright rumors.
BassFan columnist Miles "Sonar" Burghoff is one of 49 anglers competing in the BFL All-American this week. The event will take place on the Potomac River in conjunction with the FLW Tour Major.
Following is his practice report:
"Well, this year's installment of the All-American is sure to be exciting. The reason for that is the 49-boat field is limited to only a small portion of the Potomac River – right smack-dab in the middle of our nation's capital. The FLW Tour is limited to everything below the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, and the All-American field is limited to everything above. This portion of the Potomac is void of grass, but has an abundance of wood and rocks in certain areas and is known for fishing very small, which means that we'll be playing bumper-boats all week.
"My practice was somewhat disappointing. It wasn't bad because of lack of bites, but due to the fact that last night during the tournament meeting I became sick as a dog and got less than an hour's worth of sleep. I unfortunately had to call it quits a few hours early today, which I have never had to do during a tournament practice before, and I really hate to come in early. However, sleep seems really important to me right now.
"From what I see, this section of the river has a pretty healthy population of 15- to 17-inch keepers, but finding bigger fish is a challenge, especially with such heavy pressure. I was able to get bit on a bunch of different baits, but I have one that seems to catch more and bigger fish than others. That being said, it isn't going to be what you throw, but where and when you throw it, since tides have a major influence on the fishing here.
"Despite my shortened practice, I feel like I have got a good shot to put myself in contention. I will soon find out."
Since the 2012 Bassmaster Elite Series schedule was announced last summer, professional anglers have been kept in the dark about the seventh stop on the circuit – the Mystery Lake Elite June 28-July 1.
The secret will be revealed at 1 p.m. CT, Thursday, May 24, a month prior to the start of official practice for the event. The fishery will immediately be placed off-limits to the competitors, who will also be forbidden to obtain any information about the fishery that isn’t publicly available, noted B.A.S.S. tournament director Trip Weldon.
“Keeping it a secret is definitely a challenge,” said Weldon.
Not only does the advent of the Internet and social media channels make it hard to maintain secrecy, but logistical considerations also add to the difficulty. It takes at least 50 staff members and volunteers to conduct an Elite event. Plus, travel and lodging must be lined up, and marshals must be recruited as observers for the 99 anglers. It’s a big production.
It was easier to pull off a mystery event in the early Bassmaster Classics, after which the Mystery Lake Elite was patterned. In 1971, only two dozen competitors were invited to fish the first championship, and they weren’t told their destination – Lake Mead, Nev. – until their chartered jet was en route.
It was more of a challenge to keep the Classic location a secret in 1972. That year, Ranger Boats became the official boat sponsor, and the company was required to transport identical rigs – at night – to an empty hangar near Nashville’s Percy Priest Reservoir. Trouble was, Ranger owner Forrest Wood was one of the qualifiers for that Classic, as was Blake Honeycutt, who was responsible for moving some of the equipment.
To keep the two from revealing the secret, B.A.S.S. founder Ray Scott had the pair held under house arrest in a Memphis, Tenn., motel, guarded by city policemen who were also B.A.S.S. members, until the announcement. The 1972 mystery flight was the shortest. Classic contestants and their media observers boarded a plane in Memphis and landed in Nashville.
A year later, the Classic contingent flew east out of New Orleans, giving most of the anglers the idea they would be fishing in Florida. They weren’t told the true destination until their plane circled low over Clarks Hill Lake before landing in Augusta, Ga.
In the succeeding years, mystery flights embarked for airports near Wheeler Lake, Ala. (1974), Currituck Sound, N.C. (1975) and Lake Guntersville, Ala. (1976).
By 1976 – the first of Rick Clunn’s four Classic victories (see accompanying photo) – the event had grown too big and become too popular with fans to keep a secret. For the next several years, however, locations were not announced until weeks prior to the events, in an effort to keep the pros from scouting the lakes in advance.
The same strategy was behind B.A.S.S. co-owner Jerry McKinnis’ desire to hold a Mystery Lake Elite event this year. Unless some anglers made lucky guesses, no one was able to “pre-fish” the fishery that is soon to be revealed.
Since the official practice period begins Monday, June 25, the day after the finals of the Mississippi River Rumble at La Crosse, Wis., everyone assumes the lake will be within an 8-hour drive of that host city. Speculation among the pros has placed the location as far away as Kentucky Lake, with others predicting lakes in Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois and, of course, Wisconsin.
The only Elite angler with Mystery Lake experience is Clunn, who fished the last three Mystery Lake Classics and won the final one on Guntersville.
“I totally love the concept,” said Clunn. “Everybody has a system for preparing for tournaments, and this is going to force them to adapt that system to this format if they’re going to be successful.”
Will the Mystery Lake be a largemouth fishery, or will smallmouth dominate? Will it be natural or man-made? Will it be deep and clear or shallow with lots of cover? How do you pack for all these contingencies?
The answers to these questions matter. The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title and nearly three dozen berths in the 2013 Bassmaster Classic are at stake.
Stay tuned. Bass fishing’s biggest mystery of the year will be revealed on May 24 in a special video presentation on Bassmaster.com.
Kyle Fox’s rookie season as a Bassmaster Elite Series angler got off to a bumpy start at the St. Johns River in his home state of Florida. He logged a 76th-place finish on the tidal fishery, but in the three tournaments since, he hasn’t finished lower than 23rd. His hot streak has pushed him into the Top 20 in the Toyota Tundra B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year (AOY) standings and into 2nd place among rookies, trailing only Brandon Card.
It’s safe to say his confidence is soaring heading into the second half of the season.
“I think I’m doing good,” Fox told BassFan today. “I came from 76th in points to 17th right now. That’s hard to beat. To make that comeback, I feel pretty good. In the past two tournaments, I’ve done nothing but move up every day so I feel good about it. It’s just a matter of keeping it going. It’s fishing. Anything can happen out there.”
He earned his invite to the Elite Series after finishing 4th in the Northern Open points last year. One of the main adjustments he’s had to make is to make the most of the 2 1/2 practice days allowed to Elite Series pros. When fishing the Opens, he’d put in 4 or 5 days of work before the event. The change has led to him making more on-the-water decisions. It’s a strategy that is paying off.
“The biggest thing I’ve had to change – and I’ve done it in the past – is to be able to pick up and go when you’re fishing and abandon a game plan,” he said. “The past three tournaments have been real good for me, but I haven’t been on anything. I haven’t felt like I had a chance to get a Top 10 or a Top 50. I just go out and utilize what I’ve learned and continue to learn. That’s one of the things I learned last year from fishing the Opens. I wasn’t on much, but when I went fishing and tried to learn it, stuff comes together the way it should and before you know it by the end of tournament you get pretty dialed in to what you should be doing.”
As a rookie, he’s not too concerned with impressing his older, more experienced peers. That’ll come with success. He wishes them luck each morning at the dock, but is more focused on what he needs to get accomplished.
“I’m not there to get autographs,” he said. “They’re nice to me and I’m nice to them. You build friendships, but when we go to our meetings, I like to sit by myself. I like doing my own thing. I think that’s the only way you’ll get better really.”
Former longtime tour pro and renowned Florida guide Sandy Melvin will conduct the 2nd annual Gasparilla Island Kids Classic Tarpon Tournament Saturday out of Boca Grande. The event is a fundraiser for the Families First program at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute at the University of South Florida, which helps parents and children adjust to the changes that occur within the family when a parent has cancer.
The tournament will feature a full field of 26 boats, each of which has paid a $1,000 entry fee. Teams consist of up to four youths, most between the ages of 10 and 15.
"It's basically kids having fun fishing to help other kids and families in need," Melvin said. "We think it has the potential to get really big."
Each member of the winning team will receive an Apple iPad. The full amount of the entry fees collected will go to Families First.
Bassmaster Elite Series pro Bobby Lane will chaperone a team from his church in Lakeland. They'll fish with guide Roger Crafton, a former FLW Tour pro.
"I'm looking forward to it – I've got some fired-up kids around here," Lane said. "I think a lot of neat things are going to come from this, and the tarpon are stacked up out there right now. They're a mile thick and 30 feet off the bottom, so it's not going to be hard to catch them."
More information can be found on Melvin's webiste (www.4Tarpon.com) under the "Events" section.
BassFan columnist Miles “Sonar” Burghoff got his nickname from a tournament fishing buddy, and certainly it seemed more than fitting given the fact that his Emmy Award-winning father played the character “Radar” on the TV series M*A*S*H.
The younger Burghoff is paying his dues and collecting awards of his own in the form of tournament paychecks, and thanks to his allegiance to BoatUS Angler since winning the 2011 BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship, he’s recently added cash bonuses to his winnings as a member of the BoatUS Angler "Weigh to Win" program.
“I gained an early appreciation for BoatUS Angler in a pretty humorous manner when Casey O’Donnell and I won the championship on Lake Lewisville,” said the University of Central Florida senior. “I accidentally left my livewell pumps running during the weigh-in, and then long after the weigh-in, while we were doing media interviews and photo shoots. By the time Casey and I returned to load up my boat, we had both a championship trophy and a totally dead cranking battery.
“Everybody we knew had already left the ramp. Thankfully, I remembered to reach into my pocket and call the toll free TowBoatUS dispatch number. In less than 20 minutes, a TowBoatUS captain was there to give us a jump. He was super-nice, and I couldn’t believe how fast he got to us."
Burghoff learned the “there-when-you-need-them” goodness of his BoatUS Angler membership last year, but only recently recognized the benefits of the Weigh-to-Win tournament cash bonus program.
“I’ll be honest with you, a year ago, I didn’t pay much attention to tournament bonus programs. I just wanted to win. But then I realized how much money I had been missing out on, and signed up. Since then I’ve won $2,000 through Weigh-to-Win.
“The coolest thing about Weigh-to-Win is that you don’t even have to win the tournament to win the bonus money. You just have to be the highest eligible finisher."
Four hundred college anglers will have a chance at the same $1,000 Weigh-to-Win bonus Burghoff won last year when they compete next week on Lake Pickwick in the 2012 BoatUS Angler Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship – but only if they’re members of BoatUS Angler and “Weigh-to-Win.”
It pays to buy a highly affordable BoatUS Angler membership regardless of which B.A.S.S., FLW, LBAA, College Bass or PAA events you compete in. That's especially true when you’re registered for the bonus program, and that’s why hundreds of anglers signed up last year. To make sure you are eligible in 2012, just dial (918) 742-6424 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. CST, Monday through Friday, and ask for Kendell – she’ll make sure you get signed-up. To learn more, click here.
Carhartt, the legendary manufacturer of rugged work and outdoor clothing, has dramatically increased its presence on the bass-fishing scene this year with its sponsorship of B.A.S.S. events. Today it was announced that the company has entered a marketing partnership with Oklahoma-based Dynamic Sponsorships to further its integration with anglers and fishing fans.
“Being an angler from Michigan, I’m glad to see Carhartt, a Michigan-based company, involved in our sport,” said Kevin VanDam. “B.A.S.S. and Carhartt are two very iconic brands for sportsmen. I think our fan base will see that Carhartt offers a very diverse line of clothing that is really suited to fishing and the outdoors. They don’t just make work clothes.”
Dynamic, launched in January 2006, offers more than 80 years of combined fishing, boating and hunting industry experience and logs 80,000 annual highway miles going to and from fishing- and hunting-related events.
Potomac: Less grass, but still lots of fish 5/14/2012 BassFan Big Sticks Jay Yelas and Luke Clausen are both in the Top 10 in the FLW Tour Angler of the Year (AOY) race heading into this week's event at the Potomac River – the fourth of the season's six Majors. Clausen would gladly take the same result he achieved there last year – seeing as how he won – whereas Yelas will look to improve upon his 73rd-place showing.
Both commented on the relatively sparse amount of grass on the river this year in their initial practice reports, but both predict the weights to be about the same as they were last year. For more, click here.
Does Kevin VanDam have a legitimate shot at his fifth straight Toyota Tundra B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year (AOY) title? Although he currently sits at No. 11 in the standings, he most certainly believes that he does
"Until it's not possible anymore, anything can happen," he said. "With the 1-point increments it's a little harder to make up ground this year, but there's only a couple of guys who have a sizable lead on everybody else. That could be made up in two tournaments.
"I know I'm going to have to step it up over the next four tournaments, but this thing's a long ways from being over. (Leader) Randy Howell has had a really good year – he hasn't had a bad tournament at all yet – but one or two bad ones changes everything."
VanDam expressed major disappointment in his last two showings – a 45th at Bull Shoals and a 41st at Douglas. What made those mid-pack placements particularly galling was the fact that both were crankbait-dominated events, in which he historically fares extremely well.
Following the next event at Toledo Bend, the circuit will conclude with three derbies in the northern part of the country (the Mississippi River out of LaCrosse, Wis., the mystery venue and Oneida). The Michigander should feel like he's right at home for at least a couple of those.
"The bottom line is I need to go out and perform in all of the next four, and at least two of them (Toledo Bend and Oneida) are places I've fished before and feel real good about. I'll guarantee that the AOY standings will look a lot different after these next couple of tournaments – not necessarily for me, but all the way through."
He'd like to see the mystery event end up at one of the many premier bronzeback fisheries in or around the Great Lakes.
"It could be Bay de Noc, since we (had an Elite event canceled) there a few years ago, or it might be Green Bay. I like those smallmouth venues, not because I consider myself a better smallmouth angler, but just because I like to catch them so much. I want to go someplace fun."
Steve Kennedy caught a 9.86-pound bag today at Old Hickory Lake in Tennessee to claim his second PAA Tournament Series victory in 2 years. The Alabamian, who also prevailed last year at Neely Henry, finished with a 3-day total of 44.27 to outdistance runner-up Gary Yamamoto by about 2 1/2 pounds.
Kennedy caught just five keepers today, including two that barely met keeper standards. Still, his bag was easily big enough to hold off all challengers after he began the day with a 7-pound advantage.
"Every day was a struggle," he said. "My weights have been good before today. I had the bites to catch 15 pounds, so the opportunities were there, but I had a lot of fish just bumping my bait.
"Today was one of the worst days I've had in a long time execution-wise, and I've had some bad ones lately. It's painful to have that kind of a day with a camera guy in the boat."
Yamamoto caught the biggest sack of the tournament (17.73) to move up six places. Day-1 leader Dean Rojas closed strong with a 16.57 stringer after weighing just 7.27 on day 2.
Full details of Kennedy's winning pattern will be published soon.
Here are the final totals for the 15 anglers who fished the final day:
1. Steve Kennedy: 44.27
2. Gary Yamamoto: 41.81
3. Dean Rojas: 41.27
4. Tim Messer: 38.67
5. Mark Menendez: 35.29
6. Keith Caka: 34.81
7. James Niggemeyer: 34.46
8. Jordan Lee: 34.19
9. Ish Monroe: 32.69
10. Greg Hackney: 32.63
11. Jeff Baker: 31.80
12. Casey Ashley: 31.74
13. Todd Auten: 31.44
14. Greg Ryan: 30.21
15. Stephen Scoggin: 28.11
Randy Haynes caught the biggest stringer today to win the Kentucky Lake Central EverStart. His 19-10 bag gave him a 54-06 total over 3 days. He beat Sam Lashlee by nearly 4 pounds to claim his third career EverStart title. Lashlee wound up with 50-09. Lance Ricketts, who led after the first 2 days, caught 13-09 today and settled for 4th with 49-10. Here's how the Top 10 finished up:
1. Randy Haynes: 54-06
2. Sam Lashlee: 50-09
3. Jason Lambert: 50-07
4. Lance Ricketts: 49-10
5. Tim Griggs: 48-11
6. Curt McGuire: 48-02
7. David Fields: 47-11
8. Scott Mansfield: 46-09
9. Drew Lynch: 46-06
10. Matt Robertson: 45-14
Details of Haynes' winning pattern will be published soon.
Luminaries to miss U.S. Open? 5/11/2012 Veteran Western scribe George Kramer noted in his blog recently that Rick Clunn and Gary Klein, both devout supporters of the annual U.S. Open at Nevada's Lake Mead, will likely miss this year's edition due to their quest to qualify for the 2013 Bassmaster Classic.
Steve Kennedy caught his second straight 17-pound bag today to open a massive lead at the Old Hickory PAA Tournament Series in Tennessee with 1 day to go. His 17.14 stringer gave him a 2-day total of 34.41 and a lead of more than 7 pounds over 2nd-place Tim Messer.
Messer weighed 13.51 for a 27.32 total. Keith Caka brought in a 12.16 sack to move up five places to 3rd. Day-1 leader Dean Rojas' 7.27-pound stringer was one fish shy of a limit and he dropped to 4th with 24.70.
Kennedy's lead wouldn't be nearly so large had he not caught three fish that weighed at least 3 pounds each in the final 15 minutes of the day.
"That's a concern for tomorrow because we have to be in an hour and a half earlier," he said. "I put in a lot more time today doing what I've been doing to catch the better ones, but I struggled, really. I'd get a bite every now and then, and then I wouldn't catch them."
His sack was topped by a fish that weighed slightly more than 4 pounds.
"That one actually bit me twice and I got lucky to catch him. I jerked it away from him the first time and that got him mad, and he came back and ate it. I could've poked him with the rod tip the second time."
The heavy traffic from multiple local tournaments that will take to the water tomorrow is also a concern.
"It could muddy the banks and there might be a lot of rocking and rolling, and that could hurt me. I think I've got other things I can do to catch fish, but I have no expectations of catching 17 pounds again."
Tomorrow's weather forecast for the Nashville area predicts clouds with showers in the afternoon – a stark contrast from the blue-sky conditions of the first 2 days.
"That could be great, or it could be the pits. I almost refused to do what I did today with the bluebird and an east wind because I knew they wouldn't eat it, but they did."
Here's how the Top 10 stacks up going into the final day:
1. Steve Kennedy: 34.41
2. Tim Messer: 27.32
3. Keith Caka: 25.21
4. Dean Rojas: 24.70
5. Mark Menendez: 24.21
6. (tie) James Niggemeyer: 24.09
6. (tie) Jordan Lee: 24.09
8. Gary Yamamoto: 24.08
9. Ish Monroe: 23.78
10. Jeff Baker: 23.60
Meyer's frog-fest 5/11/2012 California FLW Tour standout Cody Meyer returns to his bank-fishing roots to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new Jackall IOBEE Frog in the video embedded below. One thing's for sure – you're going to wish you lived on the shores that lake.
Randy Howell may or may not win the 2012 Toyota Tundra B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year (AOY) award. The only certainty is that whatever the number of points needed to cop the title ends up being, he's quite a bit closer to it right now than anybody else.
The 38-year-old is eager to take on the challenge that the summer months will bring.
"I really feel more excited about the four tournaments ahead than I was about the four that are behind," he said. "There were a couple back there that I might've been a little nervous about, but they worked out okay."
He's seriously contended for the title in previous years on both major circuits. His career-best final placement on the B.A.S.S. side was 5th, and he was the runner-up to Denny Brauer on the FLW Tour in 1998.
Next up is Toledo Bend, where he finished 7th last year. Then comes the Mississippi River, which will play to his greatest strength: shallow water. He made a pre-practice trip to Wisconsin and liked what he saw.
The mystery event will come a week after the Mississippi, and although he doesn't know the location, he knows it'll be someplace where the fish should bite like crazy. Then there'll be a 7-week layoff before the finale at Oneida – one of his favorite bodies of water in the country and where he finished 5th in a Bassmaster Northern Open in 2011.
He's finished no lower than 14th (twice) in any Elite event this year. He admitted that just about everything has gone right for him so far.
"A lot of it has to do with timing. The Lord has blessed me because a lot of things have happened that needed to happen as far as decisions on the water and the size of some of the fish I've caught. A lot of the breaks have been going the right way.
"I'm just going to keep doing what I've been doing – preparing as much as I can to make sure I'm ready when I get there to start practice, and then putting in 12- or 13-hour days on the first couple of practice days. Then I hope I can keep fishing smart and making the right decisions."
The Berkley Experience Trailer will be at the Scheels store in Omaha, Neb., Thursday through Saturday (May 18-20). The 60-foot trailer offers consumers fun, great deals and activities, along with fishing education for all levels of anglers.
The trailer has videos and interactive demonstrations along with seminars scheduled throughout the day. Each stop has special retail promotions only available while the trailer is at the location.
“We're excited about having the Experience Trailer on the road in 2012 and stopping at many new locations across the country,” said Berkley marketing director Andrew Marks. "Our Experience Trailer team is set to help anglers of all ages and skill levels learn about our broad spectrum of products and how best to use them to catch more fish.”
Other elements include a knot-tying contest and demonstration, where anglers can learn new knots and compete for prizes. Under the tent, big-screen videos help anglers experience the adventure with Berkley and display racks are filled with the latest products. The Berkley Experience staff will be on hand to answer questions.
The store is located at 17202 Davenport Street in Omaha. The phone number is (402) 289-5666.
Future stops will be at Scheels in Sioux Falls, S.D. (June 8-10) and Dakotamart in Pierre, S.D. (June 15-17).
New poll: Elite AOY 5/11/2012 The Bassmaster Elite Series season has reached the midway point, and Kevin VanDam will need to leap-frog 10 anglers over the final four events to claim his fifth straight Angler of the Year (AOY) title and eighth overall.
Who's your pick to wear the AOY crown after the final event at Oneida Lake in late August? To cast your vote, scroll down the right side of the home page.
The new Berkley Havoc Rocket Craw, designed by former Forrest Wood Cup champion Scott Suggs, has already made an impact at the sport's highest level – it's helped Ott DeFoe, Bobby Lane and Skeet Reese cash some big paychecks.
Its combination of high-action pinchers and realistic tentacles allow it to emulate a fleeing crayfish like no other bait in its category. To learn more, click here to visit the Catch More Fish page.
Rojas, Kennedy pull to front at Old Hickory 5/10/2012
Dean Rojas and Steve Kennedy both surpassed the 17-pound mark today to separate themselves from the field on day 1 of the Old Hickory PAA Tournament Series in Tennessee.
Rojas weighed a 17.43-pound sack and Kennedy was close behind with 17.27. Tim Messer was a distant 3rd with 13.81.
"I surprised myself today," said Rojas (pictured). "I thought 15 pounds would've been really good, and it would've been. I just bounced around a little bit and caught a fish late that helped me out.
"I think I've got a chance for another good bag tomorrow because I didn't beat up on them too bad today."
He caught about 10 keepers for the day and weighed all largemouths. The biggest of those was a 4-pounder.
Both he and Kennedy were reluctant to reveal any pattern details at such an early stage.
"I didn't have anything where I just hammered them – it was one here and one there," Rojas said. "I fished seven or eight different areas.
"The weather was kind of funky today. In practice it was pretty cloudy and today we had high skies, so it was totally different. It threw me a curveball and I had to adjust to it."
Kennedy had a similar mindset to begin the day – he thought his best-case scenario was somewhere around the 14-pound mark. The key was a late 5-pounder that had a baby duck hanging out of its mouth.
The duck went to the scale along with the fish.
"Oh yeah, he's going to digest it," Kennedy said. "I wasn't going to pull it out, I promise you."
He also weighed all largemouths and said he lost at least one that would've helped him. He missed his fifth fish on at least five occasions before completing his limit.
"I've got four different deals going, but I really didn't get the timing down. I didn't execute, but I still caught a good bag. It's all about a 5-pound bite here and hopefully I can dial in tomorrow."
Here's a look at the Top 10:
1. Dean Rojas: 17.43
2. Steve Kennedy: 17.27
3. Tim Messer: 13.81
4. James Niggemeyer: 13.72
5. Gary Yamamoto: 13.54
6. Mark Menendez: 13.28
7. Stephen Scoggin: 13.11
8. Keith Caka: 13.05
9. Jeff Baker: 12.40
10. Greg Hackney: 12.21
Sonar Sound-Off columnist Miles Burghoff is about to embark on a 2-week odyssey that'll include three high-level tournaments. It's a logistical nightmare, but he's wrangled a ride on a private jet to help him pull it off.
BRP (parent company of Evinrude) has begun a program to test butanol-extended fuel in a variety of recreational marine engines for Argonne National Laboratory, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office. Butanol-extended fuel will be tested as an alternative to gasoline containing 15 percent ethanol (E15).
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted a waiver allowing up to 15 percent ethanol in gasoline. According to industry test data published last October, E15 can cause significant damage to marine engines. A 2011 alternative fuel study executed by BRP, the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) and the American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) concluded that isobutanol was a promising alternative fuel in marine engines.
“Gasoline with 10 percent ethanol (E10) is still an acceptable fuel for marine engines, including BRP's Evinrude outboard engines, but isobutanol, which has a higher energy content than ethanol, could be a viable alternative to E15,” said Jeff R. Wasil, an engineering technical expert at BRP. “Isobutanol represents a unique opportunity for BRP, and the entire marine industry, to be at the forefront of innovation in alternative fuels.”
With oversight from Argonne and the Department of Energy, the project calls for many types of recreational marine inboard and outboard engines to be tested in both a laboratory setting and through on-the-water trials to determine the effects of butanol-extended fuel on engine power, performance, emissions and overall durability. Phase I of the isobutanol testing on the water takes place this week in Annapolis, MD. Phase II is planned for later in 2012.
Along with BRP, Argonne Laboratory and the NMMA, marine manufacturers Volvo-Penta and Indmar Marine have provided testing resources for the first phase of the project.
The Outdoor Hub published an article today in which Luke Clausen lists his Top 5 destinations for summer bass-fishing, and they're spread out all over the country. To read it, click here.
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