The Ice Buster Daze Fishing Derby is back for its 20th year for a fun day and competition this Saturday, February 11, at the Red Lake River in Central Park.
Suzie Kaiser is one of the event organizers and is inviting families and ice fishers everywhere to come and compete in the all-day event. “It’s a fun day. We want a family day out there. Bring your kids out to come fishing. You can bring your fish house down and fish out of that, so the kids stay warm,” said Kaiser. “Everything looks good. There’s good ice down there. We won’t allow vehicles down there. You’ll have to pull your stuff down there yourself. For those that cannot walk, we should have somebody there with an ATV that will be able to take you down. We’ll allow you to run an ATV and a snowmobile down there if you want to. The tournament area will be east of the bridge, follow the north bank past the public access and the boat ramp, and keep going to the east. When you come to the point, just keep going to the east, and the fishing area will be all in that area.” The fishing area boundaries will be set on Friday with markers for where everyone can fish, and all anglers must be visible to the registration station.
The event will begin with a breakfast at the Masonic Lodge that is open to everybody from 8:00 to 11:00 a.m., where they will serve pancakes, waffles, sausage, coffee, juice, and milk, with free-will offerings going to local charities. Registration will begin at 11:00 a.m. at the Red River shore in Central Park, with fishing going from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. The Derby will end with a spaghetti supper at the Crookston Inn from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.
There is no pre-fishing on Saturday morning until the event starts at 1:00 p.m. Contestants are allowed to set the depth of their lines and fish on Friday but are not allowed to pre-fish before the Derby begins on Saturday. No alcoholic beverages are allowed on the ice.
Contestants can weigh as many fish as they like but can only bring one up at a time to be weighed. Contestants are allowed to move to different spots on the ice throughout the contest.
Some equipment will be available to anglers who are new to ice fishing or don’t have the equipment. “People can set up anywhere you want down there. If you don’t have an auger to drill holes, we will drill them for you; otherwise, bring your own auger,” Suzie Kaiser explained. “You can move around during the tournament if you want. You don’t have to stay in one spot. It’s up to you what you want to do.”
The cost of admission is $25 per hole, with tickets being sold at Crookston Hardware Hank and Scott’s True Value until Thursday. “We’re limited to 300 tickets sold, so get in and get your tickets. We still have some available. Scott’s True Value is selling them there. He’ll have them probably until Thursday, and Hardware Hanks are selling them too,” Kaiser explained. “We will pick them up sometime on Saturday morning, and if there are any left by then, we will sell them down on the ice if we have any left. We usually sell out, so get in and get them early.” People who aren’t ice fishers can still buy tickets to the Derby and win some prizes without dropping a bobber below the ice, as the Derby is giving away raffle prizes for all ticket holders. Prizes include custom corn hole boards, a Sylvania 10.1” Smart Tablet with DVD, a 50” Smart TV, a $100 Ampride Gift Card, and American Federal Ice Fishing Bucket, a Kobalt 257 pc tool set, and much more. The full list of prizes can be seen on the flyer below.
For more information, contact Brian at 218-281-7762 or Hardware Hank at 218-281-1749.
