Visit Michigan City LaPorte (www.visitmichigancitylaporte.com) is pleased to be hosting the North American Ice Fishing Circuit (NAIFC) qualifying tournaments on February 9, 10 & 11, 2018. This will be the first year that the NAIFC will be coming to this part of Indiana and there will be no question that the ice will be plentiful! We encourage local teams to participate and have a chance at winning some significant prize money and invite spectators to come experience a great couple of days in our Winter paradise!
In addition, Visit Michigan City LaPorte will host the Maple City Ice Fishing Classic on Saturday, February 10th, which is open to the public.
NAIFC will be headquartered out of LaPorte Best Western Plus Hotel & Conference Center. The tournament is open to 100 two - person teams with the Top-10 finishing teams receiving an invitation to the NAIFC North American Championship to be held in December of 2018 on North & South Twin Lakes, Naytahwaush, MN.
NAIFC Tournament Director Jack Baker reported, "There was an immediate buzz when LaPorte was announced as a Qualifier." "It is exactly the kind of city we look for to hold a National event." "The lakes are fishy and literally a part of the community." "For a fisherman there is no better feeling than knowing you are appreciated and welcome into a community. The LaPorte Tournament became a must attend when announced."
While NAIFC tournaments attract the best of the best from across the Ice Belt it is generally the local teams with their home field advantage that hold the competitive edge. Lake boundaries are set with teams allowed to move and drill as many holes as they wish. Tournament fishing hours are from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm on Sunday, with weigh in at Cummings Lodge. The species and team bag limit for Pine/Stone Lake will be 8 Bluegills and 8 Crappies. Portable fish shelters are allowed with walking, ATVs and snowmobiles the modes of transportation.
The NAIFC pays deep into the field with one team out of every five teams earning cash. Along with the cash prizes the winning team takes home "The Wood" (NAIFC Trophy). Aqua Vu, Quicksilver Lubricants and Lucky John Lures provide additional Product Prizes. As an additive incentive to enter the Pine/Stone Lake Qualifier Aqua Vu Underwater Cameras is offering special VIP pricing to all involved in the event, a saving per camera that literally covers the cost of registration.
While the competitive portion of the Qualifier takes place on Sunday the NAIFC Qualifier kicks off February 9th with a Friday Night Seminar. Hosted at LaPorte Best Western Plus Hotel & Conference Center the seminar series opens with a 5:00 - 7:00 PM demonstration of Ice Fishing basics covering everything from what knot to tie to the use of plastic baits. Then at 7:00 PM the technical/how-to information is taken up a notch by highlighting fishing techniques from across the Ice Belt as well as Aqua Vu underwater camera use and tournament tactics. NAIFC Pro-staff, Team USA members along with Pro-staff from major manufacturing will be the seminar speakers. The seminars are "Free" to attend and are open to the public with drawings for Quicksilver Lubricants prizes for those in attendance.
The Friends of Fishing will host a fishing tournament for the public on Saturday, February 10. Registration will begin at 5 am at Cummings Lodge on Stone Lake. The tournament will end at noon and there will be cash prizes offered, plus every fisherman’s name will be entered in a drawing for a gas auger donated by Visit Michigan City LaPorte. For more information call 219-510-3193.
On Saturday local kids will take center stage during the Kids Ice Camp. All area kids and parents are welcome to the "Free" Kids Ice Camp sponsored by Ice Team and Lucky John Lures. Starting indoors at 1:00 PM at the LaPorte Best Western Plus Hotel & Conference Center, kids and parents learn about ice safety, bait, electronics, rods and jigging techniques. At 2:00 PM both the kids and parents are invited out onto the ice to experience in person what was demonstrated inside. Every kid in attendance will receive a fishing rod from Lucky John Lures. Quicksilver Lubricants product prizes for adults will also be drawn for.
For more information on the NAIFC, Qualifiers, Championship, Friday Night Seminar or Kids Ice Camp go to www.naifc.com or contact Jack Baker at 612.308.4858 - jbakersports@hotmail.com. To enter a NAIFC Qualifying tournament click on Registration www.naifc.com
For information on LaPorte, Pine or Stone Lake go to www.michigancitylaporte.com
