Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship facts for kids

The Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship is a super exciting catch and release smallmouth bass fishing tournament! It happens every year on Rainy Lake in Fort Frances, Ontario, Canada. This big event started in 1995 and still takes place each July.

Tournament History

How the Idea Started

The idea for a bass fishing tournament on Rainy Lake came up after another big fishing event, the In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail, was held there in 1990. Many anglers (fishermen and women) were really impressed with how many great smallmouth bass were in Rainy Lake!

Planning the First Event

In April 1994, a meeting was held to talk about making a smallmouth bass tournament happen. Many different groups and people attended, including local businesses, tourism groups, and anglers. Everyone thought it was a great idea!

The planning continued through 1994 and 1995. The goal was to promote Fort Frances and Rainy Lake as a fun place for tourists. Local businesses also stepped up to help pay for the first tournament.

Tournament Returns After Pause

The tournament had to be cancelled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But don't worry, it came back strong in 2021!

First Tournaments and Growth

The First Championship in 1995

The very first tournament in 1995 had 47 teams competing. Even though it didn't make a lot of money, everyone thought it was a big success! It even had a TV show called "The Complete Angler" film an episode about it.

Becoming a Non-Profit Group

After the first tournament, a new group called Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship Inc. was created in 1996. This group was a non-profit, meaning they put any money they made back into the tournament. They had eleven board members, and they focused on making sure volunteers, sponsors, anglers, spectators, and the fish were all taken care of.

Growing Bigger and Better

The second tournament in 1996 was even bigger, with 69 teams! That's a 47% increase! Many new things were added that year:

• Over 450 volunteers helped out.
• More fun activities for families during the day.
• "Pathways to Fishing" workshops taught kids how to fish.
• The "Reel Raffle" started, offering cool prizes.
• A "Big Screen Tournament Information System" showed live updates.
• The "Parade of Boats" became a popular event.
• The "Kiwanis Steak Fry" offered tasty food.
• For the first time, the top teams drove their boats right through the tent during the final weigh-in!

The 1996 tournament was even featured in a big article in "Outdoors Canada" magazine.

Working with In-Fisherman

After the 1996 tournament, a famous fishing company called In-Fisherman Communication Network contacted the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship. They loved the new Big Screen system and wanted to use it for their own walleye championship! This started a long friendship.

Rainy Lake and the tournament have been shown on In-Fisherman TV shows and in their magazines many times. Al Lindner, one of the founders of In-Fisherman, even said that Rainy Lake is his favorite place to fish for smallmouth bass!

More Growth and New Features

The tournament kept growing! In 1997, 104 teams competed. They added more space to the main tent and a second boat to safely return all the fish to Rainy Lake after they were weighed. The Reel Raffle sold out all 5,000 tickets! In-Fisherman TV crews were there filming again.

A website, www.canadianbass.com, was created in 1997 to share tournament information online. The downtown area of Fort Frances was decorated with banners, and the tournament brought in over 2.5 million dollars for the local economy!

Full Teams and Kid-Friendly Fun

By 1998, the tournament was so popular that it had a full field of 130 teams, with 15 more on a waiting list! More fun activities for kids were added:

• The "KidPro" event let local youngsters fish with tournament anglers.
• The Big Screen system now had two screens.
• A "Much Music Night" was added for older kids.

Almost 500 volunteers and 117 sponsors helped make the 1998 event a huge success.

Changes for the New Millennium

In 1999, 130 teams competed for $120,000 in prizes! A big change happened: the fishing days moved from Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

An "Angler Advisory Committee" was formed in 1999. This group is made up of different tournament anglers who give advice on things that affect the fishermen. New holding tanks and a special system were put in place to make sure the fish were kept safe and healthy.

The 2000s Tournaments

New Ways to Enter

For the 2000 tournament, they changed how teams could enter. The top 90 teams from 1999 were guaranteed a spot, and the remaining 40 spots were chosen by a draw. 95 teams entered the draw for those 40 spots!

In 2000, the tournament worked with a radio station, CBQ Thunder Bay, for a contest that added one more team to the field. The radio host and a young contest winner got to compete! Other changes in 2000 included:

• More "flights" (groups of boats) for weigh-ins to reduce waiting times.
• The KidPro event moved to the Sunday before the tournament.
• A big sign was put up at the tournament site.
• The tournament was covered by TSN (a sports TV channel).
• The first local champions from Fort Frances were crowned!

More Improvements in 2001

In 2001, 130 teams competed for $130,000! Many improvements were made:

• New software for the Big Screen.
• The tent was made bigger to fit more people.
• Bleachers were added for extra seating.
• A big map joined the big sign at the Sorting Gap Marina.
• The "Hawg Trough" (a special tank for showing big fish) returned.
• The docks were decorated with flags.
• A "Walk of Fame" celebrated past winners.
• The second local champion was crowned, and local anglers were on the first, second, and third place teams!

The O-Fish-L Angler Ambassador

In August 2001, a special title was created: "O-Fish-L Angler Ambassador." This title goes to an angler who has done a lot to promote the tournament and the Rainy Lake area as a great fishing and vacation spot. Al Lindner was the first person to be given this important title!

Expanding the Field in 2002

For 2002, the tournament grew even more to 133 teams! Winners from six other regional tournaments were invited to compete. This helped bring even more talented anglers to Fort Frances.

To keep all the fish safe, a third "Catch and Release Boat" was added. A new area called "Daytime Land" was created for activities. A seven-foot mascot named "Bobber" was introduced and quickly became a favorite with the crowd! A new fundraiser called "Bobber's Big Bass Bargains" was started to help with costs.

Also in 2002, the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Tournament Bursary was created. This is a scholarship given to a graduate of Fort Frances High School who goes on to study science at a Canadian university.

Continued Growth and Celebrations

In 2003, the field expanded again to 136 teams, with winners from the six regional tournaments invited back. "Daytime Land" grew even bigger, and a "Food Court" was added with local food vendors. A second stage was set up for kids' activities, and the weigh-ins were broadcast live on the internet!

The tenth championship was held in 2004. The entry fee was increased, and the field grew to 138 teams, including all previous champions. The winning team that year received an amazing $50,000 prize!

Volunteers

Each year, close to 500 amazing volunteers help make the Bass Championship a success. They do so much to help everything run smoothly!

Events

The Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship has lots of fun events, including:

• Daily weigh-ins where you can see the fish being weighed.
• Daytime Land, with activities for everyone.
• Live entertainment, like bands, hypnotists, and local performers.