May 07, 2011 by Montana Cats Staff
Huntley, MT 5/7/11 – The Yellowstone Challenge, brought to you by the Montana Catfish Association in conjunction with Cabelas, returned to Huntley over the weekend and welcomed a record 42 boats to the competition. An unseasonably cold spring gave way to three straight days of beautiful weather leading up to the event, and that’s just what the doctor ordered. The weigh-ins provided all the proof one needed to see that the big fish were active and the anglers were in prime form.
Once again, the action kicked off on Friday night at the Pryor Creek Bar in Huntley with the annual catfishing social and calcutta of the fishing teams. It was well attended and provided the perfect table-setter for the big event Saturday morning. Anticipation was high and a day on the water was on everyone’s mind.
Tournament director Tyler George directed the opening meeting just minutes before 11:00 a.m. out of the Minnow Bucket parking lot. The sun was shining on an incredible cluster of boats while the anglers carefully positioned themselves for the inevitable sprint to their vehicles. When all of the rules and regulations were carefully covered, the anglers were free to hit the water. The temperature would hover in the 70’s throughout the afternoon and into the early evening. With tournament boundaries stretching from the Huntley diversion dam to the mouth of the Bighorn River, three patrol boats were busy throughout the event. A big thank you should go out to these three volunteer boats for their professionalism and the hard work that goes into making sure the event goes on as planned.
As 7:00 p.m. approached the anglers rushed back to the weigh-in site to see if their performances would hold up against the competition. In the end there can only be one true champion, and this years title belonged to the catfish savvy crew of Robert and Gerald Tallent out of Forsyth, MT. They weighed in a phenomenal basket of four fish. It tipped the scales at a NEW Yellowstone Challenge record, 33.09 lbs! The champions total was boosted when they landed the “Sumo Cat” of the event, a 12.42 lb. pig. It is the second largest ever caught in a Montana Cats sanctioned event. The duo needed every last fish, however, as the two-time defending tournament champions were nipping at their heels. Yellowstone Challenge legends Larry Green and Art Adame, weighed in an impressive four fish limit of 30.71 lbs, just narrowly missing out on a third straight tournament title. Tournament veterans, Rod Seder and Kurt Weber of Billings, rounded out the top three with 27.65 lbs. All of the fish caught were returned safely to the Yellowstone River on Saturday night and will live to fight another day.
Tragedy did strike this year’s event, however, when tournament anglers Joe Meeks and Raymond Herman, both of Billings were involved in an accident when their boat capsized against a logjam. Mr. Meeks was able to swim to safety after the accident. Unfortunately, Mr. Herman was not able to do the same and is presently unaccounted for. Please join Montana Cats and all outdoorsman across the state in keeping the friends and family of Mr. Raymond Herman in your thought and prayers.
A big thank you should be reserved for Cabelas, Billings, MT location, for being the premier sponsor for this year’s event. Riverside Marine and Cycle out of Miles City was once again a top-flight sponsor and was gracious enough to provide a boat display at the opening and closing meetings. Montana Cats recommends heading to RMC for all your jet boating needs. Andy Rose, the owner and operator of the Minnow Bucket, is also an integral part of the Yellowstone Challenge procedures and the organization greatly appreciates his efforts. If you need bait for that next catfish adventure stop by and see Andy at the Minnow Bucket. The 6th Annual Yellowstone Challenge will return to Huntley on Saturday May 12th, 2012. Mark your Calenders! The Montana Cats circuit will now move onto the 12th Annual Milk River Catfish Classic, held in Glasgow, MT on June 4th. The 80-team catfish catching extravaganza should not dissapoint. We hope to see you all there!
Pictures for this event can be found here.
| Robert Tallent | 12.42 lbs. | Big Fish Award |
| 1. | Robert Tallent, Forsyth, MT. – Gerald Tallent, Forsyth, MT | 33.09 lbs. |
| 2. | Larry Green, Billings, MT. – Art Adame, Ballantine, MT. | 30.71 lbs. |
| 3. | Rod Seder, Billings, MT. – Kurt Weber, Billings, MT. | 27.65 lbs. |
| 4. | Ron Ford Sr., Billings, MT. – Ron Ford Jr., Billings, MT. | 25.55 lbs. |
| 5. | Siler Giles, Billings, MT. – Rick Davis, Billings, MT. | 25.18 lbs. |
| 6. | Brenner Flaten, Wright, WY. – Chad Dawson, Glasgow, MT. | 24.61 lbs. |
| 7. | Gage Gordon, Belgrade, MT. – Mike Gordon, Belgrade, MT. | 23.93 lbs. |
| 8. | Wade Bomar, Billings, MT. – Edward Seiders, Billings, MT. | 22.51 lbs. |
| 9. | Dave Wise, Billings, MT. – Stephanie Cantrell, Billings, MT. | 21.07 lbs. |
| 10. | Scott Swanson, Laurel, MT. – Bobby Wise, Billings, MT. | 19.59 lbs. |
| 11. | Tom Ringo, Ballantine, MT. – Nick Christman, Worden, MT. | 17.62 lbs. |
| 12. | Brad Cole, Billings, MT. – Eric Wolff, Billings, MT. | 15.09 lbs. |
| 13. | Kevin Van Donsel, Colstrip, MT. – Ryan Smith, Billings, MT. | 14.42 lbs. |
| 14. | J.D. Smith, Billings, MT. – Dick Hovaas, Shepherd, MT. | 14.08 lbs. |
| 15. | Richard Theis, Billings, MT. – Matt Theis, Billings, MT. | 13.14 lbs. |
| 16. | Jeff Kilwein, Billings, MT. – Frank Cook, Billings, MT. | 12.48 lbs. |
| 17. | Ralph Kottke, Billings, MT. – Mitchell Kottke, Billings, MT. | 12.29 lbs. |
| 18. | Charles Ferguson, Big Timber, MT. – Will Grundhauser, Billings, MT. | 11.87 lbs. |
| 19. | Kent Hagen, Billings, MT. – Wylie Warneke, Columbus, MT. | 11.82 lbs. |
| 20. | Blake Gauer, Park City, MT. – Brady Gauer, Park City, MT. | 10.61 lbs. |
| 21. | Kevin Anthony, Billings, MT. – Bret Anthony, Billings, MT. | 9.02 lbs. |
| 22. | Gary Cantrell, Billings, MT. – Cory Rigby, Billings, MT. | 8.62 lbs. |
| 23. | Rod Schye, Columbus, MT. – Blake Schye, Columbus, MT. | 2.75 lbs. |
| 24. | Jesse Sanchez, Billings, MT. – David Sanchez, Billings, MT. | 2.38 lbs. |
| 25. | Colin Dubois, Forsyth, MT. – Wane Kegley, Forsyth, MT. | 0 lb. |
| Brad Stewart, Billings, MT. – Tom Madden, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Timber Kolodejchuk, Forsyth, MT. – Alan Kolodejchuk, Forsyth, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Kevin Niles, Billings, MT. – Kristi Niles, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Jason Snyder, Huntley, MT. – Parker Snyder, Huntley, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Dan Walter, Shepherd, MT. – Levi Walter, Shepherd, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Royal Mackenzie, Billings, MT. – Robbie Mattarolo, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Bruce Boracker, Molt, MT. – Mike McIntyre, Joliet, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Mark Striegel, Pompeys Pillar, MT. – Tyler Striegel, Ballantine, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Joe Meeks, Billings, MT. – Raymond Herman, Billings, MT | 0 lb. | |
| Tom Cantrell, Billings, MT. – Spencer Cantrell, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Kyle Blake, Billings, MT. – Matt Smith, Billings, MT | 0 lb. | |
| Chris Hofman, Billings, MT. – Robin Hofman, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Bruce Bates, Billings, MT. – Jillian Bates, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Wade Keller, Billings, MT. – Chad Martin, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Jason Hodges, Billings, MT. – Kaycee Hodges, Billings, MT. | 0 lb. | |
| Steve Hagen, Billings, MT. – Greg Wood, Billings, MT. | Scratch | |
| 42. | Bryon Armour, Lewstown, MT. – Hooper Armour, Lewistown, MT. | Scratch |
Posted in: Yellowstone Challenge
