By MELANIE PILTINGSRUD
Staff Writer
A bright, sunny day greeted the anglers and onlookers at the New Richland Area Sportsmen's Club Ice Fishing Contest on St. Olaf Lake on Sat., Feb. 8, unlike last year's bitter cold.
There was another welcome change this year, as fish houses were allowed on the lake. This turned out to be a great thing, because the change brought out many more children than in previous years, encouraging another generation to enjoy the grand outdoors and the sport of ice fishing.
According to Lee Mendenhall, who's been with the club since 1966, there were 150 prizes donated by area businesses, which was especially nice for the under 12 crowd, who each got a free ticket to win a prize. “They all got something!” said Mendenhall, who was grateful to our area businesses for their generosity. No less than 47 area businesses donated items, such as gift certificates, T-shirts, hoodies, beer, hats, candy, signs, sacks of corn to feed wild animals (donated by Cargill), and many other items.
There was not only a lot of fishing going on, but clusters of people were having a great time socializing as well, and, even those who didn't catch anything could still enjoy the delicious bratwursts and hamburgers, which Dave Wallin and Leon Schoenrock grilled on the spot.
At the end of the fishing contest, Kyle Johnson sang a moving rendition of “God Bless the USA” by Lee Greenwood, and names were drawn to win the final prizes. The 50/50 pool, which is split with the Sportsmen's Club, amounted to a total of $1,860. Sheila Krueger won that. Jim Walters of Owatonna won the $500 prize.
The lucky one who angled the largest fish and won $75 was Matt Peterson, who caught a 3.8 pound northern pike. There was a tie for second place; Jordan Adams and Flory Anderson both caught 4.6 oz. sunnies and a $50 prize each. Tucker Adams won third place and $25 with a 4.5 oz. sunny.
Many thanks are extended to the area businesses and individuals who donated items to the Sportsmen's Club Ice Fishing Contest: County's Edge Seed; Jones, Haugh & Smith; Barnyard Treasures, Mainstreet Dental, NRHEG Star Eagle, Moen Snow Removal, Seykora Automotive Repair, Shawn Loken, Red Leaf Cafe; Riverview Golf Course; Midwest Repairables; Bolduan Technology Service; New Richland Auto; State Bank of New Richland; Nancy Jane's Bakery; Schmidt Trucking; Johnson, Doerhoefer & Miner PA; The Willows Restaurant & Lounge; Wagner Foods; Southern Minn. Pressure Washing; First Impressions; Tim's Repair; Channel Seeds; Southside Speed Shop; Ellendale Liquor; Lerberg's Foods; New Richland Area Sportsmen's Club; Thompson Auto Body Shop; Pioneer Seed; Morgan's Meat Market; Budweiser products from Schoff Distributing of Rochester; Miller products from Locher Bros. of Green Isle, MN; New Richland Liquor Co.; Digger Odell; Bohlen's Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning; Dan, Budach Implement; New Richland Farm and Home Supply; Schlaak Motors; Cargill; Airwave Solutions; Hi-Yield; RJ's on 5th Ave. Bar & Grill; Kibble Equipment of Owatonna; New Richland Area Sportsmen's Club; and all kids' prizes from Northstar Powersports.