Mitch Calvert
Fort Frances siblings Chad and Mike Hanson moved up the charts at this year’s Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship quicker than the Hansons’ “MMMbop” song did back in 1997.
But these Hansons don’t have plans of being a one-hit wonder after a fifth-place finish in just their second try at the local bass tournament together after a 60th-place showing last July.
“Last year was my first year in it, but we’re getting used to it and pretty excited for next year,” Mike Hanson said.
“You learn something new every single day out there.”
The pair finished strong with a Friday weight of 17.54 pounds, including the big fish of the day (4.46), and a similarly-impressive 16.03-pound catch on Saturday, giving them a 46.62-pound total despite a sluggish first day.
“Everyone went north last year and we did the first day this year, but we ran into a little competition, let’s say,” Hanson said of the spot they had pegged during pre-fishing.
“We actually saw them [Matt Christy and Chris Hay] pull four good fish out of the spot, and they were in second place after the first day,” he noted.
For the record, the Hansons didn’t drop the gloves with their U.S. counterparts, but Christy and Hay fell back anyway after their opening-day catch of 18.88 pounds to finish 27th overall.
Hanson said that likely was due, in part, because the spot probably wasn’t sustainable over three days.
“There wasn’t a lot of fish there, but the fish that were there were quality,” he noted. “We figured it wasn’t worth the risk to try it again [on Friday] because a lot of fish got burnt there [on Day 1].
“We had found another spot in pre-fishing [in the south arm] and it worked out pretty well for us.
“We found the spot the last day of pre-fishing,” he recalled. “A lot of guys were casting shorelines, but we actually were back in some slop.”
Mike Hanson said his experience fishing largemouth bass played into their strategy.
“I’m more of a largemouth fisherman and that seemed to help us out quite a bit,” he explained. “We had to go way back in the weeds and that, and the fish moved into a little deeper water when it clouded over.
“We found fish there where they moved out to because of the weather. The northwest wind did really well for us,” Hanson continued.
“We needed the wind and clouds and rain because we were on them when it was like that, but the sun came out [Saturday] afternoon and slowed us down,” he noted.
Hanson and his girlfriend, Susie, soon will be welcoming a new addition to the family—and the prize money earned from a fifth-place finish surely will help in that regard.
“We’re having a baby in two-and-a-half weeks, but she actually pre-fished with me until two days before the tournament so it was pretty nice,” he enthused.
“My mom and dad [Joan and Gerry] sponsored us, and they’re awesome,” he added.
Hanson said he and Chad were surprised to be in the position they were after two days of fishing, but made it a goal to be the top all-Fort Frances team.
“I looked at the website [Friday] night because I couldn’t sleep,” he admitted.
“We were pretty pumped, had a good day [Friday], and I was just looking because we had the big fish,” he explained. “[But] then I was looking for local teams and noticed we just had one [Jim Sandelovich and Karl Howells] to beat, so I figured we had to beat them.
“But yeah, it’s nice to be the top local team,” he laughed.
Hanson said this tournament is unmatched when it comes to crowd support.
“Where else can you go where there’s this many people? I’ve been to other tournaments and it’s not even close,” he stressed. “Especially being a local team, it’s been so long since a local team won, so when a [local] team does good, the cheering is loud in the tent.”
Hanson said he and his brother had grown up on the water and know how each other works in the boat.
“My brother and I have been fishing since we were old enough to hold rods,” he recalled. “We don’t talk a lot but it’s because we’re concentrating.
“I probably couldn’t stand someone who sits in the boat and gabs all day, besides my girlfriend, of course,” he joked.
So will the Hansons grow their hair out and wear dark-rimmed glasses with tape holding them together to bring them some extra luck next year? Perhaps—if it helps bring in some nasty weather.
“I’ll just hope for wind and cloud all three days,” Hanson remarked.
