20 January 2024
BRAINERD, Minn. — It’s full steam ahead for the 34th annual Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza.
The extravaganza will take place from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 3, on Hole-in-the-Day Bay, where thousands of anglers will gather in hopes of winning prizes and supporting local area charities.
And yes, the tournament is on as scheduled. Recently, a Facebook post announced the tournament was canceled, making the post look like an official Brainerd Jaycees announcement. That post wasn’t official and it wasn’t true.
The biggest obstacle right now would be ice conditions, but more than a week of frigid temperatures has ice conditions pointing in the right direction.
Katherine Thoennes, chairwoman for Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza, said they are excited to be bringing back their larger-than-life kickoff party for the first time in a few years.
SMALL FILE — MAX. WIDTH FOR PRINT: 4.7 INCHES — Katherine Thoennes, chairwoman for Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza, talks about the extravaganza on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024. (Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch)
“After COVID, we kind of didn’t go as large with our kickoff party in parts, because also we need committee members and our volunteers to be able to handle that,” Thoennes said.
This year’s sold-out kickoff party will feature Charlie Berens on his Good Old Fashioned Tour, on Feb. 2 at the Gichi-ziibi Center for the Arts.
Thoennes said the extravaganza chair often takes over and starts working around June, though this year she started a few weeks after the 2023 extravaganza ended as they had some changes and ideas they wanted to implement.
“We wanted to revise our rules to make it clear for our contestants,” Thoennes said. “We wanted to go ahead and revise our frequently asked questions to bring in things that we were continually missing that our contestants needed to know. Then we had some really passionate committee members who really wanted to bring back the kickoff party in a huge way. And oh, man, they pulled that off with Charlie Berens this year.”
One of the changes this year has been how the marketing team has approached the contest. Thoennes said they usually start advertising the contest in the fall, though this year they began selling tickets early with Father’s Day and Fourth of July sales to get the word out.
Mike Kuck, co-chair for Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza, said the marketing team has worked to advertise the contest outside of Minnesota to draw in new contestants.
Kuck said they are working on getting it on the map for the people who haven’t been to Minnesota, haven’t been ice fishing or people that wanted to experience something that’s crazy big.
SMALL FILE — MAX. WIDTH FOR PRINT: 5.3 INCHES — Mike Kuck, co-chair for Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza, talks about the extravaganza on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024.Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch
“If you’ve never experienced it it’s a completely new world out there,” Kuck said. And it’s turned into a bucket list item I’d say for so many people across the world.”
For those who have not been ice fishing and are looking to try their luck, one only needs a pole, a hook and some bait, Kuck said. Oh, and some proper warm clothes.
“One of the most incredible things are the people who come to our contest who’ve never been out on the ice,” Thoennes said. “We have people flying in from other countries who come out. And it’s a, ‘Well, what do I need?’”
Proper gear includes bundling up, dressing in layers, using hand warmers, wearing heavy boots and knowing where the Mr. Buddy Heater ticket tent is when a quick warm-up is needed. The beer tent is heated as well.
When it comes to fishing the contest, just a bit of luck is needed and anyone has a chance of winning it big. That big winner in 2023 was 13-year-old Zac Padrnos from Hutchinson, who took home a brand new Ford truck with a 9.45-pound walleye.
Anglers competing in the contest should remember to bring a pick or chisel with them to reopen the holes they will be fishing out of.
“Some people say you have to fish in the deep, some people say you gotta go in the shallows,” Kuck said. “Or just pick a spot because you never know where the fish are going to be.”
Thoennes said they will continue to offer shuttle services from Brainerd International Raceway, including a handicap shuttle as they want everyone who wants to fish to be able to do so.
The event is family-oriented, Thoennes added, and the Youth Ice Olympics will be on the ice for kids who are looking for something more to do.
The Youth Ice Olympics is described in the rules book as a free event that educates and entertains children while they’re waiting for the extravaganza to begin. There are stations designed to teach children about ice fishing and the first 100 participants will win an ice fishing bucket full of prizes from several ice fishing vendors courtesy of Fleet Farm. The Youth Ice Olympics will be located near center ice from 10-11:30 a.m.
The extravaganza is completely volunteer run with the money raised being donated back to the volunteer groups helping to run the contest. Last year Brainerd Jaycees raised $137,866 for local charities.
Those looking for a complimentary ticket can volunteer to pre-drill holes before the contest.
Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza tickets can be purchased online at icefishing.org/shop or at any Fleet Farm location prior to Feb. 3. To find more information, visit icefishing.org.
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