Fishing with Stefan Trumstedt in Sweden, Lapland Pike 2019!
At first, in 2007, Lapland Pike was intended to be a simple competition for socializing and promoting areas in northern Sweden. After the last editions, the contest took a professional turn in terms of the participating teams, no less than 59 in number. I fished with Stefan Trumstedt in Sweden along with other big names in the raptor fishing landscape: Micael Collen, Andreas Högberg (Wolfcreek Norr), Björn Boström, Jesper Widen (Jiggar.nu Black) plus other professional competition fishermen from whom he participates in the 100 competitions organized annually in Sweden for boat kidnappers.
The Fips en titre World Champion, Czech Republic, participated with several teams that are active in their national championship and in international competitions, fishermen with whom we have met many times either at FIPS, Holbina or other competitions in Europe.
Go Romania!
In terms of Romanian teams, eight in number, could not miss Andrei Sava and Robert Boanta, FIPS World Champions in Russia 2017. Accompanied by Florin Voicu, George Floricel, Andrei Raduly, Razvan Dragan, Razvan Negreanu Andrei Tegusi, Cristian Peev, Elvis Vigu , Dorin Popa, Vitalie Sarbu, Liviu Romanescu, Ciprian Gurban, Robert Cristescu, Radu Vraciu. The Romanian delegation was completed with Cristi Albu and Mae, the TV Fishing & Hunting team and the undersigned, Andy Arif. I made a mixed team Sweden / Romania together with Stefan Trumstedt representing Rapitorimania.ro, CWC and Strike Pro.
The top 5 pike
From kayaks, inflatable boats with 4-5 horsepower engines, to Larson, Nitro, Bass Cat boats equipped with hundreds of horsepower, the participating teams tried in the two days of official training to find the recipe for success in catching the most five large pike over 70 cm on Lake Bellvik. And it was not at all easy in the conditions in which the first five teams in the ranking managed to score with only 3 pike in two days until the end of the competition.
Boats, sonar, engines
I was one of the few lucky ones who benefited from the latest technology and boats, on the first day of training fishing with Cristian Peev and Elvis Vigu from a Bass Cat equipped with a 200-horsepower Evinrude engine, Minn Kota Ultrex electric motor, Talon anchors sound Garmin GSP Map 922 and 1222 Touch with Panoptix, Live Scope and Real View 3D functions. So I identified two hot areas with pike over 70 cm, seeing all the live fish, prey fish, perch and pike, 3D in front of the boat. Impressive.
On the second day of training, I moved to Stefan's boat, a Larson that you practically had nothing to install in terms of engines and electronics: 200-horsepower Suzuki engine, Minn Kota Ulterra, three Humminbird Solix 12 and 10, two Minn Kota Talon, all connected in the network. Dream. I managed to scan with Autochart the areas I found on the first day and try other new places for a few hours. Stefan was on Lake Bellvik for the first time, so I had the opportunity to see how he approaches an unknown lake. Being in full cooling and unfavorable weather, he looked for places where the water temperature was higher, prey fish followed by predators, wind direction and quiet bays, sector ends with river inlets, places with vegetation and deep water in the immediate vicinity of the banks. .
From the information gathered at the end of the day and our conclusions, the big and "frequent" pike were on the ends of the sector near the rivers, places we decided not to fish because they were already "populated" by other competitors from Sweden and Romania, friends of mine or his. We made our strategy for the competition three places with potential where we certainly do not intersect with other boats. Apart from these places, we decided to try new ones, finding on the bathymetric map following Stefan's intuition and experience. The evening continued with a lecture given by Andrei Sava on how he managed to become World Champion in 2017 and the way he prepares for competitions, a lesson appreciated by both us and the other competitors.
In terms of socializing, Romania ranked first in all 4 days of the contest, new friends connected with a drink and a story to tell in the campsite in Dorotea, Doro Camp. Stefan found many friends from Sweden who came to this competition and won new ones from our delegation by saying: "How cool is that, pike fishing reuniting us all here in this place!".
Day 1, fishing with Stefan Trumstedt in Sweden
The technical meeting at 10.00, we pick up the sheets, the measuring rulers and the participation prizes offered by CWC Strike Pro. 12.00, start of round 1, compass head first place, an island several hundred meters long with vegetation on the shores and thresholds up to 6-7 meters. We decided to fish differently, each with what he knows best, me along the lure with small lures, gums of 10-15 cm jiguite on the threshold and spinnerbait, spoons and wobblers as reactive lures, he with large lures, Pig Shad of 23- 27 cm, various colors and ballasts, between waters. Different styles from all points of view. Shortly after, the first punctuated pike appeared at spinnerbait, 72 cm, followed by a few at the limit of 70 cm. Minus, of course.
Arbitration
After you caught the pike, you measured it and photographed it on the ruler received from the organizers. The pictures were uploaded live on the competition website, so you could see at any time what the other teams had captured and the intermediate ranking. After a few hours of the first round only a few teams had scored with a pike, only two jumped 1 meter, it was clear that it will be quite difficult for everyone to reach the limit of 5 pike, at least on the first day.
Pike hunting
We still hunt pike on the sonar, looking for shoals of prey or perch, but without success. Small and rare. We decided by mutual agreement to move for the last two hours to the second place found in training, a succession of thresholds and sunken islands where we had caught several pike point for two days. We position the boat so that we can catch as many thresholds as possible between deep water and shallow water, exactly where we see the shoals of fish on the sonar. We do not insist too much on each place, we try to fish at the limit of perch attacks. Stefan insists with a Pig Shad, please, he insists… he fishes 99% in time with Pig Shad, until he has a violent attack, he stings and tells me that he has a pike, but he doesn't think it is punctual. He brings it slowly mumbling until he wakes up and starts to say: "It's a good one!". I jump with the liar, hop in the boat, 84 cm. We have two fish. We continue to scan the area, look for new places for the next day, catch a few more perch and have one last purple attack on a Pig Shad Junior, my favorite Ice Shad color. From here we start tomorrow, "Get them all!".
Day 2, fishing with Stefan Trumstedt in Sweden
Only a few teams managed to record two catches on the first day and the theories of the heads of the sector are confirmed, Andrei and Robert catching a punctuated pike at the end of the lake where we put the boats, exactly where they escaped in training three rides per meter several Swedish teams that scored near the river. We follow the strategy from the first day and start the run with the number two on the place where we caught the last pike, accompanied by two film crews. After two and a half hours of the seven rounds, we have no scoreable fish, only two unfinished attacks and a few weak perch traits. I probably caught them all here. We continue fishing in other places, with our eyes on the sonar and on the bathymetric map, we catch some more punctuated pike, we try to stay as long as possible with the lures in the water from one place to another. An hour before the end, we looked at the site and found that we fell from position 4 won on the first day, several teams catching three scoring pike, including Andrei and Robert, the leaders of the first day Norrlands Hugg (leaders of the first day) plus one of the strongest teams from Sweden, Wolfcreek Norr.
One and one make two pike
We do a quick calculation, we need a pike to keep our position in the first five places and two pike to win the contest. We still have time, but where to go? Right on the place where last year Cristi Albu had caught his first pike over a meter in his life, a submerged plateau where the water was 5-6 meters, a plateau I had scanned in training. We have 20 minutes left, we drift looking for the school of prey and perch, we find them, we start to launch in their direction. Stefan fishes with a Giant Pig Shad of 27 cm, I at the opposite end with a Pig Shad Jr. of 15 cm, we have a few perch features until I feel a short and strong attack, like in a pike. Intep, the drill begins, I tell Stefan that I have a point in the rod. I escape, I swear, I throw the rod in the boat, Stefan says: "Don't worry my friend, you will take another one, we still have 10 minutes!". I launch again from the same direction, it gives me again, heart attack drill under the boat, lie, measure, photo, 71 cm, picture uploaded on the site! There were exactly five minutes left in the competition, minutes in which I really thought I would catch the second fish. I never caught him again.
Final contest, in first place, the leaders of the first day, Norrlands hugg - Olov Andersson, Kim Hägglund with three pike, two of which over 1 meter, all caught at Pig Shad, in the river area. Coincidentally or not, all the fish caught them with Pig Shad.
Second place and holders of the largest catch, 111 cm, Wolfcreek Norr - Micael Collen, Andreas Högberg, who fished in the same area with Robert and Andrei. All three pike caught them the next day, in shallow water after trying in vain to fool the large pike to depths of 10-11 meters. They heard and saw an attack in an area of shore with vegetation, on a water of 30-40 cm.
Third place, TSUNAMI Black Horse - Martin Barej, Milan Špráchal, connoisseurs of the lake and very good pike fishermen, unraveled the secrets of the pike on the last day.
On the 4th place, me and Stefan, on the 5th place, just two centimeters away, Andrei and Robert, WSB team.
Let's not forget the kayak category, won by KAJAKAREL - Kaja Skalicky with two pike.
Crsiti Albu hit us in the head
Also at the last moment, before the end of the contest, Cristi Albu, from the position of TV director, not competitor, enters the sector where there were several Romanian teams hoping to catch a big pike in the drill on the camera to and could close the show with the films now airing on the Fishing & Hunting Channel about Lapland Pike 2019. He meets on the water with the team Florin Voicu and George Floricel, in full competition, who suggest him to try on a place where they had caught more than 30 small pike. Albu complies, attacks the mentioned bay, puts the spinnerbait that consecrated him and bangs. Two pike, 98 and 99 cm and less than half an hour. Do you know that?
Despite the few fish for a lake in northern Sweden, for me Lapland Pike was one of the most enjoyable competitions I participated in. The four days spent with Stefan Trumstedt were, to paraphrase him: "Super cool!". I hope to see you or see you again in the same formula, at Lapland Pike 2021, this time on the river Ångermanālven from Åsele.
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