Montana Cats 2015 Outlook

3/29/15 — Hello all and welcome to our newly redesigned website. What a better way to kick off the 2015 catfishing season than with a brand new place for catfish enthusiasts throughout the region to gather information and interact with others. Montana Cats was launched nine years ago next month. We have grown into one of the more respected outdoor organizations in the region and we take pride in bringing catfishing the popularity it has always deserved. Our field staff has recently been featured as key contributors to top-selling books, national publicized magazines, and product production for some of the catfish industries biggest name brands.

We want to continue to educate the public on the importance of our local waters and the big fish that inhabit their depths. Sustainability will remain a focus of our organization moving forward and we would like to see all of you help us in spreading this message. Please continue to contribute to our social media and message board forum discussions. This type of interaction helps us build a stronger foundation and builds the general knowledge base within our great sport. Let’s focus on the positive on what we all can do to help catfishing in our area. Our leisurely fishing experiences can be improved with the same focus and determination it took to turn our tournament circuit into one of the finest in the entire country. Educating is a key factor in many areas of life; selective harvest is no different.
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Tournament Champs; DJ Roth, James Decker, and Steve Harris Jr.

6/14/14 Savage, MT – The Annual Savage Fire Department Catfish Tournament has carved out quite the niche for itself over the past eleven years.  Savage’s unique “slot fish” rules have become common knowledge by now and has turned into an event where even the most avid “big fish” angler enjoys a weekend to just “change it up” a bit. For those in the dark, SVFD’s annual event is held in Savage, MT. on the beautiful Yellowstone River on the second Saturday of every June.  Anglers are only allowed to bring in their five biggest catfish to weigh-ins.  Here is the kicker however; all of those catfish must fall between 12” and 18”.  This causes veteran catfish anglers to change up their tactics a touch and also start looking in new areas.  Anglers must adjust their way of thinking, chasing the big fish won’t pay off here.  Everyone must try to focus on what attracts the little guys, so to speak.  Weigh-ins are always an adrenaline rush and that carries over to the awards presentation on Saturday night.

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Chad Dawson released this 10.5 lb. Musselshell River Channel Cat in late June 2013

2/26/14 – Every year around this time the catfish crowd starts to get a little restless. It’s like clockwork. The calendar flips to March and it doesn’t matter if its still 20 below with the wind chill outside, it could just as well be 70 degrees and sunny because the “catfish fever” is in full effect. Some common cures for this type of fever you might ask? Warmer temperatures, longer days, and trip and tackle preparations are just a few ways to start the healing process. It’s always a good time to start cleaning the fishing storage at the house or in the garage and do a little gear cleaning and maintenance as well. By taking these steps it’s easier to decide what needs to be fixed or purchased for the upcoming open water season. It is also a great time to start scratching off a few summer weekend days for some leisurely fishing with the friends or family. For the avid tournament angler, what better time than to get signed up for anyone of the outstanding events scheduled for 2014 on the Montana Cats Tournament Circuit? For us on staff, March isn’t all that bad. March signifies that we are that much closer to catfish season and it won’t be long before we see the bend in our rods and the pulling of our drags. When that time comes, the “catfish fever” will have subsided and will be replaced with months of fishing adventures.

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Andre Fortune and Mike Peterson win in Grand Forks

By: Cabela’s King Kat

8/17/13 East Grand Forks, MN – The Cabela’s King Kat Tournament Trail hit the waters of the Red River at Grand Forks, North Dakota. In the event over 80 of the top anglers from 9 different states were competing not only for the cash and prizes, but the opportunity to qualify for the 2013 Cabela’s King Kat Classic. This year’s Cabela’s King Kat Classic will be held September 26-28, 2013 on Kentucky Lake at Camden, Tennessee Be sure to check out our new website at King Kat USA. It’s a new site with new and exciting information on our events along with special information for catfish anglers everywhere.

Taking first place was the team of Andre Fortune of East Grand Forks, Minnesota and Mike Peterson of Grand Forks, North Dakota with a total weight of 43.84 pounds and earning $3,000.00. Andre and Mike also captured big fish of the event with a 19.94 pound cat which earned the team an additional $680.00. The team was anchored down within a mile south of the boat ramp fishing in 14-18 feet of water using sucker minnows to catch 10 fish for the day. Each team is allowed to weigh in their top 5 fish for the day of competition.

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ICAST 2013

By: Jason Flaten – MT Cats Field Staff

Last week I attended the International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades, also known as ICAST, the world’s largest sportfishing trade show. ICAST 2013 accommodated approximately 9,500 members of the global sportfishing industry at the Las Vegas Convention Center, July 9 – 12, 2013. ICAST is produced by the American Sportsfishing Association (ASA), the sportfishing industry’s trade association, which looks out for the interests of the entire sportfishing community. ICAST is the premier showcase for the latest innovations in fishing gear, accessories and apparel and is the cornerstone of the sportfishing industry, helping to drive sportfishing companies’ product sales year round.

I prepped for the event by browsing all of the attending company’s websites’. I then made a list of every company I wanted to talk to, as I would only have Wednesday, with my flight leaving early Thursday morning. I arrived Tuesday evening for what is called “the new product showcase”. We had two hours to view all the brand new products and cast our vote for what we deemed as the best product in each category. After casting my ballot and taking in some Vegas nightlife, I was up early to try and complete my busy schedule.
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