ABOVE: Jeri Wagner of Emmons, Minnesota fishes on Friday on Budd Lake in Fairmont. On Jan. 28 the Fairmont Lakes Foundation will host a major ice fishing competition which will cover all of Fairmont’s lakes.

FAIRMONT– The Fairmont Lakes Foundation’s (FLF) 8th annual ice fishing tournament will be held on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event can be an enjoyable way to catch fish while raising money to support Fairmont’s Lakes.

“It’s generally been a fun tournament, it’s not knock-down peg out competition, I’m sure some fishermen are into the competition but we want the kids to have fun, we want the adults to have fun,” said Jim Utermarck, an FLF board member and one of the organizers of the competition.

The tournament will start at Gomsrud Park. Contestants are advised to arrive ahead of the 9 a.m. launch and be prepared for snow on the lakes, as well as below average temperatures.

In previous years the tournament has attracted people from across southern Minnesota and northern Iowa.

“We get people from the Twin Cities, we get people from Des Moines, we get people from Owatonna, we get people from Worthington, we get them from all around. It’s neat that we can have it here and … that’s the neat thing about our lakes is that we get people from all over,” said Utermarck.

FLF hopes to use the proceeds from the event to expand the varieties of fish available in Fairmont’s lakes, improve water quality and make future improvements to the lakes.

“We want to put more pan fish in, whether that’d be crappies or bluegills. We want to talk to the DNR about (getting) perch into our lakes. We also want to work on getting shoreline vegetation because that really filters the water that comes into our lakes,” said Utermarck.

Past FLF projects include its kayak rental program, lake cleanup initiatives and stocking Fairmont lakes with sunfish and other game fish.

While Budd Lake and Hall Lake are typically the most popular with contestants due to their proximity to the tournament’s starting point, the tournament covers all five of the lakes across the city. Utermarck said one of his favorite spots is the point on Lake Sisseton and suggested the wisdom of the crowd may not always be correct.

“Sometimes it’s better to stay away from the crowd, even though you may think there’s a whole bunch of people fishing over there, that must be where the fish are. That’s not always the case,” said Utermarck.

The largest prizes will be awarded for the largest game fish with first place receiving an Otter ice shelter, second place receiving a Macrum M1 flasher, third place receiving a Marcum underwater camera, fourth place receiving a fishing rod and rod case and fifth place receiving a Strikemaster 24V auger. Contestants who’ve caught the largest walleye and largest pan fish will also receive $100.

There will also be prizes for the most yellow bass caught by total weight with the first place receiving $750, second place receiving $350 and third place receiving $100. Utermarck believes last year’s winner caught around 64 pounds. While yellow bass are native to Minnesota they are not native to the Fairmont Chain of Lakes and are thus unregulated.

Registration can be done online at the Fairmont Lakes Foundation’s website through Jan. 25 or at Sommer Outdoors either in advance or until 8:45 a.m. the day of the tournament. Registration is $30 and is limited to the first 250 anglers. In the event of a major blizzard the tournament will be delayed to Feb. 4.