Much of Michael Iaconelli’s attention has been on his first charity event — his wife has put all of hers on it. And it’s fast approaching.
The Iaconellis will host the Ike Celebrity Pro-Am Bass Tournament on Aug. 6 on the Delaware River out of Camden, N.J.
“This is big for us. Bigger than normal business,” Ike said. “Bigger than winning a tournament. It’s bigger than securing a new sponsor. This tournament is the most important thing we’re doing right now.”
Ike can approach it more comfortably with fishing on the Bassmaster Elite Series going well — he’s ninth in the Toyota Angler of the Year points and should cruise to his 17th consecutive Classic, the longest current streak. His event was formed to give back to fishing, starting with kids in nontraditional areas.
“Urban areas are on the top of the list,” Ike said. “This is our first go at a charity event, so it made a lot of sense to have it on the Delaware River (where he cut his teeth). We’re working in conjunction with the city of Philadelphia and Camden, N.J. We’ve got Elite pros signed up, a handful of athlete/celebrities signed up.
“The goal is awareness. In the course of the day, the goal is to introduce kids to the sport of fishing, and of course, generate some funds to help us continue to get kids involved in the sport all over the country. This is a big moment for us.”
The Ike Foundation, in its second year, teamed with the Mid-Atlantic Youth Anglers & Outdoor Program, which has helped 7,500 youth get involved in fishing or conservation activities. The activities kick off Friday from 4-7 p.m. ET with a special edition of Ike Live, with many of the 15 pros slated who will fish the pro-am.
Iaconelli called on a number fellow Elites, including Kevin VanDam, to fish with amateurs. Bassmaster’s Mark Zona and Dave Mercer will serve as celebrity anglers along with CMT’s Ed Bassmaster, the NHL’s Bryan Bickell and UFC fighter Jim Miller. Fishing the Delaware in summer might not have been the greatest draw, but fishing there to benefit kids was.
“In Philadelphia, the average kid passes water every day of their life, and they never touch a fishing rod,” Iaconelli said. “We want to change that. We want to show them the opportunity that’s right here.”
Well familiar with urban fishing from his past show “City Limits,” Iaconelli said he’s also seen New York City kids thrilled with casting a rod last year during an event in Central Park.
“And we weren’t even fishing,” he said. “A lot of them have never touched a rod and reel. Whether they’re 8, 10 or 12, you should have seen them. After making their first simple cast, the faces of those kids just light up.”
ON THE WATERFRONT
The Camden Waterfront, which has been transformed in the past 10 years with a fishing pier, Children’s Garden and Adventure Aquarium, is something Iaconelli is excited to show off. That’s where most of the event takes place, from the 8 a.m. launch to the 2 p.m. weigh-in. The family fun zone opens at 11 a.m. with all sorts of activities before an evening dinner and auction from 4 to 7 p.m.
“This is totally to benefit kids fishing. Getting more kids fishing, especially in cities, parts of the country where kids don’t normally have a rod and reel, that’s what it’s all about,” Ike said. “For me, it’s super important to help try to grow the sport.”
And while he’s been working hard on the tournament as well on fishing the Elites, his wife, Becky, has been doing much of the work on the event.
“I give Becky a lot of the credit,” Ike said. “The last few months I’ve been out fishing, she’s been doing all the logistics. This is a lot of work.”
SUNDAY NIGHT DRAW
Becky and Ike employed their kids Estella and Vegas on Sunday to draw names from a tackle box to set up the teams for the pro-am. Folks who registered were teamed with the likes of KVD, who’s in the middle of a three-win season.
The other pro anglers teamed up were Jared Lintner, Ish Monroe, Pete Gluszek, John Crews, Morizo Shimizu, Chris Zaldain, Cliff Crochet, Brandon Palaniuk, Randall Tharp, Jordan Lee, Britt Myers, Joe Sancho, Mike McClelland, Carl Jocumsen, John Murray and Fletcher Shyrock.
Mercer and Bickell will fish together with an amateur, as will Myers and Ed Bassmaster. Zona is along with an amateur.
Others could enter as a three-person amateur boat, with discounts to college and first responders. The winner of the fishing tournament wins a BassCat boat.
Fans have one more opportunity to rub elbows with the pros at the dinner, and tickets are still available.
LANE TREATS KIDS AT BIG G
Chris Lane hosted the 2nd Annual Foodland Bass Team Tournament on Lake Guntersville in late May, where he handed off $10,000 to winners Bryan Gregory and Marshall Deakins, who totaled 20.92 pounds on three fish.
There were 200 boats, 400 anglers and 100 percent payback, but like Ike, the 2012 Classic champ said he’s doing it for the future of the sport — 150 youth went through camp with lunch, fishing, casting education and awards while the competitors fished.
“It’s all about the kids,” he said. “It’s all about food, family, fun and fishing. That’s our motto around this whole event.
“It’s for the community and it’s for the kids. We raised over $3,000 this year and we hope to get a lot more. The direction we’re looking to take this is to raise money for the high school fishing teams in the area. We know how expensive it is. It’s to give back to them.”
Bobby Lane holds a similar event down in Florida near where the Lanes grew up. Also, John Crews and other anglers have their hand in the Fishin’ With a Mission, a tournament benefitting autism awareness.
“All of us, it’s giving back to the kids, making a better future for the children,” Lane said. “I would have loved to have a fishing team when I was in high school. My son is aspiring to be a professional bass fisherman, and we can make the team and the community better by running events. We can show kids what the sport’s really all about. I just want to give back to the sport that’s been so gracious to me.”