Are tickets still available?

Are tickets still available? Yes, tickets are still in stores and will be available on the ice. You can still buy tickets online and pick them up at the ticket tent as well. There’s a ticket tent set up at the entrance to the derby site on the ice, they’ll also be selling bait and clothing with proceeds going to the St Amant Foundation. They’ll have the capability of taking debit and credit but if you can bring cash that will help move the line along.

Where is the derby? Where do I park? The derby happens at the Falcon Lake Main Beach in Falcon Lake. location

Park in the beach parking lot or lake blvd or as close to there as you can and walk out to the beach. you cant miss it!

How do the holes work? All holes are pre-drilled on a 15 ft grid. Each angler may only fish as many holes as they have tickets for and there will be no extra holes drilled. We drill ~3500 holes every year. That’s typically 1000 more holes than tickets sold so there’s always room to move around and groups of holes together.

Can you drill me an extra hole so my kids can fish together in the tent Sorry, in order to maintain a level playing field only the holes in the grid may be fished.

Can I use electronics? yes, but there will be no extra holes drilled

Can I use Jaw Jackers etc? yes as long as it’s legal in MB

Do I need a MB fishing license? yes, (I believe your harvester card counts if you have one) kids under 16 or over 65 who are Canadian residents do not need a license.

Follow the Manitoba fishing regulations and you’ll be fine (note that there’s no live bait allowed in the Whiteshell Provincial park and no barbed hooks in Manitoba, to create an even playing field we ask that all anglers follow these rules regardless of status).

What kind of fish can I enter? All species are eligible and heaviest fish wins the derby so this is primarily a big pike event. Weigh in all your eligible fish though, any one could win the Ice Master hidden weight prize!

In Falcon lake, all pike over 75cm(~30in) and all walleye over 45cm (~18in) may not be possessed. Which means by law we can’t bring them to the weigh station to weigh them.

So here’s how we do it. We’re going to have teams of judges around the derby site with handheld digital scales to weigh any fish over that size restriction. If you catch a Big Fish, call over the mobile weigh judge to your hole and they will weigh your fish at the hole. The fish will be released immediately down the same hole and we will all be compliant with the new regulations. All other fish will be brought to the weigh tent in a bucket or cooler as usual to be weighed on the main scale. This way we don’t have to disqualify the big fish and the $20,000 grand prize will go to the biggest fish caught on the day!

How does the hidden weight prize work?
ice master is providing us with a hidden weight between 0 and 5 lbs to 2 decimal places. Whoever catches the fish with the weight closest to that # will take home the Ice Master Livescope package! (if there’s a tie the first fish weighed will be the sole winner)

Can I buy bait there? yes, there are salted Shiners, and Sardines available at the ticket tent.

When should I get there? Whenever you like! We open the gates at 9:00, some people will line up before that to get first chance at claiming their hole. fishing starts at 11. (No lines in the water before that)

Will there be food on the ice? Yes Danny’s whole hog will be on the serving hot sandwiches and drinks. (bring cash)

Can I set up a tent? In order to ensure no lines in the water before fishing starts at 11 tents cannot be set up until then, after that you’re welcome to set up a tent. I know we made an exception last year but those were extreme conditions and we’re not expecting that kind of wind.

Is there a place to warm up? Yes our weigh tent is heated so if you’re getting chilly you can come in and take the edge off.

What else should I bring? Dress warm (obviously), ice scoop, sunscreen, sunglasses. Bring a bucket or a cooler that you can fill with water and bring your fish alive to the weigh tent. Bring cash; food, bait and St Amant 50-50 and beer gardens are all cash sales so have some cash on you.

How deep is the fishing area? our grid typically spans an area from 4’ deep to 20ft deep. The big fish has come out of every different segment of the grid over the years. it depends on the day where those big ones are hanging out!

Any other questions please email or text 204 295 6052