After Chase Cominsky (left) and Jacob Runyon have been caught stuffing walleyes with lead weights throughout a event, organizers on Lake Erie have applied some new guidelines. Lake Erie Walleye Path / Fb
Within the wake of a now notorious dishonest scandal that concerned lead weights stuffed in tournament-winning walleye, native information retailers are reporting that metallic detectors will now be customary for all fishing tournaments on Lake Erie. The brand new guidelines are being put in place by event organizers to stop one other “Weightgate” from taking place.
The skilled fishing world remains to be reeling from the scandal, which reverberated properly exterior that neighborhood—thanks partially to a viral video that reveals the second event organizer Jason Fischer discovered lead weights in Chase Cominsky and Jacob Runyon’s fish. Though it actually wasn’t the primary occasion {of professional} anglers dishonest in a event, the media consideration that accompanied the Fall Brawl fiasco had a significant impression on the general public’s notion of aggressive fishing.
Learn Subsequent: Skilled Walleye Anglers Caught Stuffing Fish with Weights Throughout a Match on Lake Erie
Runyon and Cominsky have since been charged with a number of felonies, together with tried grand theft, and possessing legal instruments. If convicted, they might face upwards of three years in jail and greater than $7,500 in restitution. They may additionally lose their fishing licenses indefinitely, and Cominsky’s boat and trailer have already been seized as a part of the investigation.
Responding to the harm that Comisnky and Runyon delivered to the Lake Erie Walleye Path’s status, Fischer launched a heartfelt apology video days after the incident. He promised to crack down on dishonest and do what he might to revive the integrity of the native event circuit.
“I can inform you as a event director, this sort of conduct is not going to be tolerated,” Fischer stated within the video, which he shared to Fb. “I’ll work out a method to make this proper for my anglers. I hope we are able to be taught from this and make some modifications in event fishing that defend the integrity of all circuits.”
The rule change introduced on Tuesday is a step in that course, because it requires event organizers to scan all fish delivered to a weigh-in for metallic and different overseas objects. Organizers additionally plan to bodily examine the catch of any staff within the high 5, in accordance with FOX-8 in Cleveland, and they’re going to proceed to require that contestants cross a polygraph check earlier than they will gather any winnings from a event.
Polygraphs have been customary in fishing tournaments for years now, however as many have identified in latest weeks, they won’t be sufficient. Cominsky and Runyon have been disqualified from a 2021 event after failing a polygraph check, however that didn’t hold them from competing (and presumably dishonest) in future tournaments, and so they have been within the operating for the LEWT’s team-of-the-year award earlier than they have been caught dishonest final month in Cleveland.
Learn Subsequent: The Actual Downside with the Notorious Walleye Match Dishonest Scandal
As for the brand new guidelines which can be being put in place on Lake Erie, metallic detectors will undoubtedly hold anglers from stuffing their catch with fishing weights, however there are different methods to inflate a fish’s weight moreover utilizing lead, tungsten, or different metals. As Runyon and Cominsky confirmed, anglers may stuff their catches with spare filets. Bones, bait, rocks, ice, and different natural materials shoved down a fish’s gullet might additionally add sufficient weight to tip the scales in a staff’s course.
A bodily inspection just like the one Fischer carried out with a pocketknife will nip these makes an attempt within the bud. However as we reported earlier this month, there’s a litany of different dishonest methods (similar to stashing fish in a hidden live-well and pulling them out on event day) that anglers have give you through the years. Cominsky and Runyon aren’t the primary to sport the system. They’re merely a reminder that some folks will act on their baser instincts when massive quantities of cash are on the road.
Happily, the skilled fishing world is overwhelmingly made up of sincere (albeit aggressive) folks. Positive, a number of dishonest opponents may sneak in now and again, which is why new guidelines like those applied at Lake Erie might probably lengthen to extra event circuits sooner or later.
