Ice Fishing => General Discussion => Topic started by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 12:14:30 PM
Title: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 12:14:30 PM
Ok guys. I posted my idea in another thread but I want to bring it to the front. I have talked to a few other guys as well that are willing to help out. I want to to do a 72hr ice fishing event. It would most likely start on a Thursday evening and end Sunday evening.This event would be to raise money for local children who are in need. I have not chosen a charity yet but I am looking for one that the money raised will go directly to the children. I want to make sure that the kids get the money or goods that they need, not deadbeat parents that will take the money to buy things they shouldn't(Moron and such). For the event we would go on the ice at the start and not come off for 72 hrs. We could get people to sponsor by the amount of hrs. they can stick it out on the ice. I figure we can sleep in our shanty's or you can bring a tent and set it up to sleep in. As for the bathroom situation I would suggest a BYOB(bring your own bucket) or you would be allowed to leave the ice for certain amount of time. We could also get a port a pot company to sponsor us and we could take one out on the ice and put a small heater n it so its not freezing cold. We could also get other company's to just donate money for our cause. I have always wanted to do an event like this and raise money for children in need. The children are the future. Also its not the child in needs fault that they are in that situation. The children deserve the best then can be given to them. They have no way to improve there own situation. As for food we can just bring sandwiches or we can set up a grill and eat well. I would like to host this event on Wingfoot lake. It is a nice lake and has plenty of parking. Also the park allows people to park and fish over night. I think that we could also get this event broadcast on the news about what we are doing and why. I think if that happens we will want to have it at a nice place that isn't trashed. If people see this huge shantytown set up on TV they will want to come and check it out. When the people come they will need a place to park. That is why I think Wingfoot is the place to do it. Also when these people come I think they will bring donations to also help out what we are doing. Because this is short notice I think that the show up may be low but this will become a annual event and it will grow bigger and bigger each year. So let me hear all of your ideas and concerns and we can work it all out to make it happen. On the plus side it will give you a reason to get away for a few days doing what you love and helping out a cause while you do it.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: slabslayer on January 21, 2013, 12:21:25 PM
I really like the idea. When were you thinking of doing it? I'd be interested in joining too. I don't know if I can last 72 hours, but I'll do what I can. :)
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 12:31:24 PM
I tried to call Dave earlier to make sure dates aren't conflicting with anything else so when he calls me back I will post some dates. As for not being able to last for 72 hrs. That is ok. People can fish for as long as they can. Hopefully that will be part of how we get donations. The longer you stick it out the more we make. If this all happens I think that I will make a custom ice rod and give it to the person who makes it the longest. If we have multiple people that make it the whole 72 hrs. I will raffle it off between the guys who went the distance.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: wis2ohio on January 21, 2013, 02:47:01 PM
Any ideas what lake you are looking at having this on, Could do half for wound warriors and another for a kids charity?
I bet you could get some of big name companies to donate something like HT, Vexilar,Clam just a few thoughts.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Ntoiceman36 on January 21, 2013, 02:51:19 PM
Good idea,I am willing to donate my time,could maybe talk to my company and get them to give up a furnace or a/c check maybe,keep us posted.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 03:01:10 PM
We could definitely split the donations 50/50. That is a good idea. I plan on having this at wingfoot. Plenty of parking for everyone. Not to far off the beaten path(224) and it is one of the nicest state parks i have ever been to. It is very clean and they have a lot of things to do there. No matter what kind of outdoor sport your into they have you covered. Its a good place for everyone in the family to enjoy. It gets a lot of traffic in and out so that would be more people to come thru and see what we are doing and donate. As for the big companies donating Im not sure if we would have enough time to get all them rounded up. It would be really nice because we could take any items they were to donate and raffle them off or give them to the charity if they would be able to use them. I plan on doing this every year so hopefully we can grow this every year. If anybody has any connections with these companies and would like to make a phone call to them please do.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Luvztaphish on January 21, 2013, 03:01:37 PM
Sounds fantastic , should be a good time . Looks like I have to get a cot .
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 03:07:41 PM
@Ntoiceman36. That is a great idea and thank you for your offer of help. I will post up anything that can be done. I am also going to talk to the company I work for to see if they are willing to help out in anyway. Thanks for the idea. I think almost everyone here has a good heart and will see that this is a great way to help out people that need more help then us or are less fortunate then us. Its also a good way to put our lifestyle on the map for everyone to see and that were all not crazy for going on the ice but good people as well
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: wis2ohio on January 21, 2013, 04:23:04 PM
They might think we are crazy for doing what we do but hay we are having fun and supporting kids and the locals. I can try and get ahold of some of the companies but will wait for the date first before doing so.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: slabslayer on January 21, 2013, 06:18:15 PM
I'll contact some of my sponsors and see if they can put anything up.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 08:49:49 PM
It will have to be Feb.23,23,24 or March1,2,3. We cant do it before then because we have the mosquito and berlin tourneys the 2 weekends before that. Im leaning towards th feb. dates because having ice in march doesnt always happen. But the downside to the feb. dates is that is the IFO Erie weekend. I want to give those guys a chance to come to the event. If those guys dont plan on coming to this event then we will do it that weekend. I will wait a day or so for them to speak up and and give there ideas. I think that we should come up with a special logo for all the guys to display as there avatar or in their signature line that make it the whole 72 hrs. That way everyone knows just how hard core you are when they see it. I know I can make it all the way but how many of you think that you can? If we dont get any big sponsors this year I am ok with that as this is all happening short notice. For next year I would like to have some big sponsors that we can give some stuff away. Do a drawing every 6 hrs or so and start with the lower end prizes working your way up to the biggest one at the end. I think this will be a good way to raise money and be able to prove to yourself just how hardcore you are. I really like the idea Wis2ohio had so I think that we are going to do a 50/50 split of the proceeds to the wounded warrior project and to a local childrens charity that we will all pick. That way we are helping the guys that protect all of us and are willing to sacrifice their lives for us and helping the future generation of hopefully icers. I am so excited to make this happen and I am really proud to call all of you my friends. It is so nice to see other guys that love this sport as much as me and are willing to help others out as well. That is what we are all about. Thank you all for helping me with all of this and please keep the ideas coming and let me know what you guys think of the dates. We could do it during any week if that would be better for you all and had a better shot at making this happen when we have ice.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: davidhoheisel on January 21, 2013, 08:51:12 PM
IFO will donate a Jason Mitchell rod guy or gal who brings in the most cash donations for the cause.
Great Job Hardwaterjunkie for organizing this event!
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: futurestrader on January 21, 2013, 08:55:02 PM
I'm going Erie Feb 22 weekend but could do March 1st.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Ntoiceman36 on January 21, 2013, 08:55:25 PM
That feb. Weekend some of us ifo guys will be with jump on erie
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Luvztaphish on January 21, 2013, 09:22:23 PM
I'm at Erie on the Feb. dates ,but I would sponcer someone a.1.00 an hour.that's 72.00 for sure. But don't tell my wife.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Ntoiceman36 on January 21, 2013, 09:30:54 PM
I would love to be there if possible,but if not i to will sponser @ 1.00 an hour and throw in 10lbs ground beef for chille or sloppy joes,yummmeeee
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: futurestrader on January 21, 2013, 10:00:37 PM
I would donate too but here we go with this hide it from your wife thread again!
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Ntoiceman36 on January 21, 2013, 10:05:26 PM
I was gonna donate her but i cant do that to fellow icefisherman! ;D
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 21, 2013, 11:38:17 PM
I can already tell that there are several of you that that would like to be there but the Feb.Dates will not work so lets go ahead and plan on doing it March 1-3. and pray for ice. I think we have just as good of a chance for those dates as we would for any other. I dont think that 1 week will make a difference with the way this weather has been for the last 2 seasons. Next year I will make sure that we have the best dates possible. Please remember that to fish this event you dont have to fish the entire thing. If you want to go home at night that will be fine. The object of this event is to stick it out the whole 72 hrs straight but if you cant its ok. I just dont want people to be discouraged and not want to fish this if they know they cant go the distance. As for donating your wives,there may be a few wounded warriors that wouldnt mind having them. ;D
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: wis2ohio on January 22, 2013, 10:05:54 AM
I will either call or email some of the companies today and see what they say.
HWJ would you like me to send you a copy before I email it to them?
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 22, 2013, 04:12:12 PM
If you would like to you can that way we can keep any contacts organized and not have multiple people contacting the same companies.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: Luvztaphish on January 23, 2013, 03:32:15 AM
;D ;D ;D ;D I' ll get the cot and a hose for my buddy heater . Should be a great time for good causes. Let's do this.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: saugeyemarc on January 23, 2013, 12:15:51 PM
I think it's one of the best ideas I've heard in a long time. BUT I think it should be given a year to develop. Having set up a couple of charity events and also run a tournament circuit I know how hard it is to get everything together at the last minute. But if it's planned over a year it gives time for more people chip in and help. It also gives time for advertising. Hardcore hard water Anglers from out of state may be interested in joining. I'm sure at least one television station could be covinced to send a camera and several newspapers. If approached right a radio station could do a live broadcast to bring spectators in. I'd reccommend a meeting or foroum chat to get all ideas together then get volenteers to look for donations, approach media etc. This could become huge. It's something Red Bull might be interested in. Extreme Ice fishing.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: slabslayer on January 23, 2013, 01:37:14 PM
That's a good idea saugeyemarc, I know running the largemouth series on Erie, it took a while to get sponsors set up. And if we plan a year in advance, we can schedule our tournaments around the charity event.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 23, 2013, 01:41:29 PM
@saugeyemarc. I agree with you on how long it takes to get everything set and to get all of the advertising. As for waiting a year to do this I dont think that is needed. I think if we just do whatever we can it will give us a good start and show us what we need to do and change for next year.I am not planning on this being a huge event this year. This is more of a trial run as it is being done on such short notice. Even though this is a trail run this is also going to raise some money for these charity's. Im sure that they will be happy and except whatever money we make. Something is better then nothing. We can sit here and say to wait a year to make it the biggest and baddest event around or we can get this ball rolling and actually do it. By us actually doing it this year it is going to show all of the potential sponsors that we are serious about what we are doing and that we are for real and it can be and has been done.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: saugeyemarc on January 24, 2013, 02:50:07 PM
Thought I'd posted on this yesterday but maybe it didn't go through. I've had the privlidge over the years to run both charity events and tournament circuits over the past years. Since it's late in the season already I'd look to have it next year. This allows a date to be set well in advance with an alternate weekend in reserve just in case. It gives a year to gather donations as prizes to help attract participants. I like your March of Dimes entry of getting sponsors to donate by the hour. I'd create a form for sponsors to fill out so they feel obligated to pay what they offered. If you can also get a newspaper to cover the event they could list the sponsors names {they all like seeing names in print both business and people it's soulnd business relations} Red Bull could be contacted since they support exteme sport compitiions and maybe they could pick up the insurance premium which should be gotten. All it takes is one spectator slipping and a lawsuit becomes reality. I think a radio station would be interested in doing a live remote to help bring in spectators. Newspapers and websites should be notified early to help encourage more participants. Alot can be done in a year to make the first one a banner event and insure more in the future.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: saugeyemarc on January 24, 2013, 02:54:35 PM
sorry I posted twice had a blonde moment forgot about page two thought maybe post didn't make it.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: wis2ohio on January 24, 2013, 11:48:38 PM
Ok guys this is a rough draft of what I have typed up I will post it on here for thoughts and open for changes please feel free to tear it apart I won't get hurt if you do.
Hello my name is Andrew Berman and I am contacting you on behalf of a ice fishing website called icefishohio.com we are putting together a charity event that will support groups such as Wounded Warrior Project and also a children’s charity to be named at a later date we are wondering if your company would be willing to donate anything to our great cause so that we can give back to those who have served this great country also we would like to give to children who are less fortunate then us who don’t have the joys we do of purchasing your great products?
Our event is scheduled for March 1st-3rd this will be a 72 Hr event in which we fish and stay on the ice for the whole time using different ice shacks, poles, heaters, lures to keep ourselves warm and busy during this days the only time we will come off is if people would like to go home that are not equipped to stay on the ice or that have other plans if you have any questions please contact me at
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: slabslayer on January 25, 2013, 09:34:13 AM
Looks good to me!
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: wis2ohio on January 26, 2013, 01:50:40 AM
Since I have not had any other replys about my letter to companies I will send this email to them in the morning as my employeer has things blocked so I can't get on those sites.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: ice phisher on January 26, 2013, 10:10:28 AM
HWJ.....JUST A QUICK QUESTION !!!!!!!!!!!! "HAVE YOU CHECKED INTO THE LEGALITY ASPECT OF "PERMITS" TO HOLD THIS AT WINGFOOT "AS THIS IS A STATE PARK"....... POINT BEING THAT I HAVE FISH IN THE BIGGEST TWO ICE FISHING AFFAIRS THAT WERE ON OGF AND WHEN WE HAD THE LARGER EVENT AT WINGFOOT WE WERE CONFRONTED BY A PARK RANGER ON THE ISSUE OF PARK EVENT USAGE PERMITS......"NOT TRYING TO RAIN ON YOUR PARADE"... BUT SINCE I HAD PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF THIS .....I JUST THOUGHT I'D TOSS IT YOUR WAY....."THE INCIDENT AT WINGFOOT GOT TAKEN CARE OF.....BUT COULD HAVE GONE A DIFFERENT WAY......SO I'M SURE THAT A PREEMPTIVE CALL JUST MIGHT SAVE ALOT OF HEADACHES LATER ON.......IF YOUVE COVERED THIS (AOK) BUT IF NOT.....SURE BEARS FURTHER INVESTIGATION......GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR EVENT AND I'M IN HIGH HOPES THAT IT WILL BE A SUCCESS FOR YOU........
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 26, 2013, 12:43:32 PM
@wis2ohio. Sorry I didnt get back to you until now. Ive been plowing snow since early yesterday morning and i just back got home an hr. ago. Got to love those 24 hr. straight shifts. Your letter looks good. There has been a few things that have been mentioned that is really starting to make me question making this go this year. The main thing being the insurance for if someone was to get hurt that is not participating and didnt file a waiver of liability with us. The last thing I need is someone getting hurt and we all get sued for some reason. I still really want to do this event this season but just on a small scale seeing that we dont have all of that set up. If you guys want to maybe we can just do it for fun this season and see how it goes actually being on the ice for 72 hrs before we get a bunch of sponsors involved. I really need some more imput from you guys on what you think. I have hosted smaller events(around 50 - 100 people) but nothing of this size because of the length of time this events is. With all this snow we have got Ive been running around like crazy plowing and salting and havnt had much time to put into it. I am up for doing it if you guys think we can make it happen.
@ ice phisher. I was at the OGF outing when the thing came about so I was already planning for that. I hosted the IFO get together there 2 seasons ago and i went thru the wingfoot office for permits for that and they were very easy to deal with. I had already planned on stopping in next week and and setting up all the permits with them. Thank you for the reminder.
So lets hear any more ideas that you guys have seeing that we are on a time crunch here. Do you all want to keep pressing forward or should we take the advice and wait to do the charity event next season? Either way I know that I am going to spend 72 hrs straight on the ice no matter what.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: wis2ohio on January 26, 2013, 01:03:16 PM
Ok I will hold off on sending those emails. As far as people getting hurt part could we make a sign that says enter this area at your own risk we are not liable for anything that happens to you if you are not participating in event?
I figure we might have to get permission from wounded warriors program to use their name in our adds don't wanna step on any toes with an orginazation like that.
Title: Re: 3 day Ice Fishing Charity Event
Post by: HardWater Junkie on January 26, 2013, 09:10:40 PM
Your definitely right. I would not advertise the charitys to the public until we talked to them first. Im sure that they would be fine with it but like you said we dont want to step on any toes. So seeing that we are not going to do it for charity this season are you guys still interested in going out for an extended stay? Im thinking of doing 48 hrs. Go out on a friday evening and come off sunday evening. That way nobody that has the weekends off wont have to take a day off work. If we can get at least 10 guys to do it I will still build a custom ice rod and give it away at the end to whoever makes it the whole time. If we have multiple guys make it we will do a drawing for the winner. We can still plan on doing it for the same weekend or we can do it during the week anytime you guys want.