The History of the Almost


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The History of the Almost-Annual New York State Crappie Derby

The New York State Crappie Derby was founded in late 1973 when two members of the Whitney Point Sportsmens Association were enjoying a "beverage" while discussing the excellent ice fishing at, what was then known as the Whitney Point Reservoir. Crappies were responding well to bait being offered by the local anglers. The weather was also very nice and the discussion led to "why not . . .". A few phone calls were made and the event was on. In a few weeks time, a $150 purse was assembled and some posters were distributed. In early 1974, 197 people gathered on the ice and had a lot of fun. A lot of fish were taken and all went away satisfied. That's when the invention started. The Whitney Point Sportsmens Association decided that it should be made an annual event.

Over the course of the next couple of years, it evolved into what is known today as the "party derby". Ice derbys at that time typically registered anglers at the beginning of the day and weighed and measured their fish at the end of the day. People had fun but we wanted to add a little excitement. We evolved an event whereby a judging area with a Public Address system was set up in the middle of the ice and prizes were awarded each 15 minute period from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. This encouraged a lot of coming and going across the ice. The rules were kept at a minimum and we added additional prizes to the event.

The lake, now called Whitney Point Lake, lent itself well to this event structure. Whitney Point Lake is about 3 1/2 miles long and 3/4 miles wide. The lake was developed as a flood control reservoir and impounded the Otselic River. The impoundment is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. A river channel about 20' deep follows along the West side of the lake. The crappies (Calico Bass) thrived and multiplied. A county park (Dorchester Park) was developed at the southeast area and provided a base of operations with excellent parking. Broome County Department of Parks and Recreation saw this event as a way to promote the park during the off-season. The parks department joined us in a joint venture. Now it really took off.

Prizes, from the beginning, were solicited from local merchants. They took the form of cash, merchandise and gift certificates. The prizes were distributed across the 28 derbys (15 minute segments, 8 AM to 3 PM) and more significant prizes were awarded for the biggest crappie of the day (1st, 2nd & 3rd). Additional prizes were awarded for the first caught (or biggest) of numerous fish species.

Until 1977, we had been blessed with good weather which helped the event catch on. Then it happened. In 1977 mother nature decided to throw us a curve. On derby day, the weather never climbed above zero and the winds were raging. 20-30 MPH winds were blowing people across the ice. There was 28 inches of ice to drill through but 301 very brave souls ventured forth. It was, by far, the most demanding day in the history of our event to date.

By 1978, the purse expanded to $1,000.00 and we saw over 1,000 participants register. by 1985, the purse had expanded to over $2,000.00. Unfortunately, little information exists for the 1987, 88 and 89 events. By 1995, the purse exceeded $5,000.00 and in 2000 the purse exceeded $10,000.00.

Along the way,

- It became an excuse to get outdoors - a "cabin fever" issue. The number of spectators far outnumber registered anglers. It is the place to see and be seen.
- The event now sports a concession stand, providing hot and cold drinks, along with chowder, chili, hot dogs and such. Port-a-johns eliminate some of the discomfort.
- Through the efforts of the Whitney Point Sportsmens Association, it has become a "kid & family friendly" event. A significant amount of the purse is set aside just for the kids. A few committee members are assigned to wander the ice looking for young ones who look bored, tired, cold or whatever and find a reason to give them a prize.
- The local Point of Light Masonic Temple jumped on the band wagon many years ago and started a Pancake Breakfast to add to the day. The breakfast starts around 5:00 AM and feeds many hundreds of people on "Derby Day".
- During the Eighties, softball On-The-Ice found its' way into the program. Our records are a little sketchy on this but a number of teams from the Central and Southern Tier NYS organized and had a lot of fun on the ice. trophies were awarded and nobody died. We have tried to "jump-start" this a few times but it never caught on again. Maybe some day!
- A number of times, weather did not smile down on us and insufficient ice existed on our planned date. In each case, the event moved to its' two week postponement schedule. That is until . . .
- Along came 1990 and 1991 - Mild Winters became fashionable and an an insufficient blanket of ice never formed. The derby was postponed for two consecutive years. 1990 was to be our 25th Annual event and all sorts of events, on and off the ice, were planned. But after two years in a row of inadequate ice, we lost the momentum and the big celebration never took place. At this time, The New York State Crappie Derby took on the name of the Almost-Annual New York State Crappie Derby.
- We have had many visitors across the years. The New York State Department of Environmental Commission attended one year. A milestone event that year included our first tent burning to the ice. (All escaped without injury). We have hosted exchange students who had never seen ice outside the refrigerator must less walked on it. This is always a treat for us. Congressman James Walsh, (__th congressional district) attends frequently as does our own Senator Tom Libous (NYS __th district). Both are avid fishermen and good friends of the derby. I wish I could say they have caught many fish but we won't go there.
- We started placing emphasis on the "kids" about mid-way through our run. Over the years, more and more of the purse was targeted to the youngsters. This is one of the best things we do. WPSA representatives scour the ice looking for our "future outdoors caretakers" and find reason's to award a prize from one of our sponsors. This is when the event truly became "family friendly". Any time fees were charged, those participants 12 and under were exempted.
- In ____, Broome County Parks required that a fee be charged for county parks usage. The fee was set at fifty cents and, in an effort to avoid accumulating a large number of quarters that might threaten ice safety, the WPSA added an additional fifty cent fee bringing the total to $1.00. Up till this time, the derby was a FREE event - unheard of. We never heard one complain about the fee. The WPSA decided to take their share of the fee (50 cents) and pass that back to the community. Each year, a local cause (e.g. youth sports, senior citizen activities, etc) was selected and several hundred dollars was presented to them complements of the derby.

The reservoir houses many species of fish waiting to satisfy the eager angler. There are many Walleye and Perch along with occasional Northern Pike, Bullhead, Catfish and White Rocks. The "then" state record White Rock was taken in the reservoir few summers ago - 10 lb. 6 oz - how'd you like to get one of these on a jig rod? The DEC has since (1989) stopped stocking hybreds in Whitney Point Lake. The largest Crappie taken at the 24th derby was 15 ½ Inches, taken by Shaun Gotthardt of Hancock, NY. This tied a 15 ½ inch crappie caught by Russ Pickins of Newark Valley in 1994.

There are many Walleye and Perch along with occasional Northern Pike, Bullhead, and Catfish. At one time the state record White Rock was taken in the reservoir - 10 lb. 6 oz - how'd you like to get one of these on a jig rod? In 1989 the DEC stopped stocking hybreds in Whitney Point Lake. The largest Crappie taken at the 24th derby was 15 ½ Inches, taken by Shaun Gotthardt of Hancock, NY. This tied a 15 ½ inch crappie caught by Russ Pickins of Newark Valley in 1994.

Prizes, in addition to the 15 minute "special derbies" between 8am and 3pm, include major prizes for the largest Crappie of the day (1st, 2nd & 3rd) along with prizes for the largest fish of a number of other fish species. Prizes are also awarded for largest fish (weight) of the day for many fish species and door prizes assure that everyone has a shot at some prize. To win you must be registered. You can register at local bait shops starting a few days before the event or at the Pancake Breakfast. Registration will also take place on the ice starting at about 7:00am.

The 1998 and 1999 running of the Annual NYS Crappie Derby were cancelled due to insufficient ice. Throughout the entire winter of 1997-98 the maximum ice thickness was only 5 inches. The previous winter, we had a 12 inch growth, lost it completely and grew a second 12 inch slab. That has never happened before in the previous 25 years. In 1999 we had 14+" of ice but a prolonged January thaw did us in.

The 2002 Derby was cancelled due to insufficient ice.

The 2004 Derby provided lots of stress. Ice came on briefly in early December but promptly left. We had some very warm weather during December and the water temperature increased significantly. Ice came on in early January and we had some very cold weather. It was the second coldest January in history. But. . . the ice went quickly to 3 inches, then to 5 inches. . . still cold weather . . . it slowly rose to 6 inches . . . more cold weather then to 8 inches. Eight days before the derby it increased to 9 1/2 inches and after a bitter cold weekend we managed to see 12 inches the Monday before the derby. We got the go-ahead to have the derby. During an extremely bitter cold week, it barely increased to almost 14 inches. No one was able to explain the slush that formed on the ice in certain spots. This slush did not freeze for some reason. We also had quite a lot of snow on the ice Derby Day. The prize cutoff was loosely enforced and a lot of donations came in at the last minute. We ended up with a $15,000 purse. The fish were decent sized but typically slow biting. The cold weather Wednesday & Thursday impacted attendance - especially the percentage of those 12 and under. The temperature reached 19 degrees and a late morning wind increased to uncomfortable levels (25+ mph gusts). It was a good derby but attendance suffered.
The 2005 Derby was in winter that started off slow. Ice-On occurred just before Christmas and was 8 inches well before the derby with lots of cold weather following. Surprise - it grew very slowly from then but did get to 10+ inches a week before the derby and reached about 13 inches on derby day. A few days prior to the derby, the cold set in. Minus teens for a few days prior to the derby and derby morning saw about minus 15. It warmed up to -10 but 8 AM and hit +20 about 2 PM.
This year, attractions on the ice included: the National Weather Service, the Ross Park Zoo (a falcon, an owl and a huge rabbit), the Whitney Point EMT squad, a representative from the NYS DEC Fisheries, the Broome County Sheriff's Communication Mobile, Gander Mountain Demos and Lowe's of Binghamton providing craft kits and personnel to assist the kids in assembly. Attendance was down, most likely due to the cold weather leading up to the derby. The big fish attraction was a 27 inch 7.2 pound Walleye caught by Bob Arnold of Johnson City, NY.

The 2006 derby was cancelled due to insufficient ice. It was "nip 'n tuck" throughout the winter but we never did accumulate enough ice thickness to allow the event to go on. This one went in the history books as a non-event. The fish were biting fairly well at "first ice" but tapered off quickly. It was a slow season for fish. We grew fairly good ice up to early January but then the water temperature started rising above 32 degrees (33, 34, 35) which kept things at a standstill.

The 2007 Derby was again cancelled due to insufficient ice. There never was sufficient ice up to the postpone date of February 10, 2007. Following that date, there was additional ice growth but, as it was not tracked due to the cancellation, it is not known whether we did gain any significant additional growth. It is highly unlikely that enough ice existed to conduct the ice. This was the 3rd time the event has been cancelled two straight years. It has never been cancelled for 3 consecutive years. This year, the water temperature never got down to 32 degrees until mid January. We just ran out of time.

The 2008 Derby planning started out well. We had first ice on December 5, 2007 and the ice grew slowly to 4 inches by 12/21/07. On Saturday, December 22, 2007, the temperature went up into the lower 50s and we received about an inch of rain. The runoff caused severe degradation of the ice. The weather continued to moderate through the next two weeks.

The 2009 Derby planning started out much the same as 2008 above. Early first ice, some good fishing. The ice stabilized for a short while then we lost some (but not all of the ice). Ice came back in early January and built to 5 or 6 inches. It was a good solid base and the ice level was kept well. In another week it had grown to about 8 - 10 inches. Ice progressed very slowly and it was nip & tuck for quite a few days. By our decision date, January 26th a good foot of ice was declared and we were given the go-ahead.
The day of the derby, we enjoyed ice thicknesses of 14-15 inches. Weather was a little cold (teens) in the morning but the wind cooperated. We had a few gusts in the mid-late morning but in general the weather was quite nice. The crappies hadn't been biting well for a few weeks but we managed to tease enough of them of legal size out of the water to have an entry during each of the 29 15 minute contests from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Our sponsors were sufficiently generous to allow a purse of over $7,500, with many prizes coming in even during the derby.
We had to relearn a lot this year due to the 3 year hiatus. It didn't go as smoothly as we are used to but it did go well. We had a lot of kids and were able to insure that most of them went home with something. Our final committee meeting following the derby concluded the event was a very big success.