National Bass Tournament to Stream Live on ESPN.com
Friday April 02, 2010
Kingston - The Bass Federation's 2010 National Championship on Watts Bar Lake in Kingston later this month will be streamed live on ESPN.com and will also be the focus of a two-hour feature later this summer on another major sports channel.
"This is a great opportunity to show the world that not only is Roane County still as beautiful and hospitable as ever but that it is a great place to bring your family, especially for outdoor recreation and world-class fishing," says Pam May, Manager of Tourism & Marketing for The Roane Alliance.
In addition to the live stream of the tournament on ESPN.com, the Versus channel (formerly the Outdoor Life Network) -- which is seen in more than 73 million homes -- will be filming for a two-hour special featuring the tournament and Roane County to be shown this summer.
"We are excited to have The Bass Federation National Championship in Kingston," says Rick Ross, Director of Kingston Parks and Recreation. "Our city has seen some tough times as of late and it is great we can welcome these anglers in here to show off all Kingston has to offer."
The tournament will be bringing teams of the nation's top championship-level fishermen to Kingston Watts Bar Lake for the tournament which is being held April 22-24. The Bass Federation (TBF), the oldest and largest grassroots angling organization in America, has wanted to bring their tournament to Watts Bar Lake for quite some time, according to the Federation's President, Robert Cartlidge.
"Watts Bar Lake and the Kingston area are great family destinations with many things to do and see," says Cartlidge. "The TVA has done a lot of hard work to make sure Watts Bar Lake is in great shape. The fishing is as good as it's ever been there, and it should prove to be a great venue to test the mettle of our anglers."
Two anglers from every state except Alaska and Hawaii will be competing for the top honor that includes cash and prizes totaling more than $250,000. One boater and one angler from each state, having fished for nearly two years to get to this championship tournament, will team up and represent their state. All teams will compete on Thursday and Friday, with the top seven teams competing on Saturday.
Roane County residents are encouraged to come out to watch the weigh-ins, to be held each day at 3 pm. On Thursday and Friday the weigh-ins will be held in Kingston at Ladd Park and on Saturday the final weigh-in will be held in Knoxville at the Civic Coliseum. In addition to the exciting final weigh-in, a ‘Fun Zone' for the entire family is planned during Saturday at the coliseum. For early-risers, the boats will be launching each morning beginning at first safe light from Ladd Park in Kingston, complete with a National Anthem send-off, sung by Melissa Bailey.
In addition to the nearly 100 anglers and their families, each state will also be sending their federation president, state conservation director, and youth director. The federation will also bring their own press and production staff. 300 people are expected to stay, eat and shop in the county the entire week of the tournament so the economic impact to Kingston and the entire county will be significant. In fact, the tournament has already made an impact - anglers have already been arriving to ‘pre-fish' and get a leg-up on their competition. The estimated economic impact is in the millions.
For more information about the tournament and about Roane County visit the Visitor Bureau's website at www.roanetourism.com or call 1-800-FUN-IN-TN.
The Visitor's Bureau also invites anyone interested in keeping up with all the events in Roane County, including the date for the two-hour special when announced, to follow us on any of our social sites. Links to the tourism's Facebook page, Twitter, and more, can be found on the tourism website's home page. The Roane County Visitor's Bureau is located at 1209 N. Kentucky Street, Kingston, TN 37763 and is open Monday - Friday from 8 am - 5 pm.
The Roane Alliance is Roane County's economic development organization and consists of both public and private organizations, including the Roane County Chamber of Commerce, the Roane County Industrial Development Board and the Roane County Visitors Bureau. The Roane Alliance's web site is: www.roanealliance.org
