River Rumble Rained Out

[Trav]

River Rumble rained out

Bassmaster Elite Series 'River Rumble' Relocated to Tennessee's Old Hickory Lake

ESPNOutdoors.com

Updated: June 12, 2008, 6:28 PM ET

FT. MADISON, Iowa — Recent unsafe conditions on the Mississippi River have prompted BASS to relocate the Bassmaster Elite Series' River Rumble presented by Longhorn, set for June 26-29 and originally scheduled in Fort Madison, Iowa, to Old Hickory Lake and Hendersonville, Tenn. The new event, renamed to the Tennessee Triumph presented by Longhorn, will mark the eighth Elite event of the season and will take place on the previously scheduled dates.

Old Hickory, which BASS has visited seven times in its 40-year history, will also host the third event of the 2008 Women's Bassmaster Tour presented by Academy Sports & Outdoors, set for June 19-21. The following week, the Elite Series pros will tackle the spacious reservoir. Tournament waters will also include Cheatham Lake, located just below Old Hickory Dam. The tournament waters are immediately off-limits to Elite Series pros until the official practice period, June 23-25. Co-anglers must observe BASS rules as previously outlined for Elite Series events.

Daily tournament launches and weigh-ins will take place at Sanders Ferry Park in Hendersonville. Launches will begin at 6 a.m. CT and weigh-ins will start at 3:30 p.m. ET.

"Our first priority is the safety of all those involved with BASS events," said Tom Ricks, general manager and vice president of BASS. "We appreciate the flexibility of both Fort Madison and Hendersonville and we look forward to hosting events at both locations in the near future. Our thoughts and prayers are with those in Iowa who have been affected by the recent floods."

In addition to the top prize of $100,000, pros will be competing for points in the season-long Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings, which will award $250,000 to the winner and determine the majority of the 2009 Bassmaster Classic qualifying berths.

Tournament coverage from the Tennessee Triumph will air on Saturday, July 5, at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2. As always, live, streaming video of the weigh-ins and real-time leaderboards can be accessed on Bassmaster.com. On the final day of competition, Bassmaster.com will provide updates throughout the day and preview the weigh-in with Hooked Up hosted by Tommy Sanders and ESPN2 Outdoors personality Mark Zona.

"Our community was extremely excited to host a Bassmaster Elite Series event and we look forward to working with BASS on future events," said Jim Noll, tournament coordinator for the Fort Madison Convention & Visitors Bureau. "We are disappointed we won't be able to host the event this year but absolutely agree that safety is the top priority with conditions like these."