There's gold in them thar hills!....

A toothless miner once declared those famous words back in 1849 and kicked-off what history now records as the great California "Gold Rush". And though the great Gold Rush has long been over, in and around that same area lies a lake that hosts one of the best "gold mines" for spotted bass in the country - Lake Oroville.

But Future Pro Tour anglers won't be bringing shovels and picks to this 15,500 surface acre gold country lake. High performance bass boats, rods, reels, and the latest in electronics and lure technologies will be the tools necessary for successful mining on this lake that is absolutely full of spotted bass.

This fourth event in the 7-event Future Pro Tour season, presented by People's Nissan/Isuzu of Stockton, is a pivotal one for many of those anglers on and around the Future Pro Tour Classic's qualifying "bubble".

"We constantly keep it in the forefront of our minds that only 50 teams in our division will make it to the big show on Clearlake in October," commented Mike "Hitman" Hitomi currently 25th in the overall standings. My partner Dennis Smith and I are not taking any of the remaining events lightly, nor are we making any assumptions as to how we are going to do," he added cautiously. We are going to focus on each event and try to ensure that we get a shot a winning that fully rigged Ranger boat at the Future Pro Tour Classic".

Also at stake at the conclusion of the 2005 season, is the prestigious Future Pro Tour Angler of the Year title in which the winning team receives six (6) limited sponsorships from major tackle companies such as Reaction Innovations, Lucky Craft, Lamiglas Rods, DocWaters, Snagproof Lures, Angler's Press promotions/resume service, 2- co-angler entries into a 2006 FLW/Everstart event, and paid entry fees into the 2006 Future Pro Tour season.

"We want that title bad," said Justin Nelson, currently sitting sixth in the race for the AOY title. The Future Pro Tour Classic Championship is great to win, but the AOY title shows angling consistency." Devin Heno and John Zinda are great fisherman and have a good lead on the pack, but we've still got four events to go. Me and my partner Mike Souza are going to keep our noses down and fish hard for the remainder of the year," he said confidently.

You can believe Justin and Mike have their work cut out for them. Right behind them - and in front of them - are teams like Adam Perry and Jim Ellis, Sacramento area natives who always score well on upcoming lakes like Folsom and the California delta. Wily veteran teams like John Kirgan and Bill Talley are also in the hunt and definitely have the skills to ruin AOY dreams for some teams.

And we can't forget about the young "Future" Future Pro lions like Lucas Boden and Kyle Maeda who with their partners, are having outstanding seasons and scoring BIG at all the events this year.

The Oroville event will be held on Saturday, June 11th launching out of the Spillway ramp. On June 10th, the night before the event at the newly renovated Gold Country Casino, from 5pm to 7pm, we will host a free seminar featuring these top pros:

- Richard Dobyns
The son of the west's all-time money winner Gary Dobyns, this Ranger Boats pro-staff member has "done his own work", and has earned respect amongst the pro-fishing fraternity for his angling prowess - especially on Lake Oroville. A native to the Oroville area, look for Richard to provide a keen and unique insight into Oroville's spotted bass fishery.

- Ralph Harkins
A solid member of Galaxie Marine and Triton boats pro staff, this 2-time W.O.N Bass team angler of the year, knows Oroville. And, most importantly, he knows how to prepare for team competition. So if you're looking for that extra "edge" to help make you a little bit more competitive, don't miss what Ralph will have to say.

- Chad Martin
A veteran of the western "bass wars", Chad has finally come into his own, claiming over the past few years, many victories in pro-team competition as well as major Pro/Am events (1st Place - 2004 Angler's Choice Pro-Am). A member of Galaxie boats/Bass Cat pro- staff, Chad is a finesse-fishing specialist, and you can best believe that his instruction on the art of the dropshottin' and darterheadin' techniques will be one you'll want to apply come game day.

The host hotel for this event will be the Gold Country Casino's newly built hotel, which features a full steak house and bar for excellent dining (discount meal vouchers will be issued for those staying at the hotel), as well as plenty of parking - with charging facilities for your boat. Gold Country Casino is now blocking only a certain amount of rooms for FPT anglers at special rates so book NOW before they are all gone! Be sure to ask for the FPT angler rate. The number for Gold Country Casino is 800-334-9400.

Come on out and join us for what is going to be a great event. Late registrations will be taken the morning of the event at the Spillway ramp, and trial memberships for this event are just $5 per team.

See you all in Gold Country!

Vince Harris