Dick Cepek Takes Title for First Bassmaster Elite Series Event of the Season
OutdoorHub 02.06.14
A leader in truck and offroad tires and wheels since 1963, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels has signed on as the title sponsor for the 2014 Bassmaster Elite Series season opener.
The Dick Cepek Tires Bassmaster Elite Series at Lake Seminole will take place March 13-16 out of Bainbridge, Ga.
“We welcome Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels as title sponsor of the season-opening event as we roll out our ninth consecutive Elite Series season,” said Bruce Akin, CEO of B.A.S.S. “We’re proud to introduce the Dick Cepek brand to the growing Elite Series fan base and our more than 500,000 B.A.S.S. members.”
Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels is a first-time Bassmaster sponsor. Founded in 1963 by Dick Cepek and now headquartered in Stow, Ohio, the company designs and markets truck, SUV and 4×4 tires and wheels to help offroad enthusiasts “Prepare For Adventure,” as the company slogan states. Dick Cepek products are available at hundreds of major U.S. and international retailers, as well as online.
“Dick Cepek was a true outdoorsman,” said Ken Warner, vice president of marketing, Dick Cepek Tires. “He was an adventurer, and he developed tire and wheel products that could conquer any terrain he and his friends encountered. The Bassmaster Elite Series shares that same spirit, and we’re looking forward to being a part of it.”
The title sponsorship agreement also gives Dick Cepek Tires a presence at the fourth event of the Elite season, May 1-4 on Toledo Bend Reservoir out of Many, La. The company will exhibit at the Bassmaster Elite Series Expo at the tournament site.
The Bainbridge event marks the first time that the Elite Series has stopped at Lake Seminole, but it’s not an unknown to many of the Elite Series pros. Gary Klein won a Bassmaster Tour event there in 2003, and Cliff Prince logged a fourth-place finish in the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens event on Seminole in 2010.
But the Dick Cepek Tire Bassmaster Elite Series at Lake Seminole event will be a first for a full Elite field — 108 of the world’s best bass anglers. At stake is $100,000 and an instant qualification for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic, the Feb. 20-22 world championship on Lake Hartwell out of Greenville, S.C. At Bainbridge, pros also will earn points in the race to be the 2014 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year, one of the sport’s most coveted titles.
