Two inventions that incorporate Wisconsin’s well-known pastimes of hunting and fishing won the top awards Friday at a University of Wisconsin-Madison invention contest for undergraduates.
According to a university news release, the $10,000-dollar Schoofs Prize for Creativity at the event, called “Innovations Days,” went to UW-Madison senior Justin Vannieuwenhoven for a fishing rod holder that self-adjusts to rough water to make bait appear more natural to fish.
Vannieuwenhoven found inspiration from his grandfather, an avid fisherman who he said loves the invention, according to the release.
Also Friday, UW-Madison seniors Luke Stedman and Steve Burbach won the Tong Prototype Prize for a portable tree stand for hunters.
Both Stedman and Burbach are hunters, and said current portable tree stand designs can be dangerous. Their design incorporates steel jaws that clamp around tree trunks to better support to the stand, which is used to provide hunters with a higher vantage point.
