By Pete Johnson, Johnson Communications �” IGFA PR Counsel
Many activities surround IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame 2007 induction
More than the celebrated induction ceremony for the ninth class into the International Game Fish Association Fishing Hall of Fame, this year’s October 19 �” 21 weekend will offer additional opportunities, activities and fishing presentations for visitors, many given by the Hall of Famers.
The weekend focuses on the five member class of 2007 which includes Joan Salvato Wulff, the quintessential lady fly angler and instructor; Homer Circle, the dean of outdoor writers; Gary Loomis, a gentleman who revolutionized rod making and Dr. Ruben Jaen C., and Capt. Peter B. Wright, two extraordinary bill fishermen. The honorees were selected for the important contributions they have made to the sport of fishing through angling achievements, literature, the arts, science, education, communication, invention or administration of fishery resources.
Most of the activities will take place at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum in
It begins on Friday night with a special invitation only Hall of Fame VIP Cocktail Reception in the IFC Marlin Bar, which will include a patch presentation to the new hall of fame Inductees.
On Saturday morning and into the early afternoon there will be an IGFA School of Sportfishing presentation on offshore fishing along with a family fishing clinic and autograph sessions featuring numerous hall of famers.
Saturday night will feature the hall of fame induction ceremony. Tickets for the evening are $200 per person and include the cocktail reception, silent auction, dinner and induction ceremony.
Sunday will feature fly fishing films throughout the day, a special IGFA School of Sportfishing in the events hall conducted by fly fishing experts, and autograph sessions with several hall of famers.
Sixty five Hall of Fame members are currently enshrined and include Ernest Hemingway, Zane Grey, Curt Gowdy, Ted Williams, Michael and Helen Lerner, Philip Wylie and John Rybovich.
Special sponsorships and sponsor tables are available. For reservation, sponsorship or further information, contact Lesley Arico at the International Game Fish Association,
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Save this January date for the 24th IGFA Auction & Banquet
It’s one of the biggest gala events in
The event features hundreds of live and silent auction items up for bid, in the largest fundraiser of the year for the IGFA.
Tickets are $175 per person. Corporate tables for 10 are also available for $3000 which includes VIP placement, table favors, an ad in the auction program plus more. For additional information and to make reservations please contact Ms. Lesley Arico at 954-924-4222 or LArico@igfa.org.
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IGFA highlights Helter Skeletons Fish Bones in
Beginning in late August, the IGFA will be adorned with a bit of science and a bit of art as Helter Skeletons is featured in the
Helter Skeletons will exhibit the Art of Fish Skeletonization. The process of removing the outer layer of tissue incorporates a beetle colony to remove skin and scales from bones leaving their skeletons perfectly intact. The finished pieces are whitened in a two-step process making these museum quality pieces an interesting addition to our
Founded by Grant Stoecklin in 2002, he began Helter Skeletons during his graduate work in a functional morphology laboratory. He was introduced to the skeletonization process for the purpose of understanding how a fish’s skeletal structure interacted with the many associated muscle groups. After graduate school, he continued to skeletonize fish as a hobby and as time went on; he experimented with and refined the process to achieve the most true-to-life representations of game and non-game fish species.
In addition to the skeletons, Bryan Hayden, Helter Skeleton’s art director will unveil his large-scale acrylic painting series of “Bones on Canvas.†Each painting focuses on a certain part of a species’ skeletal system and is painted over a color-rich background resembling the actual color of the fish’s skin.
Prints from these paintings will be available through the IGFA Museum Store in September. To learn more please visit www.helterskeletons.com or call Jessica Arb at 954-924-4340 or email: jarb@igfa.org.
The IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame and Museum provides the world’s most comprehensive assemblage of sport fishing information, exhibits, educational classes, fishing demonstrations, interactive displays and virtual reality fishing. Open everyday, doors open at
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August Hot Catches
From the world records department of the International Game Fish Association, world records coordinator Rebecca Reynolds-Wright has selected 11 documented fish catches made across the globe that have been submitted for world records:
Nassim Joaquin, of
Italy IGFA Representative Massimo Brogna, of Catania, landed a dentex, (Dentex, dentex) weighing 5.6 kg (12 lb 6 oz) on 3 kg (6 lb) line while fishing Palau, Italy. The potential IGFA men’s line class record was caught on June 13 with the fish attacking a live sugarello and taking Brogna 13 minutes to land. Massimo who has fished on several top teams in the IGFA Offshore World Championship is hoping to best the current 11 lb 5 oz record caught nine years ago. (Photo: dentex – # 07070004)
After attacking a live goggle eye he was using as bait, Robert Vail,
Using a worm for bait, 11 year-old Payton Romano, Hudson, Ohio, USA, landed a shorthead redhorse (Moxostoma,macrolepidotum) while fishing Muskegon River, Mich., USA weighing 0.90kg (2 lb 0 oz). The fish caught on June 15 may tie the current IGFA female junior record set
Fishing Norfolk Canyon, Virginia, USA, Robert Manus, Ark, Va, landed a snowy grouper, (Epinephelus, niveatus) weighing 29.71 kg (65 lb 8 oz) for a potential IGFA all-tackle record. The fish hit on a frozen spot and took Manus 20 minutes to land. The current record is 37 lb 9 oz on
Targeting the Kachemak Bay, Alaska, USA, area for his fishing Peter W. Witherell, of
Using a Hot-n-Tot while fishing Birch Island, Canada on July 2, 13 year-old Bobby Greer, Dayton, Ohio, USA landed a walleye, (Sander, vitreus) weighing 4.69 kg (10 lb 5 oz). The young angler is in line for an IGFA junior record that could beat the current 9 lb 12 oz mark of
Using a wet fly and 3 kg (6 lb) tippet, Japanese fly fisherman Shoji Matsuura,
Also from
With a Rapala Shad Rap on 6 kg (12 lb) class line Nevada, USA angler Dan Hannum, of Dayton, landed a whiterock bass, (Morone, saxatilis x M. chrysops) while fishing Nevada’s Lahonton Reservoir. Caught on July 15, the fish weighed 11.50 kg, (25 lb 6oz) and took 22 minutes to bring in. The current line class record is 23 lb 5 oz caught 10 years ago. (Photo: whiterock bass – # 07070067)
While fishing his native Cayman Island on July 17, Charles Ebanks of Grand Cayman, landed a escolar, (Lepidocybium, flavobrunneum) weighing 68.21kg (150 lb 6 oz ) for a potential IGFA all-tackle record. He used bonita for bait and took 10 minutes to land. (Photo: escolar # 07070073)
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IGFA record setting story featured in Boating World
In the July edition of Boating World Magazine Alan Jones the executive editor chronicles the efforts of then nine-year-old Haylee Mendenall to set an IGFA Girl’s Small Fry record for lake trout in his story, “Setting an IGFA Record.”
Jones said that although the fight to bring in the 20-pound, 12-ounce lake trout on light tackle was pretty exciting, the story of how they got the fish certified as an IGFA record was equally tense and illustrates the importance of never giving up.
“Since setting the record,†Jones said, “Haylee has become something of a local celebrity in her hometown on
Jones applauded the efforts of the IGFA to get youngsters involved in the great sport of fishing and thanked IGFA World Record Coordinator Becky Reynolds for her help in making this piece possible.
The feature is now posted on the Boating World Magazine website at: http://www.boatingworld.com/Articles/2007/07/Fishing/Family_Time_Setting_an_IGFA_Record.html_1453274687.html
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Writer finds abundantly fun fishing in very northern Norway
In the heat of the summer we thought we’d share some correspondence from one of our favorite European fishing journalists who went off-the-beaten path to very northern
For Roberto Ferrario it was his third fishing trip to the north
“From there we drove another hour north,†Ferrario said. “There’s no other region in
He described the region as a sportsman’s nirvana with haddock, cod, coalfish, ling, torsk, arctic char, arctic trout, Atlantic salmon, catfish, pollack and many more fresh and saltwater species.
“In
The temperature differences from
“In
“There is no bad weather, just bad clothing,†the Italian writer emphasized. “If the fish are there, we faced the rain and cold. Only strong winds would stop us – then it is dangerous to put out to sea and waves and current make it very difficult to find good fishing spots. On windy days we would go up the fjords, anchor landward of the islands and fish in sheltered waters.
“That is one of the best things about the fjord
He said an evening on the coast with spinning or fly rod is a wonderful experience for the patient angler though the two men used mainly the jigging technique.
“It is the most productive style of fishing. Well wrapped up in warm clothes, in the middle of the day when there is some warmth from the sun, we’d go out onto the fjord with jigging rod, plenty of 100-200-gram jigs, rubber worms and some feathers, fishing from 30 to 350 feet in depth.
Roberto said it is not rare to catch specimens of over 10 kg (20 lb), the average weight being about 4 kg. When the days grow longer and the spawning season is over, most of the cod start to migrate towards the ocean. The fish that stay behind find hunting grounds among the seaweed near strong currents.
He said the most common fish along the coast of fjord
“If you come across a shoal of young coalfish on a summer’s day, your catch may well explode from the water. The fish grow in the course of the year and the season for big coalfish starts after the mackerel season, at the beginning of September. Like pollack, these fish like warm water and will bite in shallows and far up the fjords. In recent years it has become increasingly popular to fish for coalfish with small herring or mackerel.
“If you manage to keep the bait moving, you may very well land a specimen of more than 10 kilos.â€
Roberto and Giovanni who said they don’t like to kill fish, released all of the fish they caught — exactly 1334 of them.
He ended his correspondence saying sea and fjord fishing is a fascinating experience and no fishing permit is required.
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Dates set for 2008 IGFA world championship tournaments
The dates have been announced for both of next years IGFA World Championship Tournaments.
The ninth annual IGFA Offshore World Championship (OWC), international fishing’s most prestigious billfish tournament, is slated for the week of May 11 �” 17. Held in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico the event hosts over 60 winning teams from 30 countries on six continents who have qualified by winning one of over 130 IGFA sanctioned events held in 2007.
And in
For more information on the IGFA OWC contact IGFA tournament coordinator Lesley Arico at 954-924-4222 or LArico@igfa.org. For information on the IGFA IWC please call Denise Hartman 954-927-2628 or DHartman@igfa.org or for media information on both events contact Pete Johnson, IGFA PR counsel at 480-951-3654 or johnsoncom@aol.com
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Calendar of future IGFA events
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August 21, 2007 — IGFA School of Sportfishing; “Advanced Big Game Trolling Techniques†— IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum, Dania Beach, Fla. USA. �” 7 p.m. �” 10 p.m. – This class taught by Capt. Jason “Tiny†Walcott is for the serious big game fisherman who wants the inside knowledge on how to get the most out of trolling time while learning many secrets that took years of trial and error to perfect. The IGFA offers this unique experience to anglers who want to obtain the skills, information and techniques necessary to maximize their overall success on the water. Not your regular fishing seminars, each class is limited to only 24 anglers, featuring hands-on instruction letting students interact and learn from some of the best anglers and captains sharing knowledge in their respective discipline. Pre-registration is required. The cost is $150 per class (or four classes for $100 each). The fee covers the cost of the training class, course materials, and a one-year IGFA membership. For more details go to the IGFA web site at igfa.org/schoolofsportfishing.asp or contact Veronica Woods at 954-924-4334 or via e-mail at reservations@igfa.org
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September 1 through January 2008 — Helter Skeleton Exhibition in the Art Gallery, IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum Library, Dania Beach, Fla. USA.�” Art and science are
