HOT News from the IGFA

 HOT News from the IGFA

November 2006

 

By Pete Johnson, Johnson Communications – IGFA PR Counsel

 

IGFA to host four classes in its new School of Sportfishing

 

            Limited to a maximum of 20 anglers per class, the IGFA will be offering four hands-on instructional lessons on offshore species, topics and techniques at its new School of Sportfishing beginning Nov. 28^th at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum’s Learning Center, in Dania Beach, Fla.     

            The four offshore classes, each three hours in length, include sail fishing, sword fishing, dolphin and wahoo fishing, and wreck and reef fishing.

            “This is not your regular fishing seminar,” said the IGFA’s Peter Gaube. “The IGFA is offering this unique experience to anglers who want to obtain the skills, information and techniques necessary to maximize their overall success on the water.

            “Each class is limited in size allowing the students more time to interact and learn from some of the best anglers and captains sharing their knowledge in the respective discipline.”

            Each class, which runs from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., is taught by a recognized expert angler with the assistance of Capt. Tony DiGiulian, owner of Saltwater Professional Consulting.

            Gaube added that only through classes like these offered by the IGFA would anglers have a chance to speak with and receive valuable tips one-on-one from experts they would normally only see on television or read about in fishing magazines.

            The dates, topics and instructors are:    

• November 28, 2006 “Understanding Sailfish,” with Capt. Ray Rosher of Miami, a winning team member of back-to-back Rolex/IGFA Offshore Championships. Among the topics are: targeting sailfish with live bait, rigging baits, kite fishing, reading the water, currents and water temperature, catching multiples, success with circle hooks and catch and release techniques. 

• December 12, 2006 “Successful Sword Fishing,” with Josh Brown of LMR Tackle, three time winner of the Bacardi Billfish Tournament on topics that include: best baits for swordfish, proper presentation, setting your drift, boating your catch safely, understanding moon phases, rigging baits, importance of depth, underwater illumination, buying the right tackle and catch and release techniques.  

• January 9, 2007 “Dolphin and Wahoo Secrets,” with Capt. Tony DiGiulian will include subjects: most productive baits, live bait rigging, dead bait rigging, finding and using birds, trolling speeds and depths, staying on the fish, importance of water color, lures and skirts, catch and release techniques.    

• January 16, 2007 “Taking Advantage of Wrecks and Reefs”, with South Florida veteran Capt. Bouncer Smith. This final class will include: best baits, live bait rigging, buying the right tackle, controlling the current, boat handling tips and techniques, deep dropping, fishing our inlets, using landmarks and GPS, targeting specific species and catch and release techniques.

            Pre-registration is required. The cost is $150 per class (or $400 for all four offshore classes) and the fee covers the cost of the training class, course materials, and a one-year membership in the IGFA. For additional information, please contact Peter Gaube at 954-924-4247 or via email: PGaube@igfa.org.

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IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame enshrines five in Rolex sponsored event  

 

            Five men were inducted into the eighth annual International Game Fish Association Fishing Hall of Fame. The 2006 IGFA class included big game fisherman John W. “Jack” Anderson II, New Zealand sportsman Charles Alma Baker, bass angling legend Bill Dance, Japanese conservationist Hidenori Onishi and oceanographer Milton C. Shedd. 

The star-studded enshrinement ceremony and dinner, sponsored by Rolex, was held October 24, at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum in Dania Beach, Fla. 

The five were selected for the important contributions they have made to the sport of fishing through angling achievements, literature, the arts, science, education, invention, communication or administration of fishery resources.

            Inducted were:

John  W. “Jack” Anderson II fished for virtually all species all over the world, including black marlin over 1,000 lb and bluefin tuna, swordfish and blue marlin over 700 lb. For five years he was a member of the U.S. Team at the International Tuna Cup Matches.  An IGFA Trustee since 1976, Anderson served on the Advisory Committee that was instrumental in making the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum a reality. Anderson, who resides in Palm Beach, Fla., said he was surprised to be inducted. “It seems wrong to get an award for doing something that gave me so much fun,” he said while calling attention for continuing education of ethics and conservation as goals in the sport.

 

Charles Alma Baker was a businessman and pioneer big-game angler in New Zealand, who persuaded Zane Grey to visit the country in 1926.  The subsequently-published account of this trip, Tales of the Angler’s Eldorado New Zealand, described the wonderful fishing opportunities available in the country which Baker continued to promote through the early part of the 20th century.  Baker had a keen interest in tackle and worked with the Hardy Brothers to design his first two-speed Alma reel which today is prized by collectors. He passed away in 1941.  Baker was presented for induction by Hall of Fame member Mark Sosin who also served as the emcee for the evening. Baker’s Hall of Fame award, accepted by IGFA Trustee Mike Farrior, will be displayed at the Tuna Club on Catalina Island.  Baker was a lifetime member of that club.

 

Bill Dance became one of the first full-time bass pros and was credited with catching the first bass in Ray Scott’s 1967 All-American Bass Tournament (the forerunner to today’s Bassmaster Tournament Trail), He went on to win eight BASS tournaments between 1968 and 1970, and is the recipient of three BASS “Angler of the Year” titles. Dance was introduced by Hall of Famer Roland Martin who said Dance is a born entertainer. “I idolized Bill,” said Martin presenting comical out-takes from his television show, Bill Dance Outdoors, which has been airing for 38 years. Dance said “I love catching catfish, crappie, northern pike and muskie but my all time favorite fish are bass, smallmouth and large. Of all the honors I’ve received this is has got be the top.” He was thankful to be included with good friends and late hall of fame legends Curt Gowdy and Lee Wulff as well as Martin, Sosin, Scott and Johnny Morris. Introduced to fishing by his father and grandfather, Dance said his greatest trill in life has been watching his children catch their first fish.

 

Hidenori Onishi was one of the founders of the Japan Game Fish Association in 1979 and was JGFA Chairman until his death in 1998.  Hank Onishi was a vocal proponent of billfish conservation helping to inaugurate the JGFA’s successful tag-and-release program in 1985.  He is also recognized for popularizing the use of bird teasers. Onishi devoted many years to the IGFA as a Representative and as a member of the Board of Trustees. Onishi was represented by a delegation from the JGFA who also accepted the award. He became the first Hall of Famer from Asia.

 

Milton C. Shedd was a leading oceanographer, a lifelong conservationist, and one of the first anglers to participate in tagging studies. Milt Shedd also pioneered live-bait casting for marlin, co-founded Sea World, helped create the UCLA Marine Science Center, and in the early 1970s started the white seabass hatchery program.  In 1973 Shedd purchased AFTCO Manufacturing Company, today a leading manufacturer of tackle and apparel.  He passed away in 2002 from cancer.  In accepting the award his son Bill made a touching tribute telling of the thrill his father had of catching fish at a golf course pond with his family at his side just three days before his passing.

            The five join 60 other previously enshrined Hall of Fame members that include Ernest Hemingway, Zane Grey, Ted Williams, Michael and Helen Lerner and Philip Wylie. For more on the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame please see: http://www.igfa.org/hall.asp .

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IGFA mourns the loss of Miami writer and rep Jim Hardie

 

            Described as a true Southern gentleman, a prolific writer and tireless promoter of the IGFA responsible for hundreds of people joining the organization, the fishing world mourns the loss of Jim Hardie who passed away October 30, at the age of 75,

            A native of Winston-Salem, N.C. who lived the past 40 years in Miami, Florida, Hardie had been an IGFA Representative on the International Committee and long time friend of the organization.

            During and after his retirement as the outdoors writer of the Miami Herald, he wrote nearly 10,000 newspaper stories on fishing since 1967 and was the first outdoor writer in Florida to catch a swordfish, which weighed in at 366 pounds. His other memorable catches included a 690 lb giant bluefin tuna at Prince Edward Island, Canada and a four blue marlin day off Key West, Florida. His weekly byline in the Herald’s “Fishing Forecast” often featured breaking world record news and notes about fishing, conservation and the IGFA.

            Hardie later became the tournament director for the now two decades old World Cup Blue Marlin Championship he co-founded with the late Tex Schramm of the NFL Dallas Cowboys football team.  The format of the single-day tournament fished worldwide on July 4^th awarded the angler/team with the heaviest blue marlin a huge purse. For each angler that registered in the tournament, Hardie contributed to the IGFA for their one year membership. The Championship is beginning its 23rd year. Last year 150 entries were registered from across the globe and the winner Christopher Brand of Portugal was presented a check for $375,000 at a luncheon at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame and Museum for his marlin which weighed 850 lb, 9 oz. 

            Hardie held executive positions in numerous outdoor writers groups and was inducted into the Big Game Room Hall of Fame at the Miami Boat Show this past February.

            Besides Hardie’s relatives and longtime friend Valerie Stockdale, others attending a memorial tribute included a virtual “Who’s Who” of the fishing world among them longtime friends Al Pflueger, Captain Jim Anson, Herald fishing writer Susan Cocking, TV personality and writer George Poveromo, Capt. Bouncer Smith, IGFA President Rob Kramer and his wife Lara and former IGFA President Mike Leech and his wife Gussie.  It was Leech who this past summer Hardie asked to take over the reigns as tournament director of the global event.

            “The World Cup Blue Marlin Championship will continue as before with a few changes to improve the format and communication,” said Leech.  “Further information will be posted on the BlueMarlinWorldCup.com web site.”  He added that a perpetual trophy will be dedicated to Hardie’s memory in 2007.

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New pending world records

Each month the IGFA highlights documented fish catches from across the globe.  IGFA world records coordinator Rebecca Reynolds has selected a dozen new potential records now before the committee:

From the Scandinavia region, Tobias Persson of Skorup, Sweden, landed a Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) weighing 2.48 kg (5 lb 7 oz) in 50 minutes while fishing in Gamlembanken, Norway. The current all-tackle record was set in Andenes, Norway, at 5 lb 1 oz recorded July 6, 1998. (Photo: Greenland halibut – 06100019)

Hakan Ekberg, Hok, Sweden, fishing in Africa, landed a Guinean snapper (Lutjanus agennus) in 30 minutes weighing 17.7 kg (39 lb 0 oz) using a jig off Barra do Kwanza in Angola. The current men’s’ 15 kg (30 lb) line class record is 8 lb 6 oz caught June 1, 2004 in the same region. (Photo: Guinean snapper – 06100036)

 

Also from the continent of Africa, fishing at Praia de Sao Bras, Angola, Marco Queiroz of Luanda, Angola, landed a 20.4 kg (44 lb 15 oz)  meagre (Argyrosomus regius) in 30 minutes.  He was surf fishing using a tuna fillet for bait and is hoping for a potential new men’s 15 kg (30 lb) line class record which has been vacant. (Photo: meagre – 06100067)

Seven-year old Julia K. Smith, of Park Rapids, Montana, U.S.A., hopes to beat her own female small fry record after boating a huge sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in 25 minutes, using a night crawler for bait.  Caught on the Rainy River, Ontario, Canada, the fish weighed in at 20.62 kg (45 lb 8 oz). Julia holds the current juniors division mark for sturgeon at 31 lb 0 oz caught September 24, 2005. (Photo: sturgeon – 06100025)

While fly fishing off the coast of Miami, Florida, U.S.A., Tom Pulice of Plantation, Florida, landed a 6.35 kg (14 lb 0 oz) cero mackerel (Scomberomorous regalis) on 04 kg (8 lb) tippet in 10 minutes. He could jump the record up quite a bit which presently is tied at 5 lb 8 oz by two people.  (Photo: cero mackerel – 06100031)

 

Nine-year old Had Deane, of Carbondale, Colorado, U.S.A., landed an arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) weighing 4.42 kg (9 lb 12 oz) in 15 minutes while fishing in Labrador, Canada.  He used a Red Devil on his spinner for a potential new male smallfry division record.  (Photo: arctic char -06100032)

 

Bigger than she, 10 year old Noelle Avanzino, landed a wahoo (Acanthocybium solandri) weighing 27.26 kg (60 lb 11 oz) while trolling the west Delta 133, Venice, Louisiana U.S.A., using a “well-used” braid marauder lure. It took Noelle 10 minutes to subdue the fish and bring it to the boat. The current record is 49 lb 9 oz April 4, 2004 caught off Gomera Island, Spain. (Photo: wahoo – 06100038)

 

Two records may be in store for Brittany Wilem, 16 yrs., of Gulfport, Mississippi, U.S.A., after she landed a red snapper, (Lutjanus campechanus) in 10 minutes while bottom fishing with a live croaker in the Gulf of Mexico south of Gulfport. The fish weighed in at 10.97 kg (24 lb 3 oz). Brittany is in line to beat the current women’s15 kg (30 lb) line class record of 22 lb 0 oz set April 12 of this year and the female junior record of 18 lb 8 oz recorded January 31, 1999. (Photo: red snapper – 06100059)

 

Fly fishing the Iriri River in Brazil, Gustavo dos Reis Filho, of Taubate, Brazil, landed a 5.9 kg (13 lb 0 oz) trahira (Hoplias spp.) in four minutes on 02 kg (4 lb) tippet. The current record for the very toothy predator is 5 lb 8 oz caught earlier this year on March 22, 2006. (Photo: trahira – 06100026)

While fishing the Rio Pirana, in Argentina Elizeu “Juninhino” Vernillon Jr. Terra Roxa, Brazil, landed a piapara (Leporinus obtsidens) in eight minutes using corn for bait. The fish weighed in at 3.62 kg (8 lb 0 oz) for a potential new all-tackle record. (Photo: piapara – 06100048)

 

Also from South America, Andres Casal Rizzo of Guayquil, Ecuador, landed a 3.05 kg (6 lb 11 oz) Pacific snook (Centropomus  spp.) in 32 minutes while fishing a live shrimp near Chongon, Ecuador. He used 02 kg (4 lb) line and has applied for a potential new line class record.  (Photo: Pacific snook – 06100050)

 

An all-tackle record may be forthcoming for Neil McDonald, Orewa, North Island, New Zealand, who was surf fishing with a kelpie in the Akitio, Northern Waiararapa area of N.Z, when he hooked a Japanese eagle ray (Mylobatis tobijei).  It took McDonald four hours to bring it ashore where it weighed in at 84.6 kg (186 lb 0 oz) and was then released. The current record for the species is 100 lb 4 oz caught November 4, 2006.  (Photo: Japanese eagle ray – 06100070 – low res – 20 kb – availability only)

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IGFA web feature: 81 fishing records approved in October. 

           

            A new feature on the IGFA web site is becoming very popular. Throughout the year the IGFA’s World Records Department processes hundreds of applications for world records and now each month the latest approved records are highlighted on the IGFA web site.

            For the month of October, 81 new world records were displayed.

            Checkout the new features on the home page of the IGFA web site at igfa.org.

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The latest in fishing books and videos profiled on the IGFA web site

          In each issue of the IGFA’s International Angler magazine, sent bimonthly to IGFA members world wide, librarian Gail Morchower lists the latest books, videos and DVDs that arrive to the E. K. Harry Library of Fishes from writers and publishers across the globe.

          The IGFA library with over 15,000 books and 2,100 videos enjoys a reputation as having the most extensive and comprehensive recreational fishing collection in the world.       

            But where she gives just the title, author and publisher of the newest books and videos in the IA magazine she’s able to go into more depth on the IGFA web site profiling the latest works.

            Ms. Morchower makes it easy for the reader by separating the books out according to a wide assortment of fish and fishing topics: from fly fishing salt and fresh, to surf fishing and heavy offshore tackle; from popular subjects to the esoteric, from tips to techniques throughout the fishing spectrum.  The selections may also be regional or focus on a particular species. She also showcases some of the best books on preparing and cooking fish.

            The huge variety written by some of the best authors include Lefty Kreh, Dave Whitlock, C. Boyd Pfeiffer, James Babb, Dean Travis Clarke, Mike Rivkin, Bob Rich Jr., Jim Casada, Monte Burke, Tom Schlichter and so many others.

            Books profiled up to three years ago are archived on the web site.

            Discover the latest marine and fishing books as well as videos and DVDs at http://www.igfa.org/lib.asp and then click either New Books or New Videos/DVDs for an enjoyable read. 

            For more information please call Ms. Morchower at 954-924-4355 or via e-mail at GMorchower@igfa.org .

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On-line bidding starts in December for IGFA Auction and Banquet    

           

            Though the gala 23rd Annual IGFA Auction & Banquet isn’t until late January, the online portion of the auction on the IGFA website will begin the first week of December at www.igfa.org.

            Over 250 live and silent auction items in all price ranges are

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