TBF Conservation News

Last week I had the great opportunity to attend the Florida Bass Federation State Tournament and I saw a rather unique weigh-in procedure that I thought went very well especially from a conservation standpoint.

As the anglers returned to the launch site and passed by the check–in dock there was a long rope that stretched from the check in dock to the pier where the weigh-in was being held. Each boat could then kill there engines and take their place in line along the rope. They then pulled their boat along the rope until it was their turn to take their fish onto the stage. Both anglers stepped off the boat with their catch while a volunteer from the FBF stepped onto their boat and moved the boat along to a waiting platform at the end of the pier.

The great thing about this setup was that there was no waiting in line with their catch and there was no need for pre-scale water tanks. The angler went right from their boat to the scales. The fish were weighed and carried directly to the release tank where they were refreshed and returned to the St. Johns River. This entire process took only a couple of minutes and the fish looked to be in excellent condition upon release.

Once they were through thanking their sponsors and telling about the day’s activities the anglers then made a short walk back to the opposite end of the pier where the volunteer brought their boat around and met them. Both anglers got back on their boat and then headed to the ramp to pull their boats for preparation for the next day.

Now this sounds like a big production but it really went very smoothly with the excellent help of 5 or 6 well trained volunteers. I thought it was very inventive and completely minimized the time the fish were out of the live well.

Another key point that emerged this week was at the ASA Sport Fishing Summit.

This is a yearly event that brings together leaders from the industry to discuss the future of sport fishing.

A key speaker at this years event was Jane Lubchenco who is the under Secretary of Commerce for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrator (NOAA).

There has been some real discussion in the last few weeks over the lack of respect given to recreational fishing in the NOAA’s evaluation of Coastal and Great Lakes usage. There has been a lot of discussion over whether fishing of all types (commercial and recreational) would be curtailed or even banned from some of these areas.

Ms. Lubchenco assured the group at the ASA Summit that the recreational fishing community has been heard and that their interests would be taken in consideration before any regulation of these waters would be enacted.

Obviously this was welcome news for everyone in the sport fishing community as there has been some genuine concern about the NOAA’s lack of concern for the recreational sport fishing.

We’ll keep a close eye on the actions of this group moving forward and hope that they live up to their comments.

Mark Gintert

FLW OUTDOORS AND THE BASS FEDERATION EXTEND PARTNERSHIP

MINNEAPOLIS (Oct. 28, 2009) – FLW Outdoors and The Bass Federation announced Wednesday a renewed long-term partnership that will continue to provide a vibrant future for TBF chapters and members worldwide. Terms of the multi-year agreement were not released.

“The FLW Outdoors and TBF partnership is a perfect fit,” said Robert Cartlidge, President and CEO of The Bass Federation. “TBF has never had a partner that lined up so well with our core values or rolled up their sleeves and joined us in supporting the fishing industry like FLW Outdoors. For both organizations this is not just about the bottom line. It is about fishing. As TBF and FLW Outdoors have worked closely over the last few years, we have learned from each other and benefited each other. This extended partnership will better serve both TBF and FLW Outdoors well into the future and presents TBF with more opportunities than ever before.”

Under the new agreement, the TBF National Championship presented by the National Guard will continue to be nationally televised and held in conjunction with a FLW Tour event, and the National Guard TBF Junior World Championship will continue to be held in conjunction with the Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing. TBF members will also continue to receive priority entry into all FLW Outdoors tournaments.

Additionally, 14 TBF anglers (seven boaters and seven co-anglers) will advance to the BFL All-American presented by Chevy from the TBF National Championship. The TBF National Champion boater and co-angler will also advance to the Forrest Wood Cup, and the boater champion will continue to receive the life-changing “Living the Dream” opportunity to fish as an FLW Tour pro using a TBF-wrapped Ranger boat and Chevy tow vehicle without paying a single entry fee. Previous “Living the Dream” winners include Brian Travis of Conover, N.C., and Robert Harkness of Elizabeth, W.Va.

“We could not be more excited to extend our TBF partnership,” said Charlie Evans, President and CEO of FLW Outdoors. “The partnership has provided countless youth and conservation opportunities. As a founding member of the Berea Bass Busters in Berea , Ky. , I share the passion and vision for tomorrow that embodies The Bass Federation.”

The Bass Federation Inc. is owned by those whom they serve and is dedicated to the sport of fishing. TBF affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 fishing, youth and conservation events at the local level each year and have provided a foundation for the bass fishing industry for more than 30 years. For more information on The Bass Federation, visit BassFederation.com or call (580) 765-9031.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.

FLWOutdoors.com

TBF Joins Forces with the FFA!

10.26.09 – Last week, three members of The Bass Federation took part in the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, IN.

Mark Gintert and Tisha West of the TBF National Office and Ken Gibbs the Indiana State Youth Director spent three days with a show booth and an interactive display with one of the largest conventions in the country, The National FFA Convention.

Here, over 50,000 attendees from all over the country meet in an annual affair that brings together the leaders of tomorrow along with vendors from the agriculture and vocational businesses in a huge convention setting.

This event draws more people annually then the NCAA Final Four Basketball Tournament when it has been hosted in this town. Needless to say, it’s a big event and the TBF was proud to be a part of it!

In the convention center, TBF had a booth in the “Teachers World” section of the convention hall. Here we displayed several TBF programs including our Student Angler Federation and our new Eyewear Club Fundraiser.

As teachers came by the display, we caught their eye with our classroom DVD playing on a desktop monitor and a table full of colorful brochures. We collected over 90 names of educators interested in our program.

We continued the interaction at Lucas Oil Stadium where we joined forces with the FLW Outdoors to create an interactive carnival for the FFA Students.

Ken Gibbs of the Indiana TBF was on hand to personally work with all the students who participated in our Reel Kids Casting competition. Prizes were given out based upon students accuracy with a rod and reel, as well as their interactive ability with the Wii video game that was set up on a 10’ X 10’ screen on the FLW’s National Guard College Fishing trailer.

The result of this 3 day student extravaganza was our ability to interact with some of the finest young adults that we have ever met, and the collection of a huge list of educators who are truly interested in getting students reacquainted with the great outdoors.

The event was a huge success for the TBF and we anticipate a long running relationship with the fine members and staff of the FFA!

SAF Club Gets Underway in Tennessee

Oliver Springs High School TBF Angler Club kicked off its initiation tournament Saturday, October 10 at Caney Creek Watts Bar in Roane County. The club has 18 student angler members, and on Saturday 14 students, 9 boats and boat captains showed up at safe light in drizzling rain to officially initiate our club. At the 2:00 weigh in Zac Seiber came in first place with 6.56 points followed by second place Cary Gann 4.28 points and third place Dustin Mayton 3.44 points.

In September Mark Gintert, TBF National Youth Program Coordinator, visited Oliver Springs High School and met with a standing room only crowd to present the program and answer questions about starting a TBF school fishing club. Excitement was great and the club was quickly formed. The TBF school sponsor is Deborah Rice. Student TBF Club President Bradley Stringfield and Vice-President Brandon Finney.

The club members meet once a month during school club time and we are planning additional tournaments. Also, we are gaining new members as the word spreads about this awesome recreational activity. Community support has been great with offers of boat captains and boats and one parent has offered to provide every student member official club tee shirts. This club has caused great excitement at Oliver Springs High.