FLORIDA FLYROD CLUB S REEL NEWS March 2014 150-D Fortenberry Rd, Merritt Island, FL 32952 floridaflyrodclub.com OFFICERS President Dave Deithorn 321-508-4983 Vice President/Weigh Master Frank Adams 321-698-7191 Secretary/Newsletter Editor Betty Brown 321-504-7881 749-9949 (Cell) Treasurer Alex Montminy 321-544-7109 NEXT MEETING April 8, 2014 Jimmies Restaurant Turtle Creek Golf & Country Club 1279 Admiralty Blvd (off Barton Blvd), Rockledge, FL AWARDS BANQUET: The Florida Flyrod Club s awards banquet on March 11 at Jimmie s had 48 present. The 2013 Award winners were: Mr. Flyrod Mr. Bass Mr. Panfish Mr. Flyrod Mr. Bass Mr. Panfish Mr. Flyrod Mr. Bass Mr. Panfish GRAND MASTER ANGLER DIVISION Lenny Stahley, 103.1 lbs for top 8 tournaments (.7 lbs more than his 2012 win) Frank Adams, 42.2 lbs., 93.6 lbs MASTER ANGLER DIVISION Rob Adams, 58.7 lbs. for top 8 tournaments First Year as Mr. Flyrod in Master Angler Division Don Barker, 5.5 lbs. Jeff Jennings, 25.6 lbs. SPORTSMAN DIVISION Dale Johnson, 69.9 lbs for top 8 tournaments First year as Mr. Flyrod in the Sportsman Division Moved up to Master Angler Division in 2014 Tom Heitpas, 18.0 lbs. Steve Phelps, 49.9 lbs. BIG FISH AWARDS Dave Deithorn Don Donoghue Big Bass, 6.95 lbs, 10/20/13, East Lake Big Speck, 28 oz., 01/11/14, Lake Poinsett Big Shellcracker, 22 oz., 05/04/13, Okeechobee Big Bream, 14 oz., 04/07/13, East Lake CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR 2013 WINNERS
MR. FLYRODS 2013 Rob Adams Lenny Stahley Dale Johnson Lenny Stahley-Mr. Flyrod Frank Adams Mr. Bass Mr. Panfish Rob Adams Mr. Flyrod Don Barker Mr. Bass Jeff Jennings Mr. Panfish Dale Johnson Mr. Flyrod Tom Heitpas Mr. Bass Steve Phelps Mr. Panfish Tom Heitpas and Jeff Jennings will receive their awards at the next meeting they attend.
BIG FISH AWARDS Big Bass 6.95 lbs Dave Deithorn Speck, 28 oz. Don Donohue Shellcracker, 22 oz. Bream, 14 oz.
Thanks to everyone who donated raffle prizes. There was quite a variety. Glenn McCallister won the surprise prize which contained a luxury beach bag and two beach towels. No doubt Glenn will re-gift to his grandkids. It s the proceeds from those prizes plus our dues that pay for our annual awards. This year s raffles brought in more than $600. Great job! Donors include: Don Barker Bill & Betty Brown Dave Deithorn Lee Haskins Wes Houser Dale Johnson Alex & Trish Montminy Bob Smithwick Ron Taylor Tommie Walters Henry Wells Florida Flyrod Club [Editor: I apologize if I overlooked someone. It s sometimes hard to keep up when items are brought in the night of the awards.] DUES: Annual club dues are due in March. Dues are $25 for a single or $30 for a family membership. Make check payable to the Florida Flyrod Club and mail to Alex Montminy, 173 Woodsmill Blvd, Cocoa, FL 32926. Although there is a grace period until May 31, it is requested you pay your dues as soon as possible. FISH FRY: The fish fry which was tentatively scheduled for March is on indefinite hold. Everyone who catches more fish than they plan to eat for one meal are requested to donate the surplus fish to Lenny Stahley or Tom Heitpas to put on ice for the fish fry. You will be notified when the event can be rescheduled. FISHING REPORTS: Fishing has been up and down this past month with some folks reporting hot days and other days being a washout. The weather has probably had a lot to do with it. The fish are there, they re just not always biting when we want them to or aren t interested in what is being offered. Hopefully, things will pick up at the Lake Poinsett tournament this month when the warmer weather moves in on a more permanent basis. LICENSE-FREE DAYS: The State of Florida and the FWC have declared license-free days for 2014. If you have friends coming from out of town, these might be the times they would enjoy coming or if you only have a freshwater license, here s your chance to fish saltwater without a license. Saltwater License-free Days: Schedule for 2014: First Saturday and Sunday in June First Saturday in September Saturday following Thanksgiving Freshwater License-free Days: Schedule for 2014: First Saturday and Sunday in April Second Saturday and Sunday in June
MEMBER NEWS: Dave Benham is progressing well following his pacemaker implant. He and Bea voiced their regrets on missing the awards dinner. Irene Donoghue has had a long illness, but seems to be on the mend. We wish her well. Lee Haskins was sick in the hospital for weeks, finally came home and, then, broke his arm. What luck! Our thoughts are with Tom Heitpas as he and his wife, Kay, move through the final days of her longfought battle with cancer. Hospice has been with them for several weeks as have been our prayers. We send Glenn McCallister best wishes for successful knee surgery this week. Our condolences to Mem Stahley upon the death of her uncle. Mem missed the awards dinner so she could be with her mother in Pennsylvania during this sad time. MEMBERSHIP PROPOSAL: From Don Barker: I was just looking through my Meetup Group (http://www.meetup.com/titusville- BoardGames-Activities/) that I organize, and thought this might be a great additional method to get our club name out there, and increase participation. The "Meetup.com" is a web site that handles event scheduling, communications, updating, comments, replies, event reminders, photos, and membership for a cost of $72 every 6 months. If we were to charter a new Meetup group called "Florida Flyrod Club" (the name just came to me out of the blue), it could help in sending out schedules for meetings and tournaments as well as notifications for changes to tournaments, and it's very easy entry. The biggest advantage for us would be to get our name out there for people in the area interested in fishing to inquire and join the group. It's amazing how many people use and check on groups in Meetup.com, and Meetup.com does a lot of advertising to members of Meetup about meetups from others groups that those people might be interested in. You can post pictures on the site associated with each scheduled event, and you can also keep track of dues in a simple page they have. This subject will be revisited at the April meeting. PROJECTS: The club is still looking for a project to work on in 2014. A proposal from Parks and Recreation on a gazebo for the Leroy Wright Park was submitted, but the subject is tabled until the April meeting. ROSTER: The revised roster will be issued in April after the dues list has been updated. If you have had any changes in name, address, phone number or email address within the past 6 months, please give the info to Betty before the end of March. TOURNAMENT COMMITTEE: Our thanks to Frank Adams (Chair), Lenny Stahley, Rob Adams, Dale Johnson,, Don Barker, and Don Couls for coming up with a proposed schedule for the 2014 season. TOURNAMENT LADDER: The tournament ladder for the 2014 season is attached. TOURNAMENT RESULTS: (First tournament of the 2014 season.) Location: Lake Washington 02/22/14 Grand Master Bass Panfish Other Total Big Fish "Other" Montminy Alex 7.7 1.0 0.0 8.7 Stahley Lenny 1.8 1.9 2.5 6.2 2.45 Tilapia Deithorn Dave 0.0 3.8 0.0 3.8 16 oz. Speck Donoghue Don 3.0 0.0 0.0 3.0 Stahley Ed 2.0 1.0 0.0 3.0 10 oz. Shellcracker
Master Bass Panfish Other Total Big Fish Jennings Jeff 0.0 6.1 1.6 7.7 1.55 catfish Prine Joel 0.0 2.2 0.0 2.5 Sportsman Bass Panfish Other Total Big Fish DeWitt David 2.7 3.1 0.0 5.8 2.7 lb. bass Haskins Lee 1.7 1.5 0.0 3.2 Heitpas Tom 1.9 0.6 0.0 2.5 Stultz Steve 0.0 1.7 0.0 1.7 Couls Don 0.0 0.9 0.0 0.9 TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE: The 2014 tentative schedule is attached. Because of the large number of members present at the awards banquet, the schedule was approved that night. However, there will no doubt be opportunities during the year to make changes. TOURNAMENTS, UPCOMING: 03/15 /14 Lake Poinsett Times: 7 am 1 pm Weigh-ins: Leroy Wright Park Weigh Master: Frank Adams 03/29/14 SR-50 East at the St. Johns River, Titusville Times: 7 am 1 pm Weigh-ins: SR-50 Ramp Weigh Master: Frank Adams 04/12/14 Johns Lake, West Orlando (Buddy) Times: TBD at the April 8 meeting Weigh-ins: Johns Lake Public Ramp Weigh Master: Frank Adams Buddy Tournament Rules (Amended 11/01/07): Buddy Tournament: A tournament where two fly fishermen fishing from one boat count the sum of their catches with a limit of 20 fish per boat. Included in the 20-fish count can be no more than a total of 5 bass per team not per person. If only one person fishes in a boat, they may only count 10 fish with no more than 5 bass total). (cont d next page) Even though the fish can be included in the 20 or 10 allowed, only one person can count a record fish, so be sure to find a way to identify that fish at weigh-in. Penalty for Violation of Buddy Tournament: Each member of the team in violation will be considered as a solo fisherman and can only count half of the total weight. WANTED OR FOR SALE ADS OR ARTICLES: If you have an article, a For Sale or a Wanted ad, or anything else you d like included in the next newsletter, please give the information to Betty Brown no later than March 31, 2014: Phones: 321-504-7881 (H), 321-749-9949 (C) Email: lizbrown@cfl.rr.com Snail mail: 855 Clifton s Cove Ct., Cocoa, FL 32926 If you need a faster response, give the information to Tom Heitpas to put into the website.
WEBSITE: www.floridaflyrodclub.com Tom Heitpas, Webmaster Great website. Check it out. This site is a work in progress, so there will be changes nearly every month. If you have recommendations for the website, call Tom. If you find an error in the website, please let Tom know immediately especially if it has to do with upcoming tournament information. MORE PHOTOS FROM THE AWARDS BANQUET
GOOD LUCK FISHING IN 2014
FLORIDA FLYROD CLUB c/o Betty Brown 855 Clifton s Cove Court Cocoa, FL 32926 HAPPY ST. PATRICK S DAY MARCH 17, 2014