Welcome Back!

Happy New Year and welcome back to school! Don't forget to renew those fishing licenses.

Report from the Field

Chris V. sent this photo in from Florida. He is reporting plenty of cooperative mahi mahi and sailfish. Turkey or mahi for Thanksgiving? Tough call.

SJP Wins All Scholastic Fishing Challenge

The All Scholastic Fishing Challenge took place on November 15 at the Putnamville Reservoir and the Prep's fishing club edged out Central Catholic in the final hour of competition thanks to the efforts of Derek W. and Paul C.

The two teams arrived at the reservoir under overcast conditions and calm winds. The water levels were low which allowed participants to reach structure that typically not accessible under normal conditions. Despite having promising new spots to fish, both teams struggled to catch fish for the first 1.5 hours of the competition. Central Catholic struck first with a nice pickerel. Fishing remained slow for the next two hours, until Derek W. caught a 23" pickerel which tied the score. Approximately 20 minutes later and less then an hour left in the competition, Paul C. caught another pickerel which was enough to take the lead and ultimately win the event.



At the conclusion of the tourney, both schools returned to the Prep for awards, pizza, and conversation. Even though the fish were not as cooperative as the two teams would have liked, everyone managed to have a good time on the water.

Fishing begins in the second annual tournament.

Paul's tie-breaking fish

The two teams take a break from pizza for a group photo

All Scholastic Fishing Challenge II

SJP vs. Central Catholic fishing showdown is coming quick. We are hosting this year's event at the Putnuville Reservoir on November 15. Registration materials are available and you must sign up by November 12th to participate (all students are welcome to sign up). For your entry fee of $25 you will get to fish the tourney, transportation to and from the Prep, a t-shirt, pizza (compliments of Student Activities), and the satisfaction of knowing that all proceeds raised will be supporting a local food bank.

Many of you have been asking me about the tournament format. Here is the scoop for this year's event: Each fish caught and released has a point value. panfish = 1 point; pickerel = 2 points; bass (largemouth/smallmouth) = 3 points. The school with the most points at the end of the day will take home the trophy. Awards will also be given to several students earning the greatest number of points.

There has been some strategy being discussed by a few club members. Surprisingly, most of the talk is coming from the fly rodders in the group. It sounds as though they will be targeting the panfish on small flies. We'll see how it goes!

Keep the Fishing Stoke Going!

For many of us (particularly the saltwater crowd), the fishing this fall did not go as planned. As a result, I've noticed a few SJP fishing club members not as perky as they usually are this time of year. If you thought about hanging up the rods for good, then I would strongly encourage you to click through the following two online magazines: This Is Fly, and Catch Magazine. Both publications released new editions this past week and are stocked full of great fly fishing articles, images, and interactive features. Perhaps they are not a substitute for a keeper striper on the fly, or casting to busting tuna, but it is something!

How big is fishing? Big!

This past weekend the school had its first open house for prospective students. At the event, the fishing club was represented (thanks Viggs!). Several times, faculty members commented on the amount of "traffic" the fishing club's table was receiving. I would simply respond to the comment by saying, "fishing is big business around here." Exactly how big, I wasn't quite sure, so I did some digging. Here is what I found...

In 2006 the American Sportfishing Association published a study regarding the economic impact of freshwater and saltwater sportfishing in the United States. According to the study, there was an economic output of over $1.2 billion generated from recreational fishing in Massachusetts that year. The state ranked 7th in the nation for saltwater fishing retail sales which exceeded $492 million. State and local governments received $86 million in tax revenue from sportfishing. In 2006, the study estimated the average annual expenditure per saltwater angler (includes travel and equipment) in the state was $1,659.74. Compared to saltwater anglers in other states, we spend more annually on saltwater fishing than all but two states (South Carolina and California, $2,094 and $1,695, respectively).

Fishing is indeed big business in Massachusetts!

Fishing Tourney Plans

Plans are underway to connect again with the fishing club at Central Catholic. Last year the two schools met at Plum Island for an event we called the "All Scholastic Striped Bass Charity Challenge." The competition was a draw between the two schools, but everyone had a great time and we made a contribution to a local food bank. This year we will gather again, this time for some freshwater fishing.

Next week we'll meet as a club and discuss some ideas for the event. Stay tuned.