‘This is just what Bermuda needs’
Blue Waters Anglers Club praised the participation level its annual junior fishing tournament recently, which saw nearly 100 young people win a variety of prizes.
Ray Bean, the club president, said: “It was an excellent event. It had great participation. The downside is that we saw a slight drop in female participation than in recent years. I wish we had more. It’s a great day on the water!”
He added: “This event has been running since the 1960s. There are members now who participated as children.
“The feedback that I’ve gotten from parents and children is that it’s always a positive event.”
Five members’ boats were used this year, with four taken outside the reef — My Three Sons, Bay Roots, Ocean Mile and Sambucca. The Jolly Roger remained inside the reef-line for children under 13.
The Blue Waters Anglers Club Junior Fishing Tournament was sponsored by C-Mart, Rubis, Belco, Sports ‘R’ Us, Butterfield & Vallis, Brown & Co, Fidelity and Barritt’s.
One parent, Gary Foster Skelton, took two children to the tournament.
“They look forward to this every year,” he said. “It’s just such a positive thing for young people. This is a way help them develop. It’s a part of island life, being with friends and doing something positive.”
Traci Woolridge said: “With how things are going in Bermuda with young people, I would encourage parents to get their kids involved.”
She added: “I hope BWAC never dies; this is just what Bermuda needs.”
Jallunde Wilson-Johnston, 15, a CedarBridge Academy student, said he was happy he attended the event — the second time he has been deep-sea fishing. “It was a rough ride, but it was a good day on the Ocean Mile.
Altoinette Wilson said: “I love this because it gets my son out, doing something different.
“As a parent, I know where he is. He looks forward to it. He enjoys it immensely.
“This club has organised this really well. Their hospitality is really good.”
Eleven-year-old Nathan Webb, a five-times attendee from Purvis Primary School, was out on the Jolly Roger. He said that it was “not that rough” inside the reef-line, but was pleased he attended.
After the weigh-in, BWAC members and boat crew filleted the fish, and then bagged and redistributed them to the young anglers.
Prizes included fishing rods. Each participant was also given a goody bag in the form of a knapsack.
Need to
Know
2. Please respect the use of this community forum and its users.
3. Any poster that insults, threatens or verbally abuses another member, uses defamatory language, or deliberately disrupts discussions will be banned.
4. Users who violate the Terms of Service or any commenting rules will be banned.
5. Please stay on topic. "Trolling" to incite emotional responses and disrupt conversations will be deleted.
6. To understand further what is and isn't allowed and the actions we may take, please read our Terms of Service
