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| Wild & Scenic | Trash | Fishway Open House | Flora & Fauna | Upcoming Events | |
Despite weather threats, more than 30 anglers and more than 10 volunteers showed up for our first annual fly fishing competition. We gathered at BG Sporting to talk about the rules. Excitement filled the air and anglers had looks in their eyes which translated into enough with the talk.... let's go fishing! We designated a 3.5 mile stretch of the river for the competition. Volunteers took position, some with folding chairs and a book and some on their feet discovering the fishing trails, as they awaited the call to measure a fish. The river was stocked with some big trout which added to the excitement of the event. It was a beautiful scene with all the fly fisherman in their waders casting delicate flies, trying to read the water movement and the minds of the fish. Some anglers were familiar with the Westfield River and so they went to their favorite holes, others not familiar with the river took some time studying the river to catch the prize fish. I had a great time watching the patience and determination of these guys. Lots of trout were caught but only the bigger ones where measured. Overall, anglers were very happy with the event. At our booth, all the donated prizes were raffled off and we had an auction at the end of the day to help raise some more money. We also offered a fly wallet free with each new membership. Everybody felt like a winner that participated in this special event. First prize winner was Lou Volpi whose 2 fish totaled 34.5" in length. Second was Richard Buckelew with a total of 34.25" -it was pretty close! All anglers thanked the organization for our efforts and asked us to hold the event again next year (which we will). The event raised some money and got a lot of businesses to recognize WRWA as a worthy cause to donate to. I have to highlight these businesses and they are B G Sporting, Carpet Warehouse, Daveıs Pioneer Sport Center, Kenıs Lox and Load Bagelry, Majestic Rivers, Mercier Carpet, Moore Rug, Red Rock Pizza Restaurant, Rockyıs, The Sign Shop, Southwick Country Club, Valley Sports Center, Wal-Mart in Westfield, Feed and Supplies, Westwood Restaurant and Pub, and the Westfield YMCA. I would like to take a minute and thank Jack Hayward for a great publicity campaign that put us on TV and in the local papers. I also would like to thank Kathy Meyer for running the show that morning as well as the volunteer judges for doing such a great job. Although we had a successful event, I still wish we had had more people. So, I ask of you to be more involved in all future activities that WRWA holds, even if it is for a short time. Showing up will help promote the WRWA efforts to nonmembers. Also, if our name is always out there, we will get support from more businesses which will help us sponsor more events. Thank you all. |
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