It’s that time of the month again when you hear from me, YOUR MBMC President. I almost just said YOUR President but that might not be true for everyone. It has been a really busy first month for the Club and Board of directors.
The first event of the new year was held on March 16th. It was a meeting/seminar held at the Marina Village deli. I was not able to make it but Paul Himmelberger pinch hit for me and did an awesome job. Even though there was short notice of the event we still had about 30 attendees. Jeff Meeker did a excellent job presenting information relevant to bottom fishing. He shared techniques, methods, and utilized a great handout about properly reading a fathometer. Of course, it would not have been a vintage Doghouse presentation without some war stories. There was a great dinner that followed, and the evening concluded with a raffle where a reel and other valuable prizes were awarded. We feel that this evening was a success and plan to utilize this venue in the future.
The BOD developed the calendar for the year and as soon as we did, we made some changes to it. Based on the success and the desire by those that attended the first meeting/seminar we have added another one in a couple of weeks on April 13th. It will be at the Marina Village deli again and John White from Dana Landing will be our guest speaker. We will have dinner and drinks again. Please be sure to RSVP by April 8th if you plan to attend. Next, we changed the date of the Tuna Tourney in August because it was on the same weekend as the Make a Wish Tuna Challenge and we did not want to catch all the fish and leave them none. The new dates for the tournament are August 17 and 18 with the seminar now set for the 10th. The last change we made was adding a pot luck/bingo night on Nov 16th. I know you all will want to come and celebrate my birthday with me on that night. The BOD will continue listening to you and make changes to the calendar to improve our events throughout the year.
The first tournament, Bay Bass, was held on March 23rd and 24th. Participation was good with 6 boats and 16 anglers entered. Bob Hargraves was top male angler, Aileen Sanchez top female angler and Brett Hargraves top junior angler. Radar was top boat. Thanks to all that entered and congrats to the winners.
Lobster season ended this month. Hope those that fished for them did well and don’t forget to turn in your lobster cards.
By this time, you should have either picked up or received in the mail your new membership card and Club directory. The directory looks great and contains a lot of information at a quick glance. Thanks to Kent Yamada for all his efforts in putting this directory together. I’m glad to have it and hope you are too.
Congrats go out to Shawn Kaus for March Fish-of-the-Month winner. He was fishing on Encounter and caught the 15# lingcod on the last day of March. Nothing like waiting until the last minute!!
The Southwestern Yacht Club Bottom Fishing Tournament is their big event for the year. It will be held on May 4th. Many of our members have fished it in the past and done extremely well. I would like to encourage as many of you as possible to fish in it. It is a fun but competitive event. I believe the more we participate in other club’s tournaments the more they will fish in our Heart Tournament which is a win-win for everyone. Here is a link to their entry form.
Speaking of the Heart Tournament it is never too early to think about donations for the raffle. This is the “heart” of our ability to donate money to the American Heart Association. I would like to ask every one of you to start thinking of where you might be able to get donations from. They do not have to be fishing orientated. Think of your favorite restaurant, your dog groomer, hair salon, etc. The more donations we get the more the Club and the AHA benefit. Also, we can always use more help in putting on the tournament so please let us know if you would like to pitch in.
Looking ahead to May we will be having a meeting/seminar on May 11th. Jeff “Zack” Zachry will be our guest speaker. He will be talking about how to fish for Bluefin tuna using a kite. He has caught numerous ones over 100# and has it wired. The following weekend, May 18th and 19th, will be the Halibut/White Seabass Tournament. Look for more information soon.
On a sad note, Donna Hargraves long time Treasurer of the Club, lost her brother this past month. The Club would like to send our deepest sympathy to her and her family and wish them the best in this time of sorrow.
So, until you hear from me next month Tight Lines and Following Seas, Dan Muslin
