Mid-Year Thoughts

     I apologize this is a bit late this month but I was on a long needed vacation with the family.  Seems there's never enough time to do everything that you want to do.  I realized that I have not been fishing since Sacandaga and ask myself where did the weekends go?  Yes, time does go by quickly and we find ourselves already in July and half way through our tournament season.  I'd like to pass on some of my thoughts at this point and what is going on in the club right now.

     After the first three tournaments, I am happy to see such a mixture of anglers having success.  We've had a rookie non-boater win the first tournament he's ever fished with us.  We've welcomed the return of 2-time Angler of the year John Ernest, who has placed in each of his first two tournaments back.  We've had other non boaters like Bob Murphy and Eddie Schickman place at Sacandaga along with John Willims winning lunker.  With some challenging tournaments yet to come, I hope to see a few others also step up into the winners circle. 

     The standings also show the diversity, or some might say parity.  I am very fortunate to be sitting on top right now, but being in this club a long time, I know to enjoy the time while it last because it can change in a heartbeat.  Right on my tail is Andy Karcich who is having yet another strong season and is always a threat.  Pat and Steve are 3rd and 4th and always seem to near the top of the standings while John Hayden and Eric Lehmann are both staking their top six claims at the mid-point.  Then is a sight that I am very happy to see.  Two good friends, Ed Schickman and John Giordano are currently tied for 7th place overall and the Top Non-Boater title.  I hope these two can keep up their consistency which should make for an exciting finish.  With the night tournament coming up, I do expect to see Renato Santos make a charge to challenge these guys, especially since he's fishing with his buddy Jason.  If they can avoid killing each other at Candlewood, these two should bring some heavy sacks to the weigh-in.

     As a club, I am very proud to see the return of the fellowship that we have long had.  We have our kids tournament and our open buddy event coming up along with a Club buddy tournament on Mahopac in August.  Before you know it, the Classic will be here and I think we're all looking forward to a fantastic time at Champlain!  There have been various road trips and it's great to see members getting together for trips like Champlain on Memorial Day and Black Lake for the 4th of July.

     Financially, the club is doing fine but our annual raffle helps support many of our functions.  We absolutely need each member to push hard on selling tickets.  Try this, don't just take the minimum, take 10 more and sell them.  If everyone did that, it would bug a huge lift for us.  Our Classic and Awards dinner is costing more this year and those are bills we've yet to pay out. 

     To recap, I can't say enough about how proud I am to be a member of this club.  Although other obligations sometimes prevent me from joining in all of the activities, I'm happy to see that they're out there for the members to partake in and enjoy.  Yes, the Bergen Bassmasters are a tournament fishing club but we shouldn't limit ourselves to that description.  We are much, much more and it thanks to all of you, the membership.  Keep up the great work and let's have a fantastic second half to the season!

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