It’s a new year! 2011 was a terrific year for the club. Congratulations again to Rick Burton, Dave Evans and Mike Taylor, our reigning Anglers of the Year. Thanks also to the 2011 club officers, Mike Howie, Dan Griffin and Dennis Sclater, for their efforts to make 2011 a successful year. Finally, congratulations and good luck to the new officers for 2012: President: Dan Griffin, Vice President: Mike Peregrine, and Tournament Director: Bob Bullen.
Even though the regular season has ended, fishing continues. The 2011-2012 winter series has shown that fish can be caught year around in the Hampton Roads Area. Rick Burton is running this year’s tournament series and has done a great job. Everyone has a good time catching or talking about the ones they should have caught. Current Winter series standings are: Mike Peregrine and Vic Lopez fishing together at each tournament are in 1st place. Mike and Vic are followed closely by Rick Burton, and Josh Adkisson. Jim Carlson and Walt DeGraaf continue to bring in the impressive small fish of each tournament. It takes a special skill to catch fish that almost don’t register on the scale. It has been a terrific series, and if you’re up to the challenge, come on out and joint the fun. The next scheduled tournaments are January 7th, February 4th and February 18th. For the next two tournaments, we’ll be meeting at the BP on 460 and draw one of the Suffolk lakes, and the Feb 18 tournament we’ll fish the same lake that the first regular tournament is on.
Our annual meeting is January 14th at 1:00 PM. Bass Pro Shops in Hampton is letting us use their classroom in the back of the store. We will welcome back returning members and new members, hash out the schedule and review some of the club by-laws. Experienced or not, boater or non-boater, come on out and see what Bass-Jons is about and most of all have some fun fishing in 2012.
The “Hall of Fame” has been updated to reflect the 2011 milestones and check out the angler spotlight. Please take a moment to offer congratulations to those that are selected. If you would like to nominate someone for angler of the month, please contact the vice president, Mike Peregrine, at 757-510-8890, or
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Have a happy new year!
Sincerely,
Mike Peregrine
Vice President
After ending the regular season as Angler of the Year, Rick Burton capped off a great year with a banner performance at the Classic. Rick caught the largest fish in Bass-Jons club history by reeling in a 9.2oz giant at the Classic. This fish anchored their first place bag, allowing Rick and partner Huck Palmatier to take home the lion's share of the pot. What a way to close the Bass-Jons 2011 calendar!
Speaking of Angler of the Year, Rick Burton edged out Mike Peregrine by a total weight tiebreaker to take home the title. Both Rick and Mike had great seasons, along with Luther Showaker who finished in 3rd in the points standings. The Co-Angler of the Year title was won by Dave Evans, who triumphed over second place finisher Aida Lopez, again by a total weight tiebreaker. The Junior Angler of the Year title went to Mike Taylor, who fished on the family plan with Jim Carlson to take home his first Bass-Jons award. Finally, the Lunker of the Year award was shared by Roccoa Spurlin and Mike Kane at 6 lbs 14 oz. They caught their big fish at the Nottoway River and Lake Prince respectively. Congratulations to all who won awards, and to all anglers who constantly pushed the field all year!
Next up for Bass-Jons is the Awards Banquet, which will take place at Joe & Mimmas in Newport News on November 5, 2011 at 6:30pm. We hope to see everyone there.
Also, the Bass-Jons annual Winter Series will kick off on November 5th at the Hercules Ramp on the Nottoway River. The Winter Series is a way to shake off the cabin fever and compete for cash and bragging rights during the late fall and winter months. These tournaments are NOT open tournaments. There must be at least one Bass-Jons member in the boat, and there is an open guest policy (members can fish with whoever you want). This is a great way for returning members to stay sharp during the offseason and for prospective members to get a chance to see what Bass-Jons is all about. The rules are availble on the Club message board, and the start times and additional information will be listed on the Tourney Intents board. The schedule is as follows.
11/5/2011 Nottoway--Hercules Ramp
11/19/2011 Blackwater--Joyners Bridge
12/10/2011 Suffolk Lake/Draw
1/7/2012 Suffolk Lake/Draw
2/4/2012 Suffolk Lake/Draw
2/18/2012 Site of 1st Bass Jons Tourney
Also coming up will be officer elections for the 2012 season. Members should submit their nominations for President, Vice President, and Tournament Director on the Club message board. The election date and location will be posted on the message boards when it is finalized. Nominations will also be accepted in person on election day, and proxy votes are allowed (see by-laws for details about proxy voting).
In closing, it has been a great year for Bass-Jons. It has been a pleasure serving as Vice President, and I speak for Mike Howie (President) and Dennis Sclater (Tournament Director) in thanking all the members for participating in another successful season. The "State of the Club" is as strong as it has ever been, as we brought several new members into the fold to complement our experienced group of anglers. We look forward to moving forward in 2012 and beyond!
P.S. Don't forget to post fishing reports and articles! The website is only as good as its contributors, and that responsibility falls to everyone in the club.
Daniel Griffin
Bass-Jons Vice President / Webmaster
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June 2011 Newsletter
We are at the halfway point of the 2011 season, and as always, it is shaping up to be a great battle for the Bass-Jons awards. The Angler of the Year title is shaping up to be an epic battle. Defending champion Carlton "Moose" Wells has come on strong to take over the lead at the half-way point, but the 2nd and 3rd place anglers, Chaz Carrington and Rick Burton, are only one and two points behind respectively. After floating around the top two for most of the year, Mike Peregrine has slipped to 4th place, but is still within striking distance. To be crowned the winner, anglers will need to continue their top performances throughout the tough summer months.
Roccoa Spurlin leads the Lunker of the Year race with a 6 lb 14 oz giant caught on the Nottoway River. Catching the Lunker of the Year at the Nottoway would be the "upset of the year," and with the spawn behind us, the field of anglers will have a tough time topping that number as we move into summer fishing. However, it is never over until after the final tournament, and with the exception of Lake Meade, the club still makes a return trip to all the venues on the schedule.
The Co-Angler of the Year race is led by Bass-Jons rookie Marion Martin, who has quickly established himself as a top angler with high finishes at several events. Also, Michael Taylor leads the Junior Angler of the Year race on the strength of several top finishes with family plan partner Jim Carlson.
As we get into the hot summer months, it is important to remember to take extra good care of our resource, the bass. All of our lakes and rivers are outstanding fisheries due, in large part, to all of the area clubs and trails diligently practicing catch and release, and that starts with good fish care practices. Water temperatures in our lakes typically creep above 80 degrees and even into the 90's in the summer, and livewell temperatures are sure to be much higher. Remember to bring ice bottles or other cooling devices to keep the temperature low in the livewell, and run your aerators 100% of the time to ensure plenty of dissolved oxygen is delivered to the fish. Changing the water out during the day can be helpful, but remember that you are usually pumping in surface water, which is the warmest water in the lake. Studies have shown that keeping the same water, but controlling the environment with ice, constant aeration, and even "keep alive" livewell formulas, is a better practice. This prevents dead-fish penalties that can move you down the standings, but more importantly, it preserves your catch so our lakes can remain viable for years to come.
A few issues have come up related to tournaments that need to be addressed. The first is tiebreakers. Although exact ties may seem unlikely, we have had several this year with points implications. In one tourament, we had 3 ties for total weight, and in the case of a tie, the tiebreaker is the largest fish in your limit. That fish MUST BE WEIGHED to count as a tiebreaker. Estimation is not permitted. If you don't weigh a big fish, and your competitor does, they automatically get placed ahead of you. If neither boat weighs a big fish, the two will remain tied, earning equal points. We encourage you to always weigh a big fish, even if you aren't in the running for tournament big fish to serve as a tiebreaker, especially if you project yourself to be in the top 10.
The second issue is guests. Guests are granted on a first-come, first-served basis, and our paying non-boater members ALWAYS take priority over guests. Our member participation has been great this year, which is a good thing, so I encourage you to submit your intent early if you expect to bring a guest, Also, be prepared for your guest request to be denied if we can't field enough open backseats for our non-boaters. Regarding guest rules, you have to fish three tournaments in the pairings before you can bring another guest, and the same guest can only fish three tournaments throughout the season. There are no exceptions to these rules.
In closing, we have had an excellent season thus far, with participation at an all time high. We have not had fewer than 16 boats at any event, and most of our tournament fields feature 19 or more boats. We have raised over $200 through the 50/50 raffle, which will be paid out in cash and prizes at the Classic. Keep up the great work and remember to Share the Knowledge!
Daniel Griffin
Bass-Jons
March 2011 Newsletter
The 2011 Bass-Jons tournament season got off to a great start at Lake Meade, with 19 boats and warm temperatures creating an enjoyable and competitive atmosphere. Expectations were high for a good day on the water; the only problem is that the fish didn't get the memo. None of the 19 boats were able to bring a limit of 5 fish to the scales, and only two boats were able to bring in as many as 4 fish. The big fish didn't show up either, as 4lbs 4oz was good enough to win the big fish pot. Congratulations to Chaz Carrington for finding a few better fish and taking the early lead in the Angler of the Year race. As we did last year, we will be awarding Angler of the Year, Co-Angler of the Year, Junior Angler of the Year, and Lunker of the Year.
While Chaz currently also holds the Lunker of the Year lead with a 4lb 4oz big fish, that mark will most likely fall in the coming weeks. Next up on the Bass-Jons circuit is Lake Prince, which traditionally gives up some nice kicker fish in the spring. The March 19th full moon and forecast daytime temperatures mostly in the 50's for the next 10 days should get the bigger fish moving around. Then, in April, we will move into spawning season, with the Lake Cohoon and Western Branch tournaments lining up in the front half of the month. This should make for some great fishing (and big fish) in the next month or so.
The new website launched on February 11, and since then, we have had over 4,500 visits to the site, with over 1,500 unique visitors. I have had several suggestions for new items to add to the website that will be implemented in the coming weeks, so stay tuned! One new feature will be the 6 lb, 7lb, and 8 lb Clubs, for members who have caught fish that exceed these weights in Bass-Jons tournaments. Regarding site content, keep the fishing reports and message board entries coming. The site is only as good as the content generated by our visitors, and our membership should lead the way in contributing to message board chatter, fishing reports, and articles. If someone asks a question or wants advice on fishing our lakes and rivers, and you have an answer, go ahead and post it. If you have a fishing report you want to share, post it on the Fishing Reports board or send pictures to me to post on Latest Buzz. Again, our motto is "Share the Knowledge", and Bass-Jons members should always take the lead in helping our fellow fishermen.
In addition to our events, the Boot'legg trail kicked off their season the last week of February and holds their second event on March 13th. BassChasers holds their March event on March 20th. We strongly encourage our members to support these other open trails as much as possible and represent the club in a positive manner.
Finally, Bass-Jons' membership is currently open for Boaters to join our club. We currently have several non-boaters on our waiting list, and due to the imbalance between Boaters and Non-boaters on our current roster, these individuals will not be able to join and fish until we add a few more boaters. If you know of anyone that is interested in joining, have them contact one of our officers.
I look forward to seeing everyone on the water in the coming weeks.
Daniel Griffin
Bass-Jons Vice President
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