There are a few species and issues on the radar that the recreational community should be concerned about. We all need to pay attention to the issues on what the size and catch limits options that are being proposed. We can’t rely on only a few voices but we must be there in many voices to get the fair share of the resource or access. We at JCAA attend many meetings each month to get the latest update information and put it together and then get it out to each of the clubs. I hope there are others that are not in a club that do their research and get involved. In the JCAA Newsletter there are articles written by the people that are attending all these meeting for you, so read them carefully because there is a lot of important information for you to understand.
On February 26th we had for the first time an open meeting to invite any associate member or non- member club that is interested in seeing how JCAA holds its meeting. We had a nice crowd that attended this special meeting and a lot was accomplished that night. The people that were there asked a few important questions and they are amazed of all the things that have to deal with fisheries. I will hold another one of these open meetings later in the year, so pay attention to the JCAA Newsletter, website and Facebook Page for that date. I would like to thank Past President Paul Haertel and his wife Linda for coordinating all the refreshments. Special thanks to Linda for the homemade cookies.
The show and flea market season has come to an end for JCAA. I would like to thank all the volunteers that put hours at all the shows manning the JCAA Booth. As you should know, JCAA was at the New Jersey Beach Buggy Association Flea Market (Jan. 26), 2019 Salt Water Sportsman National Seminar Series (Feb. 9), Atlantic City Boat Show (Feb. 27 to Mar. 3), Fish Hawks Fishing Club Flea Market (Mar. 9) and The Saltwater Fishing Expo (Mar. 15 to 17). This year for the 1st time at the Atlantic City Boat Show we had the Fluke Tournament’s grand Prize on display. It was the 14’ StarCraft powered by a Yamaha outboard and it was sitting on a Yacht Club Trailer. I would like to take this time to give a special thanks to the major sponsors StarCraft, Yamaha and Yacht Club Trailers for their endless efforts working to have the grand prize at the show. I give Paul Turi a lot of credit during this whole process with coordinating between the sponsors and the Atlantic City Boat Show making sure we had a booth big enough for the boat and our booth. I take my hat off to him for all the hours he spent handling it.
This year’s Annual Fluke Tournament will be held on June 15th. The Fluke Tournament Committee has mailed out the 1st mailing to anglers that have participated in past years. In that mailing is the entry form and some of the JCAA High Roller Tickets. The High Roller this year is going to be drawn on May 9th, so if you want to be in the drawing make sure you have the tickets filled out with the proper amount and returned before May 9th. There are Fluke Tournament entries coming in as I am writing this column. Make sure to enter early to take advantage of the early entry fee. If you have any questions about the Fluke Tournament, please call the JCAA Office.
I have been at some of the member clubs to speak. If you would like me or an officer to speak at your club, please send an email to mtsport64@aol.com and in the subject put “Speak at Club.”
The next JCAA General Meeting is April 30th at 385 Herbertsville Road, Brick NJ, 08724. Make sure you mark your calendar. Remember, JCAA is always here for you, but we need more people to get involved to help protect the future of our fisheries.
