A fantastic derby weekend!

This past weekend was the 2015 Ecological Adventures NB Paddler's Derby.    This is the second year that I have held the organizer role for this event, and while it is a ton of work, it is also tremendously rewarding.    This particular derby, moreso than any I've ever been involved with before was the most special for me as Rowan, my 4 year old, wanted to compete as well, and he did an amazing job!

The weather was wonderful from Friday afternoon through to the end of the event Saturday evening.   Many anglers opted to camp on site again and I had a great time catching up with friends I don't often get to see.

The event went off without any major issues through the day.   None of the 39 anglers tipped over, everyone caught fish, and there were 13 species caught in total through the day.   After getting through the paperwork, we ended up raising $650 for the Oromocto River Watershed Association to put towards the protection, conservation and enjoyment of the river sytem.

Some of the guys found a nice spot to take a break

Come the end of the day, all the prizes had been laid out among 4 tables, with a kids table, a table for larger prizes, then shirts/hats, and finally an assortment of lures, glasses, line, and other smaller items.  First the kids came up and collected their prizes and then each participant from first place down to  35th came up and selected one item from each of the other three tables.    This approach, while not initially planned, ended up working out as a great format for presenting prizes!

Some of the guys pre-fishing on Friday

As usual Ryan Anderson won the event with 10 species.   I came in a very respectable 6th place with 8 species, but would have gotten third if only the huge pickerel that got off my line just as I was getting my net in the water was landed.

Andrew with his sons Caleb and Jayden

The star of the show was Rowan.   At 4 years old he landed 6 species (including a pickerel which I couldn't get), and would have come in 11th place among the adults.    He easily won the youth division and was overjoyed to select a fantastic snorkelling set, along with a Cabela's Rod and his medal!   Rowan wore his snorkel set home in the Jeep, then took it into the tub and finally wanted to sleep with it on that night!  :-)

My first ever Red Brest Sunfish

The winner of the kayak which was once again generously donated by Paul Wright of Eco-Logical Adventures was Bob Duchesneau who was the original organizer of this event.   It's great to see Bob win the kayak after all he contributed to the event over the years!    We had a lot of new faces this year, and everyone seemed to have a great time.   I'm sure as word of mouth continues to spread, next year will be bigger and better once again!

If you missed out on this event, we are doing it all again on August 22nd, this time on the Hammond River.   Old Town has donated a Predator XL to give away at this one, and I've already lined up even more great prizes, so make your plans and register today!    Oh, if you register and pay by July 15th you'll be entered into the early bird draw of a rod/reel and line combo!

Derby this weekend!

Anyone in the Maritime with an interest in kayak or canoe fishing should give serious consideration to coming to Oromocto this weekend.   The Annual NB Paddler's Derby, renamed this year to the Ecological Adventures Paddler's Derby in honor of the tremendous support given by them every year, is on Saturday.

Since volunteering to take over the organizer role for this event as well as the Hammond River Classic in early 2014, I've been fortunate to gather support from a number of fantastic companies in the kayak fishing industry.   As such we many more and much better prizes lined up for this year's event!    Rods, Paddles, accessories, lures, tackle, and more will all be up for prizes this year.   It's a good thing too because already there are 36 people pre-registered for the event, meaning we will very likely bust through the 50 participant mark for the first time ever!

Of course, the big prize, a new fishing kayak, will be given away randomly!    All paid participants will receive a ticket after the regular prizes are given away and we will then randomly draw for the kayak, so regardless of what you may think of your fishing skills, come on out and perhaps walk away with the best prize of the day!

The derby is set up to be non-competitive, fun and welcoming to new anglers, as I was my first time there in 2013.    It is a multi-species catch-photo-release format.   Basically you want to catch as many different types of fish as you can, get their picture, and release the fish.   You only turn in your phone or memory card at the end of the day showing the fish that you caught.     The person with the most species will pick their prize first, then second,...and so forth.

I'll have the prizes set up, as best I can, so that they are as even as I can make them.    I will not distribute the prizes for the top few finishers to receive all the 'good stuff'.   I expect to have at least 20 prizes that are valued at $30 - $200 in value, and then more prizes beyond that all above $15 in value to ensure all participants get a prize.     At least that is my goal.    Every participant will receive an online subscription to Kayak Angler Magazine as well!     That's pretty great for a derby with just a $30 entry fee ($20 for youth, free for young kids with a parent).

Participants are welcome to come on Friday, set up a tent and camp onsite for the night.  It's a great way to meet some other fishermen, share stories and get some tips.   

So if your available this weekend, come on out!     Pre-register on the website if you can, as that will help keep things moving quickly on the morning of the derby.