|
Jamaica Bay Kayak Fishing Tournament Helps Protect
New York City's Natural Resources
$3980 Raised for Friends of Gateway and Casting for Recovery
Floyd Bennett Field, NY. - Kayak Fishing Stuff, Inc., the national leader
in kayak fishing, today hosted its second annual Jamaica Bay
charity kayak fishing tournament. One hundred and twenty-eight
anglers from 11 states participated in this event and generated
almost $4,000 for two nonprofit organizations. The proceeds
benefited Friends of Gateway, a group dedicated to protecting
and improving access to the New York metro region's Gateway
National Recreation Area (NRA), and Casting for Recovery,
a national support and educational program for women who have
or have had breast cancer.
The event is designed to increase awareness of the natural
resources offered by the Jamaica Bay area and to promote environmentally
friendly activities such as kayak fishing. In keeping with
the conservation theme, this was a catch-and-release tournament.
"New York City certainly isn't the first place most
people think of when fishing the flats," said Joe Cambria,
co-founder of Kayak Fishing Stuff, Inc. and director of the
IKFA. "But anglers today got into some solid action,
thanks to the blues, stripers and weakfish."
Anglers started to arrive at Floyd Bennett Field, Brooklyn
the night before. Kayak Fishing Stuff, Inc. offered kayak
fishing demonstrations throughout the day. Competitors fished
everything from bunker chunks to saltwater flies and consistently
hooked up with a variety of gamefish.
"We're proud to be recognized by the tournament,"
said Seline Skoug, Executive Director, Casting for Recovery.
In the Open Division, first place went to Chad Hoover, 36"
striped bass; second place went to Chris Voorhies, 35 1/2"
striped bass, and tied for third were Jim Tucciarone, 33 1/2"
weakfish and Jeff Lopez, 33 1/2 striped bass. In the Fly Division,
first place went to Dan Duleboln, 33" striped bass; second
place went to Steve Liesman, 29" 1/2 weakfish, and third
went to Dave Petrosa, 28 1/2" striped bass. Steve Liesman
also won the
prize for a grand slam with a 29 1/2" weakfish, a 23
1/2" striped bass and a bluefish
Gateway NRA, America's first urban national park, is located
in the heart of the New York metropolitan area. This 26,000-acre
park extends through three New York City boroughs and into
northern New Jersey. The Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, a unit
of Gateway NRA, is comprised of diverse habitats, including
salt marsh, upland field and woods, several fresh and brackish
water ponds and an open expanse of bay and islands.
###
|
|
