Monthly Beacon Article

Fishing club holds car wash and bake sale to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters

The FH Fishing Club and Big Brothers Big Sisters would like to thank everyone in Fairfield for your generous support at the carwash/bake sale August8,attheCommunity Center. We raised over $1200. This is in addition to the $680 (and counting) in direct contributions over the past two weeks. Once again, you have demonstrated what a wonderful community we all live in.
Jim Cline

This “Little” was one of the smaller washers who helped out at the car wash at the Community Center.

Fishing Club members held a car wash at the Community Center as a fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Fishing Club

The Fairfield Harbour Fishing Club met on August 5. Plans for the Big Red Challenge on August 15 were finalized.Thisisthethirdyearofthechallengetocatch a large red drum with the most spots. In the past, the contestpittedFairfieldHarbouranglersagainstthose in the New Bern Fishing Club. Fairfield won the first contest in 2007 and New Bern won in 2008. The 2009 contest will be a three-way challenge and include the newly formed Oriental Fishing Club.
Members watched two outstanding DVDs. The first was produced by Gus Villanova and showed all the action and activities from the FHFC/Big Brothers Big Sisters Take-A-Kid-Fishing event in June. The Fishing Club continues to support this organization and is planning fund-raising activities to further help them.
The second DVD was presented by the evening’s speaker, Captain Gary Dubiel of Spec Fever Guide Service in Oriental. It was a segment of the Carolina Sportsman Show that, not surprisingly, featured Gary catching speckled trout in a local (but unnamed) creek. Gary also discussed catching the “big reds,” largereddrum,thataremovingintothelowerNeuse. He talked about the best depths to fish, the various shoals where they can be found and showed club members the Lupton rig, utilizing a large (10 O is common) circle hook on a short leader, to prevent hooking the fish too deeply. The result is a much higher success rate in efforts to catch-and-release these venerable old drum. With the Big Red Challenge coming up, the audience was most attentive. At least one club member will be fishing with Gary prior to the Challenge.
The club is planning a pig pickin’ for October 7 at Red Sail. The event will feature a fund-raising auction conducted by Elmer Stenzel. The club has scheduled a week-long fishing expedition to Ocracoke for May. Twenty anglers on six boats have already signed up.
In response to requests from members, a series of “how to” sessions is being scheduled. Currently plannedtopicsincludethrowingtechniquesforusing a cast net with Bob Bruggeworth, snelling hooks and makingLuptonrigswithWayneMassetti,testingfor ethanolwithGerryManfredi,andsuccessfulflounder fishingwithTerryMeier.Additionalsessionsaddressing speckled trout, red drum and other local species are also planned. Theclubwelcomednew memberJimLundyfrom NewBern.VinnieInfinito won the evening’s 50/50 raffle.