Presidents report for May

Welcome to the May newsletter

Theirs not a lot to report on this month, most weekends have produced rough weather and not a lot of fishing, those lucky enough to get out during the week have found the snapper are still feeding well off the beaches and around Mottiti.

A topic of discussion in NZBGFC lately has been courtesy weighs, this is when members of a club want a fish weighed on another clubs scales. All clubs as a requirement, before joining the NZ Big Game Fishing Council, must have a weigh station or an agreement with a nearby affiliated club to use theirs. They are also to provide courtesy weighing for visiting anglers. This second requirement is causing concern amongst many of our clubs and I wish to elaborate for the benefit of all, how the Management Committee have interpreted this rule.

Firstly, it is exactly as it says "a courtesy" and cannot be demanded of any club by a visiting angler. There are many situations where clubs weigh stations are closed or in full use and cannot provide an immediate weigh. The visiting angler should attempt to establish contact with the club or weigh station they intend using to find out hours of service and availability of the weigh station, some clubs have very strict weigh times and don’t weigh fish outside of those times..

The courtesy service provided does not imply that it will be free and all clubs have various levels of expense in maintaining the service. The outcome has been that for this service a club may charge a fee to the angler to have their fish courtesy weighed. So please if your fishing in another clubs waters and want your fish courtesy weighed please make yourself familiar with their weigh times and respect them if they charge you for it, after all it is a courtesy that they are providing.

Another thing to remember when courtesy weighing a fish it is the anglers responsibility to get a copy of the catch card and return it to your respectful clubs secretary within 14 days of the catch. Do not rely on the club courtesy weighing the fish to forward the catch card. Failure to meet these requirements will mean your fish can not be recognised.

Don’t forget to pencil in the clubs AGM and Prizegiing dates on your calendar.

Tight lines

Mark