The club is open to all, but club events take place during the week and we meet at Chilson Senior Center in Loveland, CO. Our basic purpose is to fish, but we're easily distracted by the chance to work with youngsters or improve northern Colorado outdoor resources.
Norm Engelbrecht was always meticulous about his yard, and the leaves had been piling up since his passing, with Gail still a bit too frail to get out there with a rake.
So John Gwinnup put out a call for volunteers to help with a yard cleanup last Friday. About a dozen and a half friends turned out to make short work out of a pretty big task. Result: a spotless yard, ready for winter.
"A big thank you to all who did leaf cleanup," says Gail. "Blessings to everyone. It was wonderful.
Be on time, wear something festive, and don't forget the gift exchange.
Also, it'd be a great time to bring your dues to Treasurer Barb Ding - $25 for an individual, $30 for a couple.
There's no planned agenda, beyond a short video Tom Miller's lined up on ice fishing. If you want to participate in the gift exchange, wrap up something new, for around 10 bucks, and don't put your name on it.
We'll have coffee and cookies, and anything else you might want to share with the rest of the club. (I for one will never turn down a chocolate chip cookie. Or fudge.)
Here
is the semi-official motto of the Loveland Fishing Club, as posted on the
LFC blog masthead:
“We
fish by boat, by float tube, from the bank and in the stream waving a fly rod.
Some of us give our catch a little hello and goodbye kiss and set them free.
Others can show you how to fry, bake, pickle, smoke or make sushi out of just
about everything that swims.”
For years, that
motto was even simpler: “If it swims, someone in the Loveland Fishing Club
will be trying to catch it.” That goal is also at the heart of a brand-new competition – the “LFC Most Species of Fish
Contest.”
Details
will come. We’re still
arguing over a few things, like, should we lump some species together, for
club members who can’t tell the difference between a bluegill and a green
sunfish? I’ll bet even legendary club founder Tom Miller, who majored in some kind of fishy degree
way back before the mass migration of Californians to Colorado, probably can’t
tell the difference between a “Rio Grande” and “Mountain Sucker.” We’ll start
by limiting eligible species to the 46 listed in the Colorado Master Angler
Program. Here’s the link: Colorado
Parks & Wildlife - Apply for Master Angler Status (state.co.us)
Basically, the
crafty member who catches the most types of fish, during the period between
monthly meetings, will be declared “LFC Angler of the Month” for that monthThe
reward? Bragging rights, of course, along with free tickets for the club’s
monthly raffle: one ticket for each species, six tickets for the angler
credited with five or more distinct species.
In other words,
you get to compete in the raffle drawing for free, against lesser
anglers who will continue to be required to buy their own chances to win things like a gift card for
Perkins or Texas Roadhouse. That is admittedly a bit cheap as prizes go, I
guess, but, Hey. We are a nonprofit affiliation of retirees, not wealthy sportsmen
like Tom, Barb and Arnie. Some of us have to dig our own worms. Also, we
don’t want to make the contest so lucrative that some former club presidents will
be tempted to bend the rules, if you catch my drift.
Like any
contest worthy of the attention of legendary Colorado anglers, this one will
have rules. Just not many:
Folks, this is going to be a contest
built on integrity! While lying about fishing is an
honored, traditional art form among club members (and will continue to be
encouraged at vents like Friday breakfast), this is one contest built on a simple
reliance on truth – along with a reasonable knowledge of Colorado fish.
Which brings us
to the subject of Colorado fish species. The contest is being developed by club
newbie Darrell Knight, a veteran fisherman but one who honed his craft down in
Florida, where they have more types of fish than Colorado has fish. We
are never going to stock an aquarium with colorful exotics caught here in
Loveland; I’m afraid. Our water is scarce, fluctuates every time Karol
Stroscheim flushes the toilet, and filled with predators that will eat
everything including their own offspring.
Still, we have
enough variety in our fish population to keep this interesting. Following is a
link to a Wikipedia photo list of all types of fishes of Colorado,
including the 46 we’ll be fishing for. Damned if I’ve ever seen an “American
eel” here in the Rocky Mountain West. But you can prove me wrong in a few
months. We won’t require photos of entries, but welcome them just the same.
Here’s that link:
List of fishes of Colorado - Wikipedia
Handouts of the following form will be available at the December general meeting.
“Most
Species of Fish Contest” Rules and Entry Form
1)
The member who catches the most species of fish
between monthly meetings is “Angler of the Month” and earns free tickets for
that month’s raffle. One ticket per species, 6 for 5 or more species.
2)
The contest is for most different species
caught, not size.
3) Qualifying
species are the 46 listed in the Colorado Master Angler Program
4) You
must fill out an Entry Form to qualify. Contest relies on the Honor System.
Photos welcomed.
5)
The Entry Form must be turned in to the
Raffle Master before the start of each meeting, so they may announce that
month’s official “Angler of the Month” prior to the raffle.
Use the form below:
Member’s
Name ______________________
Month______________________________________
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Fish species |
Quantity |
Pond, lake or stream |
Lure or bait |
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