Congratulations to Hymie Steyn for his re-election as the Vice President of CIPS.

CIPS (International Angling Federation) consist of 137 National Federations with 50.1 million members.

From left to right. Mr.F.Szalay (new President ) Mr.Marcel Ordan (outgoing President) Mr.G.Ferrari (Gen.Sec) Hymie Styn (Vice President)

Nick Nel        

EVENT PHOTO ALBUM...CLICK HERE

The opening function of the 2013 Tuna Nationals took place last night (13 May 2013). This years event is hosted by Atlantic Boat Club, Hout Bay under WPDSAA.

9 teams have entered:

Mpumalanga
Northerns
Border
Southern Cape
SADSAA
Zululand
Free State
Eastern Province
Western Province

The general word is that there are some very nice fish around at the moment with reports of a number of 80 Kg + Yellowfin that have been landed over the last few days and by all accounts, the 10Kg line class will seriously be streched over the next few days.

Day 1 - 14 May 2013

Not a breath of wind this morning and with the recent weather, it looks like a flat day in the deep.

Scales will open at 16:00.

Scales: A great days fishing! Perfect weather conditions in the deep and a good show at the scales with good bags and a few nice fish including a Longfin over 30 Kg's.

Congratulations to Robin Vermaak on boat Sea Spirit who landed an 82.15 Kg Yellowfin after a 1 hour 45 minute battle.

Also a big hand to Marius Coetzee of Team SADSAA with his 63.20 Kg Yellowfin.

Results Day 1:

Day 2 - 15 May 2013

An even better days fishing than Day 1, over 85 fish were landed on 8 of the boats.

The anglers got a little wet but other than the rain the conditions in the deep were again very comfortable.

The best 2 Yellowfin weighted in over 55 Kg's and 65 Kg's.

Results Day 2:

Day 3 - 16 May 2013

A tough days fishing. Good bags of small fish made it to the scales with only one Yellowfin just making the minimum weigh.

There were a few decent Longfin around the mid 20Kg mark.

One angler fought a nice fish for nearly 5 hours before loosing it at the gunnels.

Results Day 3:

Day 4 - 17 May 2013

There was a worry about the weather but the fleet did get out to sea today. There are early reports of poor catches, on this, the last day of the competition.

Scales: A disapointing 9 Longfin were weighed in today but 4 consecutive days of angling is nearly unheard of.

The Selectors did a fantastic job on selction of the SADSAA Team who won the competition with a lead of over 3000 points over the 2nd place, Southern Cape with Zululand coming in in third place.

Final Results:

Winning Team- SADSAA
Marius Coetzee, Dale Hattingh (Cpt), Dawie van Zyl

RESULTS DAY 5 - 10 May 2013:

PROVINCIAL:

PROVINCE BOAT NAME POINTS

SGDSA BACKLINE 258.00

NORTHERNS RED MADONNA 69.97

NATAL ME STEPH 63.98

NORTHERNS BLUE OOM SEA-BREEZE 31.97

MPUMALANGA BLUE HOTLINE 7.18

MPUMALANGA ASSOCIATION EVENTUALLY 6.68

CLUBS:

TARATIBO REEL SHINE 301.69

NELSPRUIT BLACK MAGIC 300.00

TARATIBO MRS SEEVARKIE 165.94

KONING MAKRIEL SHK 4 FISHING 33.59

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB ROCK-A-BELLY 4.98

COMMENTS:

BLACK MARLIN RELEASED BY KOBUS VAN ZYL ON BOAT REEL SHINE

RESULTS DAY 4 - 9 May 2013:

PROVINCIAL:

PROVINCE BOAT NAME POINTS

SGDSA BACKLINE 258.00

NORTHERNS RED MADONNA 69.97

NORTHERNS BLUE OOM SEA-BREEZE 23.97

MPUMALANGA BLUE HOTLINE 7.18

MPUMALANGA ASSOCIATION EVENTUALLY 6.68

NATAL ME STEPH 5.66

CLUBS:

NELSPRUIT BLACK MAGIC 300.00

TARATIBO MRS SEEVARKIE 165.94

KONING MAKRIEL SHK 4 FISHING 33.59

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB ROCK-A-BELLY 4.98

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB REEL SHINE 1.69

COMMENTS:

DORADO 15.1KG ON 10KG LINE AND DORADO 16.8KG ON 37KG LINECLASS

RESULTS DAY 3 - 8 May 2013:

PROVINCIAL:

PROVINCE BOAT NAME POINTS

SGDSA BACKLINE 258.00

NORTHERNS OOM SEA BREEZE 23.97

MPUMALANGA ASSOSIATION EVENTUALLY 6.68

NORTHERNS RED MADONNA 4.30

MPUMALANGA BLUE HOTLINE 1.25

CLUBS:

NELSPRUIT BLACK MAGIC 300.00

TARATIBO MRS SEEVARKIE 165.94

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB ROCK-A-BELLY 4.98

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB REEL SHINE 1.69

COMMENTS:

DAY BLOWN OUT AT 09h10

RESULTS DAY 2 - 7 May 2013 :

PROVINCIAL:

PROVINCE BOAT NAME POINTS

SGDSA BACKLINE 240.00

NORTHERNS OOM SEA BREEZE 23.97

MPUMALANGA ASSOSIATION EVENTUALLY 6.68

NORTHERNS RED MADONNA 4.30

MPUMALANGA BLUE HOTLINE 1.25

CLUBS:

NELSPRUIT BLACK MAGIC 300.00

TARATIBO MRS SEEVARKIE 12.12

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB ROCK-A-BELLY 4.98

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB REEL SHINE 1.69

OUTSTANDING CATCHES:

BLUE MARLIN Released by Kobus Engelbrecht on the Boat BLACK MAGIC

SAILFISH Released by Wessel Grimbeek on the Boat BACK LINE

WAHOO caught by Linda du Preez possible SA Ladies Record 24.7Kg on 10Kg line

RESULTS DAY 1 - 6 May 2013:

PROVINCIAL:

PROVINCE BOAT NAME POINTS

NORTHERNS YELLOW OOM C-BREEZE 23.97

MPUMALANGA ASSOCIATION EVENTUALY 6.68

NORTHERNS RED MADONNA 4.30

CLUBS:

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB ROCK-A-BELLY 4.98

TARATIBO SKIBOOTKLUB REEL SHINE 1.69

Marine Recreational Fishing's Economic Impact Rivals Commercial Sector
Recreational fishing is an economic powerhouse despite overall lower impact
on fisheries

Alexandria, VA – May 6, 2013 - A report released today by the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) makes a powerful case that from an economic perspective, recreational fishing is just as important as commercial fishing, despite a much lower overall impact on the resource. According to the report, anglers landed just two percent of the total saltwater landings compared to ninety-eight percent caught by the commercial fishing industry.

This first-of-its-kind analysis - Comparing NOAA’s Recreational and Commercial Fishing Economic Data, May 2013 - provides an apples-to-apples comparison of recreational and commercial marine fishing from an economic perspective using NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Services (NOAA Fisheries) 2011 economic data. The report was produced for ASA by Southwick Associates. The full report and executive summary are available on ASA’s website.

“It’s something we’ve suspected for some time, but NOAA’s own data clearly shows that recreational saltwater fishing needs to be held in the same regard as commercial fishing,” said ASA President and CEO Mike Nussman. “The current federal saltwater fisheries management system has historically focused the vast majority of its resources on the commercial sector, when recreational fishing is found to have just as significant an economic impact on jobs and the nation’s economy.”

Among the findings are:

• Anglers landed just two percent of the total saltwater finfish landings compared to ninety-eight percent caught by the commercial fishing industry.
• Saltwater landings by anglers contributed three times more to the national gross domestic product (GDP, or value-added) than commercial landings.
• The recreational sector added $152.24 in value-added, or GDP, for one pound of fish landed, compared to the commercial sector’s $1.57 for a single pound of fish.
• Within the jobs market, the recreational sector made up fifty-four percent of all jobs, both recreational and commercial. This amounts to 455,000 recreational jobs compared to 381,000 on the commercial side.
• For every 100,000 pounds landed there were 210 recreational fishing jobs but only 4.5 jobs in the commercial fishing industry.

Nussman further noted, “We’re not releasing this report in an effort to demean commercial fishing. Commercial fishing is very important to our nation’s economy! Our goal is to highlight the importance of recreational fishing to the nation. As our coastal populations continue to grow, along with saltwater recreational fishing, significant improvements must be made to shape the nation’s federal fisheries system in a way that recognizes and responds to the needs of the recreational fishing community.”

The Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), the primary law governing marine fisheries management in the U.S., was originally passed in 1976 and has been reauthorized several times since. While the MSA has made significant strides to eliminate non-domestic fishing in U.S. waters and end overfishing, many in the recreational fishing community have argued that the law is written primarily to manage commercial fishing and does not adequately acknowledge or respond to the needs of recreational fishing.

“For decades federal management of recreational fishing has been like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole,” said Nussman. “Perhaps the MSA was written to focus on the commercial sector because that’s where 98 percent of the overall harvest is taken. But when you consider that the economic impacts of the two sectors are similar, it makes a strong case for revamping the MSA to better meet the needs of the recreational fishing community.”

The MSA expires at the end of fiscal year 2013 (September 30, 2013), though many expect that a full reauthorization will take a year or longer to develop. On March 13, 2013, the House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee held an oversight hearing focusing on the MSA reauthorization, and more hearings are expected this year and beyond.

Nussman concluded, “ASA and our partners in the recreational fishing community look forward to working with Congress to develop reasonable legislative solutions that will produce a federal fisheries management system that finally works for, not against, recreational fishing.”

The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) is the sportfishing industry’s trade association committed to representing the interests of the entire sportfishing community. We give the industry a unified voice, speaking out on behalf of sportfishing and boating industries, state and federal natural resource agencies, conservation organizations, angler advocacy groups and outdoor journalists when emerging laws and policies could significantly affect sportfishing business or sportfishing itself. ASA invests in long-term ventures to ensure the industry will remain strong and prosperous, as well as safeguard and promote the enduring social, economic and conservation values of sportfishing in America. ASA also gives America's 60 million anglers a voice in policy decisions that affect their ability to sustainably fish on our nation's waterways through KeepAmericaFishing™, our angler advocacy campaign. America’s anglers generate over $48 billion in retail sales with a $115 billion impact on the nation’s economy creating employment for more than 828,000 people.

EVENT PHOTO ALBUM...CLICK HERE

28 April 2013

Registration and Skipper briefing took place this evening. The event will be running from 28 April to the 4 May 2013, best 4 days fishing.

Day 1- 29 April 2013

The locals have reported a few Yellowfin around the 50Kg mark in the last few days.

20 Boats made their cross and left early for the Tuna grounds. Conditions were near perfect at launch but the SE wind has picked up a little inshore since.

Lines up at 15:00 today and scales open from 16:00 to 18:00.

Scales: Some very nice Longfin made it to the scales as well as 2 very nice Yellowfin (details are being witheld until the last day). One boat landed a mixed bag of 7 fish but most presented two's and three's.

Conditions are looking very good for tomorrow.

Day 2 - 30 April 2013

What a perfect day on the water; conditions couldn't have been better. 

The sea was flat in the deep, there was no wind and the dirty water that has been hampering catches recently started to clear up.  The result? Bigger and better catches on Day 2. A few of those big Longfin we saw on Day 1 were brought to scales (upward of 26 Kg's). Better sized Yellowfin were also presented with the biggest fish, so far, coming in over 65Kg's.

The forecase for Day 3 is looking good. Weather is playing ball and apparently the warming water is moving in. Hoping for a few bombers at scales tomorrow.

Day 3 - 1 May 2013

The bay is flat with a very slight breeze this morning and the anglers got away early.

Scales: A very nice days catch! Some very nice sized Longfin made it to the scales again and for the third day running bigger Yellowfin were presented; 2 over the 70 Kg mark.

Day 4 - 2 May 2013

The rest of the competition  was called off due to bad weather.

OFFSHORE CLASSIC RESULTS:
YELLOWFIN:
1. 76.60kg JP Rupert - SPOORLOOS
2. 71.85kg Patrick Christodoulou - MAGOOFTER
3. 68.05kg Nishaad Ibrahim - GUNNERS
4. 65.55kg Louis Becker - MAGOOFTER
5. 64.80kg Delano Goldberg - MAGOOFTER
6. 60.75kg Ron Penninkhof - SKIPJACK
7. 60.35kg Andrew Davidson - LIANELLE
8. 59.50kg Pieter Eksteen - LIANELLE
9. 58.75kg Andrew Davidson - LIANELLE
10. 58.05kg Gido - SPOORLOOS
LONGFIN:
1. 29.64kg Glen Duncan - LYNX
2. 28.10kg Leonie Penninkhof - SKIPJACK (Also TOP LADY)
3. 27.90kg John Beighton - BAD ROMANZ
4. 27.20kg Bradley Bartlett - TYLER
5. 26.95kg Leonard Engelke - MAGNIFICENT
6. 26.35kg Johan van Rooyen - BLADE
7. 25.70kg Patrick Christodoulou - MAGOOFTER
8. 24.95kg Errol Cronje - BLADE
9. 24.80kg David Wolhuter - SKIPJACK
10. 24.75kg Steve Ewels - SKIPJACK
11. 24.25kg William Jackson - BLADE
TOP BOAT: 1. MAGOOFTER - Patrick
2. LIANELLE - Pieter 3. BLU WATER - Rian

The comp started on a great footing with 21 boat and 93 anglers participating. The first two days were hard fishing with little reward but Wednesday saw the fleet find some good fish! The weather was kind unlike the previous few years and three full days were fished! Some good battles were fought with some individuals achieving personal bests. The most notable achievement was Leonie Penninkof who not only landed the second biggest Longfin of the comp,28.10kg, but she also managed to bait, fight and land her first Yellowfin ever weighing in at 37.95kg! Bradley Bartlet the only junior of the comp managed to land the 4^th biggest longfin of 27,2 kg’s while fishing on Tyler. The prestigious top boat prize went to Patrick and his crew on Magoofter, and the top fish for the comp was a yellowfin of 76.60kg caught by JP Rupert on the vessel Spoorloos!

The top longfin:

3^rd John Beighton on Bad Romaz 27.90kg

2^nd Leonie Penninkof on Skipjack 28.10kg

1^st  Glen Duncan on Lynx 29.64kg

Top Yellowfin:

3^rd Nishaad Ibrahim on Gunners 68.05kg

2^nd Patrick Christodoulou on Magoofter 71.85kg

1^st JP Rupert on Spoorloos 76.60kg 

A special thanks needs to go out to the sponsors for their prises and cash contributions and all those who helped to make this comp a successful one. Next year is lining itself up to be even bigger and better, see you there!