Fishing Derby 2006

On Saturday, April 29^th the Andover Sportsmen’s Club hosted our 57^th annual Fishing Derby at Sudden Pond from 6AM-12PM. The weather was perfect, and 181 children registered for the event. With 400 beautiful trout stocked the prior day, plus the fish already in the pond, kids were pulling out fish left and right. Catching a Trout was the kids’ main objective, however there were Perch, Catfish and Pickerel snagged as well. What a joy it was to see the smiles on the children’s faces - especially the one’s who had just landed their first fish!

The prizes for the largest Trout were awarded as follows:

1. Jake Gostonian     age 15    21"               Andover

2. Jake Dalton            age  5    17 3/4"         Andover

3. Kenny Hill               age 13   16 3/8"         Andover

4. Becky LeHane       age   9   15 7/8"         Methuen

5. Kyle Leo                age   8    15" (2 fish)  Dracut

6. Pat Sullivan            age 14   15" (1 fish)   Andover

7. Samantha Pieroy   age  6    15" (1 fish)   North Andover

8. Matthew Reeves   age   5    14 1/2"        Andover

9. Erin Halloran          age 10   14 ½"           Byfield

Trophies were awarded for the top five Trout. We then gave two kids fishing poles, and another two kids received a pair of binoculars. All registered fishermen received a $10.00 gift certificate to Dick’s Sporting Goods in Danvers. There were plenty of donuts and pastries for breakfast, and hotdogs and hamburgers for lunch.

We would like to give a special thank you to Al Knod and Bob Andrews of Mass Wildlife for their assistance with our Derby. Dick’s Sporting Goods was very generous in supplying us with the gift certificates. Al Niedbrzydowski developed the 2006 flyer, Phil and Susan Parker ran the super grill, cooking burgers and dogs to perfection. Jimmy Lumbard and Al DesRoche handled the logistics of reserving our space, guarding the fish and clearing the shoreline for the kids. Patrick Carrette registered the fishermen in, and Gerry Woodmansee performed the official measuring, making even the smallest catches seem big in the eyes of their captors. Mark O’Brien donated two coolers full of drinks. Last but not least, we would like to very much thank one particular individual for whom this derby would not have happened without. It was the persistence of Ken Hartman, who pulled the entire event together. Thank you to all who made this annual event a success!

And the winners are...

Ken Hill, 3rd place.

Number One...

Gerry measuring Becky LeHane's 4th place fish, with brother Josh looking on.

The Three Musketeers

Lunchtime....