BASS FISHING COMES TO ALABAMA HIGH SCHOOLS
Decatur, AL – On Saturday, March 6, 2010 youth bass angling took a giant step forward in the State of Alabama with the inaugural qualifying high school bass fishing tournament out of the famous Ingalls Harbor on Wheeler Lake, Decatur, Alabama. The event had the participation of (16) teams from (10) separate high schools in the state, with over (25) schools in the development stage. Alabama is now the 2nd state in the nation (Illinois being the first) to take the sport of bass fishing to the high school level.
The success of the event was the result of team work effort on the part of Tim Tidwell of Birmingham, founding member of the Alabama High School Bass Fishing Club: Rose Ellis also of Birmingham – a former touring PRO from the WBT circuit; Karen Steward from Wetumpka sponsoring the Central Alabama Jr. Bassmasters; Blake Gowen, Youth Director of the Junior Bassmasters of North Alabama and member of Bassmasters of North Alabama; Michael Moore, Eddie Borden, Janet Borden, and Don Gowen of Bassmasters of North Alabama; Mitchell Gowen of the Junior Bassmasters of North Alabama; and Chuck Barkley and Hale Smith of www.yourschoollive.com who provided live stream coverage of the weigh-in. Blake is also Team Manager for the Decatur Heritage Christian Academy Bass Fishing Club, the host club for the event, which fielded two teams for the tournament. Michael and Janet provided hot dogs and refreshments for the tournament participants and tournament workers at the professionally conducted tournament. And we had the support of Tammy Reist with the Decatur-Morgan County Convention Bureau and the Decatur Parks and Recreation Department.
Decatur Heritage Christian Academy expanded their program to include classroom and pond bass fishing instruction with (12) elementary school students with Don Gowen, Michael Moore, and Eddie Borden serving as instructors. While they had some reservation that the development of the high school bass fishing club program would hinder the development of the Junior Bassmasters of North Alabama youth club which BMNA sponsored, they found the opposite to be true. Thus far, they have attracted several new youth club members from the high school programs to the JBMNA club.
Tim Tidwell has guided a group of interested individuals from all over the state in the planning and organizational stages for the development of bass fishing in Alabama High Schools. With the encouragement and efforts of like minded individuals like Blake Gowen and Norman Brown, the word is spreading and leaders are stepping forward to install and help develop bass fishing clubs in high schools all over the state. Blake said, “I can’t say enough about the support we received from Decatur Heritage Christian Academy and principal Jeremy Jones and their staff – they have been behind this endeavor 100%.” “Our teams had the time of their lives and also enjoyed the practice rounds before the tournament. One even made the statement “that we looked like the PROS in our high school tournament. It can’t get any better than this!!!!”
Parents are becoming involved in the new program just like they do in t-ball and other high school activities and the newly formed clubs are being supported by bass clubs throughout the region with boats and boat captains. The ultimate focus and goal of the new organization is to provide young anglers with the experience and skills needed to enjoy the sport of bass fishing and add a competitive element to the process while working to have the activity sanctioned by the Alabama High School Athletic Association as an (AHSAA) Championship Sport.
Brad Vice and Stephen Pope from Hartselle High School won the first ever Alabama High School Bass Fishing Club Tournament Series. Their weight of 10.13 lbs topped the field of 16 boats from 10 different Alabama High Schools. Southside High from the Gadsden area had the most weight for their 2 boat team total with 13.28 finishing just ahead of Decatur Heritage Christian Academy who had 13.25. Southside High School finished 3rd and 4th and won the total team weight to earn all 3 of their total possible spots in the state championship tournament at this first event. Matt Dubach from Decatur Heritage Christian Academy summed it up when he said, “I never thought I would be fishing a bass tournament for my high school….this is really cool” and
The Alabama High School Bass Fishing Clubs have two additional qualifying tournaments scheduled for March 27, 2010 on Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden, Alabama; and April 10, 2010 on the Alabama River out of Cooters Pond, Prattville, Alabama. The teams that qualified for the state championship from this first tournament are 1. Hartselle 2. Decatur Heritage Christian Academy 3. Southside High 4. Southside High 5. Decatur Heritage Christian Academy 6. (Total Team Weight) Southside High. The 2010 Alabama High School Bass Fishing Club State Championship Tournament will be held on May 15, 2010 on Logan Martin Lake, Lakeside Landing, Pell City, Alabama.
Contact: Don Gowen
Alabama High School Bass Fishing Club
Bassmasters of North Alabama
Decatur Heritage Christian Academy Fishing Club
P. O. Box 5539
Decatur, Alabama 35601
256-350-7824
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