Delaware B.A.S.S. Federation Nation: Youth

On Saturday August 29th, the Delaware B.A.S.S. Federation Nation held its 2009 Casting Kids competition at Brecknock Park in Camden. On hand were 14 Casting Kids state qualifiers and their families for a perfect day of flipping, pitching, and casting.

This year as a requirement of the DBFN Clubs, each club held their own Casting Kids competition to qualify two casters, one for each age group (7-10, and 11-14), for a shot at competing in the state finals. As a result, the clubs qualified 14 young anglers, both girls and boys, for the state finals, and a chance at winning a $50 savings bond and a $50 bass Pro Shops gift card for each of the winners.

In the 7-10 age group, Amber Roberts of Harrington, used a slow, steady, and methodical flipping and pitching technique to land her in 1st place for her age division.

 In the 11-14 age group, Jarek Lugo of Lincoln, had to work a little harder in a cast-off after a tie in the regular competition.

 Both Casting Kids finalists were awarded a $50 Savings Bond certificate and a $50 gift card to Bass Pro Shops, as well as a trip to West Virginia for the BASS Federation Nation Mid-Atlantic Divisional tournament in which they will compete for the opportunity to advance to the Casting Kids Championship held at Lake Toho in Florida, later this year.

Congratulations Amber and Jarek and Good Luck!

Pictured left to right: Youth Director Bob Moody, 11-14 Winner Jarek Lugo, 7-10 Winner Amber Roberts, and DBFN President Jay Walls.

The Delaware B.A.S.S. Federation Nation held its 3rd annual Junior State Qualifier on Saturday June 13th. The qualifier is an invitation only youth bass fishing tournament that will qualify one angler from each age division for the 2009 BASS Mid-Atlantic Divisional, held this year on the Ohio River in West Virginia. One angler from the 11-14 age division and one angler from the 15-18 age division will represent Delaware and advance with the opportunity to qualify for the 2009 B.A.S.S. Junior World Championship.

Eleven members from the Middletown Bassmasters and four members from the Eastern Shore Junior Bassmasters participated in the event. The tournament was held on the nantiocoke river from 7AM to 1PM, restricted to Delaware waters only. Nearly the entire field of anglers reported catching fish.

From the Eastern Shore Junior Bassmasters, Keith White led the way by finishing in 1st place in the 15-18 age division and 1st place overall with a 5 fish limit weighing 8.43 pounds...not a bad day at all for a junior angler on the Nanticoke. Keith reported catching his fish with topwaters poppers in the morning and completing his limit with the senko, ap ttern most uded throughout the day.

Middletown Bassmasters Shawn Ashmead found his way to a return trip to the Mid-Atlantic Divisionals in securing 2nd place over all, and 1st in the 11-14 age division. Shawn also filled his limit with 5 fish weighing 7.02 pounds. Shawn got on good fish early and his senko pattern too, helped him gain momentum throughout the day and holding the lead for his age group.

From here, the two have earned their right to fish the 2009 Mid-Atlantic divisional and will travel with the 2009 Delaware BASS Federation Nation State Team in September to West Virginia. Good luck guys!

 Nick Burkhardt had the lunker with a 3.65 lb. largemouth bass...

Robert Moody diverts young lives away from danger with a simple fishing pole.

And after 26 years of police work, much of it in antidrug and antigang programs in the public schools, Moody, 52, knows that many kids aren't so lucky. So in 1991, he decided to do something about it. He invited small groups of kids to spend summer mornings fishing with him on his day off. Afterward, they'd go somewhere for lunch, then tour a state trooper building. "I wanted them to see that police officers are pretty good people," Moody says.

Photographed by Karen Ballard/Redux

Moody talks to kids while they cast for fish.

The informal trips were fun—for Moody and the kids—and they had a lasting impact. A chance encounter in 2000 confirmed that. Moody was working security at a high school basketball game and noticed some young toughs putting on a show of bravado. Trouble seemed imminent. Suddenly one of the guys headed toward Moody and gave him a hug.

"I remembered him," Moody says. "I'd taken him fishing back when he was in fifth grade." Moody found the kid's photo in his office and brought it out to show to him. "All his buddies were laughing, making fun of him," Moody recalls. "And he looked at me and said, 'You know, that was one of the best days of my life.' That touched me very deeply."

Moody decided to formalize the trips in 2002 by creating Reel Expectations, a foundation that introduces kids ages 8 to 14 to the basics of fishing in five-day summer camps. "As a state trooper," says Moody, "I saw that where there was violence, drugs were always somewhere in the background. I started to see the devastating impact on the kids. I became a lot more compassionate."

Turning kids on to fishing was his way of presenting an alternative. "When you're sitting there waiting for a bite," he says, "you can't help but talk to each other—and that conversation can be pretty deep."

Michelle West, 17, would agree. She participated in the first Reel Expectations program. "Talking about drugs helped prepare me for the peer pressures in high school," she says. "And I was able to help my little brother, Michael, avoid drugs."

The children are recruited through the local Boys & Girls Clubs and the YMCA/YWCA. To pay for it all, Moody says, "I beg, I send out letters, and I get turned down a lot." But thanks to donations from fishing equipment manufacturers and small grants here and there, he's been able to offer the camps free.

Moody faces mandatory retirement in three years, when he hopes to run Reel Expectations full-time, funds permitting. "I have three healthy children, a wonderful marriage, and a job that I love," he says. "I have a responsibility to my community to give back. If I teach a kid to fish today, he can teach his brother to fish tomorrow."

Inspired by Robert Moody's story,the Reader's Digest Foundation will award $100,000 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, specifically for antidrug and antigang programs. For more on Moody's nonprofit, Reel Expectations, go to reelexpectations.org or call 302-736-0284.

Younger Anglers Crush the Field 

The Delaware B.A.S.S. Federation Nation concluded its 2nd annual Junior State Qualifier on Saturday August 30th with great success. Junior anglers from the Middletown Junior Bassmasters and the Eastern Shore Junior Bassmasters competed against each other in two age divisions, 11-14 and 15-18, for the rights to advance to the BASS Junior Mid-Atlantic Divisional tournament September 13th in Clarksville, Virginia. 

Leading off from the Middletown Junior Bassmaters was Shawn Ashmead with a 5-fish limit weighing 6.65 pounds. Shawn credits the help from his boater, local bass fishing guide and former DBFN president Don Murray who put Shawn on fish early with a topwater bite in the upper reaches of the river. The finish netted Shawn an invitation to the Mid-Atlantic Divisional in the 11-14 age group, but also locked up 1st place overall in the tournament. Devan Braun of the Eastern Shore Junior Bassmasters could not manage that last fish to even the score. Devan fell short of the bid to move on, but had an outstanding day as he is only 11 years old.

In the 15-18 age division Nick Burkhardt, also of the Eastern Shore Junior Bassmasters topped the rest of his field with a 3 fish bag weighing in at 2.90 pounds, which was good enough for 4th place overall, and a trip to Clarksville in September. Finishing runner up in the 15-18 age division was Middletown's Corey Cook with 2 fish for 2.10 pounds.

Honorable mention goes to last year's 11-14 champion Jake Lorea, who finished 3rd in his division and 3rd overall and rounding out the top 5 was Cole Hutchinson with his 2 fish on the day for 2.42 pounds.

Overall, the junior anglers had a great day on the water. The morning was still as the fog was lifting, and the late morning sun sent the fish to the wood for easy pickin's in the afternoon. A special thanks is due to all of the boaters that volunteered their time and boats to take these kids out for a good day's fishing, and to the Delaware BASS Federation Nation staff members Bob Moody (Youth Director) and Jeff Horvath (Tournament Director), for conducting the registrations and weigh-ins.

 Shawn Ashmead had the lunker with a 1.65 pound Largemouth Bass...

News from the '08 Junior World Championship

Delaware's Jake Lorea landed a solid top 10 finish in the 2008 JWC on Lake Onondaga in New York over the weekend. Jake, a member of the Eastern Shore Junior Bassmasters of Delaware, qualified in the Delaware Junior State Qualifier last August by finishing in 1st place in the 11-14 age division.

More news on the 2008 Junior World Championship in New York will follow as it becomes available

The 2008 Delaware Junior State Qualifier, which will qualify two more Junior anglers for competition in September at the B.A.S.S. Mid-Atlantic Divisional, will take place August 30th. Call Youth Director Bob Moody at (302)270-3572, or email fish572@verizon.net.

The Delaware BASS Federation Nation is currently seeking interested young anglers between the ages of 11 and 18 years old to either join one of our existing youth clubs, or create a NEW club with the help and guidance of our Federation Nation.

 For those that are not aware, the Delaware Federation Nation youth clubs fish club and federation tournaments throughout the year. At the end of the fishing season, the clubs are invited to fish the Delaware Junior State Qualifier in which the top angler from each age division (11-14 and 15-18) will qualify to fish the B.A.S.S. Junior Mid-Atlantic Divisional tournament. The Junior Mid-Atlantic Division is made up of members from Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The top finishing anglers from each age division in the Junior Mid-Atlantic Divisional tournament will advance to the Junior World Championship, where they can compete for national honors against other divisional finalists across the country. The Junior World Championship, or JWC, is a great opportunity for young anglers to begin a fantastic fishing career or continue their passion for bass fishing as it prepares them for moving into the adult ranks, joining adult clubs and competing with the best.

Delaware's own Tony Asti, a 3-time Junior State Champion has competed in the Junior Level format for a number of years and has found his way moving up through the ranks. Tony is now a member of the Eastern Shore Bassmasters and at only 19 years of age, has accumulated many years of fishing experience. Tony's motivation and experience hope to help him this year as he now has the opportunity to fish the Delaware B.A.S.S. Federation Nation State Qualifying Tournment to be held on the Nanticoke River in October.

Aside from competetive fishing, our clubs are also a great place for young anglers to come in, make new friends, and learn the basics of bass fishing, or enhance their skills by sharing information with club members at meetings and club tournaments.

For more information on the B.A.S.S. Junior Bassmasters program click here for details.

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For information on joining a youth club in the Dover area contact:

Dave Perrego at (302)339-2133, or email easternshorebassmasters@yahoo.com

For information on joining a youth club in the Middletown area contact:

Bob Moody at (302)270-3572, or email fish572@verizon.net.

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For information on starting a youth club in your area, email the Delaware B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Youth Director at fish572@verizon.net.