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Strike King Report
Strike King and Lew’s have extended their support for youth anglers by announcing the Lew’s andStrike King Freshman Scholarship Program.
“Our new Freshman Scholarship Program is yet another way for our brands to give back to the sport we love. We recognize the important role that fishing has played in our lives and we feel an obligation to ensure that it gets passed on to our youth,” explains Ken Eubanks, CEO of Lew’s Holding Company. “We’ve set up a fund that will award five deserving high school anglers a scholarship towards their freshman year of college. We are very excited to see the support and success of our brands translate into tangible support and success of youth fishing.”
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BoatUS Report
In an action that many are seeing as anti-environment, anti-consumer and a big nod to the ethanol lobby, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is moving toward permitting the sale of E15 (15% ethanol) fuels during the summer ozone season (June 1 to September 15). Currently available only in the colder months, E15's summertime ban was implemented years ago to address concerns over its contribution to ground level ozone (smog) on hot days.
The nation's largest boating advocacy, services, and safety group, Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS), wants EPA to immediately halt any expansion of the fuel's availability and is asking recreational boaters to speak up now to stop the summertime sale of E15 and offers an easy way contact the EPA by going to www.bit.ly/2UyyMFV.
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Darrell Lowrance, founder of Lowrance Electronics and creator of the first recreational fishfinder electronics, died last week of a stroke.
Lowrance was 80.
Lowrance’s first fishfinder, the Fish-Lo-K-Tor and often referred to as the “Little Green Box,” paved the way to today’s sophisticated electronics. Lowrance also was responsible for numerous other innovations in fish finding and navigational aids for anglers.
Lowrance Electronics is located in Tulsa, Ok. and presently owned by Navico.
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Shimano Report
A key initiative to its ‘Varsity Program’ focusing on high school and college age anglers, Shimano will again award more than $20,000 to both graduating high school seniors and those already enrolled in undergrad and graduate programs. The scholarships are intended to provide needed financial assistance to future leaders in conservation, fisheries and wildlife sciences and management.
Now in its third year, “the goal with our scholarships is to encourage and support young anglers to pursue a college degree in fishery management, scientific research and related natural resource professions”, said Phil Morlock, Vice President for Government Affairs/Advocacy for Shimano North American Fishing, Inc. “At Shimano, we understand the important role anglers have played as conservation leaders for well over a century. As B.A.S.S. members, we know these students have a first-hand appreciation for environmentally sustainable use and science-based management of natural resources. Where fishing happens, conservation happens.”
The Shimano/B.A.S.S. scholarship partnership is also intended to increase angler awareness of the critical decline in resource management professionals who fish within state, regional, provincial and federal agencies. The future of fishing will continue to rely on the combination of education, training and practical experience which this partnership encourages.
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New World Record Crappie
On May 15, 2018, Lionel "Jam" Ferguson made fishing history by landing a giant 5 lb. 7.68 oz crappie on a pond near Philadelphia, Tennessee. This fish vastly exceeded the state's previous record of 4 lbs. 4 oz caught in 1985.
Not only did this fish make the state record books, but it also made world history. The previous world record was 5 lbs. even. Therefore, after a genetic and weight confirmation, Ferguson became the new black crappie world record holder.