Ponca City, Okla., – Dec. 15, 2011- Lake Shipp in Winter Haven, Fl., will host the central Florida SAF club’s Plant City High School and Bartow High School face-off on Saturday, December 17. These two teams will go head-to-head in the Student Angler Federation’s first individual school matchup. Both teams have worked hard to put their SAF High School clubs together and get their students out on the water fishing. In fact, last weekend Bartow High School hosted their inaugural Bobby Lane Open, which featured several schools from around the state. This weekend’s competition will be more than a Christmas celebration for these two teams. It will mark the beginning of a movement to bring high school fishing to the limelight.
When the Raiders and Yellow Jackets square off this weekend, both schools will send their top four boats out on Lake Shipp in hopes of that largemouth bite. Each boat consists of two student teammates and an adult boat captain. The school with the heaviest catch from the four combined boats will win this Holiday Challenge.
Take off will be at safe light and the weigh-in will begin promptly at 2pm out of Sertoma Park Boat Ramp located at 1651 Lake Shipp Drive in Winter Haven, Fl. Local sponsors, Stingray Chevrolet and Sweet Bay Supermarkets, will proudly play host for this event.
“This is our club’s second year, and we remain committed to encouraging our youth on the importance of education and how fishing ties to math, science, language arts and marketing skills,” Plant City Fishing Club advisor, Mary Hamilton, stated. “Our students are learning a wide variety of lessons including election of officers, running meetings, and coordinating tournaments and fundraising events. They’re also volunteering for local events, all while promoting resource conservation efforts and having fun,” Hamilton added. “While each team hopes to win, they’re both winners in the larger scheme of life as better students, citizens and fishermen and women.”
These teams are definitely trend setters as the high school fishing movement continues to grow across the United States. The Student Angler Federation provides all the ingredients needed for a successful club, including items like insurance coverage, educational materials, and fundraising programs. In addition, SAF offers competitive tournaments and events for high school anglers around the country – all for a yearly membership fee of $25.
You can learn more about high school fishing, and get your local school club started by going to Highschoolfishing.org for more information.
