Friday, March 29, 2024

Bass Club starts new year

Posted

The Granbury Bass Club began its 35th year Wednesday at Spring Creek Barbeque.

The group, numbering just north of 20 members, meets the first Wednesday of every month at Spring Creek to discuss club business, hand out prizes for previous tournaments and decide where they’ll fish next.

The club has one tournament per month, and the tournaments are always on the second weekend after the club meeting. The locations of the tournaments are decided at the preceding meeting by club vote – in October, the Bass Club will fish at Lake Leon, near Eastland.

On occasion, the club will travel to far-off lakes. They’ve held a tournament at Lake Fairfield,165 miles away, and have also gone to Lake Cooper, about 135 miles away.

The primary goals, according to the organization’s website, are to “encourage sportsmanship, fellowship and provide bass fishing techniques through lectures and materials, and to support/sponsor youth and community programs.” The club has sponsored kid fishing programs in the past and held numerous open tournaments raising funds for organizations like the American Cancer Society.

Members age range from 16 to 72 years old. The club hands out awards at the end of the year for Angler of the Year, Top Six Fishers,Junior Angler, Lady Angler, Member of the Year and Big Bass. There’s also a prize for each tournament, which comes from the $25 entry fee, along with side bets like a Calcutta pot and a blind draw.

The club had over 100 members at its peak in the late 1980s, but numbers dwindled down to just six members in the early 1990s.

Since then, numbers have stabilized in the 20-30 range. Most members are from Granbury, but some drive over from Stephenville or the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

HASHING OUT BUSINESS

This week’s meeting was special, as it began the club’s fiscal year. That meant each member had to pony up the $40 membership fee – with the exception of members older than 65 or those that had served in the military. They join for free.

Awards for the last tournament, on Lake Lewsville, were handed out. As the top three anglers received their prize checks, they revealed to other members where they caught their fish and what setup they used.

A new member was introduced, though he was a familiar face. Richard “Dick” Kissinger had been a member of the club in previous years, but had let his membership lapse. His son, Doug, is the head boys soccer coach at Granbury High School and also sponsors the GHS Bass Club, and the elder Kissinger credited the high school club for sparking his interest in fishing once again.

It was a laid-back affair – members guzzled sweet tea and the occasional cold beer and chowed down on barbeque. As member Bill “Fitz” Fitzpatrick said, “it’s a club of good ol’ boys.”

President Shane Timm – the reigning Angler of the Year for the Bass Club – led the members through a review of the bylaws, and it then became clear how much everyone there cared about their organization.

Debate raged good-naturedly over the merits of instituting a team fishing division. Previously, the club had only kept standings on solo fishing.

The motion carried, and secretary Bill Roberts, who kept a stack of papers in front of him for diligent note-taking, prepared to keep a whole new set of stats this season.

After some more bylaw banter over attendance requirements and minimum length of Kentucky Bass, the conversation switched to buying new hats and shirts for the club. Each member gets a new hat upon joining, but the club is considering a switch in logos, which would make current members’ hats outdated.

Timm called the meeting adjourned at around 8 p.m., an hour after it began. The members all shook hands, settled up their dues with treasurer Jeff Weatherly, and headed out to start thinking about fishing on Lake Leon.

For more, visit granburybassclub.yolasite.com .

grant@hcnews.com | 817-573-7066 ext. 254