River’s
End Volunteer Fire Department announces its 17th annual fishing
tournament and the department’s largest fund raiser for the year the first full
weekend of October (Oct. 4-6). The tournament begins at 12:01 a.m., Friday, October 4th, and
runs through 2 p.m., Sunday, October 6th when final weights will be
tallied; prizes and the fifth annual Tim Austin Memorial Hard Luck Tale will be
awarded. Fish can be caught anywhere in public waters, but must be weighed in at
the River’s End Volunteer Fire Dept. Station 1 located at 12070 F.M. 2918.Weigh
in times are: Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. –
2 p.m.
This
year marks the 40th anniversary of the founding of River’s End VFD
and all proceeds from this tournament go toward obtaining a tanker
truck.
Again
this year, R.E.V.F.D. is offering daily mini tournaments that all divisions can
compete in. Friday, October 4th ’s mini-tournament is for Speckled
Trout and special weigh-in hours for this mini-tournament will be 9 a.m. – 7
p.m. Saturday’s mini-tournament is for Redfish with the same special weigh-in
hours as Speckled Trout. Sunday, October 7th ’s mini-tournament is
for Flounder with special weigh-in hours of 8 a.m. – noon. Fish entered in the
daily mini-tournaments can also be weighed in for the larger tournament. The
prizes for the mini-tournaments are plaques and bragging rights.
You
may pick up tournament applications and purchase event t-shirts, raffle and meal
tickets at Bernard Grocery on F.M. 2611 at the Churchill Bridge the weekend of
September 27-28, or Stewart’s Grocery (in Brazoria) Saturday, September 28 from
9 a.m. – 5 p.m. T-shirts will be given to all paid entrants or can be purchased
for $15.00 at the local stores mentioned above on the same weekend. Again this
year, you may also download entry forms, register, or register and pay online at
www.revfd.com
.
The
Adult Division of the tournament
($35.00 entry fee) consists of 4 categories: Redfish, Speckled Trout, Flounder, and
Croaker. First, second, and third place prizes will be awarded for each
category. First place for all categories will be $100.00 and a plaque. Second
place winners will receive $50.00 and a plaque, and third place winners will
receive $25.00 and a plaque. There will also be a $100.00 prize and plaque for
the Redfish with the most spots and the heaviest stringer. This stringer must
contain at least one each of Speckled Trout, Redfish and Flounder, but cannot
have more than 5 fish total. Only
Redfish between 20” – 27” may be entered in any
category.
The
16 and Under Division ($20.00
registration fee) is designed to encourage more youngsters to fish. This
division also consists of 4 main categories: Redfish, Speckled Trout, Flounder and
Croaker. First place winners in all the above categories will take home a
$50.00 gift certificate and a plaque; second place takes home a $25.00 gift
certificate and a plaque; and third place takes home a $10.00 gift certificate
and a plaque. Again this year the Youth Heaviest Stringer winner will take home
a $50.00 gift certificate and a plaque. The rules for the Youth Heaviest
Stringer have changed this year to include up to 5 of ANY legal fish (this
includes fish outside of the four categories, but the largest Redfish entered
can only be 27” long). In addition to those 13 prize winning places, the
R.E.V.F.D. has added 4 more “fun” categories for our youth. Plaques will be
awarded for the following “fun” categories: Redfish with the most spots, Largest Hardhead, Largest Blue Crab,
and Largest Sand / Gulf
Trout.
If
you don’t fish, but you would still like to support the fire department, you can
come for the Saturday, October 5 or Sunday, October 6 events. A Moonwalk will be available for the
children’s enjoyment Saturday, October 5 all day, weather permitting. Starting
at 11 a.m. Saturday until 7 p.m., October 5, Luckenbach Sausage on a stick,
Coney Islands or Frito Pies will be available for a $5.00 donation. The annual
live auction begins at 5 p.m. (which includes a custom rod and reel donated by
Billy Huett, a rolling party cooler and a custom hunting knife made by Spencer
Aplin and donated by Kenzie and Co.). In addition to the live auction, a silent
auction has been added from 11 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
On
Sunday, October 6, awards will be presented to the tournament winners starting
around 2:30 p.m. Raffle drawings
will also be held for a 20’ tapered aluminum flag pole with a 3’ x 5’ flag
(donated by 2 J’s Café and Marina), a custom silver jig head with amethyst eyes
(donated by Kinzie & Co.), a custom made rod and reel (donated by Billy
Huett), and a $400.00 Walmart Gift Certificate. Raffle tickets are available for
$5.00 each or 5 for $20.00. Winners need not be present to win. For the fifth
year, the Tim Austin Memorial Hard Luck Tale prize ($49.97 and a box of Kleenex)
will also be awarded to the angler with the worst hard luck story of the
tournament.
Tournament
applications are available upon request by contacting Roy Edwards at
979-964-4332, or Tracy Woodall at 979-482-4626, or by downloading them from www.revfd.com . You
may also register and pay online. Please note you must be a paid entrant before
you start fishing for the tournament.
In
case of a severe storm, the tournament will take place 2 weeks later (the
weekend of October 18 - 20). Please contact Roy Edwards or Tracy Woodall at the
above phone numbers if changes to these plans become necessary. We’ll see you at
the end of the river.