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State Record Fish Committee Reviewing Potential Record 109-Pound Blue Catfish

blue_catfish_2011_record_2Richmond, VA – The State Record Fish Committee of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) is reviewing the certification of a potential new state record blue catfish that will be only the second confirmed freshwater fish over 100 pounds in the Commonwealth. The monster weighed in at exactly 109 pounds and measured 53 inches in length with a girth of 41 inches. Certification is estimated to be completed sometime next week.

The big cat was caught by Tony Milam in Buggs Island Lake near the confluence of the Dan and Roanoke rivers.  The previous state record blue catfish (102 pounds, 4 ounces) was caught in the tidal James River in 2009 by Tim Wilson.  These two bodies of water have been locked in a battle for the state record blue catfish since the 90-pound mark was first topped in 2004 by a 92-pound fish from Buggs Island Lake.

For a complete listing of Virginia state record freshwater fish, visit the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries website at www.HuntFishVA.com.

Press Release: March 31, 2011

The 2011 Oakley Big Bass Tour campaign arrives at Smith Mountain Lake on May 21st & 22nd for the Blue Ridge Big Bass Classic.

oakley_big_bass_tourBased at Bridgewater Plaza, this open big bass tournament will offer amateur anglers the chance to compete for thousands in cash and prizes during the two day event. The angler with the largest overall big bass of the tournament will take home a $25,000 2011 Nitro Z7 powered by a Mercury 150HP motor.

The Blue Ridge Big Bass Classic will be open to amateur anglers only. There will be seven hourly weigh-ins each day with thousands in hourly cash payouts and the overall largest fish of the event will earn the winner a fully rigged 2011 Nitro Z7 powered by Mercury. The first 100 two day entrants to register online will receive a custom Oakley rod from Quantum. Anglers may pre-register online at www.oakleybigbass.com  Anglers may also register by phone, fax or mail. The final on-site registration will be held at Bridgewater Plaza in Moneta on Friday, May 20th from 12pm-7pm. Anglers may pick up registration forms at Bass Pro Shops, Conrad Bros Marine and Bridgewater Plaza Marina.

 Saturday and Sunday's weigh-ins will take place at the Toyota Tundra Stage at Bridgewater Plaza. The public is welcome at the live weigh-ins from 8am-3pm on Saturday and Sunday and after the weigh-ins there will be angler and attendee activities from 3-5pm each day.  "We are excited to be working with Fish Virginia First to bring this event to Smith Mountain Lake," says Louis Wellen with Oakley Sports Marketing. "This should be a great time to be on Smith Mountain and the fishing should be outstanding." added Wellen.

 Sponsors of the 2011 Blue Ridge Big Bass Classic include: Oakley, Bass Pro Shops, Nitro, Toyota, Lazer TroKar, Quantum, Mercury, Lake Fork Trophy Lures, Power-Pole, Sony, MotorGuide, Vitamin Water, Powerade Zero, WFN, Busch Beer, Reserve Fishing, Earth Sports, Navionics, Fish Virginia First, WSLC 94.9, Franklin County, Roanoke Valley CVB, Bedford Virginia, Discover Lynchburg, Bridgewater Plaza & Marina, and Conrad Brothers Marine.

 The Oakley Big Bass Tour is a premier big bass tournament series open to all amateur anglers. We provide anglers of all skill levels with anexciting tournament format and event experience on some of the nation’s best bass fisheries. Established in 2007 our tour is focused on the promotion ofbass fishing and bass conservation at the grass roots level through our tournament events. Our founders and event staff have over a decade of experience organizing and hosting bass fishing tournament events. The 2011 Oakley Big Bass Tour will feature the following tournament events: Jamie McMurray Carolina Big Bass Classic, Kevin VanDam Big Bass Classic, Jamie McMurray's Carolina Big Bass Classic, Blue Ridge Big Bass Classic, Kelly Jordon Big Bass Classic and the Gerald Swindle Big Bass Classic. For more information regarding tour events please visit www.oakleybigbass.com or call (877) 958-TOUR (8687).

 Headquartered in Southern California, Oakley is a worldwide leader in performance optics including premium sunglasses, goggles and prescription eyewear. Oakley's HD Polarized fishing specific sunglasses are the cornerstone of optical superiority creating an optical forcefield around your eyes by protecting them from harsh glare without compromising the clarity of your outlook on the water. For more information visit www.oakley.com/sports/fishing

The 3rd Annual NewRiverFest

July 2nd at the Cascades Events Park

canoe_outline"The 3rd Annual NewRiverFest will take place on July 2nd at the Cascades Events Park conveniently located on US 460 one mile west of beautiful Pembroke, VA. The festival is just 25 minutes from Blacksburg in the heart of the New River Valley and Giles County. Come spend the day with family and friends and enjoy shopping with our many vendors and listening to some great Bluegrass music headlined by Larry Keel and Natural Bridge.

Try participating in the 4th annual “Ride River Run” triathlon, our 1st annual New River Fishing Tournament, the 3rd annual Canoe and Kayak Race, or our first ever Archery Shoot. A kids casting competition, stand-up paddle-boarding, fly casting and tying, pony rides, and canoeing, kayaking, and tubing the New River are just a “few” of the activities you can expect to enjoy at the event. General admission is free, event and activity fees vary. See http://www.newriverfest.com for more information or to pre-register for events. Come on out for a day of fun, family, adventure, and celebrating the New River!!"

 

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Virginia Coalition E-newsLetter

Virginia Teaming With Wildlife Coalition May E-Newsletter

Dear Coalition member,
Your friends at Teaming with Wildlife Coalition hope you have a fun and safe Memorial Day weekend.
You are also encouraged to submit events and success stories.  Send us a short profile of your group or business to include in a future edition.  

Best Wishes,

Nathan Lott, VCN
Austin Kane, NWF

Virginia Teaming with Wildlife Co-Chairs

P.S. If you know someone that would like to become a member, please tell them to visit www.bewildvirginia.org/join/

Mike Lipford Wins Conservation Award
Teaming with Wildlife Coalition Council Member Recognized for Conservation Leadership
Great conservation work starts with great conservationists. Michael Lipford, director of The Nature Conservancy in Virginia, has been awarded the 2010 Erchul Environmental Leadership Award for his 20 years of service to the environment.(Meet Michael and Hear About His Accomplishments)

Virginia State Parks Go Hollywood
Tom Cervenak, Visitor Services and Marketing Manager, Virginia State Parks
Virginia State Parks has joined in a partnership with several agencies including, Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries, Virginia Tourism and numerous County Tourism Agencies to promote fishing in Southwest Virginia.
The group has formed Fish Virginia First to promote tourism in the area that roughly stretches from Kerr Reservoir by Occoneechee State Park to Douthat State Park and everything west of that line.
A grant of $100,000 from the Tobacco Industry allowed the group to produce a rack card for shows, develop an interactive website, FishVirginiaFirst.com, for planning a trip and produce a fishing show to be aired on television.
The show was shot over several days at different locations that included 4 of our state parks, Occoneechee, Claytor Lake, New River Trail and Shot Tower. For this show, the two species of fish featured was crappie and walleye.
Despite heavy rains the day shooting was to start and high muddy water with lots of debris at both bodies of water used for filming, anglers were successful. Local bass pros John Cruz and David Dudley did an excellent job promoting both Virginia and our State Parks.
The show will include other things families can do while in Virginia, which of course include the many things to do while at our parks. To view a short 5 minute snippet of the filming you can go to http://robcollins.net/fvf. The actual full length show should be out later this year and air along the East Coast and Mid-Atlantic.

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Press Release: April 29, 2009

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28 April 2009

Press Release: April 29,2009

Fish Virginia Fishing First Tourism Initiative Unveiled LIVE on ESPN Outdoors

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