By Mary-Justine Lanyon
It was a little cool but sunny on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend as the Arrowhead Lake Association held its annual fishing derby.
According to Sharon Pitman, who organized the derby, 110 anglers registered to fish for either trout or bass.
As they returned to shore, Bill Saska weighed their total catch and then weighed the largest fish they had caught. For several years, the late Gary Alari had manned the scale. After his passing, ALA conducted a fundraiser and raised $1,800 in Alari’s honor; that money, per his wish, went to the cost of stocking the lake with fish.
Mary Jo Alari watches as Bill Saska weighs an angler’s fish. Her late husband, Gary, had manned the scale for several years.
The trophies went to the following teams:
Bass Adults
• Team 38 – Frank Gibson and Chris Bowman – 12.18 pounds
• Team 32 – Michael Gordo and Josh Belda – 10.74 pounds
• Team 42 – Brian Stiver and Mike Jones – 10.51
• Biggest Bass – Team 32 – 4.69 pounds
Trout Adults
• Team 22 – Yoshio and Jackie Okada – 14.30 pounds
Eight-year-old Ella Hopper has been participating in the ALA fishing derby since she was just 4. Her Dad plans to fillet and cook her catch.
Ten-year-old Dean Janes proudly holds up his biggest trout, which weighed 2.47 pounds.
• Team 21 – Virgil Robertson and Steve Walker – 13.45 pounds
• Team 26 – Ken Vreeke and Dominic Montagna – 9.50 pounds
• Biggest Trout – Team 21 – 5.77 pounds
Trout Youth (under 15)
• Team 67 – Kevin and Luke Habitz – 12.65
• Team 59 – Patton Hall and Alexa Garrison – 10.23 pounds
• Team 62 – Dean Allen Janes III – 9.92 pounds
• Biggest Trout – Team 67 – 5.48 pounds
While some of the anglers said they planned to take their trout home and cook them – the bass are catch and release – others donated their fish to Wildhaven Ranch and Moonridge Zoo.
Once all the teams were in and fish had been weighed, the anglers and their guests enjoyed a barbecue lunch provided by the UCLA Conference Center.
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