Fishing for a good time
BUTLER TWP— The ninth annual Alameda Pool Youth Fishing Tournament took place recently with 450 anglers combining to take 250 trout from the pool.
"This has been one of our most popular projects," said Dave Hutner, the aquatic and program director for the Butler County Parks and Recreation Department. "We get anywhere from 350 to 650 kids out for this every year."
Alameda's Fall Fest grew out of the fishing event. Fall Fest also included a car cruise, petting zoo, pony rides, face painting, etc.
The fee was $4 for each young angler. All other events at Fall Fest were free.
"We had roughly 2,500 people at the park overall,"Hutner said. "The fishing event is a great way to introduce youths to the sport."
About 80 sponsors took part in the program. Each sponsor provided a prize for the angler who caught the fish with that sponsor's name attached to it.
No lures or bobbers were permitted and casting was kept to a minimum. Any type of livebait was permitted.
"Whatever people thought would attract the fish,"Hutner said. "This is designed to be an interactive event for adults and kids. We allow the adults to be at poolside with the kids for advice and instruction, but only the kids can do the actual fishing.
"We limit casting because we always have a fear of injury with so many people in that small an area. But, knock on wood, we've experienced no problems that way in the nine years we've done this."
The pool was stocked with trout Sept. 22, two days before the fishing event took place.
"There were fish in there from 12 to 24 inches long,"Hutner said. "We had some real lunkers in there."
Youngsters 6 years old and under were allowed to fish first. After an hour and 45 minutes, anglers ages 7 to 10 were allowed to fish. After another hour and 45 minutes, those ages 11 to 15 were able to join in.
For three days after the tournament, Almeda Pool hosted a semiprivate fishing tournament for Special Needs Kids in Butler County.
"All of the kids get a real feel for how fun fishing can be, yet it's done in a controlled environment with adult supervision,"Hutner said. "It works out well for everybody."
