The “Fins and Gills Classic” is a fishing tournament for kids and families. There are three divisions to the tournament, kid, teen, and adult. Prizes are awarded to the anglers in each division for largest stringer (total weight 1-10), biggest fish, smallest fish, fist boy, first girl, first teen, first adult, largest trash bag, biggest game fish, “The French Broad Buffet” (five different species) and whatever else we can think of.
The first 100 kids will receive a free rod and reel, tackle, tackle box, and bait. Lunch will be provided for all that attend. There is a trout pond, train rides, and live music for all to enjoy. The adults and teens will receive a tackle pack as well. There are door prize drawing every fifteen minutes from 10am to 2pm for kids, teens, and adults. There is about $7,000 worth of prizes to win. We have bicycles, kayaks, furniture, you name it we have it to give away as prizes for the anglers. There will be people available to help with anyone that needs help.
I started this tournament for the sole reason of teaching kids the joy of fishing. I have worked in a number of sporting goods stores and so many parents would come in and say my kids want to go fishing and I don’t know anything about it. I have had the joy of seeing many kids catch their first fish and I think I get more excited about it than they do. It is truly a blessing to see the joy in their eyes.
We will have the tournament on June 19th at Woodfin Riverside Park in Woodfin, NC. The tournament starts at 8am and ends at 2pm. The anglers can weigh in five fish, once a fish is weighed in, it cannot be culled. Angles can float, wade or fish from the bank in the designated section of the river. All the fish that are weighed in have to come from the river. And remember, it doesn’t matter what you catch as long and it has “Fins and Gills”. I would encourage you to visit our Facebook page and our website (finsandgillsclassic.com).