ROCK BOTTOM
06-18-2005, 12:06 PM
Well, I am finally getting a chance to sit down and write about the 2005 Hell Divers Spearfishing Rodeo. This year set a new high mark for the Club and, with just a few minor mishaps, will be one to remember for years to come.
First The Players. The tally for diver participation hit 113 plus the 36 members of the club. That was just fantastic! We had divers from both oceans as well as from the heartland participate in the Northern Gulf of Mexico’s premier speardiving event. All guests were treated to the best that we had to offer. Fish were shot in 15 different categories in three divisions to determine who has claimed the title of the “King of the Hell Divers Rodeo.” This years champ George Donaldson from the Get’em dive club was treated by the Hell Divers to a brief trip down the nearby fishing pier and rapid descent into the warm waters of Lake Pontchartrain. The Hell Divers and Lick’em-n-Stick’em competed fiercely against Get’em with the Hell Divers coming out victorious for the Best Club award. Proper respect is also due the other champions: Queen Clair Donaldson (GE), Skindiver David Dauzat (HD), Sheepshead Ralph Luther (HD), Senior Carl Lowe (HD) and Junior Justin Zeigler (GDI) and Bluewater Champ Bill Crawford (SeaTigers). For the full line-up go to the Hell Divers website at www.helldivers.org .
The Brass Rings. This is my attempt to write a fitting testimonial to the magnanimities of our fine Hell Divers Spearfishing Rodeo Sponsors. Despite the tight economy, we were blessed by many fine people who saw the value of supporting an event like our Rodeo. Mere words don’t seem adequate. Dave and Sean from Armor Products, Pat from E-Searider and Chad Carney representing Wong/Zeagle/Mobile Scuba made personal appearances and all were most honored guests. We missed Julie and Kailyn but hope to see them very soon. Let me also name Ditmar, Chris, Daryl, Rick, Seamus, Ray, Ron, Pam, Andy, Mike, Holly, Guy, John, Allen, Nancy, Denny, Mark, Eddie, Scott, Kevin, Justin, Ronnie and Scott(excuse me if I missed anyone). We had prizes for all the award winners and for most of the guests. We were supported by 35 manufacturers, dive shops, websites, restaurants, caterers and individuals who shared a passion for the sport of speardiving. Their contributions were significant, as well, totaling over $11,500. The following is the final list of the sponsors and their web address/number. Please consider them first whenever you have spearo business to take care of because they are showing goodwill for the members of our sport.
AB Biller Aimrite Armor Bags
Atomic Aquatics Chad Carney Chags
DiveRite Adventure Quest E-SeaRider
East Coast Plastic/Roll Control FishSpearit
Florida Freedivers Hughco/Amersea JBL Spearguns
John Schmidt Fishing Jugs Mr. Allen Patrick Nancy Migaud
Ocean Master Offshore Hunter Pelican lights
Picasso America PrincetonTec Riffe
Southern Delta Catering Spearboard.com Spearfishing Specialties Spearfishinggear.com Tementos
Rockstar Energy Drink Unified/Seasense
Clubbed? The guys in the club did a great job putting on the party. Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! WE DRANK EIGHTY CASES OF THE STUFF!!! Woof! Big thanks go to somebody on that one. Southern Delta Catering (Bill, good luck with the new position) made some of the best Jambalaya I have ever eaten. Had we known of the size of the crowd coming we would have made double the amount. Ralph the Weigh Master and everyone who hung fish; Henry and his family watching the cashbox; the cuties selling the raffle tickets; George for arranging for the stage and facility; Jared with the kick-ass a-frame for weighing the fish; Vinnie for the new boards; Terry on the trophies; David with the prizes; Davie who kept it all together (so far so good); and all my club mates who showed up early and stayed late to make the event go off with a bang. A great big personal thanks also goes out to anyone who handed me a beer or shared the jug of Captain Morgain’s Spiced Rum served straight from the bottle with a bite on a lime. I haven’t gotten to him yet but props to Ken Jones for making that a reality by remembering to bring it.
Tripped Report. What a blur. No long winded trip reports from me on this thread. This is more about the party. I will say that we had a great time diving; lots of shit got broken or lost (real bummer) and we still managed to get stinking, blottto drunk every night. That in itself almost makes the slow diving bearable. I went to all the rigs that produced for the SBO but missed a few fish and ended up boning on several dives We did have lots of nice dives, some interrupted by pesky fish asking for trouble, and saw lots of cool stuff like big and small manta rays, large sharks, jewfish and some of the most crystal clear blue water that a person could ever imagine. The bummer of the trip was my new buddy, Ken Jones, didn’t get to kill any really big fishies. Oh well, there is always next time. You are always welcome up here. Mas cerveza, por favor!!!
I know that I haven’t mentioned everyone but thank you all. Enjoy the pictures from the
party.
Zz
First The Players. The tally for diver participation hit 113 plus the 36 members of the club. That was just fantastic! We had divers from both oceans as well as from the heartland participate in the Northern Gulf of Mexico’s premier speardiving event. All guests were treated to the best that we had to offer. Fish were shot in 15 different categories in three divisions to determine who has claimed the title of the “King of the Hell Divers Rodeo.” This years champ George Donaldson from the Get’em dive club was treated by the Hell Divers to a brief trip down the nearby fishing pier and rapid descent into the warm waters of Lake Pontchartrain. The Hell Divers and Lick’em-n-Stick’em competed fiercely against Get’em with the Hell Divers coming out victorious for the Best Club award. Proper respect is also due the other champions: Queen Clair Donaldson (GE), Skindiver David Dauzat (HD), Sheepshead Ralph Luther (HD), Senior Carl Lowe (HD) and Junior Justin Zeigler (GDI) and Bluewater Champ Bill Crawford (SeaTigers). For the full line-up go to the Hell Divers website at www.helldivers.org .
The Brass Rings. This is my attempt to write a fitting testimonial to the magnanimities of our fine Hell Divers Spearfishing Rodeo Sponsors. Despite the tight economy, we were blessed by many fine people who saw the value of supporting an event like our Rodeo. Mere words don’t seem adequate. Dave and Sean from Armor Products, Pat from E-Searider and Chad Carney representing Wong/Zeagle/Mobile Scuba made personal appearances and all were most honored guests. We missed Julie and Kailyn but hope to see them very soon. Let me also name Ditmar, Chris, Daryl, Rick, Seamus, Ray, Ron, Pam, Andy, Mike, Holly, Guy, John, Allen, Nancy, Denny, Mark, Eddie, Scott, Kevin, Justin, Ronnie and Scott(excuse me if I missed anyone). We had prizes for all the award winners and for most of the guests. We were supported by 35 manufacturers, dive shops, websites, restaurants, caterers and individuals who shared a passion for the sport of speardiving. Their contributions were significant, as well, totaling over $11,500. The following is the final list of the sponsors and their web address/number. Please consider them first whenever you have spearo business to take care of because they are showing goodwill for the members of our sport.
AB Biller Aimrite Armor Bags
Atomic Aquatics Chad Carney Chags
DiveRite Adventure Quest E-SeaRider
East Coast Plastic/Roll Control FishSpearit
Florida Freedivers Hughco/Amersea JBL Spearguns
John Schmidt Fishing Jugs Mr. Allen Patrick Nancy Migaud
Ocean Master Offshore Hunter Pelican lights
Picasso America PrincetonTec Riffe
Southern Delta Catering Spearboard.com Spearfishing Specialties Spearfishinggear.com Tementos
Rockstar Energy Drink Unified/Seasense
Clubbed? The guys in the club did a great job putting on the party. Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! Beer! WE DRANK EIGHTY CASES OF THE STUFF!!! Woof! Big thanks go to somebody on that one. Southern Delta Catering (Bill, good luck with the new position) made some of the best Jambalaya I have ever eaten. Had we known of the size of the crowd coming we would have made double the amount. Ralph the Weigh Master and everyone who hung fish; Henry and his family watching the cashbox; the cuties selling the raffle tickets; George for arranging for the stage and facility; Jared with the kick-ass a-frame for weighing the fish; Vinnie for the new boards; Terry on the trophies; David with the prizes; Davie who kept it all together (so far so good); and all my club mates who showed up early and stayed late to make the event go off with a bang. A great big personal thanks also goes out to anyone who handed me a beer or shared the jug of Captain Morgain’s Spiced Rum served straight from the bottle with a bite on a lime. I haven’t gotten to him yet but props to Ken Jones for making that a reality by remembering to bring it.
Tripped Report. What a blur. No long winded trip reports from me on this thread. This is more about the party. I will say that we had a great time diving; lots of shit got broken or lost (real bummer) and we still managed to get stinking, blottto drunk every night. That in itself almost makes the slow diving bearable. I went to all the rigs that produced for the SBO but missed a few fish and ended up boning on several dives We did have lots of nice dives, some interrupted by pesky fish asking for trouble, and saw lots of cool stuff like big and small manta rays, large sharks, jewfish and some of the most crystal clear blue water that a person could ever imagine. The bummer of the trip was my new buddy, Ken Jones, didn’t get to kill any really big fishies. Oh well, there is always next time. You are always welcome up here. Mas cerveza, por favor!!!
I know that I haven’t mentioned everyone but thank you all. Enjoy the pictures from the
party.
Zz