It wasn’t just the economy that gave us cause to pause in 2009. War, healthcare, weather, commercial boat accidents, confounding and conflicting fishing regulations, death and new life.

We were all affected in some measure. The focus, now, is to use our experiences to chart the course for the new year. Don’t let life just happen to you; be the “captain of your soul.” Someone once said ‘being a captain of your own soul means knowing your strengths and weaknesses.’

In 2010, let’s build on our strengths and accept our weaknesses. Chart a new course. Happy New Year.

NEWS: On Dec. 15, The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and Fishpond, Inc., an outdoor and fishing equipment retailer, urged an end to the South Jersey Shark Tournament and the Cape May Shark Tournament.
The South Jersey tournament is scheduled for June 10-13, 2010; while no dates have been announced yet for the Cape May tournament.

According to the press release, sharks are imperiled worldwide. Citing thresher, mako and porbeagle sharks, common targets of tournaments, as threatened with worldwide extinction, and the blue sharks population down as much as 70 percent of their worldwide population, the Humane Society says it is time to stop such tournaments.

The release goes on to say: “commercial shark tournaments are wasteful contests where many sharks are hooked, bled or gaffed. Keeper animals are hauled out of the ocean, strung up and often dismembered in front of crowds that frequently include children. Contestants do this to earn bragging rights and win prize money.”

The HSUS is pleased that many shark tournaments have become completely catch-and-release, while many marinas are becoming shark-free, which means that caught sharks are not allowed on the docks.
Dan Sheeler, public relations officer for the Ocean City Marlin & Tuna Club which also has a shark tournament, told me that their group has not been contacted by the HSUS.

“We are a spec on that radar,“ Sheeler responded. “We have had a fish and wildlife guy show up on our weigh dock.”
Sheeler thinks that the reason the HSUS has stepped in to have them (shark tournaments) discontinued is that too many sharks are killed.

“Its a three-day tournament where you can fish two. Our club gives points for releases and isn’t a money tournament.”
“The fishing in tournaments gets all hopped up on adrenaline and some guys kill a big shark that they can’t even identify.”
Sheeler proposes that things could be improved by cutting the number of boats allowed to fish and making it captain’s choice, fishing one day. He also thinks there should be spotters on the boats; someone to identify the shark before the kill.

I am hoping to hear from the Cape May and South Jersey tournament directors soon with a response to HSUS concerns.

All photos submitted appear online at SeeMyBigFish.com. Be sure to send your fish stories to cmiller@cmcherald.com. This column appears first online at capemaycountyherald.com