Sunday was "Cops and Bobbers" - the South Plainfield Police Department put on a fishing tournament for the town's kids at Spring Lake Park - where we're doing Field Day this year. The CERT Team was asked to be there to make sure no one fell into the lake (no one did) and to help with the parking and to answer any questions from the participants. Whenever a fish was caught, we directed the angler to one of three weigh stations, where the fish they had caught would be weighed and then released back into the lake.
The weather for the day was perfect. You couldn't have asked for a nicer day. It was in the low 80's with a light breeze and it was partly cloudy. The County had stocked the lake on Thursday with 300 fish - Bass, Trout and Carp. That family in the extreme left of the phot was catching fish like no one's business! The Dad was a fisherman, you could tell by the way he conducted himself - he knew exactly what he was doing.
There were various winners as the contestants were broken up into age groups. The biggest fish caught for the day was a 28.2 ounce Carp. A very healthy specimen that was released to swim another day,
This event used to be a staple in South Plainfield, and the last one was held some 20 years ago. As it was a huge success, I was told it will return as an annual event. A side benefit of having the lake stocked with fish is mosquito control. The fish will be there all summer to eat any mosquito larvae in the lake.
The event lasted from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM and as I said before, was very well attended. When I got home, I tried listening for John K3WWP and Mike KC2EGL who were activating the USS Requin for Museum Ships Weekend. HamAlert gave me a chirp when they were spotted on 20 Meters and I gave a listen - but 20 Meters is not a good band for a QSO between Pittsburgh and New Jersey.
Before I end this post ........being in the park for so many hours gave me a chance to reconnoiter an area suitable for Field Day. There is a grassy expanse in which I was stationed. It is definitely big enough for our two end feds without them coming close to any of the walkways. We will be able to deploy the antennas without any worries that people using the park for walking, biking or running would be in danger of getting hurt or injured from wires or feedlines. That was my biggest concern as we had to go out of our way to avoid that in the part of the park we last occupied. The other big advantage is that this piece of real estate is closer to the road and will actually increase our visibility to passers by.
72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!
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