NZ Sport Fishing Council - ISSUE - 08/03/2012

 ‘Melanoma March’– “March your Dad to the mirror”. Okay guys - with most kiwi men being keen on the outdoors, you need to think about your skin, look for freckles and moles and get them checked out!  Early detection is crucial and with the number of people who lose their lives to Melanoma each year peaking higher than the road toll, it goes to show a lot of people aren’t taking good enough care of their skin.

Here are a few key messages:

• Melanoma March is the Melanoma Foundation’s key campaign and is focused on promoting routine and regular early detection.
• March is the end of summer and a good reminder to regularly check your skin.
• Routine and regular self-checking is the vital step to detecting melanoma.
• It’s also important to check your families and friend’s skin, especially your dad, husband, brother or uncle’s because men are the most at risk.
• Kiwi men are more likely than women to get melanoma and less likely to survive once diagnosed.
• If melanoma is detected early and it’s thin, it can easily be treated with surgery.

 Background facts

• Melanoma is the most serious kind of skin cancer and New Zealand has the highest rate in the world.
• Around 300 people die of melanoma each year in New Zealand. In comparison, 2011’s road toll was 284.
• You’re more at risk if you’re over 50. 70 per cent of melanoma cases occur in people over 50 years old, especially men.
• Melanoma is also the most common cancer in males aged 25-44 years.
• This can all change if we check our skins regularly and see a doctor if we notice a change.

NZSFC NATIONALS SUCCESS - The Results are now final so you can check them out on the direct link:- http://www.nzsportfishing.org.nz/nationals/results12/ or you can get there via our website – www.nzsportfishing.org.nz  Just go to NATIONALS across the top of the home page and run the pointer down to RESULTS and then across to 2012 or there is a link on the home page.

Mercury Bay catch tuna - Following a couple of great weeks at Whitianga some bigger tuna turned up to play. During the Nationals a 106.9 kg Bigeye was weighed. Not to be outdone, on the 26^th Feb an 80 kg Bigeye was also weighed and a very respectable 170 kg striped marlin hit the scales on the 28^th February.

Te Kaha Rules  - Local small boat big fish exponent “Peacemaker” lived up to its reputation on 28^th Feb when they brought to the scales a respectable 325 kg blue marlin. This club also fished well in the recent Nationals.

Toots One Base results - This competition is said to be the oldest One Base competition still running in this country. 55 boats battled it out over three of the four days earlier this month. The results saw local vessel GPS with overall points with three tagged marlin. There was a total of 14 marlin tagged and released, 8 weighed with 600 grams between 1^st and 2^nd and taking out the heaviest fish of the contest was Josh Carmody fishing on “Much More” with a lovely 129.2 kg Striped Marlin and winning the Tutukaka Hotel Trophy for the most points for a single fish and the Maui Trophy for the heaviest fish.

Whangaroa One Base -  As much as the contest was blue marlin, blue marlin, blue marlin last year, it was all striped marlin this year with 63 either weighed or tagged and released, making for a contest full of action. The shark species were also making an appearance with 7 blue shark and 12 mako tagged and released. The weather could not have been better with hardly any wind and calm sea conditions and with the fish action from around 120 to 170m from the Cavallis and northwards, especially off Doubtless Bay and Cape Karikari.

Tauranga reports – Local launch Ocean Monarch who just happens to be leading in their in-house  championship ladder weighed in a very nice blue marlin of 274 kg down Waihau Bay way, then tagged a stripey on 25-02-2012. Points leaders: Angler Points - Adam Milnes 1,941.62 and Vessel Most Points - Ocean Monarch 4,108.38.

Editor

NZSFC