2017 Individual state titles

Only one more week until the 2017 Individual state titles
The NSW individual state titles will be held over the weekend of the 28th and 29th of October on the beautiful Central Coast of NSW. The competition is generally rotated through the zones every 4 years with the other zones Sydney, Northern and Southern each holding the competition when it’s their turn. This year the Central Coast Sealions are hosting this prestigious event with aim of making it a fun and exciting event promoting safe diving , camaraderie and participation. between divers.

The State Titles are historically a rock hop in order to make the competition as fair as possible for all participants. The Locations selected for this year’s event are Catherine Hill Bay, Norah Head, Pelican Point and Bateau Bay. The aim of the competition is to swim out from a central location and catch one of each species from a restricted list of quality table fish. Once the competition is over competitors must be back in the designated weigh in area by the finish time where their fish will be weighed and scored. A huge selection of trophies and prizes are up for grabs covering every grade and also largest fish, most meritorious and committees choice. The NSW State Titles is open to all divers with any level of experience and we encourage all USFA members to attend this great event.

 

NSW State Titles – 2017

This year the 2017 individual State Titles were held by the Central Coast Sealions.

The weekend started at the North end of the Central Coast at Norah Head.

Day 1 – Norah Head

Day 1, started with sign on from 7am which saw 33 divers including 5 female divers from all over including the Far South Coast, Sydney District, Newcastle, Central Coast Region and even Victoria sign on to compete.

Once all safety protocols were checked and species on/off were announced we gave recognition to the first Australians, service men and women & Day 1 commenced.
Divers ran off in all directions from South of Norah to pellows all the way to north of lakes reef… some even made the venture out to the bull!

We had reports from divers swimming back and forth, running from one end to the other of viz between 2 and 15m. Those who had the opportunity to enjoy the 15m had luckily made the right choice in to where to dive. With hours passing we had divers begin to return, some carrying kings over their backs with stories a plenty including the first king taken for Irene a female South Coast Diver.

The great team of the Central Coast Sealions who had chosen not to dive or return early began weigh in and prepare for lunch. Once the fish were weighed divers were given the opportunity to donate any fish which were then filleted, crumbed and put into a wok.

As sign off approached at 1 o’clock all divers had returned and the fish burgers station was in full swing. Fresh bread rolls, salads and fresh crumbed fish fillets were frying away.The burgers went down a treat and were a great hit with several divers returning for seconds and even thirds.
As the day closed and the scores where tallied the leaders and scores for day one were complete.

Day 2 – Bateu Bay

Bateau Bay was chosen as the location for Day 2 with conditions looking good and the final day set to excite.

Day 2 had 34 divers sign on and another beautiful day on the central coast was in store.
Bateau Bay set a challenge to the divers as it was a new adventure and new spot to dive for most. It offered plenty of ground to cover with multiple species to come accross.

All divers returned to the ring on time many with some great fish to show including a decent size king from a Sydney Junior.

Presentation

After a good BBQ feed with home made fried rice and pad thai kindly made by some lovely family members of the USFA and Central coast sealions all the scores where tallied and winners ready to be announced to the eagerly awaiting divers.

With a massive thank you to ADRENO SPEARFISHING, DIVER AUSTRALIA & ACE SPEARGUNS the central coast sealions had the opportunity to give away over $2500 worth of prizes awarded to promote participation along with the tropheys & prizes awarded to the rightful and well deserved winners of each category.

Please enjoy some pictures of the event and place holders throughout the day also attached final score sheets

Day 1 Photos

Day 2 Photos

Presentation Photos

 

Canada Cup 2017

Sunday the 12th Of February saw the 65th running of the Canada Cup. An amazing turnout of 67 divers signed on with an impressive turnout of 21 boats . After a quick briefing the divers hit the water and the boats slowly made their way out of the Haven ready for the start. The flag dropped and the boats were off racing. Almost all of the boats headed north to dive the 2 and 3 mile reefs with some venturing as far as Norah Head and the Bull. The weather gods were really in our favor today with almost glass out conditions for most of the day. The divers had plenty of time as the weigh in was not until 2:30 PM that afternoon. Was great to see every category filled including an amazing 13 juniors, 3 ladies and 3 sub Juniors. The predicted forecast for the day was for temperatures to reach upwards of 35 degrees with a late southerly change late in the afternoon. Continue reading Canada Cup 2017

Far South Coast Championships 2016

The week leading up to the comp saw perfect diving conditions flat calm crystal clear warm water. Wazza took full advantage of these conditions leading up to the comp doing a lot of home work and having a serious game plan for the day , Ellis for boaty and list of spots as long as your arm. It certainly paid off, finishing a country mile ahead of some serious competition . The St George boys took out the next 3 spots ( Merv must be smiling as he looks down )
Then a well deserved 6th to Troy fishing with 5 up in the “Haines” then Oly who has won this comp more then any one else And Pete Baker just edging Joe Out. Good to see the captain win. Joey placed 10 th and won the intermediates, Conner Elliot had a blinder finishing 11th out right and winning the Juniors convincingly, followed by Zeb and Darcy in 3rd . Christian won the Sub Juniors and Zac Merlo on his first ever comp, runner up Sub Junior. Living up to the Merlo family tradition. And almost forgot Eddy won the Grand masters again beating Ben Allan by a few fish scales. Thats a fair range of age, from 13 to 70 all competing on the day.

There was over 40 people sign on and all weighed in . There would have been a few more but the weather forecast was bit “how you going” so we lost a few who pulled the plug and cancelled. Sorry you missed out on a great weekend guys. But that’s what comp diving is about, diving the conditions on the day. The comp was well run , there was plenty of BBQ chicken to eat , and great prizes to be won , I was wrapped , won a wet suit that’s perfect for the youngest son. Special thanks to Lee Dalli for doing a run down at the last minute with some great prizes from Adreno. Lee deserves a special mention for all the work he puts in with no fuss or carry on , Thanks Lee. Ray Powell DiveR Australia donated a pair of the worlds greatest Fins DiverR , this time won by Conner Elliot for a thumper of a Boar fish and for such a good overall performance.
Roy from Agro-dive supplied at lot of great prizes and a special thank you to Adreno for there donated prizes. And thanks to Joey Conner for doing the scores a job well done. For two young guys there do so much work. Great stuff.

FSCC Results 2016

Due to the current weather forecast for strong winds the Far South Championships has been changed to be held on the Sunday 24th April. Same location being the Narooma boat ramp for 7.00am sign-on
The forecast looks better for the Sunday with little wind and a reduced swell.FSCC 2016 Flyer

South Coast Championships 2016

The South Coast Champs held at Ulladulla was an outstanding success for the Southern Zone. Great weather, well run with a record sign on – 20 boats ranging from Alby’s refurbished 6 meter Haines down to vintage 1960’s Tinnies and the proverbial rubber duck. The SCC was run in conjunction with the Taylor Shield. 55 signed on for the SCC and all divers weighed in. There was a good representation from the Neptune’s, the Sea Lions, Barracudas and of course the Workers. It was the traditional 2 day format, with a quality fish format. 5 hours on Saturday and 6 hours on Sunday. The seas were virtually flat with only a small ground swell to give a bit of white water. Not a puff of wind for the 2 days. Visibility was a varied feast, from plankton rich cool 3 meters to a much warmer 15 meters or more. Spoilt for choice at Ulladulla some boats travelled North and South, near and far while others stayed put and fished the local bommies to great success ( if you could dive the murk.)

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Continue reading South Coast Championships 2016

Canada Cup 2016

Competition Report

The 64th hosting of the Canada Cup was held on Saturday the 13th of February at Terrigal on the beautiful Central Coast.  The comp was held on the Saturday due to Sunday being Valentine’s Day.  This gave divers a chance to spend the day diving with their mates  freeing up Sunday to spend with the other half and stay in the good books.

Continue reading Canada Cup 2016