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The St. Lucia Game Fishing Association (SLGFA) began many years ago in the early 1970’s with a small group of persons interested in fishing.
We started off as the game fishing club and held several local tournaments. The venue was usually on the Reduit Beach and prizes were nothing more that bottles of rum, wine and Champagne, etc.
There were no big prizes but plenty of good fun and bacchanal. It was all for the love of fishing. There were not entrance fees but even if there was, it tended to be small. There were few sponsors. Nothing like it is today, for indeed, in the early years, there weren’t so many bit corporations.
In those early days, the few of us who engaged in sport fishing, as I recall, were: Dunstan DuBoulay, Bernard Johnson, Michael Hackshaw, Francis Compton, Fred Devaux, Peter Bagshaw and perhaps a few others.
Somtime after we formed the game fishing club. In those days we had small boats (between 25’x30’ max), a few of us began to go to Grenada to attend their Billfish Tournament – only sailfish back in those days. Those of us who ventured so far were Bernard Johnson with his Bertrand 25 called “On Time”, Dunstan Duboulay with his Sebi4rd 25 called “Mr Icy”, Peter Bagshaw on his Beach Banana and Michael Hackshaw. Grenada was the only country closest to us with an Association and regular annual tournaments.
It was after our encounters with Grenada that we decided to form our own Association, St. Lucia Game Fishing Association. Thereafter, other St. Lucians acquired boats and/or boating and fishing knowledge and our tournaments flourished.
We assisted Martinique, Dominica and St. Vincent to form association and so we used to visit those territories, as well as, Barbados and Grenada, to attend fishing meets. Trinidad also came on the scene later.
Unfortunately, Dominica and St. Vincent no longer have active associations as tournaments are concerned but do have active participating anglers.
Of the ‘Old Guards’, Francis Compton and Bernard Johnson are the oldest sports fisherman and while there are many who have come after them, these two old guys continue to fish together in numerous places internationally.
Although our association has encountered difficulties from time to time, we continue to hose our annual tournament much to the delight and enjoyment of friends and visitors all over the world. |
