Outdoors with Don Q: Enter the OSA fish contest, catch a nice fish and win money

If you like to fish in the State of Nevada, you might be interested in entering the 2012 Ormsby Sportsmen’s Association (OSA) fishing contest. This annual contest is inexpensive, you can have fun fishing during the year and you might even win some nice cash, just before Christmas. If you’re interested, here is all kinds of information on that contest:

Ormsby Sportsmen’s Association
OSA is a local sportsmen’s organization for hunters and fishermen, with 220+ paid-up members last year.
It meets the third Tuesday of the month January through May, and October and November at 6 p.m. at the Carson City Sheriff’s Office on Musser Street. Those meetings are pot luck dinner meetings featuring a guest speaker. In Jun-Jul-Aug-Sep, it hosts a picnic at that same location.
Then, on the first Saturday night of December, it holds a traditional end-of-the-year banquet at the Carson Nugget.
All OSA meetings, functions and activities are family-oriented, free of charge (except the banquet), and open to all club members and to anyone else who is interested in hunting, fishing, camping, etc.
The OSA annual dues are $5 for an adult and $2 for youngsters who are under the age of 16. Those prices are amazing in this day and age.

Annual Fishing Contest General Information
Only paid-up adult members, paid-up junior members, Honorary Lifetime Members and Paid Lifetime Members are eligible to enter the contest. The entry fee is $10 per person. You must be entered in the contest the day before you enter a fish. The contest is now underway and ends at sundown on Thanksgiving Day.
The next year’s contest begins on the day after Thanksgiving.
If you are entered in the contest and if your fish is the largest in its category, you will be awarded a cash prize at the annual banquet in December (you do not need to be present to win).

Fishing Contest Categories
There are seven categories in the contest for fish caught only in the State of Nevada, with two exceptions as listed below:
— Mackinaw (Lake) trout (The California side of Lake Tahoe is acceptable).
— Lahontan Cutthroat, Bowcutt Trout (a hybrid cross breed between a male Rainbow Trout and a female Cutthroat Trout) and Cuttbow Trout (a hybrid cross breed between a male Cutthroat Trout and a female Rainbow Trout).
— Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout (The California sides of Lake Tahoe and Topaz Lake are both acceptable).
— All other Trout species, such as Eastern Brook, Golden and Tiger.
— Northern Pike (found only in Eastern Nevada) and Striped Bass.
— Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, White Bass, Walleye and Wipers (a hybrid cross breed between a White bass and a Striped Bass).
— All other warm water fish such as Bluegill, Catfish, Crappie, Perch, etc.

Cash Winners
Only first place winners will win cash prizes.
Those cash prizes will be awarded at the annual banquet in December.

Fishing Contest Rules
—The fish must be taken legally.
— The fish must be weighed before freezing.
— The length of the fish must be measured from the tip of the nose to the fork of the tail.
— There must be at least one witness to the catching of the fish.
— A photograph is optional but not mandatory.
— Anyone found guilty of cheating will forfeit his or her winnings.

Joining OSA and Submitting Fish
To join OSA or for information about the organization call President Bob McCulloch at (775) 882-6810 or Treasurer LaNora Clyde at (775) 841-5758. To submit an entry in the fishing contest, you must submit the required information to Bob McCulloch at (775) 882-6810.

Finally
Be advised that even though both Elaine and I are entered in the contest, you should seriously worry about her fish catching abilities. Sigh, that is based on my own actual experiences of being outfished by her, just about every time we go out. Don’t say that you were not warned.
She has out fished me at many different locations including Sitka Alaska (more than once!), Frog Lake, Kinney Reservoir, Lake Tahoe (three straight years), Pyramid Lake, Walker Lake, etc.
So, with all that said, enter the contest today and good luck when fishing.

Bet Your Favorite Pigeon
Bet your favorite pigeon that he can’t tell you who won and in what categories in the OSA fishing contest for the year 2011. If he grins, takes a big breath and rattles off the following information, you will lose this bet:

Mackinaw (Lake) Trout:
Elaine Quilici: 8-pounds, 8-ounces at North Lake Tahoe.
Note: This was the third year in a row that she has won this category.
Cutthroat Trout:
Kurt Redmond: 10-pounds, 6-ounces at Pyramid Lake.
Note: This was the third year in a row that he has won this category.
Rainbow Trout:
Kurt Redmond: 4-pounds, 8-ounces at Knott Creek Reservoir.
Tiger Trout:
Kurt Redmond: 4-pounds at Knott Creek Reservoir.
Northern Pike:
Don Quilici: 20.5 inches at Comins Lake.
Walleye:
Norm Budden: 5-pounds, 12-ounces at Rye Patch Reservoir.
All Other Warm Water Fish:
There were no entries in this category in 2011.

— Don Quilici is the Outdoor editor for Carson Now and www.SouthTahoeNow.com. He can be reached at donquilici@hotmail.com.