The inaugural 4BC Suncorp Family Fishing and Boating Classic was held on 2-3 August. Competitors and visitors alike all enjoyed the fishing show atmosphere over the weekend, with a wide variety of things to keep the whole family occupied.

There were six categories for anglers to chase prizes and there was plenty of interest in the final weigh-in on Sunday afternoon. But it was the random drawing of the major prize, a Kratzmann Marine boat and trailer package valued at $10,000, which held the crowd in place at the close of the competition.

Unlike most competitions, the 4BC Suncorp Family Fishing and Boating Classic’s major prize was not determined by who was the best angler. All registered entrants went into the random draw with the winner walking away with a 4.2m Ozcraft runabout with a 30hp Yamaha outboard on its own trailer, all fully registered and insured with Suncorp Insurance. The rig also came with $1000 worth of fishing gear donated by BCF and Berkley.

There were also minor random draw prizes such as a $500 BCF gift voucher, $250 BCF gift voucher, subscriptions to QFM, $250 CD and DVD packs from 4BC, meat and seafood trays from Pattons Big Gun Butchers and plenty of smaller gifts handed out to the crowd during the random draws.

Category prizes consisted of a $250 BCF gift voucher plus a six-month subscription to Queensland Fishing Monthly magazine and a $250 CD and DVD music and movie pack from 4BC for the angler who weighed in the heaviest gilled and gutted fish from each category.

Saturday morning started with QFM and Pattons Big Gun Butchers putting on a bacon, egg and sausage breakfast while Nugget broadcast live from the event site. Anglers calling into Nugget’s fishing show were cursing the persistent wind, but keen anglers still managed to find some sheltered water, and with the wind dropping as the day progressed, more and more anglers hit the water.

On Saturday afternoon, some sensational fish were weighed in and shown to the crowds. The highlight being a marvellous cobia of 15.2kg weighed in by Les Knight and a ripper of a snapper caught at Mud Island by Damien Smith that measured in at 77cm and just under 5kg. Some great whiting around the 500g mark were also weighed in, but nothing gets a crowds applause up like a cracking big cobia.

Throughout the day visitors to the event site were entertained by a variety of stalls such as Fishcare, Suncorp Insurance, No Knots and a kids only zone put on by 4BC and BCF and run by the Two Bent Rods crew. In this zone the kids were taught how to safely use a cast net, how to cast Alvey sidecast reels, how to identify mudcrabs, how redclaw fishing operates and much more.

There were also visits by Bronco star Justin Hodges and ex-Bronco legend Shane Webcke. The footy greats had the crowd gathered around to hear about some of their experiences playing rugby league.

Sunday’s forecast was for a much better day than Saturday and the early crowd at the Patton’s Big Gun Butchers breakfast was huge. Nugget again kicked off the day by broadcasting his 4BC fishing show live and the callers on Sunday were far more enthusiastic about a good day on the water.

Throughout the day the crowds were entertained by the exhibitors and as the 3pm weigh-in started approached the crowd numbers multiplied.

Tension was high in a few of the fish categories as there were only small margins between the fish. One category came down to the wire with 10g separating first from second and another category being taken out by the last fish weighed.

The results were testament to the high quality of fishing in and around Brisbane with some great fish topping the lists.

The snapper category was won by a very excited Steven Waite who presented the last fish weighed, a thumping 5.44kg cleaned snapper caught at Mud Island on a soft plastic. Steven said, “The snapper was caught around Mud in 7m of water around 2pm on the outgoing tide. The jig I was using was a TT 5/8oz, 3/0 with a 5” Berkley Powerbait. The rod and reel was a G. Loomis GLX and Daiwa Certate 2500r custom spooled with 16lb PE Braid and a 16lb jig leader”.

Bush and Beach’s Gold Coast contributor Wayne Young took out the whiting category. Wayne presented three very similar fish to the weigh-master, with only 10g difference between them all. The final tip of the scales was his biggest whiting, which was 620g cleaned and caught in the Nerang on bloodworms fishing in 3-5m of water.

The bream category was the closest of all categories with the eventual winner, Shawn Culley, piping Shaun Clark by only 10g with his 670g cleaned bream. Shawn caught the bream in the Brisbane River at a secret spot at the mouth.

The pelagic category had limited participation due to the high winds and Les Knight’s ripping 15.2kg cobia held on from day one to take out the section.

Mud crabs were also on the menu with Daniel Smith, a Fishcare worker, catching a great buck that weighed in at just under a kilogram.

The last section was the Most Unusual category. This was a hotly debated category as unusual things happen all the time in fishing. In the wash up the organisers thought that Nathan Keen’s slaty bream (mother in law fish, morwong) caught on a plastic in the Pearl Channel was the most unusual catch. This catch just eclipsed Sean Ciesleki’s luderick that was landed on a yabby.

After the weigh-in the excitement mounted as the random draw for the Kratzmanns 4.2m Ozcraft runabout with a 30hp Yamaha outboard on its own trailer, all fully registered and insured with Suncorp Insurance and with $1000 worth of fishing gear donated by BCF and Berkley got closer. The winner had to be a registered competitor in the competition and be present at the draw to take home the fantastic prize.

With great fanfare, the winner was drawn with competitor 189 and ex-French patriot Olivier Nyst the surprised winner of the Kratzmann’s boat motor and trailer package.

When asked about the win Olivier was a little speechless. Olivier said he didn’t currently own a boat and had lived in Brisbane of the last 5 years. The prize was perfect as he now could get out on the water and try to catch some of those great fish he’d seen weighed in during the weigh-in show.

Overall the event was hailed as a great success with all competitors looking forward to the event next year. The plans for next year’s event are well under way so stay tuned to Nugget’s fishing show on 4BC, check out the 4BC website or keep reading Queensland Fishing Monthly for the details of next year’s event. – FMG