{"id":252932,"date":"2020-02-14T20:49:18","date_gmt":"2020-02-14T10:49:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=252932"},"modified":"2020-07-12T18:29:02","modified_gmt":"2020-07-12T08:29:02","slug":"yellowbelly-triumphs-over-weather","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2020\/02\/14\/yellowbelly-triumphs-over-weather\/","title":{"rendered":"Yellowbelly Triumphs Over Weather"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Tyler Apps, 10, and Melody White from Nanango show off some Tilapia they caught during this year’s Yellowbelly … the pest fish scored no points but Tyler and Melody both went on to win prizes in this year’s competition<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

February 14, 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n

The combination of drought and floods meant attendance numbers at this year’s Boondooma Yellowbelly were the lowest in more than four years, but organisers were still happy.<\/p>\n

Almost 700 adult and junior anglers registered to take part in the two-day competition, well down on the 1123 who signed up just two years ago, however\u00a0organisers were pleased given that torrential rains across Queensland and northern NSW prevented many people attending.<\/p>\n

“Honestly, we thought if we had 500 we’d be doing well this year,” Boondooma Fish Stocking Association’s (BFSA) Janene Steinhardt told southburnett.com.au.<\/strong><\/p>\n

“A lot of people contacted us to say they couldn’t make it because they were flooded in. And some of our other regulars have been hit really hard by the drought.<\/p>\n

“So we’re really happy with this year’s registration numbers in the circumstances.”<\/p>\n

Organisers were also pleased the worst of the weekend’s weather bypassed the dam and confined itself to the coast.<\/p>\n

While a couple of brief showers fell on Saturday, the weather stayed warm and sunny for the critical weigh-ins on Sunday morning.<\/p>\n

A large crowd gathered around the Fish Stocking’s Association’s headquarters for the final weigh-ins and prizegivings.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Compere Matthew Mott told the audience he thought one particular group of fishermen deserved special recognition for the effort they had made to attend, and called them to the stage.<\/p>\n

Bundaberg trio Rodney Pearce, Robert Hadwen and Richard Brown rolled their car on the way to this year’s Yellowbelly.<\/p>\n

But even though their vehicle was a write-off, and young Robert was forced to wear a neck brace on Saturday, they still managed to take part in the event thanks to some last-minute assistance from Robert’s mum Jenny, who picked up the trio and their fishing gear from the crash site and drove them to the dam.<\/p>\n

“This just goes to show the extraordinary lengths some of our competitors will go to and I think this deserves a special award,” Matthew said, presenting Rodney with a jar of Vegemite.<\/p>\n

Mayor Keith Campbell said the South Burnett Regional Council was the major sponsor of the Yellowbelly because Council recognised it had important economic benefits for the community.<\/strong><\/p>\n

He also praised the efforts of the Association to keep the dam stocked with fish.<\/p>\n

The BFSA’s work, he said, drew a steady stream of visitors from south-east Queensland and northern NSW and the Yellowbelly was a great opportunity to showcase the region to them.<\/p>\n

“The Yellowbelly Fishing Competition is an event the council heavily gets behind as it contributes to the sport of recreational fishing and is a big opportunity to increase visitation to the region,” Mayor Campbell said.<\/p>\n

“We provide a sum of money as part of our community not-for-profit grants and essentially we are investing on behalf of the region.”<\/p>\n

The Mayor then presented BFSA members with a certificate of appreciation from Council to mark the event’s 30th anniversary.<\/p>\n

2020 Results:<\/strong><\/h3>\n