July 20, 2014 marks another year of the C.O. Pro-Teen Classic which is held on the California Delta. A GREAT kid’s event!
Russo’s Marina once again hosted this annual event and as always we would like to thank Chuck and Lisa Russo for taking part and allowing use of their facilities. Andy “Cooch” Cuccia once again with the help of all the volunteering staff put on another great event where the main focus is kids! This event pairs teens with a pro (boater) for a fun day on the water. The kids come from many areas of California to participate in this annual event as do the volunteering boaters, which range from local pro’s to young anglers that just a few years ago themselves participated in the event on the teen side. This just goes to show how much of an impact this event projects where an angler gives back to the sport at such a young age… just AWESOME!
As always, the event really starts off on Saturday where Cooch starts pairing registered teens with pros and continues again Sunday morning at 4:30am where more teens are eagerly waiting to be paired up with their pro for the day. This pairing allows for a meet and greet with the teens and their families along with getting everything set for event. Once all of the contestants are on the water, fireworks’ light up the morning sky letting everyone know the event is officially starting. As families stand on Russo’s dock, they watch their teens and the pros idle out as boat numbers are called off in a single file blast off order. Now the day begins!
Teams come back to Russo’s Marina to weigh in their days catch in multiple flights in 20 minute increments starting at 12:30. When you arrive, you and your teen are greeted by friends and families of the teen eager to see how the day went. The fish are bagged and taken up to the weigh in area where Cooch talks with each teen to see how their day went. Fish are weighed, some photos taken and fish are put back into the California Delta to be caught another day. This year there were over 60 teens and pros that attended, once again making it another successful event. There were many folks that also volunteered on land getting the event set up, cooking and launching boats as needed… truly a joint effort all around!
The day of fishing was good for several teams and a little tougher for others, but the one consistent were the smiles and stories going around. It really did not seem to matter much how each team did on the water, everyone was just having a good time which is what it was all about. The top teen and pro ended up with over 20lbs for the day just topping a few other teams that came in with close weights. Full results of the event will be posted soon…
The RB BASS Group once again was in attendance for this awesome event. Ron Howe, Bob Tyler, Austin Schmalz, Sean Waymen,James Everhart and Randy Walker all had a great time taking teens out for a fun day of fishing. Guys from our group have been attending this event for many years now and always look forward to its date. We enjoy being a part of this event and know how important it is to get kids into the sport so it continues to grow. We have been fortunate to have our sponsors help us provide prizes for the events raffle and would really like to thank our sponsors for being there for such a great event.
If you have not had a chance to attend this event as a boater, you are really missing out… it’s a fun day and doing something great for kids. You don’t have to be a touring or even a local pro to make a difference… you just need to show up with your boat and some free time. For each person that did volunteer their time for this event, THANK YOU!!! You are all pieces in the puzzle that makes this event a success…