Ocean Beach Fishing Club

Promoting sportsmanship, conservation, and inclusivity since 1946. Save our seas!

2022 Kids-Only Fishing Contest

• When: Saturday, September 3 from 8:30 AM to 12 PM
• Where: The dock at the Ocean Beach marina, by the playground
• Rain date: Sunday, September 4

$25 per child. Poles, T-shirts, and souvenirs will be provided!

Apply

• 2022 Fishing Contest Application: Fill this out and email it to us or mail to Ocean Beach Fishing Club, P.O. Box 104, Ocean Beach, NY 11770.
• In-person registration in advance will also be available. Find our table in town in Ocean Beach to officially register, and you’ll get a copy of the original bylaws, the official 2022 patch, and more!
• Email us with any questions or photos!

By submitting photos, you agree that we may publish them.

Prizes will be awarded!

The idea of good sportsmanship and conservation continues, and will be needed to continue in the times to come!

About the Annual Kids Catch-and-Release Contest

The Ocean Beach Fishing Club holds an annual, rain-or-shine event for kids on the docks of the marina in Ocean Beach, New York.

For these events, we make the fishing poles, solicit memberships, outfit all applicants with T-shirts, and provide bait and assistance. We give out snacks, vouchers for ice cream, and prizes for everyone.

History

Ocean Beach Fishing Club was organized in 1945 and incorporated in 1946 to foster good sportsmanship and conservation of our natural resources:

• Original Constitution and Bylaws (PDF)

By the mid-1980s, the club had became dormant.

In 2006, Woody Salvan reformed the Ocean Beach Fishing Club with a new direction. If the future of our waters was to be for the benefit of our children, he believed they should have a say, so he reorganized the OBFC as a kids-only club.

The new OBFC focuses on a Kids-Only Catch-and-Release Contest — the future is for our children.

One year, we released 93 fish that we caught in two hours! Every year, we seem to find a message to speak for what we’re doing.

We’ve remembered the brave Davey Jones who lost his battle to cancer at 12, we’ve shared our proceeds with the Ocean Beach Fire Department and Police Department after Hurricane Sandy, donated to the new Ocean Beach playground at the Bay, and contributed to the Ocean Beach Historical Society.

We Fish Because…

• “A bad day of fishing beats a day in the office or a bunch of other things to do”
• “Taking a moment to go fishing is a reminder of our Planet’s gifts”
• “It reminds me to appear like I know why I am there, and not standing on the shore like an idiot”
• “Fishing is simply being there — watching the flight of water, birds soaring, feeling the wind”
• “It is a reminder that it is the pursuit of an elusive but attainable need to pursue”
• “It provides the option to fish without a hook - thus avoiding any distracting incidence to the moment of repose”
• “It provides an opportunity to share the experiences with others”
• “It teaches patience and educates you on how to untangle fishing tackle and hooks”
• “It gives you the opportunity to educate kids about conservation and preserving natural resources”
• “It supports bait and tackle stores everywhere who convince you that 100 rods and tackle is not enough”
• “If you bait your heart with love, you just might land up catching what you hoped for”

Contact

Feel free to email with any questions or submissions.