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by Michael White |
About 200 kids, parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles headed to Babylon Village Saturday for the annual Babylon Tuna Club Snapper Derby.
Among them were Adam Gonzalez, 40, of Babylon, and his son, Caleb, 5.
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“I took third place in the tournament when I was a kid,” Gonzalez recalled. “I always enjoyed it and I’m raising my kids the same way.”
Mary Adams, the Tuna Club’s chair, said the derby for kids under 12 has been happening for roughly 60 years in Babylon.
“It’s a great family event,” she said. “We now have parents and even grandparents that have fished [the derby] years ago who are now bringing the grandchildren back.”
And on this particular day — with perfect weather — the baby blues were biting, with about 100 caught. People came from near and far, from East Meadow to New Jersey.
Michael Fredericks, 7, of Babylon reeled one in with about 20 minutes left in the contest Saturday, which ran from 9 a.m. to noon. His favorite part of the day was the fishing.
“Because I caught a fish!” he said.
To Lou Ragosta, 84, of Oakdale, catching fish is what it’s all about for the kids.
He was with his son Tom Laurinavicius, 49, of Babylon, and grandson Jack Laurinavicius, 8.
“My grandson wanted to fish,” Ragosta said. “And snapper are plentiful, so I wanted him to get some success. If the kids come and don’t catch anything they’ll never fish again.”
But if the kids get hooked on fishing, explained Babylon Village Mayor Ralph Scordino, they’ll have a hobby for life.
“You can always fish; you can go anywhere …,” Scordino told the crowd after the derby. “And you can do that the rest of your life; it’s a great, great hobby to pick up. I did it when I was younger. My son did, too, when he was young and he’s still fishing today.”
Each of the Top 4 boys and girls won bikes donated by local businesses, with other prizes going to the runner-ups. The first place winners were Anna Chodon and Ben Chodon, who also happen to be sister and brother.
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