"sherwindu" wrote in message
...


Harry Krause wrote:


Indeed, I'm flying down to Miami for a day or two later this month
specifically to attend the Miami boat show, and I'll be flying to
Orlando in March or April to make a presentation at a meeting. I might
spend a few extra days in Florida on the second trip for some bass
fishing.

Sponsors of both events I'll be attending never considered holding
either in Derby, Kansas, or its environs, and not even in that nearby
fortress of free thinking, Wichita.

We have fishing tournaments here on the Great Lakes, so Florida has
no monopoly on those things.


Below is a list of the fishing tournaments *FOR SOUTHEAST FLORIDA AND THE
KEYS ONLY* over the next 8 months. All have purses that are in the six
digits or more, and attract participants from all over the US and the World.



Cheeca Lodge Sailfish Tournament 1/20-1/22/06
Reef Cup Invitational Jan. 24 - 28, 2006

Mayor's Cup Sailfish Tournament 1/26-1/29/06

Fort Lauderdale Billfish Tournament 2/7-2-12-06

S.F.H.A. Loxahatchee Tournament 2/11

World Diamond Source/YCF Billfish Challenge Feb, 26th

Bob Lewis Billfish Challenge 3/2-3/5/06

Billfish Masters 3/16-3/19/06

Miami Billfish Tournament 4/6-4/9/06

Key West World Championships 4/18-4/22/06

Herman Lucerne Memorial Backcountry Fishing Tournament 4/21/06 - 4/23/06

Grove Harbor Rodeo 4/27-4/30/06

Grove Slam 5/4-5/6/06

Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Sal****er Shootout - May 13, 2006

Pompano Beach Fishing Rodeo May 18-21 2006

10th Annual Mercury Marine/Miami Kiwanis Dolphin Tournament; June 1-3,2006

Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Sal****er Slam - June 10, 2006

Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Sal****er Showdown - August 5, 2006

Swordlords Tournament-August 5, 2006

Islamorada Swordfish Tournament August 11-13,2006

Miami Swordfish Tournament September 7-10,2006

The Boater's World Gauntlet Elimination Series:
Round 1 & 2 - May 12-13, 2006
Round 3 & 4 - June 9-10, 2006
Round 5 & 6 - August 4-5, 2006



There are a similar number of tournaments in the northeast, southwest, and
northwest coasts of Florida as well.

And there are 1000's of smaller, community-based tournaments as well over
the year.

If you added up the number of fishing tournaments and the purses from those
tournaments from every state that borders the Great Lakes, they still
wouldn't equal the numbers that Florida produces every year.