President’s
Campfire…Spring
‘09
As you read this we are all trying to recover from the
hectic Holiday Season. Hopefully yours was a safe and
enjoyable one. With Winter bow upon us, many of us are
gearing up for the final days of this season’s hunt,
and longing for the milder temperatures of late October and
early November!
January and
February are busy times of the year for the UBNJ Council;
Deer Management harvest records are collected, sorted, and
provided to our hunt hosts, we are at the Deer Classic in
Edison, the Northern Region Membership meeting, the
Bowhunter’s Game Dinner, planning and conducting a
Central Region Membership meeting, and yes…we have
already had planning meetings for the 10th Anniversary UBNJ
3D Jamboree to be held in August of 2009.
This is the 20th
Anniversary of the Deer Classic, which runs from January
8th through the 11th. We will be there as always, and if
you have never been, you owe it to yourself to come check
it out at least once. From the vendors, exhibits, seminars,
to the magnificent New Jersey deer on display; it is well
worth the trip.
On Wednesday
February 4th Northern Region Vice-President Pete Graziano
will be hosting the 5th Annual Northern Region
Member’s Meeting at Camp Ocawasin in West Milford.
This is a great time for us to get feedback from the
membership and is a way for us to ad value to your UBNJ
membership. This years’ guest speaker is Gino
D’Angelo, a wildlife biologist with the US Department
of Agriculture Wildlife Services who will be speaking on
QDM and defeating a deer’s senses. Seating is
limited, and you can RSVP for the meeting
on the UBNJ website.
Saturday February
28th the UBNJ along with the Traditional Archers of NJ will
be hosting the 5th Annual NJ Bowhunters
Game Dinner at Cedar Gardens in Hamilton Township.
This year’s guest speaker is the Bowsite’s
Pat Lefemine. Pat will be doing a video presentation
on hunting dangerous game from Grizzly Bear to African
Lion, it sounds like it’s going to be a
fantastic presentation! As always there will be
prizes, silent auction items, and live auction items
generously donated by our supporting shops,
outfitters, and businesses; such as Cabelas,
Watlington Outdoors, the Sportsmens Center,
Harry’s Army & Navy, L&H Woods &
Water, PSE, Bowtech, MR Charters, Sykk Physh Charters,
and All Game Taxidermy to name just a few. Come out
for a great evening of camaraderie, stories, and great
food! Tickets are available now by contacting your
UBNJ Council Rep or by ordering online from
www.ubnj.org .
The UBNJ’s
Central Region Reps are currently in the planning stages of
a Central Region meeting with Middlesex County’s
Renee Bickar at the helm. Renee has a lot of experience and
help at her disposal as many Central Region Reps have
volunteered to assist…this meeting is tentatively
scheduled for March/April of 2009, check the webpage often
for updates.
August will find
the UBNJ hosting it’s 10th Annual 3D Jamboree, and
this year’s Jamboree promises to be bigger and better
than ever! More targets, shorter loops, and less walking
between targets! This is a great weekend-long event to
spend time with the family camping, enjoying the
kids’ activities, and getting that final tune-up in
before the season opens!
Lastly, I’m
asking that each and every one of you that reads the Winter
issue of Tracks & Trails become an ACTIVIST
for outdoor issues. For too long Trenton has ignored us,
treated us as second class citizens because we hunt, fish,
or trap. Well, no more! We pay taxes, we vote, we hunt,
fish, and trap, and we provide a POSITIVE economic benefit
to the State by spending money on the things we love to do
and the equipment we need to do it! And it’s time
that New Jersey’s legislators realized that we are a
force to be reckoned with.
Slowly a change
in Trenton is starting to happen…on December 15th
the first meeting of the New Jersey Angling and Hunting
Conservation Caucus was held. This caucus is made up of 26
state legislators from both sides of the aisle, and Chaired
by the Democratic Majority Leader, Senator Stephen Sweeney.
Senator Sweeney has stated that, “Sportsmen of New
Jersey should have an outlet in the Legislature so they can
explain their concerns in their own terms.” The
NJAHCC is just that vehicle.
Trenton is
starting to listen; so now I ask that we speak up for
ourselves and the issues that are important to our outdoor
heritage by becoming an ACTIVE participant in the process.
Sign up to receive the UBNJ’s E-mail Alerts, check
sportsmens’ and legislative websites often for
updates on issues and legislation, make phone calls, write
letters, send emails to legislators and let them know you
are watching and you care about outdoor issues! Most of
all, we must speak up for ourselves!
Yours in
Bowhunting…
Brian Dolobacs
President - UBNJ
