2026 will be the 50th and FINAL competition.
MVLC wants to congratulate Peter Oates for being the organiser for all of these years!
Highlights from previous Fishing Festivals
It was a cold, grey and very damp morning that greeted the Meon Valley Lions, as they turned out to organise the 43rd Charity Ford Open Fishing Festival, on Weston Shore. The Lions club has been involved with this event every January, without fail since 1996 and we've seen just about every weather condition known to man in that time. A bit of cold and damp wasn't really going to put us off.
In its heyday, over two hundred fishermen took part in this fishing festival and the pitches extended from Weston Shore in the west, right round to the Hamble in the east. The Ford transit plant has since closed, but Peter Oates and members of the Ford Sports and Social Club have worked hard with the support of the Transport and General Workers Union, to keep the competition alive. It is still a popular event amongst the sea-angling community and we attracted a large group of plucky sea-anglers again this year, including 74 seniors and 4 juniors.
If the Lions and fishermen found the conditions a little challenging, it didn't seem to adversely affect the fishing itself, with one of the most successful catches landed in recent years. Here are the results and prize-winners:
Photograph: Junior Charlie Cramer with his catch
1st prize (£400): Chi Cheung
2nd prize (£200): Peter Easterby
3rd prize (£100): M Ramsey
Heaviest fish (£148): Peter Easterby
Heaviest bag – white zone (£74): John Richardson
Heaviest bag – red zone (£74): Chi Cheung
