DIVERS WIN BIG AT BUGFEST!

One hundred and thirty divers took part in BugFest this year in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, including 100 who participated in the Great Florida Bug Hunt.

Eight divers won cash for taking part in the Great Florida Bug Hunt:

Albert Sloan of Fort Lauderdale (Biggest Lobster Caught Boat Diving) $500 (4.5 lbs)
William Roughen of Fort Lauderdale (2nd Place Boat Diving) $250 (4.1 lbs)
Ritchie Zacker of Tampa (3rd Place Boat Diving) $150 (3.4 lbs)

Todd Haley of Fort Lauderdale (Biggest Lobster Caught Beach Diving) $500 (2.2 lbs)
John Gerulli of Winter Garden (2nd Place Beach Diving) $250 (1.8 lbs)
Dane Tullock of Fort Lauderdale (3rd Place Beach Diving) $150 (1.7 lbs)

Julie Higgs of Fort Pierce (Biggest Lobster Caught By A Female Diver) $100 (3.4 lbs)
Frank Rizzo of Lauderdale-By-The-Sea (Biggest Lobster Caught By A Town Resident) $100 (1.4 lbs)

In addition to cash prizes for the biggest bugs, scuba divers who entered the Great Florida Bug Hunt received a raffle ticket just for registering, and a ticket for each bug they caught.

The dive gear BugFest raffled off included two regulators, a dive computer, a BCD (underwater dive jacket), lobster snares, 3D dive flags, a Spare Air unit and the latest in tickle stick and net technology.

More than 25 divers won raffle prizes, including 10 who won $100 gift certificates from Force E, a Pompano Beach dive shop! Other divers won hotel stays and local gift certificates.

The big raffle prize winner was Jim ‘Chiefy’ Mathie of Deerfield Beach, who won the Neal Watson Bimini Scuba Center for two divers trip worth $2,000.

Andrew Rubin of Fort Lauderdale won the $920 Aqualung Elite Legend regulator. Bob Maler of Palmetto Bay won a Sherwood buoyancy compensator device (BCD) worth $475.

Catherine Van Dorn of Plantation won a Sherwood Magnum regulator worth $350 for the biggest bug caught on the Midnight Dive off Lauderdale-By-The-Sea.

Nicolette Donovan won the Peregrine dive computer in the raffle for the divers who took part in the Anglin’s Pier Clean-Up, which was organized by Gold Coast Scuba in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea.

A benefit concert sponsored by the G4Good Foundation at the Plunge Beach Resort on July 30 raised $27,000 for Diveheart, a non-profit which teaches people with disabilities how to scuba dive.

The Master Lobster Chef Competition was won by Gold Coast Scuba. Second place went to Lauderdale- By-The-Sea Town Commissioner Randy Strauss. Gold Coast won a hotel stay at the Sea Cliff, a LBTS hotel.