RECREATION / STEVE HENSON : Salmon Run Catching Even Novice Angler’s Fancy

Delay no longer. The king awaits.

King salmon, that is. Anyone who has entertained the idea of bringing in a 15-20-pound salmon ought to set their alarm for much earlier than usual and head to Ventura or Oxnard.

The time is definitely now.

“It’s been amazing, unbelievable, the fishing has been so doggone good,” said Frank Ursitti, owner-operator of the Coral Sea fishing boat at Channel Islands Sportfishing Center in Oxnard. “Just when you think they are going to stop biting, they surge again.”

More than 12,000 king salmon have been caught south of Pt. Concepcion since early April, nearly four times the previous record, set in 1968. The fish, believed to be headed for the Sacramento River District, have found the waters off Ventura County so much to their liking that they have lingered for nearly two months.

“There is good water--about 55 degrees--and plenty of anchovies and sardines,” Ursitti said. “The conditions are optimum.”

Boats out of Ventura, Oxnard and Port Hueneme have averaged about one salmon per angler for weeks on end. And not all of the fishermen are veterans.

“This is easy fishing,” Ursitti said. “There is no rhyme or reason to salmon. No finesse, no special technique is necessary.”

The first four salmon caught from Ursitti’s boat Thursday were on the line of an angler who rented his rod and had never been saltwater fishing.

“It’s not tough getting them to the surface, but then they get acrobatic,” Ursitti said. “The smaller ones are more active. They are fun to catch.”

And at the moment, not too difficult.

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Bass fishing at both Casitas and Castaic lakes has been consistent, despite an influx of anglers the past couple of weeks. Both lakes figure to be heavily fished for several months.

“Yesterday everyone seemed like they were catching them, but today is a little slower,” said Gwen Fraser, a Casitas spokeswoman, on Friday.

At Castaic, spokesman Bill Skiles said Friday that large bass were being taken.

“Bass has started picking up and so have trout and catfish,” he said.

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Carl Richards, esteemed dentist and author of fly-fishing books, will speak at the June 22 meeting of the Van Nuys-based Sierra Pacific Flyfishers at the Encino Glen restaurant.

Richards, along with co-author Doug Swisher, pioneered the revolutionary no-hackle patterns. Richards’ most-recent book is “Emergers.”

Information: 818-789-1919.

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The three most-recent proteges of Dan Connelly, a longtime Valley gymnastics coach who has trained several Olympians, overcame injuries to place well in the U.S. Gymnastics Federation Junior Nationals.

Jon Ham finished 12th and Eric Nishimoto 22nd in a field of 150 gymnasts in the 15-year-old division. Ham and Nishimoto both attend Granada Hills High. Sean Griffith of Simi Valley finished 56th out of 200 in the 18-year-old division, but more important, he caught the eye of Penn State coaches.

“All three kids survived extraordinary injuries, so from that standpoint they all performed very well,” said Connelly, who lives in Simi Valley and trains the trio out of Le Club Gymnastics in Northridge.

During the nationals, Ham was still working through a chronic muscle pull in his calf that had nagged him for four months. Griffith had suffered a shoulder strain and an ankle sprain days before the nationals, and Nishimoto bruised a heel halfway through the first day of nationals.

“That kind of desire is what separates these guys from the average kid,” Connelly said.

Average is not typical when it comes to Connelly’s pupils. After coaching the Cal State Northridge team from 1973-78, Connelly, 47, trained Olympians Mitch Gaylord, Charles Lakes and Tom Beach through his private club, Cal Sun Gymnastics.

These days, he coaches about 30 boys through Le Club, which itself survived an injury of sorts when it was severely damaged in the Northridge earthquake. The facility has been repaired and gymnasts such as Ham, Nishimoto and Griffith work out there six days a week.

The trio soon will get a change of scenery, however. By virtue of their strong showing in nationals, they have been invited to train at the Olympic Training Center in Las Vegas in August.

Griffith will go from there to perennial NCAA power Penn State, where he will walk on at the invitation of coaches.

“Sean really excels on floor exercises and in vaulting,” Connelly said. “And that’s what Penn State needs.”

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Two other Le Club members--Lisa Herrera, 14, of Reseda and Vicky Rubin, 14, of Northridge--will compete in the U.S. Assn. of Independent Gymnastics Clubs championships next week in Orlando, Fla.

Herrera and Rubin qualified with strong regional performances two weeks ago in Mission Viejo.