I chose to take on the privileged responsibility of conceiving and launching the ILSFA. Like a lot of us, some of my earliest memories are of those spending time in the outdoors, more often than not, fishing. My very first catch was accomplished with the help of my grandfather on a little stream called Gray Run in western Pennsylvania.

That trophy was a brook trout just small enough for my two hands to hold. I can still see my grandfather gently removing the hook and handing me the fish, which I returned to the cool rushing water where it slipped from my grip and slowly melted into the surrounding shadows of the moss-covered rocks. It didn’t dawn on me at the time, but that experience changed my life. Fishing was officially in my blood.

As I grew older, this new interest continued and it didn’t take long for my angling tastes to evolve into a dedicated pursuit of bigger and bigger game. A real turning point occurred in 1975 when I read a book then saw a movie of the same name called, 'JAWS'. That was it for me. I read everything I could get my eyes on about real life explorers and monster hunting super heroes like Frank Mundus, Vic Hislop, Zane Grey, Ernest Hemingway and Jaques Cousteau. Of all the fish they chased, one caught every ounce of my imagination and interest. As far as I’m concerned, sharks are the most impressive of all those things with fins. The term, ‘Apex Predator’ is more than just a scientific designation. As a game fish, they are like no other, affording their pursuers challenge, excitement, danger and plenty of adrenalin pumping, tackle busting, muscle burning fight. Like the song says, “If you’re looking for trouble – you came to the right place.”

Well, I went looking for trouble and found plenty of it, catching my fair share of sharks, most of which were landed from the typical platform of a boat deck. But I also love to fish the surf and would occasionally catch small to medium sized sharks from the sand. To me, nothing beats the solitude of fishing the beach. Naturally, this made me want to find a way to go big in that environment. With a little research, I quickly discovered how anglers were successfully and consistently capturing big, trophy-sized sharks from the beach and other attached structures. Seeing them in action landing fish exceeding 10' in length was enough incentive for me. I was terminally hooked on a style like no other in the angling world called 'Land-Based Shark Fishing'.

It didn’t take long to see the dedicated individuals involved in this sport took it very, very seriously. In Texas, Australia, South Africa, my current home state of Florida, and the eastern seaboard of the US, there existed a rich history of the sport dating at least back to the 1950’s. I could not get enough, and some of the recent and historic catches I admired online kept me up on many a night. I continued to pursue the sport and was pleased to find the anglers I got to know were generous with their knowledge and encouragement. Thanks, in large part to this support, I’m now involved in a lifetime pursuit that provides me the perfect combination of outdoor adventure, the beach environment…and big game shark fishing. There is simply no other way to target, capture, and get so close to these incredible animals.

Over the past several years, I’ve been fortunate to form close friendships with some of the sport’s pioneers, as well as with many of its new generation anglers. I respect them all for their accomplishments and dedication so when I first discussed with them my ideas about forming the ILSFA, I was honored to receive their confidence to do so. And furthermore, thankful for their valuable input and willingness to volunteer their time and expertise in getting it off the ground and moving forward for all anglers pursuing this great sport.

The bottom line is we can't take this anywhere without your involvement. After all, if it wasn't for your shared dedication and passion, this simply would not exist. With that said, we look forward to working with you to make this something we can all be proud of. It’s not a small undertaking, by any stretch, but it will be exciting and rewarding in many ways for everyone involved.

As for 2006, it’s our first year so a lot of focus and effort will be placed on a successful and well-received launch. And, since there are an awful lot of vacant records up for grabs, as much fishing as possible. On behalf of all of us on the ILSFA team, we extend our sincere appreciation for your support and wish you the best of luck in life and fishing.

Cheers & Tight Lines,
Sean Paxton - ILSFA Founder & President