Housatonic Valley Bassmasters was formed as a Federation affiliated club in 1973 and was one of the first in CT. This is the club which spawned Bryan V. Kerchal who became the first and only federation angler to ever win the coveted Bassmaster Classic Championship in 1994. Since Bryan's tragic death on Dec. 13, 1994 the club has held an annual tournament in his memory to raise money for his memorial fund which was established to help promote his dream to support youth fishing. To date, as of Dec. 31, 2006, the club has raised $25,600 and is the largest donator to the Bryan V. Kerchal Memorial Fund. Housatonic Valley Bassmasters prides itself as a "learning club" trying to help each other learn more about bass fishing and conservation and has 15 tournaments per year.