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Angler's Profiles
by Mike Lanni
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| A series of articles introducing RISAA members to the rest of the club. |
| (From the Februry, 2001 Newsletter) RONNIE GREENE |
As our club continues
to grow in size and in stature, taking on new issues and planning new
events, it has been essential to form new committees to delegate the work
that must be done to meet our goals and objectives. Recently, it was
decided that we would benefit by forming a committee that would periodically
provide our membership with important information regarding the many public
and private boat ramps that are scattered around the state. When the
committee met for the first time last year, it elected Ronnie Greene
of Warren, R.I. as chairman. As a member of that group, I have observed
Ronnie in action, and there’s no doubt in my mind that he’s the best man
for the job. Through his energetic leadership, this new committee is
off and running, and the best is yet to come.
Born in New York, Ron lives in a number of different states before settling
in Rhode Island. His parents had met while serving in the military,
so Ron and his two brothers and two sisters never stayed in one place very
long as kids. The family finally settled in North Providence when mom
and dad finished their terms, and it was about that time when Ron’s dad began
to take the kids fishing every once in awhile. Dad wasn’t an avid fisherman, but he did know the basics. His real objective was to take the kids anywhere for a few hours so that his wife could have a peaceful moment to herself! Having also grown up in a family with five kids, I can appreciate that situation. By his own admission, Ron got into more than his share of mischief as a teenager. He laughs as he shares memories of those days, and like most of us, wonders how he emerged from his youth virtually unscathed. After high school, Ron worked a number of different jobs, including the construction industry. 
The experience he gained in that field proved to be invaluable, as he later
became a partner in how own construction company, South Coast Structures.
He presently runs the painting division of S.C.S. while also assisting his
partner with other aspects of the business.Although there was never a period of time when he totally got away from fishing, Ron really started to get serious about the sport around seven or eight years ago. Two of his friends, Steve Sikorsky and Joe Zecchin, are diehard saltwater anglers. The three of them fish together regularly, and Ron credits them for helping him improve his skills. Steve and Joe are also RISAA members. It hasn’t taken Ron long to develop into a very respectable fisherman. One of the reasons for his success is that he puts in a lot of time on the water. If he’s not fishing with friends, he’s frequently out there alone, in one of his three boats, during the season. Besides a 22’ cuddy cabin, he owns a couple of small aluminum boats that he uses for bass fishing on calm nights. He will launch one of the aluminum boats right off the beach, usually from Mackerel Cove, on any given night from May through November to fish for striped bass along the coast of Jamestown. Working close to the island’s rocky shoreline, he fishes Harley Benton-style, casting and trolling live eels. He likes medium tackle - an Abu-Garcia 6500 Baitrunner on a 7’ graphite stick, with 17 pound test line. 
Ron has caught bass up to 40 lbs. with that outfit, which says a lot for
his level of skill. Horsing a big bass out of the rocks on 17 pound
line is no easy feat, but Ron likes the challenge.This past season, Ron, Steve and Joe made seven or eight trips out to Block Island in the bigger boat. Most were day trips, trolling for bass with the tube and worm. A good number of fish in the 15-20 pound class were boated, and the trio is looking forward to fishing the Block even more frequently during the upcoming season. Mixed in with the bass this year were some hefty bluefish - up to 15 lbs. In addition to trolling, Ron fishes chunk bait for big blues. Being a consumate fisherman, he also fishes from the shore from time to time. In fact, the first keeper bass he ever caught, a 38” beauty, came from the shore at the mouth of the Narrow River, a few years back. It didn’t come easy though. Ron actually used two rods to land the fish. On that night, he had set two surf rods out on sand spikes, fishing cut bait. After a while, he left his rod unattended while he checked on one of his buddies who was fishing about 50 yards downriver. When he got back to his spot, one of his rods was gone! He could see track marks in the sand where a fish had dragged the rod into the drink! Ronnie shrugged off the loss, chalking one up to experience. He continued to fish with the other rod, this time much more attentively. A bit later, a fish hit, and Ronnie set the hook. He started reeling, but the fish feld like dead 
weight. In reality, he had snagged the line that was stretching out
between the rod he had lost and the fish that had swam off with it!
Unbelievably, the fish hadn’t gone very far, and had crossed paths with Ronnie’s
second line.He landed the fish, just as the first rod broke off, disappearing into the water, for good this time. Ron was so happy to land the fish that he didn’t give the rod a second thought. Besides bass and bluefish, Ron also likes to fish for fluke. Sometimes he is joined by his girlfriend of 8 years, Cynthia. A receptionist for Mega Transportation Co. in East Providence, she enjoys fluke fishing very much, as long as Ronnie handles the bait and de-hooks the fish she catches. The couple are also animal lovers, and together own 8 cats, 7 birds, one dog and a rat! I’m looking forward to working with Ronnie this year on the Boat Ramps Committee, and we have also made plans to fish together. We both love to fish at night, and neither one of us likes to come back in until there’s fish in the boat. Maybe if I show him a few of my spots, he’ll show me where he caught that 40 pounder! |
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ANGLER PROFILES
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