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Dredge Pulling Tricks from the Pros

January 13, 2021 By InTheBite Editor

angler with dredge

Photo courtesy Pepper Ailor

By Ric Burnley

The first time I saw a marlin dredge I had two thoughts. First: that looks ridiculous. Second: that looks awesome! At first, 40 rigged mullet dangling from a web-work of bars and leader looks like a cluster FUBAR waiting to happen. Put the dredge in the water, and dozens of swirling and flashing baits look like a school of bait on the run. Fish cannot resist.

Many anglers had the same experience when they first saw a dredge. We caught up with five pros to find out how they use dredges now, and how they plan to use them in the future.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, Tackle Tips, Techniques Tagged With: artificial baits, Bayliss, Dredge Baits, Dredging, natural baits, popular, pulling tricks, Trolling

InTheBite Editors’ Top Story Picks for 2020

December 21, 2020 By InTheBite Digital Editor

As we say goodbye to 2020 and look to 2021 with hope and excitement for new things to come, we can’t do this without looking back at the significant stories of the year. Our editors curated the top five stories that had a significant impact for us and our readers. These are the features that motivated, educated and took us away to wide open waters for the time we were reading. We hope you enjoy.

1. How the New Texas State Record Came to Be

820 bluefin tuna hanging from Pelican Rest scale in texas

In a very direct sense, the pending new Texas state record bluefin tuna was a victim of the coronavirus.

Whether or not fish can actually catch this disease, who the hell knows, but the trip that resulted in greasing the biggest bluefin in the history of the Lone Star State was the result of being cooped up in the house awaiting the virus to run its course. Captain Robert Nichols, who runs the Rock Mama, a 55’ Hatteras based out of Galveston, Texas was gracious enough to tell us all about this fish of a lifetime.

Read more…

2. Two-Minute Warning: Pay Scale

two guys exchanging moneySo many times, I’m asked about how much a captain should get paid. Sometimes, I’m asked by the captain and sometimes I’m asked by the owners. There seems to be no rhyme nor reason on what a captain should or shouldn’t make.

Back in the day, there was an unwritten rule that a captain should make a grand per foot. I don’t know who came up with that…but it was ignorant.

Read More…

3. The 2019 Captains of the Year

The InTheBiteCaptain of the Year Cup presented by Hatteras is the world’s foremost competition for professional sportfishermen. The world’s only quantifiable metric for comparing the tournament success of captains, winning an InTheBite Captain of the Year Award is a major achievement. The Cup is composed of five divisions that span the sportfishing world: East Coast, Florida, Gulf Coast, Hawaii and International.

We look back on the 2019 winners who pushed past challenges, beat the odds and showed us what it takes to be the best.

Read More…

4. Steering You Straight: The Scoop on Steering

What type of steering system do you have? While most sportfish crew would answer hydraulic, there are many variables today that differentiate the design, components and operation of a vessel’s steering system. Learning about your boat’s system can assist when it comes time for maintenance, ordering repair parts and performing bleeding (more about this later).

Read More…

5. Four Captains, 20 Tips for Better Live Bait Fishing

Live bait is both the best bait and the worst bait. Nothing entices a fish to bite better than a wriggling and writhing forage fish dangling from the hook. Nothing gives anglers more trouble than catching, keeping and rigging livies. That’s right, you can’t live with live bait, and you can’t win without.

Read More…

Filed Under: Adventures, Featured Stories, Fishing, Records, Techniques, Tournaments Tagged With: 2019 captain of the year, Bluefin Tuna, boat steering, live baiting, tuna record

Ballyhoo Tackle Tip from the Eight Eights in the Dominican Republic

December 17, 2020 By InTheBite Digital Editor

bait box

While traveling in the Dominican Republic, Eight Eights Mate Miguel Santana demonstrated his quick and easy set-up when it comes to rigging his DR ballyhoo.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Caribbean, Featured Stories, Fishing, Techniques Tagged With: ballyhoo bait, ballyhoo rig, ballyhoo tackle, Dominican Republic, eight eights

Learning the Ropes: Passing Knowledge Down to the Next Generation

December 16, 2020 By InTheBite Digital Editor

mate on boat tower

By Dale Wills

Most of today’s captains earned their shot at the helm only after spending years working under the watchful eyes of veteran skippers. Each of those mentors had certain techniques and practices that were passed down to the younger generation, things that formed the foundation of their careers as professional mariners. So what are some of the individual practices, habits and distinctions that are being passed down by the veteran captains today to the future captains of tomorrow? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Advice, Boats, Featured Stories, Fishing, Operations, Techniques Tagged With: boat handling, capt kevin deerman, capt scott 'fraz' murie, fishing lessons, Offshore Fishing

The Fine Art of Live Baiting

December 7, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

man live baiting fish

Captain Wade Richardson’s long time mate Herbie deploys this bite-sized treat. Perfect for a black, a blue, sailfish, dorado, roosterfish or cubera.

By Elliott Stark

Live baiting is founded on a very simple biological concept. Since the very first time two fish swam in the ocean, the big ones have been trying to eat the little ones. In spite of the simplicity of the precept, live bait fishermen represent one of fishing’s most secret of societies. Fine tuning their presentations, crafting marlin bites that are as intimate as they are spectacular, the captains who have perfected the fine art of live baiting have long been viewed as secretive and mysterious.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, Techniques Tagged With: live baiting, live baiting marlin, Offshore Fishing, tuna tubes

Blue Marlin Fishing Chronicles—Captain Mike Lemon

November 30, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

fishing off back of boatDescribing fishing as long periods of boredom followed by frantic seconds of action was probably first written by a blue marlin fisherman. Who in their right mind enjoys riding around the deep blue ocean for hours on end, happy with just one encounter of the ocean’s apex predator—the blue marlin? Imagine yourself in the cockpit of a sportfisher looking aft at a boat wake and prop wash; lures and teasers bubbling for hours with no encounters. It’s boring!

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, Techniques Tagged With: blue marlin release, Captain Mike Lemon, catch and release, north drop spread, Offshore Fishing

Angler’s Approach to a Successful Blue Marlin Release on Fly

November 18, 2020 By InTheBite Digital Editor

man fishing on fly

Casting the fly to the blue marlin.

Nick Smith is one of the world’s foremost billfish fly anglers. Here’s his rundown of what to expect and how to handle what happens between hook up and successful release of a blue marlin on the fly. The following assumes 20-pound class tippet (things change with lower test class tippets). This description begins with the strike, once the fish has taken the fly.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, Techniques Tagged With: Blue Marlin, catch and release, fly fishing, fly fishing technique

Slant vs. Cupped Head

November 16, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

Slant Heads Vs. Cupped Heads: Action Makes the Difference
Tech Talk By Capt. Bart Miller of Black Bart Lures From InTheBite Vault

As far back as I can remember, lure designs were very basic: bullet-shaped heads and slant heads. Slant heads fell into two categories, one being a tube-shaped head with a slant nose; the other being a cylinder-shaped, tapered head with a dished out nose. The dished-out shape was [Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, General News, Tackle Tips, Techniques Tagged With: Bart Lures, Black Bart Lures, Trolling Lures

A Thorough Introduction to Billfish on the Fly

October 27, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

Photos and text by Captain Dean Butler

Without a doubt, fly rodding for billfish is a great challenge for even long-term fly fishermen. Much of the recent interest in giving it a go arises from anglers, captains and crews from a conventional fishing tackle background. This factor adds another level to the challenge.

As familiar as you may be with the target species, there’s a whole new realm of tackle, technique and IGFA rules to get your head around. This article aims to ease the transition to fly fishing by providing a range of information about aspects of the sport. Beyond the hardware and recommended procedures, though, I encourage anglers to treat every encounter as a part of the learning process – live-action reference data for understanding billfish behavior and for honing new tactics to catch them with a fly.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, Techniques Tagged With: billfish on the fly, billfishing, fly fishing, fly fishing tackle

In Sportfishing, Attitude is Everything

October 23, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

By Captain Scott “Fraz” Murie

Have you ever been around someone whose attitude is always negative or whiny?

You see this type of person in the morning and say, “Good morning, how are you?” Their response is usually, “Good morning, my belly hurts, my arm hurts, my head hurts, etc…” Then for the rest of the day you hear him pouting and whining about someone who was mean to them or they wanted to go marling fishing but their boss wants to go grouper fishing.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, Techniques Tagged With: boat crew, boating jobs, charter boat, fishing jobs

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Operation Sailfish – 1st leg of “Quest for the Crest” Sailfish Series

January 13 - January 17
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January 15 - January 17
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News

  • TEST GALLERY

    TEST GALLERY

    January 16, 2021 Check out the gallery of some of the finest sportfishing fishing teams returning to Palm Beach inlet. Most of the vessels are competing in the Operation Sailfish tournament. Check back for some new video showcasing the incredible speed of these modern day machines as they return from competition.  [Read More...]

  • Miss Texas Wins Silver Sailfish Derby, Waterman Wins Pelican Yacht Club Invitational

    Miss Texas Wins Silver Sailfish Derby, Waterman Wins Pelican Yacht Club Invitational

    Silver Sailfish Derby  First Place Most Releases Overall: Miss Texas Second Place: Priceless Third Place: Doing It All/Hardway Fourth Place: Gator One Top Individual Angler: Mike Simko with 9 releases Top Meat Fish: George Moss, Lunático, with a 32.8 lb kingfish Top Lady Angler: Carly Desmond, DaySea  Pelican Yacht Club Invitational First Place: Waterman, Capt. Kevin Paul Second Place: Dakeri,... [Read More...]

  • Canceled Plans, More Time Brought New Wave of Boaters, Anglers in 2020, Study Finds

    Canceled Plans, More Time Brought New Wave of Boaters, Anglers in 2020, Study Finds

    Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation, ALEXANDRIA, Va., Dec. 16, 2020—With COVID-19 transforming Americans' recreational habits, a new study from the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (RBFF) has found that millions of new or returning participants have taken up fishing & boating. Particular increases were seen among nontraditional participants, signaling the activities' increasing appeal among new audiences. Titled Who's On Board: Keeping New Anglers & Boaters Hooked,... [Read More...]

  • Captain Chris Sheeder Passes Away After Battle with Cancer

    Captain Chris Sheeder Passes Away After Battle with Cancer

    January 7, 2021—It's with a heavy heart that we announce well-known Hawaii Captain Chris Sheeder has passed away after a battle with pancreatic cancer, according to a public Facebook post from his brother. Sheeder's love for the water began at the young age of 11 when he took his first offshore trip out of Kona. This eventually led him to... [Read More...]

  • 2021 InTheBite Champion's Cup: What to Know

    2021 InTheBite Champion's Cup: What to Know

    Since 2003, InTheBite’s Captain of the Year Cup has celebrated the most successful tournament captains. It is still the world’s only quantifiable metric that ranks captains across five separate and geographically diverse tournament divisions – Florida, Hawaii, International, Gulf of Mexico and East Coast. New for 2021, we are introducing an optional paid entry winner-takes-all prize format awarding teams with... [Read More...]

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