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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

A New Junior World Record Bigeye Tuna Record

June 3, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

Junior World Record Bigeye Tuna

Photo courtesy Katie Coeckelenbergh-Sawyer

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Atlantic, Featured Stories, Fishing, General News, Jr Anglers, News, People, Places, Records, Tournament Results Tagged With: bigeye tuna, junior record, junior world record, stanley gillies, tuna record

Florida’s unDOCKumented Dock Records & Notable Catches

April 30, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

 

sailfish thrashing around the surface

In light of the recent dock records in the Florida Keys, we’ve dug up some material of notable catches we’ve published through the years.*

map of florida

Florida

NEW SMYRNA

Heavy Hitter caught 41 sailfish trolling in a single day out of Ponce Inlet.

  • David Grubbs was the owner/operator at the time.

FT PIERCE

January 10, 2019, Grand Slam released 38 sailfish trolling dead baits during the Pelican Yacht Club Tournament

  • Capt: David Grubbs

Floridian caught 32 sailfish trolling on dead baits in January 2004.

  • Capt: Glenn Cameron
  • Mate: Kevin Paul

STUART

December 1997

Boneshaker caught 22 sailfish trolling.

  • Capt: VJ Bell
  • Angler: Joe Lahner
  • Mate: Scott Fawcett

WEST PALM BEACH 

2006

Get Lit caught 35 sailfish in the Silver Sailfish Derby.

  • Capt: Ray Rosher
  • Anglers: Kitt Toomey
  • Mates: Charmain Rosher and Jon Cooper

Wrenegade caught 26 sails live baiting.

  • Capt: Jimmy Fields
  • Anglers: Charlie Scippola and Tony Cummings
  • Mate: Winston Wren

Feb 3, 1980 Elbow 7 caught 83 sailfish on live bait.

  • Capt: Albert Johnston
  • Angler: Louis Boski
  • Mate: Unknown

No Problem that same day caught 54 in three hours on live bait, the boat had to head in early in order to get someone to the airport.

  • Capt: Jack Morrow
  • Angler: Dave Dickenson
  • Mate: Tim Sperling

FT LAUDERDALE

April 9, 2009 Vitamin Sea Too caught 50 sailfish on live bait.

  • Captain: Tim Maddock,
  • Anglers/Crew: Mike Dinnen, Mike Reisert, Jon Krieg, Chris Meeks, Chris Zidar

MIAMI

May 1, 2019 Sandman, captained by John Dudas, caught 43 sailfish and one white marlin off Miami.

  • Crew: Diomedes Adames, Jeffrey Liederman, Steven Stallings, Sandra MacMillan

Owls Nest, captained by Matt Tambor, caught 36 sailfish on live bait out of Government Cut, a host of local quality mates were the anglers and they believe they would have caught more if they didn’t run out of bait.

March 6, 2019

L&H, captained by Jimmy David, caught 41 sailfish off Miami.

  • Mates: James David, Troy Hall
  • Anglers: Rick Smith, Matt Bowman

ISLAMORADA

Vice Versa boat crew with 76 release flags

April 23, 2020 Vice Versa, captained by Scott Martin, hold the record with 76 sailfish released in a day on live bait.

April 24, 2020 Shaka, captained by Tim Maddock, released 64 sails on April 24.

Was caught 38 sailfish on live mullet back in the 60’s.

  • Capt: Buck Stark

Kalex caught 20 sailfish live baiting (unverified if single-day record).

  • Capt: Alex Alder
  • Mate: James Allen

January of 2007 Catch 22 caught 7 swordfish without the use of electric reels.

  • Capt: Scott Stanczyk,
  • Angler: Richard Stanczyk,
  • Mate: Kristian Zeher

Marathon (Middle Keys)

April 12, 2020 Captain Marty Lewis and the crew of the Main One, out of Marathon’s Main Attraction charters, broke the record with 70 releases.

May 10, 2005 Main Attraction, captained by Marty Lewis, caught 36 sails on live bait.

April 15, 2003 Main Attraction, captained by Marty Lewis, also caught 25 sailfish on live baits.

Key West (Lower Keys)

2004

Tim Greene was an angler onboard the Beachcomber when it caught 3 blues in one day.

  • Capt: Daryl Simeon
  • Anglers: Tim Greene and Kurt Kirvan
  • Mate: Unknown

The biggest blue marlin caught out of Key West weighs 784 lbs. and is hanging at the Key West airport.

1999

Petticoat II caught 6 blue marlin in a single day.

  • Capt: Norman Wood and Wayne Hunt
  • Angler: Jim Hardy
  • Mate: Unknown

Outside the State

Born2run released 10 blue marlin during the two-and-a-half-day Mississippi Gulf Coast Billfish Classic

  • Capt. Myles Colley
  • Mates: Tyler Maxwell, Robert Bonifay, Doug Franklin, Alex Pinney and Brian “Beaver” Paul.
  • Owners, Dana and Lisa Foster
  • Boneshaker
    Capt. VJ Bell, Angler Joe Lahner, Mate Scott Fawcett on the Boneshaker.
  • pic_boneshaker_ex
    Boneshaker, which caught 22 sailfish trolling.

  • Floridian
    The Floridian , which caught 32 sailfish trolling on dead baits in January 2004.
  • Get Lit Siver Sailfish Dervy
    Get Lit caught 35 sailfish in the Silver Sailfish Derby.
  • Wrenegade Pic 2
    Wrenegade caught 26 sails live baiting.
  • Vitamin Sea Too TR
    Vitamin Sea Too caught 50 sailfish on live bait.
  • Owls Nest
    Owls Nest, captained by Matt Tambor, caught 36 sailfish on live bait out of Government Cut.
  • Kalex
    Kalex caught 20 sailfish live baiting
  • Catch 22
    Catch 22 caught 7 swordfish without the use of electric reels.
  • AF6A73CC-98AF-4AFF-9280-ABEA6B5A9C08
    Shaka, captained by Tim Maddock, released 64 sails on April 24.
  • main attraction TR
    On May 10, 2005, Main Attraction, captained by Marty Lewis, caught 36 sails on live bait.
    On April 15, 2003, the team caught 25 sailfish on live baits.
  • AF7A9470-6AC5-42E3-8212-BC029228E24B
    Sandman, captained by John Dudas, caught 43 sailfish and one white marlin off Miami on May 1, 2019.

So that’s what we have so far! We are still working on this eastern region. If any information needs to be corrected, please let us know. Also we really want to give everybody onboard the recognition they deserve so if you see any unknowns or listings that have the captain, angler or mates name missing please fill us in. Once again amy@inthebite.com.

*Records are only used if they can be verified by reputable captains.

Do you have any comments or questions for us? We’d love to hear from you.

 

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, General News, News, Records Tagged With: fishing records, florida keys sailfish record, florida sailfish record, notable catches, Sailfish

Florida Keys 70 Sailfish Day

April 16, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

Main One with 70 sailfish flags By Elliott Stark

Captain Marty Lewis and his wife Katie own and operate Main Attraction Charters out of Key Colony Beach, Florida. With five working charter boats, the Lewises are no stranger to the waters of the Lower Keys. It was this experience and familiarity that led to a hunch that turned into what may have been the best day of sailfishing in the history of the Florida Keys. On Easter Sunday, April 12, 2020, Captain Marty Lewis and the crew of the Main One, a 49’ Cape Fear, released a Keys’ record 70 sails.

Here’s how it happened.

“I took my wife and daughter out tuna fishing on Saturday off of Marathon. It was a slick calm day but I could see that the Gulf Stream was running in close. I knew that the next day might be a good day to go sailfishing but it was Easter Sunday. I asked my wife if I could go and she gave me hall pass to go fishing,” Lewis explains with a bit of a laugh.

girl holding blackfin tuna

Katie Lewis with a nice, day-before-Easter blackfin

Upon returning to the dock after fishing Lewis’ mate, Digger Rodamer, sent out a group text to round up a crew for the following day. The next day, Digger, Shelby Bentley, Aaron “Nautical” Sutcliffe, Steve Fitzgerald and Joe Marino joined Marty to head offshore. Loaded up with 800 or 1,000 live pilchards the crew departed the dock at Key Colony Beach Marina at 7:00.

keys sailfish on leader

They started fishing about 25 miles west of Marathon. Captain Marty found what he was looking for—the spot where the Gulf Stream tucked in—off of the American Shoal near Big Pine Key.  “Every fish we caught was tailing. We cast live pilchards to them. There was no kite fishing or trolling. We probably saw 100 fish on the day, but we couldn’t get to all of them. Almost all of those that we cast a bait to ate—only two or three turned away. There was no pressure on them, we only saw two or three other boats out,” Lewis describes.

sailfish flipping on leader

Lewis and company caught their first fish at 10:00. Forty minutes later the tally was up to six. “We had a steady stream of groups of fish passing through most of the day. There were two rallies when we’d have a guy hooked up on the bow and a guy fighting one at the stern and then we’d hook others. One time we had a guy fighting a fish for an hour. We must have caught eight or ten fish while he was fighting his.”

By 3:15 pm the tally eclipsed 40. By 5:00 the total was 60 and the crew realized they had a shot a breaking the Keys’ record of 65 sailfish releases in a day.  Lewis kept a running tally with his wife Katie over text message. The final text came through at 6:35—“70 and done.”

It was a record breaking day for the veteran charter captain and a group of his buddies. Captain Marty spent the day in the tower directing his guys where to cast as sailfish tailed into range. The fish were caught on Mustad ultra point 6/0 circle hooks using 30 and 40 pound leader.  All of the fish were caught slinging live pilchards to tailers on Penn spinning outfits.

News of the epic day brought led 30 or 40 boats to fish the area the next day. While Capt. Marty decided to take Monday off (after all he wasn’t going to catch 70 again) the bite continued for the next couple of days. Monday produced 46 releases followed by 30 on Tuesday. The hot streak produced an incredible 146 sails over three consecutive days for Main Attraction Sportfishing Charters.

Captain Marty Lewis and the crew of the Main One– and all the a whole pile of sailfish flags! 70 of them.

To book a day with Marty and the Main Attraction Charters, visit them at: www.mainattraction.org or give them a call at: 305.289.0071

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, News, North America, Records Tagged With: florida keys, florida keys sailfish record, main attraction charters, Sailfish, sailfish records

How the New Texas State Record Bluefin Came to Be

April 10, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

820 bluefin tuna hanging from Pelican Rest scale in texas

The Bluefin caught by Daniel Miers on Rock Mama.

By Elliott Stark

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.

Boat owner, and the man who reeled in the fish, Daniel Miers asked Nichols if he could round up a crew to take advantage of the weather window that presented the opportunity to get offshore and out of the house for a while. On the boat were Miers, his son Jacob, Capt. Robert Nichols and his two brothers Derek and Scotty. “We left out of Freeport Tuesday evening and slowboated about 100 miles to the Nansen Rig,” Nichols says.

angler in fighting chair hooked up to a fish with bent rod

Rock Mama owner Daniel Miers hooked the fish and fought it for six hours and 40 minutes.

“I talked to Capt. Troy Day. He had caught two blue marlin the day before but was heading home. Captain John Cochrane killed a bluefin that went 599 at Nansen too, so we were pretty excited. We planned to live bait for blue marlin.”

After getting a bit of sleep, the crew filled their tuna tubes at 4:30 am in the lights of the rig. “We put the baits out at 6:45. At about 7:00 there was an explosion. It’s hard to describe, but it looked like a 400 or 500-pound cannonball blew up in the water. There was a drill ship out at Nansen and we hooked the fish off of the bow of the drill ship.”

“We backed down a total of seven miles during the fight. When we were about four miles away from the rig, the tuna took a big run. The next thing you know, I looked down off the port side of the boat and there was a school of giant bluefin swimming and jumping around the surface of the water. We were surrounded by big tuna. I think the fish tried to join up with the school even though it was hooked.”

“My boss, Daniel Miers, hooked the fish and fought in the chair the whole time. We fought the fish for about six hours and 40 minutes. It was a pretty incredible feat. I think the whole time he might have had a few bites of kolache (a really great type of breakfast pastry) and three or four bottles of water—and that’s it. He hooked the fish himself.”

big record tuna being pulled into the back of the boat from the water

It took everyone on board, plus Ryan Doxey (who swam from another boat), plus the anchor windlass to get the brute on board. Photo courtesy Steven Caruselle

“My brothers, Derek and Scotty Nichols (who are also captains themselves) gaffed the fish. We gaffed it the first time we got him on the leader. We caught the fish on an 80 wide with 200-pound leader. The leader was light because we were fishing for blue marlin…”

“Ryan Doxey had to swim over from another boat to help us get the fish in the boat. We used the anchor windlass to help get the fish on board. We couldn’t have done it with just manpower. I removed the anchor and the chain and ran the anchor line around the boat and tied to the fish. As they were pulling, they yell up and I’d put it in gear.”

The fish weighed 820 pounds. It was 114 inches long with a girth of 80 inches.

“We got it on board but it was too big to keep fishing so we headed home even though the fishing was lights out.”

Nichols, Miers and company weighed the fish at Galveston’s Pelican Rest Marina.

Congratulations from InTheBite on the fish of a lifetime. The previous Texas state record bluefin mark was set in the 1980s.

Check out our gallery of more recent tuna catches:

  • image0
  • IMG_0842
    Team Decarb weighed this 633 lbs. Bluefin Tuna April 10, 2020 Freeport, Texas
  • IMG_0843
    Team Walk West with a giant bluefin 649 lbs. April 9, 2020 Port Aransas, Texas

Any comments or questions please feel free to ask us. Thanks in advance from InTheBite staff

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, General News, News, North America, Records Tagged With: Bluefin, rock mama, texas state record, tuna fishing, tuna record

Tournament Granders: Sportfishing’s Holy Grail

March 9, 2020 By InTheBite Editor

The Sea Wolff’s Gulf record from the 2002 MGCBC – notice the flying gaff!

Catching a grander blue marlin in a tournament is perhaps sportfishing’s ultimate achievement. For most any passionate bluewater angler, the chance to catch a 1,000-pound blue marlin under any circumstance is about as good as it gets. To catch one with all the chips on the table with not only all of the fanfare but hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line? That’s another thing entirely. There aren’t many times, after all, when catching the fish of a lifetime can also provide a life-changing payday.

The following are stories from captains who have experienced this glory. To underscore just how impactful the occasion was, the money was an afterthought. Each captain was profoundly grateful for the experience…as you might imagine.

Captain Alan Card, Challenger, Bermuda – 1,195-pound Blue Marlin, 1993 Blue Marlin World Cup

We called Captain Alan Card out of the blue, with no warning or appointment. It was a Tuesday afternoon. We explained the idea for the article over the phone and apologized for asking about a fish that he caught 26 years ago. I imagined that perhaps he might have a hard time recalling the details on the spot and wanted to give him a way out of the conversation. He laughed at me (in his charming Bermuda fashion)…and launched into the story like it happened yesterday.

“That sort of fish you never forget! I can still count the stripes on it when it jumped,” he exclaimed with a laugh. “There were only two fish caught here that day. The other one was a little fish.” In Bermuda, boats stack up to fish the Blue Marlin World Cup. “We hooked him at 12:30 or so. I called Jim Hardy, who was running the tournament at the time, and told him we had a fish hooked. He told me there was already a big one – an 880 weighed in Madeira,” Card recalls. “I told him, ‘Don’t worry about it….’ You never forget a fish like that.” “I was using a Joe Yee Super Plunger with a pearl head and a purple and pink skirt. He ate the short rigger and jumped like hell. We were shallow, in 120 or 130 fathoms when he ate. It was a two- or so-hour fight. We chased him four or five miles.”

Card’s 1195 is still the largest fish ever caught in the Blue Marlin World Cup. The next year he entered again. “At the time they had a 400-pound minimum. We caught a fish and it measured so we brought in the boat. Some of the crew said it would go 399, some said 400. It was close,” Card recalls. At the scales, the fish squeaked by at 401. “There were not many fish caught that year. It stood until the last 10 minutes when some S.O.B. from Hawaii weighed a 600. Jim Hardy said, ‘I was rooting for you guys. You would have won it in back to back years with the biggest fish and the smallest ever to win.’”

Picture of Challenger Sportfish Boat in Bermuda

Capt. Alan Card of Bermuda has weighed six granders (all 1100 or better), including the largest ever caught in the World Cup.

Captain Mike King, Mimi, North Carolina – 1,228-pound Blue Marlin, 2008 Pirate’s Cove

The story of how Captain Mike King came to run across what is perhaps the largest blue marlin ever caught in the continental United States during the Pirate’s Cove Tournament is really something. His summary upon reflecting on the day provides some insight into just how incredible it can be to catch the fish of a lifetime at just the right time. “I’m just so humbled that out of all of the generations of captains out of North Carolina to have that sea monster on, God chose me to catch it.”

Fishing in their home tournament, the Mimi assembled an all-star crew for Pirate’s Cove. Aboard were Trey Irvine, owner of Pipe Welders Marine, Paul Spencer, Chris Hall, an ex-Bayliss mate, an ex-Sea Toy mate, Patrick Byrd, and Cliff Spencer. “We had been striking out on the release division all tournament and had to pull out the lures. It was a Hail Mary event,” King recalls. A full spread of lures was certainly not King’s normal approach when tournament fishing. It was a decision they came to upon realizing that they would need something out of the ordinary to win the tournament.

“At 9:00 the night before, after a lot of brainstorming, we got the lures. We wanted to put four of them out, but we didn’t have enough hooks. Patrick and I go to one of the commercial rigs and took a couple rusty extra strength 10/0 hooks right off a mackerel rig. We polished them up real good…. Guess what the fish ate?” “I ran offshore and found the tunas. Our strategy was to just troll around the tunas all day,” the captain recalls. “It came up on a teaser and faded off and ate a lure. I knew it was a big fish, but I was nervous and didn’t say anything. Paul (Spencer) never says anything, but he erupted and said, ‘King this is a big one!’”

Gulf Record Blue Marlin being weighed in Biloxi, Mississippi

Fishing the first morning of the boat’s first tournament, Capt. Dennis Barrett and the Sea Wolff caught the Gulf record blue marlin.

“The fish jumped around and stayed up top for two hours. We were 20 miles offshore of everyone else. The last hour it was 30- to 45-feet away from the boat. We were in a stalemate. I was scared of losing it – the way it happens that way,” he recalls. “The last time it came up to jump the line kind of made a half hitch over its mouth and kind of choked it for a second. It stayed up top. I came roaring back and was either going to run it over or catch it.”

“The boat had a 19-inch door rather than the standard 22 inches. The fish was so big that it wouldn’t fit. We were afraid of tearing the fish. The dorsal created a barb and jammed the fish – we couldn’t get it out. We wrestled with it for an hour and finally decided to just pull. Somehow the fish made it.”

King and company caught the fish on an 80-wide.

“It would have been an IGFA record, but for the connection we used for the backing. In those days we didn’t always think about those things – today we do.”

The fish made for a payday of more than 600k, but it could have been more.

“It was in 2008 and things were just starting to recover (from the recession). Most years the tournament had a policy with Lloyd’s of London to pay out for a state record fish.

For whatever reason that year they didn’t,” King says. “We had some long faces. ‘Are you really gonna pull those lures?’ With a lot of divine intervention, it worked out.”

“137-inch fork length and a 78-inch girth – it was like a bluegill!” – Capt. Keith Quick

Captain Freddy Rice, Ihu Nui – 1062.5-pound Blue Marlin, 1986 Hawaii Invitational Billfish Tournament

Captain Freddy Rice was an icon of the Hawaii sportfishing community. At the helm of the Ihu Nui, Rice caught the then 50-pound line class record Pacific blue marlin on the last day of the 1986 HIBT. Rice’s son McGrew, who now runs the Ihu Nui, was working the cockpit that day. While Capt. Freddy Rice passed in January 2018, McGrew provided us a video interview his father gave that describes the fight and shows original video of the fight.

“We went four days in the tournament without a strike. The Laguna Niguel Billfish Club was the team for the day. They had won the billfish tournament the year before,” Rice describes. “Brooks Morris (the team captain) had his door knob lure that he was introducing. They were meant to be trolled as fast as you could go – almost with a rooster tail behind the boat.”

“I like heavy tackle – I don’t like light tackle. He had 50-pound on an 80-pound outfit – he wanted to do that. I said, ‘You are the client.’”

Known for his hospitality, Rice allowed the team to deploy their lure on their own tackle. “We had seen, the afternoon before, a big fish just broach. My thinking was that the big fish was still here…” Rice recalls. “The next thing you know, I thought someone had fallen overboard – everybody was yelling – and the fish comes out of the water.”

“I immediately said to myself, ‘It’s bigger than Joe Yee’s fish – which he had caught the first day. It was a 700-pounder that was leading the tournament.’ We got the lines cleared and I immediately started chasing the fish. Gil Kraemer (the angler) did a great job – he paid attention to what you asked him to do, he really concentrated. McGrew was crewing for me that day and he stood right over him to make sure that the angler was doing what he was supposed to do.”

“When the leader came up, McGrew got the leader and Brooks Morris, one of the anglers, got the first gaff in him. I came down from the bridge and got the second gaff in him. What we didn’t know was that one hook had gone over the top of his bill and the other one went underneath his jaw.”

“We knew we had a potential world record on light tackle, and we had won the tournament. McGrew said to me, ‘Your first 1,000 pounder is on light tackle.’ I said, ‘I know. God is punishing me, but I love the way He’s doing it!”

1022.5 lb marlin on scale

Molly Palmer’s would-have-been ladies’ world record from the 2012 Big Island Marlin Tournament.

Two of the Three Largest Blue Marlin Ever Caught in Gulf Tournaments – The Sea Wolff

With Captain Dennis Barrett at the helm, the Sea Wolff caught the Gulf record blue marlin – 1054.6 – on the first day of the 2002 Mississippi Gulf Coast Billfish Classic in Biloxi. Captain Keith Quick was the first mate that day. Some four years later, with Quick running the boat, the Sea Wolff would catch a 998.6-pound blue at the 2006 Bay Point Invitational. Were it not enough for one boat to come within 1.4-pounds of catching two grander blue marlin in tournaments, the Sea Wolff is a charter boat. Aboard for both fish was angler Barry Carr – the man who reeled them both in – and his group of friends.

The Sea Wolff is a G&S built in 2001. “We caught the grander on the first morning of our first tournament on the boat. The boat was built in 2001. We took delivery of it in February 2002. The tournament was in June,” recalls Keith Quick.

“We were fishing around Ram Powell (an oil rig), just getting our trolling spread in the water. We hadn’t been fishing for an hour when she came up and hit the long-left rigger – it ate a skirted Spanish mackerel,” Quick recalls. “We got the fish to the boat in 45 minutes, but we fought her for four hours. We were totally tripping. After some spectacular jumps and big runs initially, she settled in for battle within 30 yards from the boat, swimming away the whole time. We couldn’t do anything with her initially. We just stayed close to her as we could get. Capt. Dennis did a great job of staying on the fish. When we tried to pressure her, she would pull off 100 yards or so of line and sound. We would get her back up but she would only let us get so close.”

When the marlin finally came up for a gaff shot, the story becomes even more incredible. “Gaff man, Tony Parks, stuck her with the first gaff. The fish bolted and everything came tight in a hurry. All of a sudden it sounded like a tuning fork; I’ll never forget it. The gaff pulled out – the fish straightened the gaff,” he says.

The crew was using a 10-inch Pompanette flyer, a standard issue gaff that was not reinforced. After pulling off the gaff, the fish bolted. “It took 70 yards of line out and then it turned jet black…black as the ace of spades. It died on the spot. The fish was vertical with its bill sticking out of the water. We backed down hard and got a hold of her. We were lucky to get her before she sank.”

“We got her on the boat at about 11:00. We were 90 or so miles off the beach. We threw the marlin bag over her and ran in. We couldn’t weigh her until the scales opened at 5:30 or 6:00, so we just waited. We never did go back out.”

Were it not enough for the Sea Wolff to catch the Gulf record blue marlin in the Biloxi tournament – with a charter group, some four years later they would come within 1.4-pounds of doing it again at the 2006 Bay Point Invitational. Keith Quick was running the boat in 2006, his son Jared was working in the cockpit. They were fishing with the same charter group.

“It was the second day of the tournament. We had been catching so many blackfin and small yellowfin tuna that the guys were ready to move on, ‘We’re tired of this, let’s go,’ they said. I told them, ‘The one we’re looking for eats these things like grapes.’ Not five minutes later, here she comes.”

“She came straight across the spread right behind the boat and grabbed the left flat line lure, we could see how big the fish was. She missed it the first two times then, on the third try, grabbed the lure out of the clip and took 50 yards of line and pulled off. We were dying. We thought we missed our shot. Then she submarined over and ate the horse ballyhoo rigged with a blue and white Islander on the long-left rigger.”

“The dimensions on the first fish were 137-inch fork length and a 78-inch girth – it was like a bluegill! The second one was 134 to the fork, with a girth of 72-inches. It weighed 998.6-pounds,” Quick recalls. He is incredibly grateful to have been part of catching two of the three largest blue marlin ever caught in tournaments in the Gulf of Mexico. “You work your whole life to be part of something like that. I am so thankful and feel very blessed. We (speaking of the crew on the Sea Wolff) were good friends before – now, because of something like that, we’re inseparable.”

Jared Quick, Captain Keith’s son, is a deckhand and captain who has gone on to work aboard some of the Gulf’s finest boats – the Sea Mixer, the Dreamin’ On, and the Work of Art to name a few – was on the boat for the Bay Point fish. “Jared was one of the crew members with us for the second fish. That means so much to me. That was one of the most special things…”

Quick says, emotionally. “Everybody in this business knows that something like this is a very significant team achievement… to share something like this with your son is every father’s dream.”

1258.5 lb marlin hanging from scale

Capt. Bomboy Llanes’ 1258.5 from the 2003 Fire Cracker Open.

A Grand Day

Catching a grander in and of itself is a monumental achievement that most will never experience. Doing so when all the money is on the line is another thing entirely. It doesn’t always turn out like you’d imagine. Captain Rahn Yamashita and the Shirley-Y caught a 1,101.6-pound blue in the 1997 Lahaina Jackpot Classic. A windfall victory? It would have been on any other day in the history of the world. Yamashita and crew took second place, coming up four and half pounds short of the 1106 weighed by Captain Russell Tanaka and the crew of the Magic. How’s that for a fish story?

The following is a list of 20 grander blue marlin caught in tournaments:

◆ 1979 Bahamas Billfish Championship, Bimini Leg.
1062– Capt. Mike Lemon, Revenge
◆ 1986 Hawaii International
Billfish Tournament: 1062.5 –
Capt. Freddy Rice, Ihu Nui
◆ 1988 Pirate’s Cove (North Carolina):
1080 – Capt. Brynner Parks, Teaser
◆ 1989 Band-the-Billfish Tournament
(NC Ducks Unlimited): 1002 –
Capt. Howard Basnight, Wave Runner
◆ 1993 Blue Marlin World Cup: 1195 –
Capt. Allen Card, Challenger – Bermuda
◆ 1993 LaHaina Jackpot: 1201.8 –
Capt. Bruce Matson, Cormorant
◆ 1993 Hawaii International Billfish
Tournament: 1,166 – Capt. Dale
Leverone, Sea Strike
◆ 1997 LaHaina Jackpot Classic:
(Two granders!) 1106 – Capt. Russell
Tanaka, Magic and 1101.5 – Capt. Rahn
Yamashita, Shirley-Y
◆ 2001 Bay Point Invitational (Florida):
1,046 – Capt. Conrad Hawkins, Lucky 2
◆ 2002 Mississippi Gulf Coast Billfish
Classic: 1054.6 – Capt. Dennis Barrett,
Sea Wolff
◆ 2003 Fire Cracker Open (Hawaii): 1258.5 –
Capt. Bomboy Llanes, On The Fly
◆ 2004 Blue Marlin World Cup: 1189 –
Capt. Andrew Dias, Triple Play – Bermuda
◆ 2008 Pirate’s Cove (North Carolina):
1228 – Capt. Mike King, Mimi
◆ 2009 White Marlin Open: 1062 –
Capt. Skip Olpaco, No Problem
◆ 2010 Blue Marlin World Cup: 1097 –
Capt. Berno Niebuhr, Happy Hooker –
Cape Verde
◆ 2010 White Marlin Open: 1010.5 –
Capt. Tom McCoungle, Let It Ride
◆ 2012 Big Island Marlin Tournament
(Hawaii): 1022.5 – Capt. Neil Isaacs,
Anxious (self DQed, would be ladies’
world record. The fish died and had to
be planed up. After four hours in the
chair, with up to 90-pounds of drag,
angler Molly Palmer had to be relieved
by the crew).
◆ 2013 Trinidad International Game
Fishing Tournament: 1005.9. –
Capt. Brendan Farfan, Predator
◆ 2013 Bahamas Billfish Championship,
Treasure Cay Leg: 1119 – Capt. Jason
Parker, Double Dog

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, General News, News, Records, Tournament Results Tagged With: alan card, Captain Mike King, catching blue marlin, COTY, fishing advice, grander, records

Kona Grander– Big Island Marlin Tournament

August 19, 2019 By InTheBite Editor

By Capt. Mark Johnston

Tournament angler Keith Hilton had an unreal day fishing onboard the Marlin Magic II with Capt. Marlin Parker when he landed a monster 1,035-pound blue marlin on the third and final day of Kona’s Big Island Marlin Tournament! The gigantic blue was the first grander caught off Kona since August 26, 2015, and the kind of fish that has made Kona famous and known as one of the world’s greatest blue marlin fishing destinations. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, News, Pacific, Records, Tournament Results, Tournaments Tagged With: big island marlin tournament, Captain of the Year, Hawaii, Hawaii Division, kona, results

IGFA Names 2019 Tommy Gifford Award Winners 


July 1, 2019 By InTheBite Editor

IGFA Announces 2019 Tommy Gifford Award Winners
Honoring the Top Captains, Guides and Crew in Angling History

 DANIA BEACH, Fla. – June 28, 2019 – The International Game Fish Association (IGFA) today announced its 2019 Tommy Gifford Award winners in recognition of their significant contributions to recreational angling as captains, guides or crew.

This year’s recipients include big-game angling pioneer Captain Peter Bristow; renowned billfish champion Captain Bubba Carter;  Australian charter legend and adventurer Captain John Cross;  famed Florida Keys inshore guide Captain Billy Knowles; New Zealand angling great and swordfish pioneer Captain Bruce Smith; and IGFA World Record and light tackle extraordinaire Captain R.T. Trosset. These recreational angling greats will be honored at the IGFA Tommy Gifford Awards Ceremony during the 60th annual Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show on October 31, 2019, at the iconic Riverside Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

“Named for Tommy Gifford, one of the greatest saltwater charter captains of all time, this prestigious award recognizes incredible personal achievements and innovative contributions to the development of our sport,” said IGFA President Nehl Horton. “For many recreational anglers, charter captains and crews are the key to the angling experience as they open up a world of opportunities not always available to the average angler.”

The 2019 recipients were selected by the IGFA Legendary Captains & Crew Committee, a distinguished panel of internationally renowned captains and mates chaired by Captain Skip Smith. Previous winners include Jose Wejebe, Allen and Buddy Merritt, Ron Hamlin, Charles Perry, Ralph Delph, Laurie Wright, Jimmie Albright, Bouncer Smith, Steve Lassley and more.

“On behalf of the entire Legendary Captains & Crew Committee, it is such an honor to be able to recognize these captains, guides and crew members from around the world every year,” said LC&C Chairman Skip Smith. “We need to keep this history alive and honor the contributions these greats have made to our sport.”

 Captain Peter Bristow

Captain Peter Bristow

Born in Brisbane, Queensland, in July 1938, Peter Bristow has long been a famous figure in local and international game fishing circles. In 1968, he moved to Cairns, Australia, to begin work on big game fishing vessels. The following year, he built the Avalon, a 38-foot sportfishing boat and operated out of Cairns for 23 years.  He is credited as being one of the early pioneers that established Cairns, Australia, as the world’s epicenter for giant black marlin. In 1996, Peter turned his sights to blue marlin in the Atlantic and began a successful charter operation in Madeira, Portugal, fishing on the Katherine B that continues today.

Captain Bubba Carter

Captain Bubba Carter

South Carolina native Bubba Carter first fished offshore at the age of six and received his captains license two days after turning 18.  He has been a prominent figure in destinations including Cairns, St. Thomas, Isla Mujeres, Venezuela and Costa Rica.  He has released over 20,000 billfish, caught 11 over 1,000 pounds and has several IGFA World Records to his credit.  Today, Carter is based out of Los Suenos, Costa Rica, where he captains the Tijereta.

Captain John Cross

Capt. John Cross

Born in Australia in 1954, John Cross moved to Cairns and established a charter operation with his brother.  He is credited with pioneering the popper fishery for giant trevally on the Great Barrier Reef.   Cross relocated to Papua New Guinea in 1991 and began exploring its inshore and offshore waters.  He later served as the President of the Game Fishing Association of Papua New Guinea from 1996-1998, where he brought the club into the modern age.

Captain Billy Knowles

captain billy knowles

Billy Knowles is a fourth-generation captain and one of the best-known names in the Florida Keys.  He received his captain’s license in 1961 and the list of notable people he has fished includes the likes of Ernest Hemingway, Grace Kelly, President George H.W. Bush, President Herbert Hoover and Ted Williams.  Knowles has dozens of tournament victories to his credit including the Gold Cup Invitational Tarpon Tournament, Don Hawley Tarpon Tournament, Spring Fly Bonefish Tournament and Fall All-Tackle Bonefish Tournament.  He still is actively guiding clients in the Florida Keys at the age of 78.

Captain Bruce Smith

captain bruce smith

Bruce Smith came to the Bay of Islands in New Zealand in 1977 with the idea of working for a few weeks as a deck hand, but never left.  Smith learned his craft under the mentorship of Tommy Gifford Awardee Snooks Fuller on the Lady Doreen, which he later went on to captain himself.  He is well-known as an accomplished billfish captain in New Zealand’s waters and helped pioneer its swordfish fishery.  He later became the President of the prestigious Bay of Islands Swordfish Club.

Captain R.T. Trosset

Captain R.T. Trosset

R.T. Trosset has been guiding anglers to scores IGFA World Record catches in Key West, Florida, for over four decades.  He excels in fishing with conventional and fly tackle and is a master at catching everything from tarpon to tuna.  His client list is impressive and not only consists of notable IGFA record holders such as Dotty Ballantyne and Gene DuVal, but also sports figures including Andy Mill, Don Shula and Dick Butkus.  During the height of his career, he was booked as many as 285 days a year and he still guides anglers to “the fish of their lifetime” 130 days a year.

The namesake of the award, Tommy Gifford (1896-1970) is considered one of the most innovative blue water anglers who ever lived, and one of the greatest charter skippers to guide anglers to the major game fishes of the sea. Over the course of his 50-year career, he developed an encyclopedic knowledge of game fish and techniques to catch them, and he served as guide and consultant to some of the most famous names in saltwater angling, including Ernest Hemingway, Michael Lerner, Charlie Lehman and Van Campen Heilner. He never lost his zest for the sea, or his awe at the creatures beneath the waves. Raymond Camp wrote, “Big game angling has a brief history, but Tommy Gifford’s name is sharply etched on every page.”

Filed Under: Featured Stories, Fishing, General News, News, Press Releases, Records Tagged With: Captain Bubba Carter, Captain Peter Bristow, IGFA, International Game Fish Association, John Cross, Tommy Gifford

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