InTheBite

SiriusXM’s New Fish Mapping Brings Advantages to Offshore Anglers

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SiruisXM Marine is changing the landscape of offshore weather and satellite service. The latest offering, Fish Mapping, is a service that compiles and analyzes a number of variables to pinpoint the fishiest areas. From temperature breaks and locating weed lines to staying on top of offshore weather, SiriusXM offers everything you need offshore in a single service. It is available now and ready to make a difference for your time on the water. Visit: www.siriusxm.com/fishmapping

Oh, and by adding SiriusXM Marine radio, the days of worrying about having to listen to whatever music your buddy happens to have on his phone are over too!

Sirius XM Fish Mapping Coming Soon

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Sirius XM has been making waves in the offshore space for years, but the service is about to get a whole lot better: Fish Mapping. What is it and how does it get you dialed in faster? Check out siriusxm.com/fishmapping to see how it works and when it hits the docks.

Hilton’s New Major/Minor Feeding Times Feature

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Hilton’s just launched a new Major/Minor Feeding Times feature! You can place the Nav Tool (oval with white box) anywhere in each region, and it will give you the major feeding times as well as minor feeding time for that lat/long position on the earth! Kinda cool to look at different areas of the Gulf (or wherever you are fishing) and see how the feeding times are affected by location.

You can look forward in time (or backward) to see when is the best time to make sure you are on the spot to fish!

www.HiltonsOffshore.com

New SiriusXM Marine Fish Mapping Available on Garmin GXM 54 Satellite Weather & Audio Receiver

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OLATHE, Kan./July 16, 2019/Garmin International, Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd., today announced that its latest satellite weather & audio receiver, the GXM 54, will support SiriusXM Fish Mapping, the most comprehensive SiriusXM Marine service package designed to help saltwater anglers locate fish faster, saving time and fuel.

In addition to essential weather information provided by SiriusXM, like radar, lightning, marine zone forecasts, wind and wave information, the new Fish Mapping service provides regularly updated, science-based data directly to a compatible Garmin multi-function display1, well beyond cellular range. Offering premium marine features like recommended areas to find specific game fish, weed lines, sea surface temperatures and front strength, sub surface sea temperatures, plankton concentration data, and more, the new Fish MappingTM service is ideal for all salt-water anglers who travel offshore – whether they spend a significant amount of time fishing in tournaments, taking clients on charter trips, or just fishing for fun.

[Read more…]

Fish Finders: Then and Now

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Fish finders – Old school to new.

This column first appeared in our June 2019 Issue Volume 18 Edition 4 of InTheBite The Professionals’ Sportfishing Magazine.

by Captain Scott “Fraz” Murie

A lot has changed since I got into the business of fishing. Electronics have become the most important tool you can have on board your boat. When considering all of the abilities of modern electronics, I sometimes think of back “in the day” – if we had a Loran and a Raytheon 735A fathometer, and a booster on our CB radio, we had it going on.

The fathometer was a paper graph machine that scrolled and was marked by a stylus needle. The stylus drawing showed the contour of the bottom and any fish or bait as it scrolled. Actually, it was a pretty amazing machine at the time. Our Loran was operated using microwave towers that transmitted signals from shore, so your range was limited and bad weather decreased its accuracy. When we would take our boat to Mexico or the Bahamas, or other faraway places, you could forget it because our Loran was useless. It was all navigating by charts, parallel rules and dividers.

Today that’s all changed. You can take a boat anywhere now and never be out of touch. You can even see at night! Our satellite systems and technology are pinpoint accurate. That brings me to the latest and greatest game changing fish finder – the new Furuno Omni Scanner.

This is a full color scanner. It scans 360 degrees in 0.54 seconds. Think about that! That is almost two full 360-degree scans per second. This scanner is a game changer when it comes to finding fish, bait, or structure. With this tool fishermen can actually identify the species of fish under the boat. They are able to mark and track a single fish, enabling the anglers to present a bait directly to the targeted fish.

This scanner has become so popular here in the Northern Gulf that I know of at least a dozen boats that had them installed during the off season – previously only a hand full of boats had them. The sonar takes the guess work out of the question, “Is there any fish or bait or structure around the boat?” It reads out several hundred yards from the boat. For instance, you might be heading south but you see something on your sonar screen that is 300 yards to the west. So, you go over there and you get covered up. The point is, you would never have made the turn to the west without the sonar. It is truly a game changer as far as finding and tracking fish.

These scanners are expensive – with a typical price tag of between 100k and 150k depending on the installation. But if you are throwing down 20k, 40k or 60k a weekend in tournaments, it’s a no brainer.  A lot of boats without the scanner are having second thoughts about betting against the sonar boats.  You can’t hardly blame them. Also, there is nothing automatic about this machine. Like anything else, you have to learn how to use it. When using it properly you are constantly panning in and out, up and down – your head is literally in the sonar all the time. It takes a lot of time to get dialed in on this machine. But once you do get it dialed in, you won’t want to go fishing without it.

Technology is an amazing thing. You need it now days to stay in the game.

 – That’s my two-minute warning. Fraz

Introducing Release Rulers Billfish Weight Estimating Boat Decals

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Release Ruler introduces its Billfish line of weight estimating boat decals and demonstrates how to apply them. Could be a great tool for tournament season.

InTheBite Dock Talk: White’s Tackle

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White’s Tackle is a full service tackle store located in Ft. Pierce and Stuart Florida. The staff are knowledgeable anglers who’ve fished the globe learning the secrets from the best captains and crews, and will be glad to pass them on to you. For over 90 years White’s Tackle has been outfitting inshore and offshore anglers from all over with the best tackle and service imaginable. If you have any questions feel free to call the Fort Pierce Store at 772-461-6909 or the Stuart Store 772-266-4010 or send an email to: info@whitestackle.com

The Montauk Canyon Challenge: The Fastest Growing Tournament In The Northeast

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Fish Anytime Between July 12th and July 20th!

There is nothing worse than being excited to fish a tournament only to have the weather not cooperate. The hours spent organizing gear, preparing bait, and pre-fishing your plan, can end up a fruitless effort thanks to Mother Nature. This is one of the reasons that the Montauk Canyon Challenge has become such a popular tournament in the Northeast. When you fish the MCC, you literally get to choose to fish anytime between July 12th and July 20th!

“We’ve really grown in popularity from where the tournament started and a lot it has to do with the flexibility in when you’re allowed to fish,” said Rich Lucas, one of the MCC’s tournament directors. “We also had 44 boats last year compete and we gave away over $250,000 in cash and prizes. Everyone loved the Awards Dinner and Party.”

Last year’s tournament also netted a record number of fish thanks to a hot bite. More than 150 BigEyes, 150 Yellowfin, and several white and blue Marlin were caught during the event. The heaviest tuna caught was 210.1lbs.!

Anglers are allowed to choose to fish either two 19-hour day trips or can do one 38-hour overnight trip.  All boats will return to Gurney’s Yacht Club in Montauk for an official weighing.

The cost of entering a boat into the Montauk Canyon Challenge is $1,600, but anyone who registers online before May 15, 2019 will receive a $300 discount.

Below are the 2019 prizes for the MCC:

$25,000 1st Place Top Tuna

$5,000 1st Place Yellowfin Tuna

$1,000 2nd Place Yellowfin Tuna

$2,500 1st Place Albacore Tuna

$1,000 2nd Place Albacore Tuna

$2,500 1st Place Top Three Yellowfin

$1,000 2nd Place Top Three Yellowfin

$1,000 1st Place Mahi Mahi

$1,000 1st Place Mako Shark

$1,000 1st Place Swordfish

$1,000 1st Place Wahoo

$500 Top Female Angler

$500 Top Junior Angler (14)

Visit the Montauk Canyon Challenge website to view the Calcutta’s and the full list of rules and regulations with the tournament.

Proceeds from the MCC also go to help Maggie’s Mission, a non-profit charitable organization that is focused on raising awareness of pediatric cancers, funding ground-breaking research, and helps families affected by these awful diseases. Maggie’s Mission was created in honor of Maggie Schmidt who was a beautiful and vibrant young lady who was suddenly diagnosed at the age of 16 with a very rare and aggressive cancer. The MCC is proud to help contribute to such an effective and compassionate organization.

On July 20th, the last day of the tournament, an Awards dinner and after-party will be hosted for everyone at Gurney’s Yacht Club from 6:30pm – 10:30pm. Last year’s party had everyone dancing until the late hours and we only expect it to continue this year!

MCC main sponsor Staten Island Yacht Sales will have several boats on display at the tournament including some of the newest Viking Yachts available. “Both the Viking 58 Convertible and the 38 Billfish will be available to tour for everyone in the Montauk Canyon Challenge,” said Jay Hendrix, Vice President of SI Yachts. “Both Vikings arrive in early Summer so they will be ready for the season up here in New York assuming they last that long.” The Viking 58C made its debut at the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show last November and boasts a 165-square foot fighting cockpit. The new 38 Billfish just made its premier at the recent Viking VIP event in February and has improved the already popular design of the 37 Billfish.

The Viking 58C will be at the MCC tournament with a grey hull and loaded with options.

“We are shooting for more than 50 boats this year to fish the MCC,” continued Rich Lucas. “Everyone I’ve talked to that participated in previous years is fishing it again because they had so much fun. It’s a friendly tournament that has a flexible schedule, and you can win a heck of a lot of money. We hope to see a lot of new faces this year and don’t forget to take advantage of the early bird registration discount!”

Gamefisherman Introduces New 50-foot Walk Around

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Launching of the NEXT GEN
50′ WALK AROUND

Designed to Fish & Travel
We are very excited to announce that Gamefisherman will soon be adding another member to its list of family members.  In April, we will be starting the latest in our series of new builds.  As we approach the West Palm Beach Boat show we wanted to give you a brief description of what this new model is all about.

The 50’ walk around will be powered by quad outboards.  Since delivery will be in 2020, the owner has reserved his right to choose motors further into the build.  Early indications say that some of outboard manufacturers will have 500+ HP outboards available by then.  The new 50’ walk around will come with a huge cockpit and full mezzanine seating for up to six people.  It will be outfitted with a Marlin Tower with a four sided enclosure so the bridge deck will have full temperature control.

The Gamefisherman 50’ walk around is designed to fish and travel. It will have two large insulated in deck fish boxes and a 50 gallon livewell built into the transom.  Belowdecks it will have a master stateroom forward with a full walk around queen.  The master will have its own private head and shower.  The interior will feature a large galley with refrigeration, microwave, and stovetop with fridge and freezer combo below.  A separate aft stateroom will feature four separate bunks.  In addition, the boat will have a second head and shower that can accommodate the rear stateroom guests. The quad outboard engines are predicted to push her to a cruise speed of 40 MPH, with a top end approaching 52 MPH.  This model will be equipped with a Gyro to be located in the cockpit.  This new setup will be sure to capture the attention of others in the tournaments circuit in Florida.

50′ Walk Around SPECS
LOA: 50′ | Beam: 15’9″ | Draft: 2’8″
Displacement: 36,000 lb. | Fuel: 800 gal.
Water: 150 gal. | Power: Quad Outboards- HP and model to be determined

MAZU Annouces Partnership With ROFFS– Analyses Digitized and Overlaid Directly onto Sportfishing App

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Users Can Now Access or Download ROFFS Reports When Offshore

Reston, Va. and Melbourne, Fla. – mazu, a leading marine technology and satellite communications brand and ROFFS™ (Roffer’s Ocean Fishing Forecasting Service), a scientific consulting company, announced today they have entered a partnership. Now with the free mazu SportFishing app, anglers can view and download their ROFFS fishing forecast hot spots while offshore. Information from ROFFS is digitally overlaid directly onto detailed sea surface temperature (SST), chlorophyll, current and altimetry charts in the mazu SportFishing app for iPad.

ROFFS provides a variety of the high-resolution satellite-derived fishing oceanographic analyses that are customized for local, recreational and tournament anglers. These analyses are specialized for pelagic fish like tuna, marlin, wahoo, dolphin, sailfish, swordfish, spearfish, shark, kingfish and bluefish. ROFFS professional oceanographers analyze multiple real-time oceanographic datasets including but not limited to; ocean currents, SST, clarity, ocean color/chlorophyll, plankton, frontal boundaries, species habitat of targeted fish, and bottom structure to guide users to the most productive waters for a successful fishing trip. This data is integrated into hot spot locations detailed on an oceanographic map and a comprehensive text description that is easy to understand and use.

SportFishing users can download their report straight from ROFFS website or by their emailed PDF from ROFFS by simply clicking the “Open With” button at the top right and select “Copy to mazu”. The app will automatically open and populate the fishing hot spots onto the screen. Each location is selectable to see the ROFFS analysis about that fishing spot. SportFishing is accessible over satellite for offshore use via mazu m2500 hardware, those users are also able to receive ROFFS reports and updates while offshore and out of cellular or WiFi range.

“We are thrilled to be the first sport fishing technology to offer the exclusive details of ROFFS analysis data in a digital format,” said Craig Myers, director of product management, mazu. “The mazu SportFishing app already offers vital detail and features that no other service provides. By combining ROFFS in-depth analysis onto a free and intuitive platform for users to display makes the SportFishing app absolutely essential for every angler.”

“We are very excited to partner with mazu in this endeavor,” said Matthew Upton, president and owner, ROFFS. “We are trying to create a better experience for our users. By having our analyses more accessible in an intuitive georeferenced platform, combined with all the real-time data and satellite capabilities that mazu provides is going to be a gamechanger for our clients.”

For information about mazu SportFishing, and other mazu products, please visit www.mazu-marine.com. For information about ROFFS, please visit www.roffs.com.