|
It was 7 a.m. when the
call for the Bimini start came over the VHF. The competitive blood ran
through me as the boat I was on, After You, a customized 45 Cabo
Express, shot out of Herradura Bay, Costa Rica, to lead the pack of 21
sprinting battlewagons towards the placid Pacific. The First Annual Los
Sueños-HMY Signature Billfish Series had started, and while it
was late February, the billfish season was just heating up. Before this
tournament was finished, the billfish action would erupt like Mount Vesuvius.
Lines were in at 8 a.m.
on day one, and I perched myself atop After You’s custom stainless
steel tower (see “Special Edition,” this story) to take in the
hook-bait ballyhoo and two teaser spread. The four Shimano 30-pound-class
TLD reels were trolling the dead bait, while two larger 50-pound-class
Shimano Tiagra reels were ready with pitch-baits should a blue marlin
work its way into the ballyhoo buffet. I scanned the baits as they skipped
across After You’s wake, but while I was briefly gazing back
at the rainforest that blankets Los Sueños’ property like
a deep-pile green carpet, a sailfish smacked the right long ‘rigger
bait. The 30 TLD’s fluorescent-green mono stripped off the reel faster
than a New York City “F” train during rush hour. The baits were
in the water maybe ten minutes when the fish hit, but I wasn’t too
surprised. I’ve had hook-ups from the get-go here before.
Since points matter 151;and this sail was worth 100
of them—the fish was taken by angler Phillip Arklin, who was quickly
cranking down on the reel, while Los Sueños president and CEO William
Royster backed down the Cabo just as rapidly. Fortunately, the sailfish
was released unharmed thanks to fish-friendly circle hooks. (Circle hooks
allow for a consistent jaw-corner hook set).
The radio was abuzz
with reports of hook-ups (volunteer observers verified catches), and the
chatter flew over the airwaves with frenzied frequency. “This is
Prime Time, we’ve got a blue.” “J&T, blue marlin
release.” “Topless release, one sail.” It made me think
that this is what it must have been like to listen to a big-time boxing
match before there was TV. While I was entranced by the VHF play-by-play,
a blue marlin worth 500 points snuck up in the shadow of the left-short
bait, but the big fish quickly fell off into the purple-tinted Pacific.
(If you’re keeping score, that’s two fish I didn’t notice
because I was daydreaming.) Several other bites soon followed, but there
were no more fish for the After You crew this day.
Next
page > Part 2: 229 total fish over three
days. > Page 1, 2, 3
|
