(* Denotes a Class of 23 Team)

Man-O-War Battles for Hardees Win
Atlantic Beach,
September 2, 2001

ATLANTIC BEACH, NC-- The lure of a prize package of over $650,000 in cash was once again a pretty strong draw. By the time final registration had closed on Thursday September 6, there were 657 boats entered in the 23rd Annual
Hardee's Atlantic Beach King Mackerel Tournament. A very high percentage of these competitors were SKA members who were looking for a piece of the pie and a large fish to finish up strong in the very competitive SKA Division 1. Once again, Mother Nature, who has thrown a fair share of curves at tournament king fishermen, was on the mound and in rare form.

This time she had her slider working and it was nearly impossible to hit. The weather forecast went from excellent, early in the week, to 15 to 20 knot winds out of the east and a rapidly approaching swell from Hurricane / Tropical Storm / Tropical Depression Erin. Off the NC Coast, it is well documented that, "When the wind is from the east, the fishing is the least," so plans were being scrapped, adjusted, and totally redone.

It appeared, from the conversations at the Captain's Meeting, that no one was really "on the fish,” and they were making guesses based on past catches in similar conditions. There was one boat that had a plan and they were sticking to it. Friday morning, Rick Nifong, Matt "Mutt" Smith, Alan Ambrose, and Josh Mitchell arrived at the Man-O-War early, only to find that the bait they had purchased the night before had died. Quickly, they bought more and began idling toward the check-out.

Just after the Swansboro check-out point had opened, Nifong turned the Mercury-powered Avanti 33 out Bogue Inlet and towards a favorite ledge near Frying Pan Shoals Light Tower. In the choppy seas it took them about two and a half hours to reach their chosen spot and all of them commented that in the last 20 miles the conditions became bad enough that they considered abandoning the plan. They didn't---and the rest is now history.

A hungry 20 pound king swallowed the first bait while Nifong was dropping it back. The ensuing fight consumed a few minutes and pulled them well downwind of the ledge. On their second pass across the ledge, Smith commented on just how much bait there was and that there should be an even larger king around.

As their last bait crossed the ledge, the long line rod bowed over severely and the Shimano TLD 25 started singing that favorite song. Nifong, who had been making sandwiches for the crew, dropped the food and lunged for the bent rod and screaming reel. He animatedly recalled, "This fish took a lot more line, maybe 400 yards on the first run, then turned back to the boat." "Yea," echoed Smith and Ambrose, "but we really got excited when it burned off another 100 yards a few minutes later." In about 10 minutes, Ambrose maneuvered the boat up to the tired fish for Smith to gaff it and haul it aboard. They knew it was a good fish, but didn't realize quite how large it was. After a round of high fives, they bagged and iced the king and put the lines back out.

They hooked another smoker before the barracudas showed up, but it managed to pull the hooks. All agreed that their lost fish might have been even larger than their winning fish. After allowing Mitchell, who is Nifong's grandson, to fight a barracuda, they headed for Carolina Beach Inlet and the calm waters of the Intracoastal Waterway.

It wasn't until they were in the No Wake Zone at Wrightsville Beach that they realized how big their fish really was. Nifong was on the phone talking to fellow team member Chuck Smith, who didn't make the trip, when "Mutt" Smith opened the fish bag to get a good look. According to Smith, Smith, and Ambrose, once Nifong got a good look at the fish, he impatiently yelled, "Zip that bag back up--that's a big fish!"

With the conditions, it was big enough too. At 39.90 pounds, it was a tenth of a pound lighter than the 2000 Hardee’s winner, but almost a half pound heavier than the second place fish. The Man-O-War team didn't fish on Saturday. According to Smith, "We were too nervous to go fishing." "That's right," added Nifong, "All we did was sit around and sweat." Frankie Winberry and Billy Parkin were the second highest placing SKA boat and top SKA 23 footer, with their third place finish. Friday, they headed the Winberry Farms east of Cape Lookout Shoals and went fishless, having only one good strike. Saturday morning, after trying to go east again, they decided the crossing was too rough for their Yamaha-powered Key Largo 23 and turned south towards their home waters off Swansboro. They began at the Rock South of 13, and then moved to the Swansboro Honey Hole, before ending up at the South East Bottoms.

After about an hour, they had drifted to the western edge of the area and were away from the main group of boats. As they were deciding just how late they could fish and still make it to the scales, the decision was made for them. Their big king hit and ran hard into the wind and waves. For several hundred yards, the reel whined and their anticipation built. Remembering their lost fish from Friday, they cautiously worked the fish back toward the boat.

Finally, the big king rolled up beside the boat and was apparently exhausted. One clean gaff shot and Parkin began hollering as the big king made a thud hitting the deck. "I'm surprised my dad, who was fishing in the group of boats closest to us, didn't hear me yelling," admitted a still-excited Parkin, "We iced the fish and then called him to tell him we
were headed in." It was 3:00 o'clock. At 4:48 the king pulled the scales down to 37.05 pounds. Sunday afternoon at the awards, Winberry and Parkin were still wearing big grins. In unison they concurred, "Man, this is great!"

Ashley Jones, Vernon Jones, Scott Jones, and Jay Chase decided sometime Friday to fish the Morehead City Turning Basin in their Johnson powered 23 foot Sea Ox, the Jenn-Jenn. They had heard a radio report of some fish being caught there and decided to give it a try. Friday things didn't work out for them. They had one big run but lost it due to the boat traffic and they were considering a change. However, when their waitress at breakfast Saturday morning told them she had heard there were some nice kings in the Turning Basin, they took it as an omen and decided to give the place another try.

That was a wise decision. They found a good pod of bait on the western end of the port wall and kept working it. Their big king hit at about 10:00 Saturday morning and headed towards the Atlantic Beach Bridge. Ashley Jones said it really wasn't that much of a fight. In his words, "He headed out towards the bridge for a couple hundred yards and then turned back towards the boat. After circling for a few minutes he let us gaff him. The whole thing couldn't have lasted 15 minutes." Their larger king weighed 34.30 pounds. They also had another in the 30 pound range. Later, Jones admitted that, "Once the big fish hit the deck, our only question was what time do the scales open?" As if to verify the reasoning for this question he added, "We were in a 1978 model boat with a newly rebuilt engine. Can you thank Billy's Marine in Greenville for having it running right for us?"

Joe Winslow and the Hooligan finished in fourth place, with a 34.25 pound king caught at the very last minute. After running north of Cape Hatteras, Linwood and Brad Clark found a 33.65 pounder at Avon Rock. It was large enough to put the team Donzi boat Thumpin’ into fifth place. The Top Lady Angler was Nena Hancock on Woody's Toy, with a 31.50 pound King. Dan Upton, on Team Donzi, led the Senior Anglers with a 29.90 pounder. Learning quickly, Josh Mitchell claimed top Junior Angler Honors, with the 39.90 pound winning fish on the Man-O-War.

Final Standings

1. MAN-O-WAR............39.90 Avanti 32/Mercury Ricky Nifong Matt "Mutt" Smith Alan Ambrose Josh Mitchell 2. D's Diamond...............39.45 3. WINBERRY FARMS..............37.05 Key Largo 23/Yamaha Frankie Winberry Billy Parkin 4. JENN-JENN....................34.30 Sea Ox 23/Johnson Ashley Jones Vernon Jones Scott Jones Jay Chase

5. HOOLIGAN.................34.25 Contender 31/Yamaha Joe Winslow Fred Coyne 6. THUMPIN.................33.65 Donzi 32/Mercury Linwood Clark Brad Clark 7. Top Door................33.20 8. In Deep......................32.75 9. WOODY’S TOY..............31.50 Hancock 23/Mercury Woody Hancock Nena Hancock 10. Kingfish...................31.25

 

Snead's Ferry Rotary KMT Falls to Reel Greedy Team
By: Sam White
SNEAD'S FERRY, NC
August 22, 2001

SNEAD'S FERRY, NC--One would hardly expect to find North Carolina's leading Contender dealership, as well as one of the East Coast's top Mercury dealers, in the sleepy hamlet of Snead's Ferry. But that's the case with Dale Powell's Power Marine, who teams up annually with the Snead's Ferry Rotary Club to produce this tournament. This event has grown steadily throughout the years, consistently hosting over 150 boats. And the 2001 tournament was no exception, with 179 boats turning out in hopes of winning the event's top prize of a Yamaha-powered Contender 23 and Magic Tilt trailer. This year's winners were the Edens family aboard the Reel Greedy, a Yamaha-powered Contender 27. Many of the successful teams in the SKA are comprised of family members, as they cite the ability to work well together as the keys to their success, and the Edens family is certainly no exception. Randall Edens normally captains the boat while his father George and mother Sally work the cockpit. One member of the team who has been absent this season is Randall's wife Sonya, who is pregnant with their first child and expecting in October. The first day of the tournament, the Reel Greedy baited up amid a pack of 30 other boats before heading off to one of their favorite fishing destinations: the famous East Side. Once there, they selected the East Rock as their destination, fishing the ledge from 70 to 80 feet deep. "We only had a couple strikes all day, and we pulled hooks and broke leaders," Randall said. "So we were pretty upset. Then around 20 minutes till 4, the big one hit." Their biggest fish of the weekend, a 31.41 pounder, nailed a ribbonfish down 40 feet, and was boated by Sally Edens after a fifteen minute bout. "We headed off toward the scales, and I knew we could make it as long as nothing broke!" Randall reported. The second day, the Reel Greedy team elected to purchase bait since the fishing day was going to be a shorter one before heading back to the East Rock. After boating a 26.95 pounder in the morning, the team knew they might have a shot at the win. "We weighed in at about 1:15, and had about 45 minutes to sweat it out," Randall said later. "I thought it might be a top three fish, but we were really happy to finally get a win. The best part was the camaraderie--the fellow fishermen and even complete strangers congratulating us." Edens wanted to offer his thanks to Dale and the Power Marine staff, who always manages to keep his boat in top notch shape for tournament fishing, as well as East Coast Sports who supplies their tackle during the season. The team is also sponsored by Contender, Yamaha and Magic Tilt. Contender's Marty Bistrong was on hand to award the team the keys to the brand new Contender prize.

The Mercer Marine's Joint Venture team finished second in the tournament. Billy Hines captained the boat in the absence of Charles Bowden during the weekend, with help from James Jones. The first day of the tournament found the team searching hard for bait. "I think we missed the early bite," Hines said. "We didn't get to the 30/30 until about 10 or 10:30." Their biggest fish of the day, a 28.96, hit a naked pogy fished way behind the Mercury-powered Donzi amid confused six-foot seas. Day Two was a different story, however. "We were able to bait up with two throws of the net, and off we went, right back to the ledge," Hines reported. "The first fish of the day was the 24.16 that we ended up weighing. The bite was really strong all day, though. We probably released 10 fish around twenty pounds--it was all we could do to keep the lines in the water!" The rough weather kept most other boats closer to home, as the Joint Venture was the only boat at the spot on the second day of the tournament. At the weigh in, the team held first for a while, until the Reel Greedy pulled in to weigh their fish. At that point, the team knew that second place would be the best they could manage. "We were still really happy with our finish, and we're glad to see the Edens w in--they're great people and tough competitors," Hines said in closing. He also wanted to thank Mercer Marine, Donzi and Mercury for their assistance this season.

Third place in the tournament, as well as the winner of the Class of 23, fell to Clay Croom and the Team KenCraft. Croom managed to land the biggest fish of the tournament on the first day, a 34.03 pounder, but could only manage a 14.25 pound king on the second day of the aggregate tournament. "It was too rough to go to the East Side where we wanted to fish," Croom reported, "so we ended up with 150 other boats in the Swansboro shipping channel." Their big king hit a plain pogy on top in 45 feet of water. Croom fought the fish for only about 15 minutes before Perry could gaff the fish and bring it aboard. They went back to the same area on Day Two but were disappointed to find that a low teenager was the best they could manage. Still, they held on for a respectable third as well as tops in the small boat class. KenCraft builds one of the best 23-footers on the market today, so if you're looking for a competitor in the SKA's Class of 23, take one for a test ride today. The staff of the SKA would like to thank the Snead's Ferry Rotary Club as well as Dale Powell and the Power Marine staff for their hard work in producing such a quality tournament.

Final Standings
(Two Day, Two Fish Aggregate Score)

1. REEL GREEDY...............58.36 Contender/Yamaha Randall Edens George Edens Sally Edens 2. MERCER MARINE'S JOINT VENTURE.......53.12 Donzi/Mercury Billy Hines James Jones 3. * TEAM KENCRAFT................48.28 KenCraft/Mercury Clay Croom Perry Johnson Mike Lanier John Rouse 4. Boykinized.....................45.34 5. BIG DUCK...............41.45 Contender/Yamaha Gerald Currin Stacy Mills Marty Moore Tony Merdeza

6. MISS DAWN..............41.08 Aquasport/Johnson Billy Hogshire Teresa Hogshire 7. * KING OF KINGS................40.46 KenCraft/Evinrude Greg Cundiff Shane Hazelwood 8. INTIMIDATOR...................40.08 Contender/Yamaha Michael Wells Kimberly Smedly Jared Best Brad Hughes 9. * STEALIN' HOME..................40.04 Key West/Mercury Tommy Love Jamie Love 10. SEA DRAG'N...................39.95 Privateer/Mercury Al Morris Jr. Al Morris Sr. Brent Bunn Lauren Morris

 

President’s Pre Fishing Pays Off
East Side Prevails at CCSA Bud
by Steve Baker, Carolinas Field Reporter
August 7, 2001

A little planning can go a long way, often dictating the difference between success and failure.  For the team aboard the Ocean Athlete of Morehead City, a solid game plan helped secure the team a $26,625 payday at the 17^th Annual Carteret County Sportfishing Association’s Budweiser King Mackerel Tournament held this weekend at Town Creek Marina in Beaufort.

Skip Conklin, president of the CCSA, had pre-fished the week prior to the event and located good numbers of kings on the east side of Cape Lookout.  Although big fish had also been reported along the beaches from Beaufort to Bogue Inlet, the “Ocean Athlete” crew still felt their best shot at victory was swimming somewhere on the east side.  Following a brief stop to fish Beaufort Inlet Saturday morning, the crew of Capt. Skip, wife Sandy and son Chris, accompanied by teammate Jay Russell made the decision to head for the Cape.  “We knew a few really big fish had recently been caught in the Beaufort Inlet area and felt it was worth trolling the area.  Building seas dictated our decision to pick up early and leave.  We knew the worsening sea conditions might cut our plans short if we didn't’t move immediately and try to find a fish on the east side as quickly as possible” said Skip.  After a rough and wet ride, the crew settled down and started deploying lines on a rock bottom a short distance from the western Cape slough buoy.  A short time later around 10 a.m., the smoker nailed a long lined menhaden, and took off on a screaming run.  “It took about 45 minutes to bring the fish to the boat” said Sandy Conklin, “and it was all I could do to stand up while fighting the fish.  The seas were really getting tough and we were struggling to get the fish in the boat.”  The team was successful in landing the fish, the biggest of Sandy’s career, and a short time later they made their way back across the shoals, heading for tournament headquarters for their official weight.  At 41.95 lbs., it would prove to be the leader for the remainder of the tournament.  In addition to the fish securing first place overall for the “Ocean Athlete”, Sandy also won top honors for lady angler, while Chris took home first place in the junior angler division.  The team also took home $500 from SeaTow for the heaviest fish weighed from a SeaTow member boat.

Second place on the leader board fell to the “Just In Time” crew with a 37.25 lb. fish caught in close vicinity of the tournament leaders aboard the “Ocean Athlete”.  Their fish hit late in the day on Sunday and, as their boat is aptly named, gave the team just enough time to make it to the weigh-in before the cutoff.  “The weather was really getting bad.  It had been threatening to rain all morning and the skies were really growing dark.  Just as we had decided it was time to seek safe shelter, a big king hit a long line chartreuse kingbuster rigged menhaden.  About the same time, a terrible rainstorm hit us and we could barely see where we were going.  All the noise and commotion of the storm made it really tough to follow the fish.  Just as we gaffed her and put her on the deck, the rain stopped and made it possible for us to make a hasty run back to the weigh-in scales.  We made it back to tournament headquarters with only 8 minutes to spare!” said Captain Johnny Hudson.  Their fish would overtake the previous days 2^nd place leader and secure them over $13,000 in tournament winnings.  The “Just In Time” crew would also take top SKA honors for the 23 and under class.

Rounding out the top three, Capt. Don Westbrook and crew aboard the “Reel Heel” also elected to fish the east side.  “We had heard about the big fish being caught along the beaches, but still felt our best shot at a quality fish was on the east side.  We set out our baits on the East Rock Sunday morning, and a short time later at 9:30 am a big fish nailed a flat lined menhaden midway back in our spread” said teammate Larry Denning.  The fish immediately headed offshore but the crew gave chase and quickly brought the fish onboard.  The 34.85 lb. king would secure them third place overall and result in a $9,490 payday for the “Reel Heel” team.   Teammate Marcus Denning won 3rd place junior angler as well in the tournament overall.  These additional 34.85 points moves the “Reel Heel” into 1^st place for Division 1 standings in the 24 over class.

Topping the 23 and under class for the tournament was the “Miss Mercy”, a 22’ Aquasport with Mercury power.  Captain Walter Giese and teammates Jon Stucky and Chris Querry had heard rumors of the kings on the east side, but instead of changing face in the middle of the game, they decided to stick to their original game plan and fish the Beaufort Inlet shipping channel.  Their fish hit a short top-line menhaden at 11:30 on Saturday.  “The fish really didn’t make much of a run and we had her in the boat within 30 minutes”, reported teammate Jon Stucky.  Their fish at 25.25 lbs., would secure them the top spot for the class of 23 in the tournament and move them up in the SKA standings.

Second place in the 23’ under class went to Lynn Hinnant and crew of the “Fishinnant” with a 24.55 lb. kingfish.    After a rough and fishless day on Saturday, calming seas on Sunday were a welcome sign for the crew and they were able to put their original plan of fishing the east side into play.  After fishing the morning on the popular rocks, the 22’ Hydra-Sport finally hit pay dirt while moving between locations.  Their fish inhaled a longline menhaden at 11:30 on a featureless spot between the East Rock and the 30 Minute Rock.

Due to the tremendous turnout for the tournament each year, and the generous support of Woodruff Distributing and other organizations, plans are already underway for next year’s event.    The CCSA holds back a percentage of the entry fees for various organizations and projects, and this year’s 197 entries helped make the work worthwhile.  Proceeds will allow the club to donate money to the “Take a Kid Fishing” foundation, as well as provide $1500 for a scholarship to Carteret Community College in Marine Biology.  Funds also help support an aquarium display at the North Carolina Aquarium in Pine Knoll Shores.  The club’s primary objective, to preserve and protect the environment for the future of our fisheries, will receive support with the proceeds as well.  Assisting the efforts of the Division of Marine Fisheries with the artificial reef program, funds will enable the club to continue enhancing and expanding existing locations off Carteret County’s coast.

Final Standings

1. OCEAN ATHLETE………..41.95 25’ Hydra-Sport/Mercury Skip Conklin Jay Russell Chris Conklin Sandy Conklin 2. JUST IN TIME……….37.25 23’ Contender/Mercury Johnny Hudson Johnny Smith Casey Smith 3. REEL HEEL……….34.85 26’ Glacier Bay/Mercury Don Westbrook Leigh Westbrook Larry Denning Mark Denning Marcus Denning 4. SEA DRAG’N……….32.65 28’ Privateer/Mercury Al Morris, Jr. Al Morris, Sr. Brent Bunn Carol Morris Kim Morris

5. Wave Dancer……….31.45 6. Debra J/Aaron’s Bait & Tackle……….29.20 7. Summer School……….28.25 8. EARLY RISER……….27.25 30’ Wellcraft/Mercury John Parks James Bunce Marilyn Bunce 9. BITE ME……….25.80 32’ Donzi/Mercury Perry Mitchell Philip Mitchell 10. RELEASE……….23.70 27’ Contender/Yamaha Mike Williams Gordie McAdams

TOP JUNIOR ANGLER Ocean Athlete……….41.95 Chris Conklin

TOP LADY ANGLER Ocean Athlete……….41.95 Sandy Conklin

 

Raleigh Saltwater 17th Annual KMT
Reel Gold Strikes Gold, Port Pays Off
by Steve Baker, Carolinas Field Reporter
Atlantic Beach, NC
July 6, 2001

They say a picture's worth a thousand words. But for one team fishing the annual Raleigh Sportfishing Club's KMT held at Sea Water Marina in Atlantic Beach, NC it was worth over $16,000 bucks.

This newly formed team on the SKA circuit, started the tournament with high expectations. Unfortunately, first am they discovered a marauding band of otters had eaten what little bait they had been able to catch prior to the event. Finally setting out their first lines, they suddenly found themselves in the path of a wildcat waterspout. Needless to say, it didn't take long for the teams' enthusiasm to dwindle.

A stiff 15-25 knot easterly blow had the seas steep for the entire fleet. Numerous teams took a few over the bow and decided to throw in the towel early. It was a tough time for all, and the Reel Gold team had quite enough, almost.

About the time they were ready to quite, the team recalled a recent trip to Aaron's Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Beach. It was here where the team first saw the picture worth $16 grand. A king mackerel, estimated in the mid 30's, was caught by a flounder fisherman while drifting a popular bottom fishing spot called the 'turning basin', and had brought the fish up to Aaron's for the snapshot.

The turning basin, officially known as the Morehead City Port is a location on the ICW, just two short miles from the tournament's headquarters. Well inside Beaufort Inlet, much of it a no wake zone in fact, it is not the first place where one would expect to find a smoker. A spot where many fisherman pass right over on the way to their usual fishing grounds.

The Reel Gold team remembered this picture and agreed since the seas were un-fishable, they agreed a slim chance was better than a hard beating. Hoping for the best the gave up on the Ocean and made the trek up the 'ditch' back to Morehead City. The calmer waters were a welcome sight for the team, and as they set their first lines of the day in flat 'seas', the team was finally able to sit back and relax, or so they thought. Less than an hour into their first pass through the area, Tracy Castleberry, the team's captain, reported seeing a huge school of bait on the color scope. "The screen lit up and we marked a big school right under the boat and down 20 feet or so", said Castleberry. Teammate Randy Gurley added "we decided to turn around and go back through the pod. The bottom was starting to come up real fast so we had to work the turnaround, but just as we came off the ridge back into the channel she hit the top-line not far from our prop-wash" Screaming off line she made a bee-line for the mouth of Beaufort Inlet some 400 yards away.

For those of you that don't know the turning basin, it is not one of the safest places to be chasing down a smoker king. The inconsistent bottom depths, channel markers, pier pilings, and anchored boats all present real hazards. Fortunately, this is where the Reel Gold's luck really began to change. The bad weather had forced most of the boat traffic off of the water giving the team an open highway to chase down the fish. Scaring the Reel Gold team a second time, the king made a strong run back inshore directly towards the sea wall. The team gave quick chase and finally got back on her and were able to make the gaff. Teammate Tony Moody drove the point home, and although destroyed the gaff bringing the fish in the boat, successful landed her to the amazement of the crew. Suddenly the team was starring at what they felt could be the winning fish. After picking their jaws up off the floor from disbelief, the Reel Gold made haste in getting their Hydra-Sports 23' to the weigh-in docks. Pulling the scales to 42.25, the port smoker secured them first place overall and 1st in the 23 and under TWT. Teammate Daniel Castleberry took home top junior angler awards as well.

Second place in the tournament went to the Early Riser team with a 35.12 The team of Captain James Bunce, Lady Angler Marilyn Bunce and teammate John Parks decided to battle out even tougher conditions. Choosing to head to the east side of Cape Lookout, their trip through the slough was reported as anything but comfortable. With 3 waves breaking the bow of their Mercury powered 30' WellCraft, they began to have second thoughts about their first choice, early in the event. Their hard work and persistence paid off however, and secured second place overall for the team, along with the lady angler award.

"We choose to fish the Portland Wreck area. Fighting tremendous seas to get there, my first comment when we set the rods out was 'let's hurry up and catch a smoker so we can get the heck out of here.' It was bad and we were worried about the impending thunderstorms we had been dodging. I knew the longer the seas built, the tougher the slough would be to navigate back to port.", explained Captain Bunce. Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long, as the fish nailed a menhaden on top around 9 a.m. This team has a tremendous amount of experience and although the seas made it difficult, lady angler Marilyn quickly brought the fish to John Parks to gaff and safely secure onboard. Their run was long and rough back to the docks, and the team decided to navigate back across the shoals before they became impassable. Although they felt there were bigger fish in the area, it was simply becoming too rough to safely fish the area.

Rounding out the top three, the Sandra Dee, a 23' Neptune, boated a 35.0 to finish 3rd overall in the tournament. This team consisting of William Bridges, Will Bridges, Keith Caldill and Eric Smith choose to fish the popular Diver's Rock area. Capt. Bridges reported the same sea conditions as those experienced by the rest of the fleet and felt lucky their fish hit a double pogey on the downrigger, early in the day.

The Raleigh Saltwater Sportfishing Club always puts on a fun event. And the time of year couldn't be better. Generally known for good weather, this year's tournament was the exception rather than the rule. The next stop on the Division 1 trail is the CCSA King Mackerel Tournament at Town Creek Marina in Beaufort, scheduled July 20-22, 2001.

Final Standings

1. Reel Gold..........42.25 HydraSport 23/Johnson Tracey Castleberry Daniel Castleberry, Jr. Randy Gurley Scott Moody 2. Early Riser..........36.20 WellCraft 30', Mercury James Bunce Marilyn Bunce John Parks 3. Sandra Dee..........35.0 Neptune 23',Evinrude William Bridges Will Bridges Keith Caldill Eric Smith *4. Little Bobby..........29.80 5. Tiger.........29.15 KenCraft 25', Mercury Allen Sasser Herb Snead John McLin

6. King's Ransom..........27.85 Fountain 31', Mercury Ron Dorsey Ron Dorsey, Jr. John Dorsey Matt Gravitt 7. EJW Outdoors..........27.65 Privateer 28', Yamaha David Willis John Thompson 8. Team KenCraft.........26.40 KenCraft 23', Mercury Clay Croom, II Perry Johnson Mike Lanier John Rouse 9. Reelin & Rockin........25.95 Paramount 26', Mercury Kenneth Lane Dawn Lane Mike Spencer 10. Mater Head........25.90 Donzi 32, Mercury Mark Yokeley John Preost

TOP JUNIOR ANGLER Reel Gold..........42.25 Daniel Castleberry, Jr.

TOP LADY ANGLER Early Riser..........36.20 Marilyn Bunce

 

Swansboro Rotary Club 22nd King Mackerel Tournament
Reel Heel Takes Top SKA Honors in Swansboro
by Steve Baker, Carolinas Field Reporter
Swansboro, NC
June 6, 2001

The 22nd Annual Swansboro Rotary Club King Mackerel Tournament went off as expected this year and things were pretty much status quo. As usual, the Rotarians put forth tremendous effort and teamwork to help kickoff The Mercury Division 1 trail with a first rate event. This being a two day aggregate tournament for finishing in the money, it can be a grueling and tiresome weekend. However, the Rotary Club facilities and staff, plus several great cooks always make this a fun and worthwhile event.

Although the Rotarians had things in order at Tournament Headquarters, things were somewhat amiss at the weigh-in docks. Not something to be considered bad, yet unique to make this one of the most exciting events they've held to date.

As with most other tournaments, especially those held in an area early in the season, the big kings are expected to come from one of the standard vessels, those capable of speed and range.

This year however, a 16' McKee Craft with a 50 horse motor bested a fleet of 256 boats, 196 of which were in the SKA. The small, but obviously capable boat, captained by Robert Dobie, took home First Place Overall, along with Big Fish for Day 1 at 35.8. Dobie pocketed a total of over $18,000 on the combined weight of 47.84 pounds.

Aside from the fact that it shows that 'Yes, small boats can compete'; what made this a truly exciting win were how the fellow competitors, most of which were SKA members, showed their enthusiasm and support for this team. Day one made it quite evident that an underdog could capture top tournament awards, yet everyone cheered on the Quit Wishin Team. Needless to say, the two anglers, new to the tournament circuit, were quite impressed with the event along with the camaraderie, vowing to become SKA members in the very near future. It's probably a safe bet to assume they will be competing in the 20 and under class!

Otherwise, vessel size still didn't seem to matter, as the leader board was mixed with boats 20 feet and up. Most of the fish reportedly were located to the south, yet well within range for the entire fleet.

Topping the SKA boats while finishing very well in the tournament overall, the Reel Heel team, a 26' Mercury powered Glacier Bay captained by Don Westbrook, elected to fish Divers Rock. Their big fish, a 38.5, hit a pogy on a long-line pink and white Kingbuster. "There was a boat anchored up real close to our spot," Westbrook reported."They looked like they were bottom fishing and had no idea a tournament was going on. We hooked up not far from their boat and by the time we got on top of her, we were right up next to these guys. They were all hollering about how big the fish was when we pulled it over the side. They had no idea how bad we were sweating it out, trying to get her in before she fouled on their anchor line!" Marcus Denning, the team's junior angler, fought the fish to the boat to help the team secure top SKA overall honors, as well as the SKA's Top Junior Angler award. The fish secured the team fourth place overall in the tournament, and Marcus won the Tournament Junior Angler award. The prize, an 18' Wellcraft CC Boat, Mercury Motor and Loadmaster trailer valued at over $18,000, awarded by Mikeal Parido of WellCraft Marine.

Second place among the SKA fleet went to Crunch Time, a newly formed SKA team consisting of Curtis and Russel Struyk, Carlton Lewis and Ben Sorrell. Fishing out of a Yamaha powered 26' Regulator, they decided to trailer their rig south to Carolina Beach. Previous trailer problems forced the team to borrow a trailer to make the trip. "Our day started out somewhat bad. I was worried about the trailer all the way down, as it wasn't in the best of shape. Then once we got to the dock and started launching the boat, we realized we had forgotten the plug, almost sinking the boat right there at the ramp!" Struyk reported. "We started out at the 30/30 around 7:30", Struyk said, "The fish hit a menhaden rigged behind a pink & black Kingbuster skirt around 8:30 a.m. It took us about 30 minutes to angle the fish to the boat. It made several good runs so we felt like we had a pretty good fish."

And indeed it was a good fish at 34.94 pounds. On Day Two, the Crunch Time returned to their spot and although they only managed a 6.38, their combined weight of 41.32 was enough to secure second place in the tournament overall, and started this newly formed team off with a bang in the Division One standings.

To round out the top three SKA teams, The BobCat boated a 28.77 on Day One. They elected to head out of New River Inlet to fish an undisclosed location some 20 miles offshore.

The crew on their 31' Contender with twin Yamahas, nailed the fish with a single pogy on top. "She immediately buried herself on the bottom," Henry reported, "and we weren't quite sure it was a king. But after about a 40 minute circle under the boat, she finally came up to gaff. It wasn't until then that we were sure we had a good fish." Tracy Moore angled the fish to the boat and won top honors for Lady Angler both in the SKA and the tournament overall. Their two day combined weight gave them ninth overall in the tournament.

Topping the class of 23 and Under, Stan Jarusinski, JD Askins and Ramsey Skinner won top honors, both SKA and in the tournament, on the Yamaha powered 23' Regulator Mister Stanman. Their 21.95 pound king also secured the top SKA Senior Angler for Stan, and helped put their junior angler Ramsey in third place for SKA junior anglers.

All in all, a quality event in an accommodating location with a fun-filled weekend of fishing and activities. A tournament to be won by the underdog, yet enjoyed by all.

Final Standings

1. *Quit Wishin..........(35.8, 12.04) 47.84 2. CRUNCH TIME..........(34.94, 6.38) 41.32 Regulator/Yamaha Curtis Struyk Russell Struyk Ben Sorral Carlton Lewis 3. KING'S RANSOM..........(28.18, 12.44) 40.62 Fountain/Mercury Ron Dorsey, SR Matt Gravitt 4. REEL HEEL..........(0, 38.5) 38.5 Glacier Bay/Mercury Don Westbrook Leigh Westbrook Larry Denning Mark Denning Marcus Denning 5. HOOLIGAN..........(22.83, 10.08) 32.91 Contender/Yamaha Joseph Winslow Ryan Werner

6. THE OTHER WOMAN..........(24.35, 8.2) 32.55 KenCraft/Johnson Lee Lane David Lane Taylor Lane Daniel Lane Jackie Lane 7. SOMERS SALTS III..........(16.14, 14.67) 30.81 Fountain/Mercury Jim Somers J.K. Somers Austin Somers 8. MISTER STANMAN..........(8.73, 21.95) 30.65 Regulator/Yamaha Stan Jarusinski J.D. Askins Ramsey Skinner 9. BOBCAT..........(28.77, 0) 28.77 Contender/Yamaha Henry Moore, III Tracy Moore David Simmons Krystin Moore 10. *Maximum Sea..........(7.72, 20.96) 28.68

TOP JUNIOR ANGLER Reel Heel..........38.5 Marcus Denning

TOP LADY ANGLER BobCat..........28.77 Tracy Moore