(* Denotes a Class of 23 Team)

DIVISION 7 WRAP UP
NORTHERN GULF
AUGUST 9-11, 2002
By: SKA

Cecil Capps Jr. has won the Division 7 Class of 23 again, and like when he did it before, put together a three fish aggregate that was .11 ahead of Top Producer in the open division. For a team that fishes an older 23 foot Mercury powered Sea Craft, this is a remarkable feat. Together with Ed Burbridge and Gerry Rucker, the team caught a 49.74 at Dauphin Island, a 46.18 in Cypress Cove, then bagged a 49.3 in Venice to seal their fate with a 145.22 aggregate. These guys are top and deserve a lot more credit than they get.

The Barfoot boys Steven, Randy, Tim, and Billy was within three quarters of a pound from Capps. Their 144.49 aggregate placed them squarely in second place aboard the Snafu. They caught a 44.69 on Dauphin Island, then scaled a 49.30 in the rodeo, and showed the rest of the field they could break the magical 50 pound barrier by weighing a 50.5 in Venice. Another great performance by a Class of 23 boat. The team runs a 23 foot Yamaha powered Contender. Congratulations to Billy also for winning the Senior Angler honors in Division 7.

Roy ( ToJo) White keeps the whole family involved king mackerel fishing. His 23 foot Mercury powered Contender team caught a 40.32 in Dauphin Island, a 49.41 in the rodeo, then smacked a great 53.4 pounder on the scale in Venice. Their 143.13 point agg earned them third. The name of the boat? Dirty White Boys. On board is Roy, Nic, and Jade White, and Jim Eastburn. Congratulations to Jade who is our top junior angler from the Division. Things are really looking good for this team.

David Rogers Jr. put Cape Horn boats on the front page scoring an impressive 133.45 fourth place aggregate. The Quietus is 23 feet in length and Yamaha powered. The team of Rogers, JJ Gilmore, and Tony Bryant caught a 41.12 at the Kajun, a 40.13 in Dauphin Island, then had to wait till Venice to add a nice 52.2. Can be be on top of the leader board in Biloxi? You bet!
Harry Crump’s Rocketman started the season with a 51.19 at Dauphin Island, then a nice 43.30 in the rodeo but just couldn’t find that third big fish to push the team to the top. A 34.4 added in Venice game them 128.89 points and fifth place in the Division.

Fishing aboard Crump’s boat is Judson and Benton Crump. All five of these Class of 23 boats have a shot at the Nationals. I would certainly remember Fort Pierce last year when North Carolinian Jerry Dilsaver smoked the competition in a 23 foot Ken Craft. History can repeat itself and these five are the ones that certainly can do it.

Christopher Pitts’s In Too Deep won the ADSFR this year. If he did nothing else that was a major victory but he qualified sixth in the Division with 125.27 points. The Trail Marine boat with Aaron and Melissa Wells and Bob Wyres finished seventh this year with 122.5 points while Jason Andrews finished eighth with his Full Blown earning 121.97 points.

David Lau earned ninth aboard his Jesse James Mako with 110.08 points and Richie Byrd put his Bird Dog into the tenth and final qualifying spot. It truly was a great season.

WEST DELTA KINGFISH INVITATIONAL
VENICE, LA
AUGUST 9-11, 2002
By: John Zalud

The Barfoot boys, Stephen, Randy, Tim, and Billy, ended the season in Division seven with a big win, beating the “big” boats by scaling a 50.5 on day one, then backing it up with a 43.2 to win the Venice Marine’s KMT in the Louisiana Delta. “With the weather as bad as it was, (six to eight foot seas) we decided to stay close,” said team captain, Stephen Barfoot. “We ran 25 miles south in 150 feet of water.” The team had three kings in the low forties before the big gal hit a deep trolled hard tail. “We went right back to the same spot the second day and found the 42 pound king which we thought was enough to win first place in the aggregate tournament,” said Randy Barfoot before they accepted their award. They had a two fish agg of 93.7 pounds caught from their 23 foot Yamaha powered Contender.

Cecil Capps Jr. owns an older 23 foot Mercury powered Sea Craft that acts like a fish attractor. Either that, or it’s his team of Earl Burbridge and Gerry Rucker that just have a knack of finding the big fish. Such was the case again in the Venice tournament. “We made the run to the east side the first day which blessed us with a 41 pound fish,” explained Capps. He went on to say, “We got the word where the big fish were caught on day one on the west side, and ran to that area.” Again the team went to work. Setting up in 160 feet of water they nailed a king they thought would go 50 pounds. “We picked up and ran to the scales where we watched the scale stop at 49.3 pounds. Their 90.3 pound aggregate earned second place but the 49 pounder gave the Sea Hagg team the Class of 23, Division 7, win and the largest three fish aggregate caught by any boat in the upper Gulf this year.

That’s a one, two, punch for the Class of 23 boats in the tournament.
Mike Waller’s Too Smooth led the big boats, finishing third with a two fish agg of 89.80. They too ran to the east on day one and found a 40 pound fish. “It was ok but we knew we had to have a 50, or one close to that if we were to be in the money,” explained Waller. With teammates Rodney Willard, Greg Hedges, or Spencer Johnson on board, they also responded to the word about the Delta fish and ran to the 96 block on day two. “It was the right move,” the captain added. “The one we needed hit an hour after we got to our spot, hitting a large hard tail on a short flat line. Then it was off to the scales.”

Fourth place went to another Class of 23 boat, the Quietus with David Rogers at the helm. “The weather was horrible so we knew we had to fish close,” said Rogers after finding out his team earned fourth and top 23 boat. (Sea Hagg and Snafu earned more money for first and second.) We earned a 37 on the first day then went to the 95 block on day two and caught a 52 in the first hour of day two. The Yamaha powered Cape Horn team of JJ Gilmore and Tony Bryant have had a great season also earning fourth place in the Class of 23 standings.
Marcus Kennedy’s Kwazar rounded out the top five with a 86.9 two fish aggregate.

It should also be noted that Ray White’s Dirty White Boys, another Class of 23 boat, earned seventh place in the tournament with a 83.9 agg. The small boats ruled this tournament.

Venice Marine rolled out the red carpet for the fishermen. Good food, good times, and good fishing. Many boats came over from the east coast just to get a taste of some great Cajun hospitality and to pull on some big fish. They sure weren't disappointed!

Final Standings:
2 Fish Aggregate

1. SNAFU 93.7 Contender ..... Yamaha Stephen Barfoot Randy Barfoot Tim Barfoot Billy Barfoot 2. SEA HAGG 90.3 Sea Craft ... Mercury Cecil Capps Jr. Earl Burbridge Gerry Rucker 3. TOO SMOOTH 89.8 Contender ... Mercury Mike Waller Rodney Willard Greg Hedges Spencer Johnson 4. QUIETUS 89.2 Cape Horn .... Yamaha David Rogers Jr. JJ Gilmore Tony Bryant 5. KWAZAR 86.9 Contender ... yamaha Marcus Kennedy Max Williams Jon Ennis Pete Shores Jeff McCoy Steve Ennis

6. DOUG HOUSTON OUTDOORS 84.8 Mako .... Evinrude Doug Houston Harvey Felts Mark Collier Steve Hall Ric Collier 7. DIRTY WHITE BOYS 83.9 Contender .... Mercury Ray White George White Nic White Jade White Jim Eastburn 8. SUJAC 82.4 Regulator ... Yamaha Hutch Thompson Jack Thompson Matt Dial Bill Lawler Greg Allen 9. WRINGER 82.4 Contender ... Yamaha Edd Gillespie Jay Doole Braxton Gillespie Daryl Sessions Barry Hatchett 10. SPECKULATOR 81.8 Contender ... Yamaha George Simon III Mike Allen Gary Smith

CLASS OF 23 1. SNAFU 2. SEA HAG 3. QUIETUS

 

"In Too Deep's 54.37 Earns Win at Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo"
DAUPHIN ISLAND, AL
JULY 18-21, 2002
By: SKA

The first king mackerel weighed in the three day 70th annual Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo came as the scales opened at ten on Friday morning and was never challenged until late Sunday afternoon.

Christopher Pitt's In Too Deep, a 21 foot Contender, pulled up to the ADSFR docks about ten minutes before the scales opened. When given the OK, his team of Kenneth Pitts, Timothy Hite, and Brad Pitts hefted a 54.37 on the table for the officials to certify. In what has become the largest fishing tournament in the country, In Too Deep went atop the leader board for both the Kingfish Jackpot and Class of 23 top boat.

The only challenge came from Neal Foster's Intense. He and his crew, Robbie Montgomery, Shea Foster, and Tim Berger had already weighed a 48.60 on Saturday but tried to better it on Sunday. Pulling a stud from their bag in front of the weigh master made everyone on the In Too Deep hold their breath. As the weigh master proclaimed 54.22, Foster buried his head in his hands then asked, "Are you sure?" All the time Pitts and his team were whooping and hollering. Foster's boat name, Intense, reflects his team's spirit. They give it their all, all the time. It's why they're so good.

Pitt's team caught their fish at the Exxon rig. "When we got there, there were eight boats already working the area," he explained after calming down. "Our first hook up broke off, then the big girl hit at 7:30. It's our biggest fish of the year." The Exxon also produced several other fish for anglers and has been the best fishing area this season. "I want to thank
Contender, Yamaha, and especially Okuma Reels," said the winner. "That fish moved In Too Deep into the top ten for Class of 23 with 108.92 points. Cecil Capp's Sea Hagg weighed a 35 pounder to take over the Division seven lead with 131.35 points in Class of 23.

Intense went to the Louisiana Delta also with a large contingent of SKA boats. In years past this was the smart move, but with the Mississippi river dumping more than average freshwater into the Delta, the water has become horrible. "We knew we had to come east after the first day," said the second place captain. "Some stayed but we adjusted and found the fish on Saturday. We really thought we could get a bigger fish on Sunday at the same area but it just wasn't quite good enough."

Foster's team moved into second place in Division seven with 142.55 points, 2.56 behind Michael Dees's Top Producer who weighed a 53.77 to finish fourth. The family team of Jeff, Sheree, and Jenny Dees bagged their king early Saturday morning after making an 80 mile run. The caught theirs fishing in 180 feet of water. This should set up a great final tournament shootout as Intense has a drop fish of 41.44 while Dee's fish is 42.68. Both are good friends of one another, but I'll wager all bets are off in Venice, the site of the final Division seven showdown.

The one shining light for Louisiana fishing came from the Butler's Crawgator who earned third. "We were fishing 20 miles off South Pass in 200 feet of water, said the captain, Bill Butler. "We found some clean water and picked her up dragging hardtails deep." The Butler's are the host of the final event at Venice Marine, their back door. The team has struggled here in the past but their 53.92 certainly should give them some much needed confidence. With a 37 pound drop fish and only being 15 pounds out of first, keep your eye on this team.

Fifth place went to a non member. The only spot given up in the top ten.Roy Tojo White, and the entire White family who fish a Mercury powered 23'Contender, earned sixth place with a 49.41, a really nice fish that moved them into fourth place in the Division, Class of 23, with 123.92. That's only seven and a half pounds out of first. George White caught their fish 50 miles out in 110 feet of water. It was another of those real early fish on Saturday morning. Keep in mind that this is the second small boat in the top ten.

Snafu makes it three small boats. They weighed a 49.30. Stephen Barfoot, Randy Barfoot, Tim Barfoot, and Billy Barfoot, the whole clan, earned their seventh place honors on Friday morning. While In Too Deep was weighing their
bruiser, Randy was pulling his over the gunwale."We ran 63 miles and fished in 190 feet of water," said the captain. "We were putting our line in the downrigger clip when she swirled on the bait. I immediately free spooled the line and she took it. Twenty minutes later we were in the money." Snafu is a 23 foot Yamaha powered Contender.

Trail Marine, Aaron and Melissa Wells and Bob Wyres Mercury powered Mako, makes it four in the top ten for the Class of 23 boats. They had fish every day but it took Sunday to produce the eighth place fish, a 48.82. They got theirs in 170 feet of water dragging a hardtail on the surface at 12:30. This team keeps getting better and better. After a slow start with mid thirty pound fish, they're now fifth in the Division and poised to win it all in September.

The Ballay's Hydra Sports, Venice Marine, earned ninth with a 44.51. This moved them into the top 15 in the open class with 122.44. points. With a little luck they can earn a trip to Biloxi if they can improve on their 37 pound drop fish.

The final spot in the top ten fell to Marcus Kennedy's Kwazar, a 43.71.This year's tournament also produced some remarkable catches by participants in the 30 catagories in which prizescan be earned. The rodeo record for yellowfin tuna was broken three times with three fish over 170 pounds being weighed. The tuna fishing was so good that the rodeo should have been named after the tuna. A 360 pound warsau grouper came to the dock, a bule marlin was weighed and several nice sharks. It's fun watching all these proud anglers weighing great fish.

The Alabama Deep Sea Rodeo is the product of the Mobile Jaycees. For two weeks this industrious group produces the Roy Martin Kids Tournament the weekend before the big event, this year with 1137 participants. The big rodeo just missed the record of 3200 anglers set in 2000. These volunteers give of their time with no rewards, just self gratification. Monies earned go to local charities and the Sea Lab. They are to be congratulated. We're proud to be a small part of such a wonderful organization.

Final Standings

1. IN TOO DEEP 54.37 Contender ... Yamaha Christopher Pitts Kenneth Pitts Timothy Hite Brad Pitts 2. INTENSE 54.22 Contender .... Yamaha Neal Foster Robby Montgomery Shea Foster Tim Berger 3. CRAWGATOR 53.92 Contender ... Yamaha Bill Butler Mike Butler Mitt Butler Chad Horton 4. TOP PRODUCER 53.77 Contender .... Yamaha Mike Dees Jeff Dees Sheree Dees Jenny Dees 5. Regulator 49.43 6. DIRTY WHITE BOYS 49.41 Contender ... Mercury Roy Tejo White George White Pete Staggs Tony Sicola Nic White Jade White 7. SNAFU 49.30 Contender ... Yamaha Stephen Barfoot Randy Barfoot Tim Barfoot Billy Barfoot 8. TRAIL MARINE 48.82 Mako .... Mercury Bob Wyres Aaron Wells Melissa Wells 9. VENICE MARINE 44.51 Hydra Sports ... Yamaha Brent Ballay Damon McKnight J.P. Solis Brandon Ballay 10. KWAZAR 43.57 Contender ... Yamaha Marcus Kennedy Max Williams Tyler Kennedy Jeff McCoy Ronnie Summers

11. ROCKETMAN 43.30 Contender ... Yamaha Harry Crump Judson Crump Benton Crump 12. RENEGADE 42.42 Pro Sports .... Honda P.J. McLeod Paul McLeod Justin Hinote Matt McLeod 13. RAG TAG 41.59 Contender .... Yamaha Creighton Parker Robert Merritt Geoff Persell Blake Gilmore 14. IN THE ROUGH 41.46 Contender ... Yamaha David VanLent Robert Gabler Rose VanLent Ray Jordan 15. MIDDLE BAY MARINE DEUCE 39.84 Contender ... Yamaha Robert Aldridge Gary Constantine David Webb Jamie Derrington 16. BACKDRAFT 39.66 Aquasport .... Johnson Neal Morgan Jerry Morgan Andrew Morgan Rocky Johnson 17. DREAM WEAVER 39.33 Steve Houghland William Hougland Matt Waite 18 High Voltage 39.20 19. Moray 39.01 20. FLYIN BYE 37.66 Fountain .... Yamaha Mel Richard Ricky Boudreaux Tommy Bozeman Anthony Taormina Andrea Richard

 

CYPRESS COVE KINGFISH TOURNAMENT
VENICE, LA
JUNE 14-16, 2002
By: SKA

Louisiana's West Delta still has not given us the big fish this year that it's reputation dictates. I believe that because of the high water conditions of the Mississippi River, the fresh water pouring into the Gulf has had an affect on the fishing.

The Cypress Cove Kingfish Tournament is a two day aggregate event and after day one everyone was scratching their heads as to where to go. The boat High C's, a non member, caught a 49 pounder to lead the day's weigh in and they caught it just 20 miles from the scales. Most competitors were running a lot farther.

Todd King chose to fish 60 miles south west of the river and it was the right choice. On day one Trey Davis caught a 43.44 and on day two Paul Bridges bettered a 47.26 to give the King Scape first place honors with a 90.70 aggregate."We fished the same area both days but didn't catch our fish in the same spot," said King. "On the first day we fished in 135 feet but had to move to 160 feet the second day." They used all the tricks they could muster catching one on the surface and one on the downrigger. "It was tough fishing. On Saturday we needed all the time we could get. We fished both days right to the last minute."

Marcus Kennedy did the usual, fished Saturday and went to church on Sunday. His crew didn't let him down this trip however, catching a 46.38 on day two to keep the popular team in the money. One team member, Max King, even caught both fish. "We ran about 100 miles each day really fishing in the same spot," said King. Marcus, who fishes his son Tyler for the junior angler division picked up 43 points for their first days fish. Their two fish agg was 89.38.

Aaron Pierce is fishing a new Mercury powered Glacier Bay and it apparently to his liking. "The boat performs well," said the third place captain who weighed a 30.64, then backed it up with a 47.75. "We fished an area we fished the week before and found fish. Other boats kept coming and going but we hung in and found our fish." The team which included AAron's father Lynn, Ben Tyler Jeremy Comeaux, and John McQueen, used big hard tails and were 55 miles from Cypress Cove.

George Simon III is a rodeo cowboy. Well, that has been his passion for many years and now he adopts his same winning instincts to the kingfish circuit. This trip he and partner John Tabor earned fourth. "We were in milky green water working the current line, 55 miles from Southwest Pass," said the Speckulator's captain. "Our first three fish we hooked up we lost but we kept going. They caught a 33.89 on day one, then ran back to the same spot and bagged a 43.10 second day. "We just knew she was there," said the proud captain.

Bill and Mike Butler have a real shot at the Top Angler of the Year award but they need to catch good fish in their backyard, especially when the Pro tournament comes to Biloxi in September. "We're finally turning the corner," said Bill after weighing his second days fish, a 37 pounder on day two to go with a another 37 pounder caught on day one aboard his Contender, the Crawgator. "We needed two good fish to get into the money and we found them. We pre fished on Thursday and found this spot, clear water and lots of fish. That's where we fished both days. One things for sure, if they're on their game by fall they will be hard to beat. However everyone thinks all's you have to do is drop a line in the upper Gulf by a rig and you'll instantly have a 50. It's just not that easy!

The Dee's family found two bad boys and elevated to the tournaments sixth spot aboard their Contender, Top Producer. They only caught a 29.90 on the first day but scrambled on day two to nab a 42.68. Just call the captain Mike Dees, Johnny Hustle!

Aaron Wells, his wife Melissa, and Bob Wyres earned top Class of 23 honors with two consistent fish, a 33.78 and a 37.86. They pushed their Mako, Trail Marine, 71 miles each day to get to their spot. "We wouldn't have gotten that second day fish if the barracuda had prevailed. "He was a big one and he started for our king. I kept feeding him hard tails and kept him away long enough to get himto the boat," said Wells who also accepted the tournaments eighth place.

The Ballay boys found the leader board once again, this time seventh. The Hydra Sports team nailed a 35 on day one, then backed it up with a 37. This team is really starting to gel. Watch them as they move up the ladder. Sand Bar Tender and Wendy Sea rounded out the top ten.Everyone loves Cypress Cove! Sonny does a great job of making the
fishermen feel welcome and he once again dug into his pocket to pay out more than he took in. I know the fishermen appreciate his efforts however their appreciation would be better served by helping Sonny get more entries. Come on, lets get to work!

Final Standings:
2 Day Aggregate

1. KINGSCAPE 90.70 Contender ... Yamaha Todd King Paul Bridges Chris Hayes Trey Davis 2. KWAZAR 89.38 Contender ... Yamaha Marcus Kennedy Steve Shook Tyler Kennedy Max Williams Jeff McCoy 3. HOOKED UP 78.39 Glacier Bay ... Mercury Aaron Pierce Lynn Pierce Ben Tyler Jeremy Comeaux John McQueen 4. SPECKULATOR 76.99 Contender ... Yamaha George Simon III John Tabor 5. CRAWGATOR 74.79 Contender ... Yamaha Bill Butler Mike Butler Steve Jenkins

6. TOP PRODUCER 72.58 Contender ... Yamaha Mike Dees Jeff Dees Sheree Dees 7. VENICE MARINA 72.11 Hydra Sports ... Yamaha Brent Ballay Brandon Ballay Damon McKnight Tim Long Ed Bussard 8. TRAIL MARINE 71.64 Mako ... Mercury Bob Wyres Aaron Wells Melissa Wells 9. SAND BAR TENDER 71.59 Regulator .... Yamaha Russell Webb Chase Webb 10. WENDY SEA 70.26 Yellowfin ... Yamaha Mike Kennedy Kenny Smith Wendy Kennedy Skip Thompson Chris Ford

CLASS OF 23 1. TRAIL MARINE 71.64 2. Luna Sea 69.59 3. FULL BLOWN 60.62

 

DAUPHIN ISLAND KINGFISH CLASSIC
DAUPHIN ISLAND, AL
MAY 31 - JUNE 2, 2002
By: SKA