Hammers Down Pounds the Competition at the Greater Wilmington
Hydra-Sports King Mackerel Tournament

June 24-26, 2004
By Barrett McMullan

"34.44 lbs for the Hammers Down" was the announcement made by the weigh master Friday afternoon at the first day's weigh-in for the 2004 Greater Wilmington Hydra Sports King Mackerel Tournament. Don Wright and crew of the Hammers Down, David Thomas, Patrick Snow and Bill Worsick, have been fishing together for the past four seasons and this year the time, dedication and familiarity the fellow house builders have developed really paid off. Through two major events fished this year, the Georgetown Tailwalker tournament and now the Greater Wilmington the Hammers Down is two for two with strong second place finishes in each tournament. Don spoke of the two good finishes this year, "what can I say, it's awesome. We're hot right now and I hope it continues".

Friday morning the Hammers Down left out of their homeport of Murrels inlet in South Carolina. Just after clearing the inlet the crew spotted several diving pelicans-the tell tale sign of a large school of pogies and the bait of choice for a smoker kingfish. After collecting enough bait for a day's fishing Don Wright steered the 35' Evinrude powered Wellcraft to a popular rocky area just a couple miles offshore in 40 feet of water known as the Myrtle Beach Rocks. Don reported a fairly fast bite, but mostly the fish were all less than 10 lbs. Around 9:30 am the Hammers Down received a phone call from good friend and fellow Wellcraft owner Bryan Edwards on the Reel Krazy that they had just caught a mid twenties and the bite was on at the 65 foot hole-an area of live bottom about 15 miles offshore of Ocean Isle Beach, NC. The Hammers Down packed it up and made the 20-mile run in a hurry. After 30 minutes of fishing the silence was broken when a 26 lb kingfish hit the deck. The next bait put back out was a double pogy on the downrigger at 25 feet, and it didn't last long. At 10:45 am the big boy came calling. According to Don the fish hit like a shark and really didn't make a move for almost a minute. "We just thought it was a shark so we left all the lines out and continued to fish." Once the fish realized it was hooked she changed her tune and blistered off 200 yards of line in a blink of an eye. The Hammers Down crew quickly sprung into action as each team member took their position and accomplished their assigned duty. The fish was run down by Don and angler David Thomas skillfully brought the fish close enough for a look as experienced gaff man Patrick Snow stood by patiently until the opportunity arose to sink the steel into the stud kingfish. Fifteen minutes after the barn burning run the second place fish and first placing SKA kingfish was in the boat and on ice. At the conclusion of fishing for day one the Hammers Down was in a favorable but gut wrenching position. Holding down first place in a big money tournament such as this one with an entire day of fishing remaining will keep you up at night to say the least. The next day the Hammers Down elected to stay close to the beach due to the hard southwest wind and fished Carolina Beach inlet left hoping their fish would hold up. Unfortunately they were knocked out of the top position by a hard earned 44 lb fish but they did manage to take home a nice pay day around 20k and top spot for all competing SKA boats. The Hammers Down would like to thank their sponsor Carolina Boat and Yachts for their continued support as well as fellow Wellcraft team member Bryan Edwards and crew of the Reel Krazy for their team work.

The Squeeze Play family fishing team based out of Southport has come on strong in the southeastern North Carolina tournaments in the past couple seasons. It appears as though they will continue to be a force on the circuit with their latest accomplishment of a third place finish in the Greater Wilmington and second highest finishing SKA boat. The Squeeze Play is a 28' Offshore powered with twin 250 Evinrudes and a committed crew composed of Michael Sellers Jr., wife and top lady angler Holly Sellers, brother Adam Sellers, father Michael Sr. and friend Wes Knox. Although Michael Jr. was unable to fish on Friday due to a prior commitment he sent his able bodied crew out in search of glory with a good game plan. The Squeeze Play entered the ocean at Lockwood Folly inlet and quickly caught pogies on their way to the Myrtle Beach Rocks. Like the Hammers Down, the Squeeze Play team found only spike kingfish at the rocks and made the call to head offshore to an area of ledges near the Jungle. After two hours of hard chumming producing a mixed bag of cobia, mahi, and sharks the Seller's gang pretty much decided it was time to try elsewhere. As the last bait was being brought in a hungry 21 lb kingfish snatched the skipping pogy off the surface. Just as this fish was put on the deck the only bait left in the water disappeared and just as fast line began peeling off the reel. This time Michael Sr. was up to bat as he took on angling duties. After a big initial run the mossy back went into her typical holding pattern death circles underneath the teal colored hull of the Squeeze Play. The fish was in sight, but just wouldn't seem to come close enough for a gaff shot. Finally, completely stretched out with a twelve foot gaff Adam made contact. When he hit the fish she took off underneath the boat cutting the line and bringing Adam to his knees. Fortunately she stayed on the gaff and Adam was able drag her out from underneath and put the slab on ice. The time was 12:00 pm and the 32.64 lb smoker was onboard and soon to be headed to the scales. Congratulations to the Squeeze Play team for second place SKA and to Holly Sellers for her first place SKA lady angler award.

The highly seasoned Slip-N-Slide team fishing a 27' Hydra Sport with Evinrude power showed why they are a top SKA team in North Carolina by posting a 5th place finish and taking home third place honors among SKA contestants. The Slip-N-Slide team is made up of Tom Aberle, his son Adam Aberle, Joe Morse, Karl Bradshere, and John McBride. For this event Tom was unable to fish due to a prior commitment as part of the Greater Wilmington tournament staff. However his crew managed to hold their own by showing up to the scales on Friday afternoon with 31.66 lb kingfish. Tom had gotten a chance to pre-fish the week before on a ledge just offshore of the 30/30 bottoms on the east side of Frying Pan Shoals. He found a steady bite of good-sized kingfish, which led his son Adam and crew back to the same spot on day one of the tournament. On Thursday, the day before the first fishing day, the Slip-N-Slide team collected pogies and bluefish and penned them for the next day. At 10:30 am the crew was rewarded for their decisions and hard work when the long line with a single naked pogy was nailed. A 35-minute battle ensued as Adam angled the fish close by for a gaff shot by Joe Morse. Just as the fish approached the boat it had exhausted itself to the point of death and it began to sink. An outstretched Joe Morse was able to make contact with the 12' gaff before the fish could sink out of reach and most likely break the line. The Slip-N-Slide team has fished the SKA circuit for many years and will likely be in the running for a division crown in either division 2 or 13.

The top placing 23 and under boat should be commended for their effort. The Playin' Hooky team of Shallotte, NC is captained by Thomas "Teak" Hemphill and on this weekend he was accompanied by North Carolina king fishing legends Kyle White and Jamie Milliken. On Friday the crew caught numerous kingfish around an area off North Myrtle Beach called the 410/510, but no fish were worthy of weighing in. On Saturday the crew, less Jamie, awoke to a howling 25 knot southwest wind. Instead of using their 21' boat as an excuse to cut their losses and sit this one out Teak decided to go for it. They left out of Lockwood Folly inlet taking a few waves over the bow and headed east towards the Cape Fear River. Finding the conditions on that side of the shoals were nearly unfishable they opted to run inside in the Cape Fear River where they were able to load up on veteran size pogies. Next they headed out of Carolina Beach inlet on the east side of the shoals where they a little but not much protection from the hard southwest wind. Teak and Kyle's effort was rewarded with a 31.16 lb smoker caught near Masonboro inlet off Wrightsville Beach. The 21' Starcraft Playin' Hooky took home top SKA 23' and under boat and a lot of pride for overcoming the elements.

Bryant and Daniel Carroll of the Dig It III remained dominant in the SKA junior angler category. They, along with the crew of the Dig It III were able to land a 28.82 lb kingfish near the 30/30 bottoms on Friday. Top SKA Lady angler as mentioned before was Holly Sellers on the Squeeze Play with a 32.64 lb fish. The Greater Wilmington event marked the beginning for division 9 competitors. Many nice fish were caught, but no one is running away with the title without a fight especially with three tournaments remaining in the division. Next up is the Jolly Mon King Classic and as summer time king fishing is reaching its peak in southeastern North Carolina the leaderboard should be impressive.

218 boats fished this year's Greater Wilmington Hydra Sports King Mackerel Tournament. 108 fish were weighed on day one and 22 on day two. The fact that 218 boats participated in this event despite the poor weather forecast for the second day of fishing is a testament to the hard work put into this event by tournament director and long time king mackerel tournament fisherman Horace Sikes. This event has one of the largest purses of any kingfish tournament and is always a well run and organized event. In addition to the fishermen the major beneficiary of this event is the Teach a Kid to Fish Foundation. Each year, with proceeds from the tournament, underprivileged children from the Wilmington area are given the opportunity to enjoy the sportfishing experience that sometimes we take for granted. The children go fishing for a day learning about the ocean and all the resources it provides and then finish up the day with a cookout and prizes. This event is truly a positive event for the sponsors, the fishermen, the children and the general public. If you missed out this year make sure to plan on being here next year to take a shot at the big money as well as help out a great cause.

Mike Edwards, Tripp Yost and Scott Hardy picked a good day to catch the biggest kingfish of their three-year fishing career. A good weather forecast, excellent king fishing leading up to the event and the excellent reputation the Jolly Mon has of being a fishermen friendly tournament made for a great turnout of 340 competing teams and in turn an equally great payout. But, when all the chaos and confusion had settled only one team would see their name at the top of the leaderboard prominently displayed at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center. The Talkin' Trash team caught the biggest of the big fish, and brought home a payday of more than 25k.

According to team captain Mike Edwards the original plan was to head to the Jungle area about 16 miles off North Myrtle Beach. In the 10-year history of this tournament the Jungle more than any other location has been where the biggest kingfish have come from. However, after hearing the pogies were difficult to catch in that direction with some boats having to run nearly to Georgetown, SC to get bait, Mike decided to stay closer to home and catch bait at Snows Cut just off the Cape Fear River. After catching plenty of super sized pogies the Talkin' Trash team opted to head for another historically productive area known as the 30/30, which is located on the east side of Frying Pan Shoals about 20 miles out of Carolina Beach inlet. At 8am the lines hit the water and the action began immediately. A decent mid teens fish was being angled towards the boat when the only other line in the water smoked it down. Deciding that the second fish that was still burning line off the reel needed more attention, the first fish was intentionally broke off so they could chase down the track-star fish that now had distanced itself by several hundred yards. Line was quickly retrieved as the crew sat on pins and needles waiting for a glimpse of what they all assumed to be a good sized kingfish. Just before the fish made its first appearance, snap! The line broke. Temporarily heartbroken, the crew managed to get the lines back in the water and once again they were attacked. This time their luck would change. The fish took a single pogy trolled on the surface and made three different long runs. Mike was on the rod and after 20 minutes of chasing the fight turned into the typical up and down battle with the monster kingfish doing the signature death circle. When the fish showed itself for the first time the crew new it was a big fish. Mike estimated it at close to 50 lbs. For about two minutes the fish stayed just out of gaffing range for Tripp about 15 feet away. Finally Tripp got a shot and the celebrating commenced. About 30 minutes later they decided to pack it up and slowly make their way to the scales. From Southport, where they entered the intracoastal waters, all the way down to the tournament site at Ocean Isle Beach some 20 miles away the boat was at idle speed. Mike called it, "the longest day of my life" as they waited for the scales to open just hoping they had enough to take it all. At 2pm the scales opened and the first fish on the scales was a 46 lb hog by the Talkin' Trash-a new tournament record and the 2004 Jolly Mon King Classic Champion. The Talkin' Trash is a 28' Hydra Sport powered by twin 225 Evinrudes. Mike and crew use 31 lb wire with two #6 treble hooks and 35 lb Spro swivels on their pogy rigs.

Typically a 43 lb kingfish would be more than enough to win most any tournament in North Carolina especially one in the middle of summer. Unfortunately for the Saltwater Insanity team of Jot Owens and Dean Nye this would not be the case as their impressive 43-pounder was the second largest king taken in the Jolly Mon. Their day started at 5am looking for pogies near the Wrightsville Beach coast guard station. The lights that shine into the water at the station will sometimes attract the pogies into the area before the sun comes up. Large pogies were eventually captured and by 5:45am they were on their way to their home away from home. At 6:15 am they arrived to a ledge about two miles off Topsail Beach in 50 feet of water in the vicinity of Dallas rock. This is the location where they caught a 30 lb fish the week before in the Greater Wilmington event and the place where they had caught several big fish in years past. Jot says that he and Dean pay close attention to water temperature this time of year. They are looking for water under 80 degrees and the sea surface temperature maps showed the water between 78 and 79 degrees over this ledge. After arriving to the spot with three other boats nearby they began heavy chumming while they slow trolled tight circles over the ledge. For the first couple hours they managed only a 12 pounder, which was released for good karma and a few sharks. Just before they were about to leave at 9:30am the short outrigger snapped open and with a big swirl a single naked pogy was demolished as 200 yards of line disappeared from the reel. The fish made a distinct turn and came back to the boat where it made a quick appearance and took off for another 100 yards. Jot remembered saying to Dean, "He is really brown. It's either a cuda or a monster mossy back king." Twenty minutes of up and down work revealed the short thick stud kingfish. With Jot standing by with gaff and, teammate of five years, Dean on the rod the Saltwater Insanity team succeeded in boating the old mossy back. Back at the awards Saturday evening the disappointment of finishing second with a 43 was quickly forgotten as they got the news they had finished first in the high rollers TWT, which sent them home with an impressive second place purse of more than 20k. The Saltwater Insanity is a 26 ft. Cobia powered by twin 150 Yamahas and is now leading SKA Division 9 with 73 points for two fish. Jot and Dean prefer to use a single nose hook and a #4 treble hook with 31 lb wire on their pogy rigs.

Rounding out the top three with another 40+ lb fish, the Intimidator team of Mike Wells, Brad Hughes, and Derrick Gilcrest found their glory waiting for them at the Jungle. The weekend prior to the Jolly Mon the Intimidator team caught a 30 lb king in the Greater Wilmington tournament at the Jungle, which is what led them back for a shot in the Jolly Mon. At 6am they left out of Little River inlet in South Carolina and ran the beach a few miles north to Sunset Beach where they loaded up on pogies. From there they made the 18-mile run to the Jungle where ten boats were already fishing at 7am. By 9am there would be an estimated 70 boats fishing the area. Mike opted to hang on the same piece of structure he had success over the prior week just offshore of the traditional Jungle numbers. All morning the Intimidator team fought off sharks and one small throw back king. Then, at 9:40am amongst a chum slick created by nearby boats in addition to the frozen chum and three bottles of pogy oil dripping from their own boat the Intimidator got their lottery ticket punched and it was on. The fish bit a single naked pogy on the long line and proceeded to make two short runs. The boat was immediately on top of the fish where the crew got a look at her and thought the fish was in the mid twenties, which was what they were after at the time-a good points fish. The Intimidator crew is in their second season together and is hoping to qualify for Nationals for the first time. It wasn't until Mike sunk the gaff in the fish and laid her out on the deck that they realized they had done more than put a nice points fish on-board. The 54-inch smoker was put on ice and then came the high fives and victory cries. After fishing for a couple more hours closer to shore they headed for the scales where they posted a 40.6 lb kingfish. A little disappointing to finish in third with a 40+, but nothing could sour the moods of this crew with their first 40 lb kingfish ever. The Intimidator is a 31' Contender with twin 250 OX66 Yamahas. Mike and crew prefer to use #6 4X Eagle Claw trebles, #4 wire, 17lb Cajun line, Speedmaster reels and Billfisher 15-30lb class rods for live bait king mackerel tournament fishing. The crew of the Intimidator would like to thank team sponsor the Rick Gilcrest Company-RGC commercial framing and drywall for making their tournament fishing adventures possible.

Top SKA lady angler and top SKA 23' and under honors went to the same boat, the Reel Buzz with a 35.0 lb kingfish. In this event Brian Schoenwiesner and lady angler Ashley Nifong borrowed a 21' Sea Pro with a 150 Johnson and fished the 30/30 area to find their prize. Top junior anglers for the second event in a row in this division were Bryant and Daniel Carroll fishing aboard the Dig It III. This team captured an impressive 38.50 kingfish to take fifth place in the event and top SKA junior anglers. It should also be mentioned that a fourth 40+ lb kingfish was weighed by John E. Lewis on the Second Chance for a fourth place finish. It isn't often that four 40+ lb kings are weighed in one event in this area of the country. Either the fishing or the fishermen are getting better.

The 11th annual 2004 Yamaha/Contender Jolly Mon King Classic was a huge success. The owner/ operator of the event Capt. Brant McMullan explained, "You've got to love it when a plan comes together...and that pretty well sums up how the Jolly Mon King Classic came down. All week our charter fleet at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center had been burning the kings at the Jungle and all week it seemed the fish were getting bigger and bigger, culminating Thursday with several fish in the mid to upper thirties. I made the statement that if we got good weather the fishing would be explosive...and finally the weather gods smiled on us and man, oh, man did the fish explode. In addition to the fish exploding, so did the fishermen as 340 boats entered the tournament setting a new record from our previous record of 330 boats. The result was almost 1500 fishermen/lady anglers/ and junior anglers conducted an amazing assault on the kings leaving us with one of the most impressive leaderboards I have seen in the Carolinas. It took above 30lbs for 25th place, there were four fish over 40, and the grand prize winner weighed in at 46.65lbs to take home over $25,000. Second place was 43.00 lbs worth over $20,000...definitely not a bad return on a $195 entry fee".

Other excitement at the tourney site included the "Pogy Bobbin" contest with 50+ participants seeking glory and fame by trying to catch a live pogy with their teeth. The proud winner was 8-year-old Alexis Pugh who set a new "Pogy Bobbin" record at an amazing four seconds. And then to top it all off, at the awards ceremony finally after ten years of previous attempts a winner of the Magic-tilt Jr. Angler Scholarship drawing was found. 14 years old Alan Barnes of the Hot Rod fishing team used his lucky boat number as his pick and won the $10,000 prize.

Capt. Brant and staff would like to give a special thanks to tournament sponsors Yamaha, Contender, Magic Tilt, Boater's World, BB&T and many others as well as all the fishermen, lady anglers and jr. anglers that participated in this year's event for help making the Jolly Mon King Classic what it is today.

1.   TALKIN TRASH 46.65       Hydra Sports ... Evinrude       Mike Edwards       Tripp Yost 2.   SALTWATER INSANITY 43.00       Cobia .... Yamaha       Jot Owens       Dean Nye 3.   INTIMIDATOR  40.60       Contender ... Yamaha       Mike Wells       Brad Hughes       Derrick Gilchrist 4.   SECOND CHANZE      40.30       Contender .... Yamaha       John Lewis       Jeff Feuling 5.   DIG IT III   38.50       Contender ... Yamaha       Greg Carroll       Tony Carroll       Trey Carroll        Bryant Carroll       Daniel Carroll 6.   NO VACAN SEA 38.00       Contender ... Yamaha       Wade Long       Chris Gore 7.   Reveler      37.00 8.   Reel Salty   36.65 9.   ROOFING CONTENDER  36.45       Contender ... Yamaha       Randy Wallace       Geoff Pugh       Jonathan Pugh 10. One Shot      36.15 11.TAILWALKER     36.05       Contender .... Yamaha       Stuart Ballard       Don Mussman 12.REELALITY      35.75       Fountain .... Mercury       Jim Harrison       John Harrison       cas Dickerson

13. RON JON 35.50       Ranger..... Mercury       Ronnie Miller       Randy Griffin 14. REEL BUZZ     35.00       Sea Pro .... Mercury       Chip Nifong       Ashley Nifong       Brian Schoewiesner 15. REEL HEEL     34.75       Leigh Westbrook       Don Westbrook       Larry Denning 16. MAC WEB 33.35       Contender .... Yamaha       Jimmy Shaw       Dean Shaw       Raymond Shaw       James Shaw 17. MOON DOGGIE   32.20       Contender .... Yamaha       Billy Emmart       Mark Emmart       Maurice Emmart       Misty Emmart 18.  HONEY HUSH   32.05       Fountain ..... Mercury       Ralph Simms       Alex Dewey 19. MISS ELAINEOUS      32.05       Contender .... Yamaha       Daniel Erwin       Dan Erwin       Brian Hughes 20. WATER PROOF   31.80       Wellcraft ... Yamaha       Steven Thompson TOP JUNIOR ANGLER ....  Bryant and Caroll Daniel ... Dig It III

 

Mr. Goodhands Is the 2004 King of the Cape

July 23-24, 2004
Barrett McMullan

9 years after their first king mackerel tournament win in the Jolly Mon the Mr. Goodhands team came full circle to do it again, except this time it was in the King of the Cape Classic.  History repeats itself, but only when the unexpected happens.  It was 9 years ago the Shallotte based Goodhands team caught a 40lber at a spot called the 390/390 off of Ocean Isle Beach to take their first tournament win, and it was this same exact location that would once again prove to be the answer for Toby Russ, brother Andy and co-worker Steve Linear for their second big tournament win. 

At 6:00 am the 29 Century Yamaha powered Mr. Goodhands boat cleared Shallotte inlet and began searching for a school of pogies that would serve as bait for the day.  By 6:15 the baitwell was full as there was plenty of bait holding just a couple miles down Holden Beach.  Toby had planned on heading to the Jungle area where there has been a steady bite of good fish all summer, but on his way out he saw he was going to pass right over an area of live bottom called the 390/390, which has produced nice fish in the past but has been somewhat overlooked in the last few years.  That combined with the fact this is the same spot where he had won a tournament 9 years before prompted him to give it a shot for just a little while before heading on to the Jungle.  For the first hour Toby, Andy and Steve waited for any sign of kingfish along with 10 other boats but there was no hope in sight.  Toby had made the decision to go ahead and pick up the spread and had already punched in the coordinates for the Jungle.  Just before they were about to take off Toby looked up and saw they had forgotten to get the long line in, which was a single pogy on a chartreuse colored Cape Lookout skirt, and asked Andy to grab it so they could hit the road.  Right as Andy went to pick up the rod she screamed off a quick 100 yards.  At first the crew thought maybe it was a shark or small kingfish as Andy was able to angle the fish right up to the boat very quickly.  As soon as the fish got a look at the boat she finally showed what she could do and blistered off another 300 yards of line.  All of a sudden things got a little more serious as Steve followed the boat quickly behind the fish and Andy regained line as he was permitted.  15 minutes later the fish came up head first totally exhausted and Toby sealed its fate with the gaff.  The stud kingfish was put on ice followed by a quick celebration and a few phone calls.  The rest of the day was spent at the 90s until the scales opened at 2:00 pm where the Goodhands team was the second boat to weigh, but would end up having the largest fish of the event at an impressive 42.30 lbs.  Toby reported the fish was caught on 31 lb wire with #4 and #6 treble hooks.  The Mr. Goodhands team is supported by and would like to thank Century, Yamaha, Magic Tilt and Emerald Marine. 

Relative newcomers to the trail Jeremy Calhoun and Joey Penfield fishing aboard the Reel Commocean, a 28 Triton powered by 225 Mercury Opti Maxs, tried their luck in the King of the Cape Classic and found plenty of it with a 2^nd place SKA finish and third in the tournament.  Jeremy and Joey usually fish with the Reel Commocean owner Curtis Corning, but due to a prior commitment Curtis had to miss this one.  Unfortunate for Curtis it was this weekend that the Reel Commocean team would land the biggest kingfish of their brief tournament careers.  Bait was quickly located Saturday morning and Jeremy made the call to head for the Jungle.  After fishing only about 15 minutes with nearly 75 boats already fishing the area he made a decision to head back inshore to historically big fish area off North Myrtle Beach called the 410/ 510.  Jeremy chose the 10/10 because he remembered back to last years event that the winner had come from there.  With only one other boat fishing the spot the Reel Commocean team went to work and were quickly rewarded for their gutsy move.  At 8:30 am the long line with a single pogy behind a purple skirt was annihilated.  The fish immediately burned down the light drag with 20 lb clear Stren line and for the next 15-20 minutes Joey carefully angled the fish back to the boat.  When the fish first came into gaffing range Jeremy hesitated because he thought it was maybe a big barracuda.  The picture became clearer when the fish turned and ran again and this time they could see the mossy back that couldnt be mistaken for anything other than a smoker kingfish.  On the next pass Jeremy finished her off and the 38.95 lb stud was in the box.  The Reel Commocean was satisfied with their days work and headed for the scales with their prize catch.  This year the team is hoping to qualify for Nationals and with this kicker fish they are well on their way. 

The Git-R-Done team found themselves on the dance floor this weekend in 4^th place and 3^rd among SKA competitors.  Ty Cobb, who is the tournament director of the Got-Em-On kingfish tournament, and fishing partner Frank Hassell took their 20' Bayliner with a 175 hp Evinrude to the Cabbage Patch on Saturday to find their fish.  Ty has found a method for penning up pogies that keeps them in perfect shape for weeks at a time.  On tournament morning Ty loaded up the baitwell with his penned pogies and wasted no time in getting out to the fishing grounds.  He decided to stop briefly at the 30/30, but quickly made the call to stick with the game plan and head to the Cabbage Patch, an area of ledges and live bottom just on the east side of Frying Pan Shoals.  Accompanied by 8 other boats the Git-R-Done began their presentation hoping for that big bite that would win them a top finish in this event and help send them back to Biloxi for a second time.  At 8:30 am the plan came together when two rods went off simultaneously.  The first fish was a decent 20lber, but the other fish that ate a single pogy on the medium line was a little more stubborn.  Ty angled the fish on a Calcutta reel for a heart wrenching 45 minutes before he handed the rod off and took over gaffing duties.  Like the third place fish, Ty thought maybe it was a barracuda but when she finally rolled up there was no doubt this was a smoker kingfish.  Once the fish was secured on board Ty and Frank headed on in to the scales a little concerned with some engine problems.  Fortunately they made it to the scales no problem where they hoisted their 37.25 lb fish, which would take 3^rd place SKA honors and 1^st place in the 23 and under category. 

Jackie Sganbati fishing with Capt. Joe Winslow and Fred Coyne on the Hooligan took home the top lady angler spot with a 27.15.  This fish came off of Georgetown on a slight color change and one-degree temperature break.  According to Joe, Jackie has grown her knowledge of king mackerel tournament fishing dramatically thru only two events of fishing.  Top junior angler for the umpteenth time was once again Austin Eubank aboard the Clearly Hooked.  The 21 Suzuki powered Kencraft posted a 21.15lber to give Austin his top junior angler honor.  The recently re-aligned division 9 is producing quite a leader board and quite a tight race for the top 15 National Championship qualifiers.  To qualify in this highly competitive division will be an extremely noteworthy accomplishment.  The Fall Brawl taking place in mid-October is the final event in this division and will determine those who are Biloxi bound.  Currently the Talkin Trash team has the division lead with 95.5 points and fifteenth place is just over 68 points.  Fall time in the Carolinas means lots of fish and typically big fish as well, so expect some last minute jumbling of positions within the top 25 in this last event. 

Capt. Jerry Dilsaver and staff once again did a great job where tournament fishermen and their families could all enjoy different aspects of the event.  Whether it was the cast net throwing contest, or the pinfish tournament, there was entertainment for all who attendees.  The weather was great with only a few showers and 111 out of 184 teams weighed fish, which is a testament to the great king mackerel fishing the area has had this summer. 

Capt. Jerry, King of the Cape Classic tournament director wrote, the tournament, which was based from the soon to be opened Shrimp House 2 restaurant on the old Southport Yacht Basin, was presented to raise funds for the Long Bay Artificial Reef Association (LBARA).  Primary sponsors of the tournament were the Shrimp House 2 and North Carolina Sportsman Magazine.

The LBARA is a non-profit organization that established and now administers the renewal of the eight artificial reefs in the Atlantic Ocean off Brunswick County.  There are no state funds to assist the LBARA in funding their many projects, so all the monies must be raised from private sources.  This is especially important as even though there is some federal funding assistance, the grants are based on matching funding from the organizations own fund raising.

 

Sandpiper is King at Fall Brawl King Classic

Oct. 14-15, 2004
Barrett McMullan

The scene at the awards ceremony on Sunday evening at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center was a testament to the unique opportunity king mackerel tournament fishing provides for families to enjoy and compete while spending time together on the ocean. In 1981 Fred Piper took his son Dane tournament fishing for the first time in the Wrightsville Beach King Mackerel Tournament when Dane was 7 years old. Though they did not win that first event Fred still recalls weighing a 24 pounder and seeing Dane's enthusiasm for the competition. Through the next two decades Fred and Dane became one of the most recognized and accomplished teams on the kingfish trail not only in North Carolina but also throughout the country. In 2000 they broke the SKA record at the National Championship out of Moorehead by catching a 58 lb kingfish. Twenty-three years after their first kingfish tournament the father/son team fishing aboard the Sandpiper are still fishing tournaments together and are still winning. The 2004 Fall Brawl King Classic champion is none other than Fred and Dane Piper of the Sandpiper fishing team.

One thing Fred and Dane have learned through the years is that to be successful in kingfish tournaments you have to do your research. Fred has a beach cottage down at Topsail Island and for a couple weeks prior to the Fall Brawl Fred and Dane had been keeping a close eye on what was being caught off the several local fishing piers. Just a week before the event Fred saw a fish caught that weighed over 45 lbs that even had a big chunk take out of its back thanks to a hungry shark. In addition to that fish more than 70 kings had been caught off the piers in less than a week's time. This information led Fred and Dane to stick close to home and concentrate their efforts from Topsail inlet to the Topsail ledges just off the beach. Finding pogies had become difficult in the week preceding the event so Fred and Dane spent the first hour of tournament morning trolling Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows and catching bluefish at Topsail inlet. Equipped with enough bait for the day of fishing ahead, the baits were deployed immediately at the inlet and the action began. Right off the bat a 23 lb fish started things right outside the inlet. With another 35 boats working the area with the Sandpiper Fred decided to start trolling up the beach towards an area known as the Motel ledges. As they approached the ledges Fred marked a large school of baitfish that stretched from the bottom almost all the way to the top. The first pass over the school of baitfish yielded a 15 pounder. On the next turn over the bait a bluefish trolled on the surface long line was destroyed. Line smoked off the reel and the fish was heading right for another boat that was also hooked up. Dane grabbed the rod and Fred throttled up to 2000 rpm's chasing the fish. Just before passing under the other boat the fish turned and Fred continued until they were on top of the fish. Dane gently worked the fish closer as the mossy back finally appeared about 15 feet under the surface. From there, according to Fred, the fish looked ten feet long. Dane brought the fish a little closer for Fred to get a shot with the gaff. Fred sunk the gaff and Dane grabbed the fish by the tail and hauled her over the rail. At 10:30am the Fall Brawl winning fish was on board the Sandpiper and it was off to the scales. At 2:00pm the Sandpiper was at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center eagerly awaiting the opening of the scales. The first fish on the scales Sunday would prove to be the biggest of the tournament at 42.25lbs, which gave the Sandpiper team a well-earned victory.

Before the fish had even made it to the fish bag, the sound of a dog barking could clearly be heard ringing throughout the fleet of boats that were fishing the Cape Fear River Channel. All eyes in the pack turned towards the That's My Dog boat where Forrest Taylor, Don Ewing and Adam Taylor were all hunched over their stud kingfish letting out their familiar celebration barks. On Friday afternoon before the event Forrest and Don left out of Shallotte Inlet in the five foot seas with several other boats in search of bait for the next day's fishing. Pogies were finally located, caught with a fast sinking cast net and then penned up for the next day. Saturday morning their plan went into action. First stop was Lockwood Folly Inlet where the crew would fish the first hour of the day and at the same time listen up to find out where the bait was located so they could freshen up if need be. After the first hour of fishing with no action it was time for a move. The bait from the day before had made a full recovery in the baitwell that morning allowing the Dog team to continue on fishing. Forest, Don and Adam started off towards the Cape Fear River Channel where the majority of the tournament was already fishing and where several fish had already been caught that morning. Don took his position behind the wheel while Forrest and Adam ran the cockpit. With chum deployed and pogies following right behind Don steered the boat over a big pod of bait that was located off the main pack of boats by about a half mile in the pretty king green water. Only 15 minutes after arrival the big boy came calling. The fish bit a double pogy with a Turbo Rattler head in front right out of the prop wash. Adam jumped to the rod while Don steered the boat in the direction of the quickly departing kingfish and Forrest cleared the deck. A 20-minute battle ensued consisting of a couple line sizzling runs and some knee knocking up and down finesse battling. Finally the fish was brought close enough alongside where Forrest could finish her off with the gaff. It was just after 9:00 am when Don reported on the VHF the That's My Dog team had a good one on board that filled the entire fish bag. The crew fished for the next few hours waiting for 2:00 pm to come so they could weigh their catch. At 2:00 pm the Dog team came to the scales where they would be the second boat to weigh right behind the Sandpiper team. 35.85 lbs was the call made from the weigh master, which put the team into a second place position that they would not relinquish for the remainder of the event. The That's My Dog team is a former National Champion local to Ocean Isle Beach and fishes aboard a 32' Donzi in both local events and on the SKA Pro trail. For this event, in addition to second place honors, Adam Taylor earned his umpteenth top junior angler award of the event.

Finishing just behind the That's My Dog team was another top local team-the Russ family fishing aboard the Mr. Goodhand's. Brothers Toby and Andy Russ were joined by father Rusty in the last event the Goodhand's team would be fishing this season. Already this year they have a win at the King of the Cape's tournament under their belts and were taking aim at a good finish yet again at one of the two events held each year at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center. The search for the elusive pogies began for Toby, Andy and Rusty tournament morning. Finally at 8:45 am only a dozen pogies could be captured, but the crew made the call to head on to the Cape Fear River with what they had including a box of dead cigar minnows. The lack of live bait proved not to be an obstacle because at 11:00 am the first and biggest fish of the day visited the Goodhand's first spread of baits. A pogy trolled on the surface disappeared and Andy quickly gathered up the rod that was bent doubled. The fish acted very strange according to Rusty making a hard run away and then turning straight back towards the boat and passing underneath. Once more after these first two runs the fish came back at the boat and passed from the front towards the back where the engines had to be lifted to avoid cutting the line. Eventually the fish was slowed and Toby took over gaffing duties and sealed third place by placing the fish on ice. The remainder of the day was spent catching another ten kingfish but none were bigger than the first. At 3:00 pm the Goodhand's team headed for the scales and posted their day's work. When all the prop wash had settled the Mr. Goodhand's team finished the event in third place and came out of nowhere to finish in second place for the division and earned that highly coveted bonus money. The Russ family would like to recognize their supporters from Century boats, Emerald Marine and Yamaha.

Jeff Eubank and his junior angler son Austin rose to top of the 23' and under class aboard their 21' Kencraft the Clearly Hooked. After fishing all morning around the Cape Fear sea buoy with no action using greenies for bait Jeff got a call from fishing friend Ty Cobb on the Git-R-Done informing him that the pogies were plentiful off the shoals at Bald Head Island. At 1:00pm fresh pogies were located and it was back to the sea buoy where the fish had been biting steady all morning for the rest of the fleet. At 2:00 the action began for the Clearly Hooked team. First came a double header of teenager sized fish. The lines were re-deployed and at 3:30 a naked pogy on the downrigger was drilled. Austin, who is a very accomplished junior angler working as a mate on a charter boat out of Wrightsville Beach not to mention numerous top tournament finishes, took hold of the line smoking reel and went to work. The boat was worked on top of the fish so to avoid being cut off by other surrounding boats fishing the same area. Once the chaos was under control Austin angled the fish within reach for Jeff who buried the gaff and brought the fish aboard. A quick celebration followed and it was off to the scales where the Clearly Hooked team posted a solid 31.25lb kingfish, which put them into the top 23' and under position among SKA contestants and also slid them into second place overall in the division for the 23' and under class.

The Fall Brawl marked the fourth and final event in Division 9. Going into this last tournament the overall division win was still up for grabs, but in the end the Talkin' Trash team was able to hold off a hard charging Mr. Goodhands team on the strength of their win at King of the Capes and third place finish in the Fall Brawl. The Intimidator boat started off the division on fire in the first two events but then was unable to post anything above a 20 pounder for their final fish. Still, though they secured third place a new personal best for this team. The Talkin' Trash team captained by Mike Edwards led Division 9 from start to finish and in addition to the recognition they will receive by this great accomplishment they also will be taking home the first place bonus money for winning the division. The 23' and under race was also decided in this last event where the Thunderball came through in the clutch with a 25 pounder to take home the divisional title. Judy Brock on the Judy Bee fishing team made the lady angler race interesting as she posted a ladies best 28.8 lb kingfish in the final event, which left her less than a half pound behind the divisional winner Holly Sellers of the Squeeze Play team who had a great first half of the season. Finally, Bryant and Daniel Carroll of the Dig It III team came away with the junior angler title for the division by holding off formidable competitors David Jackson of the Live Line team and Austin Eubank of the Clearly Hooked.

The 2004 Fall Brawl kept its reputation as one of the most enjoyable and fishermen-friendly events on the trail. Capt. Brant and tournament staff once again redefined the tournament fishing experience by creating yet another innovation in tournament format. Due to a less than favorable weather forecast for the original fishing day on Saturday, the decision was made to give tournament teams the option to fish either Saturday or Sunday. Brant commented, "I knew that there were some fishermen who would have obligations on Sunday and could only fish Saturday, but I also knew that in order for the many Jr. anglers to be able to fish, Sunday would be the best day." The decision was appreciated by the majority of fishermen and may be something for tournament directors to consider for the future. All in all, the event was a roaring success with 212 kingfish teams competing for cash prizes. Junior angler participation was once again the focus of the event as each junior who weighed a fish of any size received a prize. The tournament staff and fishermen would like to thank and show appreciation to the event's sponsors including, Sea Tow, Guy C. Lee, Boater's World, Magic Tilt and many others. As one of the largest events in the Carolinas with a strategy of creating a fun, fishermen-friendly environment to compete for big money all while leading the way in creatively formatting kingfish tournaments, the future for the Fall Brawl is bright so don't miss out next year.

FINAL STANDINGS:

1.   SANDPIPER    42.45       Hydra Sports ... Evinrude       Fred Piper       Dane Piper 2.   THAT’S MY DOG      35.85       Donzi ... Mercury       Forrest Taylor       Don Ewing       Adam Taylor 3.   MR. GOODHANDS      33.95       Century ... Yamaha       Toby Russ       Andy Russ       Rusty Russ 4.   PRIME TIME   32.95       Donzi ... Mercury       Jamie Milam       Jim Milam       Michael Milam 5.   TAILWALKER   32.00       Contender ... Yamaha       Stuart Ballard       Don Mussman       Mark Ballard 6.   CLEARLY HOOKED     31.25       KenCraft ... Suzuki       Jeff Eubank       Austin Eubank 7.   RON - JON    30.45       Ranger ... Mercury       Ronnie Miller       Randy Griffin       Craig Hughes

8.   LIVE LINE    28.95       Contender ... Yamaha       Mike Jackson       David Jackson 9.   FRAYED KNOT  28.70       Wellcraft ... Yamaha       Jeff Smith       Karen Smith 10. Oleander Chiropractic     28.40 11. Papa Eye      28.30 12. JUDY BEE      28.25