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DIGESTIBLE LANDS FIRST SKA WIN!
Stephenson’s 40-Pounder Leads Marco Island

by Ian Warner

“March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb,” Grandma used to tell me. As always, Grandma wasn’t lying. While Division 11 anglers had the opportunity to get in on some great southwest Florida kingfish action at the Marco Island Contender King Fling this March 16th and 17th, they had to fight their way through 15 to 20 mph winds and five- to eight-foot seas to get there. There had been some initial grumbling concerning the addition of boundaries to this year’s event, but everyone was happy with the change when they headed out the inlet Saturday morning. Ten hours later when the spray had cleared and the last king was weighed, a 40.32-pounder stood atop the leaderboard. Brought to the scales by Division 11’s Captain Jerry Stephenson and the Digestible team, their king earned this highly consistent team their first SKA win.

“We’ve been trying to break this ice for a long time. It’s a great feeling when you’re fishing against teams of this caliber,” beamed Captain Stephenson at the awards ceremony Saturday night.

Captain Stephenson was joined by his children Sarah and Tommy as well as Mark and Rhonda Wicker as they set out into blustering winds and building waves on the Digestible Saturday morning. “It was really rough,” reported Sarah, who’s been fishing the notoriously sporty Division 11 for five years, so you know it was no picnic. With the Naples event only two weeks away exact fishing locations were kept under wraps, but it can be said that the Digestible team made a 32-mile run and set up to troll in 70 feet of water.

Stephenson and his team had a very productive day of fishing on their 36’ Yamaha powered Contender. “It was steadily going off,” said Stephenson, “it didn’t matter if the bait was on top or on the bottom. We released more than a few.” The kings weren’t just hungry, they were frisky, too. “One of our downriggers went off and the king spooled 100 yard of line. Then it skied with the bait! I’ve never seen one sky off the downrigger before,” reported Stephenson.

Finally at noon the king that they were looking for made his appearance. A blue runner on top was taken and Jerry was the man of the hour, making short work of the fish. Mark was waiting in the wings with the gaff and sealed the deal.

“After we caught that big king we decided to come right back in,” said a relieved Sarah on the docks Saturday. The Digestible was one of the first ten boats to the scales, and when MC Johnny Z saw that fish he knew he had a real contender. With the big king hanging and Sarah anxiously waiting for the verdict, Johnny milked the moment, calling to the crowd for guesses on the weight before finally reading out the display.  “40.32 pounds!” was the call, placing the Digestible firmly in the lead by almost ten pounds.

It was a nail-biting hour for the team, with three 37-pounders coming to the scales to add to the tension, but when the last king was weighed Digestible still had the lead and the win, crowning them Champions of the 2007 Marco Island Contender King Fling to the tune of $4,200. In addition their 40-pounder also earned Tommy the Top Junior Angler position and Rhonda and Sarah shared the Top Lady Angler honors.

“Everyone needs to win once in a while,” joked a jubilant Stephenson at the awards ceremony. “We’re very happy, it feels great. For what we had to deal with, everything went pretty smoothly,” elaborated Mark Wicker. “It’s a great fishery,” agreed Stephenson. “There’s lots of potential here for good tournaments.” With over half the boats weighing in a one-day event in spite of sporty conditions, that’s a hard point to argue. Watch for the Digestible to take this momentum and keep fishing strong in their home waters as the Division 11 trail continues in Naples.

Captain Steve Sprigg and team Marinemax Cabo gave Digestible a good scare, bringing a 37.98-pounder to the scales. Squires and his team of Sheri Duncan, Jake Smith, Daniel Galeviz, Jorge Velez and Richard Perez were fishing the 40’ Cabo 55 miles southwest of the scales in 68 feet of water. “I had a pretty green crew, so I told them when the reel went off to stand back and let Jake show them how it was done,” smiled Sprigg. When the time came Jake didn’t disappoint them, in spite of the “solid eights” reported by the Captain. “Jake’s fish hit a blue runner on top, well, everything hit on top, then skied ten feet straight up and ate the bait in the air. At the same time Richard hooked up too. That king ran 200 yards of line off the reel, but then spit the hooks,” recalled Sprigg. Focusing on the remaining king, Jake had it to the boat in 15 minutes and Sprigg ended the battle with a good gaff shot. “He put a whuppin' on that fish,” remarked Sprigg of the quick fight.

At the scales a proud weighmaster Eric Smith had the privilege of weighing his son’s fish, and the 37.98 pounds on the scale were enough to secure team Marinemax Cabo second place and earn a check for $3,200. That 37-pounder also earned Jake Smith, 2006’s Top Pro Junior Angler, another plaque as he took second place Junior Angler honors. “I’d just like to thank our Lady Angler Sheri Duncan for driving the boat and making hors d’oeuvres and one incredible pizza,” said Sprigg. Now that’s riding in style.

The second 37-pounder was brought to the scales by Captain Scott Rush and the Seconds 2 Spare team. Another boat that reported an incredible day on the water, Rush and his team bagged four kings. “It was great; it’s just a great fishery here. Everyone was worried about the boundaries, but the fish were right here,” reported Rush. He and his team of Rick Featherstone, Rick Dean, Gifford Kline and Andy Boyette headed their 31’ Yamaha powered Contender to a spot 35 miles south, and they already had three kings in the box when their big one struck at one p.m. A screaming reel signaled the start of Andy Boyette’s battle, and it was over almost before it had begun. “He peeled off 200 yards and then turned and ran right at the boat,” said Rush. “In five minutes we gaffed him.”

At the scales the Seconds 2 Spare king proved to weigh 37.46 pounds, securing third place status and earning the team $2,700. “It’s a new team, but after I saw that king I was really hoping that two Rushes could sweep the first two Divisional tournaments,” said Scott, referring to brother Chris Rush’s win with Team Yo-Zuri at the Hog’s Breath event in Key West. Still, third place is a great start for a green team, look for Seconds 2 Spare to take these points and capitalize on them as they make their run for the Division 11 title this year.

Captain Vic Vazquez and his crew on the 39’ Yamaha powered Midnight Express, the Midnight Madness, brought in the third 37-pounder to take fourth place. He and his crew of John, Mike, Michael and Nicholas Guitard and Sean Morton made one of the longer runs of the event, heading 65 miles to the southeast. “It was very ugly,” reported Vazquez, “very, very ugly.” But at 1:30 all the ugliness was forgotten when the team hooked one beautiful fish. A blue runner on top was taken, and with Mike Guitard on the rod and Sean Morton manning the gaff the crew took care of business in short order. “It was a pretty quick fight. I couldn’t have taken more than 20 minutes, it was just a lethargic fish,” said Vazquez.

At the weigh-in the Midnight Madness team’s king tipped the scales to 37.12 pounds, earning the team fourth place and earning Michael and Nicholas Guitard third place Junior Angler status. Congratulations, guys! With a great start on the season, watch for the Midnight Madness to do well this year in Division 11, they’ll be heading to Naples next.

Team ProMarineUSA.com / Penny Wise rounds out the top five in the Open Class. Captain Jack Penny and his team of Ken and Steve Dellane and Rusty Miller made a good run, heading 42 miles to the southwest. “It was true Contender weather,” said Penny. “But we had an easy ride out at 30 mph.” Like most teams, Penny reported an abundance of kings. “We were in fish all day long. We had at least 15 kings, we brought three in and tailed and released the rest.”

At 10:30 the best of the 15 kings hit a blue runner on the short line, and the fight was on. And on. And on. “It was a long fight. We were in four- to six-foot waves with the occasional eight- to twelve-footers. That king was just surfing the waves,” recalled Penny. But with experienced Junior Angler Steve Dellane on the rod, no one was worried. Steve finally managed to drag the king out of the waves, and Ken finished the fight with a clean gaff shot. At the scales their king pulled the digital needle to 31.48 pounds, and fifth place was theirs. Team ProMarineUSA.com / Penny Wise will be fishing Divisions 6 and 11 this year as well as the Pros. They won Division 6 last year, and with a start like this Division 11 teams have got to be wondering if Penny could take two this year. In addition, Captain Penny generously sponsored the Junior Angler awards for both Divisions 6 and 11 this year, a fact that all the Juniors can be thankful for.

Team YCOA took sixth place with a 30.62-pounder. Captain John Hannah, Kyle McDuffie, Jeff Richardson and Matt Ray fish a 31’ Yamaha powered Contender and represent the Yacht Club of America. Captain Wayne Carmignani and the Hog Wild team took seventh. He and his crew of Brian McMahon, Michael Krenza, Barbara Evans and Brooks Carmignani fish a 36’ Mercury powered Yellowfin, and they hooked a 30.24-pound king. Captain Rick Maloney fishes a 33’ Yamaha powered Contender, the Knot 4 Sail, and earned eighth place with 30.10 pounds. He was joined by John Travaline, Doug Sawyer and Mike Bates.

Captain Andrew Gunn and the Wiltshire Fishing Team are up next, landing a 28.53-pounder to take top honors in the Class of 23’. This is a highly consistent team, they took first in Class last year in Naples. Captain Gunn was joined by Will Geraghty and Linda Morris, and they headed their 23’ Yamaha powered Contender to a spot 24 miles southwest of the scales. “It was the same spot we fished in Naples in 2005,” elaborated Gunn. The team was having a slow day of it though, reporting a few bites and a couple Spanish. “Then we decided to switch thing up and run bait deep and it paid off,” reported Geraghty. A runner 30 feet down was snatched and Geraghty stepped up to the plate while Gunn waited with the gaff. “The area was loaded with crab traps. There were just a million of them, so we had to make quick work of it, not by choice, but by demand,” reported Geraghty. He didn’t let the crab traps or the solid three- to five-foot seas deter him, and Team Wiltshire soon had a 28.53-pound king flopping on the deck.

“We decided to quit while we were ahead and take a nice easy ride in,” said Gunn, and the team was waiting at the scales when they opened at three o’clock. The second Class team to weigh, the Wiltshire Fishing Team displaced Get Snookered to take the top spot and they never lost it. Gunn and his crew earned $900 and are heading to Miami next before they continue their run on the Division 11 Class title.

Captain David Albritton and the Gatorfan team are up next, landing a 27.31-pound king to take second place among Class boats. Fishing a 23’ Yamaha powered Contender Albritton and his crew of James Addison and Anthony Oakes decided to try their luck at a spot 35 miles due south. “It was pretty rough out, but we’re very happy. I wouldn’t be in anything other than a Contender in Class boats,” said Albritton. Reaching their spot the Gatorfan team found the area teeming with kings. “We probably caught 25 fish today, but most were in the 15- to 20-pound range,” he continued. Blue runners on top were the bait of the day, and at 11:00 the team’s big king nailed one on the shotgun line. With Oakes on the rod and Addison manning the gaff the team quickly got their king in the boat. “Those are their full-time positions, I just drive the boat,” smiled Albritton.

That 27-pounder proved to be worth $600 for the Gatorfan; they’ll be heading to Miami next. “We’ve mostly been sticking to our Division and local tournaments, but this year we’re planning to cut out the smaller ones and start traveling more,” informed Albritton, who mentioned they may fish some Division 4 and 5 events as well. Gatorfan won the Class at the Francis Langford event last year, so that’s definitely some additional stiff competition that Division 5 anglers will have to keep an eye on.

Captain Robert Vaughan and the Reel Crazy team took ninth place in the Open Class with a 26.68-pounder. Vaughan fishes a 24’ Mercury powered Cape Horn, and he was joined by Kamri and Brandon Vaughan and Matt Simanteris. Rounding out the Open Class top ten is the Liberty, a 28’ Yamaha powered Pursuit. Captain Larry and Patricia Hellrung and Steve Katich hooked a 26.20 for the position. Finally, Get Snookered rounds out the Class of 23’ top three with a 25.07-pounder. The Get Snookered is a 23’ Yamaha powered Contender, and was crewed by Captain Chris Workman, Michelle Jackson, Darren Defeo and Jeff Fletcher.

In spite of the blowing wind and rough seas the Marco Island Contender King Fling was a wonderful kick-off to the Division 11 season. Anglers reported great fishing and an abundance of kings, and everyone enjoyed the hospitalities afforded by Scott Hopkins of the Cedar Bay Yacht Club, who donated the Class of 23’ prize purse. In addition local anglers Brian McMahon and Barbara Evans of the Hog Wild generously donated three $500 bonuses for fifth, eighth and ninth places to encourage the growth of what they know to be a great tournament in a great venue. Heading to Naples we can only hope that March holds true and goes out like a lamb, but either way keep reading as the Division 11 tournament trail hits leg two at March’s conclusion.