Sunday, August 03, 2008: Part Two.
(Note: For archives of all the WMIT blogs for this year’s event, go to the top of this page and click on “J-Mann Daily Blog.” For fish weights and placements, click on “Leader Board.”

As the lone white marlin and top-tuna held comfortably to their Number One spots during the final hours of the tourney, tales of epic tuna displays filtered in from boats like Reel Trouble. That crew told of a rain squall smoothing out the sea surface to expose “500 yards” of tuna bustin’ like nobody’s business. One member of that crew likened it to fishing for inshore bluefish: “You just looked around to see where the birds were working and zipped over and hooked up right away.”

Boats which found those tuna detonation zones came home with a dozen or more fish in the cooler. In fact, Reel Trouble tapped the frenzied surface play to win over a far-from-shabby 92-6, second best yellow fin for Day 3. Lobster boat Fish Trap, arriving for the second day in a row with fellow lobster boat Reel Trouble, took an impressive trio of weigh-worthy tuna of 88-4, 83-6, 77-7. Those were also from among blitzing tuna.

Based on the number of coolered fish many boats brought in, a flurry of folks began questioning the club’s policy of weighing in just three top fish; the thinking being the total take best demonstrated the top tuna-catching effort better than combined weight of three fish. Well, I saw the backup of a dozen or more boats on Friday and I can’t imagine how long those entrants would have to wait while a dozen weigh-ins were entered by boats before them.

Overall, there was very little controversy in this year’s tourney, due mainly to the machine-like running of the event.

As for that occasional long line of boats waiting to weigh-in on Friday, the worst complaint had to do with the fact that Morrison’s wasn’t permitting boats to tie up to allow manual offloads of tourney tuna – unless, of course, a boat was simultaneously spending a king’s ransom for a fill-up. (No reflection whatsoever on Morrison’s prices. The problem is, roundaboutly, Mohammed – and he don’t fish.) There were only three or four wheelbarrow weigh-ins because of this new stipulation by Morrison’s. Maybe something can be worked out with them for next year.

There were a slew of storm stories, including boat captains who were out there distrustfully eyeing perfectly formed – and seemingly powerful -- waterspouts. If anyone got pics of those picture-perfect funnels, please contact me at jmann99@hotmail.com. Also, could the MJ’s guys email me that cellphone photo taken of the squall that was about to clobber them — right as they had hooked their tourney-winning tuna. That arriving storm system looked like one of those end-of-the-world type sky things.

While the award ceremonies recognized boats which had truly impressive “releases” of non-tourneyable marlin, it was very tough to get data and details on what was apparently very torrid finfish action for first, second and third place in those WMIT release category. If any of the top takers in those release categories would like to email me a summary with some details of their fishing days, I have loads of nearshore anglers fascinated by such stories, especially the ways and means used to find and hook those marlin.

WHERE IS IT NOW?: The winning white marlin was given to the club by Marlin Hunter, after the bill was ceremoniously removed. Since it had hung for quite a while – as is the custom in the tourney (and appreciated by folks wanting to check it out thorough the evening) – the meat will be smoked.

I always like to note that a couple years back I was the recipient of the freshly filleted winning white marlin. Along with barbecuing a load up that same day, I passed poundage off to friends. The reviews were total rave. I have no idea where the notion came about that white marlin is anything less than delectable. My only guess might be that the marlin that are recreationally kept are often tourney fish, which usually have some serious time out of water, post weigh-in – often due to identification requirements. You can go online and find tons of recipes touting the taste of marlin. Of course, the smoke-ability of marlin is legendary -- for good reason. It is possibly the best smoked fish item out there, bar none.

This year’s white marlin once again begged that deeper elucidation on whether it was a white marlin or a hatchet marlin. The two are surely different – and something of an ongoing issue in scientific circles. But, not within the WMIT, which accepts “hatchet marlin” as “white marlin” – as do most major big game events.

However, this year’s marlin is a perfect indication of just how tricky the ID thing can be.

The touchy-feely way to tell a hatchet marlin is to run your fingers against the scale grain. Hatchet’s are smooth (with minute rounded scales, which can sometimes be more pointed near the lateral line area). This year’s marlin had skin that was surely smooth as all get-out. Must be a hatchet, right? Not so fast.

One of the traits scientists turn to – even beyond that of scale characteristics – is the location of the anal vent. In hatchet marlin it is readily noticeable as being 6 inches from the base of the anal fin. Not so with the Marlin Hunter’s fish. The anal opening of that fish was exactly 2 inches from the anal vent. A white marlin for sure. Or not.

Coming to the support of the white marlin possibility were some scales taken as the fish was about to be carted off for cleaning. Those scales – of which I grabbed a few -- were very pointed, almost tooth-shaped. It should be re-noted that the actual feel of the fish’s skin was very smooth, i.e. hatchet marlin.

The branchiostegals on this fish were strangely non-indicative, possibly a tad more toward a hatchet.

The on-scene look of the fish had many big game experts quickly calling it a hatchet.

I have to admit is seemed to have characteristics of both. That anal vent is tough to overlook, though.

Again, this is all secondary to the excellence of the catch – and its full acceptability in the tourney. It’s just very interesting ID stuff. Perhaps, B will take some more scale and parts samples as he readies the fish for smoking.

I want to recheck my scribbled notes – taken during last night award ceremonies -- to give due plaudits to the boats that won marlin release trophies and combined tuna awards. I hope to get them in here -- and also in my weekly fishing column in The SandPaper.

Day 3 rounded out a tourney so dominated by yft that the newly crafted blue fin tuna category was never activated – to the point that calcutta monies wound up being refunded. While it is far from a high-hooking contest – especially when compared with back in the day – it proved once again that these tourneys are top-notch sporting events.

Once again, the teamwork of the scout boat, dockmaster, weigh-in guys, paperwork transfer folks and the tallying gals was a site to behold. Clockwork and super politeness (something of a rarity in many such tourneys) made this event one that every entrant will surely revisit. I was proud to be accepted into that crew with a yellow “Staff” shirt.

On that subject, congrats and a thumb’s up to Linda Bonvie, who not only kept the sometimes cantankerous webcam pointed on the action but offered those super slideshows inside the clubhouse – with her pictures and also those of club photog Bill K. Linda also tweaked (to perfection) the WMIT website, offering pics from olden days followed by next day shots from this year’s event. Loads of work goes into that creating and updating procedure.

A tourney tale: Pam Zoladz, working the delicate job of on-scene transfer of data into the dockside computer, had her family looking in – from Croatia! Staying up into the wee hours, her folks in Europe enjoyed the BHM&TC’s real-time webcam, watching the weighing process accompanied by the display board showing which boat was dockside and what size its fish were. Quite cool.

Sunday, August 03, 2008-: (Part One-- The final weigh-in write-up and award listings in here later today)

Well, another chapter in the famed WMIT is in the books and it was yet another great read for an event that always seems to to be loaded with angst and excitement.

The final day of WHIT 2008 was over almost before it began – and that’s a good thing, excitement-wise.

Before the 4:30 starting gun even sounded, there were two boats waiting to taunt the scale. The second boat would light the white marlin torch – and carry it through to the end.

Appropriately, it was the entrant Marlin Hunter that brought the event’s namesake species into play with a truly gorgeous 82-pound white marlin. Just as appropriate was the captain’s name Kurt von Seekamm ( as in seek ‘em). The captain gave all the seeking credit to his son Kurt Jr. “He figures everything out. He just points out where I should go,” said senior. Junior’s directions worked to the hilt on Sunday, as marlin were messin’ with Marlin Hunter from the get-go of Day 3.

The trophy white marlin – which I might as well let you know right now would end up being worth a tasty $160,000 in winnings – began actively trailing the dredge but took some clever teaser-based coaxing to tempt into sampling a circle hooked ballyhoo. Crew member Fritz Butler had the honor of the 45-minute fight to best the beast. That was about 11 a.m. and marlin Hunter never looked back from then, pretty much bee-lining back to port.

Just like that, WMIT2008 was a game of “next best” for the rest of the entrants, since there was nary another call (required) that any more white marlin were on the way in.

Dockside, the von Seekamm family was a tad excited, to say the least. Having been around the big game tourney fishing realm for quite some time, they knew Marlin Hunter was firmly in the driver’s seat -- not a bad position in an event duly named the WHITE MARLIN Invitational.

However, even with the top bar set somewhere in the stratosphere, a contest as rich as the WMIT left plenty of monetary incentive for other, especially those entrants within the realm of far-and-away the most hotly contested species: tuna – this year exclusively yellow fin tuna.

And the very next boat up to the scales was to rock even that realm.

As the young crew of the boat MJ’s maneuvered into weigh-in position is wasn’t hard to see there was an on-board buzz far above and beyond that of youthful energy. As they dragged their prize catch toward the weighing crew, folks looking into the boat could tell there was a "tail" to be told. The hoist up told the tail tale. As was noted by someone in the viewing audience “Damn, that looks kind big.” Try 129-1 pounds worth of big. MJ’s yowza-sized yellow fin not only raised the tuna bar into the aforementioned stratosphere – it also came with an amazing storm saga.

According to the fighter of the fish, Michael Yocco, (who called reaching for the rod when the fish first hit as “the stupidest thing I’ve done in my life,”) he had to first fight one of the worst at-sea storms he had ever seen. As fierce cloud to water lightning rained down, sometimes right next to the boat, and 50 mph winds pitched 6-foot seas (“The water was so frothed up it was pure white,” noted a crew member), Michael had to simply sit there holding the rod with the fish on. That's always fun: holding a highly conductive graphite rod in a deadly lightening storm. Astoundingly, the fish obediently sulked in place for over 30 minutes, likely thinking to itself "OK, what's wrong with this picture?"

“There was no way we could try to fight the fish,” said Michael, noting that even if they got it near the surface it was so wild and wolly out there that they couldn't see the hookup to safely gaff.

Actually, there was an obvious advantage that the MJ guys didn’t know what was idly hanging below, i.e. a fish that would garner a $47,000 winning paycheck if landed.

As the storm subsided, it was as if both angler and prey said, “OK, now we can go at it.” Ninety minutes of give and take brought the tuna to its knees (so to speak) and led to the captain and crew deciding it was best to bolt back to the scales to maximize the yft’s body weight – and to avoid that famed bugaboo that often befalls boats that keep a major tourney fish on-board then continue to fish on.

So, within literally minutes of the scales opening on the final day of the event, an unreachable marlin and a tuna nearly 30 pounds heavier than the previous top tuna were on the boards. While Marlin Hunter could feel as ease about its catch, the boys from MJ’s had the unenviable time-filler of standing dockside, watching boat after boat – many having radioed in about astounding fishing out in the canyons – as they pulled in with potentially larger tuna.

J-Mann