kayak fishing classics tournament trail spring 3013
DESCRIPTION
Spring 2013 Issue. National Tournament Series updates, east and west, photos, stories, how to's and much, much more.TRANSCRIPT
New East Division
East Coast Girls
East West
2 & 2
Magellan GPS
The Way Back Home
www.KayakFishingClassicS.com
Spring 2013
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What’s Inside
FEATURES 7 Ladies of the East
12 Finding Your Way
14 Snook
18 Stand Up
The Rise of the stand up Kayak
30 Fishing the Sashimi
34 Hardy Lads
38 2 & 2
49 Trigger Strike
DEPARTMENTS 6 Editors Letter
What Really Counts
24 Anglers Health
41 Ashley Amich
Photos She Loves
51 Seeing Red
4
53 Throwing Feathers
Cheeky Mojo 425 Reel
55 Bob’s Corner
Pine Island & Matlacha
55 7
On The Cover:
Jean McElroy
East Coast Red
18 53
Editors Letter
People always ask me if I am crazy? The short an-
swer is, well yes but I enjoy it. I am asked all the
time why I do what I do and why I keep on building
on the Kayak Fishing ClassicS? Didn’t you retire
some time ago? Again yes, I did but I retired so I
can go crazy. I am not one to just sit around and
count the clouds blowing by. I enjoy life way too much and there is
way too many cool things that I want to do.
Building the ClassicS tournament series is far from finished and I
don’t know if I live to be 200 years old that I would ever have it
completed. The challenge is great but I really do it because it is
such a fun sport and the people that I get to meet are so fantastic.
I am in a unique position to travel around the country, go fishing,
put on tournaments, meet new people and make new friends. I don’t
know of any other thing that I could do that allows me to do this.
The most important thing to me is the later; making new and won-
derful friends is the best of all. How a person is and how they are
with other people, how they help others and show kindness openly
to a strangler is what counts with me. I see this time and time
again at our kayak fishing tournaments and other kayaking
events.
It is impressive to me that in these times there is such a warm
hearted group of people, so anxious to share with and invite
others into their kayak fishing world. It just knocks me out.
Friendship is a rare item and to find so much of it in one place
is overwhelming at times and I thank you for sharing of your-
self. This is how life should be….
Captain Pat Horrigan
What Really Counts
6
The 2013 Series Year has in-
troduce us to some fantastic
anglers in our East Coast At-
lantic Division and we would
like to share some new faces
with you. In particular, the
Ladies of the East.
We first met Vickie Sallee at
our east division open at the
Ladies of the East
8
could tell that living the kayak
fishing life is important to her
and that fishing just well may
be life itself to her. It’s easy to
find her, just look for her on
the water. That’s where you
will find her spending every
bit of spare time that she can.
And she doesn’t waste a pre-
cious moment of it.
world famous Mosquito La-
goon in Titusville. If you
have never been to the area
you have to put it on your
short list. It’s fantastic and
another pearl in the series.
Vickie Sallee is so excited
about fishing it is difficult to
describe. After talking with
her for a few minutes, you
Fish Like a Girl
10
continued form page 7
Vickie can often be found with her
good friend, Jean McElroy who
came in 3rd place in the opener.
Jean McElroy is also one very seri-
ous competitor. Catching fish makes
her smile and she is always smiling.
Like Sallee, she is always thinking
about fishing, going fishing, fishing
or just went fishing. That’s tough to
beat but don’t take our word for it.
Just enter a ClassicS tournament and
you will find out for your self just
how serious this is to her.
The third Lady Angler of the East is
Dee Kaminski. Like the other ladies,
she is smiling all of the time and
catches fish like nobody’s business.
In fact Dee is so serious about fish-
ing that she is a kayak fishing guide
and a darn good one. What’s going
on here guys? Well I’ll tell you.
What we have here is three ladies, all
sweeter than your Grandmas punch,
that can out fish, out paddle and out
smile most of us and we think that’s
fantastic.
We don’t get to see many lady an-
glers in any tournament and we are
very, very pleased to have three de-
lightful ladies that are just so darn
good in our series. We look forward
to seeing them again as our series
progresses and am sure we will see
all of them on the winners podium.
Thanks for making it so much fun.
12
By Capt. Pat Horrigan Finding your way Home Have you ever found that great fishing
hole and then several months later won-
dered; Where was that place? Now you
can ask the eXplorist 510 Marine Edition
by Magellan GPS. In short, this is one
amazing device that is much more than a
GPS.
Of course the eXplorist 510 Marine Edi-
tion will show you where you are and
where you have been. After all it is a
GPS and the Navionics navigation charts
on coastal waters and lakes are included
on a Micro SD card. The eXplorist 510
Marine also is a 3.2 mega-pixel camera
which delivers great photos right on the
units 3” screen. While that may not
sound important to you at first, let’s take
a look at that application.
While you are paddling along in your
fishing kayak the eXplorist 510 is gener-
ating your track or a bread crumb trail of
sorts. Say you locate a nice fishy place
and stake out to throw some lures and
catch some great fish. Sounds good
doesn’t’ it? So how do you find this hot
spot again? Simple, just tap the touch
screen, yes I said touch screen, select
Waypoint, name the hot spot and now
you can find it again. Let’s take it a step
further however. What fish
did you catch? What lure
did you use? What was the
tide and weather like and
what did that prize fish
look like? All of this infor-
mation and more is at your
fingertips. Just snap a
photo of your prize catch
with the 510, select the
waypoint, tap record audio
to record the information
that you want associated
with the photo and way-
point and then select save.
It’s that simple and only
takes a minute to do.
So now you are ready to paddle on to explore and find new fishing spots. Just put the
slick little unit into the suspend mode with a touch of a button to save the batteries
which last days and days. All but the GPS tracking function shuts down. When you
are ready to check where you are or mark another waypoint, just touch the button and
the eXplorist 510 comes to life. The screen turns bright and you will see where you
have been and where you are. Catch another fish; snap a photo, mark & name the
waypoint, record the audio data you want kept with the waypoint & photo then catch
some more fish.
After a few more trips and you want to return to this magic place just tap the way-
point name in the waypoint menu and it will show you where your secret fishing
holes are. The Magellan will even show you how to get to them form where you are
making the unit a literal fishing hero and your best fishing buddy ever.
Another great feature of the eXplorist 510 marine edi-
tion unit is the online sharing experience it affords.
You can capture and send screen shots to your friends
or show off your Big O’l Fish on your favorite social
media and more. The eXplorist will help you plan and
plot your next fishing trip be it in saltwater or fresh.
This premium, rugged, handheld GPS with camera,
microphone and speaker to record all of your actions
outdoors is pre-loaded with World Edition. This is a
road network of more than 200 countries along with
city points, land areas, water features and realistic
shaded relief backgrounds. You can go just about
anywhere and know where you are and record it all on
the eXplorist 510 with the marine edition.
I think the greatest single feature of this powerful little
13
unit is how simple it is to use. You
don’t need a degree in computer
science to use all of the many fea-
tures. It’s simple, fast and amaz-
ingly accurate. When we were test-
ing our first unit before inviting
Magellan to become a sponsor of
the Kayak Fishing ClassicS, we put
the eXplorist 510 marine edition
through some tough testing. We
knew it would be good, hey it’s a
Magellan but we did not expect such
a high level of accuracy that we
experienced.
We launched our kayaks into the
open Gulf of Mexico and paddled a
few miles of open water into the
backcountry of the Nature Coast of
Florida. We proceeded into the bay-
ous and crossed in and out of sev-
eral systems all with the eXplorist in
the Suspend Mode. We placed a
marker float at the mouth of a secret
creek, tapped the button to activate
the live mode and created a way-
point at the float. We recorded the
GPS location data and crossed refer-
enced it on another GPS unit on the
kayak for a comparison and future
use. We paddled back to the launch point and called it a day.
Several days later we launched the kayaks and followed the track plot on the Magellan to
the secret waypoint. We zoomed in the screen as we entered the last bayou area and fol-
lowed the track to within a few inches not yards, of the float. The backup GPS got us only
within 30’ of the float. The difference of a few inches and thirty feet could be the differ-
ence of catching or not catching fish. Or finding a launch point in a heavy sea fog but I
think not finding fish would be far worse.
As a licensed sea captain of many years, I
would highly recommend the Magellan
eXplorist 510 with the marine edition. It is
by far greatly superior to any other GPS
unit that I have ever used and is why we
invited Magellan GPS to sponsor the
Kayak Fishing ClassicS as our GPS pro-
vider. Do yourself and your loved ones a
favor. Take a look at the eXplorist 510
Marine Edition today at
www.MagellanGPS.com and order yours
today.
Photo by Al Klose
Nov. National Championship
Mosquito Lagoon, Florida TBA
15
Snook... What is it about snook that just makes
us well...so crazy? Is it their elusive na-
ture or the amazing fight that always
follows a hookup? Is it perhaps sighting
a 40” beast hiding in the mangrove roots
just waiting for a poor unsuspecting bait-
fish to meander by? And what about the
take? Lets not overlook that art
form...yes art form indeed.
Well for me it’s all of the above and then
some. I love to spot a big old fat momma
hiding in the mangrove roots and entic-
ing her to come out and pound my fly. I
love to watch her blistering speed as she
turns away and returns to her quarry as if
to await a curtain call. It’s also the mel-
ody of my heart pounding in my ears and
the sweat on my hands as I prepare to
throw some feathers to her.
The sun just saying hello over the man-
grove tops and the birds coming to life
with song and the gentile flow of the tide
is interrupted by the rise of a trout and
the slurp of another big snook taking on
some breakfast. The quiet anticipation of
the impending battle that is sure to
awake all late sleepers as she thrashes
the water and crashes through the air and
grove branches trying to get away from
me is also anxiously awaited.
Over the years of fishing the flats I have
developed some degree of patience only
to be matched by anxiety. Watching her
mull about the roots, stalking and
waiting for just that right moment to
strike is amazing. Being their at the
right time to satisfy her hunger is an
experience that none shall forget.
Many anglers have captured a nice
snook or two but only a few get to
witness the backcountry drama and all
that goes along with stalking a huge
snook. I was fortunate to have a great
deal of knowledge passed on to me by
my good Capt. Cliff Martin who grew
up hunting big snook. I love to listen
to someone share their adventures in
hunting snook and it truly is a hunt.
I supposed if you fish enough in the
right places, you will eventually get
into a pretty nice snook but that is only
half of the fun. Learning the species,
its habits, the habitat that she likes,
what she likes to eat; when & why are
just a few things to know. I am fortu-
nate in the respect that several friends
of mine love to hunt snook and share
with me all that goes with it. I never
grow tired of listening to the adven-
tures.
Now all of this is not to diminish the
level of catching a smaller snook, for
indeed it is an accomplishment for
sure. Any snook is exciting to catch
and a 30” snook is electrifying to bat-
tle. Last year I had the opportunity to
take one of our photographers into the
backcountry to show him a few basics
of stalking snook.
Al had not yet caught one and was
looking to correct that shortcoming.
We came up on an area and just sat in
our kayaks to watch the water and
By Capt. Pat Horrigan
16
what was going on. I explained about
the water movement and food flow.
He began spotting feeding snook
tucked up under the protection of the
mangroves. With a bit more instruc-
tions, I paddled away so he could en-
joy the solitude and beauty of what
was about to unfold for him. Within in
a short bit of time I could hear him
hooting and carrying on. He had done
So what is it for you? Is it the joy of a
friends first snook? The retelling of the
days battles including the ones that
fooled you? They will fool you for sure.
How many times have you thought you
hook a snookasoarous only to watch her
let go of your lure as you put on the
heat? Happens more than you may think.
Perhaps for you it is the overwhelming
beauty of the species. A fierce warrior
with soft golden eyes to match her
golden tail, joined by a pronounced rac-
ing strip that some call a lateral line.
Snook are surely one of the most beauti-
ful looking fish in shallow waters.
Protecting need and benefits of protect-
ing her environment should be taught by
you to those who do not know. Just as
you pass along knowledge about catch-
ing snook, so should the knowledge of
habitat protection and cultivation be. For
all that she gives to us so should we give
to her.
it. His first snook was a nice 30” snook
that was full of anger and grace in being
fooled. After a few photos she was of
course properly released. I of course got
to listen to the story of his first snook
and how the fight went...again and again.
I could not have been happier...again and
again. Hey that’s how snook fishing
goes and as you may gather, I love it.
The Rise of the Standup Kayak
19
boat but it was very heavy however it
has since been lightened.
In 2011 we got with Diablo Paddlesports
and their Adios Kayak. It was and is
standup flats fishing machine and we
have been with them since. It is an awe-
some kayak that is a blend between a
SUP and a sit on top kayak. This is not
to say that anglers did not stand up in
their standard variety of sit on top kay-
aks because many did and yes many
went for a swim from time to time.
Diablo’s concept has really sparked the
rise or revolution in the industry that is
now going after the popular technique.
In recent months Native Kayaks has
come out with their version of a stand up
fishing kayak called the Slayer which
comes in 12’ & 14’ lengths. It is not as
wide as the Diablo nor as stable but very
easy and comfortable to stand up in. The
advantage here is it is faster in the water
due to its narrower beam. The Slayer has
caused quite a stir in the industry as has
the Hobie Pro Angler.
The Pro Angler has a pedal blade drive
system to propel it through the water and
is a stand up and fish kayak. The 14’
model weighs around 140 pounds with
the pedal drive in it and has some pretty
nice features for the angler. It has grown
in popularity and commands a hefty
The idea of the modern inshore fishing
kayak is stealth. In short, you can sneak
up on em in a kayak where you cannot in
any other boat. What if the fish aren’t
moving around much? How about if they
are in holes or hiding in the mangrove
roots or grasses on the flats? Most in-
shore kayak anglers fish with artificial
baits and lures just to spice up the chal-
lenge and save a few bucks along the
way too.. So what’s the answer to this
segment of our sport? Well if you could
stand up you can certainly see more fish
more easily and increase your odds of
catching a few of them. Thus; the rise of
the standup kayak.
Back in 2009 when we were putting the
Kayak Fishing ClassicS together we
looked into all kinds of kayaks and liked
the idea of a standup yak. Being an old
flats fly fishing guide and used to a pol-
ing platform on my skiff, it just made
since to go in this direction. Well there
was not a fleet of stand up’s to choose
from and in fact we only found one that
would work. We worked a deal with
Freedom Hawk for 2010 and liked the
20
price.
Anglers can stand up and
fish in Both the Wilderness
Commander and Native
Ultimate kayaks which
resemble a canoe to the
novice eye but are really
Kayaks. Both are fine boats
and comfortable all around.
In our tournament series
we see all kinds of fishing
kayaks and the trend is
toward being able to safely
stand and fish in a highly
stable boat. Of course your
own personal balance
comes into play in any
kayak. Your height is also
a consideration where the
shorter anglers have a bal-
ance advantage in rough
water or windy conditions. All of the
boats listed above are very good and
certainly not all that there is available on
the market so look around, ask fishing
friends and test some of them. We of
course recommend the Diablo Adios but
you have to decide for yourself.
Another big trend in the fishing kayak
industry is seating. It is not surprising
when you consider that many kayak an-
glers spend 3 & 4 days a week on the
water. Many fish for several hours at a
time so support and comfort becomes an
issue. The designers at top kayak manu-
facturers have been hard at work in this
segment of our sport as evidenced by the
seating options available to anglers. The
standard strap in kayak seat has under-
gone some fantastic changes evidenced
by the Big Game model by Skwoosh.
We tested that seat and loved it so you
don’t have to run out and by a new
kayak in order to get a good seat. If you
are in the market for a new boat, take a
look at the seating options that Native
Kayak offers. They have long since been
on the cutting edge of seating comfort in
fishing kayaks and are not sitting idle.
They have designed a nifty aluminum
framed seat that is fully adjustable, has
lumbar support of course and is covered
in their 100% recyclable HiFlow® 3-D
Mesh and Textilene® Solar Screen fab-
ric which vents well to dry quickly and
keep you cool. Native Watercraft has
several chair models that are so comfort-
able that you find yourself reaching for
the foot rest lever.
Hobie also has some very comfortable
seats and their latest design can be found
in their Pro Angler models. The fully
adjustable seat will allow any angler to
find their comfort zone for hours of fish-
ing.
Diablo has some very useful seating op-
tions including a fold up Larry Chair that
tucks neatly away into a dry bag allow-
fishing day after day in all condi-
tions. They act upon this gath-
ered information and our kayaks
just keep getting better. We
thank all of them for their hard
work and investment in our fa-
vorite sport.
Now let’s go fishing!
21
ing you to clip in a conventional seat to
lower the angler out of the wind. This
greatly reduces wind resistance if you
get caught in a blow. In addition Diablo
has partnered with Yeti Coolers and
have come up with a cooler seat that
attaches to their ‘Diablo Deck’ which is
an option new for 2013. You can also
attach a hard mounted seat or other op-
tions available. Combine that setup with
Diablo’s Leaning Post and you are ready
for some very serious stand up fishing.
One of the reasons that we like Diablo so
much are the versatile combinations
available so anglers can easily set up
their Adios to suit their needs.
The great thing about having so many
top quality kayaks manufactures work-
ing hard to earn your interest and respect
is that they all push each other. The
smart ones ask and listen to the anglers
who are actually on the water kayak
The problem with the sun is that we are
in it a lot. If you love to kayak fish, and
all of us do, we are going to spend much
of our fishing time during the daylight
hours. All of us are aware of the negative
effects over exposure to the sun can
cause but what do we really do about it?
All of us know to use some kind of pro-
tection but there are no guarantees. Natu-
rally fair-hair anglers are more suscepti-
ble to coming off of the water looking
like a bad piece of toast but anyone can
experience the related problems to over
exposure. So let’s take a look at what we
can really do to protect ourselves. We
think some of the solutions may surprise
even the most experienced anglers.
To begin with let’s look at what really
happens to our skin over time as we
spend year after year in pursuit of our
favorite sport. As we know, the sun
emits ultraviolet A (UVA) and ultravio-
let B (UVB) rays. What you may not
know is the sun also emits UVC rays but
they are not a concern as the earth’s at-
mospheric ozone absorbs it. The big
concern is the A & B ultraviolet rays as
they can quickly penetrate your skin to a
harmful level. The affect on your skin
can happen during any temperature and
any season of the year. That’s important
information because many anglers have
The Problem with the Sun
our skin cells. This is not good to say the
least and damaged DNA may lead to
overgrowth of new skin cells while cells
killed off by UVB rays lead to sunburn
which is a risk factor in skin cancer. All
of this increases our chances of getting
carcinoma along with melanoma skin
cancers which are the most common and
can kill you. Think about that.
Naturally as we age we change in ap-
pearance, but some people just don’t
look their age. UV radiation effect and
damage the collagen and elastin that give
our skin strength, elasticity and firmness.
Damaged proteins in the skin lead to
early aging of the skin. UVB rays stimu-
late the production of the skin cells
told us that they don’t worry
about it in the winter months as
much as they do in the summer
time.
According to the Mayo Clinic,
skin cancer is the abnormal
growth of skin cells that often
times develop on sun-exposed
areas of our skin. The epidermis,
our top layer of skin, is made up
of three types of cells called the
squamous, basal and the melanoctes. The
process of our epidermis constantly
shedding and re-
placing new cells
is controlled by
the DNA of our
skin cells. UVB
radiation from the
sun is capable of
causing skin can-
cer because it kills
skin cells and
damages the DNA
of our skin cells.
UVA radiation
weakens the im-
mune system of
25
By Capt. Pat Horrigan
Anglers Health
26
which results in a thick leathery skin.
Age spots are caused by excessive pro-
duction of melanin and look like flat,
brown, black or gray spots on the skin.
Well we think you get the picture here; if
you spend time in the sun, unprotected
you are going to damage your skin. You
may look much older than you are and
you may also get skin cancers. Now let’s
look at what we can do to protect our-
selves.
It is much easier to do everything you
can to prevent these types of skin prob-
lems than to deal with them at a later
date. Products today are getting much
better as scientists learn more and de-
velop new protection for us. Not too
many years ago there just wasn’t much
protection from the sun beyond light
colored clothing and that wasn’t much
considering UV protection clothing is a
relatively new
item. Today
the sun block
creams and
sprays have a
much higher
protection
level and as
you may have
seen there is a
large variety of
SPF levels to
choose form.
This is a good
place to start.
It is suggested
to that you use
the highest
SPF rating sun
block that you
can find such as SPF 70 that
protects you from both UVA
& UVB, is broad spectrum,
waterproof and contains vita-
mins A,C & E. Some of these
products can be a bit greasy
and can sweat into your eyes
but there is a solution by
Neutrogena. Their Ultra Sheer
sunscreen has a SPF of 100+
and is a broad spectrum. It is
oil free yet waterproof and
won’t clog pores and is PABA free. An-
other nice thing is that it doesn’t have
that weird smell some brands have. It
won’t sweat into your eyes and we use it
on our face and other exposed areas of
skin while fishing. That leads us into the
next part of this article which is the pro-
tective clothing.
The Shirt: Much of the clothing we pur-
chase is based on appearance and fash-
ion. This naturally comes into play be-
cause who doesn’t want to look good?
The manufactures of outdoor apparel
know this and work hard at it for all of
us to enjoy. Many offer SPF protection
built right into the fabric which we think
is fantastic. Denali Performance Apparel
and ExOffico have this protection in
their products and are both sponsors of
the Kayak Fishing ClassicS because they
are really very, very good companies
that are looking out for you. Both Denali
& ExOfficio make great looking apparel
so you can enjoy the best of both worlds
with great looks and protection. ExOffi-
cio also makes a line of fishing pants/zip
offs that are second to none and an up/
downer hat that also offers additional
protection for us.
Feet & Hands: Kokatat makes great high
quality kayak booties that protect your
feet from the elements and Mangrove
Sungloves make the very best ultra light
sun protection gloves in the world. The
Mangrove’s were made for the fly angler
in mind but we wear ours for all fishing
styles and paddle in them with no ill
effects. Because they are so light weight,
cool and protective with never take off
the Kokatat’s or the Mangrove’s while
on the water.
The Hat: Another protective item is the
hat. A ball cap just isn’t going to cut it
on the water in a kayak. Many anglers
wear an up/downer which is like a ball
cap with a larger bill and has a drop
down piece to cover your ears and the
back of your neck as well as your bit of
your face. A jungle style hat is also an-
other popular style with a short brim
around the entire hat that offers some
protection but probably isn’t the best
choice. If you combine a buff with any
hat, your are upping your face, ears and
neck protection greatly. A buff is a cloth
tube, open on both ends and pulls on
27
over your head. Most offer good SPF
protection as well. If you use a good
sunscreen/block, a buff and a good hat
you are tipping the scales of protection
heavily in your favor. So let’s see here,
we have your face, ears, neck and head
protected. Your legs, body, feet and
hands covered so what left? Oh yes your
eyes!
Eyes: It is important to keep in mind that
the damage from the sun is coming from
the sky and from the water as well. The
sunlight bounces or reflects off of the
water and gets you again. Your eyes
really take a beating. A mirror layer
made into your sunglasses cuts down the
glare from the sun and from the water.
Ever notice the gritty feeling you get in
your eyes after a day in the sun? Are
your eyes red and bloodshot when you
come off of the water? Well like sun-
screen, there are different grades and
qualities of protection found in sun-
sunglasses. We did a great deal of re-
search in this area and surprised to find
that although many manufactures claim
they offer 100% of UVA & UVB protec-
tion it is really a distortion of fact. Due
to advertising laws in this area, a manu-
facture can make this clam if they meet
certain government
requirements that are
based on normal use.
Being out on the wa-
ter during a hot,
sunny Florida day for
8 to 10 hours 3 or 4
days a week is not
considered normal or
common. There are
also different inten-
sity levels of A & B UV rays and as long
as the federal minimums are met, manu-
factures can make these clams.
We found that Ocean Waves Sunglasses
is the only sunglasses manufacturer in
the world that actually really blocks
100% of all harmful UV
rays and then some.
Ocean Waves also en-
hances certain light waves
and suppresses others to
not only protect your
eyes, they make sighting a
fish in the water much
easier. Our good friend
Bob Bramblet placed sev-
eral objects in the water
for a sunglasses test. He
used several manufactures
lenses for this and filmed
the test. Well long story short, Ocean
Waves made the objects ‘pop’ while
other lenses would not allow you to see
some of the objects at all. The objects
were not hidden and were simply fanned
out so that you had to look for them at
different degrees of the compass such as
looking for fish.
In addition to the superior protection and
fish sighting capabilities that OW’s af-
ford, they are very stylish which is im-
portant. Now you know why we invited
Ocean Waves to become our official
eyewear sponsor. And yes you can these
same glasses in your prescription. So
what happens to your eyes in the sun?
Without proper protection from the harsh
effects of the sun, your eyes may suffer
strain, cornea and retina deterioration
and worse such as ulcers and tumors.
Spooky when you think about it.
At the Kayak Fishing ClassicS we con-
sider many factors before inviting a
company to become a sponsor. It is a lot
of work and expense to us and we do it
for you. Our sponsors go to great lengths
to offer products that not only work well
but are also the very best in their given
field. Take advantage of these efforts
and please support these companies that
truly have your best interest at heart.
31
Fishing the Sashimi
Joe was given a red Sashimi with circle
hooks on it. He said it really wasn’t the
right color for this time of year and our
reply was simple and impactful; ‘it’ll
change Joe’ and a big grin flashed across
his face. We were speaking his langue.
Joe did not care for the circle hooks for
inshore kayak fishing as he found them
to be a problem and fish were getting
away. He changed them out and went to
a standard saltwater treble hook like
those on other Yo-Zuri lures.
Well the nasty weather and cold fronts
finally gave us a break and Joe was back
We asked top angler Joe Komyati to take
some time and learn how to fish the Sa-
shimi Lure made by Yo-Zuri and he
agreed. The lure is very unique in that it
actually changes color while in motion,
much like a bait fish does when it senses
danger or is frightened. The action is
incredible but there is even more to this
lure than meets the eye. The body of the
Sashimi has raised ridges that generate
different vibration sounds at different
speeds as you move it through the water.
When a fish is distressed due to fright or
injury for example, it will emit vibra-
tions into the water. This unfortunately
for the bait fish rings
the dinner bell for
predators come run-
ning.
We knew it was an
awesome bait with
all of the amazing
features but it is new
to the inshore fish-
ing set. Joe got
pretty excited about
the Yo-Zuri product and could not wait
to try them or should we say, learn them.
That’s right you need to learn a bit about
this one. Fishing the
lures at different speeds
and patterns, such as a
jerk retrieve versus a
walk the dog for exam-
ple, will cause the Sa-
shimi to change colors
differently and emit dif-
ferent distress signals.
That was a real jaw drop-
per for us and for Joe as
well.
Knowledge Base
32
Fishing the Sashimi
at it. He got the hang of work-
ing the lure in different fashions
and couldn’t believe his eyes.
‘That darn thing changes color
like a bait fish’ commented Joe
in a conversation with us. If you
watch bait move through the
water on a sunny day you will
see several different colors
twinkle in the water as the sun
reflects on their scales like
thousands of mini prisms. We
asked Joe to send us photos as
he started catching fish and we
figured the size of the fish
would reflect in his learning
curve. It did not take long….
Joe is consistently catching fish
with the Sashimi and can’t wait
to go snook hunting with it and
has requested the green color
scheme model. It’s on the way
Joe and we can’t wait to see
what he cooks up with this one. The point here is that an angler was will-
ing to not only try something new, but to
increase his knowledge base and it
opened him to an entirely
new class of fishing and a
completely new way to
catch a fish. Yo-Zuri engi-
neers really do think like a
fish and now so does Joe….
In case you were wondering about the
shirt Joe is wearing in the big trout
photo, he won in one or our recent tour-
naments. The Protective UV shirt is
made by Denali...one of our great spon-
sors. www.DenaliPerformance.com
www.Yo-Zuri.com
Knowledge Base
Slickest...
Best Casting...
Strongest Braid Ever
34 www.SpiderWire.com
Fight the Big Fish...
Nothing Gets Away!
35
Anglers Corner
When the weather is of high winds it
seems to call the hardy lads of yore to
action. There is something about the
howl and scream of the wind in your
ears, the spray of the ocean in your face
and the knowing that the biggest of fish
will ignore it all and go find something
to eat. This weather is just perfect and it
beckons the hardiest of soles.
Just knowing the giant of a lifetime is
out there on the flats searching for an
easy meal to satisfy his hunger and fuel
his wonder lust to prowl his familiar
waters. Such is the life of a huge fish. He
can’t afford to hunker down too long as
his behemoth body demands food and
lots of it. This is the weather and the fish
that make legends…
The weather was to be calm early morn-
ing long enough to paddle his kayak into
with and believe me, if you hook a 40
pound redfish in 12” of water it quickly
becomes a battle. Picture this; you are in
a little plastic kayak, no motor only a
paddle, lightweight rod and reel, the
wind is, well you get the picture. Every-
thing is in favor of the fish in this
fight…everything.
The fish knows where to run and what to
run through. He knows where he can
break you off and how to twist the line
around your head. He can jump over you
and swim under you. He can take you for
a ride that you will never forget, rip up
all of your gear and them swim away
leaving you to sob and contemplate why
you do this crazy stuff in the first place.
Well the answer is simple; it’s the clos-
position several miles away. The winds
were to shift to Northeast driving water
and baitfish right to where he planned to
ambush a monster redfish which the Ba-
nana River is known for. A forty pound
redfish doesn’t get to be that size out of
luck. He is smart, cunning and a savage,
brutal hunter. He shows his pray no
quarter and the hardy angler, Jose Vidal
knew how to play right into his
strengths. Seeing a monster redfish and
catching one is two separate things. If
you can figure out how to put the two
things together, well then you really
have something.
After he reached his zone of opportunity
Jose set up and watched for the tell tail
signs of the giant quarry in shallow wa-
ter. He saw such a sign but it was not the
mark of the beast he wanted to do battle
Of High Winds and Hardy Lads
By Capt. Pat Horrigan
Huge Banana River Redfish caught by
Jose ‘Pepi’ Vidal…..Nice!
Photo By Redfish Chuck Levi
36
est thing we have to grabbing a rhino by
the tail.
As Jose or Pepi as his friends call him,
watched for the guest of honor to make
his appearance the wind continued to
build from the north. This was good as it
made the tall waves topped with white
froth of the middle of the river. The set
of the waves were close and deep which
was perfect to drive the big fish into the
shallow flats in search of food. It had
been a cold winter and it wasn’t over
quite yet and the big reds needed to
warm and nourish themselves on the
sunny flats.
As the day wore on the wind buzzed at a
steady 20 mph it only served to harden
the resolve of this highly skilled angler
as others got off of the water. Then it
happened. He spotted a huge push of
water on the shallow flats. This was a
big fish pushing water around not unlike
that of the bow wake of a submarine
making way for deeper waters. It was a
call to action, an alarm of anticipation so
powerful that it makes your head swim
for a moment. A cold sweat breaks out
Anglers Corner Continued
and you can feel the butterflies zipping
around in your gut. Man this is living.
Pepi slowly and silently paddled into
position to make his attack. He knew he
would only have one shot at this big boy
as the wind would push him past the
target in no time at all.
Pepi focused, made a perfect cast and let
the bait come to rest…twitch, twitch…
Bam! He set the hook and it was game
on. The beast rose from the shallow
depths of the flats to show its mighty
bronze back, swirled and made a line
screaming run halfway to Texas. Pepi
gave chase as the wily red uncorked all
of his cunning to get free only to be
matched move to move by the equally
crafty angler. The powerful fish seemed
to be yielding to the pressure applied,
tried to slack the line and made another
spool clearing run. It was off to the races
again with kayak, Pepi and all that goes
with him.
Beginning to tire now the mighty red
slowed the pace of the fight and Pepi
took full advantage of it. He put his gear
to work as the wind was unrelenting
while blasting the salty spray into his
eyes. Suddenly all of the crashing and
thrashing in the water stopped. The fish
finally gave up and was brought boat
side but now what? What do you do with
a 40 pound redfish once you get a hold
on it? It’s not like lipping a bass. Every
time Pepi tried to lift the beast, his kayak
tried to scoot out from under him. He
finally got the denizen of the depths out
of the water and into the kayak for a few
nice photos.
Fortunately Pepi’s friend Redfish Chuck
saw that he needed a hand with the crea-
ture and came to assist with the photos,
revival and release of the fish, unharmed
to fight another day. As the two of them
headed back to base camp, Pepi relived
the battle with Redfish Chuck and there
was no need for exaggeration; the
mighty rhino red measured a whopping
39” in length. Pepi did not measure the
girth of the warrior as he wanted to get
him back into the water as quickly as
possible.
Although Pepi called it a nice bull red I
think I’ll call it the raging red rhino of
Banana River.
Photo By Redfish Chuck Levi
37
If you tie flies, get in touch
with your doctor…
Dr. Slick, maker of the finest,
innovative fly tying tools in the
world and then some.
Available at your local Dealer or contact Dr. Slick
www.DrSlick.com
38
Your Hands Do A Lot For You.
Do a Little Something For Them….
Mangrove Sun Gloves
Found wherever TFO fishing equip-
ment is sold
39
As you know the Kayak Fishing
ClassicS now has two divisions, a
Gulf Coast and an East Coast. So
how’s that going, you may ask?
Well great in fact. So what has
gone down thus far in the tourna-
ments at the end of 2 tournaments
each?
If you have been following on our
website and in kayak fishing
magazines around the planet you
know the score. We opened the
2013 series year in January as we
do each year. We opened in
Tampa Bay with the Old Tampa
Bay Classic which was a 3 redfish
understand that Statham has been
kayak fishing for big reds for a
long time and is a very good an-
gler. But still some competitive
hackles went up and Statham was
a marked man for the next East
Division tournament. (All in fun
of course).
March 9 brought us back to the
Gulf Division for the Fort De
Soto Classic and again Statham
won the 2 redfish & 1 trout tour-
nament. He now held the series
lead in both the Gulf & East divi-
sions and had everyone vowing to
out fish him. That’s sports
tournament and was won by
Chuck Statham.
Next we went over to the east se-
ries division for the opener on the
right side of the state. We opened
with the Mosquito Lagoon Red-
fish Classic on February 9 and it
was awesome. This too was a
three redfish tournament and was
also won by Chuck Statham who
had never fished the lagoon be-
fore. This left some of the anglers
wondering how that happened. A
Gulf Coast angler fishes a place
that he had never fished and wins
the tournament? Will you need to
At the End of 2 & 2
40
2 & 2 cont.
though. Everyone is always after
number 1 and this is no exception.
Could anyone do it? Several had
said they were going to take him
in the next tournament and leads
us to the Banana River.
On April 5 & 6 we back over to
the east side and for the Banana
River Classic, a 2 red, 1 trout
tournament.
April 5 was
pre-fish day
and it was a
fairly nice day
with afternoon
winds. Not
bad. On tour-
nament day,
April 6 the
contestants
launched at
6:30 am after
receiving their
fishing tokens.
The wind built throughout
the day and concluded
with several anglers only
catching fish but this time things
were a bit different.
Andrew Mixon took top podium
with the days only three fish catch
of 2 reds and 1 trout. Jose Vidal
took second podium with two
nice redfish of which one was of
epic size. Where was Chuck
Statham? He came in third po-
dium with a trout. Vidal had been
in second place in the east series
standings but this changed every-
thing.
Jose Vidal had taken command of
the series lead pushing Statham
back to second place. Andrew
Mixon now is in third place in the
standings and the race is on. The
outcome of this tournament
changed the East Division stand-
ings and may have put the brakes
on Statham’s domination. We’ll
see because now Vidal is the
marked man….
43
We know that you will enjoy the photographic works of Ashley Amich. She recently joined the
Kayak Fishing ClassicS as one of our special photographers and you will see her on the water and
at awards in both the East and Gulf series divisions.
When you see Ashley please say hello. You are in for a treat as she is a very good angler as well.
Look for photos by AshleyA on our website and in all of our publications. Ashley is a photographic
arts major at major college and is serving an internship with us. We are glad to have her join us and
as you may tell, she likes horses too.
49
Recently we gave our friend Vickie
Sallee a pack of the Big Hammer swim
baits to try out. Vickie is a very accom-
plished angler and competes in our East
Coast division. We have learned that it is
sometimes difficult to get anglers to try
something new but wanted a good angler
to use the Big Hammer swim baits that
had never used them before. Vickie vol-
unteered so we gave her a pack
of the 4” Bay Smelt which is
not commonly found where she
fishes. The purpose of this was
for her to use a lure that was
different from what she has
ever used and the fish had not
seen a lot of. We wanted her to
take a look at the fish reaction
to the action that the lure im-
parts.
Big Hammer swim baits are a
unique soft plastic, multi col-
ored, high action lure that is
new to the ClassicS and the
anglers in Florida for the most
part. We know by our testing
that this should be a killer lure
by the action that it creates.
Our job is to get it in the hands
of anglers and start catching
fish.
Vickie used a small red jig
head with the big bait to make it look
wounded. She cast it into a school of
mullets that were grazing the flats. The
small jig head kept the weight to a mini-
mum as she was fishing in only 2’ of
water. Vickie jerked the lure on the fall,
raised her rod to left the Hammer and
repeated the action. Bam! A nice redfish
hit the lure “HARD” said Vickie.
I know exactly what she means. We ex-
perienced the same violent strikes in our
testing of the lures. Judging by the pho-
tos that Vickie sent to us, the red ham-
mered the lure as was not about to let it
get away. In our testing we bent down
the barbs on the jigs so we could get our
jigs back. The lures just excite the fish so
much that it trips a very powerful strike.
We didn’t tell Vickie about any of that. I
just asked her to try them out for us.
When a fish hits a lure with everything
it’s got you know that the lure either
really rang the dinner bell or made the
fish very angry. You’ll see what we are
talking about in the
photos that Vickie sent
to us. The Big Ham-
mer is deep into the
mouth of the fish.
Vickie really liked the swim bait and
requested a smaller size and in different
colors. I think she liked the lures and the
strikes they produce. It was very nice of
her to do that for us and we appreciate it
very much and yes, there are some 3”
Big Hammer swim baits on the way to
her.
Let’s stop and think about this for a mo-
ment. An experienced angler using a lure
that she has never fished before in chilly
winter water and experienced a violent
strike. Fish in cold water slow down…
way down. Their strikes are generally
slow and soft to the point of being al-
most undetectable. So what gives? Why
Trigger the Strike and
50
such a heavy hit by a common size red-
fish? We think that the company came
up with the perfect name for their
lures.
The main body of the swim bait is
shaped like a bait fish and many of
the lures have layers of colors to
emulate the look of a certain bait
which is why they are all hand
poured. Big Hammer designers
came up with a tail design that
really calls fish and triggers the strike.
The entire body action of the lure just
screams come and get it. Visit our web-
site Big Hammer page to learn more
about them and to place an order with
them at http://www.swimbait.com
Trigger the Strike
52
strike. A longer 8’ rod will be
just right to make super long
casts while staying well out of
their “bubble”.
Follow these simple steps and you’ll
be the right track and landing big Red-
fish in no time. Be sure to work both
ends of the tides to “track” or pattern
fish movement and behavior and ALL-
WAYS log your catches!!
www.phatfishkayakcharters.com
will be hunting but very wary. I
blew out a school by simply
coughing from over 50 yards
away! Poling or drifting your
yak or even getting out and
wading while in search mode is
mandatory for the sketchy ones.
If you spot a school be patient,
sit up-tide from them, be quiet
and let them come to you. Try
using lighter gear in the 8-10lb
class using a 14-20lb fluorocar-
bon leader to maximize the
Winds, rain and
every other act of
nature had me on
the water during
early bird hours.
The beginning of
the week started
off pretty slow but
the last couple of
days had me see-
ing nothing but
red, Redfish that
is.
Over slot Red-
fish seem to have
moved in all over
the flats. Cut pin-
fish, ladyfish and
mullet,( frozen
seem to have
worked best) have
caught some nice
fish for the live
baiters but lure
junkies (like me)
have been releas-
ing the pigs on
lures such as
Slayer Inc. Lure
Co.’s new SSB in
Molten and Camo.
These “Bruisers”
can be
found
spread
out in pot holes and cruising
mangrove shorelines. The last
hour of the falling tide pro-
duced the best fish. Keep an eye
for hyperactive Mullet or sur-
face activity. My bigger catches
have all been semi-lone fish in
super shallow water less than
2’.
Areas such as the Kitchen, mouth of
the Alafia and Cockroach bay
are all great places to start
searching for them. Schools
Seeing Red By Derick Burgos
Throwing Feathers
54
Kind of a 1930’s saying; Getting Cheeky
but it is appropriate when you look at the
meaning. If a reel can be insolent, impu-
dent or saucy then the Mojo425 is in-
deed Cheeky. The new reel was two
years in the making and it treats hard
fighting fish with insolent disdain and
contempt.
Here on the Gulf the inshore bruisers
such as tarpon, huge redfish and snook
are well known for cooking the guts out
of a good fly reel in a matter of minutes.
The Cheeky Mojo 425 laughs off all
such attempts as its sealed Evo synthetic
disc drag will never let you down. Al-
though weighing in at only 7.0 oz and
sporting a 4.25” frame and Max Arbor,
this tough reel is made to dish out a
smack down to all comers who dare
cross its path. Lightweight, machined
aluminum, easy L/R conversion, quick
change spool and a reel case to stash it
in. What more could you want? How
about stylish good looks? The Cheeky
line has you covered there as well.
Absolutely flawless workmanship by
world class craftsmen go into each and
every Cheeky fly reel. Take it out of the
box and be prepared to feast your eyes
upon an impressive display of sheer
beauty and power….it’s that nice.
Break Down: The all important drag is
completely sealed for life. The discs are
made of PTFE composite that out per-
forms Rulon, carbon fiber and cork in
testing. Stacked alternating stainless
steel & composite discs yield impressive
strength, stopping power, smooth startup
and great heat dissipation. The drag sys-
tem package is completely sealed by
aerospace grade o-rings that keeps eve-
rything out. Blistering, screaming runs
are no problem for this baby.
Max Arbor is a Cheeky innovation.
Large arbors have been around for a
while but MAX
Arbor keeps line
memory a thing of
the past and takes
up line as fast as a
big fish can run
with it. The Mojo
425 holds about
20% more line than
other reels thanks
to the B2 Channel
design. This re-
serve backing bank
increases line ca-
pacity without
weakening or com-
promising the ar-
bor….a nifty feature that is sure to come
in handy.
Weight: Being lightweight does not
equate to being a lightweight when it
comes to this reel. The design engineer-
ing is impressive and due to the design
there is no worry of ever experiencing
metal fatigue or failure.
Spool Change: Leave the tool box at
home where it belongs. Simple, secure,
one hand.
Retrieve Direction Change: Again very
simple. Just flip the bearing over to go
from right hand to left hand retrieve.
Nice…
Finish: Outstanding!
Everyone here has been trying to get
their hands on my Cheeky and it’s not
going to happen. It’s been a lesson in
frustration trying to get out on the water.
We went from winter to storm after
storm to what now looks like summer.
We lined up our photographers for this
Friday to hopefully get some great action
shots. Reds are always great fun to catch
on fly and tarpon season is just around
the corner. More to come as we hunt up
some big snook….
Getting Cheeky...
55
Pine Island and Matlacha invoke
images of history and intrigue.
The area has long been an adven-
ture destination for anglers from
around the world. The Calusa
inhabited Pine Island since
around the year 300 at the mound
-site now known as Pineland.
Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de
León landed near the area in
1513, and careened his ship for
repairs in Pine Island Sound. Af-
ter the Calusa empire collapsed in
the 18th century due to war and
diseases, the island was only
sparsely inhabited until the 1870s.
There are also local island stories
and varied accounts of pirates
such as Jose Gaspar, the self-
proclaimed King of Pirates, being
on and around Pine Island.
Pine Island Sound was designated
as an Aquatic Preserve in 1970.
At 54,000 acres, it’s the second
largest preserve in the area. The
sound stretches from Charlotte
Harbor and Boca Grande Pass to
the south approximately 20 miles
to the Sanibel Causeway. Vast
amounts of water move through
the many passes along Sanibel,
Captiva and Cayo Costa islands.
The area is made up of vast
grassy flats with deep sandy pot-
holes and lots of mangrove shore-
line. There are many small man-
grove islands, as well as small
oyster bars creating an excellent
habitat for redfish, trout, snook,
tarpon and sharks.
Kayak fishing has grown quite
popular in the area and many
kayak launch areas have been es-
tablished. In Matlacha, the Matla-
cha Community Park offers a free
launch into the pass that covers
the east side of Pine Island. Head-
ing south, kayakers can enjoy the
launch at Tropical Point at the
end of Tropical Acres Dr. This
launch allows access to Manatee
Bay and incredible fishing oppor-
Pine Island & Matlacha By Bob Bramblet
56
tunities. The Pine Island Com-
mercial Marina on the west side
of Pine Island is open Monday
thru Friday, but is limited to com-
mercial use only. Recreational
anglers can use the ramp on Sat-
urdays, Sundays and Lee County
recognized holidays. Pineland, an
area at the northwest side of Pine
Island, has a very limited public
launch. The Pineland Marina re-
cently opened a kayak ramp a
short distance away for a nominal
fee. These launches place anglers
upon beautiful grass flats and
long stretches of mangrove shore-
line.
Fishing in Pine Island Sound is all
about the tides. Summer brings
flood tides causing redfish and
snook to cruise the mangroves.
Top water lures such as a Zara
Spook or Topdog work well,
while paddle tail jigs and other
soft plastics produce later in the
day. A chunk of cut lady fish
tossed under the mangrove
branches is a sure way to find a
large redfish. Winter produces
negative tides and that brings the
fish to the flats. It’s not un-
common to see plenty of
tailing redfish on an incom-
ing tide feeding on crabs.
Live shrimp or shrimp
lures will get their attention
as well as top water lures.
Whatever the time of year,
Pine Island offers plenty of
hospitality. Great restau-
rants such as Bert’s or The Per-
fect Cup offer great food for refu-
eling after a long day paddling.
The Tarpon Lodge is an historic
inn right on the water in Pineland
and offers reasonable rates for
overnighters. Great fishing and
amenities abound in Pine Island
and make it easy to cross this fa-
mous area off your bucket list.
58
I think the snook is my friend, Paul
Phipps’ favorite fish – or it’s got to be at
least tied for first. Recently, we went out
in his boat at night with his son, Mala-
chi, in search of the often picky linesider
in hopes of bringing a few home for din-
ner. There’s nothing quite like fresh bat-
tered snook nuggets dropping in some
hot oil and hearing that sweet sizzle,
ultimately falling onto the dinner plate
and seeing that crispy golden brown
crust – I’m drooling just thinking about
it.
I had heard a lot about these newer lures
that had been out for a while and how
everyone had been catching snook after
snook with them and wanted to give
them a try. So getting my gear ready I
to the next level and delivers and excel-
lent representation of a bait fish.
Anxiously we launched the boat and
started making our way to a local bridge.
Paul and I always have a great time fish-
ing together; telling jokes, making up
lyrics while singing songs and just relax-
ing as we enjoy nature to its fullest – and
it’s even better when his children go to
get in on the action. As we were getting
close to the bridge it seemed like every
fisherman with a boat got the memo that
the snook were biting because we could-
n’t find a spot near an available piling!
This was a perfect opportunity to try a
few new areas we had always wanted to
work so we made the decision to en-
deavor around some shallow water for a
took a brand new Live Target mullet
twitch bait out of its package and tied it
on my fifty pound fluorocarbon leader.
The hooks looked extremely beefy so
there was no need to exchange them out
for aftermarket hooks that I usually put
on new plugs. It was nice to get a prod-
uct that you could just tie on your line
and not worry about having the hooks
pull out on a quality fish, which gave me
immediate assurance that I could tighten
down my drag. The finish and paint on
the mullet was unbelievable, rather, to-
tally believable! Compared to the mullet
pushing through the river it was an easy
“match the hatch” lure and I was totally
pumped to start giving it some tosses.
The company definitely takes lure detail
The Picky Snook By Mark Naumovitz
59
while.
The tide was incoming and the current
was starting to pick up as we trolled our
way over to a bright light along some
docks which looked promising. As any
other twitch bait, the Live Target mullet
threw long and like a bullet, and I started
working it with my 2-1-2 retrieval - also
I noticed that it had very good swim-
ming action when reeled semi-fast and
consistently. No later than three casts
and I felt a hard bump that resembled the
bottom or getting stuck on a log, but
milliseconds later felt more like a hefty
fish as it started to take out drag. That
feeling of excitement and adrenaline
quickly kicked in as I called for Paul to
and we found an available bridge piling
to get near and throw some heavy jigs
around to get to the bottom. As Malachi
and I tended the boat this time, within a
few minutes Paul was able to retrieve a
slot snook as well and with a close com-
bat splashing battle that echoed fiercely
under the bridge. Another round of hoot-
ing and hollering went on for a few min-
utes and a second snook was added to
the live well. You know it’s a good night
when you have a certain size and species
of a fish to go after and that’s exactly
what you bring home. I tell you one
thing though; I can’t wait to go after a
slam with my new mullet twitch bait lure
in the kayak. Maybe that will be the next
story.
Visit Live Target Lures at
Author Mark Naumovitz, writes an
online paddlecraft column for Florida
Sportsman and also operates
get the net. The
snook made a few
nice runs which
moved me from
the bow of the
boat, to the stern,
and on to the port
side where we
were finally able
to scoop it up.
Not bad for the
first few casts of
the new Live
Target! Upon
some measure-
ments and some
photos we had
our first soap fish
for the live well
and some slimy
high fives went
all around. As
time elapsed and
a few other dock
lights were vis-
ited, we decided
it was time to
find a spot back
at the bridge to
pull one up from
the deep.
It was Paul’s turn
The Picky Snook
Mark holding a nice snook caught on Live Target Mullet.
www.marxsportinggood.com
www.LiveTargetLures.com