Table of contents for February 2020 in Marlin

That statement came from Viking Yachts president and CEO Pat Healey during a press conference at the 2019 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. There were plenty of raised eyebrows among the 50 or so members of the marine-industry media in attendance. Healey continued: “It is going to rock the industry. They’re mandating impossible regulations that require solutions that don’t exist in today’s world.” The “they” Healey is referring to is an international governing body called the International Maritime Organization, of which the United States is a member. While Viking and other boat-builders are already in compliance with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier III requirements for marine diesels, the IMO Tier III NOx regulations aim to reduce nitrogen-oxide emissions by approximately 70 percent compared to the current IMO Tier II…

[A] ICOM M37 HANDHELD VHF Designed for hardcore use, Icom’s M37 is a 6-watt powerhouse for greater communications range, with up to 12 hours of operation. Features include a large, easy-to-read LED display and a channel-history function, which stores the last five channels used for easy recall at the press of a single button. The M37 is waterproof, and it floats too. [B] GARMIN INREACH MINI MARINE BUNDLE The rugged, compact inReach Mini provides two-way messaging, interactive SOS, and basic navigation via the global Iridium satellite network. The internal, rechargeable lithium battery provides up to 50 hours of battery life in 10-minute tracking mode; the 12-volt power cable and wireless connectivity to compatible chart plotters add safety without taking up additional helm space. [C] ACR RESQLINK VIEW PLB A personal…

“So, what’s the catch?” asked Army veteran Courtney Stecker, when his friend and fellow veteran Drew Hoffman invited him to attend a charitable fishing event in California. Like Stecker, most who receive invitations speculate about what they have to do in return for a “free” four-day fishing tournament. What is the catch? Well, probably bluefin tuna. Or maybe even a swordfish if you’re lucky, as we like to say. The War Heroes on Water tournament is a fishing competition designed to honor our military, envisioned by LoanDepot founder and CEO Anthony Hsieh. It debuted in 2018, bringing together members of the Southern California sport-fishing community to treat 27 veterans to several days of fishing, fun and celebration in recognition of their service. At the conclusion of the first event, Hsieh…

The common musing around Kona this past summer was: What does Capt. Teddy Hoogs know that the other guys don’t? Hoogs led Craig Lindner Jr.’s team aboard Bwana to jackpots in six of the seven tournaments in the 2019 Hawaii Marlin Tournament series, posting scorecards that resulted in three first-place wins, one second-place finish, and daily money in two additional events. Lindner was crowned Champion Angler, and Bwana earned the Championship Team title, pocketing a total winner’s share of $582,126. So, what does Hoogs know that other skippers don’t? If there is any secret at all, it might be consistency. He fished every single tournament with the same anglers and the same crew, working together like a well-oiled machine. Two-time champion Rick Shedore won his 2018 series crown this way,…

What started as a social media post took on a life of its own in 2018. Hsieh decided to honor wounded war veterans by hosting a three-day fishing tournament with Freedom Alliance, a charitable organization that helps promote the event and distribute proceeds to injured war veterans and their families. Freedom Alliance has awarded more than $13 million in college scholarships to the children of military heroes who were killed or disabled in war. It has also contributed millions more by assisting injured veterans and their families with outdoor recreational-therapy trips, care packages for deployed troops, all-terrain wheelchairs, heroes’ vacations, and mortgage-free homes. The inaugural War Heroes on Water tournament hosted 27 US military veterans in 2018, fishing on 11 of the top sport-fishing boats in Southern California, with the…

For more than 100 years, Australian boatbuilder Norman Wright and Sons has been producing a wide variety of vessels, from commercial ferries and pilot boats to magnificent sport-fishers. Its latest creation, the 60-foot Aura, is just one example of the exceptional skill and dedication of this reputable Brisbane builder. Aura was designed and constructed using one-off custom molds to suit the client’s requirements. For the hull design, the Wright team worked in conjunction with the US naval architecture firm Donald Blount & Associates. The hull is a warped planing configuration with a transom deadrise of 12 degrees and 24 degrees amidships, with deep tunnels and a substantially flared bow. Composite engineering experts from ATL Composites designed the hull to meet the international standards for Norway’s DNV GL High Speed Light…

While live-baiting for sailfish off South Florida in the 1970s, I would tell my captains to not let the bonitos sink so we could get more bites. I had learned that keeping the baits at a steady speed on the surface would make them appear to be getting away from a predator, and we would get more bites from sailfish, wahoo, king mackerel, barracudas and sharks. And if you’re a charter captain, that’s the name of the game: keeping rods bent and anglers happy. When you’re going too slow, the baits rise and fall as the captain shifts the engines in and out of gear. Not only did we not get as many bites fishing that way, but many times the fish would get into the leader, leaving us unable…

How was last year’s black marlin fishing out of Cairns? We have been the top boat for the past five heavy-tackle seasons, but 2018 was our best ever. We caught 144 black marlin, many of which were large fish—way over 400 pounds. But it’s also interesting to look back at some of the big numbers of marlin that were caught back in the heyday of the Great Barrier Reef in the 1970s and 1980s: Capt. Peter Bristow caught 192 blacks in 1973 and 160 in 1974 on Avalon; no one else has ever come close to those numbers. You grew up in Sydney. What made you head to Cairns? I left Sydney when I was 24 for a better life in the tropics. As a kid, I spent 10 years…

Hosting internationally accredited anglers from the United States, Brazil, and across the Caribbean, the 2019 Scrub Island Invitational held in the British Virgin Islands sent 21 top-shelf blue marlin fishing teams to wrangle with the North Drop’s blue marlin for some $200,000 in prize money—undoubtedly dodging a few hungry sharks in the process. Mate Hannibal Moya, fishing aboard Jichi, released the first blue of the tournament, ultimately setting up owner Louis Isaias’ team to finish second for the day with three blue marlin releases and a total of 1,500 points. But after a dinged prop and late start on Day One, the smallest boat in the fleet—a 43-foot Cabo named Batichica—made up for it by winning the daily with four blues released in two and a half hours. Capt. Juan…

The scientific body of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas and the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics conducted a white marlin stock assessment in 2019 that concluded the white marlin species is overfished, but overfishing is not occurring. In layman’s terms, stock abundance is lower than scientists have determined it should be, and the annual rate of landings is at acceptable levels to maintain a healthy population. ICCAT develops, manages, and implements conservation- and fishery-management measures associated with select highly migratory species. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service creates regulations that are appropriate and necessary to further implement the recommendations adopted by ICCAT. The results of the 2019 white marlin stock assessment appear to be good news because the fear was that…

In kite-fishing, there is only one constant: Things are always changing. Moving spots, adjusting tackle, swapping out kites, modifying presentations, and changing out baits. We must be willing to adapt to the conditions du jour, and helium is one of those essential tools we use to change the presentation for surface feeders such as sailfish, which might be on the shy side—or the smart side. LIGHTER THAN AIR Discovered just 150 years ago, helium is a nontoxic gas that is great for filling up balloons at birthday parties, but did you also know that it’s one of the most abundant elements in the universe? Unfortunately, though, it is a nonrenewable resource on our planet, and currently, helium is experiencing yet another worldwide shortage. The gas pockets are formed as a…

Today’s sport-fishing boats are marvels of engineering, with revolutionary designs, outstanding performance and highly sophisticated construction. With these characteristics, maintenance and care to keep these boats running are never inexpensive. At the same time, boatyards have made leaps and bounds where skilled and talented shipwrights, mechanics, finishers and in-house engineers stand ready to take on your punch list to repair, maintain, refurbish and update your ride to better-than-new condition. Boatyard tradesmen are the unsung heroes in the marine industry, so why is it when discussions of boatyards come up, opinions are likely to vary from highly satisfied clients to those who relentlessly rant about a less-than-stellar experience? Whether the work order starts out as a basic haul-out to paint the bottom, or a major refit from bow to stern—perhaps even…

In big-game fishing, one of our most important tools is the outriggers. They allow us to present a tangle-free bait or lure spread, and while caring for them presents somewhat of a challenge to most, it’s well worth it. Whether you are on a tournament team, own a charter boat or are a weekend fisherman, your outriggers are a vital piece of equipment, and should be treated with a corresponding level of care and respect. Keeping your outriggers functioning properly—and shining all the way to the tips—should be top priority, because without them, you might as well go bottomfishing. GENERAL MAINTENANCE After a day of fishing, take the time to give your outriggers a solid freshwater washdown. After they are salt-free, be sure to chamois them completely dry with a…

In 1998, Jim Floyd and his talented team of boatbuilders finished the first F&S. The 59-foot Fin-Alley started the company on a journey that has seen its boats fishing the world’s oceans with great success. Floyd’s team gained a reputation for building fast, stable, good-riding boats with sweeping, rounded features and a look of their own. Ten years later, F&S Yachts continues to create custom sport-fishing boats that are truly unique to their owners. One of its latest is the 61-foot Esme, purpose-built to fish the canyons of the Northeast out of Martha’s Vineyard and the sailfish grounds of South Florida, while also having the ability to reach the exotic waters of the eastern Pacific. Founded on the noted longitudinally stepped, variable deadrise hull, made famous by SeaCraft boat designer…

SILVER SHOWERS Winter in the Florida Keys means sailfish; one of the most exciting moments occurs when a pod of sails is pushing ballyhoo inside the reef. Photographer Tim Rahn spends weeks on the water in a bay boat each season, chasing ballyhoo showers in search of that perfect image. “The boat is moving, the light is always changing, and the bait moves at lightning speed,” he says, “but I really love the challenge of it all.” LOCATION Rahn snapped this image off Islamorada in the Florida Keys. TECH SPECS CAMERA: Canon EOS-1DX LENS: Canon EF 300mm IS USM ISO: 200 APERTURE: f/2.8 SPEED: 1/1328 sec…

BITE TRACKER Stay current with the best bites from the top billfish destinations around the globe at marlinmag.com/travel.…

BRETT HALAVACS REGIONAL SALES MANAGER, MAN ENGINES AND COMPONENTS MAN is consistently investing in new product development for the pleasure-craft market. Through innovative design and engineering, we’ve been able to maintain the compact size and weight savings MAN engines are known for, without sacrificing reliability. We are beginning to see inquiries regarding hybrid propulsion systems within the sport-fishing market; could we be “stealth-trolling” one day? From advancements in the materials utilized to more-optimized fuel-delivery systems, the goal remains the same: How can our customers go faster and farther? JAMIE MACDONALD MARINE ACCOUNT MANAGER, CAT/GREGORY POOLE In the drive for greater fuel efficiency and reduced emissions, hybrid technology—combining the benefits of current diesel and electric technology—is the next big thing. Hybrid systems for sport-fisher applications increase fuel efficiency and decrease main…

FOUR SETS OF EYES scanned the ocean on the Golden Gate Bank, northwest of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. We had been fishing for only about 20 minutes when Capt. Steve Lassley yelled from the bridge of the recently refitted 92-foot Jones-Goodell yacht-fisher: “Fish, 2 o’clock, 2 inches, 20 boats!”—captain-speak for spotting a striped marlin’s position, with just the tail 2 inches out of the water, at a distance of about 600 yards. It had been 30 years since I’d sight-fished along Mexico’s western coast, but the thrill was still the same. I missed Cabo, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to fish with one of the most successful billfishing teams in the world. The Bad Company program is full of complicated components, yet the display of seamless teamwork is…

An accidental entrepreneur who parlayed an ordinary fuel-dock business in California into what would eventually become the largest independently run big-game fishing tournament in the world, Robert (Bob) Bisbee’s remarkable journey began on March 6, 1933, and spanned 85 years. Bisbee migrated from Excelsior Springs, Missouri, to Orange County, California, where he married Aina Williams on November 1, 1960—a marriage that lasted 58 years—and had five children: Bob Jr., Wayne, Tricia, Erik and Destiney. He was also blessed with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren before his death on June 14, 2018. Along the way, the elder Bisbee touched the lives of millions through his passion for sport fishing. In 1975, he leased the Shell Fuel Dock on Balboa Island, California, and rebranded it as a 76 Union facility known as Bisbee’s…

Established in 1947, Merritt’s Boat and Engine Works in Pompano Beach, Florida, is a privately owned company with three generations involved in its day-to-day business. The company’s latest project—Hull No. 108—is a 77-footer that is well underway in the build process. The new boat will feature a luxurious four-stateroom/five-head layout with an elegant handcrafted teak interior. Standard features include twin master staterooms with king beds, as well as an air-conditioned flybridge with plenty of wraparound seating, a cockpit day head, 100-amp Atlas electrical system, full tower, hydraulic outriggers, 2,000-gallon-per-day watermaker, twin Kohler 32 kW generators and a Seakeeper 30HD gyrostabilizer. Thanks to Merritt’s advanced boatbuilding techniques—blending carbon fiber, hybrid Kevlar, composite cores and E-glass—as well as the Michael Peters-designed bottom and a pair of 2,600 hp MTU 16V2000 M96L engines,…

I often hear vessel owners, brokers and others in the marine industry ask why they need an attorney to form a limited liability company, when filing one form online can typically accomplish it. The truth is you do not need an attorney. However, forming the entity itself is not the most complex part of the process. Rather, it’s the documents that go along with it, including corporate resolutions and an operating agreement, among others, that are often more important. Though not typically required in most states, the operating agreement in particular carries a great deal of value, especially when a company is comprised of multiple members. WHAT IS IT? An operating agreement is signed by all members, and establishes the framework and structure of the business. The agreement can be…