Indholdsfortegnelse for June/July 2020 i Marlin

A famous boxer once said, “Life is not about how hard a hit you can give—it’s about how many you can take, and still keep moving forward.” OK, that boxer was Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa, but that’s how it feels these days. As we go to press with this issue in mid-April, we have all taken plenty of punches. The marine industry has been hit especially hard. Many boatbuilders have temporarily halted production. Engine manufacturers have done the same. Restrictions on travel mean that fishing resorts are shuttered and boats are sitting idle at the docks. No customers also means slashed advertising and marketing budgets, which is not good for the health of the media either. We have all been affected in one way or another. Let’s take a step…

Serious big-game fishing requires educated planning and preparation for the best chance at success. Electronics maintenance should always be on the list for checks and updates as soon as a trip or season has finished because failures and repairs are troublesome and costly. Getting parts and/or technicians to some locations to troubleshoot, test and repair problems can be arduous, and often exponentially expensive. START WITH A PHYSICAL EXAM While keeping a small supply of silicone caulking, 3M 5200 sealant adhesive, marine dielectric grease and Tef-Gel can get you through from day to day, marine electronics equipment health begins with a physical dockside check. A top-down visual inspection can shed light on potential failures before they happen, so always begin in the tower. Be sure that all domes are fully seated…

It is always difficult to predict how long a boat will stay on the market after it has been listed. A boat can sell immediately or it can sit on the market for months, or even years. As a result, both parties, and particularly the seller, should prepare for closing well before a transaction occurs. Buyers oftentimes become uneasy about a purchase because the seller does not have their affairs in order. There are steps the parties can take to guarantee a smooth process. TITLE DOCUMENTS Sellers should ensure that they have original copies of their title documents, whether it is a state certificate of title, US Coast Guard Certificate of Documentation or certificate of registry from a foreign jurisdiction. US-documented and foreign-flagged vessels are required to keep their relevant…

Someone once told me that as an asset manager, you get paid to do one thing: have an opinion. You must provide your clients with a strategy that will ultimately benefit them in the long run. In times like these, it’s easy to throw in the towel or become a pessimist, but let’s take a look at some positive actions you can take for your investments. RETIREMENT OPTIONS If you currently have a 401(k) or other retirement plan, now is a great time to move money into some good companies that may have been previously too expensive. The markets moved up so fast, many investors missed the big run, so now is a great time to take advantage of the downturn. Look at companies with strong cash flow, or quality…

editor@marlinmag.com MORE ON ZANE GREY I enjoyed the great article “Revisiting Angling History” by Deborah Hood in the March issue. However, as a 48-year member of the Avalon Tuna Club, I do have one correction. Respectfully, I would say, we are proud that Zane Grey is part of the Tuna Club’s history. Even so, he was actually asked to leave the club when he refused to apologize to Keith Spaulding’s wife after announcing that there was no way a woman could have caught the swordfish she landed by Tuna Club rules. I recall that her swordfish weighed 327 pounds and that she was a very accomplished angler. He was a controversial member who pushed the envelope at the time, fishing with coffeegrinder reels and piano-wire leaders, which commonly mutilated his…

[A] SHIMANO SPHEROS SW 20000 With a maximum drag of 40 pounds, the Spheros 20000 can put the heat on any hardcharging gamefish. It’s no slouch in the line-capacity category either, holding 460 yards of 20-pound-test monofilament or 490 yards of 65-pound-test braid. $259.99 [B] PENN SPINFISHER VI 8500 The 8500 is the workhorse of the Penn Spinfisher VI lineup, with a line capacity of 455 yards of 20-pound mono or 730 yards of 40-pound braid, as well as a full-metal body. The drag is sealed and features carbon-fiber washers for smooth-under-pressure operation. Bonus: The braidready spool has line-capacity rings to help you judge how much line you have remaining on the reel. $219.95 [C] VAN STAAL VS 250 One of Van Staal’s most famous features is its waterproof drag…

CAPT. JEFFREY DESILVA ES MUCHO HAMILTON, BERMUDA When it comes to pulling plastics, everyone has their own ideas. I like to keep it simple, preferring a single-hook rig, with the hook sitting upright behind all my lures. This way, the water pressure naturally makes the hook want to swim, and it has given me the best hookup ratio. But for sake of simplicity, I rig my spread with the same single-hook setup, regardless of lure type. Ultimately, everyone has their own preference, and what works for one might not work for another. So, I say get out there and see what works best for you! CAPT. BRIAN RABBITT BIG DEAL BRICK TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY We fish the hooks up in our lures because the hookup ratio is consistent: aiming to…

It might be safe to say that trolling lures for blue marlin in the calm and tranquil waters off the Kona, Hawaii, coast is as good as it gets. With three towering volcanoes setting the backdrop, the sun breaking over Hualapai is a visual you never forget, and it only ramps up the anticipation of what the day holds as the lures go over the transom. It’s a ritual those who fish in Kona know well, and we rarely take it for granted. Some of the first artificial lures meant to capture the attention of the billfish we seek were simple prototypes crafted from wood with the intent to be trolled at greater speeds than natural bait. The first blue marlin over 1,000 pounds landed in Hawaiian waters in November…

I recently watched a short film about Hurricane Irma and two brothers who went through it on St. John in the Virgin Islands. It showed people racing to the store in a frenzy to buy anchors, dock lines, ground tackle, and whatever else was available at the last minute. It’s definitely not the ideal method of prepping, but it seems like it always happens. As an owner of a marine store, I too see the final rush as a storm approaches, and often wonder why people put themselves in this position of panic. We have all year to consider the consequences of getting caught with our pants down, so why do we put ourselves through the extra stress—isn’t the threat of a destructive hurricane stressful enough? PLANNING AHEAD South Florida…

Many people still ask me today about motherships: What to get, where to go, and all the other interesting details that go along with it. I thought The Madam was the perfect mothership. She carried 37,000 gallons of diesel fuel, and back then, our biggest problem was fuel availability, so The Madam solved that problem. Having a 10,000-gallon-per-day watermaker was also a plus. The well-stocked pantry held up for almost two years—that was how long we had planned our trips to last. We only needed fresh vegetables, bread and fruit. We had six freezers full of beef and chicken, plus enough staterooms for our guests and crew. We also had a 48-foot game boat that could handle all the weather we would encounter. We were able to fish off Australia…

CHARTER BLUES It was just another day at the office for Capt. Marlin Parker when he led his charter angler to an encounter with this feisty blue marlin he estimated at 550 pounds, according to photographer Carol Lynne. The fish crushed a Marlin Magic Ruckus lure with a unique dichroic glass head insert pulled from the short rigger, and was released in good shape after a 20-minute fight. LOCATION Parker and Lynne were fishing in flat-calm seas off the coast of Kona, Hawaii. TECH SPECS CAMERA: Canon EOS 7D LENS: Canon EF 100-400mm ISO: 400 APERTURE: f/7.1 SPEED: 1/2000 sec…

The second leg of the seventh-annual Signature Triple Crown series, presented jointly by Los Sueños Resort and Marina and Chantilly Air, was held February 26-29, 2020, and wrapped up just as the COVID-19 pandemic threat was emerging on the world stage. Forty-one teams and 202 anglers released a three-day total of 870 billfish in the event, including 703 sails and 67 marlin. The team on Shoe kicked off the second leg with a sailfish release just eight minutes after lines in was called at 8:00 a.m. By noon, the fleet had released 164 sails and eight marlin; HT Hook was leading with 1,200 points, followed by the team on Tarheel with 1,200 points, and Team Galati with 1,100 points. War Party picked away at the sailfish, finishing Day One with…

Eight years ago, Stephan Kreupl accepted the ultimate challenge: Be the first to catch all three of the big marlin species weighing over 1,000 pounds. The Marlin Grander Slam, the Triple Grander Slam—is that even a thing? Well it is now, thanks to Kreupl (above, on left), who realized just how difficult this undertaking was going to be. Over the course of 96 fishing days, leaders snapped, hooks pulled, and a really big fish was lost while being gaffed. At times, he’d given up any hope of catching the elusive black marlin that was left on his list, even to the point of getting no joy from landing an 800-pounder. This project was taking a toll on him. But, on one fateful October day in 2019, his dream came true,…

IT WAS 2004, and my first year marlin fishing as a mate. I wasn’t just new; I was brand-new. Capt. George Beck was on the wheel of the 58-foot Viking Freebie, and Capt. David Withers was guiding me in the pit. I was looking forward to learning from them. What could possibly go wrong? I asked myself. I was in good hands. We were fishing the famed North Drop in the Virgin Islands when I got the call to put on the bigboy gloves. Everything was going great that season, and I was ready to wire my 10th-ever blue marlin. It was a graceful, solid fish, doing everything it was supposed to do; Beck called her 450. I had a double wrap in my back hand and a single wrap…

BEFORE WE EVEN EXPLORE THE PHYSICAL AND SITUATIONAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A BLUE AND BLACK MARLIN, WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH WE ENGAGE THESE CREATURES CAN BE FAR DIFFERENT FROM THE SPECIES THEMSELVES. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS SUCH AS SEA CONDITIONS, GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION AND/OR THE PRESENCE OF PREDATORS CAN HAVE A HUGE INFLUENCE ON MARLIN BEHAVIOR, AS WELL AS HOW WE DRIVE ON THEM ONCE HOOKED. ¶ TACKLE SIZE, HOOK TYPE, AND THE INTENTION TO BOAT OR RELEASE THE FISH WILL ALSO AFFECT FISH BEHAVIOR ON THE WIRE, AND HOW WE REACT TO THAT BEHAVIOR WITH THE BOAT. WITH THAT SAID, THESE TWO AWESOME BEASTS DO INDEED EXHIBIT SOME CONSISTENT BEHAVIORAL TRAITS THAT ALSO DIFFER QUITE CONSIDERABLY FROM ONE ANOTHER. THE NEED FOR SPEED If I had only one…

Third time’s a charm(er) “As a custom builder, we can design and construct exactly what an owner wants, from the most aesthetically extravagant to a slimmed-down, high-performance charter or tournament boat,” says Michael Rybovich & Sons marketing director, Blake Gill. Because custom-boat clients tend to be brandsavvy, having a builder willing to give you what you want keeps Rybovich competitive in the marketplace and buyers coming back for what is revered as “the best that money can buy.” HULL AND SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Under the watchful eye of designer and Webb Institute graduate Dusty Rybovich, the 78-footer underwent 28 months of pure coldmolded perfection and meticulous attention to detail to produce an on-time, onbudget delivery complete and ready to fish. The hull bottom is laid with four solid layers of hand-picked…