MAY 2022. Blues Vol 38 No. 5

off duty & outdoors

off duty & outdoors Spring Tournament Fishing in Key West I am the furthest from a serious tournament fisherman, but I still love it. I know this can be a very competitive space among those who go after a particular species. Just Google “Redfish Tournament Texas” or “Sailfish Tournament Florida” and you will see this is a serious part of fishing and moved way past an occasional hobby. Most of the participation in these tournaments focus on a certain type of fishing for a very particular species of fish. However, there are tournaments that are more for the adventurous, almost like going on a scavenger hunt on the water. I had the opportunity to participate again this year in just such a tournament down in Key West. The Hayden Blaylock Key West Challenge is in its 35th year and has raised over 4 million dollars for diabetes and mental illness research. Formally it was known as the Shell Key West Challenge and thus you can see my connection and how I have been fortunate to be a part of it for probably 20+ of the 35 years. But retirement did not stop me for being there this year and, well let’s just say, our team of retired guys showed the younger guys it is hard to beat experience and persistence. More on that later. First this tournament’s setting in Key West, Florida is in probably one of the best fishing inshore & offshore anywhere in the world. You can fish the shallow water of the flats or the reefs, or deep water of 150’+, all within a few miles of the dock, or you can get to the deep blue water only a few more miles out. This means the type of fish you can choose to go after in one morning is endless. Put that with the fact that this tournament was about fund raising while socializing with coworkers, customers, and vendors, and the idea of making it a “species tournament” was born. It is structured so that each team gets points for catching up to 3 of each species of fish found off the Florida Keys. Extra points are given for fish within each species over a certain ‘bragging’ weight for that species. Sailfish and big dolphin over 40lbs bring the most points while Snappers are small point builders. Points double for the second day of fishing so it pays to figure it out on day one and hammer ‘em on day two. With this format in the hands of some of the best local captains, you really learn about fishing in the Keys. You quickly can pick up on the different techniques and tricks for each species, which is why I really enjoy it and highly recommend you trying it. Again, just google “species fishing tournament key west” and you will find plenty of tournaments to pull up and learn more about them. Back to this year’s Key West Challenge and how did team, “Old Shell Guys” do? Well, the weather did not cooperate. Day one was 4–6- foot seas, rain, and heavy winds. Even though we were on a nice 40’ fishing boat, the small craft advisories kept us fairly close-in and even then, we did not stay out the entire day due to the lighting bolts that decided to join the party about noon. So, at the end of day one, we were tied for third place with our catch of Snapper, Amberjacks, Barracuda, Bonita, and Mackerel. Day two, the rain had cleared out, but not the winds so the seas were again rough with 4–6-foot rollers all day. However, the fishing was a lot better. We again caught our Snapper, Mackerel, Jacks, and RUSTY BARRON Barracudas like Day One but also landed a nice Cobia, and Kingfish. The big story of our trip was the 400lb Blue-fin Tuna we had hooked for about 5 minutes while we were kite fishing for sailfish. I will save this story for another day, but truly an exciting five minutes with only a “big fish that got away” story to tell. All in all, day two’s catch was enough to move “The Old Shell Guys” up in the standings and bring home the 2ND Place Winners’ trophy and bragging rights. While the weather maybe didn’t make for some picture-perfect fishing days, we stuck it out and had a great scavenger-hunt fishing trip and brought home some fish for dinner. If you have never fished in the Florida Keys, call Captain Bryce of Double Down Sportfishing in Key West at 305-304-2314 and tell him you would like to come down and fish like you are in a species tournament. You will be hooked for life and maybe you might just be inspired to start your own fund-raising species tournament. If you do, I’m in! 108 The BLUES POLICE MAGAZINE The BLUES POLICE MAGAZINE 109