Bodacious wins the 48th Annual
Islamorada Sailfish Tournament
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Rough seas and windy conditions would not stop great sailfish action in the 48th Annual Islamorada Sailfish Tournament. 261 Sailfish were released out of the 336 called in hook ups over the three day event. Captain Taylor Walsh led anglers, Henry and Shay Danzig from Tavernier, FL, fishing with Allen Wood and Nick Stanczyk from Islamorada, FL, to the winner’s circle. The team released a total of 22 Sailfish over the three day event. Captain "Wild" Bill Wichrowski of the fishing vessel Kodiak from the Discovery Channel television show, ‘Deadliest Catch,’ would hand over the trophies and an entry into the 2012 IGFA Offshore World Championship in Cabo San Lucas to the Bodacious at the awards ceremony.
Captain Alex Adler’s Kalex was in first place after day one with 7 fish. The Olympic Gold was right behind them with 7 releases on time. Team Bodacious was hot on their heels with 7 releases as well. Day two was a great day for the Bodacious. Mate Chris Wightman, aka Tofer, grabbed the leaders releasing 12 Sailfish. Catch 22 captained by Scott Stanczyk also had a great second day releasing 12 sailfish and moving his team into second place.
It would be the Contagious that would put the pressure on the Bodacious on the final day. Each releasing fish throughout the day, the Contagious would catch up to the Bodacious but angler Henry Danzig said the team did not panic. “We knew we were in an area where there were fish. We just stayed calm and waited our turn.” That turn would come 15 minutes before lines out when the Bodacious called in a hook up, then another at 2:49. The Bodacious released the first fish at 2:53 and the second at 2:54. When the committee boat called lines out at 3:00 the Bodacious would be grand champions with 22 Sails.
Contagious anglers Bill Keller (Islamorada, FL), Travis Bennett (Tavernier, FL) and Greg Toplin (Key Largo, FL) took home second place honors. Captain Brian Cone, with the help of mate Shannon Attales released 5 fish the first day, 11 fish the second day and 4 Sails on the final day. The Contagious would take home second place trophies with a total of 20 Sailfish releases.
Third place Wound Up would have a nice steady pick of Sails. Anglers Warren Sands (Pinecrest, FL) Jeff Liederman (Biscayne, FL), Alex Castellanos and Robbie Rameriz (Miami, FL) would release 5 fish on the first day, and 5 fish on the second day. Captain John Dudas got the job done on the third day releasing 9 Sailfish and propelling the Wound Up into third place.
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It was junior angler Shawn MacMullin Jr. that would steal the hearts of the crowd at the awards ceremony Sunday night. This was Shawn’s 5th year fishing the tournament and he had never won 1st place junior angler. At age 11 Shawn, the only angler fishing on the Prime Time, with his father Shawn MacMullin Sr. and family friends Greg Dunning and Greg Hopkins would release 8 sailfish. Not only did Shawn win first place Junior Angler but he was the high point angler of the entire tournament! “Wild” Bill knew what a great accomplishment this was and proudly awarded Shawn the High Point Angler trophy, which was almost as big as he is, and the perpetual Bill Hirni Memorial Trophy. Shawn’s night would not end there. He won the grand raffle prize, a $500.00 sailfish pendant from DePaula Jewelers. “Wild” Bill asked Shawn to autograph the winning raffle ticket and give it to him so he could keep it for good luck.
Most Tagged fish went to the Olympic Gold. Captain J.C. Cleare with Anglers Max Tower (Palmetto Bay, FL), Reggie Rodriguez (Coral Gables, FL), Doug Mientkiewicz (Islamorada, FL), Fulton Ivy (Key Largo, FL), and Nick Carullo (Miami, FL) tagged 5 of the 12 Sailfish they released.
Top lady angler Joan Shute from Sebastian FL caught a double header on the final day of the tournament to take the lead over the other ladies. Joan was fishing on the Unexpected Pleasure with Captain Geoff Pratt. She released 6 Sailfish over the three days.
The Islamorada Sailfish Tournament is the first leg of the Florida Keys Gold Cup Sailfish Championship. The Bodacious is currently in the lead with 22 fish. Second place in the Gold Cup is the Wound Up and third is the Catch 22 both with 19 releases. The next leg of the series is the Cheeca Lodge Presidential Sailfish Tournament January 20th thru the 22nd. The champions will be crowned at the Islamorada Fishing Clubs January Sailfish Tournament on the 26th 2012.
23 Boats competed in the 2011 Islamorada Sailfish Tournament with a total of 82 anglers. 9 fish were tagged. The Islamorada Sailfish Tournament is the primary fund raiser for the Islamorada Charter Boat Association. With the help of our major sponsors Caribee Boat Sales, Yamaha Outboards, World Wide Sportsman, Sands Petroleum, Dunkin Donuts, Valero, Mangrove Mikes, Capital Bank, Tackle Center of Islamorada, and the splendid parties put on by Whale Harbor Restaurants and Marina, the Islamorada Sailfish Tournament will continue the fight to preserve and protect the fabulous fishing in the Florida Keys.
Don’t miss the 49th Annual Islamorada Sailfish Tournament
November 29th thru December 2nd 2012!
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