75# toothy Bluefin on the Eclipse

[Scoot]

Happen on an 8 dayer shark bit right at gaff.
Gaff, disqualified him and it was big
money like 500. bucks! Captins call
sad to hear Mark is an ahole, was
looking forward to fishin that boat,
not no mo!!

[crazywakeboarder]

Originally Posted by Scoot

Happen on an 8 dayer shark bit right at gaff.
Gaff, disqualified him and it was big
money like 500. bucks! Captins call
sad to hear Mark is an ahole, was
looking forward to fishin that boat,
not no mo!!

Whats the reasoning behind disqualifying fish that are bitten by a shark? If it still weighs the most even after having a chunk removed I dont see why it shouldnt qualify

[rossman]

Originally Posted by crazywakeboarder

Whats the reasoning behind disqualifying fish that are bitten by a shark? If it still weighs the most even after having a chunk removed I dont see why it shouldnt qualify

The theory is that if your fish gets chomped, your last x number of minutes of the fight is with a fish with no tail or dead from a chomp out of the middle, did you really win the fight with that fish or did you have an advantage over someone whose fish was a pound lighter but unmolested by a shark. I don't have strong feelings either way but it is pretty much a standard rule on every boat I have been on.

[crazywakeboarder]

Originally Posted by rossman

The theory is that if your fish gets chomped, your last x number of minutes of the fight is with a fish with no tail or dead from a chomp out of the middle, did you really win the fight with that fish or did you have an advantage over someone whose fish was a pound lighter but unmolested by a shark. I don't have strong feelings either way but it is pretty much a standard rule on every boat I have been on.

I understand now, thats why stating at the gaff would make some difference. Part of fishing I guess, there are fish fishing for themselves also.

[fishingfiend]

Originally Posted by rossman

The theory is that if your fish gets chomped, your last x number of minutes of the fight is with a fish with no tail or dead from a chomp out of the middle, did you really win the fight with that fish or did you have an advantage over someone whose fish was a pound lighter but unmolested by a shark. I don't have strong feelings either way but it is pretty much a standard rule on every boat I have been on.

Guadalupe trips would bump into this rule back in the day. I have not seen it applied here locally, but then again the hammerheads seem to only show up in El Nino conditions. Either way, as noted it was the captain's call and that just sucks that he made a bad decision IMO. Glad you still took care of business and didn't let that captain on the rag ruin your trip. Congrats on a trophy local BFT!

If I remember correctly, the Eclipse used to be up here at Davey's Locker as the Cat Special. When Kenny ran it, it was always a great experience. Sucks to hear about the current captain.

[Aaron&Julie]

Originally Posted by fishingfiend

If I remember correctly, the Eclipse used to be up here at Davey's Locker as the Cat Special. When Kenny ran it, it was always a great experience. Sucks to hear about the current captain.

Hmmm, Cat Special, huh? Fished it myself a few times under different skippers and different names, Julie, too. I didn't know it was the Eclipse now. I also liked that boat layout, no matter the name.
Maybe this Captain was skippering one too many days without enough sleep. I know from experience, that's tough on anybody. I still wouldn't risk a trip with him as the skipper, just from your experience alone, I don't give a hoot if he's pretty good 9 out of 10 days, it's that one day that really counts.
Aaron