After fishing the first leg of the 2011 SKA Yamaha Professional Kingfish Tour in Sarasota, FL, Audrey, Joshua, Crockett and Mark returned to Cape Carteret, NC, at midnight, 5/1/11. A 15-hour jaunt across four states gave the Liquid Fire Fishing Team plenty of time to reflect on Crockett's TOP PRO JUNIOR ANGLER honor and its 13th place overall finish.Our first opportunity to fish the west coast of Florida was made very enjoyable by one of the most organized and well run tournaments in which we've had the pleasure to be involved. The tournament sponsor NBOA Marine Insurance staff, lead by Jim Butler, were prepared, professional and available to help the teams at all times.
A fantastic captain's party kicked off the event Wednesday night. Captains and team members from 35 registered teams shared in food, festivities and conversation throughout the evening. It was a great opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet some new ones!! Thanks again NBOA!!
Once arriving at the Sara Bay Marina at 2:45 a.m. Wednesday, we caught a couple hours of sleep, met up with another team to discuss our daily bait-catching excursion, and exited the pass. A couple hours later, and after fighting 20-plus knot winds and four to five-foot seas, we had a couple dozen blue runners in the baitwell.
We awoke Thursday to more high winds and steep seas. This allowed our team to get some needed relaxation before the captain's meeting, where once again, NBOA and Contender Boats provided a fine meal of fish tacos for the teams.
Friday morning again greeted the pro anglers with high winds and angry sea conditions. While some of the teams with bigger boats and large fuel capacities were willing and able to make a 185-mile run where there had been a concentration of tournament winning size fish, some teams (like us) were resided to choosing to fish more local waters to try and capture a good "points fish."
Our day one, 14.92#, king mackerel was a bit of a disappointment. However, we were able to put the much needed fish on the scale to begin the year. Day two wasn't much different, as the winds continued to howel. Even though we didn't catch big fish on the first day in Egmont Channel, there were a few teams that caught some respectable fish there. So, off we went.
Saturday began differently than the previous day, as we had a 25# king hit at 7:57 a.m. Shortly after, our 26.04# fish ate a blue runner that we got from Lee's Live Bait that morning, as Crockett was setting the spread. Fifteen minutes later, the fish was in the fishbox and awaiting the five o'clock weigh-in.
Although we would like to have scaled a couple larger fish, we accumulated enough weight for Crockett to claim Top Junior Angler Pro honors in the event (his FOURTH such individual pro event honor). In addition to resting in 13th place overall by the end of the first event.
Congratulations to Stacy Wester and his Big Bad Wolf team on their victory! Great job Stacy.
The Liquid Fire Fishing Team will be leaving for Jensen Beach, FL, next Tuesday, 5/10/11, to participate in the Frances Langford King Mackerel Tournament. This is another very well run event in a wonderful location. It is also the second of the five professional tournaments. We'll be sure to keep you updated!
BE SURE TO VISIT US AT - http://www.liquidfirefishing.com/
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