October 23, 2009 — by Dave Lear
In an eventful day that saw one qualifying marlin brought to the scales and one team escape a harrowing incident at sea, the opening round of the 29th annual Bisbee’s Black & Blue Marlin Jackpot Tournament has drawn to a close.
Angler Bryan Miller scored the first weighed fish by whipping a 3 75-pound blue marlin after a brief 23-minute fight. The fish ate a live yellowfin tuna weighing about 15 pounds and was caught on 130-class tackle.
“The water was green, there was no bait, so there’s really no reason for anyone to go there tomorrow,” Miller, the 12-year Bisbee veteran said with a sly grin. Miller and his team of San Diego, California, buddies fished aboard Miller’s boat Mi Novia. “We won money in ’98, ’04 and unless there’s a surprise coming in, it looks like we’ll win again this year,” he added.
Team Mi Novia will indeed pocket nearly $250,000 at least by landing the only qualifying marlin of the day to sweep the daily jackpots in several categories. The Black & Blue is the richest billfishing contest in the world. This year 94 boats are competing for nearly $2 million in overall prize money.
Fishing was steady throughout the fleet, with five smaller blue marlin released, five sailfish and 19 striped marlin. There were no black marlin recorded.
The crew aboard The Bottom Line was rescued by another tournament boat when the 50-foot Hatteras caught fire and eventually sank about 20 miles out into the Sea of Cortez shortly after the shotgun flare start. No one was injured, fortunately. Sneak Attack, an American Custom Yacht captained by Sammy Talbert, easily won sportsmanship honors by racing to the scene and loading the stunned team members aboard before they were forced into the water. The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation, but it likely started in the engine room.
The tournament continues through Saturday and everyone is hoping the news is all good from here on out.
|
