Author: BD STAFF

While fishing in the Treasure Cay Leg of the Bahamas Billfish Championship (BBC), the crew on Double Dog caught a monster blue marlin that not only won the tournament but now stands as the largest blue ever caught in Bahamas waters. Double Dog established a new Bahamas record when they boated their blue marlin which weighed in at 1,119 pounds (507 kg). The record-breaking blue was caught on the second day of the Treasure Cay Championship, the fifth and final leg of the 2011 Bahamas Billfish Championship. Angler David Albury of Man-O-War Cay in the Bahamas fought the big blue…

A new exhibit opening on June 26 will highlight California’s sportfishing legacy. For centuries fishing has been an integral part of the southern California story. In Gone Fishin’, historic photographs, rods and reels, implements and methods used by native peoples, and the sport fishermen themselves will reveal their unique “fish tales” with a spotlight on the waters around San Clemente and Catalina Island.

Whether you enjoy the simple pleasures of fishing, high adventure on the open seas or just a good fish dinner at the beach, come view this special summer exhibition and enjoy the related featured speaker series.
 You’ll be…

At first glance, the fish sculptures appearing in a new ad campaign for Costa Sunglasses look a bit robotic. But upon closer inspection, you can see what really makes this fish art so unique — the fish mounts are built entirely out of parts from Costa sunglasses! The company hired artists to build three species out of sunglasses including a tarpon, blue marlin and largemouth bass and they used nothing but pieces and parts of sunglasses to make them — lenses for scales, frames for gills, etc. The artists used a mix of lenses, hinges, frame arms, nose pads, side…

Fishworks has built a strong following of fishermen by producing quality clothing that looks great, functions in the cockpit and stands up to the rigors of fishing. That’s the company tradition, and there’s something to be said for tradition. “The latest pair of boardshorts to come out of Fishworks features the Camo Fade, setting a new benchmark for boardshort design.” The boys at Fishworks did their homework coming up with the perfect Camo Fade and it shows. The shorts come complete with all the features you need to maximize your fishing performance. There are two embroidered cargo pockets, double plier…

Costa Rica Billfish Protection – The Billfish Foundation (TBF) recently entered into an agreement with its conservation partner, the Costa Rica Sport Fishing Federation (FECOPT) and four participating Hilton Worldwide hotels in Costa Rica, pledging to stop serving sailfish and marlin in their restaurants. A socio-economic study that TBF released last year shows the huge economic value of sportfishing tourism to Costa Rica. The participating hotels vowed their support for sport fishing and agreed to adopt the ban on billfish from their restaurants to help promote responsible and sustainable tourism in the nation. The four properties include the DoubleTree Resort by…

Phenix Rods has long been a leader in both the fresh and saltwater fishing rod categories. So, the company decided it was time freshen up it’s online presence and redesign its website. The new Phenix site, , aims to further support the company’s reputation of being an innovative rod builder. From exotic burl wood accents throughout their fishing rod lineup, to hybrid material technologies, to top-of-the-line components, Phenix’s research-and-design department spends countless hours improving, perfecting, and most importantly, using its own products. Phenix is proud of its creations and wanted a website that showcases the company’s products and quickly provides…

Video cameras and salt water don’t mix. One good wave over the transom and that bad boy is done. Well, not any more. “If you’ve ever destroyed a video camera on a boat, it’s time to think about switching to a GoPro.” The GoPro is waterproof and virtually indestructible. Served up in a small package, about the size of a regular point-and-shoot digital camera, the GoPro HERO cam delivers professional-quality video and can shoot up to 1080 HD video. You can also take photos with them. Fishermen are not the only ones using the GoPro. Surfers mount them to their…

It’s a big ocean out there and if you don’t key in on the areas where the fish are stacked up, you might as well go golfing. Few indicators help you find fish better than sea-surface temperatures. “Anglers in the know spend hours studying temperature charts on their home computers, but all of that research is useless if you don’t have a temperature gauge of some sort on the boat.” The SI-TEX SST-110 sea-surface temperature indicator displays water temps on an easy-to-read LCD display and features alarms and other trend indicators. With its large four-digit LCD display (measuring 4.3” x…

The Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) recently completed construction on Independence Island Reef, the largest limestone inshore artificial reef project ever completed in Louisiana. Concerning Louisiana’s New Artificial Reef “This project is the result of nearly two years of hard work and dedication by CCA volunteers, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and NOAA,” said David Cresson, CCA Louisiana Executive Director. “Anglers and their families will enjoy the benefits of this reef for generations.” The project has been a long time coming. “The recreational fishing industry has sustained a number of challenges…

MarineMax Inc., the nation’s largest recreational boat and yacht retailer, recently created a new, family-friendly, outboard-only tournament series called the MarineMax Outboard Invitational Series. The events will be held over the course of the summer along the beautiful Emerald Coast of Florida and Alabama. Tournament Dates and Locations • July 2, 2011 – Destin, Florida Tournament • July 30, 2011 – Panama City, Florida Tournament • August 13, 2011 – Gulf Shores, Alabama Tournament • August 27, 2011 – Pensacola, Florida Tournament The four tournaments will focus on different species in different locations, with prizes and awards for Inshore, Offshore,…

If you’re like most fishermen out there, you can never have too many T-shirts. Each time you visit a new watering hole, you can’t help but buy one. The same goes for shirts printed up by charter operators, marinas, tournaments, etc. To make your T-shirt collection complete with shirts from a long list of boats around the world, become a member of the Red Tuna Shirt Club and get a new design delivered right to your doorstep each month. Red Tuna unveils a new t-shirt each month featuring a top charter service from one of the world’s great saltwater fishing…

A San Diego Superior Court judge has ordered that the Natural Resources Defense Council and Ocean Conservancy have no legal right to intervene in a lawsuit that seeks to preserve ocean sportfishing in California. That lawsuit, filed on January 27, 2011, by members of the Partnership for Sustainable Oceans (PSO) – United Anglers of Southern California, Coastside Fishing Club and Bob Fletcher – asks the court to set aside regulations established through the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative which created massive fishing closures along California’s north central and south coasts. “This is a significant victory for our overall legal…

Going offshore without a good pair of sunglasses is like going golfing without any clubs. Polarized sunglasses play an integral role in helping you spot fish and enjoy your day on the water without eye fatigue and a pounding headache. Yet you’ll often hear guys make the argument that they don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on a pair of quality fishing shades because they always end up breaking or losing them. “Well, now you don’t have to. Typhoon Optics offers anglers durable polarized sunglasses ranging in price from $50 to $60, a much easier pill for many guys…

The 36th annual Marina Del Ray Halibut Derby, held on May 14, was completely reinvented this year with the goal of attracting more anglers and at the same time reducing the pressure on the local Santa Monica Bay halibut population. Tournament organizers made it a one-day event, reduced the entry costs, added more fish species for awards, expanded the geographical boundaries of the tournament and put in place a special 20-percent weight credit for live halibut releases. “We were looking for ways to make our traditional derby more inclusive to more anglers and at the same time put less pressure…

Costa Rican government officials recently informed The Billfish Foundation (TBF) that it had impounded more than 7,000 kilograms (15,400 pounds) of illegally caught sailfish from a seafood exporter. Sailfish are a protected species in Costa Rica. This meat was bound for Peru and had been falsified as striped marlin. Illegal Sailfish Meat Seized in Costa Rica Investigators from two agencies — SENASA (National Animal Health Service) and INCOPESCA (Costa Rican Fisheries and Aquaculture Institute) — seized 7,012 kilos of whole sailfish carcasses. The seafood exporter had falsified documents declaring the shipment as striped marlin, which is presently a legal billfish…

After banning commercial purse seining from its waters in July, the Republic of Panama has taken further steps adding restrictions on longlining for the conservation of its marine life and its socio-economic growth. In letters to Panamanian officials, Ellen Peel, President of The Billfish Foundation and Chris Fischer founder of OCEARCH, applauded the government for becoming the first of the seven Central America nations to restrict pelagic longline gear within its waters. The practice of commercial longlining in the region uses hundreds of baited hooks attached to short lengths of line spaced at intervals to main lines. The longliners target…

Summer is just about upon us and it’s time to pull the kids away from the video games and get them outside. Through the month of May, all kids aged 15 and under are eligible to fish for free on any open boat out of San Diego for a half-day, three-quarter-day or full-day fishing trip when accompanied by a paid adult. To be eligible you must print out a coupon available at the San Diego Sportfishing Council website. Click on this link to download a coupon. You can also pick up a promotional coupon at nearby West Marine stores. One…

Anglers taking trips on Shogun, a 92-foot long-range vessel based in San Diego, can now watch sports, news and their favorite TV shows while taking breaks from the fishing action at destinations such as Alijos Rocks and Hurricane Banks. Shogun’s owner and crew recently installed Intellian’s i6 HD-ready Satellite TV Antenna System to give its customers yet another high-end luxury for the upcoming season. Features such as a built-in GPS system for enhanced satellite signal acquisition speeds and Intellian’s patented Wide Range Search (WRS) and Dynamic Beam Tilting (DBT) ensure that you can watch your favorite programs in all sea…

The Partnership for Sustainable Oceans (PSO), Ocean Access Protection Fund (OAPF) and United Anglers of Southern California (UASC) announced plans for a collaborative “Fight the MLPA” Fundraising Dinner scheduled for Sunday, May 22 at the Atrium Hotel in Irvine, Calif. Proceeds from this event will go towards the legal costs of the continued battle against the flawed and mismanaged Marine Life Protection Act process that aims to close off access to some of California’s prime fishing spots. Special guest speakers for this event include George Osborn, lobbyist for the PSO, who will give an insider’s report on the MLPA fight.…

BD Outdoors.com, the new website launched by the founders of Bloodydecks.com, recently purchased the California Billfish Series, and is happy to announce that their team will be running the billfish tournaments on historic Catalina Island in 2011. The series includes the Zane Grey Invitational, Catalina Classic and Avalon Billfish Classic. The events will continue to take place on historic Catalina Island without any changes to the formats, rules or other aspects of the tournaments. BD Outdoors.com plans to improve upon and grow the events, but will not deviate from the already proven formula that has been a California tradition for…

Sixteen other boats divided the remainder of the $1 million prize purse. Tournament director Capt. Mike Weinhofer reported that the event attracted 71 boats, with anglers releasing 335 sailfish over the three fishing days. Sandra MacMillan and her team on Sandman, skippered by Capt. Neil Orange of Miami, released 17 sailfish to earn first place and $255,785 in the World Sailfish Championship that ended Saturday, April 16. The World Sailfish is the largest sailfish tournament in the country with a prize purse of more than $1 million up for grabs. The winning team consisted of Jason Roe, Domie Adames, Robby…

Guinness World Records for fishing recently recognized Jeff “Kolo” Kolodzinski, the marketing director for Frabill, as the man who caught and released the most fish in a single day. He caught the fish during a late-summer sweltering stretch of 2010. Wearing a “marathon man” superhero costume, he attempted to break his own record for catching and immediately releasing the most fish ever in a 24-hour stint. Kolo had set the mark before, but it wasn’t officially recognized by Guinness World Records. Kolo, Frabill, and the sponsoring corps from Fishing for Life jumped through technical hoop after technical hoop to see…

The Frabill Econo-Aerator pumps new life and fresh air into any minnow bucket or baitwell, running up to 40 hours on two batteries. You can even run it off of one battery if need be. The aerator clips to any bucket and comes with a flexible rubber air hose. The aerator features a watertight on-off switch so you won’t get water inside the pump. The best part of the Econo-Aerator is that it only costs $10, but it can save you plenty of dollars by keeping those baits kicking all day, and it will increase your success on the water,…

Every now and then you come across a product that is so smart, yet so simple that you can’t help but say to yourself, “Why didn’t I think of that?” When walking the isles of a recent boat show in Florida, we came across one such product. Called the Mate Series, this combination rod and cup holder makes the most of the space on your boat. Boats tend to either have a lack of cup holders or a lack of rod holders. It’s tough to find the perfect balance, but not with this smart product that converts each rod holder…