The six-member Miss Annie team released 14 sailfish to win the three-day 77th annual Silver Sailfish Derby hosted by the West Palm Beach Fishing Club on Jan. 9-11. A field of 39 teams competed in the world's oldest sailfish tournament. The team included Capt. Randy Yates, far left, and boat owner Barry Weshnak, fourth from left. Mark Donohue, far right, was the tournament's top individual angler with eight releases. Others on the team were Tom Smith and Frank Napurano. / Photo courtesy Leonard Bryant Photography
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High seas got most of the blame for the low catches in the world’s oldest sailfish tournament this year. What’s more, weather was the factor determining the winner.
The teams aboard 39 boats in the West Palm Beach Fishing Club’s 77th annual Silver Sailfish Derby recorded 220 sailfish releases in the Jan. 9-11 tournament despite seas to eight feet. Fishing was difficult and very uncomfortable, even for those aboard the larger craft, some longer than 70 feet in length.
The catch total was nowhere near the Derby record set two years ago when 1,174 sails were released by 46 teams. Yet Derby Chairman Pete Schulz was pleased with this year’s 2.0 sailfish daily per boat average.
“Considering the rough sea conditions, I’d say the catch rate was pretty good,” Schulz said.
The Derby is headquartered at Sailfish Marina on Singer Island near Palm Beach Inlet. It was founded in 1935 and Ernest Hemmingway was one of the early trophy sponsors.
The catch also was affected by the fact that the bulk of the winter sailfish remained north of the tournament’s northern boundary, a line running east from the St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant north of Stuart.
“We just haven’t had any significant cold fronts yet this season to push the fish out of their comfort zone and further south,” Schulz said.
On the first day, when strong northeast and easterly winds whipped the Atlantic into a white-capped frenzy, boats that headed north out of Palm Beach Inlet scored the better catches, with a Lantana-based team aboard the boat ProPayroll with Capt. Jamie Ralph taking the lead with six releases. The total for the day was 59 releases.
Under the tournament rules allowing the use of live or dead natural baits, or artificials on conventional tackle, all sailfish must be released.
On day two, with the word out that the bite was better near Stuart 40 miles to the north, most of the teams headed that way and Rick Burton of Wellington and his crew on the boat Doing It All scored 12 releases to grab the lead. The release total jumped to 98 the second day.
Team members aboard the Miss Annie, headed by boat owner Barry Weshnak and skippered by Capt. Randy Yates, made the right decision to cut short their fishing day to ensure they could return to the tournament headquarters by the deadline set for turning in score sheets.
Yet the team on the Doing It All, with two releases earlier in the day, continued to fish until the 2 p.m. lines-out cutoff. Then the rough sea out of the south took its toll. With little more than an hour before the score sheet deadline, a throttle control module snapped and the Doing It All was disabled.
Capt. Matt Alligood on the Good Call heard the situation on the radio and came to help. The Doing It All tournament observer with the score sheet was transferred, which was allowed under the rules. By the time the Good Call reached the dock, the deadline had passed and the two sails by the Doing It All were disqualified.
That opened the victory door for the Miss Annie team with its 14 releases, making for one of the Derby’s more dramatic finishes.
The final day’s total was 63 releases.
In addition to the top overall team award, the Miss Annie crew also took the third-round top boat award with six releases for the day.
The Miami-based team Jichi, led by Capt. Gene Lebron, was second with 13 releases, and Doing It All was third with 12.
The oldest trophy in competitive sailfishing, the Mrs. Henry R. Rea Trophy for the top individual angler, went to Miss Annie angler Mark Donohue of West Palm Beach for his eight individual releases.
Susan McCart of Sarasota aboard the Absolut Joy was the top lady angler with six releases, four in the final round, which also earned her the top daily angler award.