The Wahoo Challenge
Capt. Brooks Rans, Mate Peter Lewis, and the crew of the "Mattanza," out of Bermuda, crossed the Atlantic to reel in first place at the 2010 Wahoo Challenge with a 63.3 lb. fish they hooked on a skirted ballyhoo.
Named for a Sicilian bluefin tuna fishery, Bermuda’s “Mattanza” wasn’t slaying bluefins but wahoo on their way to winning over $17,000 in the 2010 Wahoo Challenge, held October 27-31 out of the Morehead City Waterfront. Knocked back two weeks from its originally scheduled date by a tropical system, the winds didn’t exactly lay down for the tournament, but the wahoo didn’t seem to mind.
“We caught 10 on Friday,” reported “Mattanza” Capt. Brooks Rans.
“They were biting up top, down deep, everywhere,” mate Peter Lewis added.
With a group of anglers from Seafoods.com aboard the 51’ Harrison, including Michael and Marco LaVecchia, Brad Quartz, Beth Reid, Josh Bogen, Chris Nelson, Rodney Rhodes, and Clint Boyd, the crew hadn’t pre-fished and relied on some local friends for tips as to where the hot bite might lie.
“We got some local knowledge from Cameron on the ‘Impulse’,” Rans continued. “We headed down to the south around the 315 line on Saturday.”
When they arrived, the anglers began catching fish almost immediately.
“We hooked up right after lines-in,” Lewis explained. “That was a smaller fish.”
After putting their first fish in the boat, the anglers continued working the area, never traveling far from where they’d first hooked up.
“We kept circling that area,” Lewis said. “We stayed pretty much all day.”
After picking away at 20-30 lb. fish over the course of the day, the crew finally hooked into a triple-header not long before they planned to head in.
“We hooked a big one and lost it,” Lewis continued, “and we caught a smaller fish. That big fish was the last bite of the triple, and we didn’t see it because we were busy dealing with the other bites.”
A ballyhoo rigged beneath a dark blue/light blue/white/silver skirt and trolled on top fooled their final fish, and the crew knew immediately that they’d hooked into a better fish.
Capt. Dale Britt and the crew of Morehead City's "Sensation" took home second place and over $7,000 in The Wahoo Challenge for a 57.3 lb. wahoo landed by angler J.D. Smith.
“We knew right away with that one,” Lewis said. “He took a double scorching run. When Marco got into the chair, he was just screaming off line.”
Marco LaVecchia held on while the fish ran, and then attempted to gain back some line when the fish paused.
“He took off again after that,” the mate added. “We had a lot of line out.”
When the fish finally slowed down a second time, LaVecchia began the laborious process of working it back to the boat.
Around 15 minutes after the bite, the leader came aboard and Lewis sank a gaff into the team’s largest fish of the day, the 63.3 lb. wahoo that propelled them to the top of the event’s leader board.
“We were all very excited with that fish,” Lewis said. “We weren’t sure it would go all the way, but we knew it was a good one.”
After their success the day before, the “Mattanza” anglers headed back to the same area to fish Sunday, the tournament’s final day, hoping to ensure that if a bigger wahoo were caught during the event, it would end up on their deck.
They again found the fish, boating six, but were unable to best their previous day’s effort. Fortunately for the traveling crew, no one else in the event was able to best them, either. In addition to topping the leader board and the TWT, their big fish paired with a 30.4 lb. ‘hoo earned the crew the event’s top two-fish aggregate honors as well.
Scaling a 57.3 lb. wahoo, Capt. Dale Britt and the Morehead City charter boat “Sensation” tcaptured second place and over $7,500. Wahoo Challenge leader board veterans Capt. Mike Taylor and the crew of the “Weldor’s Ark” walked away with third place and nearly $5,000 for a 52.5 lb. fish.
Taking home the wins in the Ladies and Junior Divisions, Capt. Adrian Holler on the “Sea Striker” guided Elizabeth Stewart to a 43.8 lb. wahoo and Nathan Watson to a 44.7 lb. fish.
The Wahoo Challenge is a non-profit organization supporting two local beneficiaries—the Crystal Coast Hospice House and the Take A Kid Fishing Foundation. The Tournament’s Board and Director Holly Fletcher wish to thank all who participated for making it another successful year of fundraising for those worthy causes.
