Anyone who was
anyone in St Lucia’s angling elite was there—a sort of fishy Ascot—Bernard
Johnson (of course), Milton McKenzie, Tony Windsor, Bruce Hackshaw, there was
even an appearance from the mayor of Monchy!
Yes, piscatorial
patrons went for July’s Bara Bonanza hook, line and sinker.
First place—and
$1,000—went to captain Tom of Exodus with 157lbs, mostly wahoo. Apparently the
good captain had happened upon a ‘jamb’ where, rumour has it, the wahoo were
enjoying a quiet weekend doing whatever wahoo do under a jamb.
Up came the
Exodus, with its two new engines, and it was a case of ‘oh dear’ for the wahoo.
Further down the
order were Rocky Bluff with 83lbs; Grey Ghost with 80lbs; Xiphius Seeker with
67lbs; and Hack Attack with 51lbs.
Organized by the
St Lucia Game Fishing Association (SLGFA) it was their
first event since a shake up in the
committee.
“We hope to hold
an event every month,” said SLGFA’s vice president Milton McKenzie, “would you
like to buy a membership it’s only $50?”
They’re on a bit of a sales drive, what with
the upcoming October Billfish Tournament and all.
McKenzie took
charge of the weigh-in, behind Le Chalet. The individual boat’s catch was
weighed and . . . kept secret. “If anglers know a competitors weight they won’t
weigh in,” said McKenzie, “they get a little embarrassed.”
A cunning ploy,
keeping it secret and all, especially when the gregarious Bruce Hackshaw bet
him $100 he had the winning weight—he didn’t—but McKenzie could already have
told him that!
Xiphius Seeker had
the biggest snapper I’d seen for a long time, at 15lb it fed half a dozen of us
at Rodney Bay’s Grill ‘n Chill for a couple of hours.
The tournament was
organized by Geoffrey DuBoulay, the former president of SLGFA, he was also
responsible for the the prize money and the $1000 donation to the Game Fishing
Association which will be used to fund future events.
All in all, a
great day out, even taking into account the inclement weather.
As the rain,
whipped by 50 knot winds, lashed against the Xiphius Seeker’s hull, owner Tony
Windsor looked around and said: “You know Brucie, this reminds me of a film.”
“Yeah, I know what
you mean, Outdoor Adventures?”
“No, The Perfect
Storm!”
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