40

sports.

Herald & lantern 22 lure '83

outdoors

with Lou Rodia

For Anglers of Modest Means: Consider Sharks

Sharks has bwn ad<k*d to tho growing list of fish which arc available for Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay anglers On the current list 6f fish pro^ vidmg quality fishing are •bluefish, fluke, weakfish. arid a real smorgasbord for the wreck anglers in eluding sea. bass. ling, blacklist! some porgies and an occasional cod or pollock Now.'add sharks The movie “Jaws'' gave shark fishing as an adVCn ture sport, although sharks

had been recognized for many years as game fish by the International Game Fish Association and they kept world records on

several species

Shark fishing gives anglers of modest means as well as those with af fluence an opportunity to catch big fish at budget prices, from small boats as well as ocean-going sport fishermen since sharks range all the way from the surf to well offshore and in the back bays as well

RDUCiH I.ANDING — After a S'-j-hour battle. Wayne Sommers, of Dennisville right rear, landed this filO-pound tiger shark aboard the Lucky Strike in July I9KI. Hanging at Lou Bachman's Smuggler's Cove dock in Stone Harbor, the M-foot. four-inch shark is flanked by Lucky Strike Captain Walt Hendee. left rear, with crewmen Craig (Mton. front left, and Lee Aydelotte. front right

RODIA’S

BAIT & TACKLE ON RT 4 7 (EAST OF RT 9l E XIT 4A GAROf N STATf PARK WA • LARGEST TACKLE SELECTION CAPE MAY A DEL. BAY INFO.! (609) 886-0505

Delaware Bay has long been recognized as a nursery area for sharks The sharks have become the poorman's marlin, tuna, wahoo and dolphin in many cases THERE ARE OVER 250 kinds of sharks spread over a wide range of water Sharks are throwbacks to a prehistoric age and they are exciting as well as mysterious They are also

RIG.

The biggest on record is the 2fiM pound white shark listed in the IGFA record book It was caught off the coast of Australia on hook and line There are bigger sharks on record as is evidenced by netting catches. sightings andftdead carcasses which wash up on beaches. Shark records are kept for blue, hammerhead, porbeagle, mako, thresher, tiger and white sharks. All are caught off the Jersey Coast Indeed, many of the records in the IGFA book are set right off the Jersey Coast and. lest you who are bathers become alarmed, the chances of encounter ing a shark in the surf are remote. In fact, more people die from bee stings annually than ever from shark bites The threat to bathers can be dismissed with the statistic that there have been only 22 unprovoked shark attacks and nine fatalities in the century which spans 1865 to

1962.

SHARKS, LIKE all big fish, can be dangerous Their very size and their strength make them so. but. then, all big fish fall into that category With sharks, there are additional danger dimensions Sharks have teeth and can and do bile They also have loLs of strength in their tails and a shark thrashing about in the cockpit of a boat offers danger from both ends In addition, their hide is like sandpaper and can strip the skin off any human through a layer or two of khaki Good shark fishermen recognize the

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danger and handle sharks accordingly. A profileration of shark tournaments has followed the interest in sharks which was created by "Jaws.” Most recently, (June 10-12), 84 boaLs boated 98 makos and a number of other sharks in a weekend event from South Jersey Marina in Cape May. Big gest entered was the 655 pound tiger shark caught by Richard Di $anto of Cape May and Nori^stown. Pa. He was fishing aboard the Pipe Dream skippered by Ted Wills Sr. Di Santo’s fish took the honors for the biggest in the tournament and the biggest tiger entered. Frank Pettisani, Jr., of Vineland, won the Mako division with a 361-pounder caught on the family boat Petti Five. A blue shark weighing 156-pounds took the top prize in that division for Joel Jacovitz of Egg . Harbor. Over 300 anglers entered the shark event. ANOTHER SHARK tour nament was set for the past weekend by the Great Egg Harbor Marlin and Tuna Club which was destined to -attract 40 boats Results will be forthcoming On Saturday, June 25, the third annual Nick Miraglilo Memorial Shark Tournament will be held at Angler's Roost in Margate. N.J A 100-boat minimum has been set for entries according to tournament director Charley Zaimes. operator of Angler’s Roost Proceeds from the one-day event will go to the Sunshine Foundation, a Philadelphia charity which provides funds to fulfill dreams for terminally ill children. Entry fee is $100 Ijate entries will be received up to Friday night with a Captains Meeting set at Anglers Roost in Margate A strictly Mako shark tournament, prizes will be awarded for the three big gest, but there will be additional merchandise prizes First prize is $1,500, second is $750, and third is $500 Last year the tournament produced $3,000 for the Seashore Home in Atlantic

City.

ALL OF THIS shark interest and the increase in shark catches raises the next obvious question. What does one do with a big shark after he catches it? Several acceptable alter natives present themselves. One id to release the fish after it ^ tagged for study and research purposes. More and more sharks are being tagged and released The second is to bring in only trophy fish for mounting purposes The third, and most acceptable, is to keep the shark in good con dition (gutted and bled) so it is more than fit for the table. In other words, eat the sharks or see that someone does eat them. That may bother some people, but sharks make great table fare. One of my fishing friends who thinks tripe and sweetbreads are the greatest thing since the wheel, turns his nose up at sharks But then, what does he know’’ We ll drop more information in these columns from time to time on shark fishing tips, and, of course, howi to care for sharks destined for the table

Meanwhile, if you do plan to try shark fishing for the first time, be sure you go with experienced anglers. Take along a local shark ‘pro’ who really does know. Charter a boat for a couple of shark trips before you go in your own boat. Attend a shark clinic. Make some real effort to get some information first before you try. It can be fun, great sport and exciting, but it always is dangerous. FISHING REPORT: Bluefish still remain the best bet for ocean-based anglers because large schools of large bluefish are nearly everywhere and they are being caught in big numbers days by the trollers or by jigging and at night on the chumming boats. Blues range from three to 15 pounds. Some are also being caught in

Delaware Bay.

Weakfish are mixed in with the blues and while some still are being caught in Delaware Bay, a bod- of weaks has sagged down to the mouth of the bay with Somers Shoal and Me Crie's Shoals two of the spots that have generated weakie catches. Some weaks are being caught at Brandywine and 14 foot in and close to the rocks FLUKE, however, have also come on strong. Inland waterway fishing has been

excellent all along the inland waterway from Cape May to Ocean City. Some fluke are being caught in the ocean Fluke catches improved so much off Great Egg Inlet that the Challenger fleet has switched over to fluke fishing. Marge Zaborowski. mother of Capt. Joe Zaborowski of the Challenger, boated a five-pound fluke. Inshore, Grassy Sound from the West Wildwood Drawbridge to Stone Harbor has been producing lots of two and three pound fluke with a few five pounders. Corson’s Inlet and Ludlam's Bay are also producing Two buoys that have been good are No. 48 behind Stone Harbor and No. 9 behind Wildwood. Bottom fishing has been holding up with sortie big blackfish coming off the inshore wrecks Sea bass dominate the catches, but occasional flurries of porgies add a little spice to

the catches

TOURNAMENT WINNER: Bob Lonergan of Up per Darby, Pa., was the winner in the annual Cape Island Yacht Club weakfish tournament Bob was fishing on the Lou Fran north of 14-foot light when he boated his prize-winning 9-pound, 2 ounce weakfish Nineteen club member boats participated in the one-day tournament

STONE HARBOR IH'PI.K ATE BRIDGE CLUB JUNE IJ

2 B<*rr> Williams and Jean V.intilhcrK 3 Marge Everteo and

Ann Ambler EAST and WEST 1 Mr and Mrs Charles Curtis 2 Esther Stobbart and Bill Coan 3 Ruth Reese and Rill Kentner

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