WHEN "LUCK" MEETS "PREPARATION"

The epic 2004 Braid Products Excel trip that scored 41 Tuna over 200 pounds was not an accident. It was the rare opportunity when “luck” meets “preparation.” I know this because I was there - and prepared!

My 8 year journey began, and nearly ended, in 1998 when my first trip to the Revillagigedos Islands produced an unplanned, pre-dawn swim courtesy of an 80-pound Clarion Island yellowfin. The search for my first 100-pound tuna ended in a lesson in balance and the importance of checking your drags.

My second trip to the Islands, found me attached to a 600-pound black marlin that had the audacity to die on me right in the middle of a wide open 100-pound tuna bite. That time I learned about stamina and determination and was finally inducted into the “100 Pound Tuna Club.”

Once home, I hired a trainer who developed a workout to prepare me for the strength and endurance required to stand up to these fish. Four weekly workouts were added to my trip preparation. The next two trips to the Islands produced fish up to 154 pounds but those elusive “cow tuna” still avoided my hook.

My real dream was to fish on the Excel with the expert anglers featured in Big Boat, Big Fish but I hadn’t been able to get beyond the wait list. The Braid 17-day Charter group had been so successful catching big fish at the Islands for 12 consecutive years, that it was virtually a closed charter. My opportunity came when the Islands closed and several spots opened up.

I was apprehensive at first because I knew my angling skills just didn’t match up. However, that was exactly why I wanted to fish next to these experts: to learn what made them succeed.

In the months leading up to the trip, I received calls from Dennis Braid and several of the passengers. Their goal was to ensure that I had the right equipment to fish these giants. “Do you have balloons? You need Eagle Claw 2004 Circle hooks and they need to be ringed. Get yourself a PL68 Blue and White Jig and weld two large “J” hooks on it. How many top shots do you have?”

It didn’t take long for me to realize that these passengers were more than individual anglers competing for big fish honors; they were a fishing community angling for the greater success of all the passengers on the boat. A boat plugged with 200-pound tuna was the goal and the proper preparation of this “community” (of which I was now a part) was the key. The Excel’s Captain and crew are the life blood of this community and Shawn Steward and his crew prepare for these trips every day they are on the water.

What do I need balloons for? What’s a top shot? And how do I get rings on my hooks? Tim Turis was my guide through this big fish jargon. He made arrangements for Kenny Cirks to give me a lesson in welding rings on hooks and told me to buy my top shots from Basil Pappas. Jim Carlisle took me under his wing in the rod building department. Then Tim gave me a tackle list and assured me I would be ready by the time we got to the fishing grounds.

By the time I got on the Excel, I had ringed my own hooks, welded two hooks on my PL68 jig, made myself a Calstar 655XH tuna rod, bought balloons and top shots and prayed I would know what to do with them. That was Thanksgiving 2002.

Three fish over 170 pounds was the result: one fish on bobber balloon with a ringed circle hook at 170 pounds and two fish on that PL68 jig, one at 176.3 and the other at 189.9. Still no cows, but all three tuna were my largest to-date. True to his word, Tim made sure I was prepared by the time we made it to Hurricane Bank. The crew (all superb fishermen themselves) had given seminars in crimping, knots and fishing techniques. Dennis Braid had made sure my harness was properly adjusted to my new tuna rod; Basil had taught me how to use and make my own top shots; and Tim had instructed me in the proper method to fish the bobber balloon. Tim also reminded me that time at the rail and perfection in connections was essential. Then he told me another secret to the success of this group: “Friends don’t let friends fish 60-pound line.”

Luck and preparation came together for me in 2003 and I caught my first yellowfin tuna over 200 pounds. Then I proceeded to catch my second and third 200-pound tuna the same day! Shawn Steward, the Excel’s captain, found the fish around the lower banks off the Baja coast in calm seas and sunny skies. No anchor lines, sharks or junk fish to spoil our catch. It was the trip of a lifetime and we were sure it would never be repeated. I caught 7 other fish from 150 to 191 pounds during the trip but none larger than my three cows the biggest of which topped out at 215 pounds. That 2003 Braid trip returned to the docks with 34 tuna over 200 pounds and 1 tuna over 300 pounds.

The 2004 trip departed with modest expectations and much reminiscing of the “2003 Trip of a Lifetime.” 2004 was quite different in all ways but one – the catch.

We fished Hurricane Bank on the anchor in rough seas with overcast skies and wet conditions. Although the conditions were less than pleasant, the fishing was perfect. These tuna ate everything. 200-pound tuna boiled on the corner and ate sardines strung like beads on a 7691 hook as if they were candy. Schools of approaching skipjack were met with flying Braid Betta Baits and within two minutes, a skipjack was landed, put on a hook, thrown back over the side and turned into another 200-pound fish. Drop a chunk over the side and watch a 200 pounder roll on it 10 feet under the surface. Rubber baits? Try a yummy flyer under a helium balloon or dropped deep with a sinker. Day or night, they all worked. Preparation landed me a 217 from a skipjack and a 237 from a sardine.

All but two passengers came home with a “cow” and Tim Turis nailed four tuna over 200 pounds and released more than 20 fish over 150 pounds. It couldn’t have happened to a better person. Who else would stand at the rail catching skippies and hand them out to waiting anglers?

When Shawn Steward brought the Excel back to Fisherman’s Landing in 2004 with 41 tuna over 200 pounds, he had skippered the legendary Excel into the record books two years in a row by plugging the boat with “Cow” tuna. Now that’s what happens when “Luck” meets “Preparation.”

THE EXCEL BRINGS THE COWS HOME AGAIN!

It happened on another Braid sponsored charter aboard the beautiful Excel Sportfishing vessel. This time it was on a 10-Day trip better known for the variety of it’s’ catch than the size. This is not to say that variety of species was forsaken, however, it may have been overshadowed by the 14 yellowfin tuna from 156.7 to 278.7 pounds that hit the deck. Seven of these fish were over 200 pounds, classifying them as “cows” and all seven were landed by passengers who had yet to land a fish over 100 pounds.

The Excel crew ensured the passengers were armed with 200# leaders on 100# main line spooled on 2 speed reels. Captain Shawn Steward made sure we filled the deck boxes with lively mackerel during our nighttime bait making in Magdalena Bay. Shawn employed a slide rotation where 5 passengers would slide back a live mackerel on a 9/0 Eagle Claw 2005 hook (sending the hook through the lower jaw up through the nose) as we approached the school of tuna. “Let ‘em have it” meant that brails of bait were thrown over the side which caused 200 to 300 pound tuna to clear the water as they pounced on the unsuspecting baits. Those lucky enough to be on the slide team with baits in this mix hooked their trophy.

The largest fish to date was a 60 pound tuna for fishing buddies Tim Turner and Jim Barker. Both skipped the 100 pound category and went straight to the 200 pound class tuna with a 216.6 and a 202.7 pound yellowfin. Bill Siddall landed a tough 233.1 pound tuna on a day that we suffered with rough seas and 5 tuna over 200 pounds lost to chew throughs, hook pulls, tail abrasion, and spectra breaks. Blessed with calmer seas, Craig Arnold, Chiang Chun and Mike Lovelle landed their 227.2, 255.4 and 205.7 pound cows securing 1st in the Jackpot for Craig and 3rd for Mike. Second place went to Tim Turner. Chiang’s fish didn’t qualify for jackpot because he had the crew land his fish as he didn’t have the proper harness for the fight.

Variety did bless this trip too. Limit style fishing on 28 to 30 pound yellowfin tuna was found on the ridge. Ravenous 18 to 30 pound yellowtail also bit jigs, fly lined bait, and dropper loops. Dorado sporadically joined the mix putting on aerial displays of yellow and blue neon sights. Wahoo, a favorite at this time of year, also hit the deck. The wahoo this year were brutes easily hitting the 60 to 80 pound category.

As if that wasn’t variety enough, we also had a school of 30 to 50 pound squid eat the jigs during the day! Imagine a squid pulling drag on a Trinidad spooled with 50 pound line. We had a whale shark bask in the starboard lee of the boat and a sea turtle with barnacles swim down the port side. Ever see 6 grouper chase a hooked skipjack to the surface? Quite the sight! Guess what we did with that skipjack? Yep, we put it on a hook and dropped it to the bottom. We ended up catching 12 grouper that weighed between 30 and 80 pounds that day. And we even made a couple drifts for Reds one morning. What more could you ask from a 10 day trip? “Good weather,” you say. Well we had that too with the exception of the one day with 18-20 knot winds and rough seas; it was warm, balmy weather with calm seas and beautiful sunrises and sunsets.

Dennis Braid sponsored another release contest and the competition was fierce. Tim Turner and Ger Steinberg were within one fish of each other until the last day. There were 148 taggable fish released on this trip. No fish less than 10 pounds qualified. Out of the 148 fish released, 28 were released by Tim and 35 by Ger; thereby earning Ger the coveted crystal tuna. Congratulations Ger!

PICTORIAL OF BRAID TEN-DAY ON THE EXCEL