Many shore fishermen, casting endlessly and coming up empty, have been asking, “Where are all the fish?” But only one surfcaster asked, “Where’s my fish?”
Brad Holley was out on Chappy fishing with his buddies last Sunday. Not only was he fishing, but he was catching. He caught and released two small, weighable bluefish. “I had weighed in a little guy (5.38 pounds) on the first day of the Derby, so I’d already checked that box,” said Brad. “People had started to leave the beach. I kept casting.”
Suddenly, a fish hit hard. “I was really amped up. It felt big. It was running. At first I thought it was an albie, but the drag wasn’t albie screaming, more like a big bass. The guy next to me didn’t realize I was on. He cast over me, and his line wrapped around mine on his retrieve. I asked him to pick up his lure so I didn’t step on it,” said Brad, who was barefoot.
Brad’s friend John Piekos was on the beach, and cut the tangled line carefully, without touching Brad’s rod. Brad landed the bluefish. “I was half out of my mind — in a good way,” said Brad, who knew the current Shore Grand Leader weighed 14.81 pounds.
John and Brad measured and weighed the fish immediately. “It was over 15½ on my scale. Everyone wanted to celebrate, but I had to get home to walk my dog. I left the beach. I got all the way to the Chappy parking lot, looked in the bed of my truck, and there’s no fish bag in there. I couldn’t believe it. I headed back to the beach,” said Brad.
As he drove, Brad dialed his friends. “I called Mark Wrabel first. He didn’t answer. I called John. Miraculously, he answered, ‘Bluefish delivery service.’ The first thing I asked him, ‘Did I run over it?’”
Fortunately for Brad, he hadn’t run his fish over. John promised to ice it down and drop it off at Brad’s house.
When Brad went to weigh-in the night of Sunday, Sept. 29, his 15.85-pound bluefish became the new Shore Grand Leader. “It was a great experience all round. My buddies came down to weigh-in, then bought me a drink,” said Brad, who in 30 years of competing in the Derby earned his first-ever First Place Daily and Weekly pins for that big bluefish.
The morning I’m writing this, Oct. 7, Brad caught an 8.44-pound weighable albie. “Every one of my friends asked me if I remembered to bring my fish. They were all so helpful,” Brad said, laughing. “If nothing else, this is a story that will be around for a while — ‘the guy who forgot the fish.’ I forgot the fish, but I won’t forget the day or the experience.”
Julie Tummino was also fishing on Chappy, but she did not leave her fish on the beach. Julie has been on a hot streak. First, she weighed in a 6.93-pound bluefish to earn a first-place daily pin, then she put a 5.09 bonito on the board for a fourth place daily. On Sunday, she caught a 10.02-pound albie to become the first woman to earn a Triple Crown. Julie’s 22.04 pounds puts her in fifth place for the Shore Triple Crown.
“I caught the bluefish on my first cast, right at the end of the cast. With the bonito, it was my second cast of the day. Once again, boom, right at the end of my cast,” said Julie, adding, “That was the first bone I’ve caught in my life!”
“Today, the albie hit on my second cast. Boom! It was fun, fun, fun,” said Julie, who’s been fishing the Derby for about 20 years.
While I’ve been casting for my weighable albie, I’ve enjoyed watching friends and families fishing together. Pretty much every morning, at least the mornings we’re in the same location, I see Curtis LaVigne on the beach with one, if not two, of his daughters. It’s the sweetest sight. And those girls are fishing hard, casting as much as Dad, and catching fish, too.
Last Wednesday morning, I watched Cameron land her leading Junior Shore False Albacore. Cameron, 11, a sixth grader at Edgartown School, handled that 8.57-pound albie like a pro. She got it on the beach, grabbed it by the tail, and held it up for her dad to see. Her smile was contagious.
“The Derby is the best time. Sometimes I like going because it’s a really nice day. Sometimes I like going because I want to catch a fish. Even if you don’t catch a fish, it’s still really fun,” said Cameron, adding, “And I love competition.”
“Cameron is the most decorated Derby fisherman in our household,” said Curtis proudly.
Cameron is the consummate athlete. She fishes, plays soccer, and is on two hockey teams. Hockey is her favorite sport, but she’s focused on the Derby. “I need to land a bonito over 21 inches,” said Cameron, determined to earn her Triple Crown. “I’ll fish every morning before school, and after school if sports get canceled.”
On Wednesday night, Curtis took daughter Evelyn fishing at sunset. Matching her sister’s competitive spirit and good luck, Evelyn snagged a 5.28-pound bluefish to take the lead in the Junior Shore Bluefish division.
“I go fishing pretty much every morning, except Tuesdays and Thursdays when I have band practice,” said Evelyn, 13, an eighth grader who plays the baritone horn.
Evelyn also plays on two hockey teams and a soccer team, and is on the middle school track and field team. “Hockey is my favorite, but I really like fishing too. I’m trying to get to do as many things as possible,” said Evelyn.
Curtis had a moment of Derby glory on the morning of Sept. 24. He caught a 12.25-pound albie that took the Grand Leader position. Curtis’ moment lasted about 12 hours, until Jacob Cordoza weighed in a 14.84-pound albie.
“It was an excellent surprise. The biggest albie I’ve caught. As a fisherman, those are the moments you wait for,” Curtis said.
Saturday was Bonito Super Saturday. If you wanted to win, your name had to be John. John Mooradian has two younger brothers who love the Derby. “They are the Blues Brothers,” said John, who lives in Marblehead.
John drives down on the weekends to fish with his siblings. Last Saturday, John, Paul, and Mark were on the beach casting for bonitos. Mark and John hooked up at the same time. “I knew it was a good fish. It was taking line and going for a run. I thought it was an albie,” said John.
When the brothers got their bonitos on the beach, John’s was bigger. Big enough at 6.02 pounds to win the Shore Super Saturday. “It’s a nice reward for not sleeping much all weekend,” joked John. “It’s the only fish I’ve weighed in this Derby.”
John took home $500 for his win. Part of that money will go into the brothers’ scratch ticket fund. They agreed prior to the start of the Derby to put any daily-win checks into a mutual fund to buy scratch tickets. If they score big on the scratch tickets, “we could get new rods, new reels — who knows, maybe a Van Staal?” said John.
Out on the water, Johnny Graham was fishing with his teammate Joe El-Deiry when he landed a hefty 10.20-pound bonito. “That was an exciting fish for me,” said Johnny. “A big finish to eight days in a row of hard fishing.”
Johnny not only won the Boat Super Saturday with his bonito, but he also moved up to second place in the Triple Crown division, and his team, Who Knew, climbed to third.
“We have so much fun, and that’s what it’s all about,” said Johnny of his years of fishing with Joe. Their team has been onstage numerous times, including a first place in 2013.
Johnny owns Revel Catering and Events. He’s been on the Vineyard seasonally for more than 30 years, and now lives here full-time. He needs to be off-Island for a few days for work, but he’ll be on the water as soon as he’s back. “I’ll be chasing a larger albie,” said Johnny, who’s less than a pound away from first place in the Triple Crown division.
It is October, so don’t forget to enter Octoberfish. Each year, Larry’s Tackle Shop offers a fun competition with great prizes. Stop into the store to register, or simply Venmo your entry fee of $40 with your name to @larrystackle to join.
I hope to see you on the beach or at Derby Headquarters, because we’re weighing in fish.
