2026 Derby delivers the magic

When you woke up Sunday morning, could you feel the excitement in the air? It was 29°F when I opened the door at 5 am, and I almost didn’t mind. We were only a few hours away from the 2026 Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby Awards Ceremony at Farm Neck.

Can you imagine the anticipation rippling through the homes of the six grand leaders, pondering the moment they would be holding a key that might, or might not, open the lock to a custom Derby-themed 2026 Jeep Gladiator Mojave X, donated by Shep and Ian Murray of Vineyard Vines?

I can’t tell you what five of the six people were doing, but I worked alongside David Gerhardt all morning as about 20 of us set up chairs, hung posters, unloaded the prize truck, and created the scene for the awards ceremony. Gerhardt, who was a long way from his home and family in Mandeville, La., was all jokes, with a bit of nervous laughter, shared freely with the many new friends he’d already made.

The Mini Junior and Junior awards were presented in the morning. The highly anticipated key ceremony and adult prizes began at 1 pm. The flyrod division was awarded, then the third- and second-place all-tackle recipients collected their trophies.

The energy notched up as Grand Awards were called. You’d have thought we’d all just seen a pod of albies breaking within casting range.

David Kadison, who has won more Derby awards than I can remember, picked up the first grand leader award for his 10.98-pound boat bonito. In addition to his winning bonito, Kadison took home top prize in all three senior divisions, as well as the Boat Triple Crown and the Boat Team Competition with Joe Thompson. 

I asked Kadison, who has probably run out of wall space for all his Derby plaques, why he fished every possible day, and nearly every hour possible, during the 35 days.

“It’s kind of like an addiction. You can’t stop,” said Kadison. “I look forward to the Derby all year. I schedule my year around it. It’s one of the most fun things in my life.”

When I tell you that Kadison fishes hard, I’m not exaggerating. He heads out before sunrise and often returns after sunset. Every possible day.

Each of his big Derby fish this year was “kind of memorable.” He caught his albie trolling home from a day fishing off Nantucket with his son William. They’d caught and released a few 14-pound albies, but he gave the rod to William more often than not. It was late in the day when Kadison said, “The next fish, I’m reeling in.” And the next fish was the 16.62 albie.

Kadison netted his grand leader bonito on a day he was fishing solo. “There was a school of bunker off the east side of Nantucket. I was trolling. I started reeling in so I could cast-net some bait, and that’s when I hooked the fish,” said Kadison. “It was a really fun day.”

Kadison caught his third-place overall bluefish (17.75 pounds) the day after the leading 21.01-pounder had been weighed in. Kadison and William trolled the waters off Chappy all day. They never caught a fish. As darkness was settling in, “A rod looked like it was all weeded up. I picked it up and started reeling in. All of a sudden — whomp! — I’m on. 

“I was very lucky with all three fish,” said Kadison. “It was a really fun Derby, again.”

The mother-son duo of Angie Fisher and Cameron Maciel each caught their leading fish at Memorial Wharf, and each held onto their lead until the final bell. Maciel took home the Shore Bonito Grand Leader for his 9.13-pound bone. “It ran three times. I thought at first it was an albie. When the head-shaking started, I knew it was a bone,” said Maciel. “He stayed deep. I didn’t put a lot of drag on, so I didn’t lose him. When he got close to the wharf, I knew I needed to get his head up. Then I tightened my drag a bit.

“That fish in the water looked massive. Everyone was like, ‘Oh my God!’” said Maciel, who’d been onstage before, but never as a grand leader.

“I was there when Cam caught his,” said Fisher. “He was like, ‘This is a good one.’”

They both had good ones, though Maciel had just left the wharf when Fisher hooked up on her Shore False Albacore Grand Leader (13.7 pounds). Fisher put in the hours, and didn’t quit until the sun set on the last day. She was out on Chappy on Saturday, trying to catch a big blue to up her triple crown weight. She landed one, a hefty guy at 15.13 pounds, which moved her into second place for the Shore Triple. Angie also won the Janet Messineo Award, donated by Steve London. “I got a hint about it [Saturday] night, but it was a surprise,” said Angie.

I don’t know how many times family members have shared the grand leader stage, but it was pretty darn awesome seeing Fisher and Maciel onstage together for their shore fish. The audience chatter was definitely hoping one or the other would win the Jeep.

Keeping it all in the Fisher family, one of my most fin-tastic memories occurred during the final week of the Derby, when David Gerhardt landed the biggest bluefish any of us had ever seen during our charter aboard Capt. Sandy Fisher’s boat, Cuyler Grace. While David spent a few nervous days watching the leaderboard to see if anyone would beat his 21.01-pound blue, those of us who had seen many bluefish before doubted a bigger one would be caught.

Bruce Dew and Sherry Countryman both held onto their leads to claim a grand leader prize, Dew for his massive 19.91-pound shore bluefish, and Countryman for her Derby and state record 19.91-pound false albacore. 

The grand leaders posed for a few group pictures, then were asked to take a seat and wait patiently for the key ceremony while the 2026 Special Awards were presented. I’m fairly certain Buddy D’Agostino had the best time during the Specials. D’Agostino’s a badass veteran who fishes hard, smiles wide, and laughs loudly and often. I think his picture is in the dictionary to define the word “fun.” 

For someone who’d never been on the Derby stage before, D’Agostino wore a hole in the proverbial red carpet during six trips to the stage. Yes, six! He won third place in the Shore Bluefish division with a 18.53-pound gator, finished third (31.4 pounds) in the Shore Triple Crown behind Jay Harrison (34.65 pounds) and Fisher (34.43 pounds), and he and his Paw Paws teammate Rich Mann won the Shore Team Competition (53.4 pounds). 

D’Agostino accepted the Abe Williams Memorial Award for being the first angler to record a shore triple crown. In two final special moments, D’Agostino won the Roland Perreault and Huff Langley Memorial Award, which is awarded at random to a third-place shore winner, but meant so much to D’Agostino, as his “Derby Mom” Sherry Ann Mele donated the award years ago. For the pièce de resistance, D’Agostino and his brother and best friend Tony, also a veteran, received the David Furino Memorial Award for siblings who show determination and sportsmanship. “Definitely one of the most memorable moments,” said D’Agostino of the award with Tony.

Mann and D’Agostino weighed in the two first fish of the Derby, respectively. “After weighing in that small blue, I landed the albie,” said D’Agostino, who had gone up to Lobsterville Beach the next day in search of his bonito. 

“Rich gave me a rod for Father’s Day that says ‘Paw Paw’ on it. I’m his son’s godfather. Then I pulled out a pink Maria [lure] that Jim Wareing gave me. On the third cast, I landed a bone.”

D’Agostino and Mann each had to travel home for family and work at different points during the Derby. When they were on-Island, they were sleeping in their trucks and fishing every minute they could. On Oct. 13, D’Agostino landed that 18.53-pound bluefish. Mann knew he needed something bigger than his 14 to nudge his team into first place. 

On the second to last day of the Derby, Mann kept casting until the miracle happened. He felt the hit, and never let go. When he got the 16.52-pound blue to the beach, he shouted, “I did it. I did it! We’re going to be first.” 

“Last year, we finished 12th. We set a goal to be in the top 10. Who knew we would be first?” said D’Agostino. No one knew, but the cheers when they won could be heard throughout Oak Bluffs.

This year, the Martha’s Vineyard Surfcasters Association’s Sportsmanship Award hit close to home for most of the Derby’s shore anglers. We have seen the shrinking of the Island’s beach access due to erosion, homeowners, and legal battles. 

John Custer began the award presentation by reading, “The definition of sportsmanship is the quality of showing fairness, respect, and generosity toward the opposing team or player and the game itself when competing. Because of these qualities, the Surfcasters would like to recognize this entire family for working with the Trustees to restore OSV access through their property to Wasque, for being unselfish, and showing generosity.”

When Custer announced, “Rick Schifter and his family,” the crowd rose to their feet in resounding applause and cheers. Many of us had tears in our eyes and hearts overflowing with gratitude.

It’s a Jeep thing

It was time. The six grand leaders were called back to the stage. Derby Treasurer Chris Reed held a bucket of badges with numbers from one to six above anyone’s line of vision. Our grand leaders reached in and each pulled out a badge.

Fisher picked No 1. Kadison was second, Countryman third, Dew fourth, Gerhardt fifth, and Maciel completed the order of keys.

Derby Chairman Joe El-Deiry passed a bucket containing envelopes which contained keys — five random keys, and one magic key. Angie Fisher drew first and kissed her envelope. Like his mom, Cam Maciel kissed the envelope, then shot his hands in the air, to the cheers of the crowd.

When the tent grew quiet, Custer called Fisher forward and held out his hand for her key. He opened the envelope, said, “For a new Jeep Gladiator Mojave,” and inserted Fisher’s key into the lock. The audience gave a collective “Aw!” when the lock remained closed. Tension built as the next three keys were duds.

We were down to the final two: Gerhardt, visiting the Vineyard for the first time from New Orleans, and Islander and crowd favorite Maciel.

Gerhardt stepped forward and passed his key to Custer, hands shaking, and a hush fell over the crowd. The key turned, and the loudest “click” echoed across the tent. Gerhardt, with his first Derby fish and his only weighable fish, won the best Derby grand prize ever.

Gerhardt immediately thanked his friends Kevin and Leigh Lord. The night before, a group of us were out to dinner, passing time before the final Derby bell sealed Gerhardt’s victory. Leigh, who had predicted Gerhardt’s win the minute she heard he’d agreed to the trip, never wavered. “I have faith,” she stated simply yet firmly to all of us. 

When Kevin Lord began to plan his three- to-five-year transition to retirement, he knew exactly who he wanted to bring in. “I’ve known David since he got out of college. We worked for the same company. He was a sales guy, and I was an engineer. We stayed in touch,” he said. “David started part-time in January and came on full-time in August.”

Kevin invited his new partner to the Vineyard for business and fishing. They fished in the morning, and then those of us on the beach would watch them drive away to go back to the Lords’ rental and actually work.

“Best business fishing trip I have ever had,” said Gerhardt. 

The winning bluefish and the truck will be shipped to Gerhardt in Louisiana. Gerhardt and Lord took the fish to Larry’s Tackle Shop and put it in their freezer. After discovering there was no dry ice to be found on Martha’s Vineyard, the Lords and the team at Larry’s packaged the frozen fish in ice packs and took it to the Edgartown Mail Room. 

Gerhardt and “Big Bluey,” as Gerhardt’s daughters Greta and Liza named the fish, left the Island on Monday. Gerhardt arrived home that day. Bluey would arrive on Wednesday, Oct. 21, by 10 am, and will be going to a taxidermist for a skin mount.

The Jeep Gladiator, nicknamed “Vinny” for Vineyard Vines, is being shipped as well. “I talked with Mike [Delbuono] at Premier [Jeep],” said Gerhardt. “He has a truck coming this direction in the next couple of weeks.”

I’m looking forward to seeing pictures of Gerhardt and his family in Vinny, and of Big Bluey proudly hanging in their home. My gosh, what an incredible story!

Kids reel in big awards

Hours before the famous key ceremony and the plethora of adult awards, the juniors and mini juniors filled the Derby tent with a special kind of excitement — the kind of excitement that is wrapped in awe, in parents’ and grandparents’ pride, and in the wide-eyed joy of a child doing something super, super cool.

The Mini Junior divisions were called first, and let me tell you, these little anglers were beyond adorable. Tucker Schaefer weighed in the heaviest mini junior fish, his first-place 18.11-pound boat bluefish. Tucker also took second in the Boat False Albacore, behind Calvin Stedman, with his 9.28-pound albie, and took second in the Mini Junior Boat Triple Crown behind Calvin.

The night before, the delightful Tucker was at the final weigh-in. He met Gerhardt and exclaimed, “You’re that guy!” When the clock struck 9 pm, Mike Cassidy passed Tucker the official Derby bell. Tucker grinned and rang that bell for everyone in Edgartown to hear. 

On Sunday, he was still wearing his pin-covered Derby hat. I asked him how many fish he caught, and Tucker removed his hat and started counting. “Every fish I caught I got a pin, except one. I weighed in the 18.11 bluefish after I hat-tricked,” Tucker stated like a pro. 

Tucker, who’s been fishing the Derby since he was 4, let me know, “This is my last year as a mini. Right now, I’m 8. My birthday is tomorrow.” 

When I asked Tucker what his goal was for his first year as a junior, he immediately replied, “Get a pin.” I have full confidence we’ll see Tucker’s name on the board next year.

And 6½-year-old Clifton Colby dominated the Mini Junior Shore division, catching the first-place shore albie (8.27 pounds), and the second-place shore bluefish (9.32 pounds), and winning the Mini Junior Shore Triple Crown with 21.66 pounds over Caleb Edwards (19.26 pounds). 

This was Clifton’s third year fishing the Derby. Last year he won first place for his shore bonito. I asked him what his favorite catch was this year. “The albie, because it was my first albie ever. It probably ran for 10 minutes. Zzzzzz!” said Clifton, imitating the sound of his line peeling, and then adding, “I couldn’t feel my hands.”

Sam Dubin was the only junior who managed to catch an albie from shore. Sam caught his albie during the first week of the Derby, and then spent four weeks waiting to see if any other shore junior would beat him. No one did. Sam’s 7-pound fish earned him first place Junior Shore False Albacore. “It feels great,” said Sam, who’s fished the Derby five years in a row. 

Sam shared that he caught his albie on a white epoxy. Where, you ask? “At West Chop. It’s my lucky spot,” Sam said. 

Latham Kurth clinched first place in the Junior Shore Bonito division with his 5.82-pound fish caught on Sunday at the start of the second week. “This is my first award from shore. It feels good,” Latham said. 

Latham, 11, was fishing on the Menemsha jetty. “The guy in front of me got a hit, then I cast out and hooked up right away,” said Latham, who finished third in 2023 in the Mini Junior Boat Bonito division. “This fish felt a lot bigger and had more fight.”

Latham, with his dad Ryan, mom Katie, and sister Gryphon, also won the Beaulieu/Loud Memorial Award for families who fish together.

Christian Fisher, like his Aunt Angie, Cousin Cameron, and Dad Sandy, carried on the winning family streak in the junior division. He dominated the junior boat division, taking third with his bonito (6.64 pounds), second for his bluefish (16.42 pounds), and third for his albie (14.64 pounds), and winning the Junior Boat Triple Crown. 

Joe El-Deiry said it best: “Most notably, this was the year of the Fisher family. They left their prints all over the leaderboard. Angie Fisher held onto the lead with her 13.79 shore false albacore. Her son Cameron Maciel reeled in a leading 9.13-pound shore bonito. Then there was Christian Fisher in the junior division, [who] took home two third-place awards as well as a second-place finish, and came in first in the Boat Triple Crown. And Christian’s dad Sandy Fisher took out David Gerhardt, along with a few friends, and found that monstrous 21.01-pound boat bluefish.” 

Every adult milling about Farm Neck had a child, or multiple children, they knew and were cheering just a tad louder for. I, too, had a special place in my heart for a few prize-winners. I cheered and whooped when Hunter Creanga stood onstage to collect her third-place plaque for a 5.08-pound shore bonito, which was her first-ever weigh-in.

I hooted and hollered when Luke Stobie accepted third place for the 14.22-pound shore bluefish he landed on the last day of the Derby. Dave Balon and I were on Chappy catching big blues and enjoying the afternoon bite when we heard the shouts down the beach. Within minutes, the news traveled from one truck on the beach to the next that Luke had landed a big fish. Way to go, Luke! I cheered again when David Pothier received second place for his 14.70-pound shore bluefish. 

My most enthusiastic clapping and cheering occurred during the Junior Boat Bluefish division. My buddy Cole Metell, who’d gone out on Tenacious with us the week before and reeled in a 15.20-pound bluefish, held onto third place. When Cole stepped onto the stage, the world felt momentarily perfect. 

As I took in the morning crowd, I thought, The future of the Derby, the future of Island conservation, and the future of fishing on the Vineyard is running, playing, and cartwheeling over the blades of emerald grass within and around the celebration area. The Derby fuels children’s love of fishing, and it’s a wonderful thing to see. 

Just when you thought the kids’ ceremony couldn’t become more memorable, we heard the most special announcement: the Derby Kids’ Day will now and forever be the Cooper and Lela Gilkes Kids’ Mini Derby. The crowd cheered, and I’m willing to bet that nearly everyone in attendance has been helped by Coop and Lela, or they know someone who has.

So here we are, another Derby in the books. I woke up at 4:30 am on Monday morning, was about to layer up, when reality hit. I didn’t have to race up to Lobsterville to get a parking spot. This was not necessarily a comforting thought.

Thank God for OctoberFish and the fall run. I may not be strategizing daily, but I’ll be out there on the weekends and a few sunrises and sunsets until the fish have headed south.

I hope to see you on the beach, layered up, but hopeful for one more tug on the line.