Trash talkin’

Team Talkin’ Trash lays down the smack with a 40-pound, 10-ounce kingfish on day one in Mayport

MAYPORT, Fla. – As predicted, the bite was tough on day one of the Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour event out of Mayport, Fla., with only 66 of 104 teams weighing in a king mackerel. At the top of the leaderboard is Team Talkin’ Trash with a weight that will get people talking indeed. With Capt. Mike Edwards of Wilmington, N.C., at the helm, Talkin’ Trash brought in a 40-pound, 10-ounce kingfish that leads the field by more than 9 pounds.

Looking good for the rest of the competitors is a thumbs-up from the Coast Guard – at least for now – regarding competition tomorrow. The sketchy forecast called for thunderstorms Friday that would grow worse Saturday, but the storms never materialized today, and the expected conditions on day two currently appear to be safe for fishing.

The would-be stormy skies today instead remained bright and sunny, with some competitors reporting calm seas and others bemoaning rough, long rides. Said Team Sake’s Danny Marsocci, who made a long run southward, “All these people saying it was calm didn’t run that far south first thing in the morning.”

Also disputed was the state of the bite – for most, it was a long, slow fishing day, with hits coming few and far between. For others, it was on from the first cast. For Talkin’ Trash, it was a tough day, but the effort – and prayers – paid off.

“It was a good day today – one strike, one fish,” Edwards said. “The weather was good, and we were able to catch some bait. We were starting to pray that we’d get a good one, and the line went off.”

Edwards reported the team caught their king between 11 and 12 o’clock this morning, and they caught it on a goggle eye about 15 feet deep.

“We prefished the area for a couple of days, and it looked promising,” he said. “We were on the beach, and we ran about 30 miles (to the area).”

Edwards admits that under normal conditions, a 40-10 wouldn’t hold up to be the winner after two days of competition, but with tomorrow’s weather and fishing conditions up in the air, it just might. As for Talkin’ Trash, Edwards said it was more a matter of luck that landed them on top today.

“We were in the right place at the right time,” he said. “We just got a lucky bite.”

Banks leads Bonnie B VI to second

With a 31-pound kingfish on day one, Team Bonnie B VI with Capt. James Banks of Summerville, S.C., took second place behind Talkin’ Trash. Banks reported their fish came as a surprise to them after a relatively sluggish practice.

“It’s better than prefishing,” Banks said of today’s competition. “We finally found some, and we were really happy.”

Banks said they caught their king on ribbonfish. “We took out two dozen and didn’t bring any back,” he said of their productive bait.

No doubting they’re in third

No Doubt, headed by Capt. Trae Ross of Oxford, Ga., took the No. 3 spot on day one with a kingfish weighing 30 pounds, 10 ounces. While bringing in one of the day’s heaviest fish was certainly a plus, it was the only bright spot in No Doubt’s day after engine and steering failure.

“I’d like to say we meant to be where that fish was, but it was just luck,” said team member W.D. Roddeffer. “We lost an engine, and that changed our mind as to where we were going. Some days I’d rather be lucky than good.”

Roddeffer reported that No Doubt caught their king on a double pogie in 40 feet of water at about 9:30 this morning. In doubt, though, is their likelihood of fishing tomorrow with their mechanical troubles.

“We’re going to reevaluate,” Roddeffer said.

Sake to ya

Okeechobee, Fla.’s Neil Nix captained Team Sake to a fourth-place day-one run with a 30-pound, 1-ounce kingfish. According to team member Danny Marsocci, the end result was a labor of love involving a very long and bumpy ride down south.

“That was the first fish that bit this morning,” Marsocci said. “We didn’t start fishing until 11. I thought we were going to catch one a lot bigger.”

Marsocci said their king was caught on ribbonfish 60 feet deep, and he said their hot bite on day one could falter if the storms roll in tomorrow.

“It’s going to be a little tougher tomorrow,” he said. “We had a good bite today. We fished two and a half hours and had fish on the whole time.”

Barbra Ann rockin’ and a reelin’

Team Barbra Ann with Capt. John Adcox at the helm brought in a 29-pound, 1-ounce kingfish to land in the fifth spot on day one. Capt. Adcox and his wife-teammate, Barbra Ann herself, had it pretty easy this tournament – they’re Jacksonville, Fla., residents with a home just behind the boat ramp.

Barbra Adcox described their excursion today as a “fair day, rough day,” noting they caught two kingfish with the heaviest succumbing on a goggle eye on a deep line at 35-foot depths.

“I think it’s an advantage to us,” she said of their local knowledge. “We feel it in other places. It’s tougher on us.”

Adcox said their team fished south today and caught the 29-pounder at around 9:30 this morning. She, too, was surprised by the day’s lasting sunshine. Nevertheless, that didn’t alter the fact that the fishing was not so bright.

“It’s been slow, but it’s beautiful,” she said. “All the talking we were hearing on the radio was saying it was slow.”

Competition continues tomorrow with a 7 a.m. takeoff. Anglers will launch their boats from Harbortown Marina, located at 13846 Atlantic Blvd. in Jacksonville. The winner will be determined Saturday by the heaviest fish caught during two days of competition.