BILL SARGENT

Sargent: Canaveral boats big winners in Bahamas

Bill Sargent
Special to FLORIDA TODAY

 

 

Port Canaveral's Capt. Ed Dwyer, center, celebrates with friends and crew his "Bear Trap" team's win in the Baker's Bay Invitational at Guana Cay in the Bahamas on May 11-12. In another Bahamas tournament, the Custom Boat Shootout, Canaveral-based teams on the "Plane Simple" and "Wave Paver" finished first and third, respectively.

Teams on three Port Canaveral-based private sportfishing boats racked up the trophies – not to mention some hefty winnings – in a pair of recent big game fishing tournaments in the Bahamas.

For starters, boat owner Jim Jensen of Merritt Island and his team led by Capt. Jimmy Werling on the boat “Plane Simple,” a 70-foot Spencer, scored an impressive first place finish out of a field of 61 boats competing in the May 3-5 Custom Boat Shootout at Abaco. 

The Wave Paver, a big 77-foot Bayliss owned by Junior Davis, a St. Cloud contractor, and under the direction of Capt. Russell Sinclair of Merritt Island, placed third.

Points were awarded for releases of blue marlin, white marlin and sailfish.

Bill Sargent

In its 17th year, an elite fleet of boat owners and captains are invited annually to participate in the all-release, all charity event. Rough seas made this year’s event even more challenging.   

A week later at Guana Cay on May 11-12, Capt. Ed Dwyer of Cocoa and his team on the “Bear Trap,” a 66-foot Spencer owned by John Stout of Chattanooga, Tennessee, took the top spot in the 25-boat field in the Baker’s Bay Invitational out of the Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club.

The “Plane Simple,” also in the Baker’s Bay all-release tournament, added to its good luck with a third-place finish.  

A fourth boat from Canaveral, a 61-foot Garlington owned by Davis and also named the “Wave Paver” with Capt.. Garrett Van Orman, was in the Custom Boat Shootout and finished 18th.

On its way to first place in the three-day Shootout, the “Plane Simple” released four blue marlin, one white marlin and three sailfish, with two of the blues and the white coming on the third day.  

"Plane Simple” team members included Gerry Conell, Robin Barth, Noah Beaman and Tommy Farella.

Conell was named the tournament’s Top Angler with six releases, and Werling received the Top Captain award. 

It was the third Shootout win for Jensen, a principal owner at Satcom Direct, a global communications firm headquartered in Viera.

Davis and Sinclair and their team on the Bayliss Wave Paver scored three blues and one white for its third place finish. The party included John Bayliss, Ryan House, James McNab Jr., Cody Moist and Dough Southworth.  

The boat “Builder’s Choice,” with Capt. Brent Gaskill, placed second with four blues.

Van Orman and his team scored three white marlin and one sailfish but were unable to get the higher-valued blue marlin that brought 400 points compared to 150 for white marlin. Weights of the fish had no bearing on the points system, so there was no need to pull them aboard.

Stout, Dwyer and their team in the Baker’s Bay topped the field by releasing 10 white marlin, each worth 150 points. Seven of the whites came the second day.

“Two years ago we released 11 whites in two days but this was the first time I’ve had seven in one day,” said Dwyer, a veteran captain with over 40 years of big game experience.  

Gary Angel and Bobby Jacobson completed the four-man “Bear Trap” team.

The 85-foot Galati Viking with Capt. Ryan Higgins, a well-known captain from West Palm Beach, finished second.

“Port Canaveral had some winners,” said Skip Smith, a one-time Canaveral captain and tournament organizer under Skip’s Tournaments.

Both tournaments are fundraisers. Proceeds from the Shootout go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, the IGFA, Joe DiMaggio’s Children’s Hospital and other organizations.

Offshore tournaments postponed

Predicted rough seas have forced the postponement of two offshore fishing tournaments at Port Canaveral.

Ed Dwyer’s Otherside Invitational is re-scheduled for June 1-3, with the weigh-in at Canaveral’s Sunrise Marina beginning at 11 a.m. on June 3.

A full field of 25 boats is entered, Dwyer said. It’s the second postponement.

Also, officials of the 33rd-annual Central Florida Offshore Anglers tournament out of Blue Points Marina said its tournament is re-scheduled for May 26. All times and places will remain the same.

The 50th-annual Florida Sport Fishing Association Offshore Tournament out of Port Canaveral (www.offshoreslam.com) and the Sebastian Exchange Club Foundation 25th Blue Water Open Charity Tournament offshore Sebastian Inlet (www.bluewateropen.com) are scheduled for June 2.

Bill Sargent of Melbourne has been writing about sports and outdoor subjects for FLORIDA TODAY for over 49 years. Contact Sargent at sargentwb@gmail.com.