It was a family affair on the Edgartown harbor Sunday morning, when longtime participants, volunteers and newcomers looked on with anticipation as the 79th Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby officailly got under way. Often called the Island’s fall classic, the fishing derby runs until Oct. 19.
The first fish to cross the scale at derby headquarters on Sunday was caught by Tom Neadow, a bluefish weighing in at 5.98 pounds. Mr. Neadow said he had landed the blue at 12:10 a.m. Sunday, ten minutes after the derby began.
The first weigh-in was at 8 a.m., and Mr. Neadow was there, having parked his cooler out front half an hour earlier.
He’s fished the derby for eight years but has never been the first to weigh in a fish.
“It’s more than just fishing for me,” Mr. Neadow said. “I remember being really small with my dad and having moments of pure serenity, on the beach fishing with him, and he goes off about a mile down the down the beach, and I remember looking up at the stars, seeing every star in the universe and just being in that moment.”
The derby contest includes three types of fish: bluefish, false albacore and bonito.
Striped bass were removed from the competition in the fall of 2020 and remain out of the derby again this year — a conservation effort aimed at helping preserve the species. Bass were taken out of the derby once before, in 1985, and later allowed back in when it was thought that the species had recovered.
Week one has been going well, according to derby president John Custer. More than 2,000 anglers have registered, with the derby committee hoping to reach 3,000 by the end of the five-week contest. An array of prizes are handed out in an array of categories throughout the derby. At the end grand prizes for the largest fish caught include a new boat.
Mr. Custer said fishing conditions have been favorable.
“There’s been some really nice fish so far weighed in, which is pretty cool,” he said. “The weather’s been good. People are out fishing and people seem happy, and we’re thrilled with that.”
For the Neadows, the derby has become a centerpiece of family life. Kelly Neadow and the couple’s two children, McCabe and Daisy, joined Mr. Neadow at the weigh in on the sunny Sunday morning. The couple first met when Ms. Neadow was volunteering at the derby.
“I tell [Kelly] all the time, fishing is like my yoga,” Mr. Neadow joked.
Derby legend Janet Messineo rang the opening bell Sunday, marking her 46th derby. She may not be fishing anymore, but her love for the way the derby brings the community together runs as deep as the Vineyard Sound.
“Bringing people fishing and seeing them catch their first fish,” Ms. Messineo said. “That’s better than me catching a fish.”
Mr. Neadow is among the many participants who choose to donate their fish to the derby fillet program, which distributes the fish to Island Grown Initiative and Island senior centers. The fillet program has been part of the derby since its early days.
“It’s always been sort of a quiet part of the derby that I always like to promote more,” Mr. Custer said. “It’s a really important part of what we do, and we’re grateful for the fishermen to donate and catch, and we, in turn, fillet it and take good care of it. The program is something that we’re all really proud of.”
Cooper Gilkes, a longtime derby participant and owner of Coop’s Bait and Tackle in Edgartown, said his approach to the derby has changed as he’s gotten older.
“When I first started, the derby was hot and heavy,” Mr. Gilkes said. “A lot of competition going strong every night, not knowing my name by the end of the derby. But now, getting old and mellowed out, I enjoy it. I get up every morning, go down, watch the sun come up, catch fish if I’m lucky, come back home, and I look forward to running the shop and meeting the people.”
Giving back to the Vineyard community is at the core of the derby’s mission. Every year money from registration fees and sponsorships goes toward a scholarship program for graduating seniors at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School.
“What this derby does for the kids on the Island, there’s no ifs ands or buts about that,” Mr. Gilkes said. “It’s just incredible for the kids going to college and setting them up [for success]. It makes me very proud.”
On a foggy Tuesday evening, Dan Skannell was all smiles at weigh-in. After fishing the derby for 22 years, he caught his first fish, a bonito weighing 4.67 pounds.
“The best part [of the derby] is doing it with friends. It’s like family, the people you meet with,” he said. “All the guys were so supportive. They kept lying to me and said, ‘this was the year,’ but it was nice of them to do that. It’s been great. It’s for a great cause.”
For Mr. Neadow and many others, the derby goes beyond the adrenaline rush of catching a fish.
“[The derby] is something that I respect and I love, and I have a passion for it,” he said. “It’s such a huge part of Island history. I don’t think a lot of people know how important this thing is for some people. It’s definitely really special.”
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