Last year Aubrey Warburton won the grand prize car at just 10 years old. This year, at age 11, she is going for the grand prize boat.
With just one week remaining in the 75th Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish derby, Aubrey is leading the boat-caught bluefish division with a 16.39-pound blue.
But anything can happen in a week, especially as the number of fish crossing the scales each day routinely reaches triple digits.
“The amount of fish we’re getting on the weekends, I don’t remember if we’ve ever had this many fish coming in,” said Joe El-Deiry, chairman of the derby committee.
To register, weigh and filet the fish at the rate they’re arriving on weekends takes a tremendous team effort from derby committee members and volunteers from the Martha’s Vineyard Surfcasters Association. “We definitely have a very well oiled machine down there,” Mr. El-Deiry said.
Morning weigh-ins, however, continue to be quieter due to striped bass being out of the derby this year.
“The majority of people we would weigh-in in the mornings would fish throughout the night for stripers,” Mr. El-Deiry said. “You can catch a bluefish at night, but you’re not going to catch a bonito or false albacore at night.”
Derby committee vice-chairman Phil Horton said the competition this year has been intense.
Rounding out the leader board as of Thursday morning are Peter C. Shepardson with a 12.98-pound, shore-caught bluefish; Greg G. Clark’s 12.34-pound, boat-caught bonito; John Thurgood’s 10.48-pound, shore-caught bonito; Stephen W. Luce’s 11.4-pound, boat-caught false albacore; and Rudy S. Sanfilippo’s’ 13.7-pound, shore-caught false albacore.
With the last week of the derby quickly approaching, Mr. Horton said the weigh station has continued to see a good mix of fish coming in.
“This has been spectacular. The weekend is supposed to be great. We’re expecting a great turnout, better than last Columbus Day weekend when the parking lot at headquarters was flooded.”
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