The sun had just climbed above Squibnocket ridge when Lieut. Nathan Rimpf and Senior Airman Emanuel Thompson spotted their first catch of the day.
“Birds,” Mr. Rimpf and Mr. Thompson said simultaneously with the quiet confidence of pros. With a slight nod of the head, the two surmised that a large school of fish weren’t too far away.
Striped Bass And Bluefish Derby
October 3, 2013
Mark Alan Lovewell
The top striped bass keep getting bigger and with two weeks to go in the 68th annual Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby so does the field. More than 2,600 fishermen are registered in the contest and more and more keep showing up.
“I’d be really pleased if we got over 3,000,” said derby chairman John Custer.
The contest ends on Saturday, Oct. 19.
Overall nearly 12,000 pounds of fish have been weighed in as of Thursday morning. Striped bass total 5,300.26 pounds and bluefish total 4,288.88 pounds.
September 30, 2013
Heidi Sistare
At Coop’s Bait and Tackle, about a week before the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby began, owner Cooper Gilkes was telling stories.
September 29, 2013
Remy Tumin
The soldiers and their families will compete in the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby this week.
September 26, 2013
Ivy Ashe
Years ago during the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, Ron Domurat went out shorefishing with his old friend Donald Mohr. The two hit upon a school of false albacore and each hooked a fish at the same time. The fish were twins, Mr. Domurat recalled earlier this week, “down to the hundredth of a pound.” He brought the albies to weigh-in at derby headquarters and as a good friend would, gave the weighmaster Mr. Mohr’s fish first.
September 26, 2013
Mark Alan Lovewell
It seems every day the fish get bigger at the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, now entering its third week. There have been numerous lead changes in all categories. Daniel Hiemer, 40, of Waldeck, Germany, is currently at the top of the bluefish caught from a boat with a 19.69 pounder, the largest anyone has seen in years. The fish is over four pounds larger than last year’s biggest bluefish.
September 23, 2013
Mark Alan Lovewell
The fishermen — and fish — were out in Edgardown’s inner harbor Sunday. But there were no striped bass or bonito on the hooks. Instead, they were casting for menhaden.
The small, oily, inedible fish are prized bait, especially for striped bass. This time of year, when derby fishermen are vying for the largest striped bass, a premium is placed on menhaden.
September 23, 2013
Ivy Ashe
At the derby weigh station, curious onlookers are often just as large a group as the fishermen themselves. Friends and family stop by as catches are brought in, and tourists wander down to the docks to watch the happenings. Sometimes, four-legged friends make appearances.
On Wednesday morning, filet volunteer and committee member David Hearn brought along his four-year-old black Labrador, a handsome (and hungry) pup with the perfect derby name: Scup.
September 19, 2013
Ivy Ashe
The Wednesday night weigh-in at headquarters for the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby appeared to follow a familiar pattern. The first fish of the night was a bluefish, followed by a striped bass, then a bonito. Then came a cooler full of blues, with a striper thrown in for good measure.
September 15, 2013
Mark Alan Lovewell
Seconds after the bell was rung at 8 a.m. Sunday announcing the start of the Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, two fish were carried through the door, lifted onto the scale and recorded on the leader board in the Edgartown harbor weigh-in shack.
September 12, 2013
Ivy Ashe
The shack at the end of Main street in Edgartown lies dormant most of the year. During summer months it is used by the Edgartown Junior Yacht Club. During the winter, it sits empty, a little outpost on the harbor. And for five weeks in the fall, the shack comes alive.
September 12, 2013
Linda Wilson
The gray-shingled shack that sits in front of the
Edgartown Yacht Club in the harbor goes unnoticed by most visitors to the Vineyard, but during the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby it comes to life for four short weeks when fishermen bring their fish in for the morning and evening weigh-ins. Twice each day they come to the derby headquarters and get their fish recorded in the official database.
