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Monday, July 10, 2000
600 compete for top deep sea fishing prize
Deep Sea Roundup in Port Aransas raised scholarship money for high school students
By Michael Hines
Caller-Times
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| George Tuley/Caller-Times |
| Hunter Marabito, 2, licks his plate clean at the 65th Annual Deep Sea Roundup fish fry at Robert's Point Park in Port Aransas. |
PORT ARANSAS - Glen Belcher, bay/surf fishing champion at this year's Deep Sea Roundup competition, said he brought a secret weapon for this year's event.
"I took my brother," the 56-year-old resident said. "He's a fishing guide, so he knows all the hot spots."
With the help of his 64-year-old brother, Totsy, Glen Belcher was able to net nearly 27 pounds of fish including a 3.4 pound Spanish mackerel.
"It's a pretty big thrill," he said.
And whether they experienced the gill of victory or the agony of defeat, both participants and enthusiasts echoed Belcher's sentiment.
More than 600 participants registered for the 65th annual event held near Port Aransas, which raised scholarship money for Port Aransas High School students. The Port Aransas Boatmen's Association organized the event.
Children could participate in the Piggy Perch, which garnered 340 tackle tykes, but most residents and wranglers were lured to the competitive event. The event featured four categories - bay/shore, offshore, billfish release and fly fishing. Participants said the event offered no money, but plenty of bragging rights.
For fishing folk such as Totsy Belcher, the competition just meant having to bait and see.
"It takes patience, that's all it is," he said. "Patience, patience, patience."
Of course, a little muscle didn't hurt either.
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| George Tuley/Caller-Times |
| The 'future of angling' was how the winners of the piggy Perch Contest were described as they accepted their prizes, a spin cast fishing rod. |
Derrick Johnson, a 40-year-old resident of Spring, caught a 90-pound amberjack, a fish that commonly weighs in at about 40 pounds.
After hooking it, he said the only thing that kept him from being seafood was the harness linking him to the boat.
"It was like hooking a freight train," he said. "You're just physically exhausted afterwards."
Chris Stallings, 38, was part of Johnson's four-man team. He said the size of the fish weren't the only surprises. He caught two different species of fish he'd never come across in nearly 10 years enjoying the sport, including an African pompano.
"That doesn't hardly happen anymore," he said. "I didn't know what they were."
Watching such discoveries was the big draw for John Love, a 47-year-old San Antonio resident. He brought his wife and daughter to see competitors haul in the scaley-tippers.
"It all impresses me. It's not easy catching fish," he said. "You've got to know what you're doing."
For others, however, what got thrown back was even more impressive than what got pulled in.
"People care enough about the fishery to want to keep it going," said Paul Harrison, a 53-year-old who lives in Port Aransas during the summer.
"It's pretty important: We can't just use up everything we have."
That type of respect extended outside the sea and competition as well, other visitors said. Bob Rose, 28, had come from Dallas to watch the event.
No trout about it, he said, the small town sensibility hadn't been lost on the big crowd.
"Being from Dallas, the people aren't very nice," he said. "It's nice to know there are still friendly people in small towns."
Staff writer Michael Hines can be reached at 886-3758 or by e-mail at hinesm@caller.com
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