HALIBUT DERBY FEATURE REPORT

BOOTY AND ‘BUTS MAKE INAUGURAL WON/YAMAHA JUST FOR THE HALIBUT DERBY A SMASH HIT AMONG ALL PARTICIPANTS BY BRADLEY SCHWEIT/WON Staff WriterPublished: Jun 04, 2009

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DANA POINT — The idea was simple — to create a fun, no-nonsense fishing event that would cost little to enjoy and also offer ample prizes for everyone participating. Generally speaking, however, cheap entry fees are rarely synonymous with generous prize packages. Leave it up to Western Outdoor News to answer the call with the inaugural WON/Yamaha Just for the Halibut Derby based out of Dana Wharf Sportfishing.     But it wasn’t merely a negligible entry fee (a meager $25) and expansive sponsor list (Rancho Leonero, Lowrance, Cal Star, Avet, Costa Del Mar, Plano, Seaguar, Berkley, Spiderwire, Big Hammer, Owner and Woody Wax to name a few) that attracted halibut chasers to the event, but rather a basic, no-strings-attached format in which private boaters, kayakers, sport boat fishermen and even shore anglers would have an opportunity to earn a slice of the prize pie.     “Realizing that this has been a tough spring for everyone, we created the Just for the Halibut Derby to allow anglers of all types to fish and compete when they chose to, all for a very low entry fee,” remarked WON’s Director of Sales & Marketing, Chuck Buhagiar. “Thanks to our generous sponsors, this year’s inaugural event was a huge success, with five anglers sweeping the top ten spots and taking home a combined prize value of over $20,000! Not bad for a $25 investment…”     After shelling out the measly $25, participants headed to their favorite halibut haunts throughout the month. Some opted to board sport boats, while others preferred the freedom and mobility of smaller private vessels or even kayaks. Some never left terra firma. And while success in the derby seemed to have a direct correlation to local knowledge, because the event was a month-long tournament, anglers could fish as many or as few times as they chose. Thus, if you fared poorly one day, there was always tomorrow.     The WON/Yamaha Just for the Halibut Derby was all about fun, and freedom to fish whenever and wherever anglers wanted. Of course, there was, as in any tournament format, an inherent competitive nature, but it truly brought out the best in all of the participants.     Anglers fished hard and were rewarded handsomely for their efforts. Everyone finishing in the top ten slots received a prize package including a trophy plaque, Cal Star GG1967 series rod, Avet SX series MC casting reel, Costa Del Mar sunglasses, Plano tackle box, Lowrance handheld GPS unit, Seaguar fluorocarbon line, Berkley Saltwater Gulp baits, Berkley Big Game fishing line, Spiderwire braided fishing line, Big Hammer lures, $100 worth of Owner saltwater hooks, and Woody Wax. Not to mention first place in the derby also earned a trip for two to Rancho Leonero valued at over $1,000, including all accommodations and a day of fishing.     As WON’s Advertising & Sales Director, Chuck Buhagiar, mentioned above, there were indeed a handful of anglers who cleaned up at the inaugural event.     One such ‘but chaser was Herbert Preslie of Dana Point. Preslie tapped into his extensive knowledge of local halibut hotspots via private boat to score flatties of 31.6, 17 ½ and 15 ½ pounds. And while the 31.6 pounder proved to beat out all other entries, the 17 ½ and 15 ½ pounders were also good for sixth and eighth places, respectively. He was also mere ounces from securing a tenth-place finish. Thus, take the aforementioned prize package, multiply by three, and you’ve got an idea of the massive pile of swag Preslie garnered for his efforts. Oh yeah, throw the Rancho Leonero trip in there, too, AND a Lowrance electronics package valued at approximately $3,300 (including one of the company’s new HDS-8 hi-def sonar/chartplotter units and an LRA 1800 HD 18-inch radar dome) since he was the top-finishing private boater. Impressive to say the least…     Taking second, and also fishing aboard a private boat, was Mark Bithell of Laguna Beach. He managed to stave off all but one competitor to land comfortably in the second-place slot with a 29.2-pound flattie.     Now, while there weren’t separate divisions for this event — merely categories (i.e. Sportboat, Private Boat, Kayak and Shoreline) — there was one angler in particular who dominated his genre, if you will.     David Pliska of Irvine managed to ‘yak his way to third and tenth places with ‘buts of 23 pounds, 15 ounces, and 13 pounds, 10 ounces. He also had an additional four fish in the 7.1 to 7.10 range. Jack Voss of Laguna Niguel was Pliska’s nearest competition, and his big fish weighed 12.5 pounds (a distant 11.10 pounds from Pliska’s third-place ‘but).     “I’m happy with my finish,” Pliska said. “I worked hard, very hard, for those fish. I basically weighed in at least one fish a week, and released probably three times as many as I weighed in. If it wasn’t any bigger than my 7-10, I wasn’t going to weigh it. No sense in killing a halibut just to weigh.     “I was using live bait the entire time. L.A. Harbor was my spot, and I was predominantly fishing the shallows.     “I really like the whole format, you know, being a month long… As far as the tournament, I’m glad you guys are doing this. It’s kind of like kayaks versus private boaters, but in a friendly way. Personally, I just like the competition. We [kayak fishermen] really look forward to things like this where we can show off our skills to a much wider audience.”     In addition to his prize packages for third and tenth place, Pliska also earned a new Hobie kayak courtesy of Dana Point Jet Ski, and a $500 retail value gift certificate from the Yakima rack company for being the highest-placing ‘yakker.     Taking fourth place was Tim Heitkemper of San Clemente and the 22-pound, 1-ounce hali’ he bagged while fishing aboard a private boat.     Fifth-place angler Jay Sullivan of Covina was yet another entrant who happened to land in more than one slot amongst the top-10 finishers. The private boater not only emerged in fifth place with a 17-pound, 13-ounce hali’, but he also took seventh with a 17-pound, 5 ouncer, and ninth with a 15 pounder.     And such was the manner in which the dust settled upon the inaugural WON/Yamaha Just for the Halibut Derby… big fish, even bigger prize packages.     Echoing the sentiments of all of this year’s participants, ‘yakker David Pliska added, “The kayak fishing community is very much looking forward to this next year.”     And in the words of Chuck Buhagiar, “Rest assured next year’s event will be bigger and better.”