BajaNews - 1-23-2006 at 07:01 AM
http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/outdoors/20060121-9999-...
January 21, 2006
Capt. Andy Cates of the Red Rooster III was the latest to return to Point Loma with a haul of those 200-pound yellowfin from the banks off Southern
Baja. Of the 23 anglers on the trip, 20 caught at least one 200-pound tuna, and for 11 of them, it was their first cow tuna ever, according to Bill
Roecker of Oceanic Productions. In all, Cates checked in 58 yellowfin that topped 200 pounds, a boat record for Linda Palm-Halpain's storied
long-range boat. Top catch was a 292-pound yellowfin by Emerald Argonza of Montclair. He told Roecker his previous best was a 60-pound tuna. Fred
Knilans of Tustin was second with a 284-pound yellowfin, part of a brace that included a 250-, 223-, 220-and a 212-pounder. Gary Rogers of Carlsbad
checked in a 272-pounder and three others over 200 pounds. Bob Michener of Oxnard had seven over 200 pounds, the best being a 270-pound yellowfin. His
daughter, Susan, had two, a 258-and a 223-pounder. Tim Ivy of San Diego had four ranging from 210 to 246 pounds. And Vern Brown of San Diego weighed
in three ? a 223-, a 212-and a 203-pounder.
Cardon Man - 1-23-2006 at 08:26 AM
200lb yellowfin is border line self abuse. Scratch that...it's straight up self abuse! Very cool though! 
aha baja - 1-23-2006 at 08:54 AM
Were they caught on troll, bait stop on the slide?
They are baiting them.
Hook - 1-23-2006 at 01:53 PM
The fish have been in the same general area since mid November. They just drive down, re-locate the fish and start baiting them.
It is finally beginning to slow down a bit as the # of fish over 200 is starting to decline in the counts.
Still pleny between 100-200, though.
Santiago - 1-23-2006 at 01:56 PM
Hook: I have heard that the knife jigs are also being used on tuna - any truth to this?
Wow!
Sharksbaja - 1-23-2006 at 02:51 PM
Good thang they aren't bigeye!
Frank - 1-23-2006 at 07:27 PM
Its been INSANE at the landings. The 10 day trips have been catching the cows.
Angler, 86, reels in huge yellowfin haul
BajaNews - 1-24-2006 at 06:32 AM
http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/20060124-9999-1s24outdo...
By Ed Zieralski
January 24, 2006
The sportfishing boat Independence returned to Point Loma Sportfishing yesterday with a couple of records ? one that could last awhile and another
that likely never will be broken.
Never before in the history of sportfishing here has a long-range sport boat caught 82 yellowfin tuna of more than 200 pounds. The previous mark was
79 200-pounders set by Capt. Shawn Steward on Bill Poole's Excel in December.
"Yeah, but the next boat coming in may have 100," said Mark Pisano, the owner-captain of the Independence who ran the trip with Capt. Jeff DeBuys.
That could be true, but chances are the boat won't have an 86-year-old ex-farmer who catches six tuna over 200 pounds without assistance.
Mitsuyoshi "Beans" Sogioka, 86, of Chino caught six yellowfin tuna over 200 pounds on the Independence's 18-day trip to the banks off Southern Baja
and Hurricane Bank. Only one other angler on the boat, Allen Smith, 41, of Santee, had more, and he had seven. Sogioka, a former strawberry and leek
farmer who is all of 5 feet 1, 125 pounds, wrestled tuna that went 201, 217, 222, 229, 231 and 239 pounds.
Sogioka fished with his son, Don, 50, and two nephews, Bruce, 57, and Norm, 59, all of whom grew up on that strawberry and leek farm. The elder
Sogioka said this likely will be his last long-range trip.
"But he's said that before," his son said. "He had a fabulous trip, a trip of a lifetime. He never caught a 200-pounder in his life, and he's been
fishing long-range trips for 25 years. Then he goes out and catches six over 200 pounds."
As he stood amid the haul of dead fish, the elder Sogioka said: "I didn't catch the biggest fish, but I had a fishing trip of a lifetime. At my age,
I'm going out with my best ever. This will be my last."
DeBuys said the 23 anglers kept 220 yellowfin tuna, 60 wahoo and released 115 yellowfin in the 120-to 190-pound range. Ron Moy, a Los Angeles
motorcycle patrolman from Mission Viejo, caught the heaviest tuna, a 292-pounder. Dana Trieschman, Alpine, was second with a 280-pounder, his personal
best, and he added a 224-and a 220-pounder.
"We got into a bite of a lifetime, and we had the right fishermen," DeBuys said. "They had the right tackle, and they knew the proper techniques. I've
never seen a group in my life better prepared to fight these big tuna than this group."
Chartermaster Rick Ozaki, a tackle representative from Gardena, had six tuna over 200 pounds.
"It's just unbelievable how an older guy like that can still be a hard-core fisherman," Ozaki said.