The 2018 Redfish Tournament Season Has Begun!

The 2018 redfish tournament season has officially begun for my tournament partner and I Jose “Pepi” Vidal — “Team SeaDek.” Tournament fishing for us is not only a passion but a great way to meet and interact with some of the best anglers around the state of Florida. Although sometimes we wonder… is the effort worth the reward? Tournament fishing presents a whole different array of challenges than just a leisurely day on the water. Traveling, time away from our families, and not to mention the costs incurred. Tournament angling adds the element of competition not only in finding fish, but the right fish. The tournament series we compete in requires live weigh-in and also incorporates time restraints. We have to find fish, catch the fish, keep them alive, and be back to the weigh-in location by a certain designated time. Add this all up and you now have the “Stress Factor” of tournament fishing.

Enough rambling about what tournaments consist of. I could go on forever and second guess ever fishing another. On February 24th we competed in the first leg of the East Coast Division of the Power-Pole Florida Pro Redfish Series out of Jacksonville, FL. We decided to head to Jacksonville the morning before to do a little scouting and pre-fishing prior to checking in to our hotel and attending the Captain’s Meeting the night before tourney day. Pre-fishing went well but Jacksonville can be challenging at times. We began our day with a negative low tide which meant sticking to deeper creeks and the main river shorelines. We caught a few small redfish and one which would have been an excellent specimen for tournament day which is usually the case in pre-fishing. As the tide rose we were able to explore areas unreachable earlier in the day with the only factor being the 15-20mph winds that decided to add to our frustrations of finding fish. After a very long day on the water we checked in to the hotel, enjoyed a quick beverage, and headed off to the Captain’s meeting.

IT’S GAME TIME…

The morning of the tournament we were greeted by a seemingly never ending line of boats at the single boat ramp hosting the tournament launch and weigh-in. Since we had drawn a launch number in the 60s of the 70+ boats competing we were in no hurry. Shortly after tournament take off the fog banks hit. This was shaping up to be a great day! We decided to fish an area different from our pre-fishing spots in the hope of finding more and better quality redfish. Again, being dead low tide our fishing areas were very limited. We managed a couple of small fish but nothing worth introducing to a temporary home in our live well. After several fishless hours and Pepi enjoying a couple of his fine Cuban cigars he finally boated our first fish worth keeping. We now had a stud 20 inch redfish on board. After a couple more fishless hours we ventured out to the area we were wanting to target which earlier was exposed oyster beds and shore birds. Within a fairly short time we were on some fish… finally. Oh, and our winds from the day prior had now returned for a visit.

To add to our banner day so far we realized our live well pump had become almost completely clogged by the endless supply of Jacksonville mud from being stuck on a bar earlier in the day. Some quick pump dismantling fixed the issue. Shortly after, Pepi hooked into a better fish measuring right at about 25 inches. We now had our two redfish for weigh-in. Enter our next problem….the 45 minute weigh-in deadline with about an hour run back to the ramp. I believe the words I said before heading in were “hold on to your hat!” We arrived at weigh-in with a few minutes to spare…a little beaten up from the ride back but no damage to the boat or injuries. Always a good ending to a tournament.

The good guys weigh-in for a respectable finish to cap the opening event.

A Middle of the Pack Finish

Overall, we finished right about in the middle of the pack of the 70+ teams competing. After a couple of hours waiting to load up at the ramp we were headed home. A day in the life of tournament fishing. Even with all we dealt with we are ready for the next. We are off to the first leg of the Inshore Fishing Association Redfish Tour / East Coast Division on March 17th to do it all over again. Hopefully with a happier day and ending. But, we do what we do for the love of our sport. Talk to ya soon with updates on how we did.

Pepi and I would like to thank our incredible Wives for allowing us to do what we do, along with our great sponsors we rely on for outstanding products and services to keep us going on the water. Big shout out to SeaDek Marine Products, St Croix Rod, RCI Optics, Power-Pole Shallow Water Anchor, Florida Fishing Products, Slayer Inc. Lure Co., Frogg Toggs, and Strike Zone Fishing/Melbourne.

Tight lines!
Alan and Pepi