On Sat, 01 Sep 2007 08:36:31 -0400, HK wrote:

Mad Fin Shark Tournament. What the hell is the point in "sharking"?
Catching pelagics only to release them, under circumstances in which
most of them are gut-hooked and therefore probably will die?

Actually, the mortalilty rate is pretty low. There was a study a few
years ago where they caught/tagged/released lemon sharks and the
survival rate was upwards of 90%.

Having said that, these types of tournaments are much, much better
than tournaments like the big Martha's or Montauk tournaments. Just
two years ago, they took a 1,200 lb Tiger back and the Captain of that
boat knew damn well they weren't going to make it back in time, but
killed the thing anyway. That was a freakin' shame.

Personally, I'm all for in-water release, tagging and measuring. I
really like the Xtreme Billfish Tournament system - independant judges
onboard with video of the measure, release and tag with self-release
radio tags. Tags are good for two weeks and the judging agency does
all it can to verify the tags as good.

It's expensive, but the only way to run a pelagic tournament to my way
of thinking.