THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 11, 1996 TAG: 9610110662
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LORRAINE EATON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NAGS HEAD LENGTH: 52 lines
Five teams were in a tight battle for the championship at the halfway mark Thursday night in the 46th Annual Nags Head Surf Fishing Tournament.
Eighty six-member teams will cast again today for honors in the famed fishing showdown.
The 480 anglers stood (and sometimes sat) on the beach for more than five hours each on Thursday and reeled in 207 scoring fish.
That's a far cry from the tournament record set in 1976 when 3,370 fish were caught in a single session.
After morning and evening sessions Thursday, Tight Lines of Kill Devil Hills was first with 14 fish and 23 points. Another local team, the Sand Bunnies, had 15 fish and 22 points. The Outer Banks Saltmasters had 10 fish and 22 points. The Virginia Beach Challengers had 14 fish and 22 points, and TW's Mullet Mamas of the Outer Banks had 14 fish and 21 points.
Fish are scored by length.
Largest fish by a female was taken by Jan Holloman of Tight Lines. Largest fish by a male was caught by Milton Phelps of Drum Runners of Wanchese. Both landed an 18-inch black drum.
Catches also included blues, croaker and trout plus a few puppy drum. Teams gathered at tournament headquarters at George's Junction Thursday night for a buffet and free beer.
The two-day Nags Head tournament is one of the oldest and largest East Coast surf fishing tournaments, attracting anglers from Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and across North Carolina. Teams fish from 8 to 11 a.m. and 1:30 to 4 p.m. in designated stations from Kill Devil Hills to Oregon Inlet. Terry McGovern and Brenda Walker of Chesapeake, two of dozens of tournament judges who roam the beaches in four-wheel drives measuring fish, said it's fun even if nothing's happening.
``One girl on one team said she was looking for a man, so we went down to the next station and asked, `Anybody here looking for a woman?'' Walker said. One man responded. ``Tonight we're going to introduce them.''
The team tournament wraps up today. On Saturday, there is an open individual tournament for adults and youth from 8 a.m. to noon. Registration is $2 and will be taken from 7 to 8 a.m. at George's Junction at Milepost 11 in Nags Head.
Fish landed in the tournament are donated to the Food Kitchen of Elizabeth City. ILLUSTRATION: Nags Head Surf Fishing Tournament.
[Color Photo]
DREW C. WILSON
The Virginian-Pilot
Joe Owens, 53, of Portsmouth, Va., releases a puppy drum into the
Atlantic Ocean. Owens, an angler of The Six Percenters team,
competed Thursday in the by CNB