XXIX Torneo Anual de Pez Vela

Kind of a late start this morning for the tournament. The official start was at 8:00. Usually it's been 7:00 or 7:30.

The party was quite warmed up when we arrived at the pier at 7:00. A few fools were already drinking beer. Most folks were however getting their boats stocked with supplies and gear, and captains were rounding up their passengers.

Lots of family and friends were there from Zihuatanejo and Petatlán, many getting ready for a big day at sea.

Since a cruise ship just happened to come today of all days, half the pier was off limits (thanks to BS "security measures" as a result of the USA's "terrorist" problems), which is probably why the late start since fishermen only had half the pier to load their boats from. Kind of a bummer that.

Whether or not anyone actually catches any fish is besides the point. Locals are in it for the FUN & ADVENTURE. The beer is cold, the food is hot, the music is lively, and the people are the warmest anywhere on the planet because THAT, my friends, is what Zihuatanejo is all about!

Nice!
Thanks for that Rob.
See ya in Nov.
(I'll be chasin the Pez gallo on the fly)

And killing lots of fish, right? I am a little (just a little) surprised to see see your support for this event considering your preaching in the past about the decimation of the sport fish here. This is a kill only tournament. All fish landed are slaughtered. Or am I missing something? That is your usual response to me right Rob?

Thank you for your thoughtful and relevant response.

Yes, Wil, it's a kill tournament. It's also a tradition in Zihuatanejo, and since the federal government hasn't seen fit to enforce it's laws regarding illegal fishing locally then this tournament is the least of our local fishing problems.

Is there anything else you'd like to get off your chest? Tomorrow is the Kentucky Derby, another sport where beautiful animals often suffer injury and death. Shall I expect another critique from you calling me a hypocrite for celebrating Kentucky Derby Day, since that is essentially what you've done here?

All warm and fuzzy back atcha, amigo!

No, nothing else. You don't go on and on here, chastising and ridiculing others about horse racing, only fishing. Point made.

Did anybody happen to read Ed Kunze's latest fishing report?

Ed Kunze's 5-3-12 Fishing report

Thanks GK; Ed's report serves well to underscore Wil's comments regarding the killing of every billfish caught for the sake of having a tourney...

The fish from the tournament are donated to the DIF for Día de las Madres.

I talked with several captains who fished yesterday and the most of them said they caught nothing. Nothing on the line. Nothing to the boat. Nothing to enter in the tournament. Fishing for large game right now is not good. Only one of the guys said they had an entry.

The whole point of originally having the tournament at this time of year was because the fishing is usually difficult.

One of my former students was the leader at the end of yesterday. Let's see if he holds onto the "title" today. His fish wasn't all that big, then again, there may not be many big sailfish left in our waters thanks to the illegal fishermen and all the restaurants in the region that buy their illegal catch.

BTW, besides shrimp being out of season, there is also currently a ban on bivalve shellfish (oysters, clams, etc) due to red tide toxins present in our coastal waters.