AND THE NEW TV SHOOTING SEASON BEGINS….

A busy Spring, Summer, and Fall is on tap, as we’re scheduled to begin shooting for our 2012 television season on VERSUS next week in Bimini, weather-permitting. We’ve 13 new episodes to shoot, and we’re excited over all the fishing opportunities we’ll have. Heading up the production team is none other than Kevin Tierney, and I’ll have my tried and true – and fun - camera team in place as well – Rob “Swede” Greene and Mr. Miller.

I’ll write in detail about the places as we fish them, but expect to see us in the Bahamas, New Jersey, Louisiana, North Carolina, Fort Lauderdale, Maryland, Sarasota, the Florida Keys, Cayman Islands, and several other great saltwater fishing destinations.

SWIMMING WITH THE GATORS

What would you do to catch a trophy fish? If you’re like me, the answer is simple: just about anything. And, now, I can add swimming with alligators to that long, colorful and adventurous list.

I was enjoying Spring Break in Howey-In-The-Hills, Florida, a quiet, peaceful city some 35-miles northwest of Orlando, and in the country. The home is on Little Lake Harris, one of the Sunshine State’s top bass lakes. Now, I’m a saltwater guy inside and out and only dabble with freshwater fishing, mostly for a change of pace.

On this particular day, there was a mother gator and at least 14 baby gators sunning themselves on a sandy burm some 20 feet from the dock. This is not unusual, for every spring a large gator lays her eggs here, and watches over the hatchlings for a bit. I walked by the gator, got in the boat and scored a couple small bass on the lake. I brought the boat back to its lift, got up on the dock and proceeded to walk back to the house, until I spotted a “bright” area underneath the sitting-area section of the dock. I stopped and peered into the water; it was a bass bed - with a monster bass on it!

Now overwhelmed with excitement, I fetched a spinning outfit – fresh with a purple Mann’s Jelly Worm, and tried to catch the bass – to no avail. I caught and released the smaller (maybe two pounds) male bass twice, but couldn’t even get the big female to acknowledge my worm. I switched up and dropped a plastic lizard, a jig, and even a swimming lure – nothing. The bass just kept swimming around that nest. I needed a live bluegill for bait.

After rigging a small spinner with a hair hook and baiting with a tiny dough ball, I attempted to catch a small bluegill. To my surprise, I caught a big shiner! This was as good as “gold” and a virtual guarantee I would hook that bass.

I ran the shiner back to where the bass was bedding, hooked it to a 12-pound test spinner, and dropped it down from the dock. The shiner saw the bass and went crazy. I had all I could do to keep the now scrambling shiner out of the thick weeds. For fear of losing the bait in the weeds, I reeled up and tried to reposition myself for a better angle to drop it onto the bed. The problem was, in the excitement, I walked right off the opposite end of the dock, caught ten-feet of air and ended up in the lake. Immersed in water and thick weeds, I quickly looked for that big gator, which had left its burm. There was a ladder some 40 feet away by the boat, but being down in the water and weeds, it might as well have been in Bimini; I was concerned over swimming through those weeds and encountering any moccasins or gators.

I swam to the closest dock stanchion, but its cross member was too high to reach. I swam through the weeds to the next one, where its cross member was low enough to access. The cross member here was indeed within range, but at an angle that made it very awkward to get onto without contorting my body like a pretzel. I managed to lock both feet into the cross member and lift myself from the water, to where my rear end was about two feet above and facing the lake. I kept watching for the gator. I needed to get up on that dock pronto, but didn’t have enough solid footing to thrust myself up there. I had to try. I gave it my best effort and ended up, chest down, on the edge of the dock and several inches away from reaching the opposite side with my hand, to where I could have pulled myself up.

Feeling myself slipping, and knowing I didn’t want to fall back into the lake, I made one last thrust and got a grip on the dock. I proceeded to pull myself up. I’d like to say I did this in grandiose fashion, but I actually resembled a walrus sloppily rolling up onto the dock. I made it! Dejected and a bit upset, I walked to the house to get a warm shower. My cell phone was ruined, my money was soaked, my sunglasses were lost, and my pride was bruised, but I held onto my Penn rod and reel combo. Priorities!

After showering and calming down for a half-hour or so, I walked back down the dock. I looked at the bed, and that bass was still there! I took the small rod and another dough ball, and caught yet another large shiner. Once again, I felt that excitement coming on. However, this time, I made sure to slow way, way down and keep my cool. One dip into the lake was enough. I pinned the shiner to the hook on the larger spinner and dropped it down to the bed. The big bass went crazy, chasing it all over until she inhaled it. I set the hook, and the big bass went nuts. I’m not sure how I navigated that big bass through all the weeds and down to the end of the dock, where I could get to her, but I did. I caught the bass!

Thinking ahead, as I did not want to harm the bass, I quickly put the fish on a stringer and secured it to the end of the dock. The fish was doing fine here. I had jogged back to the house to get my camera, and saw that my wife and youngest daughter had just returned. I asked Edie,my wife, to take a few pictures. I removed the bass from the stringer, weighed it quickly on the Boga Grip scale – it registered eight-pounds, three-ounces, held it for a few pictures, and then promptly released it back over her bed. Later than afternoon, I walked back down, and she was still on her bed.

Talk about an event-filled day! I scored my largest freshwater bass to date, and even went swimming with wild alligators. I felt like Tarzan.

CHANGING TIDES AND A GUY NAMED PHIL

The Salt Water Sportsman National Seminar Series wrapped up its eight-city, 2011 tour in Boston, March 5, with a strong presentation from the likes of co-host Barry Gibson, Dr. Mitchell Roffer, John Oughton, Dave Waldrip, Chuck DiStefano, Russ Burgess, Terry Nugent, Dave Carraro and Brian Patterson. The event was held at Regis College, in their Performing Arts Theater.

To top off the final stop on the tour, and at the conclusion of the seminar day, we drew for the Bimini Sands Bonefishing trip. The winner was one “Phil McCrackin”. The announcement of his name a couple times was met by nearly deafening laughter. If I didn’t read the name myself, I would have thought it to be a joke. It wasn’t! Red-faced, Phil M. made his way to the stage and claimed his trip certificate. I doubt he would have set forth from his seat and endured that laughter had the prize been a spool of fishing line!

Though it takes a bit of effort to get that first seminar stop under your belt, it seems that by the second or third seminar, you’re on a fast-moving train and blowing right by the seminar cities. At the end, you’re wondering what happened to January, February and early March! Mentally, it feels as if we knocked out Atlantic City, Ft. Myers, Virginia Beach, Wilmington (NC), Savannah, Palm Beach, Biloxi, and Boston in one week, rather than over eight individual Saturdays.

Despite all the long and hard hours and traveling involved with the Seminar Series, I still thoroughly enjoy doing it. You meet neat people and, of course, you’re working on stage with some of the nation’s very best saltwater anglers; you can’t help but learn new tricks – even up on stage! Next year, it’s the 25th Anniversary for the Seminar Series, and we will plan some neat things for the tour.

March won’t be nearly as busy, and it’s when I try to relax a bit by getting away with the family for Spring Break, fun fishing, readying the boat and tackle for the new season, etc. Come April, it’s back to shooting television episodes for our 2012 season on VERSUS. Between April and November, we travel to 13 angling destinations to fish and shoot shows. Given good weather and no reschedules (almost a rarity in this business), we might wrap up the shooting by October. The shows are then edited and sent to VERSUS, where they air beginning on the first Saturday in January.

I think there’s some Central Florida freshwater bass fishing in the cards for me in the next week or so (strictly for fun). If I score, I’ll post a picture or two!

MAINTAINING THE PACE!

The new MARC VI, set for the Miami Boat Show

I’m now well into that “groove” where we travel each weekend with the Salt Water
Sportsman National Seminar Series. Out of the eight stops, we’re down to the final three: Palm Beach (Feb. 12), Biloxi (Feb. 26) and Boston (March 5).

The “home town” South Florida seminar is awesome. No airports, rental cars, hotel
rooms, or snow! Best of all, there are so many friends here, it’s like an annual reunion. And you can bank on the door prizes being “extra heavy” for this seminar. It’s tradition!

I’m also looking forward to the Biloxi seminar, which will be at the IP Casino Resort& Spa. The casino seminars are always a blast. Plus, this could very well be the most important seminar in recent Seminar Series history, as there’s so much to get into as far as what’s going on species-wise, environmental-wise, etc. after that oil disaster. Then, there’s Boston - the final stop on the tour. I always seem to get into that “last day of school” mood for this one! For when it’s over, it’s time to get back to fishing, rather than just talking about it!

In between each seminar, we spend about three days tearing down the courses and visuals from the previous city, and rebuilding the courses and visuals for the upcoming city. Each city has its own unique topics and, therefore, visuals. In addition, I work closely each week with my television show producer, Kevin Tierney, editing a television episode for VERSUS. And then I compile and write my monthly column for Salt Water Sportsman. Trying to find spare time now is as hard as finding the proverbial needle in a hay stack. But, I’m not complaining; Quite the contrary.

The big excitement here is my new boat – a 2011 Mako 284 center console, powered by twin Mercury Verado 300hp outboards. The boat will be on display at the Mako booth inside the Miami Beach Convention Center, during the Miami International Boat show February 17 – 22. That Friday, Saturday and Sunday – from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m., I will be in the boat signing and giving away my television T-shirts. So, stop by and say hello!

The boat just came in on February 7, giving us a whopping three days to “fine tune” it for the show (rig the outriggers and teaser reels, fabricate the weather enclosure and have it lettered). Today (2/8), Drew Caterson, from Action Canvas in Marathon, drove up to Broward County to take measurements for the enclosure. He will have it completed and on the boat in the next day or two. I registered the boat this morning and then rigged the outriggers, center rigger and teaser reels. Image Graphics 2000 did the lettering and will apply it tomorrow (2/9). On Friday (2/11), Mako takes the boat to the Convention
Center for their move in day. How’s that for cutting it close?!

Elec-Tra-Mate Teezer reels

E-box with twin Lowrance VHF radios

The control center

Four Shadow-Caster Marine underwater LED lights - Bimini Blue

OFF AND RUNNING!

Come each New Year, we seem to take off every bit as fast as a nitro-
burning dragster seeking a record-breaking run. That’s because our first
television episode of the new year airs the first weekend in January, and
generally that first or second Saturday in January finds us taking the Salt
Water Sportsman National Seminar Series on the road for its annual eight-
stop pilgrimage. Our first VERSUS episode aired on Saturday, January 1,
at 11:30 a.m., and our first National Seminar Series stop was at Trump’s
Marina Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Saturday, January
8. But, despite the hecticness, it’s all good!

As is tradition when the Seminar Series goes to Trump’s, I flew in on
Thursday morning, with production team members Swede Greene, Mr.
Miller, James Hanrahan and Lou Volpe. We like to spend extra time going
through gear, visuals, hall set ups, etc, since it is the first stop on the tour.
Typically, we fly to a venue early Friday morning, and set-up after an early
lunch. On Saturday, we conduct our seminar, and then fly out Saturday
evening. The Jersey stop had us there from Thursday until Sunday.

Joining us in Atlantic City was a solid team of regional experts that
included Trey Rhyne, Tyler Fruits, Scott Newhall, Tim Tanghare, Jack Shea,
and Joe Trainor. Our national faculty for this show was comprised of Dr.
Mitchell Roffer and Bouncer Smith. My co host was fellow Salt Water
Sportsman writer and noted New Jersey angling authority Gary Caputi.

For me, one of the neatest things about these seminars is hanging out
and talking shop with our faculty teams, on stage, and off. And when you
realize just how much angling knowledge exists within such a group, it’s
really impressive. And, of course, having the opportunity to chat with some
of the attendees during your breaks is enjoyable.

This is how our weekends will be, until after we wrap up the 2011
Seminar Series in Boston on March 5. Again, it’s a lot of work for a very
short period of time, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Check out: www.nationalseminarseries.com

NEW TELEVISON SEASON KICKS OFF ON NEW YEAR’S DAY!

NEW TELEVISON SEASON KICKS OFF ON NEW YEAR’S DAY!

The new season of George Poveromo’s World of Saltwater Fishing will debut
on VERSUS on Saturday, January 1, 2011, at 11:30 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time).
Our show will then air every Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and on Fridays at 4:00 p.m. For
a complete listing of my new shows and their respective airing dates and times, visit:
www.georgepoveromo.com

The year 2011 will mark our 11th year on national television. One may wonder “what
happened to ESPN2?”, where we aired for ten years. The answer is that ESPN has gotten
out of the outdoors/fish TV business. Effective January 1, 2011, all their fishing shows
will cease airing, save for B.A.S.S. (which the network had owned and, according to what
I’ve heard, had finally sold). All their fishing/outdoors show hosts got the word back
in May that they will be no longer airing on the network. The “official” announcement
from ESPN as to why they dropped their outdoor programming was that they (the
network) wanted to get back to their roots of live-programming of competitive events.
Rumor has it that soccer and pre-NASCAR coverage will now take over the outdoors
time slot. However, since ESPN contracts out the production of some of their outdoor
programming, and then gives the responsibility of selling sponsors to fund these ventures
to their advertising departments, one has to believe that the soft economy and lack of
their getting sponsorships for some of these shows wasn’t the real reason behind their
decision to drop outdoors.

Fortunately for us, we were picked up by the VERSUS network. Beginning this
January, VERSUS will now become the largest national network which airs outdoors
shows. VERSUS is owned by COMCAST. We’re thrilled to be part of the family! Since
June, my crew and I have been traveling long and hard to shoot our new 2011 series, and
we wrapped up our shooting just a few weeks ago. We have some terrific episodes on
tap! I must credit my immediate production team for making our show the success that
it is: Kevin Tierney, Rob “Swede” Greene, Mr. Miller, and Craig Woloshin. Without
them, there’d be no George Poveromo’s World of Saltwater Fishing.

As I leave ESPN and join the VERSUS family, I have nothing but good things to say
about my decade-long run on ESPN2. I’ve met and worked with some really wonderful
people there, and the entire experience has made for one incredible dream ride! As a
member of the VERSUS family, I look forward to doing my part with our show to make
sure VERSUS remains the leader in quality outdoors programming.

Please tune in and watch our shows!

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS CHRISTMAS

This Sunday afternoon, the day after Christmas, finds us still up in Howey-In-The-
Hills – a quaint little town on the shores of the Harris Chain of Lakes, about 35 miles
northwest of Orlando. The family and I have been here nearly a week, where we spent a
nice, quiet and relaxing Christmas. There’s nothing to report in the way of fishing, as it
has been way too cold to “justify” my getting into thermals and layers to chase after bass.
Sailfish, for sure – but bass? Just a nice, relaxing week! Tonight and Monday evening,
the low temps are predicted to be in the upper 20s, as yet another strong cold front pushes
through. Definitely, no bass fishing on this trip!

CORAL SPRINGS HOLIDAY PARADE

The MARC VI was in the Coral Springs Holiday parade, lit up like a Christmas tree
and carrying a few elves. It was entered under “Garnett Storage” - the boat/RV facility
in Coral Springs that has been the home of the MARC VI for 16 years. Steve Garnett
had asked if I’d let him enter the MARC VI in the parade months ago, to showcase his
business, and I happily agreed.

A huge, special thank you goes to friend Carl Grassi, who – along with the assistance of
his two crew members Vladimir and Danny – spent five hours decorating my boat and
Steve’s vehicle the day prior to the parade. I’d like to say I was instrumental in helping
Carl and his gang decorate the boat, but I’ll admit I was in their way more than I was
an asset. I got the hint when Carl sent me on the road to find an inflatable Santa for the
boat, while they kept on decorating! Carl is the owner of Carl’s Sunoco on Sample Road
in Coral Springs. In addition to being a virtual mechanical genius (he does my auto and
most of my boat work) and a good saltwater angler (he owns a center console and a flats
skiff), he also sells non-Ethanol fuel. You guessed it; this is where I fuel up my boat and
vehicle!

As usual, Sample Road was jammed-pack with spectators, and it took nearly two hours
for all the entries to travel the parade route. We were assigned spot # 42, and there were
at least 20 some floats behind us. Did I mention it was bitter cold in that boat? Despite
the cold, it was an enjoyable night. Plus, there was no boat or tackle to wash afterwards!

Garnett Storage is a well-run storage yard that caters to RVs and boats. It is nestled
between the Coral Springs Police shooting range and the Coral Springs Fire Department
training facility. If that’s not enough heat to keep the place safe, Steve has two live-in
nighttime security people. It is about as safe a storage place as one can get. Rumor also
has it that Steve Garnett will start a fishing club, for all the boaters he has in his yard. I
hear tales about a commercial-grade ice machine coming to the property - where boaters
can load up on shaved ice, a boat wash-down station, fish-cleaning facility, and monthly
meetings. Look for all this to crank up sometime in the new year.


With a little help from Carl’s gang! Left to right – Danny, Carl,
me, and Vladimir. Carl owns Carl’s Sunoco on Sample Road in Coral Springs. He
decorated the MARC VI and the tow vehicle for the parade.


Nothing like dredges off the outriggers to light up the night!


Wonder how fast the Coast Guard would respond to a boat this lit
up well offshore at night?!


OK, I’ll give up my “hot spot” that night: It’s on the Lowrance
screen for all to see!


In case you couldn’t figure it out on the map, or see the GPS
numbers, here you go!


The Garnett Elves!

It's A Wrap!

We wrapped up our final television shoot for our 2011 season this past Monday
(December 6) in Big Pine Key! And we did it in style, catching Cero and king mackerel,
dolphin and a sailfish. We even live-chummed up a bunch of big bonitos, which gave us
some fun on light spin tackle.

Carl Grassi, a friend who also owns Carl’s Sunoco in Coral Springs – where I gas
up the MARC VI with his “non-Ethanol” fuel, was my guest angler. We timed the shoot
and trailed down to Big Pine on Friday afternoon, as the winds from a passing cold front
were beginning to subside. As luck would have it, an Artic Clipper (real strong cold
front!) was on the preceding front’s heels, and projected to pass through the lower Florida
Keys on Sunday evening, bringing 25-knot winds and low temperatures into the 40s.
Talk about a tiny window to squeeze this shoot through!

We were based at Parmer’s Resort, at mile marker 28.5 on Little Torch Key
(www.ParmersResort.com). We kept the MARC VI, and Carl’s boat – which we used as
our camera boat, at one of Parmer’s lagoon docks. This was a very convenient, trailer-
boater friendly place. Best of all, we were just a few minutes from open water.
Bundled up in layers, long pants and jackets, Carl and I set forth to find fish. We
had a nice, ten- to 15-knot northwest wind, with its energy scrubbed off by the land, flats
and patch reefs (we were on the lee of the breeze). Our plan was to troll natural baits,
or drift live baits and also deep jig, based on what we found in the way of any bait, rips,
color changes, temperature breaks, etc.

When we opted to troll, we ran about 16 miles to some good looking structure
which fluctuated between 550 and 600 feet. Once there, the surface water temperature
had risen to 78 degrees (it was 76 degrees on the reefs). We put out a spread of baits
on 30-pound class Penn tackle, and went hunting for fish, or signs that would lead us to
them. We eventually turned the bow toward shore, looking to troll into 200 feet of water.

In 300-feet, we caught a dolphin. There were no followers and we proceeded shallower
after trolling that zone produced nothing additional. In 110 feet of water, we came upon a
significant color change and rip, complete with weeds. We trolled tight up to the rip and
then paralleled it, moving in and off it some 100 feet.
After boating two more dolphin, Carl hooks up with a sail – which ate a small,
plain ballyhoo trolled off the starboard outrigger. A beautiful, acrobatic and lit-up fish, I
billed the sailfish, removed the hook and – after admiring it a few seconds – set it free!

The live-baiting portion brought us our kingfish, Cero mackerel, bonito and a
few sharks. Deep jigging was a bit on the quiet side, as the tactic registered just a single
kingfish.

I won’t describe how the action went or get too much into the technical aspects,
simply because I don’t want to spoil the episode! Look for it in early 2011.

A huge tip of the white visor and “Thank You” goes out to my entire production
team for another great season. They’re the best. On our final shoot was Kevin Tierney,
Rob “Swede” Greene, and “Dynamite” Dave Nyitray. Carl Grassi and I had the easy job:
catching the fish!


Fish-Eye view of Carl Grassi and me trolling off Big Pine Key. Kevin Tierney captured the moment.


Kevin Tierney took this neat underwater shot of a dolphin, during our Big Pine Key shoot.

HIALEAH SPEEDWAY REUNION

As luck would have it, the first ever Hialeah Speedway Reunion was held the
Saturday evening of Thanksgiving weekend, in nearby Celebration, Florida. From
when I was nine- years old and to when I was nearly 19, my grandfather took me to that
track nearly every Saturday night to watch the stock car races. Bobby Brack was the
winningest driver to have ever raced at that speedway, which closed in 2005, and he was
my idol! I’d cheer him on, then say hello to him in the pits after the races. He was larger
than life to me.
After Brack retired from racing, and I had gone on to college, I quit going to the
races. Some years later, I saw him at a fishing tournament. It turned out he loves to
fish. So, he and I had become reunited and he has since been an instrumental part of my
fishing team.
The reunion was a great walk back in time, as some 400 drivers, car owners and
fans were on hand in that hotel ballroom. Most of the top drivers were there. It was also
an “eye-opener”, as I’ve not seen most of these guys since I was a kid, 35 years ago; I
had a “visual” in my mind of what they looked like back then, so you can imagine how
taken I was over how differently they looked that night! Time does indeed march on!
Brack, incidentally, was inducted into the Hialeah Speedway Hall of Fame that evening,
along with 11 others.


Me and Bobby Brack, after his induction into the Hialeah Speedway Hall of Fame


Bobby Brack with yellowfin tuna caught aboard the MARC VI this summer


Brack at Hialeah Speedway in "the day"


1974 - Me and Brack after he won his sixth straight, annual 200-lap South Florida State Championship, at Hialeah Speedway


1970 - Me and Brack after he won the 200-lap South Florida State Championship, at Hialeah Speedway

A HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS THANKSGIVING

The entire family spent the week of Thanksgiving in the lake country of Central
Florida, more specifically – Howey-In-The-Hills on Little Lake Harris, about 35-miles
northwest of Orlando. I love it up here, as the scenery is so different than what I’m used
to with my coastal fishing. This is lake country, and bass fishing is HUGE here!
Of course, every time I’m here, I chase after some bass. The biggest challenge is
trying to figure out where they’re at, either along or in the vegetation lining the shore, or
along drop offs and deep structure. I’m not a freshwater angler, so I think “seatrout” and
fish accordingly. I caught 27 bass on this trip, with the largest weighing four-pounds.

Keys Day Job!

It seems as of late, I can’t stay away from the Florida Keys! Due to a
Mako brochure shoot in Fort Lauderdale, I had to cut last week’s Islamorada
TV shoot short by one day. So, to obtain the “spine takes” we needed
to complete that show, I drove to Islamorada for the day on Tuesday,
November 16, and met up with producer Kevin Tierney.

A “spine take” refers to those tight face images that fly in during a fishing
show, where people reflect back on a catch and other highlights during the
trip. We needed to “spine take” two episodes: our recent Islamorada shoot,
and also our July trip to Ocean City, Maryland. On hand today were Greg
Poland and John Oughton, my guest anglers in both shows, respectively.

First on the hot seat was Poland, followed by me. After the
Islamorada “spine takes” were logged, Oughton did his on Ocean City, and I
followed with my take. While all went smoothly, I have to admit that it was
painful to be landlocked, with such gorgeous weather and light winds!

We began shooting at 9:30 a.m., and wrapped up at 2:00 p.m. Figuring we
needed to reward ourselves for working so hard, Kevin and I enjoyed a late
lunch at World Wide Sportsman’s Islamorada Fish Company. And what did
we eat? Why, blackened dolphin fish sandwiches, of course!

I got back on the road around 3:30 p.m. and pulled into my driveway at
5:30 p.m.

We’ve one more trip to the Florida Keys before 2010 draws to a close.
Friend Carl Grassi and I will fish the MARC VI off Big Pine Key shortly
after Thanksgiving.

THE MAKO SHOOT

Mako introduced a new, redesigned and reengineered 284 center console model at
November’s Fort Lauderdale Boat Show, and the company hired Michael Fuller
Photography to shoot stills and videos of a pair of new 284s on November 11 and 12.
Being a long-time Mako owner (since 1977), and having owned their 284s since they
came out with the model in 2005, I am honored to serve as Mako’s spokesperson for this
boat.

For this two-day shoot, I found myself behind the wheel of a tricked-out, red-hulled 284,
powered by twin 250hp Mercury Verado outboards. Mako’s John Bower rode shotgun,
and we also had one of Mike Fuller’s crew to fill out the boat. We were based at Ft.
Lauderdale’s Pier 66.

We gathered at the boats at 5:00 a.m. Thursday, and proceeded to the inlet, where we’d
wait for the helicopter carrying the production crew. At the slightest hint of dawn, in
comes the helicopter, and we take off running in four- to six-foot seas, to obtain early
morning offshore stills/video. We had a 15- to 20-knot northeast wind. After running
north and south for what seemed like well over an hour, the helicopter flew back to shoot
the second 284. John Bower and I regrouped for the trolling portion of the shoot, and
soon found ourselves being shot/filmed on the troll. We got back to Pier 66 around 10:30
a.m. We would regroup at 2:00 p.m. for the afternoon boat-to-boat shooting sessions.
The wind that afternoon was out of the northeast at every bit of 20-knots, and seas
were running five- to seven-feet. We spent the rest of afternoon (until the sun dropped)
offshore.

The next day was spent primarily shooting video footage of John Bower and me talking
about the new improvements and features designed into the boat. Afterwards, it was
some more boat-to-boat photography, until the sun dropped out.

In short, the new Mako 284 now features a “no wood” (cored-foam/fiberglass) structural
system, redesigned 50-gallon live well fed by dual pumps, channeled fish box lids,
larger cockpit drains, redesigned console with a lot of internal room and easy-access to
electronics and other critical rigging components, low-maintenance and electronically
operated trim tabs, LED nav lights, and impeccable fiberglass and finish work. The hull
comes in between 400- and 600-pounds lighter than the previous 284, a difference which
I readily felt when running this boat.

Look for a brand-new MARC VI in February or early March 2011, just in time for our
new fishing season!


At speed off Fort Lauderdale in the newly re-enginered Mako 284.


On the troll of Fort Lauderdale in the new Mako 284.

KEYS AGAIN

KEYS AGAIN!

Trailered the MARC VI back down to the Keys last Monday (Nov. 8), this time to
Islamorada, to fish/shoot an episode with friend Greg Poland. Production crew included
Kevin Tierney, Carl Grassi, and Mr. Miller. We launched my boat and the camera boat
at a private ramp by Poland’s home, and docked them at World Wide Sportsman. We
stayed at Cheeca Lodge, and even got in a dinner at Ziggy’s and Mad Dog’s!

Fishing was good, but not fast. We had to really work at it, but we scored mutton
snapper, grouper, and Cero mackerel. Looking to revisit a kind of fishing I thoroughly
enjoyed in the Keys during my early 20s, we spent one afternoon catching ocean-run
barracuda on tube lures and 8-pound class spin tackle! What a blast! I was always
impressed by the fight a barracuda gives when it is matched on ultra-light tackle, and
these fish – up to 15-pounds – were no exception.

We spent two days on the water, and had to pull the boat after our second day, and
trailer it back to Broward County. I had to be at Ft. Lauderdale’s Pier 66 at 5:00 a.m. the
following morning, for a catalogue/brochure shoot for Mako Marine. I dropped my boat
off at its home in Coral Springs (Garnett Storage) at 8:30 that evening, and then went
home for a well deserved shower, quick dinner and few hours of sleep!

Blazing Snappers!

BLAZING SNAPPERS!

Trailered the MARC VI down to Marathon in the Florida Keys last Monday, to fish the
offshore reefs for yellowtail snapper and the patch reefs for mangrove snapper. We were
shooting an episode for my 2011 TV season, with local captain Jimmy Gagliardini as my
guest.

We (myself and production team members Rob “Swede” Greene and Carl Grassi) stayed
at the new Holiday Inn Express in Marathon, whereas Kevin Tierney stayed at his
Ramrod Key home (he was always the unsociable type!). The MARC VI was tied up to
the new docks behind the hotel.

On Tuesday, our first fishing day, the wind was blowing 15- to 20-knots from the East.
We picked up Jimmy and headed offshore. We dropped anchor in 80-feet of water, only
to discover the wind was opposing the current. To compensate - so our baits would drift
back within the chum slick - we re-secured the anchor line to the boat’s mid-ship cleat.
All was well. We dispatched four blocks of Captain Mark’s Pure Sardine chum in a large
mesh hoop, and hung it overboard. The yellowtails came up, in large, golden/yellow
balls. Just how many ‘tails were here was revealed on the Lowrance Structure Scan,
which showed literally hundreds and hundreds of them 20- to 35-feet off to starboard of
the MARC VI, and running the length of the boat!

Using No. 6 hooks baited with pieces of shrimp, 12-pound test fluorocarbon leaders
and Penn Conquer and Battle spinning reels spooled with 15-pound test Sufix Superior
monofilament, we free-lined our baits - along with a handful of a chum supplement made
from oats, thawed chum and sea water. This supplement creates a “cloud” around the
baits, exciting the ‘tails while making our leaders less noticeable.

The bite was off the charts, as Jimmy and I bailed large yellowtail – several cracking five
pounds. After catching many more fish the traditional way, we began live-chumming
with pilchards, to get the big ones feeding at the surface with the intensity of jack
Crevalles. And we did exactly that! Seizing a fabulous opportunity to catch these fish on
artificials, we’d toss out a serving of live pilchards and proceeded to cast Rattlin’ Rapalas
at the feeding blitzes. And catch them we did! The lures yielded our five heaviest
yellowtail, two of which were over five-pounds!

The next day (Wednesday), with an East wind at 20-knots, we anchored over a patch
reef in 25-feet of water, and put out one block of Captain Mark’s Pure Sardine Chum.

Here, we used spinning outfits rigged with 30-pound test fluorocarbon leaders and boxing
glove-style jigs. We’d impale a live pilchard onto the jig (under the lower jaw and out
the upper) and cast into the chum slick. As soon as the jig hit bottom, we’d hook up with
a fat mangrove snapper. After we bailed several big mangroves on the jig/pilchard rig,
I wanted to try live-chumming these fish and catching them on lures. Talk about wild
action! We had the big mangroves busting at the surface, where they eagerly ate the
Rapala lures! In fact, our biggest mangrove snapper – one in the seven pound class, was
caught on a lure!

Later that afternoon, after an incredible snapper bite and with a big thunderstorm
closing in on us, we headed back to shore and put the MARC VI on its Float-On trailer.
Thursday morning, in between rain showers, we shot our conversation pieces. We ate
lunch shortly after noon, and headed back for home in northern Broward County.

Being far down on the island-chain, Marathon doesn’t have the fishing pressure like the
upper Keys, and the reefs here are alive with big snapper. Just wait until you see this
episode!



Production team members “Swede” Greene (left) and Carl Grassi share a light
moment alongside the MARC VI, the afternoon before the shoot.


The long boat dock behind the new Holiday Inn Express in Marathon, and the close-
to-being-finished Tiki Bar. This place will be a fisherman’s paradise!


Jimmy Gagliardini with a lure-caught yellowtail.


What they were eating – Rattlin’ Rapalas.


Some of the big fellas!


Jimmy and I show off the four largest, lure-caught yellowtails.


My monster mangrove snapper, caught on a lure!


Jimmy removing the hooks from a mangrove. Look at how thick this fish is.


Jimmy with a mangrove taken on a live pilchard.


Our four largest, lure-caught mangroves.

Fort Lauderdale Boat Show

Friday was my first day at the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show. I parked near the Bahia Mar, since I had to pick up my credentials, but really needed to be at the Convention Center that morning. Would you believe $ 30.00 to park?! I’m in the wrong business.

After I got my exhibitor’s badge, I took a cab to the Convention Center, and got inside an hour before the show opened. I met up with John Bower at the Mako booth, and we chatted on the rigging and layout of my new 284 Mako, which should be ready to go in February. John is a long-time Mako guy, who has been very instrumental in the quality control, layout and rigging of my boats for more years than we both care to remember. He’s an integral part of Mako’s success, and a heck of a nice guy too.

Between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., I signed and gave out Mako hats at the Mako booth,
which I did again on Saturday and Sunday. Met plenty of neat people and a lot of old
friends, and the three days basically blew by! Took a couple quick strolls through the Bahia Mar side, after leaving the Mako booth. Mako had their newly redesigned 284 center console on display.

Did Halloween Sunday night, by just keeping an eye on my 14-year old daughter and her friends.

Set to trailer the MARC VI down to Marathon in the Keys on Monday morning, where
we’ll fish and shoot an episode Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

In The News

Martin Armstrong, Correspondent

Published: 07:49 p.m., Saturday, October 23, 2010

George Poveromo, host of George Poveromo's World of Saltwater Fishing, spent a few days last week fishing Long Island Sound for an upcoming show.

I got this message from him on Wednesday. "Hey Martin! LIS was on fire today out of New Haven! The weather was perfect. Could not have asked for anything nicer. This was the first time I had ever fished for blackfish, and scored my first ones today. What an impressive fish! They pull like mad. I was amazed at the runs they can muster when first hooked. We caught them on a reef a couple miles out of the Branford River. Tom Migdalski caught the biggest blackfish, one of around seven or eight pounds. All on crabs. When the tide got going, we went jigging on the same reef for bluefish. They were around in good numbers, mostly small. But Tom nailed one around 16 pounds. We got them on diamond jigs and Williamson Flutter Jigs."

Then on Thursday George sent me this missive. "Superb day today for us (me and Tom Migdalski), as we limited out on blackfish in one hour out of New Haven, with the biggest blackfish weighing in at 11 pounds - on the Boga Grip! I'm proud to say that I caught that fish -- which is by far my largest blackfish (though I only began fishing for blackfish 48 hours ago!). For what it's worth, the big fish ate half an Asian crab, and I caught it on a Penn International 975 Baitcasting reel, filled with 30-pound test Sufix Performance Braid. That fish fought me as hard as a 10-pound mutton snapper would have back home off South Florida. I'm impressed with these blackfish! If they grew as large as 30 and 40-pounds, I doubt they could be landed! The neat thing about this trip, is that I brought up my Inshore Mako - a Mako 2201, named the Shallow-Water MARC. What a thrill to be driving and fishing from your own boat in "foreign" waters!"

Foreign waters? Geez!

Poveromo's show moves to VERSUS beginning in January 2011. ESPN will be officially out of the fishing/outdoors TV business beginning January 1, 2011 -- save for B.A.S.S. His popular show got picked up by VERSUS the day after ESPN made that announcement.

T-Shirt Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to the winner of the t-shirt drawing:

Chuck, e-mail me your t-shirt size and your address to georgepoveromo@gmail.com!

_____________________________________________________________________

DOWN TIME (for now!)

Got home around 2:00 p.m. Friday, after flying from Hartford, CT, to Baltimore, then changing planes in Baltimore and flying to Fort Lauderdale. Was up since 2:45 a.m., as we were set to leave the hotel at 3:30a.m. Again, I thoroughly enjoyed my trip up north. A huge thank you to Kevin Tierney and Steve (Mr. Miller) Miller – who are among the very best fishing videographers in the business - not so much for their talents (which I really appreciate), but for always putting up with my stubbornness to keep fishing all day long – even when they have more than enough fishing footage in the can for a great episode.

Now, a nice, relaxing weekend in store! Took the girls out for dinner on Friday night, and then just got back - per tradition - from the local Starbucks with my eldest daughter Lindsay and her husband (Aaron) -- guess who gets stuck picking up that tab every Saturday!

Keeping a very close eye on the weather for the Keys next week, as I’m thinking seriously about trailering down my Mako 284 and fishing around Big Pine Key – if the winds appear as if they’ll break and that storm just west of Cuba will keep away. I’d get back up here by Thursday night, and be ready to spend Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show. And most of that time (10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.) will be spent in the Mako booth, signing and giving out Mako hats.