The Fall Fling 2000

October 23, 2000:

 
Here's the first of the photos! I'm gonna mess this up, but I'm gonna try and name these folks!
Left to right, in the front: Kadir, JCX, Hans, BrianZ,  and Errick
Left to right, in the back: Derf, Mrs. Derf, DitchJigger, MarkH, and Arby
(If ya know I messed up, shoot me an email with the correct names please!)

   You ever start something....something you just did for the heck of it, just cause you knew you could start it, no real long term plans for it? That's kinda how this site got here. Many of you know the story, others have probably got their own ideas, but in reality, this site wasn't thought out, it was drawn up on paper, it was just something that started....started for my love of fishing, started mainly as just a place a group of us could put photographs to share with each other.  Then nearly a year later, two Fling's behind us, 800 quality folks on SurfTalk, 500 registered on SurfChat for our lively late season/off season long night talks....and a whole lotta folks who just like to read the stuff here....and I realize just how amazing you all are! Yea, I'm gettin' to the Fling! ;-) 

     Saturday, after not sleeping for a couple days, Dubs and I made our way out to the Fling area on Long Island. We left about 2am...ran into nothing but traffic troubles and got to Alberto's just in time to interrupt the nap he and BrianZ were just about to take! We unloaded some stuff and went out for a little daybreak scouting for the Fling that was to start that afternoon. The scouting was excellent...everywhere we went, there was bait....lots of bait! Sandeels, spearing, some mullet...it looked like the fishing that evening was certain to pan out! When you plan something like a Fling so far in advance, you can only hope that all the cards will play out accordingly and good fishing...even decent fishing will be available to those who come. As we were headed back to Al's for but a one hour nap, the birds started diving and wheeling for the entire length of the beach...casts had to be made, just for recon purposes! We didn't hook anything, saw nothing landed either, but the bait, birds, and fish were all along the beach! Back to Al's, no sleep...grab a cup of coffee on the way back to the OBI meeting place. When we got there at 12:10, there had to be 40 or so guys there already! I had previously met but a handful of guys, there were so many new faces! Ditch Jigger had some family stuff to take care of, we expected him around 5pm...but I never ran into him till Dubs and I were silly with exhaustion and drooling on ourselves in the Captree Marina, having just dropped off Squidlips and debating where to go for some much needed sleep. I pointed him to where the last group of Flingers were and he was off to find them. Charlie and I, at that point, about 2:30am, decided to drink lots of coffee and try and make a break for home...I was so toast I needed to crash, bad! I've been tired before, but I was so utterly exhausted that I was beginning to feel more feverish than just plain tired...home it was...and luckily, we made it! 

     Sadly, Laurel and Hardy never made it...I'm still wondering what happened to the dynamic duo! But the vast majority who registered did make it to the Fling...some only for a couple hours, most for the duration....but almost everyone made it! We had a blast in the meeting area, we all had a blast fishing....even though all the signs were there, the stripers never showed up!  I don't have all the details in yet, but my crew had only one bite! Arby hooked and lost what possibly was the Fling pool winner...it grabbed a live eel and never looked back! Unfortunately, it went faster than Arby's reel was giving up line and the two were separately prematurely! I heard him yell 50 yards away from where I was drifting a little eel. That was, to the best of my knowledge, the only unicorn hit amongst me, Dubs, Arby, his brother Mike, and Squidlips! At dusk, we had a mini hickory shad blitz, I landed 7 of them stinky suckers...4 were detained in my cooler should they be needed later for fish parts. I never had a bite...not on live eels, plastic eels, jigs, bucktails, teasers, darters, bottle plugs, and not even when I resorted to putting 1/3 of a hickory shad on the bottom of a likely steaming rip with 6oz of lead on my Breakaway 1209 and Penn 975...not a touch, not a sniff...  The teams worked out pretty well...what a chore that was! Trying to pair up people with folks who were like minded, had rides, didn't have permits, did have 4X4 access, didn't wanna walk, did want to walk, had to leave at a certain time, were planning on all-night, didn't wanna throw bait, wanted to throw flies...whew! Finally, we got everyone squared away, mostly through volunteering...but in the end, the teams were made! There needs to be a better way to make teams, but this is only the second Fling, we're all still learning!

    So, the way I heard it, at least so far, is Kurt has 2 stripers, tied with Alberto's for high hook! Go Kurt! Alberto I hear had 2 fish right near daybreak, BrianZ who was fishing with Al had one as well...Alberto and Brian's fish were between 15-18#, Al's second one was around 32". I'm not sure how big Kurt's fish were, we'll find out later on. I think there was another taken by the large FredB/PaulM/JohnE team...that was a large team cause there were those three locals (West End Warriors)...and they were going to fish an area that could handle a huge group. 

   I'd like to say thanks to all who made it, all who lead their groups, all who came just to say hi, and anyone who helped out in any way...I was so shot, every single effort of you guys was sincerely appreciated! I will put up the rest of the details as the weary anglers send them/post them...and if anyone took any pictures, make sure to get me a copy, we'll work them into a Fall Fling page as soon as possible!

**The preliminary Fall Fling Page is now up...but it's not fully complete, I don't even know half the stories and have but one photo! As the details and photos come in, I'll update it one more time...probably in a week when I imagine I'll have all the photos! Please, keep in mind...this is just the rough version...it's no where near complete, but I thought it would give ya an idea of what went on!

   Now, we're back to fishless Jersey just in time to hear about all the fish that bit their fool heads off in our absence! God, them striped devils sure know how to disappear at just the wrong time! ;-)

     The extremely long awaited, but well worth it 5 1/2" MegaBait Plugs have just arrived!?!?! Holy smokes, they are all I hoped they would be and much, much more! These plugs are the same shape/style as the ultra-deadly 4 1/2" MegaBaits that so many of us have been clobbering the fish on for over a year now, but they are an inch longer, a bit fatter, and weigh 1 1/4oz! Man, they are gonna cast like bullets. Not only that but they also come in the colors that the 6" and 7" MegaBaits come in, colors that I've long wished the 4 1/2" would come in...like midnight shad, schoolbus (yellow shad I call it here, it ain't a real schoolbus color) and an awesome red head/pearl color. Might as well give ya the whole list: Kuro Kin, Blue Back, Light Shad, Silver Shad, Midnight Shad, Bunker/Sardine, Yellow Shad, Blue Back/Orange Belly, and the most realistic Red Head that I've seen. I'll put up the drop down menu for these babies on the 4 1/2" MegaBait page for now....but keep in mind, the colors are the same as the 6" and 7" MegaBaits. Actually, the only differences in colors between the 4 1/2" and 5 1/2" would be the dark shad in 4 1/2" is midnight shad in 5 1/2" and the addition of the yellow shad in the 5 1/2". Oh, and did I mention they'll come with 4X VMC 9626PS hooks? Unbendable! I got a bunch but there's been such a delay in the manufacturer getting them built that I don't expect these to last that long either!

      The latest of the wonderful Hab's creations arrived whilst we were away...his awesome 5/8oz Lil' Scrapper! These little poppers have the same unbelievable paint, same finish, same big soft prism eyes as the 1 oz Perfect Poppers, except they are shorter and have but one single barbless treble on the back...dressed in bucktail of course! I don't have my camera today but will take the pictures tonight or tomorrow. These are the closest imitation for the smaller baits that I've seen, the wood/wire is 3" long and the bucktailed hooks adds a couple more...and they are still 5/8oz and are weighted to cast very well. Hab's knows his stuff! I really don't expect them to last long, the Perfect Poppers and the Needlefish left here at an astounding rate. Hab's tells me he's going to be shipping the 2oz Perfect Poppers soon...I can't wait to get my mitts on them! ;-)

   I had a chance to try out one of the Bronco Neoprene Pullover style jackets...the first night we fished MV, the wind was screaming 25-30kts and gusty...drizzle and rain...and the air temp was about 36 degrees. I dunno what the wind chill was, I'm guessing single digits...but I was so extremely comfortable in that pullover all night long that I swore I'd tell the world. The wind was silenced by the neoprene hood...the velcro closure under the neck was very comfortable...the zippered sleeves even kept my arms somewhat dry while sticking my hands in the water to revive fish...I'm a believer...I'll never be cold or damp again, even in the windy, nasty stuff that the fish love so much.

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

Catching up...at last!

October 25, 2000:

   Yessir, the Fall Fling is behind us...I don't have any solid plans to be away now until the Pseudo Fling that Plug is organizing on ! That's like over 2 weeks in a row...I should be well caught up by then...maybe ;-) There are more Fall Fling pictures showing up...if anyone's got some, please email me a copy at tims@stripersonline.com so I can incorporate them on the Fall Fling Page. And for the Spring Fling guys, the first fling, the torture test weather fling...I am now in the process of doing that page...and those T-shirts are being taken care of. Yes, these are both obviously belated...for no other reason than I'm learning! The Spring Fling was the first attempt at getting the folks together...and other than the hurricane like weather, it was a super success! I would expect that each Fling from that point on would get easier and better...that's just the way things work, we learn from the past. Much as I loved the Fall Fling, the Spring Fling crews who braved the elements were the first...and that event will always be special...it'll always be the very first Fling! So, the Pseudo Fling looks to be in November...you'll have to follow that one on SurfTalk for the time being...I'm not sure if that one's supposed to be "official" or not. After that, we'll have the Winter Fling....it looks like Hatteras for this one! Potentially, it'll be at least a 2 day Fling...just because of the driving involved from here to there. Sometime mid-January to mid-February...JohnM's kinda taking the reigns on this one at the moment! The weather might be quite fickle down there that time of year...but there are supposedly monster red drum and 50 inch stripers down there as well! I dunno about you, I'll take some nasty, cold weather to tangle with 50" stripers and 50" drum...I'll even have a big heavy bait rod with me! You know, just in case ;-)

    Locally, I've been hearing that Sunday was a killer bit around here...all around here! Bass to 25#'s and blues to 18#....chasing weakfish and bunker right up on to the beaches! Good thing I was still sleeping off the Fling, I mighta got in on some of this action! The blitzes ranged from Sandy Hook down to at least Island Beach State Park. Then, I get a "heads up" from Otter about a 55# striper taken on Sunday from LBI! Not even from a boat...this LARGE ate a bunker piece right from the sand! Whew, "fifty-five pounds"....that's got a nice ring to it, no? ;-) The action waned the last two days...but there's still some action in the mornings/afternoons...now I just wanna get out there at night and find some fish feeding at night...you know, the way they're supposed to! I haven't given it much proper attention, one trip at extremely low tide in a place know to stink at low tide. We didn't get a bump there...but did run into some bait - spearing, some sand eels, some spot, and for a brief couple minutes, I got a good whiff of a striper party somewhere nearby. As the tide got a bit later, we headed to some inside waters where Dubs promptly landed two monstrous NJ unicorns, like both over 20"! ;-) I, of course being penalized for my bad attitude, got nothing but a couple hits which I failed miserably to connect with. The good new is Dubs and I figured out what's been going on...it's my faulty lucky water bottle! Yup, all the slow/spotty fishing, it's because my lucky water bottle has recently sprung a leak! The current task at hand is now to go store to store and check many different water bottles for their "luck" content...it's a daunting task but must be done immediately!

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

Some fish...and the water bottle luck saga continues!

October 26, 2000:

  Yesterday, I reported that we had pretty much nailed down the cause of recent hard times on the local fishing front for Dubs and I...it was determined that my lucky water bottle was leaking. Besides making all the stuff in the back of the truck wet, this had much deeper ramifications...all the luck had leaked out! It even created a "luck vacuum"....that's read as "bad luck". Yup, I've seen my share of it lately, but at least we know what's behind it, that's comforting! Unfortunately, last night we got a much later start than we wanted to (like that's something new! ;-) so checking various convenience stores water bottle supply for luck content was out...I was doomed to fish with the unlucky leaking water bottle for one more night! I'm pretty brave, I figured how bad could this leaky water bottle be...it has been fairly good to me in tough times since I purchased it in July. My prior lucky water bottle which had also been fairly good to me, was lost in a terrible beach incident....please, it's still to tough to talk about, I'd had that water bottle since the prior year from Cape Cod...I'm healing still after it's loss ;-) So we went anyway, me knowing that I'd be fighting the luck vacuum again.

   It started off fairly normally for NJ, not a touch for the first hour and 200 casts. Then I finally get a decent fish stuck on a 1 1/2oz Smilin' Bill...the fish walks me down the rocks for a bit...I get it close...real close...like 3 feet from the rocks and I prepare to go down and pick up my shining striped prize...and just like that, it comes unbuttoned! Hey, stuff happens like that all the time, I tried not to let that chill up my spine, no doubt from the luck vacuum, bother me. I then missed 3 hits in 5 casts...again, it happens. <chill still there on my spine> Things are slowing, we decide to take a little walk and throw snakes...yes, we had live bait with us...there's been some pretty big critters around, sometimes snakes apparently must be part of your arsenal. After 100 casts with the snakes and just one bluefish chomp to show for it, I get a real good shot....and the fish is chewing on my eel...and begins to move off....I drop the rod tip...and WHAM! Big knot...fish still on heading east...knot is not moving...I'm feverishly trying to undo what has now become a 10 foot twisted knot...and the fish is gone. I am, to say the least, a little bothered, the chill is back. Not having the heart to do it all over again, we head for new waters. I'm wondering just how a leaking water bottle can cause these kinds of things to happen as I take a long drink from said water bottle. 

   At the next spot, I'm not throwing the rod I had intended to use for the eels, my Loomis 108-20C and Calcutta 400 with 20# Big Game mono...yes, mono! The first cast, I get two real good shots, the second one I somehow managed to get all the stretch outta the mono and set the hook...and again, it appears to be a pretty decent fish! After 5 minutes of wrassling, I have the fish right at my feet...and the very same second I was gonna say to Dubs "Let's see this one get away" the hook pops outta it's mouth and now I am convinced, the luck vacuum was consuming my evening! 7/0 jig hooks don't just fall out of a tired fish's mouth like that! Not one to be intimidated by a run of luck-less-ness, I do it all over again...only the next 3 or 4 bites I can't get the stretch outta the rubber band quick enough to bury a hook. Frustrated, I grab the Neptune (scene of the eel induced knot earlier) and pull of a good 100yds of braid....the very first time since I got the reel at Christmas last year that I had to cut out a knot! Then the swivel and leader are attached the braid and again, I'm fishing braid with my jigs, the way it should be! The next bite, I'm in, and I wrassle this smaller fellow right to the rocks and am thrilled that I will finally get to hold one...even it's a small one. Wouldn't you know it, just as I'm gonna swing, the fish turns, heads into the rocks and cut my mono leader?!?!?!?! Now it's kinda funny...I'm laughing...trying to understand. Tying on a new jig, I feel the luck-less-ness ebbing from my body. Next cast, I'm in again...this one is a 5 or 6# baby...quickly subdued, I swing it up to the rocks, eager to touch the cold flesh of a live striper now...but alas, it was not meant to be! The little feller leaped off the jig, bounced off the rocks and right back into the drink! Ooooohhhh...sometimes I really wonder. A few casts later, I connect, land the fish, and actually get to hold this one...after beating 6 or 7 fish, one finally in hand. I run my finger gently along it's back, along it's belly, kiss it on the head, put it back in the water....and everything is suddenly all better. I smile confidently when the rod is bent on the next cast, the funk is gone, the luck is ebbing back into me, and tonight, I'm shopping for a new water bottle..... 

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

 The sacrificing of the vest....long overdue!

October 30, 2000:

  Desperate, I mean literally desperate for some change in the luck we were having locally...I made a big decision on Friday night! See, I once bought this beautiful hi-tech vest from Cabelas....I dyed it dark green...stuffed the pockets with all manner of stuff - tools, tackle, glue, scent, markers, tape measure, split shots, hooks, sharpener...well, the list goes on...it would fill this page!  So, me and this vest, we traveled all over...the places that come to mind include Canada, Maine, Mass, NY, PA, West Virginia...I think I even bought it to the Bahamas and Florida. My vest and I, we caught all manner of critters...big one, small ones....we lost some epic battles...we won a couple, too! I was wearing this vest the night I finally managed to bury a bomber hook all the way in my arm...it carried the tools I needed to get the hook out! There's lots of blood on this vest, some washed off, some permanent reminder in the form of stains that even time can't remove...some mine, some the fishes...probably about a 50/50 mix. I was wearing this vest the night Dubs finally broke 30#....and I was wearing the night Dubs almost broke his leg. I can't even guess how many guys this vest saw catch their first striper but I know it was a lot! This vest and I fished alongside people who are no longer with us. It was only 3 years old but it looked about 15...and I swore I wouldn't wear it after the second season. Friday night, I emptied the pockets for the last time and suitably, I put it in a final resting spot at the beach...in a nice, wooden garbage can that looked like a suitable place for such a vest.

   This desperate measure, the ultimate sacrifice made by my old fishing vest, it apparently worked...it even satisfied the water bottle luck-vacuum. Friday night I went on to land 4 or 5 stripers...and managed to hook a few that were fairly substantial but escaped. This was the first decent fishing I'd encountered since the leak in the water bottle was noted...the first decent action since we left for Martha's Vineyard (excluding the fishing while we were away.) The luck vacuum was removed entirely on Saturday night...for the first time in months, I landed 4 fish over 31" right here in NJ...all on lures and teasers. Only one short that night. I must have hooked 8 or so fish...some pretty decent ones. 

    I miss the vest...I suffered through two nights of fishing...one with no vest...the second with a sad substitute for my original vest. Now not only am I in the market for a new lucky water bottle...now I am in the market for a new vest! I've purchased two different ones in the past months, hopeful to find one that was everything I wanted in a new vest...both were sadly inadequate....but I am going to call Cabela's today and see if they have a direct descendant to the vest that was my friend for these past 3 seasons.

    Friday night and Saturday night...the NW winds were screaming and the temperature was quite cool....the wind chill was actually raw. The ground swell had you on your toes the entire time and the spray coming across the jetty was a soaking mist. This was the first time in NJ that the Bronco Jacket was needed. With but a short sleeve and long sleeve shirt under the pullover, I was toasty warm. The fish actually had me work up a slight sweat! With the hood up and my back to the screaming wind, I would have sworn the wind had totally dropped out...but a quick removing of the hood was all that was necessary to remind me the biting wind was still there! The pocket on the front of the pullover is truly a refuge for cold hands...I didn't even wear the fingerless gloves I'd normally bring on such a night. A true blessing, I couldn't have been more comfortable than in this neoprene wonder. 

   This NW wind will have both the bass and the peanuts swarming on the beach. Poppers and swimmers will get them on top...MegaBait jigs, Smilin' Bills, and Fin-S-Fish/Ball jigs will get them on the bottom. While I haven't seen any sand eels lately, the fish are acting like they are feeding on them, taking bombers and thin teasers pretty well at night. Dress warm but do get out there, the fish are finally growing up in NJ!

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

Improvements locally in the fishing

October 31, 2000:

    Since the ditching of my old fishing vest...who I still miss each time out...my fishing has been improving each time out. Coincidence? I dunno....but I just ordered a replacement for my old friend...the same exact vest that served me so well for 3 seasons in a row...three long and tough seasons. I was long over due for a new vest, mine was absolutely trashed...I had sewed and glued it so many times...yes, glue. Zap-A-Gap is a wonderful emergency pocket/seam repair tool ;-) In fact, the change in my luck recently has me wondering if I really do need a new water bottle? Perhaps it was just my vest crying out to be put to rest that had turned into the luck vacuum that I was immersed in? I won't know until I finally find that new lucky water bottle. The fishing isn't hot or anything...but I had 6 fish last night, 25" through 33"...and that's leaps and bounds better than the trips prior to putting the vest to rest. I think the luck vacuum has found a new home, poor Dubs has been having a real tough go of it...all the way to the point that he removed his water bottle last night after landing but one short and stomped the luckless plastic contrivance into pieces! Now we're both looking for new lucky water bottles...it's a daunting task. We've even discussed taking them immediately to St. Rose church in Belmar and having one of the priests say a few words over the new bottles....and blessing them with holy water...and each lighting a votive candle before leaving. We're not taking any chances with these things any longer, there's just too much room for error already! 

   We started last night following a lead to some fish that were busting on bait into the dark...but when we got there at 9:30pm, all was quiet...and as we worked the beach, some moron drove right up to the sand and blasted a square mile with his high beams while watching us cast. Needless to say, we just ripped in our plugs and headed outta there. If anyone wants to "see" if fishermen are catching anything at night...don't do it with your headlights! It shuts the fish down, angers the anglers, and they'll leave. Even on the outside chance they were scoring before you pulled up and high beamed them, they won't be now that your lights are all over the water! Ahem, sorry about that, pet peeve of mine. 

   From there we headed north of the Spring Fling area...the hunt was on. We came across Paul Naj and Steve S...two guys that I always enjoy fishing with....that is until they get where I wanna be long before I get there!  Seems they scored pretty well but made sure the fish were all gone before we got there...thanks guys! ;-) Anyway, the fish were nice enough to come back once they moved on...I lost one almost immediately. Then it was quiet for a half hour. A change to a Felmlee natural rigged rubber eel on a little squid and I missed a hit on first cast. A repeat cast and I stuck the biggest fish I'd land last night, about 33". Good wrasslin' match anyway. It was released to grow bigger...a little wiser hopefully...he'd a been dinner for most guys he'd run into! After that, we were preparing to leave and as we walked back...I heard something that sounded like a pop....investigation certainly in order! Sure enough, the fish had trapped a billion spearing on the sand and were having their way with them. I educated 5 more fish there...they took the 5 1/2" MegaBait and the 6" bombers...not a touch on the teasers...odd. The bait was clearly spearing, 3"-4" long...just like the teasers I was using...but the fish all ate the plug! Sometimes it doesn't pay to try and figure them out, just catching them should be good enough.

   All fish were released...notes made. I'll give the fish tonight off...well, at least until date night with da' wife ends with her going to sleep...then I just might have to give these fish a little look see and try and find something a little bigger. These are the times when some really big fish should be moving through our humble waters here. From Halloween through Thanksgiving...that's the big fish season here in the fall. They can be mixed right in with the smaller fish...they can be anywhere! I heard of a 41#er recently taken on a 9" plastic bait...that's a beauty! They're out there, you just gotta go look for 'em!

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent