[gofastsandman]

Capt. Bill Taylor of the Black Dog fish pole bending co. was a speaker at the W.P.B. fishing club last month. Most charter guys have a glam species on their vanity plate. He has a Mutton Schnappah on his.I used to live bait with him back when he was pioneering the use of lobstah boats for drifting.

He never anchors up to avoid catching Grouper.
He`s for the closing of Grouper. I haven`t caught a legal Red Grouper in 7 years. The Goliath population has exploded as the exception and are ravenous. Most Schnappah are in fine shape, not so for the Reds. Look what happened when we closed the Swordfishery to the longliners. We are now seeing some 400 + #ers. Now they want in again.

Thanks in no small part to the net ban, I saw acres of bait dimpling in Tampa Bay. Love to see that here someday.

Much of this failure is due to a lack of understanding on all levels. We`ve all been venting undersized bottom fish in the wrong place. Capt. Bill Showed us a new technique and tool. The tool is simply a slightly wide hypo needle of about an inch or so that allows the release through the rear and you hear the news. I had always laid down the pec fin and vented there with a forward 45* angle. I never thought about NOT hearing the whoosh. You insert the tool just behind and slightly below the aft curve of the gill plate at an acute angle. Some local tackle shops are giving them away with your purchase of nuts and berries!

More later,
GFS