Team Rock On
06-30-2004, 05:44 AM
On kayak, teen hooks 52.8-pound striped bass
By JARRETT RENSHAW Staff Writer, (609) 978-2015
Press of Atlantic City
STAFFORD TOWNSHIP - It is an elusive feat that most experienced fishermen never taste, despite years of chasing it down and countless stories of the one that got away.
But once they do, they become members an elite group who can proudly boast they caught it - a 50-pound or more striped bass.
Bobby Capri Jr. joined that club Friday at the ripe age of 14 in a most untraditional manner, nearly breaking a world record along the way.
The young but experienced Capri was nestled in his 10-foot kayak off the coast of Surf City when he felt a strong tug on his 10-pound test line.
"I was out there trying to catch some bunker to use for bait. Then, I hooked one of the live bunkers on the hook, and I had this monster of a hit on my line," said Capri on Monday.
The fish dragged the 115-pound Capri Jr. for almost 20 minutes, sending him past two jetties and spinning him in circles about a dozen times.
"I knew I had something big. I just did not know how big," Capri said.
It wasn't until Capri brought the fish next to the kayak that he realized exactly how big it was - a 52.8-pound striper.
The fish was within five pounds of the world record of 57 pounds for his age group, according to the International Game Fishing Association.
Capri said that he struggled with getting the large fish on board his kayak. He was forced to put his hand through the striped bass's gill plate and drag the bulky fish onto his lap.
He then attempted to paddle ashore with the fish more than half his size and just less than half his weight, but the nose of his kayak kept tipping, and he feared he might lose the fish.
So, he pushed his hand up through the fish's gill plate once more and jumped out the kayak. He dragged the fish the last 10 to 15 yards in the water and was greeted by a half-dozen onlookers.
Capri initially believed the fish to be about 40 pounds, which is what he told his father during a highly charged cell phone conversation on the beach Friday.
"He called me all excited and asked for help. He said the fish was about 40 pounds," said his father, Bobby Capri Sr.
The call did not surprise Capri Sr., who said his son has been striped bass fishing since the age of 2. In addition, Capri remembers a similar conversation when his son caught a 27-pound striper last year.
"This is what he loves, and he is good at it," said Capri Sr., who, like his son, has recorded a 50-pound striper.
Capri Sr. believes that the kayak actually helped his son catch the fish.
"Have you ever seen those old movies where they harpoon the whales or sharks and tie barrels to the line," his father said with a smile. "Well that was what happened here."
The pair then brought the fish to Tonnesen Tony's Bait and Tackle in Stafford Township, Ocean County, where they found out it weighed 52.8 pounds.
"We have not had a fifty pounder plus in some time now," said Andy Tonnesen, owner of the bait shop.
Tonnesen said that many of the fishermen wait their whole lives to catch a striper weighing 50 pounds or more. "I just had a guy, about 63, who caught his first 40 pounder."
Tonnesen said that this season produced a number of 40-pound stripers, but none more than 50 pounds.
Catching this size of fish at an early age has its drawbacks, as his more experienced father wisely points out.
"I don't think he realizes what he just did. He set the bar so high now that it is going to be a let down in the future if he doesn't catch something bigger, which is not easy to do," Capri Sr said.
On Monday, the fish was still on its local tour of friends and family of the Capris. It will be cut up and given to friends and family.
And no matter how humble Capri Jr. may appear to be, he has earned some bragging rights at an early age.
"He told me he whooped my butt," said one friend of the family who caught a 40-pound striper on the same day.
To e-mail Jarrett Renshaw at The Press:
By JARRETT RENSHAW Staff Writer, (609) 978-2015
Press of Atlantic City
STAFFORD TOWNSHIP - It is an elusive feat that most experienced fishermen never taste, despite years of chasing it down and countless stories of the one that got away.
But once they do, they become members an elite group who can proudly boast they caught it - a 50-pound or more striped bass.
Bobby Capri Jr. joined that club Friday at the ripe age of 14 in a most untraditional manner, nearly breaking a world record along the way.
The young but experienced Capri was nestled in his 10-foot kayak off the coast of Surf City when he felt a strong tug on his 10-pound test line.
"I was out there trying to catch some bunker to use for bait. Then, I hooked one of the live bunkers on the hook, and I had this monster of a hit on my line," said Capri on Monday.
The fish dragged the 115-pound Capri Jr. for almost 20 minutes, sending him past two jetties and spinning him in circles about a dozen times.
"I knew I had something big. I just did not know how big," Capri said.
It wasn't until Capri brought the fish next to the kayak that he realized exactly how big it was - a 52.8-pound striper.
The fish was within five pounds of the world record of 57 pounds for his age group, according to the International Game Fishing Association.
Capri said that he struggled with getting the large fish on board his kayak. He was forced to put his hand through the striped bass's gill plate and drag the bulky fish onto his lap.
He then attempted to paddle ashore with the fish more than half his size and just less than half his weight, but the nose of his kayak kept tipping, and he feared he might lose the fish.
So, he pushed his hand up through the fish's gill plate once more and jumped out the kayak. He dragged the fish the last 10 to 15 yards in the water and was greeted by a half-dozen onlookers.
Capri initially believed the fish to be about 40 pounds, which is what he told his father during a highly charged cell phone conversation on the beach Friday.
"He called me all excited and asked for help. He said the fish was about 40 pounds," said his father, Bobby Capri Sr.
The call did not surprise Capri Sr., who said his son has been striped bass fishing since the age of 2. In addition, Capri remembers a similar conversation when his son caught a 27-pound striper last year.
"This is what he loves, and he is good at it," said Capri Sr., who, like his son, has recorded a 50-pound striper.
Capri Sr. believes that the kayak actually helped his son catch the fish.
"Have you ever seen those old movies where they harpoon the whales or sharks and tie barrels to the line," his father said with a smile. "Well that was what happened here."
The pair then brought the fish to Tonnesen Tony's Bait and Tackle in Stafford Township, Ocean County, where they found out it weighed 52.8 pounds.
"We have not had a fifty pounder plus in some time now," said Andy Tonnesen, owner of the bait shop.
Tonnesen said that many of the fishermen wait their whole lives to catch a striper weighing 50 pounds or more. "I just had a guy, about 63, who caught his first 40 pounder."
Tonnesen said that this season produced a number of 40-pound stripers, but none more than 50 pounds.
Catching this size of fish at an early age has its drawbacks, as his more experienced father wisely points out.
"I don't think he realizes what he just did. He set the bar so high now that it is going to be a let down in the future if he doesn't catch something bigger, which is not easy to do," Capri Sr said.
On Monday, the fish was still on its local tour of friends and family of the Capris. It will be cut up and given to friends and family.
And no matter how humble Capri Jr. may appear to be, he has earned some bragging rights at an early age.
"He told me he whooped my butt," said one friend of the family who caught a 40-pound striper on the same day.
To e-mail Jarrett Renshaw at The Press: