world record striper

[BigFish]

If you don't know for sure...don't speculate. Give the guy a break and let it be.....only Al McReynolds, the guy he was with and THE fish really know so let it go! Which is what I will do should I ever catch a fish like that...let it go! So I don't have to listen to a bunch of finger pointers for 20 years plus!

I don't know if he really caught it or not....but I will give him the benefit of the doubt.....who am I or you to question it?

[keeperreaper]

If you believe he caught it great; but I have my doubts and believe he did NOT catch it. Leave it at that.

[Skitterpop]

People with a free mind and choice to free speech

[jim sylvester]

ok, back to the subject.....does anybody know what was in the stomach since the girth is abnormally large

[Skip N]

Originally Posted by BigFish

If you don't know for sure...don't speculate. Give the guy a break and let it be.....only Al McReynolds, the guy he was with and THE fish really know so let it go! Which is what I will do should I ever catch a fish like that...let it go! So I don't have to listen to a bunch of finger pointers for 20 years plus!

I don't know if he really caught it or not....but I will give him the benefit of the doubt.....who am I or you to question it?

People are just jealous because they didnt catch the record fish.

[ChiefLinesider]

Originally Posted by jim sylvester

ok, back to the subject.....does anybody know what was in the stomach since the girth is abnormally large

It weighed in at 78-1/2 lbs., was 53" long and its girth was measured at 34 - 1/2". It took him over 4 hours not the previously reported hour and 40 minutes to land this monster. Als previous best to this point was 39 lbs. Al also caught a 15.9 pound weak fish immediately before he hooked into his world record beast- Stripers247.com
Its got a 15.9 lb weakfish stuffed into its belly.


Tony Stetzko's striped bass for example 73 pounds 60 inches. Charles Church another 73 lber 60 or 61 inches in length.

Al McReynolds 53 inches, 34 1/2 inch girth? It just doesnt add up. Any studies that have been made on length to weight research have no signs that point to even the slightest possibility of a 53 inch fish weighing in at 78 1/2 lbs. Of course there are exceptions, but the story doesnt fit either. I think it would be a real shame if the bar was set that high from a bogus fish.

Lure: "Long A" black bomber not magnum (the 4 1/2 Inch).. of course big fish fall to it, but I would say the exception rather than the rule.

Battle: 4 hours to land it!
Out of the package Long A hooks definately would have failed by then. Or worked themselves free.
was also During a stiff nor'easter

[clambelly]

Originally Posted by ChiefLinesider

It weighed in at 78-1/2 lbs., was 53" long and its girth was measured at 34 - 1/2". It took him over 4 hours not the previously reported hour and 40 minutes to land this monster. Als previous best to this point was 39 lbs. Al also caught a 15.9 pound weak fish immediately before he hooked into his world record beast- Stripers247.com
Its got a 15.9 lb weakfish stuffed into its belly.


Tony Stetzko's striped bass for example 73 pounds 60 inches. Charles Church another 73 lber 60 or 61 inches in length.

Al McReynolds 53 inches, 34 1/2 inch girth? It just doesnt add up. Any studies that have been made on length to weight research have no signs that point to even the slightest possibility of a 53 inch fish weighing in at 78 1/2 lbs. Of course there are exceptions, but the story doesnt fit either. I think it would be a real shame if the bar was set that high from a bogus fish.

Lure: "Long A" black bomber not magnum (the 4 1/2 Inch).. of course big fish fall to it, but I would say the exception rather than the rule.

Battle: 4 hours to land it!
Out of the package Long A hooks definately would have failed by then. Or worked themselves free.
was also During a stiff nor'easter

this article says something different....
from http://www.finefishing.com/1saltfish...mcreynolds.htm

It took him one hour and 40 minutes to get his plug back. One hour and 40 minutes is a long time when it's measured out in surging runs in a strong storm surf, and in careful sidesteps on a slippery, storm battered jetty aimed at summer flounder fishermen. Most of all, it's a long time to strain back, arms, hands and wrists against an unseen fish that grew larger in McReynolds' imagination with every minute, every long run and every vibration of the taut line that sang in the wind. Such imagined fish usually shrink at the net or gaff. McReynolds' did not. Erdman had no more jokes, just encouraging words and the offer of help.

why are these facts different? sounds like there is some discrepincies in these "stories".

[clambelly]

ok, this is some crazy stuff ive just found. those "freak" fish like a few others have talked about, that just don't fit the mold according to the length/girth charts...you gotta check this out..

http://www.arkansasstripers.com/worl...e-ouachita.htm

[Mike P]

First of all, to answer the original question--I don't think Al's fish was ever gutted. It went intact to a taxidermist, in all likelihood. It had to be weighed on a certified scale to be accepted as the record, and was probably the single most scrutinized fish in history. If I had to guess, I would say the belly was loaded with the mullet it was feeding on.

Al caught the fish. No doubt about it. If it was caught in a net there would have been unmistakeable marks on it, and as I said, it was probably the most scutinized fish ever. The big problem is that Al is not the sharpest tool in the shed, and is his own worst enemy sometimes. At last count, he's told about 4 different versions of how long he had the fish on the line. I don't believe for a second it was an hour and forty minutes. It probably seemed that long to him, but in actuality, was probably more like 40 minutes. A Penn 710 doesn't hold enough 20# line for a striper to fight for close to 2 hours.

[vanstaal]

hay isn't that a Geoduck u have there ! Clambelly ?

[JohnR]

I think the guy caught the fish. We're not old pals or anything but I have met him before and talked with him at length....

Funny how this thread always goes down this road

We should start a new thread "If you landed the world record fish, would you tell ?"

[tattoobob]

I could really care less if he caught it or not, the thing that did stick out in my mind is this, striperman36 said that weakfish and blue fish were feeding on mullet and sandeels, well it just sticks out in my mind that a fish that big would be eating weakfish and bluefish it's the food chain. so if it did have a weakfish in it's belly it should have. I give him my humble congrats for landing a fish like that on flounder gear.

[ChiefLinesider]

He will be going down in history either way... Whether he caught it or not, can be argued both ways. So your always left back at square one, with Al McReynolds still the current IGFA record holder. And that fact will not change, unless of course....

It's bound to be broken eventually. You only need 78 3/4...