from the bridge
Hook, line and sinker Sportfish boats are far less formal and much more interactive, aficionados say. Triton met with captains via Zoom recently for a “From the Bridge” roundtable on what it’s like to run a sportfish boat. To encourage candid discussion, Triton’s policy is to not identify participating captains or their comments.
When you interview for jobs, is the owner more interested in your fishing ability or your ability to be a captain?
• For me, it was personality in the beginning, I was nothing to brag about at the start in my first chase boat, we were really just out there having a good time. And the same thing with the job I’m at now – we just really got along. • It just depends on what the owner’s focus is. I worked for a very novice owner that was really into the fishing, and he was just very focused on my ability to fish. I had a guy recently who — well, I started as a delivery guy, and then he asked me to stay and try to get him squared away. That turned into a month, and then a year — and it was my ability to manage the program. Where I am now, they did not want a young, aggressive, tournament kind of sportfishing captain; to be able to be a comprehensive program manager was more important to them. The one before that, there was no emphasis on managing the program — it was a large sportfish and a large yacht, but it was all focused on fishing. 20
JUNE 2022 | TritonNews.com
Are there some sportfish captains and crew who prefer tournament fishing, and some who don’t? Sort of like some yacht crew prefer charter yachts, and some don’t.
• Certainly, there’s a competitive side of it, and if you’re a competitive individual you’re going to plug into that. So, you’re doing something you love, you’re competing in it, and oh, by the way, you can win a significant chunk of change as well. That, to me, is what seems like drives a lot of sportfish captains toward tournaments: the ability to add to the bottom line at the end of the year.
If you’re there for a good time and everyone wants to have fun, that’s what fishing’s about, and it makes your life a lot easier. • If we do tournaments, we’re into ones like the Jimmy Johnson where they’ve got a nice, good party. It’s not just about the fishing, it’s about getting together on the dock and just having a good time. Personally, for me, tournaments are a little more stressful — there’s a lot more going on. Especially the sailfish tournaments. Being out on a 74-foot boat, it’s not easy to catch the fastest fish in the ocean. • I’ve never worked for a guy that is like this, but there are guys out there, if you
don’t win a tournament, if you don’t win money in a 12-month period, you’re out. Some owners are hugely competitive and are dying to get into it, and others are just there for a good time. If you’re there for a good time and everyone wants to have fun, that’s what fishing’s about, and it makes your life a lot easier. •E very fisherman’s been there, when you don’t catch anything, and there’s two types of boat. On one, you might have an owner and the crew pissed at you and everyone in a bad mood. On the other, you hear: “That’s fine. We had a great time. We’ll head in a little early and hit happy hour. It was good to get out there.” Compare the life of a sportfish captain with the life of a regular yacht captain.
• The yacht side is more silver service. There’s a lot more waiting, you’re dressed up a lot nicer, you get a shower before dinner. For me, it was rarely ever going to dinner with the owner, and you always had to look busy, shammy in hand, you know… maybe a radio. They want you there and they want you to just be waiting on them, which is fine. Sportfishing, from my experience, it’s a 180, and I’ll never go back to yachts. You know, we get in and the boss will say, “Oh, here man, have a beer” and, you know, “Relax, you did great today, let’s just rinse the boat.” You’re not always busy. We’ll all go out to eat. They kind of bring you in more as a family. They want you there. They want you around. They’re not there to impress anyone, it’s just to have a good time. It’s just way more relaxed. •Y ou are enabling them to participate in
