Greetings to all!

Weather has still been an issue with lots of wind and swell.  Fishing has been primarily bottom fishing. Though a nice White seabass was landed in February .  See FOM below for more info on this beautiful sea bass.  There has been some life down around the rockpile but as you know this changes day to day.  Yellowtail spots have been popping up on the Coast.  A spot even popped up off Pukey Point this last week.

• Last day of lobster season is March 20th.
• White seabass limit goes from 3 to 1 fish on March 15th
• Local Rock Cod season reopens April 1st.

Save the dates-

April 13th will be the Annual Membership Meeting and a Bay Bass seminar. John White from Dana Tackle Shop will present all the latest and hottest technique for fishing the Mission Bay Bass Tournament.  As always Ray Fear will put an incredible raffle together. Mission Bay Marlin Club T-shirts will also be available to purchase. The meeting and seminar will be on the spacious back patio at Bay Park Fish Company restaurant. Cost will be 20.00.  A taco bar is planned for dinner. The event starts at 12:00 noon. Please RSVP by April 9th – Details in emailed flyer.

April 13th Membership Meeting. This is the time for any members that would like to serve on the board. We are always looking for help and new ideas for the Club.  The board meets once a month.  A short questionnaire will also be available where you check in for the Seminar. Please take time to fill it out. We can’t improve the club experience if we don’t know what members’ wants and expectations are.

April 20-21 will be the Mission Bay Bass Tournament. This is always a low key fun time. Let’s get the word out and fill the bay with MBMC anglers.  Entry Form and Rules 

 Membership is at 58 MEMBERS.  Please renew membership if you have not done so; and tell your fellow anglers about our great club.

WEIGHMASTER REPORT

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NEW!! – Rules for FOM Marlin release – Marlin tag/release will be eligible for FOM Recognition. All entries must follow all the rules for release published under MBMC Fishing Rules and Regulations – Tag & Release. This includes notification within 3 days and the MBMC Tag/Release Form within 10 days. For FOM, 130 points (pounds) will be awarded for each release that is properly documented. Tie breaker will be awarded to the first Marlin released for the month.

We look forward to seeing everybody in April to begin our seminar and tournament season.

Tight Lines,
Scott Paul, secretary/social

Hello to all!

This last month fishing has been hampered by weather, cold, and dirty water. It seems that the only thing going on is rock fish in Mexico. Note: If going to Mexico make sure that you have all required documentation.

Although fishing was way off, the club held the Annual Oscar Awards Banquet on January 27, 2024. It was a great event despite the small number of Oscars won. A summary of the activities is presented below. 

Our next meeting is going to be held on April 13 at the Bay Park Fish Co. This will be a combination annual meeting and seminar. The seminar topic will be on catching bass in Mission Bay in preparation for our first tournament of the year. Our Mission Bay Bass Tournament will be held on April 20th and 21st. Stay tuned for a flyer about the meeting and the tournament. After the seminar, Ray Fear will present a mega raffle. A good opportunity to score fishing gear, gift certificates, clothing, and more. We also have a new order of the legacy t-shirts that will be available for purchase.

As of 1 February, we have received 54 membership renewals. This is a great start for 2024. If you haven’t renewed, please do so!

Awards Banquet 

On January 27^th we held the annual awards banquet for our club. The event was held in a private room at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse restaurant on Shelter Island. The food served was absolutely magnificent and the view extraordinary. Fortunately, there was exceptionally clear air and every light seen over the bay to downtown and the Coronado bridge was crystal clear over the mirror like bay. Photos below courtesy of Dennis and Mako Ogden.

Our top awards are the Marlin Oscars. This year only two Oscar qualifying marlin were caught (and released). The Oscars were awarded to:

• Herman Sumpena for the first marlin of the year caught aboard the Encounter skippered by Ken Yasuda.
• Kevin Yamamoto for the first marlin on 50 lb tackle aboard the Encounter skippered by Ken Yasuda.
• Ken Yasuda took home the Oscar for top Marlin Boat, with two releases.

A third marlin was caught by Mark Mealiff aboard the Joint Venture skippered by Dave Eisman. 

A fourth marlin was caught and released by Pat Holmes. It was not eligible for an award because released marlin must be documented according to our angling rules. Pat was solo when the fish was caught and was unable to get the pictures. A solo marlin is a great feat in itself.

Other awards were as follows:

• Jim Kelley took the 1^st flag honors for the first tuna caught by a club member,
• Randall Norris was the winner of a Fathom Reel awarded by a drawing in which all the early bird renewals were entered.
• Rob Lackrone won a gift certificate for being drawn as the winner from the largest species entrants.

There were only two successful Tournaments this past year.   One was the Bay Bass Tournament.   The Men’s division was won by Bob Hargraves on Radar with Ken Yasuda coming in second while fishing on a plastic sled.  Donna Hargraves took the Women’s category and Brent Hargraves Jr. took the Junior Division.

The MBMC Marlin Tournament was a good outing with 8 Teams and 24 Anglers.  No marlin were caught/released in the tournament this year.  The Tuna Pot was won by Tom Patton on the SeaBGB captained by Hugh Kollar with a 47.6 lb Bluefin. . . on his first cast!  Dan Karstans also had a 39 lb Bluefin and Dave Gregg scored a 31.4 lb Yellowfin.

Other memorable catches that were recognized:

• Dave Eisman on Joint Venture caught a 88 lb Swordfish… Great Job.
• Heidi McBride released a 300 lb blue Marlin while representing MBMC in the HIBT. This put them in third place overall. The fish was tagged and the tag recovered 152 days later after a journey of 2,615 miles southwest of Hawaii toward Pitcairn Island.

FOM (fish of the month) Winners for 2023 was as follows:

• April              Jim Kelley               28 lb Bluefin
• May              Lou Hayden            30.2 lb Halibut
• June             Rob Lackrone         61.4 lb Bluefin
• August         Jim Kelley                42.6 lb Yellowtail
• October        Kevin Yamamoto    15.4 lb Lingcod
• December    Chris Bailey            42.8 lb Yellowtail

As you can see many FOM months went unclaimed but this year will be different.

January 2024 FOM – Coming into the end of January Scott Paul was in the lead with a 5.9 lb  Vermillion rock fish. Encounter and crew went out on January 30th. The competition on board was fierce! Kevin Yamamoto and Ken Yasuda kept trading top place all day. Me, I just fished for the meat, Reds! At the end of the day Kevin weighed in a 7 lb salmon grouper to claim January FOM. This type of camaraderie is just, well, FUN!  If asked I will tell you about the time my wife beat out Ken with a 14 lb ling that the Encounter tried hard to top. Special for this year…FOM winner receives a Daiwa Saltist Reel! Congratulations Kevin!

Good fishing, but more importantly, HAVE FUN!

Paul Himmelberger

Vice President

Wishing everybody a healthy and happy New Year for 2024.
With a strong El Nino predicted for this year, will Bluefin show in March, will Wahoo be found on our local banks?. Time will tell.
The 2023 Rock cod tournament which was canceled will not be rescheduled. Look forward to seeing everybody at this year’s event. 
We will kick off our 2024 season with The Mission Bay Bass Tournament scheduled for April 20-21st.
Let’s get the word out and have a great showing. It is a low key tournament with lots of fun.
 
We will have our annual membership meeting event on April 13th. This event we will have a bay bass seminar by one of the local experts. Again these are always informative and guarantee to learn something new. The membership event will be held at the Bay Park Fish Company Restaurant. The event will provide complimentary food and non alcoholic drinks.  There will be a very generous raffle. Board member Ray Fear really puts together a nice array of great prizes at these raffles.  We will also have MBMC T-shirts for sale. Grab them fast. They don’t last long.

REMEMBER EARLY BIRD SIGN UP for MBMC MEMBERSHIP ENDS JANUARY 20TH. THE EARLY BIRD SIGN UP GETS YOU A CHANCE FOR A PENN FATHOM REEL .  Go to Membership Page to renew on-line or by mail. 

Remember to enter the Fish of the Month (FOM) Contest when you renew your membership. A single entry fee of $25 gives you the opportunity to vie for the FOM prize each month.  Starting January 2024 will see the winner walk away with a Daiwa Saltist 35 star-drag reel.   If this doesn’t get you fired up nothing will. FOM does require a weight slip, and it would be nice to also submit a photo for our website. Also this year, Marlin releases will be eligible for FOM. 130 points will be awarded for a release.  Actual weight will be used for captures. The rules for a release follow all of the Rules and Regulations outlined for the Marlin Tournaments.  

Congratulations to December FOM winner Chris Bailey with a 42.80 pound yellowtail aboard  the HAWK captained by Pat Holmes.

Time to get signed up for the 2023 MISSION BAY MARLIN CLUB AWARDS BANQUET.  The banquet will be held at Tom Hams Lighthouse. It will be the evening of January 27th at 5:00 pm. This is always a great event in a beautiful setting. Let’s get out and share an evening with friends, family and members. I am sure there are a lot of fish stories for 2023 that haven’t been shared. Please see email flyer for details.

Look forward to a great year of fellowship with members. 

Happy New Year.

The 2024 season is just around the corner and it is time to renew membership. You can renew your membership by going to the club website at the Membership page. You can renew on-line via paypal or by check with mail-in form . There is a release of liability form that needs to signed, dated, and returned as soon as possible to complete your membership. Your early renewal or new membership will help us start the new year.

2024 Dues:

Primary and Family Adults (18 and over) –                     $150 each
Spouse/Significant other and Children (under 18) –       $40 each
Fish of the Month –                                                         $25 each angler

*New for this year, a Daiwa Saltist reel will be given out as the Fish of the Month monthly prize*

REMINDER #1: Early Bird sign-ups for 2024 will end January 15, 2024. If you renew or
join as a new member by 1/15/2024, you will be entered to win the Early Bird prize. This
year’s Early Bird prize is a Penn Fathom Reel and the winner will be drawn at the Annual
Awards Banquet (1/27/24).

REMINDER #2: The deadline to be included in the 2024 MBMC Member/Boat Directory
is February 29, 2024. Note: You must have your membership dues paid in full by 2/29/2024
to be included in the directory. We want to get the new 2024 directory out as early as
possible.

Our Annual Awards Banquet will be held on January 27, 2024. We will be sending out the
invites with all the details very soon. You’ll want to RSVP as soon as possible because
seating is limited.

Thanks,
Ken Yasuda
2023 MBMC President / Membership Director

Dear Mission Bay Members,
 
 Happy Holidays to you and your families.

 Fishing is mainly deep water rock codding. Remember US waters will close for rock codding beginning January 1st. 

The Rock Cod Tournament that was canceled due to weather will be rescheduled for February/March 2024. Watch future oops line for updates regarding the new tournament date. 

There was no fish weighed in for November Fish of the Month .  Hopefully, to get more anglers involved in fish of the month the board has decided to sweeten the pot. Starting in 2024, a Daiwa fishing reel will be given to the winner of fish of the month.  Also in 2024, marlin releases will be eligible for fish of the month, using the same rules as the tournament format. Let’s get out on the water and cash in on your fish. Please also send us a picture of your fish to share with the club.

Remember Early Bird membership sign up is upon us. Sign up before January 15th and get your name entered in the drawing for a reel.

The 2024 Awards Banquet will again be held at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse on Saturday, January 27, 2024 @ 5:00 pm. Details and sign-up are in the attached flyer. Remember there is limited seating. So don’t miss out on this memorable evening.

We continue to be asked about MBMC’s 50th Anniversary shirts. Yes, we still have short and long sleeve shirts in most sizes. Please contact Jim Kelley to purchase shirts. 

As the end of the year approaches, I want to thank all the board members for all their hard work and compassion for the club. A special thank you to all our generous supporters, not only our members but Dana Tackle Shop, Fisherman’s Landing Tackle Shop and Everingham Brothers Bait Company.
We are always looking for members’ input in ways to improve the club. Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of the board members. We would love your feedback. A special Thank you to Larry Oberti for all his countless hours of running the club’s website. It is not an easy job.

Remember this is your club.  Let’s make 2024 a great year for the club.

Happy Holidays,
Scott Paul
Secretary/social