Barta Boys and Girls Club Billfish Tournament

2012 Barta Calendars Available

admin — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 21:15:31 +0000

As a thank you to all participants and sponsors over the years the Barta Boys & Girls Club Billfish Tournament has mailed out the 2nd Annual Barta Calendar. We hope you enjoy the photo’s and as a reminder each month our sponsors have been listed. Please support these wonderful companies, if it was not for them, there would not be a Barta Tournament.

Additional Calendars can be obtained, at no cost, by sending an email to director@bartabillfish.com or calling our office at 252-808-2286. Thank you again for your continued support and enjoy the calendars and a reminder of what will be happening July 19th – 21st on the Beaufort Town Docks!

Sea Hag Wins 2011 Tournament

admin — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 16:55:17 +0000

What an exciting few days at the 8th annual Barta Boys & Girls Club Billfish Tournament. Ran Johnson won the Dolphin Category with a 40.3lb dolphin! Ran said it took over an hour to bring it in but he knew he could do it and he did. Laurel Matthews was close behind on the Carolina Time with a 37.08lb dolphin and she also released her first sailfish. She and Dad went for a swim thanks to Tred and Dean Travis Clarke alone with a lot of first time billfish release anglers. Hunter Draughon not only released a few billfish on the Bill Collector he also weighed in the largest wahoo at 26.6lbs. This year the tournament even saw very few tuna, Avery Struyk on the Piracy weighed in a 10.6 black fin tuna and Laurin Schad on the Impulse weighed in a 17.2lb king mackerel to finish off the game fish division.

The Billfish Category was really hot with 37 billfish released in two days. Eleven billfish on the first day followed by 26 on Saturday. It was a back to back fight between the Sea Hag, Bill Collector and Impulse. On Friday, Kylie Schad released the first Impulse Sail and a few hours later her sister Cara Schad released a sail. In between both of their releases Logan Carter released a sail on the Bill Collector and that was followed by Landon Badgett on the Sea Hag releasing a sail. At the end of the day Impulse had two fish, followed by Bill Collector and Sea Hag.

When Saturday’s action started Sea Hag had a release just 16 minutes into the day followed by Impulse at 9am. Bill Collector released another fish at 10:25 and Impulse released on at 11:57. That would end up being Impulses last release of the day. Not to be outdone, Bill Collector came back with a double header both Hunter Draughon and Logan Carter on the rods made for a quick double release. Sea Hag and Captain Alan Willis were waiting in the wings and released a sail at 12:21. They secured their lead at 12:42pm when they had a double header and released both fish. This put them in 1st place with 5 releases followed by Impulse and Bill Collector each with 4. With only 20 minutes left in the tournament Capt. Stephen Draughon of the Bill Collector put his son Hunter on their 5th sailfish of the tournament to capture 2nd place just ahead of Impulse. Now that is a “photo” finish!

Our 1st year inshore tournament was also very exciting, Samantha Wainwright on the Fishing Partner weighed a whopping 4.02lb Spanish Mackerel and the three remaining Spanish all weighed in the 3lb range. Bluefish was won by 10 Bravo with a 1.22lb fish and the Pin Fish winner was Hunter Rice with a 0.62lb fish on the Genesis.

Thank you to all of the sponsors, participants, volunteers, auction donors, and anyone involved with the tournament it was a fantastic weekend.

A special thank you to our website host John Eppehimer who donated the cost of the new website build and made a generous donation and to Renato Luiz Goncalves “Jer” for all of his hard work, long hours and generosity for building the site and helping us keep it up and running throughout the week.

Fishing has ended for 2011

admin — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 18:23:39 +0000

60 boats, 35 Sailfish and 2 White Marlin have been released, and many other species have come to the scales. For standings please view the leader board. Official results will be posted this evening. Thank you.

Share Your Tournament Photos and Videos

admin — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 00:01:15 +0000

In your sea bag you received a 2011 tournament calendar or were mailed one back in December. We used our tournament photographs for the calendar but would really like to have YOUR action photos. In November we will be choosing the photo’s adorn the pages of the 2012 calendar, who knows your photo may be used. We ask that you limit it to one photograph per person so we are not overwhelmed with photographs. Tournament video is also something we are looking for to add to our tournament website. We recently added a “Tournament Video” section to the site to allow people who have or have never participated a view of what goes on out on the water and on the boats. We ask that you load your video onto You Tube and then send us the link via email at director@bartabillfish.com. We will review the video and if it is “G” rated we will get it loaded onto the website for all to view. We hope you will help us share the “Barta Billfish Tournament” experience with your friends, family, other participants and those who have never fished or attended the tournament.

Adding Inshore Tournament

admin — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 00:01:22 +0000

A new announcement, from Capt. Tred Barta… if the Barta Boys & Girls Club Billfish Tournament is really about family values why is it then that our tournament is only open to blue-water fishermen who have offshore boats? This fact is inconsistent with our core values and quite honestly bothers me. So at our recent Board of Directors meeting, we all decided to add a new inshore tournament to run simultaneously with the offshore event. Space in the event – to be called “Barta Boys & Girls Club Inshore Tournament” – will be limited, and get this… the entry fee will be a mere $350 which includes all the privileges afforded by the offshore tournament (Captains Bag, 4 tickets to all three dinners and beverages). That is 12 dinners, goody bag and open bar for $350! Secondly, you do not even have to own a boat or fish off a boat to enter the tournament. You can wade in the water, fish from shore or off a pier or jetty but you must, of course, register and be part of the tournament activities. There will be spectacular trophies awarded to 1st through 5th place for Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish and one amazing trophy for the largest Pin Fish! Because this tournament is seperate from the offshore tournament you do not have to use circle hooks, thou it never hurts. Register online now, remember space is limited.

Circle Hook Seminar Online

admin — Sat, 01 Jan 2005 00:01:30 +0000

Video & Instructions Now Available

The Barta Boys and Girls Club Billfish Tournament is pleased to provide you with a circle hook seminar you can “attend” at your convenience. The tournament does not require circle hooks but to encourage billfish conservation we have added an Overall Circle Hook Trophy to the awards. Circle Hooks are becoming more widely used but many people are still not comfortable with rigging, presenting and catching a billfish on a circle hook. This video will show you how to rig a naked ballyhoo, which is the only type of bait allowed in the tournament, using the Guatemala method. By providing you with this video and printed instructions you now have plenty of time to practice rigging and fishing with circle hooks. Thanks to Marty Hiatt and SportFishermen.com for their help in providing this information. This is a 5 minute seminar and will take a few minutes to download especially if you are using dial-up internet access.

How To Rig with Circle Hooks Video

Guatemalan Circle Hook Rigs

Materials:
1. 7/0 Circle Hook
2. 130lb. Barrel Swivel
3. 20lb Monel – 15in.
4. 1/2oz Egg Sinker
5. Ice Pick

Instructions:
1. Remove the eyes from the ballyhoo.
2. Trim the bill.
3. Take your 15in of monel and do a series of haywire twist around the barrel swivel.
4. Using the ice pick, put a hole on the top of the ballyhoo just in front of the eyes.
5. Thread your monel, with the barrel swivel on top, through the top of the head bringing the monel out between the 2 gill plates.
6. Pop the swivel into the head of the ballyhoo.
7. Install the 1/2oz egg sinker into the monel and dead center the sinker underneath the ballyhoo’s throat.
8. Take the monel and come around the gill plates. Pass the tag end of the monel through the eves 3 times. Secure and pull tight after each pass.
9. Take the tag end monel and insert it from the lower jaw through the top lip creating what would normally be your post.
10. Rap the mouth shut and clip of bill off.
11. Insert the circle hook into the eye of the swivel.
12. Go fishing!