THE Salty Bandits finished first in the 3rd Annual Wahoo in the Marianas on Saturday after hauling in an impressive 48.2-pound catch.
Competitors headed out to sea at 6 a.m. to find the biggest wahoo. Nearly seven hours later, Captain Masaki Kitami and his crew made their way back to shore where they docked their boat and brought out their would-be winning catch of the day.
Weighing in at 48.2 lbs., their wahoo nearly matched the height of Kitami.
The Salty Bandits, who regularly join local fishing derbies on island, bagged the $2,000 grand prize. In addition, the crew also brought in two mahimahis weighing 15.7 and 13.5 pounds.
In second place were the Madda Flyers who caught a 41.1-pound Wahoo.
Captained by Dino Tenorio and whose anglers were Albert Quitugua and Keith Fernandez, the team collected a $1,500 prize. That was not their only winnings, however. With a total of three wahoos caught weighing 41.1, 34.9 and 23.8 pounds, they also won the total weight category at 96.8 pounds for an extra $500.
In third place was Team Red captained by Jesse Taitano with a recorded 40.2-pound catch worth $1,000. They also brought in another wahoo weighing 26.7 pounds.
And in fourth place were Keilani-Ko’s Captain Frank Reyes and anglers Brian Reyes, and Dwayne Muna. They were rewarded with a fish bag along with rods and reels from the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council.
The Salty Bandits pose with their wahoo and mahimahis during Saturday’s 3rd Annual Wahoo in the Marianas hosted by Tasi to Table at the Smiling Cove Marina.
