Paul Marquez of Lakeside bagged a 292.6-pound tuna that was ineligible because it was kite-hooked. He said he fished a sardine on a 7/0 Eagle Claw hook, with 130-pound Big Game line and 130-pound Spectra backing on an Accurate 50 reel and a Calstar 6460 XXH rod.

Tammy Holden of Long Beach got a 229.4-pounder in only 20 minutes after the tuna took a mackerel on an unknown hook. She said she fished with 130-pound Maxima line and 130-pound Spectra backing on a Penn 50 SW reel and a Penn five and a half-foot rod.

Nanette Smith of Huntington Beach took a 213-pound tuna with a sardine on a 7/0 ringed Super Mutu hook. She fished 130-pound Maxima line and 130-pound Spectra backing on an Accurate 50W reel and a Seeker 6364 XXH rod.

Frank LoPreste brought the Taka Tanaka (Taka???s Bait & Tackle) 16-day Royal Polaris charter home to Fisherman???s Landing January 18 with a new boat record of 72 tuna over 200 pounds. That record is the third in three trips to the southern banks this winter, with the prior mark being 69 cows brought home by Roy Rose December 23.

At the dock, Gary Ah Sing of Gardena won first place for the largest tuna, a 283-pounder.

???He came up tail-wrapped,??? said Gary. ???He bit on the slide when we metered some fish.???

Gary said he baited a sardine on a 6/0 ringed Super Mutu hook tied to 130-pound Izorline and 130-pound Izorline Spectra. He used a Penn 50 SW reel and a Calstar 6460 XXH rod.

Bill Gilpin of Camano Island, WA was second, for a 278-pound tuna. He also had a 269-pounder. He said he fished sardines on a ringed 6/0 Super Mutu hook, and used 130-pound Izorline and 130-pound Izorline Spectra on an Avet 50 SDS reel and a 6460 XXH rod. Gilpin???s best previous fish was about 70 pounds.

Calvin Fujimoto of Burbank was third, for a 276-pound yellowfin that bit a sardine on a 6/0 ringed Super Mutu. He fished with 130-pound Izorline and 130-pound Line One Spectra backing on a Penn 50 SW reel and a Truline C6H rod.

???It was a gentle bite,??? remembered Calvin, ???but then he took off like a rocket. The last 20 feet was the hardest. The fish bit about mid-morning.???

Jack Nilsen of Accurate, who put a couple of long aluminum gaffs aboard the rig. Gaff bamboo is very scarce, said Jack.

The best tuna was a 292-pound yellowfin caught be Emerald Argonza of Montclair, after a two-hour battle.

???My best tuna before this was a 60-pounder,??? said Emerald. ???M rod was bent over like crazy. He bit deep on my mackerel with a 2-ounce slider weight. He took me around the boat four times, and nearly spooled me twice. He came up in the starboard corner on four gaffs.???

Argonza said he used an 8/0 Eagle Claw hook on straight 130-pound Izorline mono, and an Accurate 50W reel on a 6460 XH rod. He also had tuna of 230 and 204 pounds.

Bob Michener of Oxnard, a Rooster regular, brought his daughter Susan on the trip and both got big tuna. Bob???s weighed 270, and he also had fish of 248, 245, 234, 200.9, 200.8 and 203 pounds. He said he fished sardines on 12/0 Mustad hooks, with 130-pound Izorline, 130-pound Spectra backing on an Accurate 50W reel and a Seeker 6463 XXXH rod. Susan Michener of Oxnard got a 258 and a 223-pounder. She fished sardines on 12/0 Mustad circle hooks, with 130-pound Izorline and 130-pound Spectra on an Accurate 50W reel (an old one, factory number 84, her father noted), and a Seeker 6364 XXXH rod.

Shawn Steward docked Excel at Fisherman???s landing January 21 after a 15-day trip with 25 anglers, who offloaded 40 cows, or tuna over 200 pounds.

Carl Dorton

Independence arrived at Pt. Loma Sportfishing dock after an 18-day trip with skippers Jeff DuBuys and Mark Pisano, who brought in a new all-time tuna record of 82 cows, or tuna over 200 pounds, for 23 anglers. That topped Shawn Steward???s mark on the Excel of 79, set December 12.

???All methods were working out there,??? continued DuBuys, ???with the Hurricane fish biting on chunks, the kite, surface fishing with sardines, skipjack or mackerel, and on jigs.???

Gary Sato's three twenty four at the moment of gaff.

324-pounder caught by tackle maker Gary Sato of Santa Monica, who used his own crimps to pull on the fish. An hour of hard pulling on the giant yellowfin resulted only in the landing of the tuna.

Newport CPA Art Green won first place for the best eligible tuna, a 270-pounder. ???I got him in 45 minutes,??? said Green. ???You???ve got to dream if you want to catch big fish. If you stop dreaming, then what???? Dale Dargatz of Anaheim won second place for a 267-pounder. ???My personal best,??? he said. ???It took an hour.??? Carl Dorton of Tarzana undertook a three-hour battle to land his 263-pound tuna, good for third place. ???He was a mean fish,??? said Carl, who still couldn???t get over that fight. ???I???ve had bigger ones, but this one was a bad fish. He messed up everybody on the boat. He took me around the boat five times. He took me from the stern to the bow six times. He was meaner than hell.???

Todd Phillips and the Royal Star crew

Les Nishi with his two seventy five coming over

Tim Ekstrom and Randy Toussaint with angler Gary Sato.

Gary Sato's three twenty four at gaff.