Ski-Boat magazine November 2014

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The South African Deep Sea Angler

November/December 2014 Vol. 30 No.6

PARADISE CALLS …

Ski-boating at Bi Di Point

SKI-BOAT

BOATS REVIEWED

• Sensation Offshore 30 • Seacat Blast 510

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014

ANGLING ETHICS

Saving our fish for future generations

VOL. 30

WHAT’S IN THE BOX? The tackle you need to

NO.6

www.africanangler.com

start deep sea fishing

CONTENTS November/December 2014 Volume 30 Number 6 COVER: A BLUE-BLOODED CATCH Jono Booysen about to release his 700 lb bluefin. A late September visit to Prince Edward Island, Canada, by a party of four, yielded six bluefin tuna in three fishable days. See story in the next issue. Photograph supplied by Jonathan Booysen.

FEATURES 13

What’s in the Box? A simple guide to what tackle you need to start with — by Jonathan Booysen

18

Boat Review: Sensation Offshore 30 Quite simply, sensational! — by Erwin Bursik

28

How the Wet Was Won— Part 4 The evolution of sportfishing boats in South Africa — by Johan Smal

37

Knot Savvy — Part 4 Creating strong hard-wire connections — by Paul Borcherds

46

Tiger Tales 2014 Tigerfish Bonanza at Pongolapoort Dam — by Mark Wilson

53

37

Eye Care Essentials Everyday steps to sun safety

59

Boat Profile: Seacat Blast 510 A winner in every aspect — by Heinrich Kleyn

63

Paradise Calls Ski-Boating at Bi Di Point — by Rod Delany

69

Angling Ethics Without them future generations will have nothing — by Gary Thompson

76

Coast with the Most Fishing in Port Elizabeth in the ’40s and ’50s — by Graham Gradwell

87

Safety First Pros and cons of fitting an outboard to your jetski — by Heinrich Kleyn

92

69

Industry on Parade 2014 Johannesburg Boat Show — and SKI-BOAT was there!

94

Fluttering Around Lures that act like the real thing — by Craig Thomassen

DEPARTMENTS 8 9 56 66 80 83 85

Editorial Comment — by Dave Rorke Postbox SADSAA News & Views In the Galley Reel Kids Subscribe and WIN! This Issue’s Kingfisher Awards

91 97 99 100 104 105 106

Mercury Junior Anglers This & That Smalls & Advertisers’ Index Where to fish in Africa Business Classifieds Charters & Destinations Directory Rapala Lip — Last Word from the Ladies

59

The official magazine of the South African Deep Sea Angling Association

Managing Editor: Dave Rorke Editor: Sheena Carnie Editorial Assistant: Vahini Pillay Publishing Executive: Erwin Bursik Advertising Executive: Mark Wilson Advertising Consultant: Joan Wilson Administration Executive: Anne Bursik Accountant: Jane Harvey Executive Assistant: Kim Hook Admin Assistant: Sunny Kandaswami Boat Tests: Heinrich Kleyn Contributors: Erwin Bursik, Paul Borcherds, Jonathan Booysen, Stan Farren, Graham Gradwell, Heinrich Kleyn, Craig Thomassen, Gary Thompson, Johan Smal, Geoff Wanvig, Mark Wilson.

ADVERTISING – NATIONAL SALES: Angler Publications Telephone: (031) 572-2280/89/97/98 Mark Wilson cell: 073 748 6107 Joan Wilson ADVERTISING – GAUTENG & MPUMALANGA Lynette Adams (011) 425-2052 or cell 083 588 0217; lynadams@mweb.co.za; skiboatgauteng@icon.co.za PUBLISHERS: Angler Publications cc PO Box 20545, Durban North 4016 Telephone: (031) 572-2280/89/97/98 Fax: (031) 572-7891 e-mail: angler@mags.co.za admin@mags.co.za Subscriptions to SKI-BOAT: R145,00 per annum (six issues).

New subscriptions and renewals: SKI-BOAT Subscriptions Department, PO Box 20545, Durban North 4016.

Telephone: (031) 572-2280/89/97/98 Fax: (031) 572-7891 • e-mail: safety@mags.co.za • Through www.africanangler.com, or • E-zine digital subscriptions — visit www.africanangler.com > SKIBOAT > SUBSCRIBE, then choose your option.

• Click the E-zine short-cut on the magazine’s home page, www.africanangler.com, or visit www.zinio.com/SkiBoat.

Reproduction: Hirt & Carter, Durban Printer: Robprint (Pty) Ltd, Durban Full production is done in-house by Angler Publications & Promotions on Apple Macintosh software and hardware for output directly to plate.

SKI-BOAT Magazine, ISSN 0258-7297, is published six times a year by Angler Publications & Promotions cc, Reg. No. CK 88/05863/23, and is distributed by RNA, as well as directly by the publishers to retail stores throughout South Africa.

• Copyright of all material is expressly reserved and nothing may be reproduced in part or whole without the permission of the publishers.

• While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the contents of this magazine, the publishers do not accept responsibility for omissions or errors or their consequences.

Views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishers, the managing editor, editor, editorial staff or the South African Deep Sea Angling Association.

8 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

EDITORIAL COMMENT

D

EEP sea anglers have good memories.

That’s something I’ve come to learn during the more than 36 years I have been involved in publishing in a deep sea fishing vein. Should I bump into someone I haven’t seen for, say, more than twenty years, it’s normally a case of, “Do you remember that story I wrote for you on the big marlin/yellowfin/’cuda etc. I caught on Joe Soap’s boat off XYZ in 1986?”

I’m blessed with a pretty good memory — one needs one in this game — so I usually can recall such instances when I’m called on to do so. Therefore, when I received my latest copy of ORI’s Tagging News, the first sentence set the bells a-ringing: “The ORI Tagging Project has been running for 29 years,” it said.

That would mean that ORI set up its proDave Rorke gramme in 1985, the very same year that SKI-BOAT was born, which set in motion my memory cogs. Over the years I’ve developed the habit of associating magazines’ front covers with articles that appeared in them — or vice versa — so if Erwin Bursik, for instance, would ask, “Can you remember when we ran the story on Joe Bloggs who devised a new way to tease sailfish off Outer Mongolia?”, I would swing around and look up at the wall behind and alongside my desk. We’ve got all 174 SKI-BOAT front covers mounted in order, plus more than 150 belonging to FLYFISHING magazine, so I’d more often than not pick out the particular, correct issue.

However, as the covers mount up and the years slip by, I don’t believe I’m even half as sharp as I was in years gone by, though when ORI declared the tagging programme had been running since 1985, I could immediately picture the front cover of the magazine and the layout of the story announcing its inauguration. The man on the cover was none other than Pat Garratt (now Dr Pat Garratt, MD of the Two Oceans Aquarium, Cape Town) releasing a queen mackerel. He also wrote the story announcing ORI’s tagging programme, sponsored then by SFW and under the leadership of Prof Rudy van der Elst, later director of ORI. The magazine was in fact Ski-Scene — of which I was editor for many years — and the dateline was July 1984, which in fact means that ORI’s tagging programme is now more than 30 years old. Elinor Bullen — an excellent angler herself — was headhunted from Kings Sports to run the programme, which she did for many years until she handed over upon retirement in 2011 to current ORI tagging officer Stuart Dunlop.

Since its inauguration, ORI’s tagging programme can account for the tag-and-release of 274 000 fish, and during the year under review, 2013, no less than 11 481 fish were tagged at a rate of just under 1 000 fish per month. They also recorded their best recapture rate to date, with exactly 1 000 fish recaptured (8.7%). It’s good to see that in the last three years the number of resident reef fish that have been tagged has increased considerably. ORI reports that 243 soldier/santer and 241 black musselcracker/poenskop had been T&R’ed in larger numbers than in previous years. No doubt, these numbers are sure to climb even more following DAFF’s red steenbras ban.

In Postbox, SKI-BOAT July/August 2014, we reported on the recapture of a tagged black musselcracker/poenskop after being at liberty for 18 years and seven months, during which time it had moved 314km up the coast and had grown 255mm. However, for best distance travelled, the prize must surely go to a yellowfin tuna which was released on 24th May 2011 by Sean Amor off Cape Point and recaptured on 18th February 2013 in the Seychelles. In just under two years Sean’s tuna had travelled an astonishing 5 100km and had grown 630mm, “ ... highlighting the rapid growth rate of this species,” says ORI’s Tagging News. It was recaught by a commercial tuna purse-seine vessel.

Another interesting fact to emerge from this recapture is that it proves that stocks of yellowfin tuna found in the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Town may indeed be linked to those in the Indian Ocean, and consideration should be given to managing them as one stock, says ORI. “Such recaptures prove beyond doubt the value of this longterm tagging project,” concludes ORI. Indeed, congratulations are due to the whole team at ORI’s Tagging Project — and here’s looking forward to another 30 years!

Happy reading and good catches.

Dave Rorke

POSTBOX FAREWELL, MOÇAMBIQUE Dear Dave So long, and thanks for the fish, Moçambique — but I didn’t much care for the treatment we received, so I shan’t be coming back ...

Are you going to Inhaca or maybe elsewhere in Moçambique? If so, I strongly urge you to read this account of what happened to my friends and I — Willem, Richard, Kevin, Guillaume and Johan. At the outset, I wish to state the intent of this article. It is a factual, honest account of events as I can best recall, to inform fellow travellers of potential pitfalls and save them the trouble which our group experienced.

As an avid spearfisherman I was very excited to be invited on a “cheap” Inhaca spearfishing trip that a good friend arranged. Being a meticulous and above-board person, he did his best to ensure that all costs were properly planned and accounted for on a spreadsheet. Our monetary contributions were thus collected and put into four different labelled envelopes — fuel and toll fees, launch fees and navigation licence, vehicle- and trailer parking, and Inhaca and spearfishing permits.

Our trip to Maputo from 30th April to 5th May was not without incident, being scammed out of R500 at the border post — a mere foretaste of what was to follow. The plan was to tow our boat to Maputo, get the necessar y spearfishing- and navigation permits and be on our way, crossing the 70-odd kilometres over Maputo Bay to Inhaca on a favourable tide.

At Maputo we visited the Navigation Office and obtained the necessary navigation permit and launching fee. The officer assisting us advised us that we would struggle to get our spearfishing permits in Maputo and that it would be much easier to rather get them at Inhaca Island. As we did not know where the Fisheries Offices were, we took his advice, little knowing that they were a mere 200 metres away.

We set off as early as possible on our voyage from Club Maritimo harbour on our 4.8m semi rigid rubber duck, motoring into a 25km/h northeaster that was steadily building the swell and slowing our progress, making it difficult to get the boat to plane. All our gear was piled high and lashed to the foredeck, leaving little space for the five of us to stand.

Around the halfway mark, we noticed that constant pounding into the swell had opened a large crack along the inside edge of the transom, where it meets the hull. The aft flotation compartments and centre-well were taking on water, necessitating emergency repairs. After lashing the boat together with ropes, we continued to plough

Letters to the Editor

BLACK MARLIN ON ACRYLIC — NEVER LOSE A FISH AGAIN! Dear Dave Here’s something which I’m sure would be of interest to your readers.

I’ve just completed an acrylic painting of a black marlin from a long distance photograph taken by Herman Pienaar with his cellphone. The fish was hooked off Mike Wessels’s boat Kingfisher about 12km off Hibberdene on a Rapala and it fought for just over four hours before breaking free.

The rod was shared among three anglers and the marlin jumped several times.

The estimated weight was around 200-300kg.

DARRELL HATTINGH <darrellhat@gmail.com> into the swell but at a reduced speed. At this point I was pondering whether I had sufficient all-risk insurance to cover all my possessions on the boat. The 45minute trip was done in two hours when we eventually made landfall at dusk. The Fisheries Office at Inhaca had long since closed. At least we managed to get hold of one of the locals who spent several hours grinding away and applying fibreglass to repair the damage.

The rest of the group, seven people in all, had cruised up from Ponta Do Ouro on a six metre semi-rigid rubber duck. The following day the wind was still fresh, but because we had only three spearfishing days we launched regardless with four aboard, of which one was from the other group and had a licence.

Conditions were less than favourable so the smaller duck returned to base, while the rest braved the conditions and managed to scratch out a few fish for their trouble.

Seizing the opportunity, the group that had returned from their aborted spearfishing expedition set out to the local Fisheries Office on foot and about 1.5km slog through the marsh.

Unfortunately the office was closed, so this attempt to obtain spearfishing per-

mits was also thwarted. On the ensuing days, due to the tide we had to launch shortly after daybreak and return late in the afternoon at 5pm. The person who had organised the trip asked the lodge owner to assist us in getting our licences, but he seemed disinterested in helping us. At one stage the owner told him that it was after hours and the licenses would cost double, to which our friend replied that that was of no consequence, we needed the licences.

Usually at other sites like Pomene, where the office is far away, we waited for the officials to arrive to purchase the licences. As it was my first time here we had to rely on the information given by the locals.

A couple of good fish were landed, notably a 15kg marbled leopard grouper and a 10kg green jobfish. Personally I did pretty poorly, missing shots on some nice fish, including a big wahoo that was well within range. The upshot of it was that I had less than 4kg of fish when we returned, and some of the others had also been given fish. We had a total of about 30kg of fish on the boat.

On the Sunday morning we departed around 7am, the other boat to Ponta Do Ouro whilst we went to Maputo.

The ride back went well and we drove SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 9

about 50 minutes.

Upon our arrival at Club Maritimo harbour, the official who had issued the navigation permit was waiting there, along with several other people. When they found the fish, it seemed that they wanted to elicit a bribe, so I then gave them an anti-corruption form to fill in and also told them that we had bought the fish directly from a fisherman off his dhow. This was a big mistake, because they contacted Manico Camp who told them that we definitely had been spearfishing.

We waited for at least four hours before being called in and presented with a fine for just over 66 000 meticais (R22 000). The receipt looked false as the numbers were too low. The receipt book numbers are supposed to be sequential. When we asked them also to fill in the form which asks for names and receipt numbers they demanded that we surrender our passports and boat. Apparently we would have to appear in court the following morning.

We then contacted the South African Embassy who enquired if anyone was dead — otherwise they could not help us, so they said.

After our passports and boat were seized, we stayed over at Bel Sol Casa (which cost us R1 000 each). We were worrying about what would happen next and would they find reason to throw us in jail? We wanted to get the vehicle out of the country because the authorities might want to seize it too.

Meanwhile someone had phoned a friend in South Africa, our story spread and some stupid person got it all wrong and told Johan’s wife that we had all been thrown in jail.

After a fitful night’s sleep we reported to the SA Embassy in person, but were again refused any help. Back at the Fisheries Office we waited for several hours, with events taking yet another turn. An affidavit apparently surfaced, allegedly from Inhaca Island, stating that there was another boat with us that had also been spearfishing. When we explained that they had returned via Ponta Do Ouro, and had the necessary documentation of which we had proof, the authorities were displeased and said that it wasn’t possible for them to have had all the necessary licences and were trying to put pressure on us to get them to return.

The authorities eventually issued us with two new fines after taking away the old fine, totalling 255 119 meticais (R85 039) and declaring me Persona non Grata for three years, returned two of our passports and instructed them to return to South Africa to get the money, come back and pay the fine. They said only then would they return the remaining passports, but all our spearfishing gear including the boat would be confiscated permanently!

10 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

We all decided to leave the country, and fight the fight from South Africa, but on our way out we were stopped by a traffic official who extorted a R300 bribe because the vehicle insurance letter stated that it was covered only up to the previous day. We knew this was a bogus fine but we wanted to just get out as soon as possible. The horror stories we’d heard made us frantic and we were afraid for our lives at that stage.

After reflecting on the whole situation, a few things seem odd: Why were there so many people waiting to search us, including the officer from the Navigation Office? We were told that it is irregular and some of the officials present that day are hardly ever there.

Bear in mind that it was also a Sunday afternoon, when everything is usually dead quiet.

Who would have been so keen to drop us in the you-know-what? Who wrote the affidavit and why? We only had contact with the lodge and one person from an adjacent lodge. Was this all a grand setup? Something smells fishy.

There are huge rivalries between the lodges and it could have been a setup by a rival lodge. But that’s pure speculation.

Currently we are engaged in legal processes in an attempt to recover our seized property, which has cost us US$3 000 to date. We don’t hold much hope of success, our chances are slim and we may well be throwing good money after bad, but one thing is for certain: If we do nothing we have no hope of getting anything back.

This whole issue has left us very disillusioned. We are not dishonest people and had every intention of getting all the permits, but the fact is that we failed to, so fully accept that we were guilty of breaking the law. This was our first offence with huge mitigating circumstances. However, we do feel that the heavy-handed treatment which we received does not fit the crime.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Carlos Carvalho who went to great lengths and sacrificed much of his time to assist us during this ordeal, in translating with the officials, the trip to the Embassy, organising the lawyer and trying to get our stuff back.

WILLEM PRETORIUS Cell 082 441 0105 <Matildad@telkomsa.net>

SOMETHING ON YOUR MIND? Write to: The Editor SKI-BOAT PO Box 20545 Durban North 4016 Fax: (031) 572-7891 E-mail: angler@mags.co.za

TACKLE TALK

by Jonathan Booysen

A simple guide to what tackle you need to start with

O

VER the years I have had quite a few new anglers ask me what tackle they should buy when starting out. Most of them are inexperienced deep sea fishermen so they don’t want to spend a fortune on things that they’ll never use and should never have bought in the first place.

I’m sure all experienced anglers have a big heap of unused tackle that they look at and wonder, “What was I thinking when I bought this rubbish?” I suppose you can call it “school fees”.

Things these anglers regularly ask about are: • What lures should I buy? What colour and size and what species do you use them for?

• What hooks, wire, swivels, leaders, etc., are best?

• What sinkers are used for what applications?

In this article I’ll give you a look into my tackle box and hopefully that will help you make a few informed decisions, bearing in mind that every angler has his or her own preferences, and some people may disagree with my choices. All the same, they work for me.

GETTING STARTED A tackle box needs to be well organised with a few basic items that are used in all types of fishing. These are generally consumable items and are used to make up most of your terminal tackle. This allows you to make up traces for differ-

ent baits and target species on the spot and keep up with the pack.

Once you have these basic necessities, you can start looking at a few extra items like trolling and casting lures specific to the species that you are likely to be encountering. The best tackle boxes are simple, organised boxes. Too many options will lead to confusion and, eventually, frustration, not to mention a dent in the bank balance.

When I’m packing a gamefish box to fish, I will start with the following basic necessities: LEADER MATERIAL I have three rolls of fluorocarbon leaders in my box — 40 lb, 60 lb and 80 lb breaking strains. I use this when target-

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 13

ing species with fine teeth or bills.

I also have have at least one packet each of #3, #5, #7 and #9 coffeecoloured wire leaders in my box at all times. If there are snoek around, I use light wire. If there are shoal ’cuda around, I use medium wire, and if there are big crocodile ’cuda around, I have the good heavy wire I need. I keep the wire dry and check the packets regularly for any sign of rust.

SWIVELS I use black power swivels in several different sizes from super small (#8) to medium (#4). If the swivels lose their black coating, I discard them and buy a new packet.

I also have one pack of medium to large three-way swivels, just in case. Sometimes we sit on anchor while targeting ’cuda. It’s nice to catch a bottomfish while we wait for a pull.

HOOKS There are thousands of different hooks to choose from and it can be exceptionally difficult to decide what one may need. For this reason, I have several packets of different sizes and shapes.

Make sure they are sharp and rust free.

Single Hooks: I prefer using silver Mustad Kendal Round hooks for general gamefishing, but this is a personal preference and by no means the only way to go. There are some excellent chemically sharpened hooks available which I use for tournament fishing.

The sizes I have in my box are all the way from 2/0 up to 10/0. Smaller hooks are used for nose hooks or in fillet baits for snoek. Medium hooks are used in everyday general fishing and the larger hooks are for when large baits are fished for big gamefish or bottomfish.

Treble Hooks: In social fishing I like to use treble hooks. The majority of the time I use #1 and 1/0 hooks. I do have a few #4s for small redeye baits, and I also keep a slightly larger size for replacing rusted hooks on my lures.

Whatever kind of hooks you use, it’s important that they have sharp points.

Circle Hooks: I also have a few circle hooks in my box for specific applications. For example, I use them when pitching a bait to free swimming dorado, for scoring bonus points in release tournaments or where ver y light leaders (or no leader at all) need to be used on shy fish with abrasive teeth. 6/0 to 9/0 size hooks will cover most of these scenarios.

BAIT JIGS Livebait is really important when you’re gamefishing or bottomfishing. The best way to catch bait is with bait jigs.

Basically, these are a string of small hooks with a bit of flashy material on them that’s supposed to imitate small organisms that baitfish eat. It is a good idea to have a few packs of these as they need to be replaced regularly.

These jigs come in different shapes and sizes. Some have long shanks for catching shad while others have really small hooks for catching redeye sardines and small herrings. As a rule of thumb I use the white medium-size rigs and, if need be, I trim them down.

WEIGHTS I have several small barrel- and teardrop-shaped sinkers in my box and I mostly use them as chin weights when fishing with deadbaits. These var y from 1⁄8oz to as much as 2oz.

Small baitswimmers can also be used, if preferred.

I also have a few large bottom sinkers that I use for downrigging my baits. These are attached to the line with a #32 elastic band. These sinkers range from 6oz to 14oz. I also use them when fishing with bait jigs. Using a sinker that is too light causes unwanted tangles. Due to the extra weight, I do not carry these in my tackle box, but rather in a separate bag.

TOOLS It’s a good idea to have a few tools in your box. I carry a pair of longnose pliers and a good pair of sidecutters. After every trip these need to be rinsed in freshwater and sprayed with a protective lubricant to keep them in working order. Another essential item is a sharp knife with a protective sheath. A wire straightener is also nice to have.

With the above terminal tackle, you can make up almost any rig that you

will need for a successful day’s fishing.

What is also good is that all the above can fit into a relatively small tackle box that does not take up too much space on the boat.

LURES There are thousands of different lure makes and models on the market and it can be quite a daunting task to decide what to buy. Too often I have seen people enter a shop and take the biggest lures available. When I ask why they selected that particular lure, they normally go with the “big fish eat big bait” theory.

From experience, they will learn that elephants eat peanuts too and that you can catch a really big fish on a small lure, but very seldom catch small fish on big lures. When you’re starting out, it’s better to have continuous action from any fish, to keep the new anglers from getting bored and giving it up as a bad call.

When novice anglers select lures, they need to take into consideration what they wish to realistically achieve with them. Every angler that I know has a heap of lures (some still in the packaging) that they never use. Each time they look at the pile, they wonder why they ever bought them. Experience has taught them what works consistently well.

I like to have a small selection of basic lures which I use in specific scenarios.

Lures can be divided into two very general categories — trolling lures and casting lures.

Trolling lures include all lipped lures and skirted surface lures.

Casting lures include everything from small bullet spoons to heavy vertical jigs, dropshots/bucktails to poppers/stickbaits. The more specialised you become in lure fishing, the bigger the selection of lures you will want.

Lipped trolling lures: There are three scenarios where I will turn to lipped

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 15

there are no tackle shops nearby, like on a week-long trip to Mapelane. It has more packing space and can take a few extra items that I might need, or a couple of spares of the same items that I regularly use. The only problem is that it’s heavy — I call it my block of flats.

lures and, depending on the scenario, I will favour certain size lures. The most important thing to me is that they swim straight at a speed of around six knots.

• Scenario 1: Covering ground When you are in an area that you have never fished before and don’t have any coordinates, trolling lipped lures is a great way to prospect the area. This is when I use the widest variation in my trolling spread as you are not sure what will be encountered.

I like to pull two deep divers, one large (±25-30cm) and one medium (1520cm). I also put out two smaller lures (8-10cm). This, in conjunction with one surface lure, will produce a variety of species while you keep an eye on the sounder, looking for new spots.

• Scenario 2: Catching bait When I am looking to catch big ’cuda and wahoo or billfish, the best bait for them is live jube jubes or bonnies.

Trolling small (±8-10cm) lipped lures over pinnacles or around bait shoals will more often than not produce the goods. A few daisy chains thrown into the mix is also a good idea.

overload their boxes with heavy lures — just a few basic lures will get you by.

To start with I would suggest a few small silver spoons in the 12 to 24 gram range. These will be fine for flicking at small bonito, snoek and small kingfish.

I also have a larger spoon that I throw when there are bigger tuna around, or if I am trolling near the backline where queenfish or kingfish might be in the area.

I also keep a few bucktail jigs in my lure box. These can be cast into the shallows and worked near the bottom, or they can be used as surface trolling lures. Lastly, I have a medium-size surface popper that works well to attract fish to the boat while trolling baits for ’cuda or garrick.

As you become more experienced in a particular facet of the sport, your collection will grow to include more specialised tackle such as vertical jigs and stickbaits.

• Scenario 3:Targeting specific species A few species, such as snoek, kingfish, wahoo and most tuna species, are partial to trolled lipped lures. When you’re fishing in species competitions, these lures can be your best investment.

Skirted surface trolling lures: Lures that fall into this category include small feathers, daisy chains of small skirted lures, dusters, jet heads, softheads etc.

These are good to have when you’re looking for species such as snoek, dorado and sailfish. They can also be fished in conjunction with bait, be it a strip of sardine or bonito belly or whole baits such as halfbeak or mackerel.

I do not carry large numbers of these lures with me — maybe five or seven, just enough to get me by for the day.

Casting lures: Beginners do not need to

NICE TO HAVE Once you get into a comfortable groove, you will start experimenting with new ideas and refining your rigs.

This will inevitably lead to a few more items being added to the tackle box.

Again, moderation is the key.

• Ghost cotton to tie up baits such as sardine fillets rigged for snoek.

• Glo-beads used as attractors on ’cuda traces and bottomfish rigs or as spacers in surface lures.

• Balloons for drifting baits away from the boat while at anchor.

• Thin copper wire used for rigging baits and attaching chin weights.

• Sosatie skewers for straightening deadbaits.

These are a few items that can make the difference between a good day on the water and a great day.

STORAGE SPACE Now that you’ve got all the necessary gadets you’ll need a box to put them in.

I use a Plano 777 when I’m going away on a long fishing trip to places where

16 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

When I am fishing on other guys’ boats, or on our small 14’6” boat where space is limited, I have a smaller box with similar tackle, but just less stock of each item. Here I use a cheap Snowbee tacklebox. It has more than enough space and is easy to keep organised.

Sometimes I take both boxes with me and leave the big box at camp. I use the smaller box on the boat, and if I lose something, I can stock up from the bigger box when I get back. Call me pedantic, but I like to be prepared!

Any boxes with small, sealable boxes inside are good. You can normally customise your box by moving the spacers around to suit your needs.

I don’t like the ones with trays as they are constantly wet and your tackle rusts quickly which means you have to replace all the time.

What does help with this problem is if you put a small bag of silica gel beads in each compartment — this reduces the moisture levels. Also, if you have a ziplock bag for your elastics, put some baby powder in the bag — it stops them from perishing. Windless lighters also need to be kept in the driest place in the box, also in a small bank bag.

If you have a large item that does not fit in the box, like bolt cutters, a spare reel, tag kit, etc., take along a rucksack and bomb them in there along with your jacket, towel, camera, fishing licence and sunblock.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 â&#x20AC;¢ 17

BOAT REVIEW

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NDRé van Helsdingen of Twin Boats cornered me at the recent Durban Boat Show with an invitation to have a look at his company’s latest creation, the Sensation Offshore 30, a 9m monohull. If I needed any further incentive, he added that she had been fitted with an Optimus 360 joystick control steering system which was attached to the craft’s twin 150hp Mercury 4-stroke motors.

The chance to get my hands on a new deep-vee offshore craft was really all the incentive I needed. At that stage I didn’t know what the Optimus was all about, but I’d heard some of the general buzz about this new steering system so I hot-footed it to see the craft on her mooring.

Amazingly, as impressive as the Sensation is, when I got to the craft I was more captivated by the steering system. What’s more, after André had fired up the motors and demonstrated the joystick controls — and even allowed me to back the craft off her mooring and play with it for a short while before remooring her — I was blown away by the concept and its operation.

I really didn’t want to get off her so quickly, but agreed to review the craft properly on the day after the Boat Show. Then I backed off, leaving the Twin Boats crew and Durand Boshoff of CMH Marine & Leisure, who market the Optimus 360 system, to do their job and market their products.

I left happy in the knowledge that the following day I would have the entire rig to myself for the better part of the morning, to play with and take out to sea.

Twin Boats also market the Sensation 21, and although I have watched her being skippered by Bok van Blerk

18 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

during the Guinjata Bonanza Competition on a number of occasions, I’ve never tested her. She always looks impressive, but as I said, I hadn’t ridden on her.

INTO THE BIG LEAGUE A 30-footer based, appearance-wise, largely on the smaller model does, however, step up into a much bigger league. No longer a ski-boat, this craft rates and ranks in the offshore sportfishing class of trailerable craft being used by many ardent offshore anglers,

by Erwin Bursik

Sensation Offshore 30 — by Twin Boats from Sodwana Bay in the north right down to the tuna fishing grounds off Cape Point. It was in this context that I channelled my thoughts and views when I undertook sea trials aboard the Sensation Offshore 30.

For almost 40 years I owned monohulls, for the last 20 of those a deep-vee Robcraft, and I make no excuses for having a life-long love for this style of craft in the mostly turbulent waters off our coast. The controversial topic of “cat versus mono” is a minefield of conjecture which I don’t intend stepping

into in this forum.

My appreciation of the Sensation 30 began in earnest after I took her off her moorings and through the no-wake zone to exit the Durban Yacht Mole using the Optimus 360’s joystick control. It was only when the twin 150hp Mercury 4-stroke motors returned to the normal position that I am used to that I took control of them at the press of a button, using the shift/throttle controls and electronic power steering in the conventional manner.

By the time I reached the exit hold-

ing area to ask for harbour clearance, I largely had the feel of this craft, including motor bow-up/down trim, as well as lateral trim using the craft’s fitted hydraulic trim-tabs. As soon as we had clearance we proceeded out to sea through the harbour channel at a good speed.

COMING TO LIFE With the open ocean under her hull the Sensation Offshore 30 really came to life. I relished the feel and experience of the craft’s deep-vee slicing through

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 19

the water as we headed out to sea in a northerly direction. Moments like this are what make offshore boating and the appreciation of the craft one is on so memorable. The adrenaline rush is something that only those of us who really love boats can understand.

To liven things up, Craig Wilson and Ricky Jacobs of Willcraft Marine, agreed we could use their Raptor 660 as the photographic boat. After rendezvousing out at sea, Rutherford’s Miles Osborne used the Optimus 360 to manoeuvre us alongside the Raptor 660. Ricky and Craig immediately bolted across to the Sensation, leaving me with Ross Leah at the helm of the Raptor.

Watching the sleek, beautiful Sensation being put through her paces for almost an hour — both though the lens of my camera and with the naked eye — enabled me to get a solid appreciation of the craft’s performance. The

knowledge I gained of her in this way, plus the physical experience I’d had so far, only scratched the surface.

However, once the photography was completed I would get back behind the helm and conduct a comprehensive review on the Sensation Offshore 30.

Once I was back on board the Sensation, the smaller boat headed back to port and I had her helm all to myself, with Miles as the only company.

It was a beautiful winter’s morning and the sea conditions were a little too perfect with a light southeasterly of about 5-8 knots blowing over a fairly moderate swell moving up the coast.

The conditions needed to be more challenging for a proper test, so I set off at full speed and used the expanded swell that develops in the Cave Rock area at the end of Durban’s Bluff where the surge is forced up against the south breakwater. I also used the broken water in the wake of an enormous con-

tainer ship as she headed towards the port of Durban.

As I mentioned earlier, I love deepvee monohulls, and on the Sensation Offshore 30 I was in my element. After three days indoors at the Durban Boat Show, it was refreshing to take a break from talking about boats. It was time to be quiet, a time to relish the feel of the craft and being at sea again.

BACK TO BASICS Once before I was caught out by not going back to basics when starting to review a craft. I wasn’t going to let that happen with this big deep-vee.

It’s common knowledge that it’s a lot easier to become used to a big cat than a monohull craft, especially one with a deep-vee. However, the comparison I used so many years ago of cart horse versus race horse still has merit and, to varying degrees, is still applicable today.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 21

To start with I lifted the after-planers and trimmed in the 150hp Mercury motors as far as they would go, then set off on a south-southeasterly course that eventually took me to deep water off Durban’s Bluff.

At 3500 revs she provided me with a speed over water (SOW) of about 1820 knots. I set the throttles and started to evaluate this craft’s hull-over-water performance through a full range of trim positions.

To start with, using only the motor trims, I began lifting her bow. I did that until the motors were on the point of cavitation.

By doing this I endeavoured to ascertain how the craft’s “vee” cleaved the water surface, especially the headon swell, as I moved her entry point further and further aft. The more I used the bow cleavage, the more the motors’ torque was felt, even though counter-rotating props have been installed.

With the motors positioned so close together, only marginal lateral stability can be achieved by trimming up the motor opposite the lean of the hull.

This is where the hydraulic after-planers or trim-tabs play such a vital role on a deep-vee.

They allow one to overcome any lateral instability due to torque or sea/wind conditions, thus allowing the skipper to concentrate on fine-tuning the craft’s entry in varying conditions with the bow-up/down trim of the motors themselves.

Knowing where one’s ideal lateral trim is on a craft, especially when surf launching, and then adjusting the bow

up or down only using the motor’s single dual lateral trim button, gives one absolute control. There’s no need to take one’s eyes off the surf or sea to look at trim gauges or turn around to see what positions one’s motors are in.

The Sensation Offshore 30 loves a little bow-up trim to where it stops continued cleaving of the water surface and rides on the less vee’ed shoulder of the craft. This reduces the wetted area of contact and frees the craft to really fly. Without throttle adjustment the sweet spot increased revs by about 300rpm and gave me a good few extra knots of SOW. SURF LAUNCH TESTS With that all sorted I took her into the broken waters of Cave Rock, both to test her in an awkward sea and also to use peaking swells to simulate performance in surf launching.

She turns remarkably tightly for such a long craft and does not cavitate going into or out of a turn. I trimmed the motors well in for these manoeuvres, and during the turn I could feel the supporting trim-tab really working to stop the craft’s lateral lean.

She came out the hole remarkably quickly and jumped onto the plane to face whatever was coming at us. I would have no hesitation taking this craft through the surf at any of the point-break launch sites on our coast.

On the ride home racing with the swell was truly great. With a little bow lift and wind and sea on our stern, it was a dream ride.

Throughout the variety of lowspeed trials I do, from slow ’cuda

trolling to pulling marlin lures, I could not fault her. I also checked for lateral stability, a problem I continually encountered with my Robcraft at low speed, but her size and aft hull design overcome this malady from which some deep-vee craft suffer.

The Sensation Offshore 30 is extremely well made and finished.

Twin Boats has a long history, primarily in the freshwater powerboat market in Gauteng which is extremely demanding when it comes to quality finishes and looks. The Sensation Offshore 30 will easily pass those stringent tests.

I have used much of my space here to cover this craft’s performance at sea, so due to space constraints I will have to limit how much I say about the layout and finishings. However, no doubt the accompanying photographs will allow readers to appreciate her good looks. Rest assured, that they are more than skin deep.

Her construction from vacuuminfused GRP lay-up, with a good deal of Balsacore sandwiching to ensure both rigidity as well as reduced weight, brings her manufacture in line with the best practices worldwide.

The photographs of her internal layout should provide sufficient incentive for anyone interested to go and see this craft for themselves. I guarantee that you will more fully appreciate what she has to offer in the way of creature comforts for the serious deep sea big game angler, or indeed the sportfisherman who wants a rig for pleasure cruising as well as fishing.

From her comfortable and practical cabin upfront, which contains a practical-to-use toilet, to her user-friendly helmstation and her large fishdeck space as well as comfortable seating under the protection of the cabin, her entire layout is practical, extremely well designed and professionally fitted out and finished.

As André says, the Sensation Offshore 30 has been constructed to provide all the amenities required by serious anglers, while still ensuring her weight would allow for her to be

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 23

Magic at his fingertips. Durand Boshoff — of CMH Marine & Leisure, who market the Optimus 360 — explains the ins and outs of the electronic power steering system fitted to the Sensation Offshore 30.

What it’s all about. Using the joystick (below, left)), full control of the craft is in the palm of your hand. Twist, turn, push, pull — small movements make the two motors move in different directions (above), powering up and down as if they had minds of their own, allowing you to manoeuvre the craft at will. The brains of the Optimus 360, her hydraulics and electronics (below, right). towed legally with a reasonably big tow vehicle. Visit Twin Boats and view this craft for yourself. You will be pleased you took the trouble to do so.

POWER STEERING IN OVERDRIVE Now for my views of the Optimus 360 electronic power steering system. To begin with, the application for using

24 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

this system that really excited me is when you’re backing up on a billfish or manoeuvring when fighting gamefish.

To use the joystick you put the binnacle-mounted shift/throttles into neutral and press the control button on the joystick control panel to take over command. Then press “Boost”, also on this panel, and full control of the craft is within the palm of one hand in literally two or three seconds.

There’s no looking at gauges and moving twin throttles backward or forward, in and out of gear. All you do is follow the fish with your eyes totally focused on the job at hand. With a minimal twist-turn movement of the joystick one gets the craft backing up well, slewing left or right and even going forward.

I lodged myself on the starboard side of the helmstation and, with my right hand on the joystick while never looking at it, was able to manoeuvre this 30ft craft far better than I could have done if I’d just had the shift/throttle control. Amazing!

Indeed, the manoeuvrability at sea was just as incredible as it had been while moving in and out of her moorings, even with a reasonably strong wind blowing.

The system works unbelievably well — it’s the operator that’s the weak link.

Or so I found when I first tried to manoeuvre her with the joystick in one hand. Twist, turn, push, pull, all small movements which made the two motors move in different directions, powering up and down as if they had minds of their own.

Panic set in early, but André’s calm instructions put me at ease and made the craft’s manoeuvring look as if it was in the hands of a master.

After so many years of seeing motors working in tandem, I still can’t get over seeing them spread in different directions. However, it works and works surprisingly well with so little effort. I didn’t use the Optimus to position the craft for a run up onto a trailer, but I can only imagine how easy that will become, even with a surge or wind on a slipway.

The Optimus 360 system is one of those things one has to try for oneself to experience just how incredibly efficient and practical it is. I take my hat off to those who thought up the concept and were able to design and produce something which is such an incredible asset to any skipper.

Twin Boats has brought to the South African market a craft that’s designed and constructed to world standards, is beautiful in appearance and practical to use.

Just imagine towing this craft to your favourite fishing destination with the likes of a Ford 250, and the pride you’ll feel!

HISTORY

In the September/October issue of SKIBOAT, Johan Smal reported on the evolution of ski-boats in the Eastern Cape, before moving on to the Western Cape where he chronicled the emergence of the ski-boat as a viable fishing platform. From then onwards the manufacture in the WP of the smaller boat matured to match the best in the country, indeed world class.

In this issue Johan concludes his overview of the evolution of the South African ski-boat before he moves on to the larger sportfisher in the next issue.

A

FTER selling Durban based company Cox and Andrews to Clive Olivier in 1978 — which became Acecraft — Gus Giraudeau, one of our ski-boat pioneers, moved to Cape Town. In 1980 he joined up with Patrick Fraser at his Ski Craft Marine in Ottery, Cape Town, and they introduced 14ft, 16ft and 18ft Ski Craft monohull models.

In 1984, when Erwin Bursik tested a 16ft 6in Ski Craft for the first time, he wrote: “Take one look at her and there

An original Bill Edwards-style Billfish (above, picture off the web), one of the original Cape-grown craft which initially started off as a commercial, open-type mono ski-boat and which today has evolved into a sportfishing ski-boat as part of the Magson Marine stable. The main picture, top, shows Magson’s 230 CC 7.2m Billfish. can be no doubt as to her origin — she is as Capetonian as can be. That’s topside, but look at her bottom and you will see a degree of Natal influence.

Why? There can be no doubt that this

Part 4

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influence came via veteran boat builder Gus Giraudeau.”

This came about when Gus’s hull designs were introduced into Patrick’s range of monohulls, together with the

by Johan Smal more weather-resistant console structure and deck layout, a design more practical to the more commercially orientated angling of the Western Cape.

Chris Teer and his wife, Mandy, later purchased the company — trading as AquaMall at Somerset West — and continued to produce the Ski Craft until they ceased trading following their retirement in 2010.

The Ski-Craft 16ft 6in met all expectations and became the most popular boat in the Cape. Following a second test by Erwin in 2002, he concluded: “Any craft that’s been around for as long as the Ski Craft 16ft 6in has, and has sold so many units, must be good. With the revamp and restyling to appease the recreational angler, this craft will no doubt become more popular in our market where durability, good sea handling, easy towing and a lot of deck space for fishing are becoming more and more sought after.”

THE BILLFISH Bearing his name, the legendary Bill Edwards introduced GRP constructed Billfish ski-boats around 1981. He was the well-respected naval architect who designed and built numerous sportfishers in the old Cape Town Harbour since the 1940s (which will also be dealt with in the next part of this series).

As one of the original Cape-grown craft which initially started off as a commercial, open-type ski-boat, the hull design was the forerunner of many boats to follow. Paul Winsley, a spring-

Her lineage firmly rooted in Acecraft via Gus Giraudeau — her underside anyway — the Ski Craft, originally by Patrick Fraser then by Chris and Mandy Teer’s AquaMall at Somerset West, became the most popular ski-boat in the Cape. bok offshore racer, took over the Billfish hull, modernised it and distributed the craft through his company Auto Marine located in Cape Town. Erwin Bursik tested the first cabin model which was reported on in Ski-Scene in 1983.

Ernie Magson then took over the

Billfish and introduced the new Billfish 22 and 23 versions, still utilising the same hull as the original commercial model. These are currently built and marketed through Magson Marine located in the Strand. (See the new version test report, SKI-BOAT May/June 2009.)

Two Oceans Marine’s Magnum range of craft formed the foundation of the boat building force they have become over the past 25 years. Their Magnum 23 was also offered as 23ft trailerable centre console (in picture), a craft that embodies the expertise and ingenuity that this company has always displayed.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 29

The Magnum 23 Power Catamaran by Two Oceans Marine, the forward console version tested by SKI-BOAT at the end of 2011. This model is a dedicated big game fishing rig, ready to target the marlin and/or yellowfin tuna we hunt off the South African coastline.

TWO OCEANS MARINE Another of the more recent top Cape Town role-players in the ski-boat manufacturing arena (and also the large craft market) is Rod Delany. From humble beginnings in 1989,“as an extension to a petrol station”, Rod started a retail boat and service business in Newlands.

In 1992 — recognising the need for a cat built for Cape waters — he bought the Magnum 780 moulds from Dennis Schultz of Supercat Marine, Port Alfred.

In 1993 he was joined by son Mark and they built their first boat, a 26ft catamaran, in 1994. This represented the birth of the first Magnum 760 to complement the 780, and they now enjoy a high marketshare with their 23ft, 26ft and 32ft cats.

Two Oceans Marine, based in Paarden Eiland, now has 4 500 square metres of covered factory floor space and two different premises, one in Cape Town harbour and the other 3km from the harbour. The factory is able to accommodate vessels of up to 30m in length.

They claim to be the first outlet to produce and offer smaller catamaran craft in the Cape following Acecraft’s closure around 1995.

Questioned why they decided to build a cat as their first craft, Mark explained that they did a lot of fishing on the east coast of Africa where cats were extensively used, found them to be superior to monohulls in many respects, and realised the potential to supply such craft to Cape-based anglers.

Deck space, stability, speed, capabilities in following sea conditions, smaller power requirements and associated lower operating cost were some of the advantages, to mention a few.

A FEAST OF OPTIONS When Hayden Page Grey fitted a small outboard motor to a modified paddleski way back in 1946, no one could have predicted the long-term repercussions of this innovative move.

More than 65 years later, experience has been teacher and innovator as the South African ski-boat has continued to evolve, nonstop. In time this paddleskibased contrivance has become a carefully designed, well-built, sophisticated and safe deep sea fishing craft, all this from a fully-fledged industry which has evolved along with its end product.

Ski-boat models now vary in length from below five metres to nine metres and beyond, fitted with properly matched, more economical and reliable outboard and inboard motors, as well as state-of-the-art instrumentation.

CONCLUSION Any attempt at an historical overview will always inadvertently leave out someone who contributed in some way to the development and evolution of the skiboat. To them I apologise, but since this part of our sport’s history has never been recorded, omissions and errors are inevitable.

If anyone can fill in the blanks, we’d be happy to hear from you.

The larger models shown overleaf during but one of South Africa’s many fishing competitions — the Two Oceans Marlin Competition at Struisbaai — are a real feast for the eyes. The spread of diverse designs and models available to the deep sea boat angler of today has turned the acquisition process into a real banquet.

From small beginnings, our sport

One for the records: Paul, William and John van Niekerk proudly posing on John’s 1969 Hartley craft. They epitomise the three-generation ski-boat loving family.

The picture was taken at Cabo das Agulhas, a stone’s throw from the waters they love so dearly and enjoy fishing.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 31

1

2

5

3

6

4

8

9

7

10

South African deep sea anglers’ boat preferences are as varied as their tastes in motor vehicles. These photographs were taken at the 2014 Two Oceans Marlin Competition held annually at Struisbaai. Indeed, South African boat builders have come a long way since Hayden Page Grey fitted a small outboard motor to a modified paddleski way back in 1946 and launched into the Durban surf: 1. Moelas, Chris Moolman’s 680 Cobra Cat fitted with 115hp Suzukis; 2. Makaira, Mike Broderick’s 34ft Gecat fitted with 300hp Suzukis; 3. Mia, Hannes Schreuder’s 6.9m Nova Cat fitted with 175hp Suzukis; 4. Gwaza, Andrew van Zyl’s 25ft Cape Craft fitted with 150hp Suzukis; 5. Avanti, Kevin Konkol’s 730 Twister fitted with 200hp Suzukis; 6. Met Eish, Stephen Griffiths’s 28ft Butt Cat fitted with 140hp Suzukis. 7. LiaNelle, Pieter Eksteen’s 28ft Magnum fitted with 225hp Yamahas; 8. Dory II, Dudley Rosslee’s 6.2m Sodwana Cat fitted with 150hp Suzukis; 9. Capt’n Dan, Danie Steyn’s 9m Lee Cat fitted with 250hp Suzukis; 10.

Indigo, Gawie Bruwer’s 8.65m Butt Cat fitted with 225hp Hondas. has given birth to a massive industry indeed. We salute the pioneers!

THE PLEA! Whilst reflecting on my fascinating journey through the evolutionary history of our beloved sport’s most important piece of hardware, I was amazed — more so, actually saddened — by the lack of historical records on the topic. The really sad part is that most of this information has already gone to the grave.

Archival records only exists because

of mankind, and if our experiences and knowledge are not recorded — or if surviving participants are unwilling to share — history would not exist. It would be lost forever.

As one enters an age where one has more years behind one than ahead, one hears many a proud oupa boastfully commenting on the privilege of fishing with their grandsons. Are these tales ever recorded with the same passion as they are talked about?

It’s important to document our

32 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

sport as it unfolds today, for this is tomorrow’s history. We owe it to our offspring and generations yet to come, so they too can trace the journey along the road we have travelled.

All boats tested by SKI-BOAT since 2002 can be found on our magazine’s website at <www.africanangler.com/sb_ boat_tests.asp>.

In the next issue of SKI-BOAT, Johan Smal will turn his attention to the evolution of the larger sportfisher.

33 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 •

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BACK TO BASICS

W

HILST I was demonstrating some knots at the SKI-BOAT magazine stand at the National Boat Show, a gentleman who was more familiar with freshwater flyfishing asked if he could show me the strongest knot to connect any mono line to hooks. Always curious to see someone else’s ideas, I gave him a length of 80 lb line and an 8/0 hook.

He commenced making a knot that somehow resembled a cross between a Palomar knot and the Rebeck knot, as illustrated in Geoff Wilson’s Complete Book of Fishing Knots and Rigs. Once he was done I examined the knot which looked fairly neat and well seated. I then hooked the bend around a solid object to do a strength test. Once pressure was exerted on the knot, the tag end started to slip through the knot, ultimately leading to failure.

The gentleman in question was completely dumbfounded as he really had believed this was the ultimate knot for all mono and super lines (braid). Not so, as there are various factors that will influence the strength of the knot.

Let’s be clear — it is not necessary to know each and every knot out there as it is virtually impossible to master them all. The more proficient recreational anglers only know a few knots, and commercial anglers who fish for a living know even fewer. This is because the commercial anglers only use a few different hooks and, most likely, only two different diameter lines on the boat. For the man who needs to feed his family, the consequences of knot failure are far worse than they are for the sport angler on a fishing trip testing a popper that is connected with some or other knot to braid.

My point is that you should never claim that your knot is the strongest knot possible, as there are many factors that come into play that will ultimately determine knot strength.

I was reminded of this again recently after I spent a bit of time experimenting with different lines and testing knot strengths using a certified line-testing machine. The results clearly showed that a number of different factors will influence the outcome. These factors included the type of line, whether it’s mono or braid, the wire diameter on the swivel or hook’s eye and, most importantly, the angler’s proficiency at making a perfect knot every time.

In the next article I will show you some of the results.

Some of these will be no surprise, but on others you may be taken aback.

In part four of this series I am deviating a bit from the pattern to keep the articles interesting. This time we will concentrate on hard wire (piano wire) connections.

THE HAYWIRE TWIST AND BARREL ROLLS Despite searching for information about the origins of the

by Paul Borcherds

haywire twist with barrel rolls, I could not find anything that proved who invented it or its place of origin. When exactly we in South Africa started using hard wire traces is also not clear, but it seems that the early pioneering shark anglers were much in favour of using hard wire as opposed to multistrand wire, and they used these twists.

It was probably also one of the first twists I learned as a laaity in Natal when twisting neat shad traces as oppposed to the rather shabby terminal traces that my mates used. I later refined it somewhat when I progressed to ’cuda fishing.

There is, however, only one way to correctly twist the hard piano wire that will not fail. Many years ago this point was shown to me by the late Anthony Defillipi from Hibberdene.

At that time, back in the late ’80s, I was already fishing for ’cuda and had caught a few average sized ones, but I also lost a few bigger fish when the wire came back in a pigtail at the end with no hook. I showed Anthony the trace and he asked me to show him my way of making the trace — wrapping only one strand around the other. He took the trace, hooked it around a window frame and gave it a hard jerk. The twists ended up right up against the treble hook. Ultimately the wire would have snapped should I have hooked up to a big fish which only had to shake its head break off and go free.

Anthony then showed me the correct way of twisting both legs together, and since then I have never lost a fish due to improper haywire twists.

The first twists are called haywire wraps or twists, and the second twists are considered barrel wraps or rolls. It is the combination of the two that makes the haywire twist so dependable. When taxed to near its rated breaking strength, the haywire twist will be the least likely part of a terminal system to fail — if it’s done properly. The connection is thus stronger than the wire itself — thanks to the double-wraps.

There are only a few more things to think of before one can make good, neat connections using piano wire to make the loop, twists and wraps. Firstly, limit the use of long- or bent-nose pliers and side cutters. These days I only use electrical circlip pliers to make a perfectly round loop and only use my side cutters to cut the wire lengths.

Secondly, remember than the round loop is much stronger than the oval loop that is usually formed by pinching the wire back and holding it with pliers or between thumb and fore finger. Lastly, don’t be lazy and use the commercially available wire twisters that are rated in different wire test strengths.

You will limit your ability to make twists in most of the wire strengths and it will end up far too long. Take a bit of time to practise using your fingers. They will soon be able to make perfect twists and rolls in anything from a number 3 to a number 14 wire.

Part 4: Hard wire connections SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 37

TYING THE HAYWIRE TWIST AND BARREL ROLLS USING CIRCLIP PLIERS 1. Tools of the trade — piano or hard wire, single or treble hook, bent nose pliers and circlip pliers.

2. Decide on the trace you want to make and pre-cut a length of piano wire with your pliers’ side cutter. Always give yourself a bit of tag end to work with. It is much more difficult to finish off this connection if you have insufficient tag.

3. Take the circlip pliers and grip one end of the wire between the round legs, approximately 10mm from the tip of the pliers. Give yourself approximately 10- to 15cm of tag to work with.

4. Wrap the tag and standing part around one leg of the pliers.

5. Ensure that the wire forms a tight, round loop over the rounded leg of the pliers.

6. Once your loop is round, ensure that the wire legs are at 45 degrees to each other. (This is important. Although in some of these photos it looks as though the angle is not 45°, that’s just because of the way the photo was taken.)

7. It is important that the legs are at 45° to one another. This will ensure they wrap around each other like a koeksister when you make the wraps, and not one around the other.

8. Slip the loop off the tip of the pliers and inspect the rounded loop. A perfectly round loop will ensure that the hook or swivel can swing freely in the circle, as opposed to an oval where the pressure is only exerted on one point of the wire.

Also ensure that the wire leg of the shorter tag end is above the longer standing leg. This ensures that the wraps will form immediately once you commence the twists. If it ends up the wrong way around, you will start with a loose connection which will result in the loop being oval.

9. Slip the hook eye over the wire tag end.

10. Suspend the hook from the loop.

11. If your fingers are tough enough, grip the loop, otherwise grip the loop between the legs of the circlip pliers.

12. Now here is the important part: Once again check that the wire legs are at 45° to one another. Place your thumb under the wire standing part and the tip of your forefinger above the tag end.

13. Commence rotating both your thumb and forefinger

38 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

clockwise to form the first twist, fairly tight up against the loop. Do not just wrap one wire leg around the other.

14. Continue making a second full rotation.

15. Make three more tight rotations. Your twist must look like a koeksister. With a bit of practice you will get the feel of how tight your rotations must be — too loose and it will fail, too tight and you may over-twist the legs, making it also ultimately weaker. You will soon notice twists which are too tight as they will distort the wraps in a snaking way. After your five or six wraps the twisted section should still follow a straight line.

16. After completing the wraps, pull the tag end up at a 90 degree angle to the standing part to start with the barrel rolls or wraps.

17. Grip the loop again and tightly wrap the tag end around the standing part. The barrel rolls or wraps must be tight and right next to each other, not over each other. Make five or six rolls in all.

18. End the last wrap or roll with the tag end again at a 90° angle to the standing part.

19. About 10mm from the end of the last roll, bend the tag again at a 90° angle on the same side as where the last roll or wrap was made. This will form a small handle which will enable you to twist off the tag neatly without leaving a sharp burr. If you try to trim off the tag at this stage with side cutters, you will always leave a small unsightly tag that will dig in and scrape against the bait’s skin, opening up the bait and ultimately leading to the bait disintegrating prematurely.

20. Grip the loop and twists with the thumb and forefingers of one hand. Grip the end of the small “handle” made in #19 between thumb and forefinger of your other hand.

21. Now wind the handle forwards and parallel to the standing part of the wire.

22. Continue twisting parallel to the standing parting part in a rotation towards your starting point.

23. In most cases the wire tag will break off right up against the last barrel roll before one complete rotation is made.

Just to ensure there is no sharp burr left, run your thumb over the barrel rolls.

24. You have mastered the art of haywire twists and barrel rolls.

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Make sure you’ve got good, strong wire connections when you’re targeting toothy critters like this.

“SPECIAL” OR IMPROVED ALBRIGHT KNOT (CONNECTING HARD WIRE TO MONO OR FLUORO) The Albright Special is one of the most often utilised knots for connecting monofilament or superlines/braid of similar or dissimilar diameters to mono, leaders, multi-strand and hard wires. The original Albright is named after its inventor, pioneering Florida Keys flyfishing guide Jimmie Albright.

Being one of the first guides to target giant tarpon and bonefish for flyfishing clients, he needed a means to connect light tippets to heavy shock leaders to cope with the demands the giant silver kings were placing on his tackle. The Albright Special is the result of that search.

It was initially popular due to the fact that it was probably the first knot developed that could be used to successfully connect monofilament lines of vastly different diameters, and had a break strength of around 85%. However, if the knot is tied with a doubled line by means of a Spider Hitch or Bimini, it creates a 100% strength connection.

In this issue I will show you how to use this knot to connect hard wire to monofilament or fluorocarbon.

As I’ve mentioned before, I learned the Nail Knot with Loop in Kenya and saw that the deckhands then connected the trace leader directly to hard wire (commonly known as piano wire). The 30-40cm piece of wire is then connected to a hard-bodied lure like a Rapala or to a sailfish lure hook set.

They do this because a wahoo or king mackerel may strike the lure and cut off the mono or fluorocarbon trace leader with their sharp teeth. By adding the wire they prevent this from happening, and the wire does not impair the function of the lure. It is not advisable to add the wire when targeting tuna as they become skittish when encountering multi-strand or piano wire in front of a lure.

Another part of this connection is something that I learned from rock-and-surf anglers. Whilst in Kenya I noticed that when I attached the Albright to hard wire, the leader sometimes cut through the hard wire when extreme pressure was applied to the trace leader.

Rock-and-surf anglers overcome this when they’re using multi-strand wire by simply kinking the tip end of the wire to 30 degrees, ensuring that the mono or fluorocarbon lies perfectly in the resultant slot created. I tried it with single-strand hard piano wire and the result was a 100% connection that simply cannot cut through the mono or fluorocarbon.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 41

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TYING THE “SPECIAL” OR IMPROVED ALBRIGHT KNOT (CONNECTING HARD WIRE TO MONO OR FLUORO) 1. Connect a 20-60cm length of piano wire to the lure with a Haywire Twist and Barrel Roll.

2. I used 110 lb (#10) Malin Hardwire for this demonstration.

Anything from #7 to #11 is sufficient on hard-bodied lures or sailfish hook sets.

3. Bend the tag end with your fingers and thumb as shown.

The tag can be anything from 10-20cm, depending on the wire test strength. The harder the wire the longer the tag end must be.

4. I only use my thumb and index finger of one hand to bend the two legs of wire parallel to each other. Pliers may kink the wire completely, rendering the end knot useless as it will break under pressure. If you do use pliers make sure not to bring the tag end and standing part of the wire closer than 3mm to each other.

5. Once the two legs of the wire are close to each other, take a pair of pliers and grip the tip of the wire bend.

6. Bend the tip of the wire down at an angle of somewhere between approximately 30 and 45 degrees. This will form a slot for the mono- or fluorocarbon line to lie in.

7. Make up a length of mono- or fluorocarbon leader with the non-slip end loop knot as described in the September 2014 issue of SKI-BOAT. For this demonstration I used 130 lb Sufix Zippy Shock Leader. Insert the opposite tag end from the top through the middle of the wire.

8. Pull the tag through, giving yourself plenty of tag end to work with. Typically I will make it 20-30cm long.

9. Firmly grip both wire legs and the standing line of your leader in your left hand, then bring the tag end of your leader around the wire and standing line. Remember that the standing line is in the middle of the wire legs.

10. Wrap the tag end of your leader completely around both wire legs and the standing line.

11. Continue to make a second wrap. Secure the second wrap against the previous one by pulling the tag right up against the first wrap. You may need to use the middle finger of your left hand to assist in this process.

12. Keep on making a third, fourth and fifth wrap, continuing to secure each wrap tight up against the previous one.

13. Once you have completed ten wraps, push the tag in from above, taking it over one leg of the wire (the closest to you) and the standing line in the slot as shown.

14. Grip the tag end and secure this wrap tight up against all the previous wraps.

15. Let go of the tag end but keep the last wrap tight up against all the previous ones. With your right hand get a firm grip on the standing line and start pulling against the wraps in your left hand. This will release the first wrap that you made which was being held between your thumb and index finger.

16. Continue pulling the standing line against the wire legs.

Once the wrapped coils start to near the tip of the wire legs, exert more pressure. This will ensure the wraps slide right up to the tip of the wire legs, closing them snugly in the process.

17. Keep on applying pressure until the wraps seat right up against the tip of the wire legs.

18. Grip the tag end of your leader with a pair of pliers and hold the standing line in your other hand. Apply a bit of pressure by pulling the two pieces in opposite directions.

This will secure and seat the tag in the tip of the wire slot.

19. Trim the tag end, leaving a small tag of 3mm. To finish the wire tag, twist the wire tag three times around the standing wire.

20. Using a pair of pliers, grip both the wire tag and standing wire on the last twist. Roll the wire tag two to three times around the standing wire. Finish with the wire tag standing at a 90 degree angle to the standing wire.

21. Make another 90 degree (right angle) bend in the wire tag, approximately halfway up the tag end.

22. Hold the wire firmly in one hand. Grip the wire tag end on the last bend of the tag and twist it forwards and around, parallel to the standing wire. The tag will snap off cleanly against the barrel rolls, leaving no wire bur.

23. And there you have it, the completed Improved Albright or Albright Special with hard wire. Notice the standing line lying in the slot without any kinks in the line. This connection will retain 100% knot strength.

• To purchase the knot tying tool, contact Paul Borcherds on 082 652 5659 or send him a message via Facebook.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 43

MARKETPLACE

Advertorial

VETUS HAS THE SOLUTION No more slip sliding sideways

V

ETUS has a solution to the problem every boater faces — once your boat stops making way, she goes sideways as easily as she goes forward. If the wind catches you offsides, it takes a moment before you fetch up wearing a grotty piling in your gelcoat, or the trailer becomes an unintentional fixture in your side.

If you’ve ever wondered why it’s called “boating”, and not “docking” or “undocking”, it’s because we choose to remember the enjoyable parts of our chosen pastime. Your insurance broker will tell you that the most claims they entertain are as a direct result of harderthan-expected meetings with the dock, trailer or jetty.

You’ve probably got some horsepower bolted to your transom that owes its origins in part to the same technology as motor-racing, and when you press the heel of your hand to the lever that makes those motors perform, the last thing you need to think about is

going sideways. The thing is, at some time you’re going to be stuck with a crosswind or a current that blows your bow onto the dock, or pushes you sideways off the trailer.

That’s when hitting the gas wouldn’t be a smart move, because the only move you want to make is a sideways one!

Your VETUS bowthruster is an ally that will shove you sideways when you need it most.

It’s a sideways-mounted impeller in a GRP tube that directs a powerful stream of water sideways from your

44 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

bow, effectively pushing it sideways at the touch of a lever. The thruster is mounted right up in the stem of the boat, and your installer can usually fit it so that when you dig out onto the plane, the tunnel is lifted clear of the water so there’s no drag at all.

Bowthrusters have been part of boating for more than thirty years now, and VETUS has a model that’s right for you, ranging from 25kg of sideways thrust right up to an enormous 550kg.

The installation is simple and can usually be completed in a couple of days, and the new range of thrusters has even more features — like the Easy-Dock controls and wireless controllers.

The new BPR panels will fit even the most modern of dash layouts.

For further information contact your nearest dealer, phone Vetus-Maxwell SA on (021) 552-4275, or visit <www.vetus.com>.

COMPETITIONS

2014 Tigerfish Bonanza, Pongolapoort Dam

Pieter van der Merwe’s 5.850kg tigerfish landed his team the first place prize of a Seacat 465, sporting two 40hp Yamaha motors, fully trailered, courtesy of Yamaha Marine and D7 Boating.

46 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

by Mark Wilson, photos by Erwin Bursik

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 â&#x20AC;¢ 47

D

UE to our busy schedule of all work and no play, Erwin Bursik and I were unable to attend the Sodwana Tigerfish Bonanza over the last three years. We agreed that this year’s event would see our collective participation, come hell or high water. So, when 24th September arrived, we headed off with great anticipation to Pongolapoort Dam at some unearthly hour, with Erwin’s boat in tow.

We arrived midmorning and were enormously impressed by the fantastic organisation. We literally walked through the registration tent outside the camping grounds at the Sodwana Angling Club in a matter of minutes.

Our next mission was to launch at the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife slipway and settle Mr Ski-Boat in for the night at the Mvubu Lodge moorings.

Finally it was time to settle ourselves into our more than adequate sponsors’ accommodation on the camping grounds themselves. Making the participants feel welcome is something the

committee are old hats at, but it is still sincerely appreciated after a long haul on the road pulling a boat.

This year’s Bonanza attracted another strong field of entries with 296 boats participating. This fishing competition, ranked worldwide as the largest on freshwater, has for several years now embraced the catch-and-release ethic.

Three weigh stations are positioned on the dam, one at the slipway and two on the water, thus ensuring that the tigerfish are weighed, recorded and returned to the water as fast as possible.

The 25th, 26th and 27th September were dedicated to fishing, the first two day with lines in at 6am and up at 4pm, with the final day’s fishing running from 5am to 3pm to leave time for prize-giving.

The dam holds a myriad freshwater fish species for the angler, including various bream species, barbel and, at the apex of the list, the armour-plated tigerfish with dentistry to match its bad temper. Good sized specimens of all these species are present, so anglers shouldn’t

be short of good catches — if you can catch them, that is!

Various methods are employed to catch these ferocious predators, with small livebaits seeming to be the most popular. Sardines, chicken hearts and livers were also used by some anglers, with a few others opting to troll Rapala and Halco lures.

There are a number of reasons why all these anglers f lock to this event every year, and no doubt the fun to be had on the water is part of the reason they come, but another big enticement is the incredible array of prizes on offer.

The main prize was a Seacat 465, sporting two 40hp Yamaha motors, fully trailered, courtesy of Yamaha Marine and D7 Boating.

The generous sponsors who supply these prizes are the lifeblood of any successful event, and Stefan Kleinhaus, chairman of the Pongola Fishing Club, commented that the total value of all the prizes on offer this year eclipsed the R1-million mark.

Not too shabby considering the pre-

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 49

Leon Bothma’s 5.8kg tiger landed his team in second place (top) with some fabulous prizes, while Adriaan Desalis’s 5.725kg tigerfish took third prize (below, left). Fourth place and the accompanying prizes (below, right) went to Wyanand Henning’s 5.135kg tigerfish. Stefan Kleinhaus was happy to hand over the prizes to all the lucky anglers.

TOP TEN ANGLERS Pieter van der Merwe . .5.850kg Leon Bothma . . . . . . . .5.820kg Adriaan Desalis . . . . . .5.725kg Wynand Henning . . . . .5.135kg Albert Lourens . . . . . . .4.850kg Alta Oostehuizen . . . . .4.620kg Flip Everleigh . . . . . . . .4.450kg Hein Klingenberg . . . .4.410kg Fanie Bouwer . . . . . . . .4.190kg Flip van Wyk . . . . . . . .4.030kg

sent financial climate.

This also goes to show that fishermen of all disciplines refuse to be browbeaten by something as trivial as a world financial collapse. They won’t let that stop them from pursuing that elusive tigerfish to secure one of the wonderful prizes on offer.

On the very first day Adriaan Desalis managed a beauty of a tiger that weighed in at an impressive 5.725kg. It held top spot for the entire second day’s

fishing and was only overtaken on the leaderboard on Saturday, the final day of fishing. Eventually two anglers managed to beat this benchmark, Leon Bothma with a 5.82kg fish and the eventual winner by a mere 30 grams – Pieter van der Merwe with a worthy 5.85kg tiger.

The ladies proved they also have what it takes to get a mention this year, with Alta Oostehuizen taking sixth place thanks to her 4.62kg tiger.

For those who are interested in sta-

tistics, the average fish weight in 2012 was 4.136kg, in 2013 it was 4.094kg and this year it was 4.209kg — fairly consistent.

All that’s left to be said is that if you are looking for a fantastically organised fishing competition that strives to give both sponsors and anglers the best they can, then look no further than the Tigerfish Bonanza hosted by the Sodwana Fishing Club — you won’t be disappointed.

Sincere thanks to all the sponsors (pictured above) whose generous donations help make the Tigerfish Bonanza a success.

50 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 â&#x20AC;¢ 51

FEATURE

Everyday steps to sun safety

F

OR most of us our sight is the most cherished of our senses, yet we expose our eyes to danger every day simply by going outside. Over time the sun’s rays can seriously damage the eyes and surrounding skin, often leading to vision loss, eyelid cancers and other conditions.

Simple daily protective strategies will help keep our eyes and the sensitive skin around them healthy. While you are out and about don’t take the sun lightly because certain types of light from the sun can wreak havoc on your skin and eyes.

Ultraviolet A (UVA) and Ultraviolet B (UVB) light — powerful, invisible rays with wavelengths shorter than visible light — are the most dangerous parts of sunlight. They can cause cataracts, eyelid cancers and other skin cancers, and play a part in macular degeneration. In addition, UV rays can prematurely wrinkle and age the skin around the eyes.

High-Energy Visible (HEV) light in the violet/blue spectrum is a potential contributor to cataracts and other serious eye problems. Blue light can damage the retina over time, again leading to macular degeneration. The retina is the membrane where images are formed and transmitted to the brain. The macula, the region of sharpest vision located near the center of the retina, is the most likely area to be damaged.

YOUR EYES ARE AT RISK All of us are at risk and need to protect our families and ourselves daily, because the damage adds up over time. Of course anglers spend a great deal of time outdoors fully exposed to the sun and need to take even greater care.

Eyelids are designed to protect your eyes, but their skin is thin and contains many fragile tissues vulnerable to UV light.

Inside the eye, the lens and cornea, both transparent, filter UV rays, but years of UV absorption can damage them.

Remember that children spend a lot of time outdoors and it is important to introduce hats, sunscreen and sunglasses at an early age.

EYELID CANCERS Eyelid skin cancers and melanoma, account for five to ten percent of all skin cancers. Most occur on the lower lid which receives the most sun exposure.

While basal cell carcinomas (BCC) elsewhere on the body rarely spread, BCC on the eyelid potentially can spread to the eye itself and surrounding areas. Squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) grow faster and have greater potential to spread. Both occur in areas which have a long history of sun exposure.

Melanomas are associated with intense, intermittent sun exposure and sunburns.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 53

WATCH OUT FOR THE SIGNS Some of the early warning signs include: • a lump or bump that bleeds or does not disappear.

• persistent red eye or eyelid inflammation that does not respond to medication.

• new flat or elevated pigmented lesions with irregular borders and growth.

• unexplained loss of eyelashes.

If you have any of these signals, consult a skin cancer specialist or ophthalmologist, even if you feel no discomfort.

INTRAOCULAR MELANOMA Although rare, intraocular melanoma is the most common eye cancer in adults. It starts in the middle layer of the eye containing the iris (the coloured part of the eye) and choroid (the layer under the retina).

CONJUNCTIVAL CANCERS The incidences of these cancers have increased greatly in recent years, especially among older people. Melanomas of the conjunctiva, the protective membrane covering the outside of the eye and the inside of the eyelids, are more common in patients with atypical moles. If you have a skin melanoma or atypical moles have these checked often by an opthalmologist.

CATARACTS The most common cause of treatable blindness, cataracts are a progressive clouding and yellowing of the crystalline lens, the eye’s focusing mechanism. At least 10% of cataract cases are directly attributable to UV exposure, especially UVB. MACULAR DEGENERATION Often referred to as age-related or senile macular degeneration, this eye condition is now thought to be caused by cumulative UV damage to the macula, the region of sharpest vision near the center of the retina. Macular degeneration is one of the major causes of vision loss for people over the age of 60.

CORNEAL SUNBURN Excessive UV exposure from the sun can actually burn the cornea, the clear refracting surface that admits light and images to the retina. Protective lenses are a must for anglers, whose eyes are affected not only by the sun but also the reflection of the sun’s rays off the water.

SUNGLASSES, THE BEST DEFENCE It’s best to wear sunglasses all year round because UVA light can damage the eyes and the skin around them even on overcast days.

Sunglasses’ lenses come in many styles and shades, with neutral gray, green, blue or brown usually offering the most comfortable vision. Choose the colour that works best for you, but before purchasing them check to make sure the lenses provide proper UV protection.

For proper protection, sunglasses should offer the following features: • The ability to absorb and block 99 to 100% of UVA and UVB light. Ideally, they should also guard against HEV light.

• Sufficient size to shield the eyes, eyelids and surrounding areas. The more skin covered, the better. Wraparound styles with a comfortable, close fit and UV-protective side shields are ideal.

• Durability and impact resistance — especially pertinent for rough anglers.

• Polarised sunglasses are essential for fishermen and women as they have a layer in the lens that blocks out glare that bounces off surfaces such as water, cars and the road.

So, in the interest of protecting your precious eyes, don’t leave home without your sunnies.

• The information for this article was taken from the website for the Skin Cancer Fountation. For further information visit <www.skincancer.org> or <www.cansa.org.za>.

54 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

Geoffrey Wanvig, SADSAA President SELECTED NATIONAL TEAMS UR sincere congratulations are extended to the following anglers who have been selected for teams and have thus been awarded their Protea colours in our sport.

• FIPS, Brazil, 23-29 November 2014.

Protea team: Mike Riley (Captain), Jaco Hendriksz, Danie Visser and Johan Wasserman.

• EFSA Gamefish Championship, Florida, 3-8 May 2015. Protea team: Martin Du Plessis (Captain), Japie Kleinhans, Nick Nel and Steven Walder

O

THANK YOU, HOME AFFAIRS In the September/October issue of SKIBOAT magazine we announced the Protea Team that would represent South Africa at the Puerto Rico International Billfish Tournament. Unfortunately, one member of the team, Handor Swart, suffered a serious heart attack almost on the eve of their departure and he was unable to proceed to the tournament. It then became a most urgent matter to activate the selected reserve angler, Johan Lange.

56 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

The drama did not end there, however, as it turned out that Johan’s passport had expired and he was not in possession of a valid USA visa — and we only had three days left in which to get him to Puerto Rico for the start of the tournament.

A number of concerned parties pulled out all the stops to remedy the situation.

On behalf of SADSAA, I must thank everyone involved for making this happen, with a special mention of thanks to Messrs Vusumuzi Mkhize (Deputy Director General) and Albert Matsaung (Gauteng Provincial Manger) of the Department of Home Affairs. Their ser vices, and those of their staff involved, were outstanding.

SASACC/SASCOC — NINE POLITICAL PROVINCES Some time ago, in order to comply with the terms of reference from SASCOC, SASACC created a draft constitution for the new SASACC provincial structures in order for them to be in place by the beginning of 2015, as directed by SASCOC. Colours and/or finances would

not be available unless all provincial structures were registered with the nine “Political Provinces”. Very recently SASCOC found faults within the draft Provincial Constitution and this whole requirement has been put on hold until such time as SASCOC accepts the Constitution in full.

YEAR END WISHES In closing I note that the jolly holiday season is almost upon us again.

Therefore, on behalf of SADSAA National Council members and office bearers, it gives me great pleasure to wish all of our members and friends a safe and happy festive season.

May you all be blessed with good health and a prosperous 2015.

SADSAA CONTACTS: Office phone: (012) 996-9007 Website: www.sadsaa.com

BOAT PROFILE

by Heinrich Kleyn

Seacat Blast 510

by Yamaha

R

E C E N T LY the boating industry has been very quiet with few new designs and developments. As a result I was excited when Shaun Lavery from Yamaha called and invited me to take a closer look at the changes they have made to the Seacat 510 FC and CC which is now called the Seacat Blast.

On the day of the test Shaun also brought along one of the new Yamaha Waverunners fitted with Tubbys. You can find further information about this in the Marketplace section at the back of this magazine.

SPECIFICATIONS Length – 5.1m Beam – 2.15m Fuel – 150 litres Hull weight – 700kg Recommended power – 2x40hp to 2x70hp Buoyancy – Bottles, 1 660 litres

FIRST IMPRESSION I’ve tested the Seacat 510 before, and as soon as I arrived at the Durban Ski-Boat Club I noticed some of the changes Yamaha have made to the craft. The first thing I spotted was that the gunnels have been lifted and some of her lines have been changed.

As with the whole Seacat range and all the boats that are manufactured by

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 59

Grant Reed, the Seacat Blasts were of extremely high quality. Grant takes great pride in all the boats he manufactures, and on every boat test that I’ve done Grant has added his personal touch by accompanying us to answer any questions that may arise.

Although the Seacat Blast 510 is essentially the same boat as the previous Seacat 510, she looks different and bigger when she sits proud on her trailer.

TRAILERING AND LAUNCHING The Seacat Blast 510 FC and CC both fit on single-axle galvanised breakneck trailers — they are so light that you don’t need a double-axle.

Getting the boats onto the beach was simple, without any hassle. We had a tractor to push them into the water, but I’m sure that with assistance from boat pushers it would be very easy to launch her in the surf from the beach even without the tractor.

Loading her back onto the trailer is such an easy task that it could be done by one person, but two sets of hands make it that much easier.

MOTORS AND PERFORMANCE The Seacat Blast 510 CC I tested was rigged with twin 40hp Yamaha 2-stroke motors, while the Blast 510 FC was fitted with two 60hp Yamaha 2-stroke motors. Although there is a vast difference between the 40hp and 60hp motors, both these boats performed extremely well.

Both craft were fitted with sidemount controls and went into and out of gear very smoothly. From stationary they were also both very fast out of the hole, although the forward console boat was a little faster because of the difference in horse power.

There were no signs of broaching when running with the swell, and when I turned into the swell it seemed that the ride was smoother and softer than on most other boats. I could certainly feel the difference between the old Seacat and the Blast when comparing the ride of the boats, as well as the speed at which they jumped onto the plane.

Grant has modified the tunnel, making it wider and square, thus ensuring that more water flows freely through the back, and no doubt it’s the modified tunnel which makes the ride smoother.

It seems that the wider pontoons allow the Blast craft to jump onto the plane faster, even with one engine.

With some of the cats on the market it feels like you’re hitting a sandbank while travelling. This feeling is caused when a lot of water is forced into a tunnel that is too small to allow the water to push out the back. This creates a lot of drag on the hull

and makes the boat feel sluggish. Of course, it also pushes up your fuel bill.

With the new Seacat Blast 510 FC and CC, the wider tunnel, as mentioned, it makes for a smoother ride, but it also helps the front half of the boat come down softly on the water. In addition, there’s less spray out the sides because most of the water is being pushed through the tunnel.

LAYOUT The first thing you see when you look at the Seacat Blast 510 FC and CC is the

60 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

amount of open deck space. The higher gunnels make it easier for one to move around on the boat, and they’re more comfortable to lean against when you’re jigging or fighting a fish.

The other change that has been made is the widening of the false transom to create some seating space.

Grant has also made the livebait well bigger and he’s fitted a window in the front so that you can keep an eye on the bait and bait pump.

There’s plenty of storage space on both these boats, and the rods are kept out of the way in the rod holders on top of the stainless-steel T-top and underneath the gunnels.

CONCLUSION Yamaha and Grant Reed already had a winner in the Seacat range they’d produced for the fishing market, so there was no real reason to change a winning combination. However, if there’s room for improvement they want to make sure they fill that gap, and they’ve certainly achieved that with the new Seacat Blast 510 FC and CC. This is a great boat that is ideal for our fishing conditions at the coast, as well as for those who fish inland on the dams and big rivers. If you are looking to upgrade your boat or are in the market for a new one, the Seacat Blast is definitely one to consider. She is light and easy to handle and, most importantly, is stable on the water.

I think the decision on whether to buy the FC or CC boat would come down to personal choice, because the hulls are identical — it’s just the deck layout and the motors that are different.

Contact your nearest Yamaha dealer to take get a closer look at a Seacat Blast 510 for yourself.

PLACES

F

EW people are fortunate enough to experience first-hand the wonders the beautiful unspoilt East African coast. Often this is because we do not hear about these areas or the viability of getting there.

One such place is Bartolomeu Dias Island, in Moçambique — Bi Di Island to those few who know the area. Bi Di Island is situated 40 nautical miles north of Bazaruto Island, which in turn is about 20 nautical miles off Vilanculos.

A visit to Bi Di Island will tick off

by Rod Delany I have passed Bi Di Island on numerous occasions whilst moving up and down this coastline, and despite having the urge to visit the estuary have not done so owing to sketchy charts, a cyclone-modified entry to the estuary, and lack of knowledge of the area.

Recently an opportunity to visit Bi Di Island arose when one of the owners of Lula’s Paradise Lodge, situated on the mainland, asked me to come and do some maintenance work on one of our Magnum 32 sportfishers.

any one of the facilities at Bi Di Island, then permits to drive on this section of beach will be available to you too.

The road from Maputo up to Vilanculos is in reasonable condition and quite suitable for towing a trailer, but the road north of Vilanculos to Inhassoro and then on to Beira has never been upgraded and travelling this section remains a challenge. However, the distance between Vilanculos and Inhassoro is only 80km long and it is tarred.

Ski-boating at Bi Di Point, Moçambique

most of the boxes on any ski-boater’s wishlist — great fishing, a safe and easy launch into a world famous fishing area, direct access to a huge estuary with mangrove forests offering additional activities other than offshore fishing to families, and the friendly and super helpful people that live and work there.

You do need a 4x4 to get there, but most ski-boaters relish driving their big vehicles out of the city for a change.

Getting there was pretty easy as flights to Vilanculos now depart daily.

At the airport I was collected by Boet and Jakkie Boshoff, the owners of Lula’s Paradise Lodge. We were to travel, by road, via Inhassoro, then along the beach at low tide, to the lodge.

Beach driving is no problem as permits are available to the locals because this is the only feasible means of access to the area. If you are going to stay at

On the way to the lodge we stopped at the market at Inhassoro for supplies, and this was a pleasant experience. Vendors are helpful and most goods available in Vilanculos can be found in Inhassoro.

The drive along the beach is only possible at low tide, and any vehicle tracks are erased by the incoming tide.

The locals are very conscious of the effect that beach driving has on the sen-

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 63

sitive environment, and they act as an effective deterrent to anyone abusing this privilege.

The only obstructions on the 30km long beach drive are the locals pulling in their nets. There is obviously a good understanding between the netters and those in vehicles, and as long as you slow down when approaching the net, they drop the lines and allow you to pass with a friendly wave.

Stopping to see what’s in the nets is not a good idea if you are conservationconscious. The nets exist thanks to donations from China and Europe, and unless we provide some alternative food source (this in itself being a lengthy debate) then nothing is going to change. Sadly, wherever there are nets to be found, the almost total absence of sea life in the area is evident. Luckily, netting is physically restricted to areas easily accessed by the locals.

At the end of the beach section we turned left into the bush and drove into the immaculate, natural grounds of Lula’s Paradise lodge. Boet and Jakkie are farmers who were evicted from their Zimbabwe farm so they are no strangers to creating liveable areas and growing things where they want them.

Lula’s Paradise Lodge, located on a narrow spit of the mainland, has been built in a beautiful garden full of cycads and palms. The lodge boasts a number of individual chalets, all with views of the estuary and in keeping with the natural surrounds.

The chalets are very well equipped for self-catering, so you’ll have hot water, a fridge, freezer, electric lights and power-points to charge cameras, phones, etc.

There is also a communal preparation/cooking facility for those who want company while they prepare their meals. This is part of the bar area and is situated next to the swimming pool, facing west over the estuary. Sunsets are typically African and are spectacular.

If you prefer the simpler life, there’s a campsite adjacent to Lula’s Paradise Lodge which is run by Alex and Christine. It is increasingly difficult to find campsites in Moçambique, and for those more attuned to camping and using their own equipment, this is a lovely spot.

The geographical layout of the estuary has changed over time, and the charts, including those used by Navionics, show a peninsula running north from Lula’s Paradise Lodge, the anchorage of which is at 21° 15.978 south and 035° 6.566 east, up to Ponta Macovane, the northern tip of Bartolomeu Dias island (21° 7.638 south and 035° 6.590 east).

However, this is not accurate as cyclones that have made landfall in this area have substantially altered this 64 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

peninsula. Google Earth gives a better perspective of what the area looks like today, but for navigation it is best to get on site and see for oneself, and to then combine this with local knowledge.

There are three safe launching sites for ski-boats, but they should initially only be attempted at mid- to high tide, depending on swell and surf. For larger vessels and yachts with keels, it is best to enter from the northern tip of Ponta Macovane and to then make your way south, on the inside of the sandbanks to the shelter offered in the area of Lula’s Paradise Lodge. Only undertake this during daylight hours — and preferably at high tide.

The estuar y boasts cr ystal-clear warm water and pure white sands. It is ideal for fishing and all watersports, including wind surfing, kite boarding waterskiing and kayaking. There’s plenty of space to explore and it’s wonderful to find a location that offers so many varied options.

The local population density is relatively low and fortunately the lodges have managed to control the use of nets in their vicinity.

Tourism in the area is very limited at present, owing to the unfortunate political problems that exist on the road from Zimbabwe and Zambia to Beira, which is north of Bi Di Island. This road has seen some military activity against government forces and it’s no longer considered safe to travel on it unless you’re in a convoy. However, Boet regularly visits family in Zimbabwe and knows of alternative routes which are safe.

The road south to Maputo is unaffected by the above-mentioned activity.

October 2014 is the proposed election date, and hopefully the results of this election will help to resolve the tensions in this region.

For those visitors who don’t want to cart all their supplies all the way up to Bi Di Island, the owners of Lula’s Paradise Lodge and the camp ground offer to arrange supplies for you. It’s also possible to charter fishing boats if you don’t want to drag your rig all that way, or if you would rather f ly to Vilanculos and be collected from there like I was.

This area is really worth the effort of a visit, and from what I’ve heard on the grapevine, it might be better to visit sooner rather than later, as oil wells are about to be established close by.

For further information on Lula’s Paradise Lodge email <lula@live.co.za> or contact Jacomina Boshoff on +258 845 833 210. For further information on the camp grounds email <kanimambo.fisheries@gmail.com>.

If you prefer a fully catered holiday there are other accommodation options in the area, just do a search on Google and you’re sure to find something to suit your tastes.

Fabulous Fried Fish

by Stan Farren

METHOD FOR COOKING FABULOUS FRIED FISH 1. Catch a decent fish (left). I like all fish, but rockcod is my favourite.

2. Fillet and debone the fish. My wife insists on no bones and no skin.

3. Place a good helping of Chilli Bite Mix on a plate — or if you prefer, just use seasoned self-raising flour.

4. Beat two eggs in a bowl.

5. Coat fish on both sides with the Chilli Bite Mix 6. Dip fish into the egg and ensure both sides are well egged.

7. Place prepared fish into a pan of hot oil.

8. Fry fish on a medium to high heat for two to three minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of the fish. It must be golden brown in colour.

9. Remove fish from the pan and place on a plate lined with a paper towel.

10. Serve fish hot or cold, seasoned with salt and a little pepper with lemon wedges. Garnish with fresh dhania.

11. Lock the doors — it’s too nice to share!

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COMMENTARY

by Gary Thompson

Without fishing ethics future generations will have nothing to catch ...

R

ECREATIONAL anglers are only allowed to catch one Miss Lucy (red stumpnose) per day by law. You and your buddy are fishing alone out at sea and you land your fist Miss Lucy for the day.

A few minutes later you land a second Miss Lucy before your buddy can catch one. Would you keep the second Miss Lucy and agree with your buddy that he should lay claim to having caught the fish in order to comply with the law?

Let’s assume that you agree to keep the two fish and put them into the hatch. About an hour later your buddy catches a whopper of a Miss Lucy, one larger than you have ever seen before, most likely a South African record.

Would you or your buddy release this whopper of a fish because you have already caught “your” quota for the day?

Or would you throw overboard the smaller of the two dead ones in the hatch and keep the whopper? Or would you keep all three and hope and

pray that no one comes to inspect the hatches when you get home?

THE 74 DOLLAR QUESTION You know that the seventy four is a prohibited species. Your buddy lands a seventy four and the fish is not in a good state, but because the law prohibits you from keeping it, you release the fish.

It becomes very clear to you that this fish will not survive as it f loats away on the surface. Do you leave it to float away, without caring if it survives

The author with an excellent Miss Lucy. Would you release a whopper of a fish because you’ve already caught “your” quota for the day?

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 69

70 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 •

or not, or do you do everything in your power to get the fish to survive and swim away?

Let us assume it eventually dies after all your efforts to get it to swim away alive are in vain. Would you take the fish on board, fillet it and keep the fillets as bait? Or would you consider keeping the fillets for your own consumption, as it is very unlikely that anyone would be checking your boat when you get back at the launch site. And even if inspectors did check your hatch, they would unlikely be in a position to identify the fillets anyway.

YELLOW GOLD Wow, you can’t believe your luck! You start catching geelbek, some nice size fish, and within a few minutes you have caught the two fish the law allows you to catch per day. You put down your rod, like a law-abiding citizen, and allow you buddy to catch his geelbek quota for the day.

You have a look at the fishfinder and you see beautiful geelbek markings on the screen. At that point a commercial fisherman pulls up next to you and they start murdering the fish. For those of you who do not know, commercial fishermen have no bag limits on the number of geelbek they may catch per person per day (as opposed to recreational anglers who are only allowed two per person per day).

You think this is unfair, so you and your buddy drop lines and catch one more geelbek each, knowing that there are some old folk back home who would love a fillet of fresh geelbek, the poor old souls.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS ...

Most if not all anglers have been faced with such decisions in their lives before — and the answers to the questions above would differ from person to person. These moral judgements are sometimes very difficult to make. The answer to what motivates your behaviour may be contained in Lawrence Kohlberg’s six stages of moral development.

Photographs from our archives — two lovely geelbek, one caught conventionally (above) and the fish below caught on dropshot. Question: once you have caught your limit of two fish, would you be tempted to land another one should you see a commercial fisherman with an unrestricted limit start plundering the shoal?

• Stage 2: Exchange of favours. This is where you recognise others have needs, but make the satisfaction of own needs a higher priority. Assume you have caught your two geelbek you are allowed to keep and your buddy has not yet managed to catch one. However, you know by looking at the fishfinder there are still many around.

Would you continue to catch fish, knowing that you are most probably going to catch another geelbek, thereby robbing your buddy of his opportunity to catch his two? Or do you put down your rod?

This is a typical Stage 2 moral behaviour where you recognise that others have needs, but your own needs are a higher priority, so you continue catching geelbek and rob your buddy of his right.

Level two: Conventional Morality • Stage 3: Good boy/Good girl. This is where you make decisions on the basis of what will please others, concerned about maintaining interpersonal relations. This is where you want to be seen as a good boy and this governs your behaviour and decisions.

Level one: Pre-Conventional Morality • Stage 1: Punishment avoidance and obedience. This is where you make moral decisions strictly on the basis of self-interest.

You disobey rules if you can do so without getting caught. This is the typical situation where you and your buddy agree to keep the second Miss Lucy, pretending that your buddy caught the second one. This is strictly not in terms of the law.

This behaviour and decision-making is firmly on the basis of self-interest, and the chances of ever being caught are so slim that it does not make a difference.

These are very easy moral decisions for you to make.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 71

When you land an undersized fish, do you simply dump it onto the deck, tramp on it without mercy, tear out the hook and turf the fish overboard — and let it float away, knowing that the those fishing next to you can see what you are doing? Or are you in Stage 3 of moral behaviour where you try your utmost to ensure that the undersized fish has the best chance of survival, knowing that everyone will regard you as a good boy?

This illustrates that we are now moving into the conventional level of morality and decision-making. However, there are some anglers out there who still live in the pre-conventional level of morality.

• Stage 4: Law and order. This is where you look to society as a whole for guidelines about behaviour and think of rules as inf lexible or unchangeable.

This is where the angler goes straight to the regulations and does not break the bag limits and minimum sizes. It does not matter if you know that a certain species may be under threat, but the law allows you to catch them and therefore you just go ahead fishing until you reach your legal bag limit.

Level 3: Post-Conventional Morality • Stage 5: Social contract. This is where you recognise that rules are social agreements that can be changed when necessary. The example is where you have tried your utmost best to get the fish to

72 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

survive and swim away, but it eventually dies. This is where you fillet the fish and keep the fillets for the old lady next door. Although the rules say you are not allowed to keep or catch the fish, unfortunately the fish did not survive after being hooked unintentionally.

We are aware that there are anglers who are starting to keep the odd seventy four. The moral behaviour is driven by the fact that the angler believes the law is outdated and has not kept pace with what is happening out there.

Furthermore, the moral decision is driven by the abundance of seventy four in recent years. Anglers no longer see it to be immoral to fillet one large seventy four specimen now and again.

One should always remember that laws and regulations, in most instances, follow social contract.

• Stage 6: Universal ethical principle.

Where we adhere to a small number of abstract principles that transcend specific concrete rules — where we answer to an inner conscience. This is the ultimate level that motivates your behaviour and decision-making. It does not matter about the avoidance of punishment, recognising others’ needs after the satisfaction of your own needs, what would please others, law and order or social agreements. What matters is what your higher level of inner conscience tells you is right after considering the six stages of moral development.

This is the level where you as an angler will keep fish for the pan for yourself, and will release them with diligence, ensuring the maximum rate of survival, irrespective of what the laws and regulations say.

Now go back to the beginning of this article and reconsider the scenarios, apply the different levels of morality and stages of moral development, and see if you come to a different answer.

In the latest red steenbras ban, do you not think the “Stage 6: Universal ethical principle” applied to the way most anglers fished for them when the fisheries authorities decided to ban the capture of this species?

Indeed, if we were all moral and ethical recreational anglers, we would all be fishing for many generations to come.

HISTORY Fishing in Port Elizabeth in the 1940s and 1950s

A painting of Algoa Bay by Thomas Baines, with a dory-like craft — though perhaps a bit wider — plying the waves.

I

ONCE read that when a man has spent the younger years of his life fishing — at sea, on the shoreline, on the rocks or on a harbour wall — it is an almost invariable rule that something undefinable germinates within him and never entirely dies until he does.

The charm of fishing is such that none who have tasted it ever weary of it, ever forget it, or cease to feel the longing to return to it once they have quit it.

It was shortly after the 2nd World War that my interest in fishing was shaped on the wall of the Port Elizabeth harbour.

My earliest memory was of myself stretched languorously in a deck chair, rod in hand like a tiger in the sun. I started fishing for shad whilst watching katonkel (striped bonito) fishermen.

After 1948 the katonkel shoals dwindled and virtually disappeared.

THE KATONKEL HUNT Katonkel fishing was quite an art and fairly challenging for fishermen, as they first had to catch a shad and hook it onto a triangular trace, on the front of which was a 2 lb sinker that anchored the livebait. This was then hurled with great force over the harbour wall.

The plot was full of grandness and confusion, especially when a shark snatched the bait and swam parallel to the harbour wall, collecting all the fishing lines from some thirty or forty fishermen. The chaos and mischief that frequently ensued was an amusing and colourful display — the fishermen were infernally cunning and wild with a hunted look. I would watch the show from a safe distance.

Katonkel fishing season ran from 16th December through to early March. Thousands of katonkel fish were caught off the harbour wall. The best section was on the bend where the sea water was twenty to thirty foot deep.

My friend, Don Wright, and I would sit on the harbour wall, creating our own mythology and discussing the merits of fishing on the seaside of the wall. I’ve always believed that one 76 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

lives life forward but understands it backwards, so off to work we went. We decided to build a canoe of a different sort, out of twelve-foot sheets of corrugated roof iron. It took days and many hammers to flatten the corrugations. We then marked a centre line and bent the stem and stern to a piece of wood, drilled and screwed two laurel five-gallon paraffin drums for buoyancy and completed it with wooden gunnels. The stem and stern were covered with plywood for additional buoyancy.

Our canoes took on a life of their own and carried their masters to sea. A new breed of fishermen, we explored new reefs, in particular the Humewood reef which was only a few hundred yards from the breakwater. My first fish of size was a 30 lb poenskop. I remember crumbling into a cathedral of silence from excitement. It was as though music had entered and lubricated my joints and softened my bones as I landed my poenskop. I could see the future and this was the place!

BUILD A BOAT, BUT WHERE? In 1953, I met Ernest Temple Forbes who suggested that we ditch the canoes and build a boat so that we could at the very least have a conversation while fishing. My wife, Norma, was expecting our first child. We lived in a section of a house and there was no room to build a boat.

The day Norma went into labour, I rushed her off to Provincial Hospital where our daughter, Lynette, was born at approximately 6pm. Through the excitement, and in the back of my mind, I was determined to build this boat. But how? The solution entered my consciousness in a flash and by 7pm that night I rang Ernest with the revelation that we build it in our sitting room. Out came the Popular Mechanics.

We found a plan for a ten-foot car-top dingy which we built and covered with tempered Masonite, all executed with great style and precision within four days! We managed to find a second hand Champion outboard side-cylinder 4hp motor from Parkersports. Our Champion was different, like a new colour in the rainbow. Norma and Lynette arrived home

by Graham Gradwell not knowing what had taken place.

We later discovered that our Champion had a mind and will of its own. It only ran when it wanted to, but when it did, it was a Champ! Ernest lived around the corner from the Marine Hotel and his postage stamp-sized lawn became our boatyard. We built a trailer on two cycle wheels and would push our boat to Shark Rock, carry it over the first flat rocks and row through the waves to our furthest point, which was about halfway to the bell buoy.

In those days it was a very hard reef with many small peaks. The reef yielded an incredible variety of front-ranking fish — cartwheel daggerheads, big basterman, musselcracker, poenskop, kob and 74.

Our boat did not do so well. The masonite started cracking and our Champion motor became a smoking dragon which we eventually jettisoned off the side of the boat as it burst into flames. We watched it sink into its martyrdom. My glorious fishing career seemed to have come to an abrupt and untimely end. Paradise had seemed so close, and now I was grasping through fog.

I did not fish for six months. I felt so incomplete during that time. Then I was offered a ship’s lifeboat by a friend in Cape Town for ten pounds, and immediately jumped at the opportunity. Freight on a coaster cost an additional fifty pounds.

My new acquisition arrived and I set to work without delay by stripping it. I noticed that the clinkers had sprung from the stem post, and after closer inspection by shipwright Mossie Mostert, the lifeboat was condemned as lifeless! My disappointment was palpable and I still remember my thoughts drifting like bits and pieces of floating despair.

What to do? Sell it! I advertised the lifeboat in our local paper and ended up with one reply and the offer of four canaries in return for my lifeboat. It was bizarre, but at that stage I was ready to move on and so accepted the offer and the canaries became a talisman to my next venture.

IRRESISTIBLE CALL OF THE CAT One morning, sitting in my office reading the newspaper, it came to my attention that the Simon’s Town to Cape Town race had been won in a Jet Cat owned by Mr Wahl of Wahl’s Opticians. I immediately phoned him to find out where he had purchased his catamaran and he informed me that he had built the boat from imported plans issued by Glen Marine in America. I thanked him and instantly wrote away for a set of plans.

I realised that this was not an easy build and that I would

The author back in the 1940s with his first-ever poenskop, “My first fish of any size ...”. need help, so I rang Mossie Mostert again. Mossie recommended a young shipwright by the name of JK Oosthuizen. I rang Oosie on the day and we became firm friends.

The cat was 14’ 6”, a very wide and stable boat. The bottom was 14⁄ -inch thick ply with two layers of fibreglass. Had I not have been introduced to Oosie, Jet Cat would still be under construction.

Jet Cat was the first catamaran to operate out of the Port Elizabeth harbour. I had to make big decisions: the plans recommended two motors but provided a wedge design at the transom for a single motor, which we followed and proceeded

Picture: <www.mype.co.za>

POPULAR MECHANICS AGAIN ...

Yet in no time, out came Popular Mechanics again. My boat of choice was larger this time. Cruzette was 12’ 6” long and had echoes of quiet grandeur compared with our previous boat. I built Cruzette with imported marine ply from Israel, along with teak frames. The sides and bottom were beautifully finished with thick, glossy varnish readied for a melody of waves.

When I set out to sea with my best friend and new fishing partner, George Swallow, we had two launching sites, these being King’s Beach and Shark Rock. I managed to purchase a 7 1⁄2 hp Evinrude outboard motor which was perfect for Cruzette. We were able to fish on the Humewood Reef again.

On our first trip out, George caught a 76 lb kob. We also caught several daggerhead and rockcod. I remember the big garrick we caught and the many times we were broken up on livebait.

We often went to the bell buoy, a renowned area for yellowtail and basterman. I once saw a boat coming towards us and managed to flag it down and met John Evans out of PE harbour. I am sure he had the first small boat to use the harbour and I was most impressed.

Humewood Reef was burnt into my memory as the best reef in the Port Elizabeth bay. We fished in Cruzette for several more months and caught many good fish.

Humewood circa 1950, where Graham caught his first decent fish, landed on the reef from his homemade canoe.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 77

to fit a 40hp Johnson outboard.

On the day of trial, Red House was our choice for launching Jet Cat. I turned on the motor and gave it a half throttle but the boat did not move! Could this be another dud? After much fussing and discussion, we moved the motor on to one hull, and as I gave it throttle, she was on the plane. What a wonderful boat!

EXPERIMENT AND DISCOVERY It occurred to me that with experiment comes discovery, and I have carried that with me throughout my life. I set out to buy another 40hp Johnson without further delay. The boat performed like a thoroughbred racehorse.

We could now apply to use the harbour to launch our boat which had to be passed by the Port Captain’s office at the tower. I phoned for an appointment and was told to report on Wednesday. We duly arrived, armed with two old life jackets as safety equipment.

The Port Captain announced that it was the first time he had seen a boat like this and enquired if I thought she would be all right at sea, to which I replied that I was certain she would be good. I then had to show him my anchor and the boat was passed. How the world has changed since then.

On leaving the harbour, we had to turn circles until whoever was on duty came out from the tower and waved us on our way, a ritual which was repeated when we entered the harbour.

There were not many small boats operating from the harbour. The ones I remember were operated by John Evans, Gunter Kickhofel, Dr Harold Ofsowitz, Dennis West and myself. Jet Cat was legendary and ran well, which resulted in us trying new reefs off the lighthouse. After several months we had earmarked brilliant fishing spots where large fish had been caught.

I personally caught several red steenbras weighing between 30 lb and 60 lb. My most vivid memory was of catching geelbek on the deep side of the lighthouse. Those were actionpacked days and fitness was an absolute requirement.

My office and showrooms (I was in the shoe trade) were above Hasties Sports, where the main Post Office is today.

Several of my friends used to have lunch together at Hasties, and on one occasion,Anton Brooker (a part owner of Hasties) announced that he had just received a consignment of Japanese feather lures and suggested that I try these around the lighthouse area. He had also received some Ocean City reels. I bought two reels and gave one to George.

TROLLING FOR THE FIRST TIME The following Saturday we stopped at the bell buoy to catch mackerel. When we left for the lighthouse we put out two feathers. We had never trolled before and we did not know at what speed to travel. Being fairly impatient, I found it difficult to travel slowly so I tried various speeds. It was when I slowed down that my rod bent.

Before I knew it I was in, and seconds later George’s rod bent and he was in too. Two skipjack (springer) were boated.

It was January and the area from the bell buoy to the lighthouse always produced skipjack. White Sands was another good area for 74 and kob. The lighthouse area ranked top of our list and yielded our best catch of yellowtail, kob, poenskop, basterman and the odd red steenbras.

One Tuesday we were having lunch at Hasties when Anton Brooker suggested that we try the islands. He knew them well as he had fished there on the deck boats. Apparently it was a very good area for reds, kob and rockcod. The three of us decided to go the next day as it was a spring tide and it was better to go through the mouth at low tide. I was a little apprehensive at first but Jet Cat handled it with ease.

We arrived at Houghham Park directly opposite the islands and fished inshore, just behind the breakers, to find the best bottomfishing I had ever done. We only managed one hour of fishing as the boat was so full from our catch. I was sold on 78 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

the islands.

I did, however, have one problem: the boat was too small to carry all the fish home. We were dedicated to the islands, especially Jaheel, which we discovered quite by accident while fishing for shad bait and where we caught masses of kob of approximately 30 lb, all in the gully.

I was friendly with a skipper on a linefishing boat called African Maid. He told me about the wonderful fishing to be found past the Sundays River mouth at Black Bush one, two and three. I then decided that I had to have a boat that could handle rough surf.

A NEW BOAT Once again I started looking through all the fishing magazines for inspiration and finally found what I was looking for — an 1860 Dogga Banks Dory. Locating the plans proved difficult and eventually I resorted to the state archives. A week later, I had the plans for the Dory and was so thrilled that I phoned Oosie and we agreed to start building the 19ft boat immediately.

This was truly the strangest boat I had ever seen — long and narrow and looked like a banana.

When we had finished building her we cut a hole in the bottom just past the midway mark and built up the sides to take a A Dory-style boat, though much smaller Seagull outboard than the author’s which was motor-dri- motor. The idea ven — by a Seagull outboard though a behind this was to row out to sea and centre “hatch”. then use the motor. We had two sets of rowing oars and one fifteen foot steering oar.

We planned the launch for a Saturday at Houghham Park.

When the Saturday arrived, Oosie was in charge of the steering oar and Bob Glynn and I would row the Dory. The surf was running very high. Normally I would not attempt such a launch, but because it was a trial we decided to give it horns.

We pushed off and started to row. The first wave hit us with great force and the Dory rose beautifully and we were over, ready to collect the next wave and the next, and so on.

Once we were beyond the surf we dropped the motor and all was well. We caught a lot of fish on that day.

I felt happy in the knowledge that finally I had a boat that could handle the surf. Now I could fish off any beach. Bob and I would row the Dory and when we caught a wave, I would shout “ships oars” and Oosie would hold the oar so the boat was on a straight course.

We once caught a beautiful big wave and our Dory was surfing at a good speed and suddenly we were sideways. Bob and I were flung out of the boat and when I came up I saw Dory hit the beach side-on. Oosie, still holding the steering oar, was laughing his head off. The Dory definitely proved herself very seaworthy and would be good for off-beach fishing.

This was the end of the fifties!

I spent a year in Durban before returning to Port Elizabeth to open my own shoe factory. I fished until the age of 78 and had many boats and many more stories.

I still hear the humming of the stars and feel thankful for my insignificant place in the galaxy. And I cherish the 1950s for being the greatest fishing years of my life.

JUST CALL ME THE GAMEFISHING KID

by Michael Lavers (14)

M

Y name is Michael and I started fishing when I was three years old. Once I started I didn’t want to stop.

I caught my first fish off a pier in a harbour. It was only a bream, but to me it felt like a marlin when the fish was fighting to get off the hook. My strong muscles were working like a Formula One racing car’s engine, pumping up down as my arms went into overdrive to land my first fish. Finally, over the side of the jetty the fish flipflop-thrashed onto the wooden deck. My dad took a photo of me with the fish and then I threw it back into the great ocean. Splash! The fish hit the water and in the blink of an eye it was gone. That was the start of my fishing life.

I am now 14 years old and have caught plenty of species, including marlin. Marlin fishing was the most fun and most challenging fishing I have done. On the day we went marlin fishing we had a double hookup.

Both fish jumped out of the water and danced across the water, moving from left to right. I had to follow the fish on the deck of the boat and half-an-hour later the marlin was fighting for his life as we tried to hold the bill to get the hook out its mouth.

Eventually the hook popped off like popcorn and the marlin got water flowing through his gills. After another minute the ocean dancer swam slowly down to the depths of the ocean.

We were thrilled with our catch and did not waste any time putting the skirts back out behind the boat. About 20 minutes later “sssssss” the Tiagra 30 reel screamed as another marlin was hooked. This one was a lot bigger than the first marlin. After 20 minutes of fighting the “big one”, and with some help from my dad, we grabbed the marlin’s bill.

Unfortunately the hook was far down its throat, so we just had to had to cut the line and watch as it swam off smoothly.

That was the best fishing trip I have been on and I will never forget it.

I have used Tiagra reels on a charter boat to catch marlin and tuna and I have seen how good the reels are. I would love to own a Tiagra reel and Shimano rod to catch another marlin and yellowfin tuna.

When I grow up I want to run a gamefishing charter boat.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 â&#x20AC;¢ 81

MARKETPLACE

Advertorial

READY TO TAKE ON THE WORLD

Penn have a reel — and braid —for every eventuality

T

HE Penn Conflict series of spinning reels is designed to meet the rugged requirements of all anglers tackling all species of fish. The Conflict’s full metal body and side plate design, allow the reels to maintain precision gear alignment under severe pressure.

These lightweight reels boast all the same attributes as their bigger brothers, including the Superline Spool design which means no backing is needed, as the braid can be tied directly to the spool.

Line capacity rings eliminate the question of how much line you have left when you’re fighting a fish. These rings show the anglers when they are full,one-third down or two-thirds down, giving the angler confidence when he’s in a tough battle.

The seven sealed stainless steel ball bearings and instant anti-reverse bearing ensures there’s no back-play when fighting big fish, and prolong the life of your reels.

Penn’s sealed HT-100 drag system not only keeps water out, but also ensures a smooth drag under even the biggest of drag pressure, and ensures it stays smooth through the entire battle.

Lastly, the round HD-EVA handle knob ensures a very comfortable fishing experience for the angler.

These reels are very versatile and can be used for all aspects of fishing including tigerfishing, inshore, estuary, jigging, popping/plugging, trolling, drifting and rock and surf.

They’re available in the following sizes: 2 500, 3 000, 4 000, 5 000, 6 000, 8 000.

82 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

BRAID TO MATCH Once you’re kitted out with a new reel, you’ll need high-tech braid to match. The new Spiderwire Fluorobraid, Stealth and Stealth Camo Braid use the highest grade of Dyneema. This 8carrier, high-pick-count, radial braid is ultra round, ultra smooth and ultra strong . The innovative technology used to create it makes it one of the strongest and smoothest braids in its class.

The braid is available in 125- and 300 yard spools in 8 lb, 10 lb, 15 lb, 20 lb, 30 lb, 50 lb, 80 lb and 100 lb — there’s a size to match each of your Penn Conflict reels.

For more information on these and other Pure Fishing products, ask your nearest tackle dealer, or contact Pure Fishing on (011) 023 5100.

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E-Zine Subscriptions (Electronic Format): www.zinio.com/SkiBoat SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 83

Y

OUR favourite offshore angling magazine, SKI-BOAT, in conjunction with The Kingfisher and the South African Deep Sea Angling Association, is proud to offer all South African skiboaters the unique opportunity to win awards for excellence in angling.

All deep sea anglers who achieve laid down prestigious standards of excellence will be entitled to apply for the KINGFISHER AWARD. Upon ratification by a panel of adjudicators, the angler will receive a handsome certificate, suitably inscribed, PLUS a hand-embroidered cloth badge – both confirming the catch achievement.

Complementing this section is the second award category: 2) Kingfisher Award - Outstanding Catch To satisfy the requirements for this award, anglers can catch any recognised fish and the weight of that fish must equal or exceed certain laid down fish weight:line class ratios.

Awards will be made in the following ratio categories: 3:1 – Bronze Award 5:1 – Silver Award 7:1 – Silver Award 10:1 – Gold Award.

Applies to IGFA line class 1kg , 2kg, 4kg, 6kg, 10kg, 15kg, 24kg, 37kg and 60kg.

Certificates Certificates will carry all the information about the catch (fish, weight, line class and ratio), the successful angler's name and the date on which the catch was made.

Digital emailed photographs should be high-resolution.

RELEASED BILLFISH AND GT (Ignobilis) KINGFISH With the strong trend towards releasing these and other fish, we have decided to amend the Kingfisher Award rules to provide for acknowledgement of all released fish. All we need is a photo of the fish being released or prior to release (e.g. GT held on boat) and the approximate weight of the fish which should fall in line with the stipulated weights set out below.

SPECIES Gamefish: Barracuda Dorado Kingfish (Ignobilis) Garrick (Leervis) King Mackerel (’Cuda) Black Marlin Blue Marlin Striped Marlin

NOMINATED WEIGHT 20kg 15kg 20kg 15kg 24kg 225kg 150kg 75kg

SPECIES Gamefish: Prodigal Son Sailfish (Pacific) Spearfish (Longbill) Spearfish (Shortbill) Tuna (Big Eye) Tuna (Longfin) Tuna (Yellowfin) Wahoo

RULES: 1) There is no restriction on the number of awards which can be applied for.

2) Award-applicants must submit a photograph of the relevant fish with the application form, preferably a photograph of the angler holding the fish.

3) SKI-BOAT reserves the right to use the photograph as it sees fit.

4) Entries must be on the official form which is included in all issues of the magazine.

5) Entries must be received within 45 days of capture.

6) Certificates awarded will be as follows: Meritorious Fish - Gold

Kingfisher Award Application Form I hereby apply for the Kingfisher Award in the category:

Meritorious Fish

Outanding Catch

Tick the appropriate box and supply us with the following information.

Please remember to print clearly.

Applicant’s Details: Name: ..................................................................................

Address: .............................................................................. .......................................................... Code: ........................

Tel No: .................................................................................

E-mail: .................................................................................

Club (if member): ....................................................................................

I, the undersigned, agree to abide by the rules of this award.

Signature: .............................................................................

NOMINATED WEIGHT 18kg 35kg 20kg 20kg 30kg 25kg 50kg 20kg

SPECIES Gamefish: Yellowtail Shark (Hammerhead) Shark (Mako) Shark (Thresher) Shark (Tiger) Bottom Fish: Kob (Daga) Musselcracker (Black)

NEW!

NEW!

The Kingfisher Award will be made for fish caught in two sections: 1) The Kingfisher Award - Meritorious Fish To satisfy the requirements for this award, anglers are required to catch a fish included in the list detailed hereunder, equal to or better than the nominated weight.

Tackle used is of no consideration here, the fish's weight being the main criterion.

The different eligible fish and their corresponding minimum nominated weights are as in the accompanying list below.

A gold certificate and a hand-embroidered cloth badge will be awarded for this achievement.

NOMINATED WEIGHT 18kg 200kg 80kg 110kg 200kg 30kg 27kg

Outstanding Catch 3: 1 - Bronze; 5: 1 and 7: 1 - Silver; 10:1 - Gold.

Cloth embroidered badges will be awarded in all categories.

8)

No witnesses of the catch are required. The award is made in the true spirit of sportsmanship and relies on the integrity of the angler to make a just claim.

9) A selection of award winners’ names will be announced in future issues of SKI-BOAT, along with relevant photographs.

10) Award applicants should allow 30-45 days for processing of applicants.

11) There is no charge for Kingfisher Awards.

Meritorious Fish Species: .......................................................................

Weight: ........................................................................

Date of Capture: ..........................................................

Where Caught: ............................................................

Skipper's Name: ..........................................................

Outstanding catch Category applied for (tick appropriate box): 3:1

5:1

7:1

10:1

Species: ......................................................................

Weight: ........................................................................

Line class: ...................................................................

Date of Capture: .........................................................

Where Caught: ...........................................................

Skipper's Name: ..........................................................

JETSKIS

A

FEW months ago I wrote an article mentioning that one of my friends, Charles Raymond, had been stranded out at sea on his jetski and was busy designing a bracket to fix on the back of a jetski that would enable him to fit an outboard motor. (See “The Jet Set”, SKI-BOAT July/August 2013.)

I recently met up with Charles again and he has now had his bracket patented and it seems to be working well.

After a long discussions with him I decided it was time for an article about safety on jetskis.

The first question people ask is, “Why would I want to put an outboard engine on a jetski?” It’s very simple — there are many things that could go wrong out at sea and it would be awful

by Heinrich Kleyn

to be stranded out there alone.

For a fisherman like myself who fishes alone either on my Indigo or my 23ft Citation, I sometimes get into situations that could become life-threatening. With the big boat it is not so much of an issue because I’ve got two engines, but with the jetski there’s only one engine, and if something goes wrong or the jetski takes in water and won’t start, I’m stuck.

STAYING SAFE Let’s take a closer look at some of the safety issues ...

The first thing I would like to discuss is the bilge pump. Not all jetskis are fitted with bilge pumps, and on many of those that do have pumps, they only works for about 60 seconds after

you started the engine, then they switch off.

The Yamaha jetski’s bilge pumps run all the time while your engine is running, but they shut down when you switch off the jetski. This creates a problem for those of us who do drift fishing or who are busy jigging. Unfortunately, you never know your craft is taking in water until it’s too late, and there’s no way the bilge pump could pump a flooded hull in 60 seconds.

The solution we propose is to get a dealer to fit a secondary bilge pump with a float switch that drains in a position that’s visible. That way, if there’s a problem you’ll notice it right away. The minute the water level in your hull reaches a certain point, the pump will switch on and empty your hull. Most

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 87

jetski’s steering. It is very easy to connect and disconnect. If you don’t like this idea, you can simply steer by using the tiller arm.

• Are there any other advantages?

If you take into consideration the hours you’ll save on your main jetski engine if you run the outboard engine most of the time while you’re fishing, that could be a big maintenance saving.

importantly, you will be warned early enough that there’s a problem. I know of a couple of jetski anglers whose craft actually rolled over before they knew there was a problem.

The next option is to fit an outboard motor as a backup. Charles has designed his bracket so that any size outboard motor can be fitted to the back of the jetski.

The bracket is mainly made of marine grade stainless-steel and is a sliding bracket, so that once the engine is mounted you’ll still be able to move it to the left or right.

WHAT ABOUT ...

No doubt readers will have many questions about this, so let’s see if I can answer most of them.

• Why fit an outboard on the back of a jetski?

There are a couple of reasons for this, but most importantly it improves your safety. Just last month I saw a jetski fisherman get stuck out at sea during a fishing competition on the KZN South Coast. His jetski just would not start. If

he’d had an auxiliary motor fitted to the back, at least he would have been able to get back to base and ask for help from the backline.

• What if his battery had gone flat?

Well, that’s why most of the smaller outboard motors are fitted with pull-start options — you pull-start it and you’re on your way. Depending on the make and size of motor you buy, the motor would either be pull-start or electric start or both.

• What about the extra weight on the back?

It all depends on what size motor you want to fit. Most people that I know fit from a 2.2hp motor up to a 15hp motor on the back. Charles has a 6.5hp motor on his ski, while I’ve got a 15hp motor on mine.

• How do you steer and control the outboard motor?

Charles has worked out a pulley system with ropes that run along the sides of your ski and then get strapped to your

88 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

• How will it affect my fuel bill?

Your fuel bill will drop dramatically.

When I fish competitions my fuel can cost me R1 000-plus per day, which makes a big dent in your pocket if it’s a five-day tournament. I would go so far as to say that your bill can be reduced to R250 or maybe R350 a day.

This estimate works out to one litre per hour, but is not cast in stone and may differ a little bit, depending on the engine size and make.

• Is it still a jetski?

I know of some jetski dealers who have sponsored fishing competitions who don’t want us to use our modified craft to fish the competitions because, according to them, we have an advantage over other jetski fishermen.

However, you have to decide for yourself what your priorities are. Surely safety should come first?

YES OR NO? When I consider the advantages and disadvantages of an auxiliary motor, I think there are more positives than negatives. For safety reasons alone I would recommend you fit an outboard motor, and when we consider the cost of fuel nowadays, it makes even more sense.

If you would like more information on this matter, contact Charles directly on 082 652 3040. If he can’t assist you himself he’ll refer you to the nearest dealer who can.

JUNIOR CORNER

WE HAVE A WINNER!

R

YAN Pellew (11) of Park Rynie, KZN, is our 2013/2014 Junior Angler of the year and will receive a 2.5hp Mercury outboard courtesy of Rutherford Marine. Ryan’s proud dad, Lloyd, says Ryan started fishing on a ski-boat at the age of four. Since then he has fished every weekend on the boat, weather permitting, with Lloyd and Lloyd’s best friend and crew member, Carl. As a result, Ryan has been out to sea on ski-boats over 500 times.

He has won and come second several times in competitions for juniors at the Park Rynie Ski-Boat Club and has fished in the Pennington competitions. He fished interclub at Umkomaas at the age of 10 with Demetrios Stamatis, a Springbok angler, and he has also been fishing with his uncle, Howard Pellew, who is a well known commercial fisherman and seine netter.

Fishing is Ryan’s passsion and every day, whatever the weather, his mom or dad has to take him to the beach so he can cast a line off the pier at Rocky Bay, Park Rynie. He also spends hours playing with his rods on the boat, often fighting his Staffies while pulling toys on rope.

Ryan’s favourite boat setup is a Shimano TLD 15 reel with a Kingfisher Couta Ski rod. He enjoys using his small KP (Scarborough) fishing reel for catching livebait and his big KP reel for bottomfishing. When it comes to shorefishing Ryan favours his Daiwa Excella 250 and a Shimano rod.

When Ryan is not fishing himself, he’s usually watching fishing programmes on TV or making traces. He just loves fishing of all kinds, and for his 11th birthday his parents bought him a speargun as he also wants to start spearfishing.

Congratulations, Ryan, we look forward to hearing more about your fishing achievements. Once again, our sincere thanks to Rutherford Marine for their continued support of our junior anglers.

90 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

INDUSTRY

HOST of new boats and marine engine technology were on display for the first time in South Africa at the 2014 Johannesburg Boat Show at the Johannesburg Expo Centre in August.

This year the show also featured a number of wakeboarding and flyboarding demonstrations on the lake to thrill visitors, as well as casting demonstrations for those needing to refine their techniques.

Several companies also unveiled their new models at this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s show, including Magson Marine who showcased their new Titan 300 Express Cabin which aims to satisfy the serious sports angler, while still maintaining comfort for the family.

Show director Philip Otto was particularly pleased with the support for the third Johannesburg Boat Show with a wide range of boats, marine engines and watersport equipment on display.

Twin Boats used the show to launch their new 23-foot Sensation Cabrito and the new joystick system, the Optimus 360, while Randburg-based Waterworld launched their newest Mastercraft Boat, the Mastercraft X46.

The Malibu 22MXZ and 23LSV Wakesetters wowed the crowds visiting the Boating International stand, while

A

by SKI-BOAT Reporter

Jono Ross, captain of the Blue Bulls, trying out the fighting chair at the Johannesburg Boat Show, under the watchful eye of Erwin Bursik.

92 â&#x20AC;˘ SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

2014 Johannesburg Boat Show

Leisure Marine’s stand boasted the 2015 Moomba Mondo and the 2015 Supra SC. Other manufacturers launching new boats on show include Tige Boats, Z-Craft, Natal Caravans and Marine and Broderick Marine.

Suzuki used the show as a platform to present their new DF30A outboard engine which weighs just 71kg and is rated as lightest in its class.

Yamaha weren’t far behind and launched their new F115B outboard engine — a long-awaited update to the very successful F115 motor which has been in production for a number of years. The new engine is some 14kg lighter than its predecessor and features improved acceleration and economy, plus excellent low-speed charging.

Meanwhile Mercury commemorated a milestone at the show, celebrating its 75th anniversary and taking the time to reflect on its strong heritage of innovation and leadership in the marine industry.

Add to the thrilling display of boats, marine engines and boating accessories a hall dedicated to the dive fraternity and a number of fishing equipment exhibits, and the show really had something for everyone.

Look out for details of the 2015 show in the press.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 93

TACKLE TALK

Three examples of the Storm Fluttersticks.

O

VER the years lures have been developed to swim in an enticing manner in order to tempt predatory fish to strike at them. Almost every type of swimming action has been explored in order to achieve this.

Lately, a new dimension has been added to lure movement and that is to get a lure to f lutter or f lash on the sink, meaning that the lure is enticing even while it is dropping through the water column.

One of the finest examples of such an action is to be found in Storm’s Flutterstick range. These lures are extremely versatile, with a number of swimming actions that can be used, and they have a pronounced fluttering action while they sink horizontally.

The fluttering action means that the lure wobbles as it sinks, casting a flash as it does so, imitating a wounded baitfish. This action draws many strikes while the lure is sinking.

On a recent trip to Moçambique the author discovered bluefin kingfish would eat nothing other than quickly retrieved Fluttersticks.

The Flutterstick is also attractive during the retrieve. It will swim with an attractive side-to-side wobble on a straight forward medium- to fast retrieve. It is an excellent subsurface stickbait and will dart erratically when retrieved with a twitching motion. It can even be worked vertically, like a jig, if you twitch it upwards with a darting action, then allow it to flutter down again.

I have had great success with the Storm Flutterstick in estuaries, in the surf and offshore. Being well weighted and aerodynamic, it casts like a bullet, making it an excellent lure for covering water. It is also ideal for casting at shoals of feeding fish where they have balled up some bait and are busting on the surface. In this case I just cast the lure into the fray and allow it to sink down through the frenzy. If I haven’t had a hit on the sink, I know that I am sure to get one when I start retrieving the lure.

Patrolling gamefish are bound to be galvanised into action by the sight of a baitfish dropping out from beneath the bait ball with a panicky, f luttering motion. Just make sure you’re ready for the hit, even when the line is slack and your lure is sinking.

I was recently on a trip to Moçambique where we got caught by bad weather and had to tuck our liveaboard boat in behind an island to sit out the squall. We decided to go ashore and take some light tackle to see if we could entertain ourselves with some fishing while we waited for the weather to clear up.

The conditions were atrocious, with a pumping wind and patches of rain. We made our way around the reef edge of the island and soon came to a spot where there was some feeding action going on. Shoals of baitfish were spraying from the water as they were being repeatedly attacked by some predators. We tried a variety of

A lure that acts like the real thing

94 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

by Craig Thomassen

Kawakawa can also be successfully targeted on Queen mackerel love the Storm Flutterstick.

Fluttersticks. lures, including spoons and poppers with no success whatsoever. Very frustrating! I clipped on a Stor m Flutterstick and cast it into the action and still had no success.

A couple of casts later the wind gusted and blew my lure off course in midair, taking it over some prominent bits of reef. I quickly clicked over and started a very fast retrieve with my rod tip up, to stop the lure from sinking in the shallow water and snagging up.

As the Flutterstick reached the edge of the channel a streak of fury homed in on it and the water exploded. I was on and line was peeling from my reel.

It turned out to be a lovely bluefin kingfish, and I caught a few more that afternoon on the same lure with a high speed retrieve.

Funny how sometimes luck plays a part in determining the right lure and retrieve for the day. This also shows the versatility of the lure and the fact

that there are a number of different retrieve styles that can be effective.

The Flutterstick is a great lure to have set up on a light flicking outfit when you go out on your boat, ready to cast at any visible surface action. I normally have mine on standby, rigged on a Shimano Trevala 7ft Medium Light rod, with a Shimano Sustain 5000 reel and 30 lb braid. This little outfit is light enough to cast for hours if necessary, yet also has the ability to handle pretty decent fish.

In Moçambique the gamefish often move close inshore during winter, where they smash into shoals of juvenile baitfish. On many occasions I have parked my boat upwind of the feeding fish and cast Fluttersticks towards the action with the wind behind me. I’ve had plenty of fun catching queen mackerel, bludger kingfish, kawa kawa, GTs and queenfish in this way. The feeding gamefish are unable to resist the action of these

lures, and the fact that they cast so well also means that I can easily get them right into the middle of the feeding fish.

The Storm Flutterstick comes ready rigged with two VMC treble hooks, but I like to remove these and replace them with two VMC 7266 inline single hooks. I prefer the hookup that I get from single hooks and also find that the singles do far less damage to the fish and ensure a better release, as they are easier to remove. The less time the fish spends on the boat’s deck getting hooks taken out of it, the better its chances of surviving the experience.

Because they’re so versatile and effective, Fluttersticks have become very popular in South Africa. They are very reasonably priced as lures go, and come in an excellent colour range.

They have a 16cm model, as well as a 10cm and a 7cm, and even a tiny 4cm model, ensuring that there’s a Flutterstick for every occasion.

When there’s visible surface action, reach for the flickstick rigged up with a Flutterstick.

SKI-BOAT November/December • 95

THIS & THAT

Items of Interest

MOTOR ROBBERY HAS A HAPPY ENDING

by Ruli Sofilas E at Natal Power Boats have known Calvin Courtman for a couple of years now. Calvin is a 21-year-old man with a developmental disability, but he has a heart of gold and loves fishing. A few years ago his dad, Mark, bought him a 2.5hp Suzuki 4-stroke, but a couple of months ago thieves jumped over the fence of his Durban North home and stole his Suzuki outboard motor. Calvin was devastated and wanted to know why someone hated him so much.

Quinton Edmond relayed all this information to Nick Lanzanakis and I. We approached Tanja Maes from Suzuki Marine and decided that we would donate a 2.5hp Suzuki to Calvin, to show him that there are people who love him.

With the help from Natal Rod & Reel chairman Mark Blomkamp and his club members, we had an evening potjie competition and presented Calvin with his brandnew 2.5hp Suzuki 4-stroke engine. He was absolutely overjoyed and, with the help of his dad, wrote a heartfelt letter of thanks to both Natal Power Boats and Suzuki.

It was a fantastic feeling giving someone a gift that he really deserved!

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PARK YOUR BOAT WITH EASE

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RE you tired of risking a hernia every time you manoeuvre your boat (or caravan) into your garage or in tight showroom spots?

The new Parking Trolley, now available from Lowrance SA, makes the job a breeze. All you do is attach this nifty high-lift device onto the front of a trailer and take charge with the easy-to-use, hand-held remote control. Best of all, you can operate it all alone — no need to rope in those very unwilling “helpers”.

The self-contained power source allows

you to operate from any position around your boat/caravan up to a distance of 40m, moving it into extremely tight spaces. The all-terrain rubber tracks of the Parking Trolley can even move up inclines and over any solid surface.

The Lowrance team has tested it and they were amazed at how efficient it is and the precision of parking in a narrow space.

For more information or to find your closest dealer call Lowrance South Africa on (031) 368-6649.

SONAR THAT’S SERIOUS ABOUT FISHING

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HE revolutionary Furuno CH250 is the sportfisherman’s dream machine. Designed for boats 40ft and upward, this high-performance searchlight sonar displays fish and underwater objects on a sunlight viewable 10.4” colour LCD TFT display and gives you the ability to rapidly scan a full 360 degrees around the boat or just specified sectors.

The Furuno CH-250 has

eight operational modes to choose from.

The full circle/vertical slice mode finds fish targets and bottom structure all around the vessel, with a vertical slice display at the same time. The vertical slice mode gives you a fore and aft, surface to surface, expanded view of fish school distribution on the selected bearing.

You can also set it to depth sounder mode, which has a tilt-and-train capability for forward or side looking. It is even stabilised to compensate for the boat’s motion.

The CH-250 is also available in a “black box” model that interfaces with an existing onboard display. Available in 60*, 88 or 1150* kHz frequencies (*only on special import, 88kHz standard supply in SA), the CH-250 offers 15 range scales from 40 to 1 000m in full-circle mode.

For more information or to locate a dealer near you, please contact Imtech Marine South Africa on 0861 123 555 or email <info.za@ imtechmarine. com>.

GET A TUBBY ON BOARD

by Heinrich Klein N the previous issue of SKIBOAT I reviewed the new Yamaha Waverunner —the best jetski I’ve been on and one that’s ideal for the conditions we fish in.

What I didn’t mention in that review is that Yamaha have added some extra features like the Tubbys that not only give you more space, but also make the jetski more stable.

In the past people have asked me if there’s a difference between a jetski with Tubbys and a standard jetski — the answer is a resounding “yes”. Before I switched over to using the Indigo jetski/jetboat, I used a jetski with Tubbys and I made numerous requests to the manufacturers about specific changes I wanted to see on the Tubbys. At last I am happy to say that they have made most these changes to the Tubbys, and they are now much more

I

attractive and waterproof.

The Tubbys also add some extra buoyancy to the jetski, especially now that the manufacturers have put in extra flotation. Fibreglass on its own may float, but when you add 500kg to it without flotation there is only one way that it is going to go and that is down. With extra flotation, these new Tubbys thus improve the safety of the fishermen using them.

On the new Tubbys the lid has also been moved to the top and made more water-resistant so that your equipment stays dry.

The Tubbys do not change the ride, so you don’t have to remove them even if you want to play on the dam or in the waves. Everything stays the same — you’ve just got more stability than before and that makes it better. Indeed, the new Yamaha Waverunner with Tubbys is a winner all round.

SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 97

KEEPING YOUR STUFF COOL MUST-HAVE for anglers, Coleman® Marine Coolers are designed specifically for use in the sun. UVGuard™ reflective colour additives protect the cooler, impeding yellowing and cracking caused by sun exposure.

These coolers know how to keep beverages and fish fresh and cold for days, and the Xtreme® Marine Coolers keep ice up to five days in 32°C heat.

Our secret? More insulation for maximum cold retention.

The coolers come with a hinged lid with rust-resistant hardware and an anti-microbial additive that helps inhibit odour, mould and mildew on the cooler. The Have-a-seat Lid™ supports weights up to 113.4kg.

For further information on these products contact the South African agents, Jarden South Africa, on 086 152 7336.

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SMART MOUNTS FOR ELITE UNITS

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OWRANCE South Africa are happy to announce that the Ram U-bolt long arm mount has just come in. This ingenious new mounting device offers the easiest and quickest way to attach your Elite 3, 4 or 5 unit to your jetski or boat. Simply bolt the mount onto your jetski handlebars or the console rail of your boat, attach your Elite unit to the movable base plate and you’re ready to go.

This package includes hardware for tubing of 0.75” to 1.25” in diameter and the recommended retail price is R785 (incl VAT).

For more information or to find your nearest dealer call Lowrance South Africa on (031) 368-6649 or email <sales@lowrance.co.za>.

FAIRLINE 48 TARGA ARRIVES IN STYLE

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HERE was huge excitement in Cape Town recently when the fabulous new Fairline Targa 48 Open made her debut on African shores. Gorgeously spacious, with a free, open-air look/feel, this versatile cruiser is the perfect entertainer with scope for loads of watersport action and even a spot of fishing.

As soon as he set eyes on this new sports cruiser which has taken Europe by storm, Derrick Levy knew she would suit our coastline and would captivate local enthusiasts. He immediately set about getting one over from London — and the huge interest she’s generating proved his instincts were right again.

In typical Fairline style, there’s no skimping on attention-to-detail and the 48 is bursting with luxurious fittings and awesome power, For more information or to get a closer look, call Boating World on (021) 418-0840.

TRADE ON DISPLAY HE 15th annual SAFTAD Fishing Trade Show took place in mid-August this year with over 50 exhibitors in attendance. More than 201 companies attended the event to get an insight into what’s new, what’s hot and all the latest tackle available for all facets of angling.

The main aim of the event is to showcase the latest fishing products and related innovations to the retailers.

Show organisers Mary Ann Hodgskin and John Pledger were very positive about this year’s show and viewed the event as a great success.

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98 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

A D V E R T I S E R S ’

SMALLS

BOAT FOR SALE

SKIPPERS’TRAINING

OBTAIN your SAMSA skipper’s certificate of competence. Theoretical, practical and surf launch training by an experienced commercial skipper.

Phone Kobus on 082 891 3652, (012) 348-9078 or (012) 361-2617, e-mail <skippers@twobar.co.za> or visit their website <www.twobar.co.za>.

SHARE IN HOUSE

760 BUTT CAT Sportfisher (2014) with 2 x 140hp Suzuki Lean Burn 4-stroke motors (only 5 hours), radar, fishfinder and GPS (Lowrance), 27Mhz radio, Sony front loader and Boss marine speakers, 8 x 25 litre jerry cans, complete safety gear, lifejackets, flares etc — all brand new.

Price: R1 100 000 neg Contact: Kobus on 083 660 3607

BOAT FOR SALE

ONE-SIXTH share in a luxury 4-bedroom beach house for sale. The house is situated just 12km north of Vilanculos on a very private beach and has a sea view. 24 hour security plus a 21ft Butt Cat are included so you can access the great fishing and snorkelling around nearby Bazaruto.

Your share buys you 60 days per year.

Price: R450 000 Contact: Anton on 082 338 6755

COBRA CAT 700 (2008) with 2 x 175hp Suzuki motors, sun canopy, safety equipment, two-way radio, fighting chair and more. Includes double axle trailer.

All in splendid condition.

Price: R550 000 plus VAT Contact: Chris on 082 657 5001

BOAT FOR SALE HOUSE FOR SALE HARTLEY 7m deep sea boat with 2 x 85hp Yamaha motors on double axle trailer with spare wheel. Not registered.

Includes three fishfinders and all equipment.

Price: R66 000 Contact: Andre in Uitenhage, E Cape, on 079 842 1333

JET BOAT FOR SALE HOUSE for sale at Coconut Bay, Moçambique, includes all furniture, game view cruiser and best view of the bay.

Contact: Hein on 083 440 9320

DEADLINE for the January 2015 issue of SKI-BOAT magazine is 5th November 2014.

BOOK YOUR SPACE NOW! Phone Joan on (031) 572-2289 or Lyn on (011) 425-2052

INDIGO 430 with Yamaha 1800 SHO, includes livebait well with bait pump, full safety equipment, 29MHz radio, luna tubes with pump,4 x Scotty rod holders, dual battery system. Low hours. Just like a jetski but much drier and more stable. Seaworthy for four people.

Price: R165 000 (valued at R310 000) Contact: Hein on 083 440 9320

INDEX Alpha Powercats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81 Anantara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Angling Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81 Atlantic Suzuki . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Ballistic Sunglasses . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53 Bluewater Boats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 Boating International . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Boating World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Boating World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Club Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 CMH - Optimus 360 . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Corrosion Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66 D7 Boats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 DC Rods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Durban Yamaha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Fishtube.TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96 Garmin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62 Grant Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66 Honda Knysna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70 Imtech Marine (Furuno) . . . . . . . . . .12 Japanese Electric Reels . . . . . . . . . . .58 Jetski Fishing Bonanza . . . . . . . . . . .86 Jonsson Clothing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Landrover Umhlanga . . . . . . . . . . . .56 LeeCat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 Lowrance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Lowrance Parking Trolley . . . . . . . . .70 Luckys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Mako Sunglasses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Mariner’s Hub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43 Matoya Lodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Maxel Trading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108 MDM Raymarine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Mr Winch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Natal Caravans & Marine . . . . . . . . . .2 Natal Powerboats . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107 Nissan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Ocean Trading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Pure Fishing (Penn) . . . . . . . . . . . . .82 Richards Bay Billfish Classic . . . . . . .57 Richards Bay Ski-Boat Club . . . . . . . .72 Shimano . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 SkiPort Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38 SMD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 Smith Optics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Snowbee sunglasses . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Solly’s Angler’s Corner . . . . . . . . . . .51 Southern Power/Volvo Penta . . . . . .81 Supercat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68 Suzuki . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 The Kingfisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 TOPS @ Spar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 Turboformance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66 Twin Boats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Twister Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79 Two Oceans Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 Vanguard Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . .89 Vetus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 Wildfly Travel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 Williamson Lures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Yamaha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 Yamaha Seacat 510 Blast . . . . . . . . .61 Z-Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65 SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 • 99

BUSINESS CLASSIFIEDS

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Contact Joan (031) 572 2289 or Lynette (011) 425 2052

to book your space now!

Booking DEADLINE for the January/February issue of

is 5 November 2014 104 â&#x20AC;¢ SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

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SKI-BOAT November/December 2014 â&#x20AC;¢ 105

RAPALA LIP

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HAT about buying a house on the beautiful Natal South Coast for our retirement one day? What a good idea. We could buy it now, spend as many holidays there as we can, and get all the little jobs done in the meantime.

We could even landscape the garden so that when we do finally retire, it would really be like “going home”.

Now I firmly believe that retirement means twice as much husband and half as much money, so all work done in advance would at least help the money side of that problem. Retirement might mean giving up all the stresses and strains of a daily working life, which here in “Gangster’s Paradise” is something to be experienced to be believed, but it also means giving up a familiar and comfortable support system that I have developed over the years.

Well, that was my dream with my new seaside home — decorate from scratch. But the great fisherman had other plans which, in retrospect, I should have foreseen. Biggie Best quickly changed to Piggie Pest!

The very first piece of decor to grace

Twice as much husband and half as much money? our coastal “dream home” was a huge mount of a sailfish which was hung up on the wall alongside the stairs leading to the upper study. Now, to my mind, stuffed fish on the wall are second only to ceramic ducks in flight when it comes to ornamental horrors. The only reason

Ships that pass in the night ...

The librarian is able to say to me, “Oh, my dear, you already read this book last year.” The nurseryman can ask,“Were you ever successful with the coloured arums?” And I can drop off material at my trusty dressmaker on my way to the womb (this being any shopping centre where I feel safe and warm). By now, even her domestic helper knows my measurements!

Also, there are all the mums I’ve known since my now grown-up children attended nursery school and with whom I can stop to have a chat over a cuppa — and marvel at how they’ve aged so considerably.

In the beginning I consoled myself that in no time at all I would develop another circle of friends down at the coast and get to know the incredibly lucky people who live there. And, of course, there was the exciting prospect of being able to decorate the new house from scratch and at least finish one room completely before starting the next. This never happened at home: my daughter’s Barbie bedroom was completed just six months before she wrote her final unversity exams, and I couldn’t find Liewe Heksie curtains to match the faded duvet cover ...

no one has had his/her eyes gouged out on the bill is because a large cork now protects the sharp end.

What irks me most is that twenty years’ worth of interesting prints, collected from all over the world — as well as some beautiful watercolours by talented local artists — are still propped up against the passage wall in their frames and all their glory.

The nicest thing about a holiday home at the coast — or anywhere else, for that matter — is the long, lazy, latemorning lie-ins. But no, this just doesn’t happen, especially if the lads are going fishing ...

The first wake-up call comes just after we’ve fallen asleep, although this is denied as they maintain it is never before 4am. In any case, who needs more than five hours sleep? Several to-and-fro phone calls follow as the entire crew of each boat launching that day takes on the responsibility of waking up everyone else who is going fishing — and, of course, those who are not.

In addition to this, weather reports are obtained, covering everywhere from the Florida Keys to the Great Barrier Reef, and these are then relayed, in precise

106 • SKI-BOAT November/December 2014

Last Word from the ladies

detail, to every skipper going out that day.

Then several more phone calls are made to establish who is bringing the boat lunch, bait, extra tackle and “have you got space on your boat for so-and-so?”

Once all the logistics of the trip have been sorted out, the crew start their morning ablutions. This entails much switching on of lights, flushing of toilets, banging of doors and whispered requests: “Where is my lip ice, factor 99 sunblock, waterproof camera, the bait knife? ...” Whatever happened to pack your case the night before?

The crew then proceeds to hitch up the boat and run the motors. Eventually I hear the happy sound of the 4x4 going out the driveway and down the road, fading into the distance. So I roll over and close my eyes — but by then I’m so wide awake and just can’t get back to sleep.

Naturally, when I complain, I am told that they couldn’t possibly have woken me: “Anyway, you always go back to sleep, don’t you?”

When I do finally drag myself out of bed, it’s to face a trail of coffee cups and the messy evidence of boat lunches having been made. I sometimes wonder if it wouldn’t be better to do it for them the night before, but then it would always be expected of me — perish that thought!

After their day at sea and a few beers at the club, the boat is towed home where the crew have certain designated duties. Fish have to be photographed, cleaned, filleted and packed away for freezing (I worked out that our last catch cost us R547.33 per kilo!); tackle is removed, the decks are washed down and the hatches are scrubbed; then skipper performs the coup de grace: he lovingly lathers his beloved boat in the sweetest-smelling soap, rinses her down with a cool spray of fresh water, buffs and shines her — and then puts her to bed in the shade of the “boatport” — just a carport, really.

Then he and the crew, wet and stinking of fish, walk into my nice clean home — never mind about the house, as long as their boat is clean — and gather in the lounge where beers are passed around.

And what do they talk about? Fishing, fishing, fishing!

“So when,” I ask myself,“does my husband intend spending some time with me in this ‘retirement’ home of ours?

Will it always be this way? Will I only have him to myself on ‘bad-weather days’? Or is this all just a novelty that will wear off as he gets older?”

Hang on a sec, guys. We all love you, but won’t you just spend one “good weather day” with us next holiday. Just think about it: it will be good practice for the future when it becomes our permanent retirement home — that time when we are meant to live with twice as much husband and half as much money!

On second thoughts ...