Aruba 2012
October 2012
"Hey Chama" wins the Chevis Regal Caribbean Cub in Aruba in October 2012
Winners:
Boats:
1st Place – Hey Chama – 700 Points
2nd Place – Teaser – 600 Points
3rd Place - Balkan – 600 Points
Anglers:
Rafael Menetes (Hey Chama) – 600 points
Natessa Mansur (Teaser) – 400 Points
Alex Mansur Jr. (Iliza) – 300 Points
Calm seas proved to be challenging for all competitors in the Chivas Regal Aruba Caribbean Cup as billfish avoided the glassy and warm surface waters, preferring to stay in the deep colder waters.
The competitive 18 boats and their crews made tough choices daily – whether to fish the shallower southern waters for sailfish or the north and western waters of this “happy” island for the hopes of finding an elusive marlin.
When all was over, only one blue marlin was caught and released by the Four Play. Nine white marlin were also released. Each marlin netted 300 points and each sailfish earned 100 points in this catch-and-release tournament, sponsored by Chivas Regal and hosted by Varadero Marina.
The “Hey Chama”, a 64-foot Bayliss, captained by Irving Irausquin, found four sailfish and one white marlin to put them atop the leader board. The winning sailfish was released 7 minutes before lines out.
“Teaser” with its all-female angler crew aboard a 35-foot Bertram finished in second place with 600 points and the “Balkan” with a final double-white marlin release jumped into third place with 600 points.
Top anglers were Rafael Menetes (Hey Chama) 600 points , Natessa Mansur (Teaser) 400 points and Alex Mansur Jr. (Iliza) 300 points.
Tournament Director Joan Vernon hosted a fun “Country-Western” theme party to welcome anglers and observers to begin the tournament and ended the competition with a fabulous “Back to the 70s” party at the Surfside Marina.
A silent auction raised money for The Billfish Foundation, which participated in a white marlin tagging project in Aruba after the tournament.
Nine IGFTO observers participated in the event. The IGFTo hopes to attract more qualified and trained observers to level the playing field for anglers and ensure the safe catch and release of billfish in tournaments around the world. The IGFTO is a 501(3)c tax-exempt charitable organization.
