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Ragulsky 25″ – Choi 26″ – Brooks 25″ Triple Sheepshead Photo courtesy of Joe Underwood. And Lee Williams is a badass |
Bottom row left to right – Chip Camp, Drew Camp, Mark Lozier and Joe Maccini.
There was no up and down play like my previous sharks. It was all flats and insane horizontal runs with unreal directional changes. Their agility and speed can really test a kayak anglers ability to make appropriate adjustments during a fight and avoid potentially dangerous situations.
I almost lost my rod once, took a backwards sleigh ride a few times, and almost broke my rod on the gunnel twice. The shark liked to scream off in one direction, then abruptly turn around and charge back the other way, leaving me guessing as to where it was actually going to end up. After almost half an hour, I finally got a good look at it. It was close to the 6 feet I needed. The Virginia Saltwater Tournament rules states that it needs to be 72″ but estimated lengths may be used for sharks. And technically, I can touch the leader and if a witness thinks it was 6′ or bigger, I can cut it and it counts as a citation. But “close enough” just isn’t my style. So I decided I had to measure the beast.

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Got some stank on my face |
There was a marsh island close by so I decided I had to drag it there. But the thing is, dragging something that big is miserable even for a relatively short distance… not to mention I ran the threat of killing it. In my stubbornness, I tried for a short bit then Jay thought that maybe it was worn out enough to lift it on to my lap and take a quick measurement. I attempted to it try it but about 1/3 of the way up it freaked out again…
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Hindsight is 20/20 |
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Big thank you to Jay Brooks for helping with pics |
One thought on “17 Boat Beating Champs and a Trophy Shark”
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nice going. we catch sharks from the kayak in Irish waters. biggest i’ve had is a six and a half footer which was immense fun. most common question i’ve had is ‘why did you not bring it ashore to claim the Irish record?’ to me, the beauty of shark fishing from a kayak is seeing them swim off again.
i’m glad you experienced the thrill of hooking and beating a good sized shark from a kayak. i’m happier that the shark swam off again. well done.