Fishermen in Southern California knew all of the good things that would result from a successful Marina del Rey Halibut Derby. They turned out in record numbers to fish the tournament Saturday and Sunday, March 27 and 28. 1,031 participants fished as individuals and on 160 teams, competing to catch the heaviest halibut and win trips to Alaska and Mexico and, most enticing of all, a 1999 beautiful, silver-colored model 250 Ford truck. The $26,000 truck was donated by Burch Ford of La Habra and their fishing club, Team Borracho.

Excitement was high as 300 boats circled, drifted and trolled from Point Dume to Palos Verdes searching for the elusive flat-fish. Many of the anglers were quite successful but no one brought in a halibut of 43 pounds which was necessary to qualify to win the truck. The heaviest halibut weighed in during the two day tournament was 33.79 pounds, caught by Harold Cabrera of Beverly Hills on his boat "Jackpot". According to Cabrera, the fish was hooked on a sardine "somewhere near the tankers." He naturally left a lot of uncertainty about the exact location, but he revealed enough to assure that it was south of Marina del Rey as opposed to where most of the fish were caught which was between Topanga and Paradise Cove.

Second place was won with a 32.52 pounder by Cleon Lloyd of Hawthorne. Third place was won by a woman angler from Mar Vista, Dora Belda, with a 30.16 pound fish. Bill Gardner of Culver City won fourth place with 27.45 pounds. The first place angler will have an all expense paid trip to Homer, Alaska including four days fishing for mammoth-sized halibut and whatever species of salmon is in season at the time of the trip. The second, third, and fourth place winners will make fishing excursions to first quality resorts in Mexico with all expenses donated by the resorts and other derby sponsors. The Inn at Mazatlan in Mazatlan, on the Sea of Cortez; Hotel Punta Colorada on the East Cape; and Las Rocas in Rosarito, Baja California, are contributing lodging and meals. Hotel Punta Colorada, El Cid Marina in Mazatlan, and Gordo's Landing in Ensenada are contributing the fishing. Transportation to Alaska is being furnished by Alaska Airlines. Transportation to Mexico is furnished by Aero California.

The three top winners of the Youth Division, open to those under 16 years of age, will share the entire proceeds from that division. The winners are Tyler Brooks of Torrance, who won the same competition in 1998; Holly Peca of Bishop; and Patrick McMaster of Mission Hills. . Their fish weighed 20.26, 16.59, and 14.99 pounds respectively. The youths could have also won the truck with a 43 pound halibut.

The team competition was notable in that all of the winners were 2-man teams as opposed to previous years when the winners were almost exclusively 4-man teams. A rule change last year gave two-man teams an equal advantage with the larger teams but the more experienced anglers opted to compete in pairs. The 160 teams in that division were comprised of 411 angler entries. First, second, and third places won $2,000, $1,200, and $800.

Meetings of MDR Anglers Halibut Derby Committee

Were well attended and many tasks were handled well by the many people who gave freely of their time and talents. Below Paul (standing) in a meeting at the Boy Scout Seabase in February. Planning takes months of preparation and many hours of dedicated work.

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