Rodeo first-timer Ryan Fisher, an angler out of Nashville, Tenn., lived up to his name Sunday night.

Fisher caught an 8.4-pound red snapper for the top spot on the daily leaderboard.

When Rodeo volunteer Richard Laedeke went to gut the prize-winning catch, he got a surprise. He cut his finger on a 6-aught hook in the fish’s belly and immediately stuck his hand in a bucket of half bleach and half water to cleanse the wound. It’s part of the perils of the job, he said.

The hook wasn’t the strangest thing Richard has found in a fish’s gullet.

“I’ve found beer cans in big groupers,” he said. “You just never know. When something flashes at ’em, they just inhale it.

“They usually regurgitate that stuff,” he added.

About a half-hour later, Fisher was bumped by Don Barry, a fisherman from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, who angled himself a 16.6-pounder.

Gary Walters, a tourist from Denver, Colo., was one of about 50 people huddled under the covered bleachers at AJ’s. For the past three weeks, he and a buddy have been quasi-professional rodeo spectators — and bettors. He was spot on with the 16.6-pound snapper, his second guess on the nose for the evening. So far he has won $18 from his friends.

“I got real lucky on that one.”

Earlier, John Funk hit the top spot on the leaderboard for shark fishing by tagging and releasing 11 of the fish so far. Funk, who says he has won the category about 12 years in a row, caught six of the fish Sunday.
Funk and his boat the Shark Hunter are gunning for the guys that hauled in the rodeo-record breaking 844.4-pound mako shark. He says he has fought big sharks like that monster for hours and that they were “lucky as hell” to land it.

“Lucky is better than good any day, eh?” he said.

Who’s in first place? Well the answer to that question changes often when it comes to holding on to a spot on the Destin Fishing Rodeo leaderboard.

Saturday evening, the daily amberjack leader changed hands five times in the last 90 minutes. The one who finished on top was Scott Mensor of Georgia with a 41.8-pounder. He was fishing aboard the Phoenix with Capt. Scott Robson.

We had two other first place fish come in late.

Kenny Burton, sporting his UT orange shirt, was a bit more lucky than his football team. He landed a 35.2-pound cobia for first place in the cobia division. He was fishing with Capt. Kirk Reynolds on the SS Enterprise.

The last leader to get on the board and the last fish weighed Saturday was a 40.8-pound grouper pulled in by Donna Rice of Alabama. She took over first place in the lady division for the largest grouper on a charter boat. She was fishing with Capt. Kelly Windes on the Sunrise.

The count on fished weighed in at the 59th annual Destin Fishing Rodeo is up to 572.

So “who’s in first” could change just any day.

See you at the docks.

-Tina Harbuck

Just when you think no one is going to beat your catch — another boat backs in with a whopper of a fish.

Such was the case Saturday afternoon.

Capt. Eric Thrasher on the Daybreak backed in with two fish that took top honors on the leaderboard.

Don Barry of Canada, weighed in a 10.2-pound triggerfish (which is the biggest triggerfish I’ve ever seen). Prior to today, the leading triggerfish was 8.6 pounds.

He also weighed in a 3.8-pound Kitty Mitchell (a spotted looking grouper). Now I know that’s not that big, but it is the only one and biggest one so far. The neat thing about the two fish, is they were caught by a first time fisherman - at least a first time Gulf of Mexico fisherman.

Prior to today,  the only fishing Barry has done is river fishing.

But he had such a great time today, he said, “I’m going again tomorrow.”

-Tina Harbuck

Dillon Martinez was angling for the big one on Saturday.
“I want to catch a shark,” the 8-year-old Crestview boy said during the third annual Rootin’ Tootin’ Rodeo Round-Up at the Okaloosa Island Fishing Pier.
As for if he hooked a fish like the giant 844.4-pound mako shark that was hauled in last Saturday at the docks?
“I’d scream,” said his mother, Flossie.
“I’d get it up on the pier and jump off,” Dillon said.
Dillon was one of about 50 kids ages 1 through 12 to turn out for the event, a part of Destin’s 59th annualFishing Rodeo. For $10, kids got a rod and reel, bait, a shirt and lunch.

Butterflies flitted around the children and their families on a beautiful clear day with no sign of storm clouds or red tide. Those two plagues have made life on the Emerald Coast pretty uncomfortable over the last few days.

While the fish weren’t biting just then for Dillon, Cody Howard, a 9-year-old from Navarre, pulled up what looked like a 1-pound pompano. Like all the little anglers, he posed for a picture with his catch

“Hold him out, son,” coached Dave Urie, who operates the pier. “The farther out you hold him, the bigger he looks.”

Even Miss Destin Emily Kaltz was on hand, fishing with Riley Santos of Mary Esther.
She helped Santos unhook her little catch, something Miss Destin has become a near expert at in the three weeks since the Rodeo began.

“I’ve gotten better at it. I’ll say that,” Kaltz admitted.

Chairman of the Rodeo Tim Broom aims to expand the event next year. In an age of Nintendo Wiis and PSPs, it is all the more critical to get kids outside and fishing, said the vice president of Half Hitch Tackle.

“We have to keep exposing them to the industry because these kids are our future.” Broom said.

— William Hatfield

After driving rain and rough seas made the docks behind AJ’s a ghost town and sent Rodeo officials into the office for a rousing, and no-doubt cut-throat, cribbage tournament, the Rodeo could use a win this weekend.

Everyone down on the docks is hoping the favorable weather predicted for this weekend and Destin finally gets a little sunshine and maybe a few fish down on the docks.

Tomorrow morning, the Rodeo will holds its annual Rootin’ Tootin’ Rodeo Round-Up at the Okaloosa Island Fishing Pier from 9 a.m. to noon.

The event, for anglers 12 years of age and younger, is the result of a lot of teamwork between the Rodeo and local businesses.

Anglers and their family’s will get free hot dogs from Anglers Restaurant, free Pepsi courtesy of Buffalo Rock, free rods and reels from Half Hitch Tackle, tackle from Bass Pro Shops and bait and a free t-shirt courtesy of the Destin Fishing Rodeo.

The cost of admission is $10 and Rodeo executive director Helen Donaldson said the Rootin’ Tootin’ is one of the highlights of the month of October for her.

“I can’t wait. It’s so great to see the kids out there, having a great time. For a lot of them, this is their first exposure to fishing and to see them out there with their folks, it’s really great fun,” she said.

The National Weather Service is predicting sunny skies for tomorrow with a 10 percent chance of precipitation.

Thursday wasn’t a total wash at the Destin Fishing Rodeo.

Anglers aboard the Sweet Jody with Capt. Cliff Cox came in around 4:30 p.m. and weighed in three fish - a 5.6-pound grouper,  a 5.4-pound red snapper and a 1.8-pound triggerfish.

All three fish took daily spots on the leaderboard. Word is it only took about five minutes to weigh all three.

Weighmaster Bruce Cheves didn’t know if anyone else would show - however it didn’t matter, he said.

“I’ll be here until close and walk the walk at 7  - if the wind doesn’t blow me off the docks,” he said.

-Tina Harbuck

Weather is threatening — but the Rodeo is still on.

Thursday morning around 11 o’clock Weighmaster Bruce Cheves said he had seen the party boat Sweet Jody head out, but he wasn’t sure if anyone else was out fishing.

Nevetheless he said, “We’re here to do what we do. Sure we have to make preparations to get through the bad weather … but we don’t leave.”
The scales will be open today until 7 p.m..
“We’re going to hang out and do what we have to do.” Cheves said.

On Wednesday, Cheves weighed in eight fish including a red snapper, grouper and amberjack.

Nothing so far today.

-Tina Harbuck

Looking out onto the water of Destin Harbor, the wind blowing through your hair, it’d be tough not to think that today would be a perfect day to be out on a boat, with an adult beverage (only if you’re of age, of course), trying to hook a big fish for the Destin Fishing Rodeo. But apparently, you’d be tragically mistaken.

“Come here,” says Rodeo weighmaster Bruce Cheves, motioning me over to look out toward Destin’s East Pass. “You see those rocks? You see how high those waves are coming up on those rocks? Yeah, when you’re out there and you get past those rocks, the fun-meter drops to zero.”

The wind is the story again today down on the docks. Yesterday a combination of driving rain, occasional lightning, and gale force winds kept the docks quiet. But the day wasn’t a total wash.

The biggest catch of the day yesterday was this 16.2-pound wooden plank complete with barnacles, an angler retrieved from the harbor and Cheves weighed.

“We tried to gut it but we didn’t have a Skil saw,” Cheves riffed.

Today’s count is up to five fish as two lady anglers aboard the Perfect Shot weighed in a 12.2-pound grouper and a 2.6-pound triggerfish, to compliment the trio of red snapper that came in moments earlier on the Lucky Lina.

Destin City Manager Greg Kisela, Destin Fire Control District Commissioner Jimmy Neilson and Lt. Col. Hank Casteline from Eglin Air Force Base are the Rodeo’s volunteer judges for the rest of the night and if this afternoon is any indication they might be in need of some company, so stop down and pay them a visit.

Rodeo officials are hoping for a calm, quiet, gorgeous weekend with the Rootin’ Tootin’ Rodeo Round-Up happening Saturday morning from 9 a.m. to noon at the Okaloosa Island Fishing Pier.

-Patrick Donohue

Zero, zip, nilch, cero, the big squadoosh.

That’s the number of fish weighed in yesterday during a blustery, stormy Day 16 of the Destin Fishing Rodeo.

Things haven’t picked up dramatically down on the docks thus far. But we do have an entry, which is more than we can say for yesterday’s washout.

Jackson Hamblen’s 2.6-pound red snapper — weighed in earlier today — was the first entry in the Destin Fishing Rodeo in the past two days.

The junior angler from Dunlap, Tenn., was fishing aboard the Lucky Lina when he caught his snapper.

It’s a deceptively nice day in Destin with blue skies, sunshine and 15 mph wind out of the southeast that could make the Gulf of Mexico and Choctawhatchee Bay a little bumpy for anglers today.

-Patrick Donohue

Coming Saturday is the Rodeo’s Annual “Rootin’ Tootin’ Rodeo Round-Up.”

For $10, From 9:00 a.m. - noon, anglers, 12 years old and younger, can go to the Okaloosa Island Fishing Pier and try to catch the big one.

Participating anglers will receive a free rod and reel, bait, a Rootin’ Tootin’ Rodeo Round-Up T-shirt and lunch.

For more information, contact the Rodeo office at (850)837-6734.

-Patrick Donohue