Daily 02/06/07 No 126 - Antigua Observer Newspaper

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12 SUMMER SPORTS Digicel Pearls ODI--West Indies v. India Dates: Saturday, 11 June and Monday, 13 June Time: 9:00 a.m. Venue: Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium Tickets: EC$10-75, free entry for those under 16 and born before 24 June 1950 Antiguans and Barbudans will have a chance to see the ICC World Cup winning India team in action against the West Indies team when two Digicel Pearls ODIs are played here on 11 and 13 June at Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium. To encourage young and old alike to take part, the West Indies Cricket Board is offering free entry to those under 16 years of age and those born before 24 June 1950, which is the date of the first West Indies win in England. The complimentary tickets must be picked up at the stadium or WICB ticket office prior to the matches. These two ODIs are part of a fivematch series sponsored by Digicel that is touring the Caribbean. The first and second matches will start in Trinidad on 6 and 8 June, then the teams will stop here to Antigua before the final match in Jamaica on 16 June. The West Indies squad for the 1st and 2nd ODIs has been announced, and includes Darren Sammy, Dwayne Bravo, Carlton Baugh, Devendra Bishoo, Darren Bravo, Kirk Edwards, Anthony Martin, Kieron Pollard, Ravi Rampaul, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Lendl Simmons. Announcement about the squad for the later matches will be forthcoming. The matches begin at 9:00 a.m. each day. Tickets are EC$20 for the North Stand, $30 for the South Stand, $10 for the Grounds, and $75 for the Party Stand, and can be purchased at the WICB Ticket Office on Old Parham Road or at the stadium.
I awake in the morning long before dawn and after only a few fitful hours of sleep. The still air is cool and I put my jacket on even before I leave the house. As I load my pickup I notice the palm leaves are not moving and a flutter of nervous excitement makes me smile. It's going to be a calm day out there. The crew is early and eager to leave the dock bound for the "bank," a sea mount far off shore. Sea mounts typically are areas far from land where underwater hills or as the name suggests, mountains come almost to the surface. This one comes up to about 280 feet below sea level and like many others, it supports a huge variety of biomass. Everything from plankton and tiny microscopic fish to large predators aggregate around sea mounts. Today, the first day of one of Antigua’s main fishing tournaments, we are after one of the top predators--Makaira Nigricans, the scientific name of the Atlantic Blue Marlin. We've only entered the Marlin Division of this tournament, so that is all we are looking for. Although the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) doesn't consider marlin to be a threatened species, many sport fishermen think that because of the commercial fishing industry's pressures on the blue marlin, the species needs careful attention. Our tournament is mostly a catch-and-release tournament and has strict guidelines as to what fish you can bring back to the scales. In years past many of the marlin we would catch and release would have stainless steel long line hooks in their mouths, which broke off from Taiwanese gear set off shore. Then in late 2004, the Taiwanese fleet of commercial long liners that was stationed in St. Martin decided to move out of the Eastern Caribbean. We have thankfully seen a small increase in the number of marlin since then, but there are still a great many being caught by Guadeloupe commercial fishermen nearby. Anyway, on this day we will release all marlin after taking a photo of the catch so that we get points. Fish over 300 lbs. can be brought back to the scales to try for the largest fish prize. All releases get 300 points towards the prize for most points. In recent years there have been many studies with scientists attaching satellite tagging equipment to released marlin to see the survival rates and surprisingly the results have shown that almost all blue marlin recover well once released quickly after bringing them alongside. The first bits of colour start to show on the horizon as we arrive at the bank just before dawn. Lines go over into the water at 5:30 a.m. and we are early, just as I like to be in tournaments. It gives us time to check all of our gear and set up the rods and baits properly before "lines in.” Noddies and terns are squawking as they feed in flocks just above the skipjacks and black fin tuna. These small tuna are what marlin love to eat and we know they must be around. At 6 a.m. the lines ON THE SEA 13 have been in the water thirty minutes and the sun is already bright above the horizon. We are ready for a fight! Hours pass without a bite as we troll around the sea mount, but the crew sits patiently, waiting and searching the "spread" of lures behind the boat. The little tuna jump and splash under the birds as they chase tiny minnows to the surface. We're in the middle of a very active food chain. "MARLIN", screams Big John as he spots a large dorsal fin behind our #2 lure. A second later rod #3 comes alive with a deathly scream of its ratchet as line starts vanishing in a flash. Our trained crew spring into action retrieving all the other lines and getting the fighter "suited" up in harness and belt. The marlin jumps several times while peeling off a thousand feet of monofilament line as if the 26 lbs. of drag on the reel was nothing. Our first mate, John, happily shouts "and there she is… the blue marlin with all her glory". Eli Fuller is a lifelong resident of Antigua and owner of Adventure Antigua boat tours. Blue skies, warm breezes and lots of sea life makes sport fishing in Antigua and Barbuda a delightful, and sometimes adventure-packed, sport—especially when blue marlin are involved.
Page 2 and 3: 2 CONTENTS
Page 4 and 5: 4 WHAT’S ON LIVE MUSIC, Russell's
Page 6 and 7: 6 WHAT’S ON 3RD ANNUAL FITNESS MA
Page 8 and 9: 8 WHAT’S ON ZUMBA INSPIRED CARIBB
Page 10 and 11: 10 ON BARBUDA
Page 14 and 15: 14 NIGHTS OUT Change—sometimes it
Page 16: 16 OUT AND ABOUT Bird Island Ferry

Daily 02/06/07 No 126 - Antigua Observer Newspaper

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