The WICC Bluefish Contest was held over the weekend and despite a general lack of big blues in many parts of Long Island Sound prior to the event, participants managed to find enough big blues to settle the top ten places, as well as the numerous Port Prizes. At stake for the biggest blue of the weekend was a $25,000 top prize, followed by $7,500 for second, $2,500 for third, and $150 each for fourth through tenth place. Port Prize winners for the largest blue weighed at that particular weigh station, earned $125.
While results are still unofficial pending validation of catches, this year’s big winner appears to be Chris Hines who weighed a 17.39-pound slammer at River’s End Bait & Tackle in Old Saybrook, CT. Not far behind was Andy Locascio who put a 17.16-pound chopper on the scale at Jack’s Bait & Tackle in City Island, NY. Third place went to Francis Kenny for a 17.04 pounder also weighed at Jack’s. Ryan Piper’s fourth place fish came in at 17 pounds even, leaving just 39 hundreths of a pound separating the top four entries.
Rounding out the remaining six places were Steve Coby with a 16.63 pounder; Jake Young with a 16.10 pound fish; John Mizzone with a 16 even; Tarin Locascio with 15.98 pounder; Justin Innes with a 15.96-pound fish; and Danny Bocchino with a 15.80 pounder.
