Marlin February 2023

Even the most hardcore followers of the Marlin brand probably don’t realize that our parent company, Bonnier LLC, also runs a series of high-profile tournaments, which include the Offshore World Championship, the Bermuda Triple Crown, the Los Cabos Billfish Tournament, and the Scrub Island Invitational Billfish Series. More obvious is our relationship with Marlin University—a series of travel and educational fishing experiences for those who want to become better anglers. With the exception of the Scrub Island series, which debuted in 2019, these are all legacy brands with a ton of great history. The Bermuda Triple Crown celebrates its 19th year this summer, Marlin University has been around for 22 years, the Offshore World Championship turns 23, and Los Cabos hits 24 in October. Heading into 2023, we will do a…

editor@marlinmag.com IN MEMORIAM: THERESA SHEIL The fishing community was saddened to learn of the passing of International Game Fish Tournament senior observer Theresa “Tess” Sheil. Tess was an original founding member of the organization, and was active in attending numerous tournaments in Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Aruba, San Juan, El Salvador and St. Thomas, making the numerous tournament directors, anglers and crews her friends along the way. Her infectious smile and fun-loving personality will be greatly missed. Tess was much more than an experienced observer. She was a registered nurse and worked nearly 30 years as an educator and administrator for the New York City Department of Education. At the end of that career, she served as citywide supervisor of nursing for the Office of Adult and Continuing Education. Not content with…

TRAFFIC JAM Mornings at Zane Grey Reef can be hectic, between the local fleet catching live bait, visiting sport-fishers trolling past, and black marlin going airborne in their usual spectacular fashion. Photographer Matilda Leijon was in the right place to capture this image where it all comes together. “There was definitely a lot going on,” she says, “but I wouldn’t trade it for any other morning in the world.” We agree. LOCATION Leijon was fishing out of Tropic Star Lodge in southern Panama. TECH SPECS CAMERA: Sony Alpha 7R IV LENS: Sony FE 100-400mm ISO: 400 APERTURE: f/5.6 SPEED: 1/3200 sec…

You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who’s been involved in more aspects of the marine industry than Earle Hall. His resume—spanning more than four decades—includes hydroplane racing champion, tournament winner, and leader of Bluewater Yacht Sales, one of the most successful yacht brokerages in the world. He built, sold and refit countless boats at Bluewater until his departure at the sale of the business; these days, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Denise, and assisting with his son’s auto-racing teams and his daughter’s horse-jumping competitions, all while setting his sights on the next endeavor in an already fulfilling career. At one time you were a winning hydroplane racer—how did that come about? That was about a 30-year career that led me to the big unlimited hydroplanes, going 200 miles an hour…

TRES GENERACIONES (A) When Don Cenobilo Sauza founded La Perseverancia distillery in 1873, he became the first to export tequila from Mexico. Tres Generaciones carries on that legacy today with this beautifully crafted bright golden reposado. It’s made using 100 percent blue agave, then it’s triple-distilled in American oak barrels for at least four months for a superb balance of sweet and spicy notes. DON DIEGO SANTA (B) Roger Santa, son of distillery founder Don Diego, decided to expand his family’s skills from European wines to Mexico in the latter part of the previous century, with a vision of developing a tequila that combined the production processes of the European world with the unique winemaking techniques that the family had been using for decades. This is tequila at its purest. SAN MATIAS TAHONA (C) This…

Whether or not you enjoy the spectacle, there is little doubt that the 2022 Bisbee’s Black & Blue was a truly remarkable tournament. The 42nd anniversary event, held October 24-29 in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, attracted 223 teams to compete for a staggering cash purse of $11,651,300—the largest ever offered in any tournament in the world. Any blue or black marlin exceeding the tournament minimum of 300 pounds landed during the three days of competition could be worth a considerable sum of money. On the first day of fishing, Team RV Rentals on Vida Loca had the first shot at a qualifier. Their blue marlin, landed by angler Michael Ciardullo, weighed 344 pounds and was briefly in the lead. Though the team of Capt. Alan O’Brien, Ciardullo, Eligio Baron, Matt Parsons…