Tony, not sure where to put this one...

Potential State Leading Dolphin falls off the Dock!!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I wanted to share this cool story.

We were fueling up my boat this evening at the VBFC and chatting with the crew of the Nofolk Blue tied up behind us at the dock. They were telling me about their trip today. The had released a sail and boated a huge gaffer that was sure to be over 50 lbs. I watched as Chris Martin wheeled this massive dolphin down the fuel dock in a cart to get a weight, and tried to maneuver around the dock house. I saw it coming....the front left wheel hit the edge of the dock, and I gasped as the huge fish slipped out of the cart, and into the water! I think Chris thought it would float, and he was trying to move the cart out of the way, as I shouted "It will sink, get it!" Chris then jumped into the water after it, but it was too late as the fish sank out of sight. We were all just sick! Chris dove several times....we also tried feeling the bottom with a gaff. The current was running in hard, and the visibity was terrible. We thought it was gone. We all thought about it, and decided to find a diver in hopes that the fish would be at the bottom or stuck under the dock. Within minutes, Wes Feller, Skip Feller's son, was generous enough to gear up with his diving tanks and take a look. He was in the water for just a minute and popped back up with the new state leading dolphin! It weighed in at 58-pounds, 6-ounces.

Too close for comfort for me!!!!

Congrats to the Captain, angler, and crew!
A big THANK YOU to Wes!

The captain is John Hamilton, and the angler is Burt Whitt of Norfolk. Chris acted as the mate.

Lucian was at Ocean's East as the crew showed off their fish, so I asked if he would take a pic. I hope he will post it here for us!

John and Chris are good friends of mine...he told me that story and I laughed my ass off !......Great story......Bob

Now thats team work. My hat's off to the Captain, crew, angler and diver who saved the day! There's some rough currents running through that area. Pretty work!

So does the guy that dropped it get a release citation?
Great ending to that story.I bet he was sick when he saw it sink.

oh man i would be sick too.

I think you should get another record for catch and release too!!

Sounds like the week I've had. Congrats on that mule fellows!

Funny story about "the one that (almost) got away" Dr. Julie!! Hope the ankle is feeling better!!!

Thats Crazy! Ok since the first guy threw it back, maybe the diver gets the state record. Hmmmmmm!

Ask Julie, that may be a zero pound test line class record for the diver. Previous catch a release citation.
Dave

p.s. Congrats to all and nice story and teamwork!

That's a crazy story there! I've been on a couple overnighters with the Fellers, Wes and his dad Skip, on the Rudee Angler. The trips I went on were last Oct. and Nov. trying for tuna. Great guys those Fellers, recommended by me all the time... I'm glad Wes was there to gear up and grab that dolphin for them. Great Story!!! Sounds like a nice fish.

Ryan

Amazing story! Awesome.