January 9 - 12, 2019 5 Southern Run Takes 81st Derby in Down to the Wire Finish Simko found himself battling two sails at the same time, an impressive angling feat.  The best of the sailfish bite was taking place between Juno Beach and Hobe Sound.  The heavy weight fish on the first day was a 25 pound, 12 ounce cobia landed by angler Lev Mullins of Palm Beach Gardens aboard Princess Lily.  Mullins had the presence of mind to pitch out a flat line bait while his fellow crew members were occupied un- tangling their fishing kite that had become fouled in an outrig- ger.  Mullins’ fish would end up earning the 'Top Weight Fish' award in the Derby.  A total of 142 sails, of which 23 were tagged, were released the first day.  Nearly twenty teams had posted 4 or more releases during the day setting the stage for a very competitive finish. A brisk wind out of the south greeted Derby anglers on the final day. Once again, the majority of the fleet headed north. Normally, the persistent southerly wind would be frowned upon by sailfish anglers. However, the agitated sea condition energized the fish im- proving the m o r n i n g bite from the previ- ous day.  A total of ten teams re- leased four o r m o r e fish during the first three hours of fishing. Locally based Old No. 7/Propayroll and Miami based Remix/Freebird continued their slugfest at the top of the leaderboard.  With a whole lot of pride on the line, a classic north versus south shoot- out was developing.  Southern Run, Native Son, Sore Subject, Goin’ Raptor and Fish On were also grinding their way up the scoreboard and soon found themselves within striking range of the lead.  By noon every boat in the Derby fleet had posted one or more sailfish releases for the tournament.  The Palm Beaches were living up to their reputation as the Sailfish Sector of the Gulfstream.  While other teams were Team Southern Run breaks out the champagne dockside to commemorate their 2018 Derby win. Team Southern Run Last year, the Fishing Club’s 81st running of the Silver Sailfish Derby, the World’s Oldest Sailfish Tournament, concluded with one of the most exciting finishes in recent history.  An impressive fleet of 41 boats participated in the prestigious event, which is held each January out of Sailfish Marina in Palm Beach Shores.  The fleet faced mostly southerly winds during the course of the tournament, a wind direction that is typically not considered to be ideal for sailfishing. Derby anglers dispelled that premise by amassing a respectable catch of 317 sailfish releases during the two days of fishing.  The week prior to the Derby below average temperatures and rough sea conditions helped push sailfish down the Florida coast creating optimism among anglers.  The morn- ing of the tournament southerly winds warmed temperatures and brought scattered showers to the region.  Angler Todd Willard aboard Fish On posted the Derby’s first fish just minutes after the start.  As the day progressed nearly the entire fleet was radioing in fish.  It was not a fast paced bite, but rather a steady pick.  Team Old No.7/Propayroll led by Captain Jamie Ralph and Team Remix/Freebird  led by Captain J.C. Cleare dueled at the top of the scoreboard most of the day.  They both would finish the day with 8 re- leases, with Old No. 7/Propayroll winning the Top Daily Boat award on time.  Team Kite Keeper finished the day in third place with 7 releases on time.  Angler Mike Simko of Palm Beach Gardens would earn the 'Top Daily Angler' award catching all 7 of Kite Keeper’s fish on day one.  At one point 2nd Place team, Remix/Freebird