MMM ... Kingfish

If the picture above is the Sports centerpiece tomorrow, I will be:
A) Surprised
B) Happy
C) Mildly Shocked
D) All of the Above

I'll go with D. The Kingfish tournament is a big deal around here. Today was the VIP tournament, and a few more than 70 boats participated. When the main tournament takes place on Thursday and Friday, there will be more than 200 boats.

My primary mission was to get a picture of the angler with the largest fish. I assumed a scene-setting photograph or a shot of the big fish would be the dominant image. Since the tournament occurs every year, the editors thought this said Kingfish in a new way.

However, I also had to photograph the biologist who makes sure the fish were caught today and the man who cleans and guts the fish.

Mmmm. Fish smell.
The weigh station opened at 3 p.m., and Bob Self (one of the T-U staffers) told me that several boats would probably be lined up ready to weigh their trophy catch.

The first boat arrived a few minutes before 4 p.m. Apparently the fishing wasn't so good, but the winner hooked a nice sized King: 35.4 pounds.

Good fishing or not, I had fun. It goes without saying, a bad day fishing is better than a good day at the office. Look for more tournament pictures later this week...