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Florida Tournament Insider: Fish for the Kids

Longtime tournament fishes in Stuart, redfish wins in Steinhatchee and kids wet a line in the Keys.

Florida Tournament Insider: Fish for the Kids
Sadie Stanczyk and father Capt. Nick Stanczyk of B N’ M Charters caught a blackfin tuna during the Keys Kids Fishing Derby in Islamorada.

Nearly 150 youth anglers 10 years of age and younger participated in the annual Keys Kids Fishing Derby. Hosted by the Lorelei in Islamorada, young anglers fished the Keys’ backcountry, offshore, or simply off the docks of the famous restaurant and cabana.

“Our founder Kathy Lewis just wanted to get kids fishing,” said tournament director Dianne Harbaugh. “The Derby’s main purpose is to educate young anglers about fishing. We have everything available here at the Lorelei for kids that would normally not have a chance to go fishing.”

The Tackle Center of Islamorada provides bait for all participants who fish the free derby, now in its 27th year. Rods, reels and tackle boxes are given to all kids by Fish Florida, a non-profit supporting organizations that teach people, especially children, about Florida’s fish and aquatic habitats through donations of fishing equipment, grants, and scholarships. Fish Florida’s sailfish license plates also help fund these types of events.

Eva McCadie, 10, was this year’s grand champion with a 27.7-pound amberjack. The catch earned her a fishing rod from Tackle Center of Islamorada, a framed print from renowned Keys artist Pasta Pantaleo, a champion tournament trophy, award certificate, and a tackle box backpack from World Wide Sportsman. Other awards were given for three different age groups in each division.

The shoreline division was fished by 67 kids, most fishing from the Lorelei docks. Weighmaster Hudson Wampler weighed a 1.6-pound snapper for Thomas Zinkand, 3, winner of the 0-4 age division. Zyla Zinkand, 7, and her brother, Triton, tied for first place in their age group with a pair of 2.2-pound mangrove snapper. Madison Whitehead, 9, weighed a 0.9-pound snapper, taking first place among the 8-10 year olds. All fish were released.

The backcountry division’s largest fish, a 3.3-pound jack crevalle, was weighed in by Boone Hickory, 4. Felix Stanczyk, 7, won his division with a 2.4-pound mangrove snapper. Winner of the 8-10 year-old’s division was Bradley Ekbloom with a 2.4 pound snapper.

Offshore angler Marlin Mason, 2, won his division with a 9.4-pound dolphin. Sadie Stanczyk pulled in a 11.1-pound tuna for first place in the 5-7 age group. Morada Mason, 8, won her division with an 8.8-pound dolphin.

“This is the best day of the year, just watching these kids having fun, catching and releasing fish,” said Harbaugh. “There are so many kids that get to catch their first fish. We can’t wait until next year.” The event is fished on the last Sunday in September every year. The full list of awards and donors can be found on Facebook: “Keys Kids Fishing Derby.”

REDFISH YIELDS TITLE

A “redfish bum” as he calls himself, Carlos Gutierrez never felt like a serious tournament pro. But things changed for the kayak angler this year as he laid claim to the Florida Redfish Series 2024 Hobie Fishing Angler of the Year.

“Things just kinda fell into place,” said Gutierrez, who lives in Inglis, just north of Steinhatchee in Florida’s Big Bend region. “I’ve never been into the big tournaments and I’m not a high-speed boat guy, but a buddy convinced me to sign up for the Series this year.”

Gutierrez fished the entire tournament series in 2024, finishing in the top four during half of the events which took place in St. Augustine, Panacea, Crystal River, Jacksonville, and Panama City. The six-tournament series concluded September 20-21 out of Sea Hag Marina in Steinhatchee, about a week before Hurricane Helene made landfall near there.

“I scouted regularly before the championship, but I really wasn’t finding a lot of fish,” he said. “I ended up catching two fish on tournament day, but they were both really small—I mean just over 18 inches.”

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His small championship day catch didn’t matter for Gutierrez, whose early season high scores put him at the top in terms of cumulative points for the season.

“I’m an introvert,” he said. “I fish these tournaments alone. I don’t ask for info and I don’t typically share info."

Despite his reluctance to share info during tournament season, Gutierrez offers some pointers on his favorite baits.

“I mostly use Z-Man soft plastic paddle tails fished with a slow, steady retrieve. I rig these weedless and I’ve started inserting a glass rattle into the body. I’ll also throw gold or pink Aqua Dream weedless spoons. And topwater. I like a bone-colored Spook Jr. During one tournament I caught my two winning reds on topwater in the morning shortly after lines-in.”

The top boat of the tournament was team Port Fierce with Andy Fantini and Zach Foltz, both from Fort Pierce. The two weighed in a 2-day, 4-fish overall total of 27.84 pounds. Brian Neal of Havana took first place in the Steinhatchee event’s kayak division. He released a 4-fish, 2-day overall of 94.75 inches of reds.

The Florida Redfish Series Team of the Year went to team Tampa Fishing Outfitters with anglers Zach Rose and Garrett Sheppard of Tampa. To register for the series or to view the 2025 schedule, visit FLredfishseries.com.

OPEN BENEFITS ENVIRONMENT

A man and woman are pictured with a red drum in a fishing boat.
For the second consecutive year, Stuart angler Kimberly Kelly and fiance R.J. Ferraro with the only redfish caught in the Michael Shields Memorial Open in Stuart.

Anglers from across the state convened at River Palm Cottages & Fish Camp in Jensen Beach to fish in memory of a cherished Martin County angler.

Michael Shields’ love for fishing on the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon was inspirational throughout his community. Sadly, Michael passed away at the young age of 23 from bone cancer, prompting friends to create the Michael Shields Memorial Inshore Open in his honor for the benefit various charities.

Kimberly Kelly and fiancé R.J. Ferraro found the tournament’s winning redfish—a 22-incher—while fishing with Captain Jonathan Earhart of Chaos Fishing Charters.

“We fished the Sebastian area and I caught that red at first light,” said Kelly, a Stuart native and biomedical researcher with the UF Scripps Institute. “I used a DOA jighead with a Berkely Gulp! soft bait.”

This isn’t the couple’s first time in the limelight—they won first place redfish in the same tournament last year with Earhart.

“We love to have fun fishing, but we all take the tournament seriously,” Kelly said. “We stayed up and prepped the night before, and were up at 3 a.m.”

Ferraro is one of the tournament’s founders. The pair also released some trout and a small snook.

“All we do is fish, so this was exciting for us. We go on little trips in Florida all the time—it’s our main focus after work. We’re total nerds.”

Kelly noticed a significant increase in the seagrass coverage on their favorite flats in the Sebastian area. The tournament also logged more seatrout releases this year than any year in the past decade, pointing towards a possible recovery of the inshore ecosystem that has been plagued by algae blooms and grass die-offs for many years.

Kevin Hawkins and Captain Max McKinley released the largest tarpon of the tournament, a 72.5-inch fish. The largest snook measured and released was 41.5 inches and caught by Gifford and Hutch Gumbinner fishing with Captain Alex Funk of Funk Charters out of Jensen Beach.

Since its inception, the event has amassed nearly $500,000 in donations for various charities. Competitors fish a catch and release format for prizes with divisions for snook, tarpon, trout, and redfish, open to both guided and unguided anglers.

This year, proceeds benefited the Environmental Studies Council whose mission is to support, protect and enhance the unique environmental educational programs in the Martin County school system.


  • This story was featured in the December-January 2025 issue of Florida Sportsman magazine. Click to subscribe.



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