by Steve “Tuna” Tornovish
I bet you all remember where you were the evening of Sunday, February 5, 2017. Our beloved New England Patriots were once again playing in the Super Bowl, this time facing a juggernaut Atlanta Falcons team. And the Patriots were getting worked—down 28 to 3 in the fourth quarter. Everyone on the Atlanta team box was ready to pop the champagne corks. Everyone except for one guy, that is: Scott Pioli (now a Nantucket resident) was the Assistant General Manager of the Falcons at that time. He had been a significant cog in the development of the New England Patriots dynasty, serving in the player personnel department from 2000-2008. Thus, he knew all about a guy named Tom Brady. Pioli was quoted by Mike Kadlick of WEEI – Boston as he remembered that game: “All the folks I’m working with, they’re high-fiving. It’s, you know, out of control. But I was a mess. I felt this nervousness.”
Pioli said that his fellow Falcons crew urged him to lighten up and enjoy the moment. But Pioli knew something that they didn’t. “I whipped around and said you ‘effin people don’t get it! That guy across the field, number 12, is Freddy ‘effin Kruger! He’s coming back!”
Scott Pioli was right, of course. Tom Brady and the Patriots did come back that day to win the wildest Super Bowl victory of all time!
Although perhaps not quite as high-profile as Super Bowl LI, the Nantucket Angler’s Club 2024 Inshore Classic fishing tournament had a lot of the same drama. This year’s Beach Division title was as close and as hard-fought as an overtime Super Bowl game. A fish caught in the last hour of competition decided the winner of the five-week contest, with the leaders fishing right beside each other. Yes, the 2024 tournament was one for the ages!
Every Nantucket fisher looks forward to the Inshore Classic. The island beaches come alive, day and night, filled with folks like me who dream of winning this amazing contest. For five weeks beginning around Labor Day, Nantucket anglers take to the beaches or boats to catch (and release, for the most part) four different species of fish: striped bass, bluefish, bonito, and false albacore. Fish are placed against a measuring tape and pictures are taken to verify the length. Those photos are then submitted by email to the tournament administrators, with points awarded per inch of measured fish. This tournament has a bunch of different categories: Boat, Beach, Fly Fishing, and Juniors. Weekly prizes are awarded for the longest fish of ea ch species and for the overall tournament. But the big prize—the Lombardi Trophy of Nantucket fishing—is the overall beach tournament. The Beach Champion is the fisherman who had the greatest combination of points for each of those fish (one fish per species) at the end of the five weeks. This title is won in a mano a mano contest of skill and perseverance. How there isn’t a legal holiday for a Main Street trophy presentation and subsequent parade I just don’t know.
The Inshore Classic Tournament is perfect in its challenges, much in the same way that cribbage uses the numbers 15 and 31 to perfection. It seems so easy— just gear up, roll out to the beach, catch some different types of fish, and you’re on the leader board, right? Um, not so fast… First of all, you’re going to have to put some significant hours in. You have to fish the days and nights when others decide to stay home due to poor conditions. You have to know where to go and when and what lures to use once you get there. The recent winners of the Inshore Classic Beach Division are folks that you’d put on your short list of the best fishermen you know: John Colton (2020), Rafael Osona (2019, 2021, 2023), Kris Wiggin (2018), Lois Boland (2017), Dennis Dias (2017 and 2016).
So let’s set the stage for this year’s amazing finish—it’s 11 am at Great Point on Saturday, October 12. The tournament ends in one hour. A crazy mixed species bite is happening, and the following contestants are fishing in front of the lighthouse, all within sight of each other:
- Brian Majczak, the 2022 second-place and 2023 third-place finisher. Brian was in position to bring home his first beach championship. Brian hoped to upgrade his striped bass, as his best striper was a modest 33.25 inch fish. Brian’s point total was 126.5;
- Bobby King, the young upstart who had landed a 39.75 inch striper to put himself into contention earlier in the week. Bobby was in fourth place, with 123 points. His bluefish was 30.75, leaving room for improvement;
- Rick Ramos, the 2023 runner-up. Rick had moved up steadily, but his bluefish was lacking, measuring only 30.75. Rick had 123.75 points, just ahead of King, and only 2.5 inches behind Majczak;
- Gibbs Tolsdorf, a perennial challenger who was in fifth place with 122.5 points, and;
- Rafael Osona, the Freddy ‘effin Kruger of this crew. Rafael has won three of the past five Classics in the Beach category.
Rafael hadn’t caught a false albacore yet and, thus, wasn’t in contention. Or was he? The albies were around, and they were chewing. As were the bluefish. As were the seals. Yes, the seals—the persistent wild-card and scourge in the world of Nantucket beach fishing. The contestants had to hook a fish and find a way to land them before the thieving mammals could grab the fish and steal their shot at glory. The clock was ticking.
Bobby King was having himself quite a tournament. He was fishing hard. Bobby had texted me on the previous Sunday, saying, “I hooked into the gator bluefish I needed to make it interesting on the leader board. Had it midpoint (to the beach) and got sealed. Needless to say, I’d like to pay that seal a visit! Unbelievable! I need to go to counseling after this one.” Ouch! Bobby is a great guy, and it was so good to see him competing so well.
Brian Majczak told me this: “I was confident with 3 of the 4 species, but without a bigger bass I knew I was vulnerable to losing the top spot. I was focused on finding a few more inches with a bigger bass.”
I asked Brian how much he fished on that final day. He told me that he had started out at 3 am, looking for that one striper that would clinch the deal for him. Now here he was, fishing amongst his closest challengers, feeling the heat.
Neil Krauter, in third place on that final day, was not on-island to try to boost his tournament point total. In fact, he had to miss the last week of the event. Don’t you hate when work gets in the way of fishing? Neil earned several top 5 finishes in the Classic over the years. He told me, “You’ve got to put in long days, long hours, and get rewarded. A lot of people needed a bigger blue. And the albies were scarce—a lot of people just needed an albie and they’d be in the mix. There had been about a 10-day stretch of big bass on the outside edge (of Great Point). People were still chasing the albies.”
I had seen Neil quite a bit through the tournament. Neil would bring Fisher, his lab puppy, out with him. Neil’s brother Chris won the Classic’s Fly Fishing Division this year. Chris told me that the secret to his success was fishing where the seals weren’t around. “Choose your shots wisely. The seals make fly fishing a hopeless endeavor.” I’m with you, Chris!
Rick Ramos is the most affable guy that you’ll meet on the beach. He’s a fun person who also gives a lot of himself to make things better for others. Rick is also a crucial cog in the success of the August Blues Tournament, putting in many hours behind the scenes to make that charitable tournament work.
So how did that final amazing hour of fishing shake out? Brian didn’t catch his striper. Rafael didn’t catch his bluefish. Nor did Bobby. Rick Ramos did, however, and the 34.5 inch gator that he landed in the waning minutes was enough to secure the 2024 Inshore Classic championship.
One of the best things about this tournament is the heartfelt camaraderie shared by the participants. Everyone involved congratulated Rick and was happy to se e his hard work rewarded. And we’re all looking forward to the 2025 season!
Steve “Tuna” Tornovish is a Nantucket native who has spent his life fishing from the beaches of his beloved island. He loves to introduce clients to the joy of fishing with his Nantucket Island Fishing Adventures: stevetuna.com