Last year, OTW General Manager Neal Larsson and I went out to photograph the Joe Cronin Memorial Fishing Tournament in Osterville, Massachusetts. I had a blast, and Neal and I realized it would make a great TV show and help promote an even greater cause.
Celebrating it’s 18th year this past weekend, the Cronin tournament is the largest private single day fundraiser for the Jimmy Fund and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. It has raised over $300,000 annually over the last five years and over $3,000,000 cumulatively since its inception. The tournament commemorates the life of Red Sox player, manager and former American League president, Joe Cronin.
I contacted committee member Bruce Cunningham who I had met the previous year about filming. “Yes! You’re coming out with me,” Bruce responded immediately. We split the cameras and crew between two boats to fish to create a side competition within the tournament. OTW Publisher Chris Megan, Bruce and I were onboard the K2 captained by Ken Antis. Neal and cameraman Richard Murphy fished with Ken Cirillo aboard Magic.
We met at the captains meeting the night before. The tournament could not have been held in a nicer setting. Each year Natitcus Marina in Osterville, MA hosts the event. 2011 yielded over 50 boats and 300 anglers participating. Anglers enjoyed the complimentary buffet dinner, raw bar, and open bar. Dinner was served and the tournament rules were reviewed. We planned to meet back at the club by 6:30 and head out to the fishing grounds.
Crowds had already gathered by 7 am to see the boats off the following morning. Families waved from the bridge as it was raised at 8am sharp to signify the official start of the tournament.
The procession of boats leaving is truly a spectacular sight. Standing on the bow of K2 I was able to film the long line of sportfishers ahead and behind us winding through the bay’s no-wake zone until we reached the breakwater and started steaming out into Nantucket Sound.
Our boat waved goodbye to Neal, Rich, and Ken onboard Magic as they set a heading for Handkerchief Shoals.
We were headed east on the run to Monomoy. Chris and Bruce swapped fishing stories and discussed the tournament. Bruce explained he lost an employee and friend to cancer, and since has participated in the tournament for over a decade. He was later asked to join the planning committee and has been an integral member ever since. Captains help raise money for the fund by donating their boat for the day. Bruce had bought the boat for the day and his brother, daughter, grandson, and employee, Dave, were onboard to help catch fish.
When we rounded the corner at Monomoy the conditions looked promising. The rip line was prominent and there were birds working and marks on this fish finder. We trolled and jigged the rip and Bruce’s young grandson was the first to hook-up to a dogfish. After an hour or so of trying to find the fish, the tide slacked and the dogfish became even more prevalent. We decided to keep steaming north of the Chatham inlet towards the rest of the fleet. We started trolling wire and parachute jigs with Uncle Josh pork rinds and looked on as neighboring boats jigged up more dogfish. Ken, the captain, noticed some good marks and a nice depth change and brought us right through it. Trolling slowly with the tide at our back we hooked up to a 6-pound blue – not a giant but we were able to get the first fish in the box.
The fishing had slowed to a crawl and we only had a few hours to fish before the weigh in. We kept trolling wire slowly with the increasing tide, bumping bottom with the jigs until Bruce hooked-up with a better fish. We had over 300 feet of wire out when the fish hit. Bruce muscled the fish in and Chris lipped it and swung it over the transom and on to the deck. Bruce let out a yell, as an 18-pound striper made it into the box. As the tide had started to move again, Ken made the call to stop trolling and start jigging. Time was ticking and we needed more lines in the water.
We were all jigging Deadly Dicks and RonZ soft-plastics while drifting the rip. We picked through some more dogfish and landed and released another keeper striper around 30 inches. We had only 8 minutes left until it was lines-in so we could head in to weigh the fish.
Ken called back saying to get lines in so we could reset the drift just as everyone started cranking, Dave’s rod doubled over and line started peeling off the drag. Chris yelled “Fish On!”, as Ken swung us around as the fish tried to swim under the boat. Bruce and Chris helped the angler keep tension on the fish. Chris reached over and lipped the fish and swung him onboard. Another yell as the crew celebrated and started making the steam back to the weigh stations.
When we returned to the marina the party was already in full swing. A local fire truck had a giant American flag hoisted over the marina and kids were hauling big blues half their size over to the scales. Our biggest fish tipped the scales at 20 pounds, not enough to win the tournament but enough cause to celebrate.
The winning fish in the bluefish category was caught by Matt Smith aboard the Fisherking and weighed an impressive 12.4 pounds. The biggest striper registered at 31.3 pounds and was brought to the scales by Steve Sheffel who was fishing aboard the Clubcar.
There was live music, a silent auction, the Barnstable Police Color Guard and bagpipes. The food and party were first class. After dinner, a comedian entrained the crowd before the verbal auction and award ceremony. Some of the items auctions off included a tuna charter and a week-long, all-expenses-paid trip to the Cayman Islands. Other items included marine artwork and packages from the sponsors. All proceeds were given to the Jimmy Fund.
The On The Water staff is made up of experienced anglers from across the Northeast who fish local waters year-round. The team brings firsthand, on-the-water experience and regional knowledge to coverage of Northeast fisheries, techniques, seasonal patterns, regulations, and conservation.
Thank you for writing and publishing such an accurate, positive and colorful article about the Joe Cronin Memorial Jimmy Fund Fishing Tournament. My sister, Susan Goodwin, and I founded the event ~ the twentieth anniversary will be celebrated next August ~ with a vision and a dream, never believing it would achieve this level of donation to the Jimmy Fund and this longevity. We are always so thrilled when someone appreciates what has become of that vision and dream. Our Mother was a patiend at the Dana Farber, and died of her cancer in 1990, so we had wished to honor her, all the fantastic medical personel who cared for her with such dedication and love, and make some small contribution to finding a prevention and cure for this dreaded disease. I believe we have succeeded.
Best ~ Harriet Sesen