Bringin' it Strong!

  I just looked at the calendar, and it is already four months into 2013, almost five months removed from doomsday, and finally ready to break out of our Trout filled hibernation, and do the beach thing one more time. However, this year will be a lot different, I have relocated much further North, into a strange land, and will not be stalking the South coast in search of the elusive sicklefin for the first time in ten years. But sometimes you get lucky in life and you run into some people who truly "get it" and are ready and worthy of having the torch passed to them, to hold down the legacy that was left behind. Cody got his feet wet for the first time last shark season, and proved he was really worthy of some of the information handed down toward him, along with his trout fishing borderline cyborg counterpart  Adam "Redfisk" Fisk.

   They came up to Shark Command Central North, expressing their interest in fishing this season, so we convened, and decided they need to get the right set-ups to get a Team Rebel quality job done. And after much searching, and a lot of headaches, their rods were built, reels were filled, and they were finally ready to hit the surf after one of the longest winters I can ever remember here in Florida.

 The weather had finally warmed, and their first day had finally arrived. But there were a couple of setbacks, such as not having a tip for Codys new whopper stopper, and well, no bait. So as soon as Cody got off work he began driving all over the county in search of two items that they could not fish without. The tip was acquired without much incident, and luckily for once, so was the bait, but now the ace to prime time was on, and Cody had to fight through the merciless Southern snowbird rush hour traffic to deploy baits for prime time...

  We here at Team Rebel like to tell the truth, no matter how brutal or unsettling might be, so get ready for a quickie about what legnths we go through to catch sharks.

 Cody was three cars back in a turn lane, when the light changed, and some guy in a new Mustang decided that he didnt feel the need to move forward. And in true South Florida fashion, Cody gave him the one finger salute and a heavy dose of horn when he got the chance to get around him and go. Well, apparently as soon as Cody did this, the guy took off behind him, and continually harassed him in traffic for the next fifteen minutes or so, screaming many things out his window from behind the PS-1 (Codys truck) which garnered many solitary fingers in response. Cody pulled into a gas station to fuel up to meet Redfisk at the beach where he was waiting, when the Mustang followed him into the gas station. The guy immediately started yelling at Cody from his window while Cody was trying to gas up, and Cody was having none of it. He ran to the mystery mans car who at this point was shouting "you need to chill out!" When Cody started punching him repeatedly in the face while he was trying to roll up his window and get away from the situation. After a good 6-7 shots to the guys face, he tried to speed away, while Cody was still in pursuit on foot. Well somebody called the police at this point, and they were pulling in while Mr. Mustang was pulling out. While they were trying to figure out what was going on, Cody was thrown into the back of a squad car, where he was able to snap this convenient picture, before the police let him go after many bystanders confirmed that the guy followed him in to start the issue. And just like that, he was on his way to deploy.

 Cody arrives at the beach with "Albatross" blaring from his speakers and echoing down the still lively streets while Adam rushed to unload to get baits out before nightfall. 40min before dark the first baits were dropped in a menacing looking ocean, when I received a text saying the first baits on season were finally in soak mode.Only fifteen minutes had pased when Adams brand new Avet 80 started screaming, needless to say both of them were in complete shock being 15minutes into the season. A harness-less Adam sat down in the sand, cranked tight and the first fish of the year was hooked up and taking line fast!

Cody called me about 15minutes into the fight and said they were hooked up, and that they saw a Hammer dorsal rise up in motion out far and it was a decent one. I was completely ecstatic by this news, and right before he hung up I yelled "get a good picture!" as the phone line went dead. The shark came in in under 20minutes, and it was LIVID. It was going completely ballistic in the wash, while Cody was trying to work the leader and secure a tail-rope on this guy solo.

 After a short and brutal struggle, Cody was able to secure the shark for a moment and remove the hook while they "tried" to take a few pictures. I say tried, because neither of them thought it was a good idea to bring a camera, and apparently their Iphone photo skills are not really up to par, it will be a learning experience for sure, as you can see from these incredible shots taken.

 The photo session was short, as they wanted to make sure the shark swam away healthy and quickly. This did not go without incident either, as the shark was "still trying to eat them" all the way till the moment they released it from their grasp. Less than an hour into the season they were on the board with a 10ft range Hammer, very skinny but with freakish appendages.

About 20min goes by and Codys new 14/0 setup goes off. He gets harnessed up , and locks down and comes tight with the fish which immediately starting stripping a lot of line off his reel, unfortunately after a SOLID  run, the hook inexplicably pulls, leaving the beach silent once again...

 It was heartbreaking, but the sting was eased knowing they had a nice one on the beach from a short while earlier, but not to be deterred, they paddled back out what little bait they had left. While Cody was out in the darkness deploying the second bait, a black-tip flew out of the water infront of him and clipped the front of his kayak. He immediately turned back toward shore and found dam wrestling this little guy to the beach single handedly. One quick picture and she was pushed back out to sea.

 The rest of the night went without incident and sat in silence for another few hours before packing up to catch a few hours of sleep before work in the morning. Both of them were able to catch lightning in a bottle their first trip out, hell their first bait out. And if this is any indication on how this season may go, you better stay tuned, because we will all be bringin' it stronger than you can possibly imagine!

Team Rebel out

Alive and Kickin'!!

Thats right! Just when you thought the threat of a Team Rebel sighting was way over, a resurfacing!! We just wanted to let you all know that wade fishing has been off the chain, and we have some BIG things planned in the VERY near future!! Start checking back in on a DAILY basis, because shit is about to get real metal, really soon! Until then sink your teeth into our Updated Youtube channel, which we will be pumping out all kinds of ass kicking footage and metal propaganda from this moment forward! Make sure to subscribe, and stop in on our facebook page and give it a "like" for constant updates from all over the fishing world.

www.Facebook.com/teamrebelfishing

And our Youtube channel and primitive slideshow

The Thunder Nears.....

 It is upon us! The 3rd annual Guy Harvey Ultimate Shark Challenge nears! You better stay tuned over the next couple of weeks and keep checking back here and the official website, because there are some big announcements and updates heading your way, including the new partnership with the Wounded Warrior Porject!! Hell Yeah! Saddle up, because anybody whos anybody is going to be  at the Liashley Crabhouse and Marina on the weekend of May 4-6th for the tournament and the festival that surrounds it!

 Don't forget about the JAWS movie memorabilia exhibit that will be on display, and the little fact that Discovery Channels SHARK WEEK will be on hand filming the entire festival and tournament! So stay tuned for some more awesome updates! Over and out!

King of the Rotten

    Once in a blood moon, somebody comes along that we at Team Rebel believe has the same thought process as our tight knit group. They also have to have such a high degree of metal fortitude, that metal detectors go off just from being in proximity of one. And though he has been around for a long time, the time is now right for the King of the Rotten to be annexed officially into the Team Rebel metal militia.

 Cody Davis is known far and wide for not only his appetite for metal and appetite for lead bait weights in a bowl of WD-40 for breakfast, but for his land based King fishing skills. He has produced time and time again when nobody else ever can, and produces in a variety of different places, so needless to say this was expected of him eventually.

 The day on the pier was long, and full of a lot of tourists that were bunking up the local fishing scene as usual. The decision was made on the fly to move to a different location and put forth a valiant effort in an area which many deem a wasteland right now. The plan was set and Cody and his crew mobilized northward in search of the might King.

 Upon arrival they found an empty pier, with what few locals were there expressing their feelings on how he would fail on this particular day on their quest for king. Not dettered by these claims, they pushed forward on their somewhat hopless endeavor.

 A raspy voice came across the piers intercom system, signaling that there was only 15 minutes left to fish before the police came and forcefully stopped you from fishing any longer. As all hope was almost a faint memory, Codys reel lit up like a train hit it, with a monster King doing a back flip 15ft above the surface off in the distance. The line instantly came tight and the battle was on, full of blistering (almost reel spooling) runs.  As the pier attendant was making her way onto the pier to clear out Cody and his crew, the fish was finally straight up and down and ready for a a gaff shot to prematurely end its existence. Needless to say, it went off without a hitch.......

Cody and his crew loaded up and headed back to the southland, with spirits high, as not only did he prove that the area is not as much of a wasteland as people believed, but had a 50lb class king-fish in the bed of the truck to prove it. Congrats to Cody on one of the largest Kings taken off the East coast in years, and a big welcome from all of us into the Team Rebel society! Keep your eye out, because with the King of the Rotten, this is the norm!!

 Until next time.... Heads down! Horns up!

Team Rebel Out.........

"The Home-wrecker"

   The springtime East wind had begun to blow, sending most sharkers packing back to their homes to wait the big blow out until the seas die down enough to make fishing somewhat manageable and safer. But sometimes when you are hell bound, even monster surf can't hold back an even bigger monster.

 I was sitting on my back porch looking into the sky, watching the branches on all the Foxtail Palms flexing in the stern wind, and enjoying the overcast skies and a frosty beverage, when my phone began to ring from none other then the hammer kid Viktor. He told me he wanted to fish on this night, which I Immediately thought that he was out of his f*^%#&g mind, but he pressed the issue and insisted that he had a good feeling. Being that he is now at the ripe old age of 20, and I am no longer responsible for his death if he dumps in the surf way out at night time, I said "go for it, no rest for the wicked right".

  His normal companion did not want to "waste his time" so Team Rebel pledge Cody and I decided to dedicate the rest of our night to Vik's cause. We did a little bit of brainstorming, and dug deep into the rebel X-files to think of a place that we would have a balance of somewhat smaller surf and the best chance of a hookup, and with the conditions at hand, all signs pointed at "The Bank". Justly named, as we always seem to make "withdrawals" when we hit spot-x at the optimum time.

   When we setup base camp on the beach, a shred of humanity descended upon me, and I told Viktor that this was a terrible idea, but he insisted he was heading out to sea to crest the white mountains that were present as a stable foreground to the menacing darkness offshore. And after a VERY dicey paddle in 4-6ft surf without a life jacket, Viktor stayed true in getting the one lone bait out, and the wait began.....

 About two hours into the soak Viktors 12/0 let out a steady roll against the mammoth surf. Viktor came tight and engaged the circle hook into the fishes mouth and both him and the shark were locked in for the long haul. The fight  was full of belligerent head shakes and strong, brutal bursts which were yanking Viktor all over the beach in his harness. Cody had to take a break from trying to wreck homes and help support Viktor while I readied the rope and cutters for a landing.

 After the better part of twenty minutes, a black dorsal rose in the midst of the white wash at the surfs edge, it was then I was able to identify the fish as a feisty and belligerent Bull shark. True to its name, it was difficult to land the shark because it kept "bulling" hard in the wash, but within a minute the shark was finally subdued for a hook removal and a couple of quick pictures.

 Viktor and Cody said they would take the tail for the dangerous release, which is always sketchy when you are dealing with an angry and spunky Bull shark in rough and shallow water. But all went well, and the long,skinny male which looked like it just came out from the inside waters was in great shape and on its way again after the short detour. Afterwards, some high fives were exchanged, and Viktor proclaimed that "now we could go home", and not a moment too soon in my opinion.

 Surf was braved, homes were wrecked, and bulls were caught. Last time I checked, that constitutes as Metal in the book of Team Rebel.

Until next time, get tight, Beast up, keep it metal.

-Team Rebel out

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