Organizers of one of the oldest East Coast fishing tournaments say they are working to bring back the annual event this summer following a four-year hiatus.
Casco Bay Tuna Club’s weeklong Bailey Island Fishing Tournament is scheduled to return July 20-26 with updated features such as a mobile app to sign up and receive information, said Tuna Club President Monique Coombs and Vice President Capt. William “Bill” Tranter.
The app is expected to be available in May or June. More information will be made available on Casco Bay Tuna Club’s Facebook page as the tournament date approaches, the organizers said.
“We’re not only trying to get (the tournament) going again, but get it to a place where it’s more modern,” Coombs said in an interview. “It’s going to be a little bit clunky this year, and then hopefully next year it will be a little bit better.”
Founded in 1938, the tournament has evolved over the decades to feature a competition for licensed commercial tuna fishermen as well as sportfishing categories for striped bass, bluefish, mackerel, haddock, pollock and shark for both youths and adults.
Tuna is a federally licensed fishery, so participants in the tuna tournament must be commercially licensed, Tranter said. However, the sportfishing categories are open to anyone with a valid commercial or recreational fishing license.
The event was canceled in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, and it has remained on hiatus because of a variety of logistical issues, Coombs and Tranter said. Now, they aim to bring it back better than ever to secure its long-term future.
Coombs said the club is still rebuilding its pool of volunteers and is actively recruiting. It needs helpers to design an informational booklet, weigh fish for the youth tournament, help run an awards event scheduled for July 26, and complete other tasks. Those interested can email her at monique@aragostamama.com or attend an informational event at Cook’s Lobster & Ale House on Bailey Island at 5 p.m., Thursday, March 21.
Coombs is also director of community programs for the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, and Tranter owns and operates Midcoast Charters. Coombs said the Tuna Club hopes to leverage the fishing tournament to benefit the local working waterfront.
A captain’s meeting will be held the evening of Saturday, July 20, to kick off the tournament, Tranter said. Fishing competitions will open on July 21, and an awards event will be held on the last day of the tournament. The event will be held near Cook’s Lobster & Ale House and will feature food from Cook’s and a live band, he said.
“It’s going to be a big party with food and music, and that’s going to be on the night of July 26,” Tranter said. “It’s a Friday.”
This year’s tournament registration fees will be $400 for the signature commercial tuna fishermen’s event, $200 per vessel and $75 per individual for adult sportfishing events, and $10 for youth participants. Those fees, while higher than in years past, are still lower than those for similar competitions, Coombs said.
Tranter said the tournament will be a great opportunity for longtime Harpswell residents and newcomers to get together, meet their neighbors and have a good time.
“I feel really strongly that it’s a community-building event, and Harpswell could really use it, I think,” he said.
