Inside Taylor Jean: Passion, Prep, And High-Stakes Offshore Fishing

The ocean doesn’t care about your plan, and that’s exactly why we love it. We invited part of the Taylor Jean crew aboard the show to share how a handful of friends—bankers, builders, and tinkerers—built one of the most respected teams on the offshore tournament circuit. The story starts with a seasick freshwater angler who fell in love under a sky full of stars 80 miles out, and it unfolds into a masterclass on preparation, judgment, and trust when the seas get sporty.

We dig into the craft behind the glamour: why some captains believe certain hulls “raise fish,” how swapping to a Viking changed hookup rates with the same crew and tactics, and what it takes to rig for success when a nicked leader can cost six figures. Blaine walks us through the pre-season grind—thousands of hooks, fresh line on every rod, backup everything—and the game-day calls that make or break an eight-hour window. Jay connects the dots between life skills and fishing skills: communication, composure, and the discipline to do the boring work so the exciting moments go your way.

Then the ocean tests the plan. A rogue wave breaks over the house, the cockpit floods, a rod disappears, and the call is to head in—until a blue marlin eats and forces the team to execute in chaos. They finish the fight, release cleanly after lines out, and live to fish the next day. Along the way, we talk release-first ethics, guest anglers, and the traditions that stitch a team together, from first-billfish jumps to prank wars on rival boats. COVID-era adjustments—dinners delivered to the dock, fewer tents, more focus—sharpened their edge and reminded them why they chase fish in the first place.

If you’re curious about offshore sport fishing, tournament strategy, and the strange alchemy of passion plus preparation, this conversation puts you right in the cockpit. Hear about wildlife encounters like a giant loggerhead and the famed Dolphin 56, learn why weather windows dictate 120-mile runs, and see how camaraderie turns pressure into performance. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves the water, and leave a review telling us your favorite moment—we read them all and it helps more anglers find the show.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome & Taylor Jean Origin
• 2:27 Ken’s First Offshore Night And The Hook
• 5:50 Crew Paths Into Tournament Fishing
• 9:15 The Work Behind Eight Hours On The Water
• 12:03 Leveling Up Boats And “Raising Fish”
• 16:04 First Checks, Big-Tent Strategy, And Risk
• 20:05 Tournament Scale, Payouts, And Guest Anglers
• 24:08 Roles, Preparation, And Game-Day Execution
• 28:20 Weather Turns Violent: The Rogue Wave
• 32:54 Finish The Fight, Then Go Back Out
• 35:01 Rules, Ranges, And Release-First Ethics
• 38:15 Traditions, Jumps, And Why The Ocean Grips
• 41:50 COVID Adaptations And A Competitive Surge
• 45:30 All-Star Weekend, Illness, And Camaraderie
• 49:30 Friendship, Networking, And Saying Yes
• 53:25 Unplugging, Starlink, And Presence

Transcript

SPEAKER_01: 0:00

Every conversation tells a story, and the best ones begin with honesty, courage, and a little curiosity. That's where Elsa Kurt comes in. She's an author, podcaster, and independent media personality, and this is where she brings real life to the table. Authors, thinkers, creators, leaders, everyday folks with extraordinary journeys. We sit down, we dig in, and we talk about what matters, what's messy, what's beautiful, and what just might inspire you to look at the world a little differently. So pour a cup of something good. Settle back and join me. This is Elsa Kurt Interviews, where truth has a stake and everyone's welcome.

SPEAKER_03: 0:42

Well, hello, friends. Welcome back for another episode of Elsa Kurt Interviews. I am Elsa Kurt, and I have today the crew of the Taylor Jean. And if you don't know who that is, you are about to find out. So buckle up and stay tuned right after this.

SPEAKER_00: 1:02

Out on open water, there's nowhere to hide. Every decision matters, every second counts. For over a decade, the Taylor Jean team has been competing at the highest level of offshore sport fishing, earning respect through skill, strategy, and consistency on the tournament circuit. From record-breaking catches to high-stakes weight, this crew knows what it takes to perform when the pressure is on and the ocean makes the rules. Today, we go behind the scenes with the people who built one of the most respected vessels in competitive sport fishing. The winds, the losses. The moment you don't see from shore. This is Taylor Jean, and this is their story.

SPEAKER_03: 1:35

All right, guys, I'm gonna bring them on one at a time here. We have got Jay, we've got Blaine, and we've got Ken. And this is not the whole crew, this is part of the crew. So, first and foremost, thank you guys for joining me tonight. How are you?

SPEAKER_06: 1:52

Doing fabulous. Thank you for having us. Looking forward to having a little fun and getting to share some fun stories with you.

SPEAKER_03: 2:00

Excellent. I love it. So uh Ken, I am going to uh start with you. You guys have built one of the most decorated sport fishing programs on the circuit. So uh I think I would like to learn a little bit about how the Taylor Jean team first came together. What keeps you guys passionate about competitive fishing? And we're gonna start with you, Ken. So so give me a little bit of the how and why for you.

SPEAKER_06: 2:27

So it's funny that you use that word passionate because that's exactly how I describe it. This is not something I like to do, it's not something I love to do, it's my passion. Absolutely love it. And um, so it started back in 2005 when I bought a house next door to this guy who had been an avid fisherman. I was an avid fisherman, but I was a freshwater fisherman, he was the average salt water. And uh I didn't do that because I got seasick. And you know, I tried a bunch of times and got drugs and stuff, you know, the all the different patch and everything else, and it just didn't work for me. So he bought a boat and he said, Can I need help? I need to bring the boat back. And I said, Well, I said, if we're close to shore, it shouldn't be too bad. You know, I'll give you a hand. Where is it? I'm thinking maybe Cape May. And he goes, town in North Carolina. I go, North Carolina, are you nuts? So he told me to find something. I did. I found this medicine called Bone. I keep it on my boat. If you open up any jar in my boat, there's a blister pack of bonine everywhere to this day. I have it there and and uh and I take it as uh as needed. So um that's what got me into boating. And he took me out on my first uh tuna trip, and we're out in the canyons, and and for those of you audience that don't know what the canyons are, that's um that the canyons underwater, about 80 miles offshore. It's the tip of it from uh where we are in New Jersey. So you're out in the canyons, it's nighttime. You actually see the whole Milky Way, all the stars, there's no noise, it's so calming, so relaxing. I couldn't believe it. I remember as a kid laying on a hill in my backyard and looking up and being able to see stars and stuff because I'm old, you know, and there wasn't all that light pollution back then. No, yeah. And uh and so when I saw it, I was like taken aback, and then all of a sudden I heard this noise. I jump up because it's dead quiet out there. I go, what the heck is that? And then he goes, Oh, it's a whale. So I could start freaking. I go, well, well, he goes, Hager, it's not Moby Dick. Sit down, we'll be okay. And so, you know, we we caught some tuna, we saw some turtles, we saw a bunch of different, you know, uh wildlife out there, and it was just it was just so different from you know, fishing in the lake and fishing and the pond and what have you that I immediately fell in love. And uh and and so Dave and I became fast buddies and and started fishing together.

SPEAKER_03: 5:01

Wow. I so am I understanding correctly that you you still battle the seasickness and it hasn't stopped you. That is that is a passion right there. That that you know, because I mean if anybody's ever been seasick who who hasn't had that sensation at some point, right? I mean, if you know what that feels like, that it's really unpleasant to say the least. No, it's not fun at all. So that tells you the love and dedication for for the ocean and for the sport and being out on the water like that. And yeah, that sounded your description just sounded like a a slice of heaven right there. So how amazing to get to experience that on a regular basis. Um yeah, Blaine, how about you? Give me a little bit of your backstory there, how how this came about for you.

SPEAKER_05: 5:53

So, I mean, I've been fishing since about we were going to the canyon when I was about three years old. Um, been fishing my whole life, uh, met Ken through a mutual friend back in 200 maybe 12 or 13, somewhere around there. And um, you know, we've been fishing together since periodically. And then um, you know, a couple of years ago, I want to say it was maybe late teens, you know, Ken asked me to start fishing with him um for the tournaments and going back and forth. And then uh around 2020, um, you know, we started doing full time with uh all the the tournaments like during COVID and just been you know driven ever since, you know, Ken described this is passion, it this is my passion as well. And you know, we share that bond together and you know we've been full steam ever since.

SPEAKER_03: 6:42

I love it. Jay, how about you?

SPEAKER_04: 6:45

Um I started sport fishing in um 2012-ish, getting into the tournaments. Uh my ex-wife's family was uh pretty into it, um, got me connected. I was uh hooked the first time, first trip out there. We caught a bunch of tuna, caught a blue marlin, and I said, This is the coolest thing I could ever be doing. I think being out on the water, um it's it's surreal. You're out in the middle, you can't see anything for for miles, and you're trolling around, and then all of a sudden you pull some sea monster out, and it's uh you're like, I can't believe this is real life. And uh it's a good release for me. You know, like um all of us work full-time and and this is our our hobby and our passion. And you know, this is this keeps my mind going. You're washing the water, you're prepping, you're working together as a team. All the things that you know make you successful in life will make you successful in fishing too.

SPEAKER_03: 7:47

Yeah, I you know, I would think that, and correct me if I'm wrong, that you either love it or you hate it. Like I don't feel like there can be an in-between for sport fishing.

SPEAKER_04: 8:01

Totally agree.

SPEAKER_03: 8:01

Yeah, right?

SPEAKER_04: 8:02

Yeah, the time and money and the commitment, yeah, it's really and the work.

SPEAKER_06: 8:06

There's a lot, you know, people don't understand the amount of work. You say you're going out for a tournament, you're out there for eight hours, but there's 30 hours of preparation ahead of that for that one eight-hour trip, you know. And that's and that's what takes it takes a lot of time. Making sure that you have your your baits tied, you want to make sure that they swim right, you want to make sure that your lines are c are uh have no nicks on them. Uh, whenever we go out tournament fishing, we change the lines on every rod, every single time, right? For every tournament, because when you're fighting big fish and they start stretching the line, or you can get a nick on it, you don't know it. You you don't want to lose a fish because of equipment failure.

unknown: 8:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06: 8:46

You want to lose a fish because it pulled the hook, or basically because it pulled the hook, you don't want to lose a fish for pretty much any other thing. You know, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03: 8:57

Yeah, and you guys have, you know, obviously built a heck of a reputation, uh great standing. And uh, you know, I I think it's really cool that uh Ken, you specifically you didn't start by pretending that you were like a tournament legend. You tested it with uh a 28-foot walk around. That's right. Then you leveled up, yes. And so what did that proof of concept season teach you about captaining? Captaining? Did I even say it felt like I said that wrong? And and you know, and about yourself too. Like the you're getting really kind of you're jumping in, basically.

SPEAKER_06: 9:35

I mean, you know, so most people don't start off with the first boat at 20 feet. Everyone said, Well, that's a pretty big boat. And I said, Yeah, but I'm a pretty big guy, and you know, and I go out with pretty big guys, and so you know, I think I'm comfortable with that. It taught me a lot about what I didn't know, right? And there was a lot, like, you know, how to adjust the trim tab. So there's a lot of times I was running like this, you know, at an angle instead of because I didn't have the trim tabs properly adjusted. So that first year, it taught me how to dock a boat. It taught me that, you know, that uh we went out basically. Um, when we went out on my boat, we went out fluke fishing, we went out um for strike bass. We didn't go out to the canyons with with that. We would take Dave's boat. Dave's nickname is cowboy 35 because that's what he had. He had a cobble 35. And uh after that, I said, okay, let me let me know move up. Uh and so I went through the boat show with my wife, and we looked at a 33 and a 36, and she said, you know, 33 is a lot bigger than the 28. Why don't we just get the 33? Right, why the 36? I said, honey, I'll get the 33. Yeah, and it's gonna be another proof of concept year. And then the year after, I'm getting to 36. Or we can get the 36 today, and I'll keep that for at least four years, five years before I even think about getting uh another boat. And she said, I believe you, let's get the 36. And so that's a good woman right there. Yes, yes, very good woman. She also knew I was gonna I was gonna get one or the other. So yes, why why take the depreciation hit twice?

SPEAKER_03: 11:08

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, isn't there a thing where they say like the minute the boat hits the water?

SPEAKER_06: 11:13

Yeah, well, you know, they say the the the day that you buy your your your current boat is the day that you start thinking about what's your next boat gonna be. And there's a lot of truth to that, you know. Yeah, oh you know what, I thought this could do this, but it can't, or it's not big enough, or it's not and it was funny. Every time I upsize my boat, I go you know to the marina say, okay, I got a big boat now. You pull in, you know, and I had a 45 and I pour and they put me next to a 70 and a 60. I'm like, oh come on, you you couldn't put me next to the 30s, you know? Uh that that type of thing. So there's a lot of big boats out there uh in in the water.

SPEAKER_03: 11:56

Yeah. And when you made those changes, um, your you saw your success rate change too, right?

SPEAKER_06: 12:02

Yeah, so here's the interesting thing, right? There's always been a battle out there. Um, do boats raise fish? And what what that means is does this particular type of boat attract more fish for fishermen to catch than uh a different model? So when I had the 36, it was the same group of guys. We were going out using the same techniques, the same gear, going to the same fishing spots, and 70% of the time we would come home with zero, you know, or one fish, nothing. Once I switched to the Viking, we went to probably 75 to 80% of the time coming home with fish and multiple fish. So there's something about the harmonics, the engine noise. You know, all boats make a noise. I remember playing used to go nuts when I would put on an autopilot. He goes, yo, you know, uh, people don't use autopilot when they're fishing, you know, it scares away the fish. They go, Yeah, how come we already have six in the boat? You know, but that was the way he he was brought up. So it was bad weather, and you have to turn into the sea the boat pitches, you know, and it's hard when you're trying to, you know, stand there and and and steer it to maintain control. So sometimes uh put on autopilot, you just move it a little bit at a time to make it a little gender of a turn, it makes it uh it makes it easier. But we we we found once I switched to the 45 Viking, everybody've had since it has been a Viking because they raise fish.

SPEAKER_03: 13:26

You know, it's fascinating to me that there's all these, there's all this nuance to it all. So it's not like you know, you just open up a manual or a textbook of you know uh how to sport fish, how to be a champion. It it's there's a lot of intuitiveness that is happening here. That's uh I it never would have even crossed my mind, you know. I I think I honestly I think I would have thought, like, yeah, you you you you you read about it, you know, you read about it.

SPEAKER_06: 13:58

So I did do a lot of reading. I mean, it gives you the basics, you know. Sure, you know. So I mean, I subscribed to every saltwater fishing magazine when I first got into it, you know, for like seven years. I read every magazine, uh cover to cover, because you would learn new techniques and learn techniques that I shouldn't know, but I hadn't known because I wasn't in it. I go to Dave. That's like five years old. What are you talking about? Like, oh well, it's new to me.

SPEAKER_02: 14:23

Oh, that's funny. Yeah, wow.

SPEAKER_03: 14:26

Uh let's see. So in 2011, you got your first tournament check at the South Jersey tuna tournament. Uh Blaine, or whoever wants to answer really, whoever remembers it best, what did that win do psychologically for the team?

SPEAKER_06: 14:41

So unfortunately, Blaine wasn't there, right?

SPEAKER_03: 14:44

Oh, I'm sorry, Blaine.

SPEAKER_06: 14:45

We were, I didn't start. I think I was, I think I started like 2012. Maybe 2015.

SPEAKER_02: 14:52

Okay.

SPEAKER_06: 14:53

Yeah, yeah. So Blaine wasn't there. Dave, Dave was there. Okay. Um, and and and it's funny, when I look at that picture, you know, I still fished with all those guys that uh that were in that picture. Uh Brandon is one of our regular crew members. He couldn't be here tonight. Uh, he was there. Uh what it did was, you know, we knew that we were pretty good tuna fishermen. Um, and so it cemented the fact that not only were we good tuna fishermen, but we could win money in it. We could be competitive in it. We're all very, very competitive of people. It's not about the money, because in the long run, you're not going to make money. I can't retire off of the money we make uh, you know, on the boat. But it's the competitiveness, right? You want to finish that, you know. My goal was always to finish in the top 10%, then the top 5%, then the top 3%, and then the top one. You know, is always what you what you try to do. So that made a a world of difference. And we said, you know what? Let's do more of this. And so the following year is when we we entered the big boy tournaments, and that was the Mid-Atlantic and the uh and the White Mall went open. And in fact, here's a funny story. On day one of the um Mid-Atlantic, we were in the tent, and so Mid-Alantic has this huge tank down in Cape May, and all the people are in there, they have a dinner, they have a captain's meeting and stuff like that. You have to turn in with what they call a late-eight form, meaning I'm not fishing tomorrow. So the weather was horrendous, and we were turning in our late form. And I'm sitting in there and I'm walking around the tent, and I'm hearing everybody going, Yeah, we're not fishing tomorrow. We're not fishing tomorrow, we're not fishing tomorrow. So I go, hey guys, captain's meeting back at the boat, let's go. So we go back to the boat. I said, Guess what? They said, Why is no fishing tomorrow? They said, Are you nuts? Have you seen the seas out there? I said, I'm following the weather. I'm looking at the apps. When we leave, it's gonna be nasty. But every hour it's getting better and better and better. You know, and we can leave at two o'clock in the morning and fishing doesn't start to eight. So it gives us six hours. We could go three hours out and come back if it's really bad, and still turn it on late for him because you have to turn it in by nine o'clock and there's nothing to rules. I say you can't do that. So we did. We're actually written up in the paper because we're the only boat that went out that day.

SPEAKER_07: 17:08

Really?

SPEAKER_06: 17:08

60 foot boats, 75-foot boat, 80-foot boats. So everybody is sitting back at the dock and laughing and saying, Can you believe that small boat went out? I can't believe those idiots. And then suddenly they realized that if we caught a fish that we could weigh in, it was a$50,000 payday because we'd win first, second, and third for the day.

SPEAKER_07: 17:27

Right.

SPEAKER_06: 17:27

There was nobody else out there, you know. And that was my thinking behind it is hey, listen, if we can get a a good fish, you know, we'll pay for the tournament. We're already ahead of the game, and then we get the rest of the week to, you know, to to make it uh happen. And so yeah, it was it was uh it was pretty funny. That again chose the competitiveness.

SPEAKER_03: 17:46

Yeah, absolutely. How um uh how many like for any given tournament, how many competitors are there typically? Is there a a wide range?

SPEAKER_06: 17:57

So local tournaments, you have 50 boats, you have 60 boats, sometimes you have 15 or 20 boats, right? But the big tournaments you're talking about hundreds of boats, you know. Um what what's what's the big record playing? About uh about 275, 300?

SPEAKER_05: 18:14

Yeah, uh I think it was just under 200 this year, or just about 200, somewhere under Yeah, that was because of the weather, right?

SPEAKER_06: 18:22

Yeah, so also the weather makes the big factor. So if you're in a small boat, you know, you don't sign up into the captain's meeting because you want to see what the weather's like. But if you're on a bigger boat, you're gonna sign up because you know that you're gonna go out because you you can hand overseas, you know. Yeah, and uh but like the white mall on the open, that's 400 boats. 400 plus boats.

SPEAKER_02: 18:41

Yeah, wow, yeah, wow.

SPEAKER_04: 18:43

Nine million in prize money, it's it's big time. Yeah, crazy.

SPEAKER_03: 18:49

No kidding. I I did not realize I can I join the crew because you don't you don't want me on this crew, trust me. We already we all already know this. I I'm stating the obvious.

SPEAKER_06: 19:02

Listen, we love taking out guest languages all the time, but we do it, and we do it in the tournaments uh all the time. Because it's fun, because you know, to experience that it there's nothing like it.

SPEAKER_03: 19:12

You know, I'm glad you said that because I was gonna get around to asking you that, not for myself. I mean, maybe, but but yeah, so you do. So you do take out guests out there, uh complete novices, or do they have to they gotta have some skills?

SPEAKER_06: 19:25

So on a complete novice, as we say a mahi mahi, you know, like that we caught, right? That could be worth 20 grand, you know. Um we'll let them reel that one in, right? But if it's a if it's a a white mall or a blue lawn, that could be worth three million or or a million. We're gonna reel it.

SPEAKER_03: 19:43

Yeah, yeah. But that that feels pretty fair to tell you. Yeah, I listen, I'm actually just really impressed that you you would even be willing to let people come on who don't have the level experience that you guys do because it is competitive fishing. I mean, it is kind. Of a big deal that you know you really don't want to be the guy or woman to mess that up. That's painful. Does anybody have one of those stories?

SPEAKER_04: 20:14

Probably yes. Luckily, um, you know, touch wood. You know, you you try not to uh uh you aim small, you miss small, right? You do what the captain tells you, you do what the mate tells you. You know, I'm an angler on the boat, and um, you know, it's my job is to get that fish in and not disappoint, you know, Blaine, who spent, you know, tens of hours researching where we're going, prepping the boat, Ken, who's spent uh millions making all that this come together, you know, Blaine's brother and cousin are mates, and you know, always putting us in the right position. And, you know, everybody has their their role on the boat. And yeah, you don't want to disappoint your your friend, and there's a lot of money on the line and a lot of pressure, and you know, you don't make big moves so that you don't you don't mess up big.

SPEAKER_03: 21:07

Yeah, yeah. You know, I'm so glad you brought that up too, because I am really curious about what everybody's you know very specific role is. Uh, you mentioned Blaine's role. So, Blaine, tell me a little bit about what you do. I I didn't realize like really how much prep. I knew there would be prep, of course, but um tell me a little bit about the the scope of the preparation for any one of these tournaments that you have to do.

SPEAKER_05: 21:34

So, I mean, going in before the season, we kind of have a schedule of what we're going to do, what tournaments we're gonna be at, where we're fishing, what kind of fish we're fishing for. So we have to, you know, start prepping the tackle. I think I started back in March and I just knew it was gonna be like a heavy season. Our first tournament was at the end of May. And it's just acquiring all the tackle, rigging all the tackle, you know, making sure everything is ready to go at any given point. Make sure there's, you know, it could be a thousand hooks ready to go for the season. You know, you want to make sure your leaders are ready to go, you know, baits on the boat, obviously ready to go, you know, all the teasers, you have backups for every single thing that happens. So a lot of preparation goes into it. And you know, there's days I'll spend eight to ten hours on the boat, you know, just Saturday, Sunday, eight to ten hours a day, just making sure that things ready to go. So when we do start tournament fishing, it's just everything is quick and easy because time is money in these tournaments. Right. So you know, we got everything ready to go um before tournament, you know, we're making sure the lines are ready, um, the boat's looking good, everything's firing all cylinders, everyone's ready, boat's prepped. Um, you know, there's enough food on the boat, everyone's, you know, sleeping arrangements are ready to go, and just every single piece has to be dialed in. Motors, um, you know, every part of the boat's ready to go. So refrigeration long time. Um everything's you know, has to be top-notch before you finish these tournaments. Is you know, there's so many things that happen when you're out there and you got to be able to pivot at any given moment. So, you know, coming down to the tournaments or say like the White Moran Open, you know, we'll spend you know days looking at the water, we'll spend days prepping the boat. Um you know, it's that first day and the practice day. And so, I mean, there's a lot. And then with my duties is running the boat now, it's you know, just figuring out where we're going, you know, making, like I said, and uh, you know, just it's it there's endless amount of time that goes into these things. Like you can say, oh, there's only a couple hours, you know, it's a couple weeks and if not a couple months.

SPEAKER_03: 23:29

Yeah, sure. And all the way up until the last minute because there's everything is so changeable, right? Weather in particular, I mean, you're so you're watching everything at all times. That's a lot.

SPEAKER_05: 23:41

Yeah, I mean, there's times we have to pivot during the day where weather's coming. For example, in the was it the first day of the minute there we are, you know, we knew there was weather coming. So we had to get and then we knew where the fish were, and they were way up to the northeast. So we had to make like a 120-mile run the first day to get up there where the fish were before the wind came in. Because if once that wind comes in, we weren't going anywhere. So we had to fish all the way up there, catch the fish, and start making our way home as that wind came throughout the day. So, you know, it changes any given moment, you gotta be ready for everything's at all time, and you know, something can happen. And like, for example, make sure all the safety's gear is there because if you know big wave comes, rolls the boat over, and everyone's in the water, you know, yeah stuff happens quick and it gets real real fast.

SPEAKER_04: 24:25

Yes, real quick. That was uh absolutely that was definitely the uh scariest day on the water for me uh in in my fishing uh career.

SPEAKER_02: 24:35

Tell me about it.

SPEAKER_04: 24:37

Um it was the mid-Atlantic. We we knew I knew it was gonna be rough, and we thought it would get rough around midday. And um, you know, Blaine took us out 100 plus 120-ish miles from Ocean City, Maryland. And I was like, Oh, all right, you know, the my mom texted me, we have Starlink on there, right? My mom's always concerned if I'm gonna be safe. And it was uh seven in the morning. I said, Mom, it's flatcom, right? And uh by 750, that wind was blowing 40 miles an hour, and you know, one foot turned to two to four, and then it was a solid 12 foot during the day. And you know, uh the the Taylor Jean has a a seakeeper, so a gyro stabilizer to keep you there, but okay, it was rocking a lot, and um, you know, waves were crashing over the back, and uh, you know, we were throwing up the cockpit, yeah, catching a few white marlin, which was fun, and it was getting rougher and rougher. You know, we fish on the sport fishing championship series, so we have a cameraman. The cameraman was not doing so well that day with the rough scenes, yeah. And uh all of a sudden we're you know, we're sitting in the back watching the rods, and I hear Blaine yelling something, and he turns the boat, and this rogue wave that was over 15 feet broke over the the top of the Taylor Gene. And this is a big boat. This boat weighs 125,000 pounds with no fuel in it, and the whole cockpit fills up with water. We lost a rod. Um, you know, the boat has a uh what's the uh thing?

SPEAKER_05: 26:26

The sonar.

SPEAKER_04: 26:28

Yeah, sonar. And it's designed so if you so if it's deployed below the boat and the boat starts moving, it goes back in so it doesn't break itself. Okay we were sliding down this massive wave in 125,000 pound boat so fast that the gyro stabilizer went back in. So we're all a little frazzled to say that we just lost a rod that's cost three thousand dollars.

SPEAKER_03: 26:57

Yeah, this isn't your Walmart fishing rod that's hanging out on the fishing hole guy.

SPEAKER_04: 27:01

This is this is big tongue fishing, and uh Ken goes, that's it. This is this is unsafe. We gotta go, we gotta go in.

SPEAKER_06: 27:09

I don't care the tournament's not over.

SPEAKER_04: 27:11

We gotta go.

unknown: 27:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04: 27:13

That's a minute. We hook into a blue marlin. Come on, and unfortunately, I had to reel it in, and there's video. And the funny thing is, is it was so rough, and we're trying to back down on this fish because you know, there's a you know, 250, 300 pound blue marlin on the other end of it, and I can barely stand up because it was so rough. So I sat in the chair, the fighting chair, mostly because I I couldn't stand because it was rough. And then we got the we got the release, you know, Blaine's brother Jared is is hands down the best mate I've ever I've ever fished with in my life. And you know, we released that fish, and then we had the the long journey in, and it was rough, but you know, catching that fish in those conditions, um you know, I see the video because we had a a videographer, and I couldn't believe it was you know, seeing it on video, replaying it again. I was like, oh boy, oh my god, yeah.

SPEAKER_06: 28:14

I know I I was I was sitting inside, you know, with my back to like this, and the wings hit us, and all of a sudden I started going back and back and back, and I was like, Oh my god, we're going over. And uh and and and Lane, you know, he handled the boat perfect. I got us, you know, back back on pitch. So that's why I said, that's it, we're out of here. So they can catch a fish, we can't back down on it anyhow. And bang we did, and bang, we were able to back down on it. And there was another boat out there that said that they were watching us, they saw us get the hit by the wave, and they said they figured, all right, we're out of here. And so next thing we know, you were backing down on the face. And we said, I can't believe it. And they ended up staying to watch the whole fight, which took about 45 minutes, an hour, right? Because um, it was after lines out. So, you know, you you have lines in going at a certain time. A lot of times it's eight to three or eight thirty to three. But if you have something on, you just gotta notify the that you know the other boats that you have something on, and you can fight it till you till you get it. So we had to fight it till about four o'clock, I think about an hour after um lines out. And uh it was it it was something.

SPEAKER_03: 29:28

I can tell by all of your smiles that like you're just living the dream. Like I'm sure in the moment you did not feel like you were living the dream, but like what stories that you guys have to tell. It's just incredible. And I'm sure those those kind of moments are like the ones that solidify that this is truly such a a passion for you guys because you know there's there's certainly people that that would happen to, and they'd be like, and I'm done. That's it. Um I am over it. That the you know the bug is gone and never again. And you guys are like, when when are we going out again? All right, wait, let me let me ask that. After an incident like that, after an experience like that, did anybody have that feeling of like, I think I want to be done for a little while?

SPEAKER_06: 30:21

Or was it like, nope, not oh we that was Monday of the tournament, so we had Wednesday and Friday to fish. We had two more days, you know. You fish like every other day when you can, and uh so everybody was there for the for the next two days. Yeah, even the cameraman.

SPEAKER_03: 30:37

Even the cameraman. All right, good on good on good on him, good on him for toughing that out. That's uh good on him, and I'm so glad he got video of that for you because that's incredible. Oh my goodness. Tell me a little bit, you said uh like two, three days there. How long is it? I'm sorry I don't know these things. Um, how long is the actual tournament duration?

SPEAKER_06: 31:00

So the major ones are are five, and you fish three out of five days.

SPEAKER_03: 31:06

Yeah, and how far out do you guys go from the base, so to speak?

SPEAKER_06: 31:12

So there each tournament has its own limit. Um, most of them are 100 miles. Um, I think the Mid Atlantic's 125, the Marlin's 100. Um, some of the more local tournaments are like 70 miles, you know. So uh it depends on the tournament. Anywhere from 50 on the on the shallow side to 125 on the outside. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03: 31:34

And so so for each for me, each day of the tournament, like there's a specific start time and a specific end time, and then everybody has to come in and like weigh in whatever they caught essentially.

SPEAKER_04: 31:45

Okay. Or there's release fishing, which you know, uh Taylor Gene is is a lot of release boats, you know, on that circuit.

SPEAKER_03: 31:54

Yeah, I really love that because those there's those are like one of you, I think it was you, Jay, that said, you know, like these prehistoric monsters coming out of the ocean. And they are they, you know, there's something so uh enthralling and at the same time terrifying about the ocean and what's in it. And when you see, you know, I was looking over your pictures and and videos and everything, and just you know, kind of like zooming in on these these prehistoric, insane looking creatures. And it's like these things exist, and you guys get to like hold them and and see them up close. And uh that to me is so incredible. I I am I have always been so fascinated by what lives in the ocean. So I I think it's so cool that you guys just uh get up close with them like that is is incredible.

SPEAKER_06: 32:49

They might not have thought about it in the ocean.

SPEAKER_03: 32:52

Yeah, I I think like I said, it's yeah, it's like fascinating and absolutely terrifying at the same time. Like I don't think I'd want to jump in there and be in the water with you.

SPEAKER_06: 33:04

That's a funny thing. If you came out fishing with us and you caught your first bill fish, there's a there's a a practice or a rule or a tradition. Tradition that's what I was that we have. You must jump in right where you caught that fish.

SPEAKER_02: 33:19

Oh, okay. Fair enough.

SPEAKER_06: 33:22

I have all over my chart pod is Vinny swim, Tom swims, Michael swims, and I marked the spots, yeah. And there's a reason for that because I knew I caught a big fish there, right? And somebody had to go go swimming.

SPEAKER_03: 33:36

Oh, that's so cool. Yeah, I love that. Oh, okay. I don't know. I I think I might be chickening out on joining you guys because I was pretty sure I was gonna ask you, beg you like to let me come out one time. We didn't have a little skimmer.

SPEAKER_04: 33:50

You gotta come to a fun location like uh, you know, the Bahamas or one of the other tournament places. Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_03: 33:58

I got nothing against Jersey whatsoever, but I I want to be I'm gonna be somewhere really Walker's Cave Bahamas is a much better spot.

SPEAKER_04: 34:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03: 34:07

Yeah, there you go. Um, let's see. I wanted to ask you guys about we mentioned COVID. I I want to talk about that time period for you guys. Um, so let's see. So during the 2022, 2022, you know what I mean. Just was not sounding right to me. Um, but you guys, you guys kept fishing uh through all of that chaos, and you basically adapted with the sport. So what did the ocean give you guys? And I I feel like I already know the answer, but what did the ocean give you guys in those years that the rest of the world um just wasn't offering?

SPEAKER_06: 34:45

It was very weird, like you know, so you have a boat in a bay, right? And and you know, with all the boat trap, you don't realize that it kicks up a lot of sediment. And so the bay isn't as clear as when you're out in the, you know, out in the deep blue. In the beginning of COVID, I could walk out my backyard, I could actually see the bottom for the first time since I moved here in 2005. I was like, oh my God. And the same thing at the marina, I could see the bottom, I could see all over. It was incredible because nobody was taking their boats out. And then, you know, first of all, it was March, April, you know. But uh, but around May, when when it first happened, we started taking our boats out. And um, and it was funny because people suddenly realized, hey, listen, I can I can get them skirt around these roofs and get out in a boat and have fun and not be contained. And so the prices of boat went like through the roof. All these huge boats prices went, you know, way, way up, and you couldn't even get a boat. And um and and and the tournaments adapted. Like a lot of tournaments were talking about do we have to cancel, you know, and so um what some did is a lot of them, it's the hospitality of it that they that they enjoy and and that they're known for. So instead of having a big you know, dinner under the tent, they delivered the dinner to everybody, to the boat.

SPEAKER_02: 36:02

And you're gonna boat, yeah. And then with it, too.

SPEAKER_06: 36:06

So it wasn't just food, yeah. You know, so they there were different things like that that I remember playing. You remember anything else different about now?

SPEAKER_05: 36:15

It's just doing the you know, it's usually with the tournaments, it's all about the camaraderie with everybody, right? It just wasn't the camaraderie, but we still had the thrill going out there. Um I think COVID really kind of kickstart our successful tournament careers. So I think we'll come back at that. Let's say it's ever happened.

SPEAKER_03: 36:33

Yeah. Um, let's see. Oh, um, I think correct me if I'm wrong, you guys actually just had a recent tournament, yes, last week.

SPEAKER_04: 36:44

Yes, he did.

SPEAKER_03: 36:45

Okay, tell me a little bit about that-star Blaine Burst.

SPEAKER_05: 36:49

Yeah, the all-star tournament.

SPEAKER_02: 36:52

The all-star tournament.

SPEAKER_04: 36:53

Tell her how well you did.

SPEAKER_05: 36:55

Yeah, I guess you know, we had a we started out in uh on Friday, had a great time with everybody, had a blast. You know, we had too much fun fish Saturday, and I started feeling a little ill um about midday, and I knew something was wrong. And by four o'clock, I was in bed, and I didn't get up till the next day around 11. And I had probably almost thrown up and had a fever and all that mess. So I got to enjoy the fun, but it wasn't very fun for me. So we all his teammates were very supportive of him.

SPEAKER_04: 37:36

Yes, you know, Ken and I'm where they go. We flew down there, took time away to support all-star Blaine Birch. He missed day two, and what do we do? We start making memes on um chat GBT saving save Blaine, pray for Blaine. It got so out of hand that called me, who knows Blaine well. Right, yeah, said, Oh my god, is Blaine hurt? What happened? And I said, No, no, he's he's not feeling well, he's not fishing, we're giving him a hard time. Then Blaine's parents called him right and like, oh my god, what's wrong? And it was uh it was pretty funny. So it it shows the camaraderie that we all have of you know, we're working hard together, um, there's a lot of fun, you know, playing around with each other. And and Blaine talked about that camaraderie. And you know, now in the digital age, and you know, there's a production team that's part of the sport fishing championship series. We're we're messaging them and sending them these things, and they're they're doing an injury report on uh all-star captain Blaine Birch isn't feeling well. Uh it was it was pretty funny.

SPEAKER_06: 38:50

Yeah, it was. I don't think Blaine laughed as much as everybody else did, but you know, but he he he took the joke very well.

SPEAKER_05: 38:56

If if I was feeling better, I'd be laughing. But I was just like, I was just you know, I hate being sick, and I was in bed until Sunday. You know, yeah, it was it was bad.

SPEAKER_03: 39:09

But are you I want to know I want to know, Blaine, are you plotting your revenge? Are you just waiting for the next one to get sick so you can uh no?

SPEAKER_06: 39:21

Well I have a potential. Yeah, you potential combat work, right? You don't tell them what it is, but you you you you you do have a little a a little video that might be posted.

SPEAKER_03: 39:35

I okay. I wouldn't I'm I wouldn't say no to a little advanced copy of that video. I mean, I'm not saying, you know, I I might have a few followers that that they might enjoy that. uh rebuttal yes rebuttal back yeah because that would be that would be something oh that's so awesome yeah it's you know i what's really clear is that you guys really truly and you mentioned this the camaraderie uh that you really truly deeply enjoy not only what you do but doing these things together there's a uh you know strong level of trust that you have with each other that you've built over the years i mean you know these are these are now like long established uh relationships that you guys have and i and i think that's really special is that common or uncommon for that's uncommon right so we're just a bunch of friends really you know um there's two insurance guys uh two financial guys a cabinet builder uh a retired electrician you know blaine uh vp at a bank and just a bunch of people that met became friends sharing the pasture and just started fishing together and you know there's a bottle of dozen of us that fish together so that I always know that when I want to go fishing I'm gonna have people to go fishing with you know which is which is key and we all bust each other's chops and and you know sometimes people get offended like if you like we bring on the guest we're busting the chops and say hey listen if nobody's busting your chops we don't like you that's right that's and listen I I tell my husband that all the time I'm like honey if I'm not making fun of you then we have a problem like if I'm not making on you exactly I'll tell you how welcoming uh you know the industry is right like one I think you know I I'm I live a pretty blessed life right that I get to do this and have fun friends and you know um one of the guys who fishes uh with us Steve Melchiori buddy of mine uh he literally we all got together in you know me on this this this podcast now he slid into Blaine's DMs to ask him sport fishing questions right Blaine calls him they start talking to each other right shows who Blaine is and like you know he's like hey I got this boat I want to do this uh Blaine Steve and I end up like fishing a tournament in December sailfish tournament uh we caught a fish or two hung out you know had Blaine's phone number uh fast forward it's April and Blaine's like hey come meet me at this uh bar we're in Key West for the Viking Key West challenge and that's where I met Ken.

SPEAKER_04: 42:36

So I meet Ken and his wife and you know we talked for a couple minutes and uh Dave uh McKendrick was right in front of me on the flight and I saw it he was like wearing all this uh Viking shirts and I was like oh he must be there for that don't think anything of it then two hours later I'm at a bar and you know I get Ken's number and Ken's like hey we should fish together this this summer you know and you're thinking I've had a couple drinks I'm at a bar in Key West this guy tells me he's gonna take me fishing on his uh 62 Viking you know I'll never hear from the guy again and then a couple months later I'm on Ken's plane I'm flying to Mars's vineyard and we're fishing this massive tournament everyone everybody you know it just shows you you know you got to be out there in life you know doing fun things talking to people interacting and and that's where I think this younger generation is just too glued to their phone and their iPad or you know that's why I tell my son like hey you you can't have a good time sitting at home on the couch. Right? You got to be out there and you know I've I've taken my son you know fishing and you know hopefully he likes it as much as I do and uh either way he's coming with me.

SPEAKER_03: 43:46

Yeah so if he doesn't he will he will learn to love it if he doesn't already I I am sure as a kid what he's like 10 right is that yeah yeah yeah just just hanging out with his dad what's cooler than that as a 10 year old so that's awesome and boy oh boy did you really hit on the head there Jay I I agree with you so much that you know this this not even just this younger generation like the adults too I mean how often do you walk around and you see when their their faces are in their phone and they're not talking to each other not engaging they're not out in fresh air touching grass or in this case smelling the salt right yeah you know and I I was thinking about that as you were talking about it I'm like oh just what what we're all missing you know by not doing and I know not everybody can get out you know on these magnificent boats and and do what you're doing but my goodness if you get a chance to get out there and in the fresh air and and just talk with people. Yes just unplug and I I I go to restaurants and I see everybody sitting at the table and they're all looking at the phones and a restaurant having dinner together and I'm like you know I don't get it I always had a rule you put your phone in the middle of the table the first one that reaches for it pays the bill I like that I like that yes yes yeah and I and I tell you and I you know to to not be a hypocrite I have to admit I because of what I do is yes I I I am forever this stupid thing is like I I got the death claw you know half the time because it's like oh wait your phone's not in your hand calm down and you know and and I I feel it too I'm like oh why is you know why is why do I feel like I have monkey brain right now well it's because you've been you know just in all of this stuff and you're not just getting out in the world a little bit so I set it all aside. Now the rule is you know Saturday and Sunday is uh no social media. Good yeah yeah good well you know what the world won't end because you didn't answer a text within 45 seconds or 45 minutes you know yeah absolutely you get it within 24 hours that should be respectable you know yeah and people too they expect it of you they're like I tried I tried to get a hold of you and it's like been five minutes it's been five minutes that I didn't answer.

SPEAKER_04: 46:03

Then you know sport fishing might be for you because you can just tell everybody there's no internet out there. And until until Starlink um you know there there was no internet out there. Right. And it's it's completely changed things you know we're we're all working and and sometimes you know we'll be on the boat and having to take uh you know call video calls on teams and and and doing things it's really opened things up materially but I can also say hey Starlink's not working uh I couldn't reach you yeah so it's nice to have that break.

SPEAKER_03: 46:37

It's so nice and it's so just everything about it I I think really just sounds absolutely magnificent. I I have I have some I'm walking away from this conversation feeling some envy definitely because what a what a life what a great life to be able to get out and do that on a regular basis and and just engage with nature and be with people that you really like being around and you have that teamwork.

SPEAKER_06: 47:04

Yeah what an amazing I mean we we one time caught a thousand pound lager head tart off the coast of New Jersey here which is normally not here a tropical strong I call in and and we caught it I got a picture of it and the turtle's head is bigger than the angular head the only reason that we fought it because we had a big float on it because we were shark fishing right and they went after a shark and had this big float on it and I was afraid that if it cut it behind the float that might kill the turtle it might not be able to you know dive and and what have you so we had to get it to cut it in in front of the float another real quick story is one day we're out there on on the boat and we went out to the inlet and we're doing a little wine and cheese we're having some wine and cheese and and there's this dolphin out there that's swimming around by us and stuff and it was really friendly and we're on on the way back my son said Dan was that somebody's pet I said no brain there's a dolphin in the wild why would you think it was somebody's pet he said because of the number I said what number he said they had a number on it I said what are you talking about so this is back in the day before iPhones and stuff so I got my digital camera I plugged it into my computer I looked at the picture and sure enough there was a 56 cogged into the dorsal thing and you can see it was like somebody's handwriting like you know the way the phone so for grins and giggles I uh typed into to Google who was dolphin 56 so I found out that this dolphin was was kind of world famous it was tagged and it was it was branded and got caught in in the uh Indian river down in Florida.

SPEAKER_03: 48:39

Oh wow and the it had traveled as far north as Georgia and then they lost sight of it they said you know oh it's it's gone and that was the only uh dolphin that had gone up that far so we were out at the Barnum England New Jersey right wow as yeah my son actually tracked down the research scientist who was in Germany at the time said hey we saw dolphin 56 and he said oh no way he'd be he it's beyond his life expectancy he'd be like 46 now and they only lived 30 years at all he said there's no way so he sent him a picture of it where he could see it was him that inspired in 56 wasn't a little broken jaw and the jaw and he could see he goes oh my god that is dolphin 56 so it reset the record we again was another time we got written up in the paper because we we found dolphin 56 you never ever know what you're gonna see it is so that is so cool that is so incredible you guys must i mean you just must have stories for days and days and days and days yeah i want to lots of mirror bases like that wave on you know i mean lots of different things like that i remember one time we went out and we ran in between two thunderstorms with we were shark fish and we we got out there it's like two o'clock in the morning the wind was blowing and Brandon my buddy goes thank god we can't see these seas oh yeah you're right yeah absolutely oh my goodness all right so for someone watching uh who has never followed sport the sport closely what is the first Taylor Jean video that they should go and find uh that will capture your vibe so to speak that's a good one uh guys have any I mean I'm not sure I don't know if the video is anywhere but like when we caught that blue marlin in uh Walker's K to win the SFC and win the S the SFC open right that was a pretty dope jumping around I don't know if that surfaced anywhere I gotta figure that out but if it hasn't we gotta get it up there. Yeah yeah absolutely and the blue marlin that we caught in the on the Monday of this year's mid-Atlantic with the seas being like what they were and there's there are some videos out there I think I I I I I forget what I posted oh sport fishing gets a little sporty I think was it was the title of the video that one close to a couple thousand views or it was there was one of the one of my videos got over two million views um well yeah I was got viral big i tuner yeah we went viral because like 500 people shared I couldn't believe it wow yeah just one but it was yeah funny yeah you gotta you need to be making reels out of all these uh videos that you guys I just started really getting into that this year I had never done that before you know I post up like different videos and photos and stuff like that but yeah I just started the my daughter's been teaching oh yeah you'll go you'll go viral like so many times because I am that person anytime I come across like any kind of ocean videos after what it is whatever it is if it's if it's ocean I I will just sit and watch all of them so you can create a whole page I will be your first and most viewer don't call me a stalker I I I will totally stalk but that's okay that's okay we'll tag in the videos from now on yes please do so I can watch them all it's like it just relaxes me a little bit more relaxing all right I want to ask you guys one last question I want to know what does Taylor jeans stand for well it's very simple Taylor is my daughter Jean is my wife I love it I love it I love it I love it so so that first 28 foot boat that I had I wanted the name of Taylor Jean my wife's ah I don't want my name on the boat so it was the tailor V.

SPEAKER_06: 52:50

So for the first four years of my fishing career uh even with the wellcraft it was the Taylor V. V-E-E because it's the deep V boat and my daughter's middle name is V also so it was a play on that you know yeah and then when I got to Viking my wife's like oh I got my name's on the boat I said what part of I don't want my name on the boat she goes this is a nice boat and then we had to I had to create a whole new career from the tailor V to the Taylor D.

SPEAKER_03: 53:16

Oh that's funny is that some kind of rule that it they always have to be named for like yeah they always have to like that's the rule is considered unlucky just like fishmen believe it's considered unlucky to bring bananas on the boat. Really?

SPEAKER_06: 53:31

Yeah oh yeah yeah which we're gonna have a hard time with guys because my banana tree just started producing bananas this week and they're gonna be right just as the time we're leaving to to go tournament fishing so don't do it don't do it take why don't you do why don't you send those to the lights out Ken there we go some some fresh some fresh homegrown fruit for you every problem has its own solution so lights out is a is one of the uh competitors in the sports championship with us and and there are a bunch of good guys the bunch good fishermen similar to us but they got more family than than we have we just have uh Blaine his brother and his cousin they got father daughter mother um who else the there's a whole family cousins it seems like they're all related those panels and and and and there are a bunch of good guys so we love you so one of the good things about sports fishing when you get to know boats and you get friendly with them you start pulling pranks on them you know and uh so they pranked us and we pranked them before one of the tournaments we snuck on the boat at two o'clock in the morning we had we had a little uh face decals of each of us and we stuck it all over their boat on their rides and stuff like that and you know little things oh I then they tied somebody to the to the top of our the to the top of our boat and we didn't know it so there was a blow up down on top of our boat.

SPEAKER_03: 54:51

We're out there fishing the people who are taking pictures of us oh you guys sound like a lot of but I love that it's that it's like a really friendly competition going on out there.

SPEAKER_06: 55:02

It is it is it's nice it should be you know sometimes the people aren't so friendly but they get cut out pretty quickly.

SPEAKER_03: 55:09

Yeah I bet I bet there's no room for that right yeah yeah I love that all right guys tell everybody where they can find you where they can find more information about you guysenefishing.com is our our website and there's a link to our social uh media which is telegansport fishing both on Facebook Instagram and TikTok um it's all telegansport fishing nice I love it guys go follow like stalk their videos make them go viral can we do that I think we can band together and make them go viral like a bunch of times I think that would be really fun and completely worthwhile so thank you guys for taking time out of your day to uh spend with me and my audience we appreciate it very much and uh I look forward to seeing all the incredibly cool things you guys are going to keep doing so thank you thank you thank you it's been a pleasure here absolutely all right guys thanks for watching we'll see you in the next episode take care from small town love stories to battles of truth and loyalty Elsa Kurt's books follow the same heartbeat ordinary people facing extraordinary moments you'll find romance drama second chances even a feet behind the microphone in her newest release multiple genres of different worlds and the same thread bold truth real faith and no authorities