Carmelita II rules Mix Classic

Carmelita II’s Reynaldo “Balong” Fiel and captain Jeremy Koshiro, right, pose with their 158-lb marlin during last Saturday’s Tasi To Table Inc. Inaugural Mix Classic.(FLOYD MASGA)

A boat owned by Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexandro C. Castro won the Tasi To Table Inc. Inaugural Mix Classic held last Saturday in the waters off the CNMI.

Carmelita II won the $3,000 top purse, assorted gear from MARPAC, a year’s worth of bragging rights after Castro, captain Jeremy Koshiro, and deckhand Reynaldo “Balong” Fiel caught a total of 178.3 lbs of eligible fish that included a 158-lb marlin and a 20.3-lb wahoo.

Koshiro said they caught all their fish around Goat Island by essentially using marlin lures. 

“We were just running the lures…Our first catch was around 7:30am when we caught our first wahoo. Then our second wahoo was around 11am and then we got the marlin around 2pm,” he said.

Koshiro added that the marlin didn’t really put up much of a fight as they landed it in only about 20 minutes.

“We already knew it was a marlin but we didn’t think it was that big. [I’m] dedicating this to chief justice for having me on this boat…[I] really don’t know what he’ll do with the money,” he said.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexandro C. Castro, captain Jeremy Koshiro, and deckhand Reynaldo “Balong” Fiel proudly show off their first place plaque aboard the Carmelita II after topping Tasi To Table Inc.’s Inaugural Mix Classic last Saturday.(MARK RABAGO)

Koshiro pretty much has worked in the water all his life as he readily volunteered that fishing runs in the family and immediately after high school he found work on the
beach.

Carmelita II’s youngest crew, meanwhile, authored the team’s battle cry in every derby, which is “Always never give up on the Carmelita.”  

Castro, Koshiro, and Fiel have been joining fishing tournaments together the past three years.  

Coming in second to Carmelita II in the Mix Classic was Little Missy of captain George David.

David and his crew of Lawrence Fleming and Jesstin Laniyo had a 60.1-lb haul in the one-day fishing tournament after reeling in a 29.8-lb spearfish and a 30.3-lb yellowfin. They brought home $2,000 and some MARPAC gear.

Headliner 2 of captain Max Mogor finished third place and pocketed $1,000 with their 40.8-lb total made up of a 33.9-lb wahoo and a 6.9-lb skipjack.

Fourth place was Mako of captain Jeff Elliot and crewmembers Jamion Elliot, Nick Gross, Micah Page, James Eller, and John Matthews. 

Their 32.3 lbs of fish (a 13.3-lb yellowfin and a 19-lb wahoo) gave them winnings worth $700.

The Top 3 in the 2022 Mix Classic also took home handsome trophies with Catsro and company also getting $800 for winning the side bet of the heaviest fish.

Tasi to Table Inc. congratuated all the winners and thanked all the participants of the Inaugural Mix Classic. They also extended their heartfelt gratitude to the following sponsors: MARPAC, Fishing Tackle and Sporting Goods, FJR Enterprises, WESPAC, KKMP, Marianas Visitors Authority, UR Tents, Island Image & Motion, Roil Soil, and the Department of Public Works.

The Inaugural Mix Classic is a new fishing tournament focusing on targeted pelagic fish species. However, in order to qualify your catch, submitting captains/anglers’ catch must include a combination of the qualifying pelagic species.Qualifying pelagic species are as follows: billfish, yellowfin tuna, wahoo, mahi mahi, and skipjack tuna. 

The combined weight of the two different pelagic species selected by the team in competition is their weight category to determine the winner. Two of the same species do not qualify.