When I graduated from college my father was so happy (relieved) that he booked a tarpon fishing trip for us down in Key West with a well known guide named Robert “RT” Trossett. We had taken a trip down to Marathon a few years earlier, but we did not have any luck with the guide we fished with. This time he wanted to make sure we had success and booked one of the best Key West had to offer. I can remember talking to people in some of the local shops and when they asked who we were fishing with and we told them they all had positive comments about him. I was really interested to see what type of sage advice Capt. Trossett would impart on us as we fished with him. We had a great time and caught and lost several really nice fish in 2 days of fishing.
We picked up several nice tips from him as we fished, but one thing that sticks in my head to this very day is a very simple comment he made while I was fighting a fish. He told me, quit resting. When you rest the fish rest right along with you, you need to make the fish work every minute of the fight.
In this day of stand-up tackle being the norm more so than the exception, anglers really need to pay attention to how they fight a fish, especially some of the larger fish like tarpon, or any of the offshore pelagics. The object is to get the fish in quicker especially with species you intend to release. The longer a fight goes on the more time there is for equipment failure or for a hook to pull free. For species you intend to release there is also a fatigue factor. When fighting a fish try to counter the fish’s moves with a counter punch of your own. If a fish is taking drag on a long run holding the rod at a 45-degree angle will help you maintain a good posture and allow you to use your legs and upper body to fight the fish. Leaning back to far will fatigue and possibly hurt your lower back. When you begin to reel a fish back in you want to remember to use a smooth motion, raising the rod tip to gain line and reeling as you lower the rod. During this process you