Greg Gutierrez

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San Diego Union Tribune
Windansea Board-Fish Tourney Lands Picture-Perfect Prize
Jul 14, 2000 by Ed Zieralski

Fishermen participating in Sunday's 13th annual Windansea Board Fishing Tournament will have some extra incentive to make the catch of the day.

Tournament founder and organizer Allen Repashy said yesterday that marine wildlife artist Greg Gutierrez of Chula Vista has donated a spectacular, life-sized painting to the tournament. Gutierrez was a first-time sponsor last year and actually fished in it, catching the tournament's fourth-largest fish.

Repashy said Gutierrez's painting of a jumping striped marlin, now on display at a gallery in Encinitas, was listed to sell for $1,200. It will go to the angler who catches the biggest fish of the tournament on Sunday, Repashy said.

"We're stoked that Greg has donated this to the tournament," Repashy said yesterday as he finalized plans for what likely will be the biggest board fishing tournament ever. The yearly tournament drew 76 participants last year, but this year Repashy, owner of SouthSwell, is expecting more, possibly over 100.

"We've had some calls from some board fishermen from Orange County and Ventura County, and they're coming," Repashy said. "There's a lot of interest right now."

Fishing is limited to surf boards only. First boards are allowed in the water at 5 a.m. Weigh-in is at noon.

All of the usual sponsors are on board once again. Patrick Bessie of Pacifically Landscape, one of the founding sponsors, will underwrite the $500 Dash For Cash set for 2 p.m., two hours after the weigh-in and barbecue. First legal sport fish brought back to the beach wins that booty. Baja Bob will do the cooking, along with Don Boyer, new curator of reptiles at the San Diego Zoo.

Repashy also has kicked in a $250 bounty for any legal white seabass that is brought back by one of the boarders. The reward is in honor of the late La Jolla waterman, David Andersen, who died after spearing a 46-pound white seabass off La Jolla. He was found with his spear gun still in his hand, and his line attached to the big white seabass. To pay tribute, Andersen's buddies, including Repashy, ate the tasty seabass at his funeral at Windansea.

The king croakers have been present recently, with kayakers and free divers nailing them off La Jolla. So this could be the year someone wins that $250. In 12 previous years, no board fisherman has weighed in a white seabass, but there have been some tremendous catches of yellowtail, halibut and calico bass, and even a leopard shark won the event one year.

Repashy said he will dearly miss one important member of the tournament crew. His best friend, Thompson Smith, turns 40 along with his twin sister and is going back to Virginia to celebrate.

The success of the tournament has surprised Repashy, who started it as a small outing at the beach for fishermen who like to fish from their surfboards. He gets calls as early as April and May from fishermen who plan their summer vacations so as not to miss the tournament. One angler, Ralph Schlotman, actually rescheduled a company fishing charter with 30 anglers so he could compete on his surfboard on Sunday. There's that kind of passion for this tournament.