News

May 10, 2023

`JAWS’ IN VA.? DON’T WORRY, SAYS SHARK EXPERT

More than anything, John Thurston was embarrassed. Here he was, one of the top

More than anything, John Thurston was embarrassed. Here he was, one of the top shark fishermen on the East Coast and holder of several Virginia records, waiting for the small dusky shark he had boated to let go of his thumb.

"He just laid there with my thumb in his mouth," Thurston recalled during last Tuesday's talk to the Peninsula Salt Water Sport Fisherman's Association monthly meeting. "When he started relaxing, I just eased my thumb out."

Thurston returned to port, secured his boat, then drove himself to the hospital for stitches. To him, it was an offshore sharking trip that had a hassle ending. The episode didn't tarnish his 30-year romance with the ocean's most perfect predator. He just wrote it off as the painful result of getting careless.

Thurston has tagged and released more than 600 sharks. In 1981 he caught a 1,099-pound, 12-ounce tiger shark, the largest fish ever landed in Virginia. He was instrumental in the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament dividing its shark records into 17 species categories – more than two dozen species are found off the Virginia coast.

He knows sharks are highly-developed predators that avoid human contact as much as possible. He also knows man's seek-and-destroy fascination with the animals started with a movie.

"Jaws," which was released more than a decade ago, is about a great white that terrorizes a New England resort town. It attacks swimmers and sinks boats with relentless savagery.

"When Peter Benchley wrote that script, he took a complete series of shark attacks and made it look like one shark did it," Thurston explained. "That movie was really far-fetched."

But it generated the seek-and-destroy fascination. For months after the movie appeared in Hampton Roads, Thurston would receive calls from people "who wanted to go out and kill some sharks." Thurston, who charters shark fishing trips, sometimes would politely decline. Other times he would try to explain sharks posed no real danger. Other times he would vent his disgust.

In Virginia, he said, there is little reason to worry about shark attacks. "There has been only one documented attack," he said.

The attack happened several years ago. A young man named Chris Ford was gigging blue crabs from the surf in the Sandbridge section of Virginia Beach. A 5-foot black tip clamped down on Ford's arm, near the elbow.

"Chris was asking for trouble," Thurston said. "That day there was a heavy surf and Chris was in waist-deep water. There was a menhaden boat trawling right off the beach, which in essence was creating a chum slick. The crabs Chris was spearing were bleeding – their blood is a clear fluid – in the water.

"This shark got into this heavy surf … sharks realize in that situation they’ve got to grab a bait right away. If they don't, they’ll have to start looking for food all over again. I feel like the sun reflected off Chris’ elbow and the shark struck. As soon as Chris stood up, the shark realized what he had and let go."

Despite how quickly the attack happened, the damage was immense. Ford spent more than a year in therapy, trying to get the tendons and muscles working, regaining the strength and coordination needed to open and close his hand.

"So you’ve got to realize most of these sharks have large mouths and five to seven rows of teeth," Thurston said. "If they do bite you, they’re going to do some damage."

He acknowledged there are fishermen who "don't want to have anything to do with sharks." No problem. Some people won't touch a catfish or an eel.

Several years ago Thurston was chartered by a doctor who wanted to catch a shark. The doctor invested in custom rods and deluxe reels. Off they went.

Thurston was busy with something when the doctor started stammering "shark." Thurston looked up and saw a basking shark cruising in the slick. "It was huge," Thurston said. "It looked like a bus with a tail on it."

It was so big the doctor was spooked. He wanted to go back to port. Thurston told him not to worry, that basking sharks eat plankton, not meat. The doctor demanded to be taken back to port.

Once there, the doctor's wife asked about the trip. The doctor explained the huge fish they saw. "John said it eats plants," the doctor said, adding if that was the plant eater he wasn't about to hang around for the one that eats meat.

Those who do want to fish for sharks should prepare carefully and exercise reasonable precautions.

Heavy tackle and the right tools to cut that tackle free if something goes wrong are vital. "We use double strands of piano wire, or aircraft cable" and 13/0 hooks, he said. "All of us carry bolt cutters or a good pair of lineman's pliers that will cut through that material. If the leader wraps around something, or the hook sticks where you don't want it, you have to be able to cut the shark free quickly."

Thurston either drifts or anchors and chums for sharks. His preferred chum is freshly-ground fish – bluefish, tuna, menhaden, etc. One of the biggest keys to chumming is making sure the slick is continuous, he said. "When you have breaks in it, the fish will get to the break and stop. You can't get them all the way to your boat."

Thurston's favorite sites are offshore places that provide cover – offshore wrecks and dropoffs, buoys and reefs.

He seldom fishes the Chesapeake Bay, although that's where he started his shark fishing career. "Don't get me wrong," he said. "There are some large sharks in the bay. It's the spawning ground for dusky sharks. These are large animals, 700-800 pounds. But to me, there's too much boat traffic. I like to get out there by myself, where I don't have anybody cutting my chum slick in half."

SHARK TIPS

During his 30-year fishing career, John Thurston of Virginia Beach has developed techniques that he says add up to the fastest and safest way to fish for sharks.

* TACKLE: Thurston uses a 9/0 Penn Senator reel spooled with 80-pound test Dacron line. "Dacron won't stretch as much as monofilament," he explained. "That gives you much better hook-setting ability." The stretch in monofilament is an advantage when the shark is close to the boat, however. "If the fish makes a lunge, monofilament will stretch. Dacron will break. So you have a better chance of keeping him on."

Thurston's preferred rod is a 6- or 7-foot stand-up rod. Those rods were developed on the West Coast. West Coast boats have high sides, or gunwales, that make the use of fighting chairs almost impossible. Rods long enough to reach over the sides were developed that allowed anglers to fish while standing up.

* RIGS: Use a leader at least as long as the shark you hope to catch. International Game Fish Association regulations allow leaders up to 30 feet long. Braided aircraft cable is popular with some shark fishermen. Thurston has gone to double strands of piano wire because "I think it gets between their teeth so they can't chew on it. I’ve seen them chew through the cable." He uses a two-part leader connected by a stainless steel screw and yoke. If he needs to leave the hook and leader in the fish, he unscrews the bottom portion. Hooks are 12/0-15/0.

* BAIT: Almost any kind of fish chunks or whole fish will work, as long as they are fresh. Some of the favorites are false albacore, tuna heads, bluefish, and small skates.

* OTHER: Because he releases most of his fish, Thurston uses a tail rope instead of a gaff. A metal ring is used to create a loop in the rope. The loop is gently lowered over the shark's tail and then the tail is hoisted out of the water. "I’m not a very big man, but I’ve tail-roped 1,000-pounders," Thurston said. "I don't care what kind of fish you’re after, if you get his tail out of the water he's helpless."

Other gear includes bolt-cutters or lineman's pliers. "You want something that will cut through the barb on the hooks," he said. "When these fish get to thrashing around, that hook can go into somebody or something. You want something that will cut the hook as quickly as possible."

A gimbal belt is a necessity. The belt has a cup in the front with a gimbal bolt in it. The butt of stand-up rods are made to fit over the gimbal bolt. Thurston also recommends a shoulder harness, which will help take the strain off from your arms.

Another necessity is a pair of heavy work gloves. Without them, handling the steel leaders is impossible.

* THE CATCH: Thurston keeps a buoy on his anchor rope. When he hooks up with a shark, he frees the anchor line. "Then I just let the shark pull the boat," he said. "What I do after that is crank the boat to the shark instead of the shark to the boat. When you finally get the shark beat, he’ll just swim along side the boat. If you can't release him, or get him into the boat, and he takes off again, don't worry about it. Crank him back and try it again." While chumming, keep a small rod or two handy. "You’ll get about everything that swims up in your chum slick."

* SAFETY TIPS: Never fish alone. It takes at least two people to handle sharks. When handlining in the leader, make sure you drop what you’ve recovered into the water and not into the boat. If the fish makes a lunge, the leader won't wrap around your feet or gear. Take your time during the landing stage. Losing a fish is better than bringing one into the boat that is still of fight. Always keep your cutters handy in case of problems.

* REGULATIONS: Virginia anglers are allowed one shark per day.

* CITATIONS: The Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament offers two citations. Sharks weighing at least 200 pounds qualify for kill citations. Sharks measuring at least 72 inches long qualify for release citations.

STATE RECORDS

Species Weight Year Angler

Blacktip 76-10 1988 John Thurston

Blue 266-0 1987 Wayne C. DeFord

Bull 256-0 1982 Craig Paige

Dusky 673-0 1982 Mike Halperin

Great

Hammerhead 430-0 1984 Ronald Ault

Scalloped

Hammerhead 245-0 1977 Don Lips

Smooth

Hammerhead 272-0 1988 Carolyn Matthews

Lemon 312-12 1976 Bill Walker

Mako 728-0 1983 Geoffrey Newbill

Sandbar 213-0 1986 Bill Moffett

Sand Tiger 339-0 1983 Kelly Capps

Silky 110-0 1977 Gary Seay

Spinner 129-8 1991 John Patton II

Thresher 115-4 1980 Tommy Hall

Tiger 1,099-12 1981 John Thurston

White 131-0 1981 Fred Williams

SHARK JAWS

How to preserve shark jaws

* 1. Shark jaws are cartilage, not bone. They have to be hand-picked clean. If you try to boil them, the teeth will fall out and the jaws will eventually dissolve.

* 2. A container with a lid, such as an old cooler, comes next. Add enough water to cover the jaws, two cups of bleach, and three pints of hydrogen peroxide. The solution will foam away particles of meat, etc., and turns the jaws white. The process will take 4-6 hours.

* 3. Rinse the jaws well with water.

* 4. Empty and clean the cooler. Refill it with clean water and 1-1 1/2 gallons of formaldehyde. Cover tightly and store away from children, pets, etc., for 30 days.

* 5. Rinse the jaws well and set them in the desired position. Allow to dry for 2-3 days. Make sure you keep out of direct sunlight.

* 6. Coat 8-10 times with a non-yellowing polyurethane. Deft, a commercial product found in paint and hobby stores, does an excellent job.

Source: Peninsula Salt Water Sport Fisherman's Association newsletter.

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