926-Pound Mako Shark Caught in New Jersey Breaks Record
A 926-pound Mako shark was caught by cruisers aboard the fishing boat called Jenny Lee last Saturday, July 22. The almost 1000-pound sea predator that was caught appears to have broken a New Jersey record.
NJ reported that Matt Lockett, Nick Rondinella, Bill Miccio, Steve Miccio, Mark Miccio, Matt Miccio and Matt Locket — headed by Capt. Kevin Gerrity and Dave Bender — were the people aboard the Jenny Lee when the record-breaking Mako shark was caught.
The crew was searching the waters 100 miles off the coast of New Jersey around the Hudson Canyon. After waiting an hour, the Mako shark caught their bait.
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"It's a pretty awesome feeling. We saw him swimming up to the boat. We didn't think we were going to get him but we got him," Gerrity said.
The captain also joked that they got the Mako shark "with a skipjack fillet with a squid combo as his last meal."
It took Gerrity and his crew an hour and a half to bring the Mako shark aboard the Jenny Lee.
In a post on Facebook, Bender shared praise for Gerrity's determination and hard work in catching the Mako shark. He also said that Gerrity deserves all the credit for catching their record-breaking shark.
"He has waited 35 years for todays moment. Every night offshore for the last ten years he puts out a shark rod, and every night I tell the customers, 'We aint gonna catch no mako.' Kevins passion and persisitance has paid off today for a fish of a lifetime... I salute you cap you deserve this fish!" Bender said in the post.
Before the 926-pound Mako shark, the record weight for the biggest shark captured in New Jersey was an 880-pound tiger shark. The tiger shark was caught by Billy DeJohn off the coast of Cape May, according to New Jersey government records.
The record-breaking catch of the Jenny Lee crew was also featured on the Hoffman's Marina Facebook page.
