Salt Life girl wins Maxim "Hometown Hottie" competition

Salt Life congratulates Dominique Storelli, one of our original Salt Life Girls, for winning Maxim’s 2011 Hometown Hottie competition, a nationwide search for the most beautiful and interesting women! Hailing from Atlantic Beach, FL, Dominique is a student and bartender who loves extreme sports and the Miami Dolphins.

Interesting tidbits: She loves The Godfather and has no tattoos or piercings.

Want to get her look? Check out Salt Life's flirty line of juniors gear, including our Salt Life Ogee Anchor cap tee featured below! 

She lives the Salt Life, do you?  Find out more about Dominique at this link.

Latest fishing photos from Salt Life

Looking for some awesome fishing gear? It may be cold outside but there's never been a better time to get back into the fishing spirit.

Salt Life is a premier fishing outfitter and we have hundreds, nay, thousands of fans sharing their stories every day on websites across the Internet. Want to get involved?

Submit your fishing photos here and check out some of our latest fishing photos below. Then check out Salt Life to get your fishing fix. Live the Salt Life!

Are you excited yet? We thought so. Why not check out Salt Life's newest fishing tee, the Wahoo Boat Long Sleeve, to help ease the wait until warm waters come back.

Sailfishing in South Florida

The wind has been blowing non-stop in south Florida for weeks now causing the ocean to be extremely rough, with small craft advisories almost every single day. After being stuck on land for so long I finally decided to head out anyway to do some kite fishing, at least I knew it would be windy enough to fly the kites. Before we left the dock I cast net some mullet to throw in the live well just incase. We left the dock and headed to the gas dock to fill up and buy a couple dozen goggle eyes and pilchards, from there we headed out Hillsboro inlet.

We ran a little bit south and out to around 120 feet of water and started setting up the kites and put a few flat lines out as well. Within 10 minutes of getting all the baits out we had a double header with 2 nice size sails that we released at the boat. A little while after that we watched a King Fish skyrocket on our far kite bait, and also caught a few skip jack tuna’s. Then the sail bite really turned on, during the next hour and a half we hooked 6 more sails, bringing 4 of them to the boat. After that we decided it was time to head in because it was so rough and 2 of the people on the boat were feeling seasick.
Even though not all of us were feeling so well by the end, we we’re all really happy we went out anyway and had an awesome time catching sails.

Capt. George Cheshier

Get awesome fishing gear at Salt Life !

Hogfish

With winter rapidly approaching we begin to get a bit more hesitant to enter the water. Gone are the days of bikini's and boardshorts for hours on end floating happily in the water unless you are #1 brave enough or #2 smart enough to travel further south for the winter.
This past week just before the onset of the most current chilly weather set itself down upon Florida I was able to sneak out and do some diving to capture some pics that will hopefully carry us through the winter and remind us that there is still something amazing down there below the surface to dream about and we need only grab a wetsuit and grit our teeth a bit to enjoy it.

Check Salt Life's  Hogfish shirt here! Great for the boat.

The first picture is of a mature male Hogfish. These guys are one of the wildest looking fish in the ocean and one of the best eating as well making them a favorite catch from North Carolina to Venezuela. They eat small shrimp and crustaceans and despite their numbers are rarely caught on hook and line so the only way to land them is usually by spearfishing or Fish Traps which have luckily been banned in most places we visit.

They have a few different color phases but this white with black markings is one of the coolest to see so I was lucky to be in the right place and get some good shots before he was on his way.
All these pics were taken while freediving in 45' of water. I was laying on the bottom waiting for the fish to come to me and as you can see from the pics, if you are patient enough they will present themselves proudly displaying their fins and markings to the world.
Amazing fish and one that is a symbol of Spearfishing in Florida. More pics to come.
Cameron Kirkconnell

Salt Patrol Fall Marlin Classic Nov 2011

Salt Patrol congratulates Team Blue Fin for taking the overall win as tournament champions fishing onboard El Tio with 2800 points. Team Blue Fin is the first team to ever win the Fall Marlin Classic twice and also with a back to back win. Way to go guys! We had anglers from England, Germany, Canada, Alaska, Washington and from across the US making this a truly international tournament.

Anglers in the Fall Marlin Classic caught and released close to a hundred marlin in this 3 day event with two blue marlin to 400lbs caught during the tournament. Day one was flat water and hot fishing, with Team Blue Fin and Team Lowrance running neck in neck. Day two the wind picked up, very unusual for early November but our NW & Alaska anglers battled through as it was still anyone’s tournament to win and what the heck, wind, not like that’s an issue back home fishing. The final fishing day was again on some great flat Sea of Cortez water but tougher fishing. All the teams fought it out and it was still great overall catch numbers once again this year.

Here are the final results and we look forward to seeing you all again next November. For More tournament pictures Click Here

Final standings:

1^st Place-Team Blue Fin- 2800 points

2^nd Place-Team Lowrance-1825 points

3^rd Place Team-Bill Fighter-1725 points

Largest Dorado was caught by Jerry Henderson 27lbs

Largest Wahoo was caught by Merca Azghr 37lbs

After the first day of offshore fishing we held our first Shoreline Derby Beach Fishing Competition in front of the resort with 19 anglers taking part.

Results:

1st Place: Mark Douglas

2^nd Place Tie: Dan Groff & Mike Sheridan

Team Tee Shirt Competition was won by: A Trio of English Gentleman

We would also like to thank our 2011 sponsors: Van Wormer Resorts, Salt Life, Lowrance, Scotty, Ballyhood, Kone Zone, Silver Horde, 4 Wheel Parts, Pro-Troll, Snachin Lips Custom Fishing Rods.

Social Media

Hey Salt Lifers,

Follow me through social media for any questions or just to meet up for a session!

www.Twitter.com/MatthewSexton
www.Facebook.com/MrMattySexton

Matt

Handrail w/ Jeff Doran: Behind the shot

I've been spending a lot of time down in Islamorada this year at The Otherside Boardsports Shop. We've been doing alot of work building moldular features used for wakeboarding and kiteboarding. I was down in December and while I was in the shop I got introduced to a mutual friend by the name of Jeff Doran. He is an extremely talented photographer and artist from Savannah, Georgia and was down visiting some family in the keys. We got to talking one night about different shot ideas for kiting and how the pull of the kite allows for a much more diverse style of pictures. Sometimes when the wind isn't strong enough or you just don't feel like staying up wind its fun to cruise down the coastline and hitch hike back or try and catch a ride from some friends. On one of my last downwinders from Whale Harbour to Anne's Beach in Islamorada I came up to the sea wall at an anonymous restaurant in Islamorada and noticed a short hand rail coming down the sea wall onto the flats. I decided to swing into it a couple times and managed to stall on the very top of the rail and even transfer from the windward rail to the leeward which was definitely a bit sketchy. Later that night Jeff and I were sharing a couple beers when I told him about the handrail and he started busting my chops that we should just go hit it right now since he had all his camera gear in his truck. I decided to go for it and hopped straight into the water in my Salt Life baggies and a Flanel (it was pretty chilly). I hit it about a dozen times and came out with some killer shots that ended up getting a full page center fold in Kiteboarding Magazine. Here's one of the shots from the session. Thanks again Jeff for making me charge it and killing it behind the lens!

Youthful Energy

When I was in college I worked with alot of the magazines that circulate around the kiteboarding industry. I was the founder of the Collegiate Kiteboarding Association and I did what I could to provide an easy entry for younger riders into the sport of kiteboarding. Since then i've been approached by a couple magazines about doing stories or providing content. This year during a trip to Guadeloupe in the French Caribbean with my good friend Oliver Berlic, Aaron Sales of Kiteboarding Magazine contacted me about doing a story catching up with what I am doing now that i'm out of college. Here's a copy of the article, thanks to Nikki Stephens for the interview!

France Contest Teasers

Asides from our road trip we did have a main focus during out trip to France and that was to hit up an event called The Slider Party, which was put on by Stance Magazine and a company called Kitaddict. The event was awesome and had some of the best riders around including 5 time World Champion Aaron Hadlow. Along with myself Alex and Sean our buddy Billy Parker also came out and ended up winning the event. I had a couple decent sessions during the warm up but when it came time for my heats I kept judging the wind wrong and ended up on a kite that was too big. I made it through to the finals but in the finals the wind picked up to almost 40 knts and I ended up taking up 6th place. Regardless it was an awesome event and thanks to Ben, Stance, and Kitaddict for putting together an awesome event with great features and killer rider incentives! Here's 2 teaser videos from the beginning of the event!
http://vimeo.com/23924182
http://vimeo.com/24226482

France Road Trip

I've done a couple trips Kiting oversea's but never had a chance to go with a group of friends with the intentions of just filming, kiting, and wakeboarding as much as possible. This year myself, Sean Reyngoudt, and Alex Fox decided to head over to France to meet up with our French buddy and Videographer Benoit Paillard. Ben works for Stance Magazine and wanted to shoot a 30+ minute video part for the Magazine's DVD that they release with every issue. We flew into Paris and traveled all the way down the coast to a town called Barcares where we competed in an event called the Slider Party. The adventure was one of the most fun kite trips I've ever been on and our buddies over at Filibuster Films threw together a couple minute teaser as a promotion for the Trip and the DVD that will soon becoming out from www.StancePlanet.com. Here's the link to the video and follow my buddies on twitter @Fox727 @SeanReyngoudt and @StancePlanet Enjoy!
http://vimeo.com/24131795

RPM Video

For the past five years Slingshot Sports has been one of my top supporters. Slingshot is a company based out of Hood River, Oregon that specializes in making some of the best kiteboarding, wakeboarding, and stand up paddleboarding gear available on the market. I'm lucky enough that after being with the company for 5 years they've given me a sales and marketing position which compliments my schedule travel and riding promoting the gear and the sport. This year they gave us a couple marketing opportunities to create the promo video's for some of our latest gear. This video is for our kite The RPM which is one of the best selling and most versatile
http://vimeo.com/20927597

Bulletproof

Being a kiteboarder means that you live and die by the wind. Living on the Gulf Coast for the past five years that was decent wind but consistency wasn't always there. To make up for it you have a couple options, fish, wakeboard, paddleboard, or endulge in a couple Rum Drinks to pass the time. When your feinding for a good kite session and the winds not there sometimes you have no choice but to chase it. One of my closest friends and main mentors in Kiting is Billy Parker from Saint Pete, Florida. BP is always down to chase some wind or hit up the boat or the cable parks to get in a wakeboard session. This is a little video Bill and I shot over a weekend of riding between Tampa, Saint Pete, and Islamorada. The video was filmed by Bill and I as we hit up McCormick's Cable Park in Tampa, Revolution Cable Park in Fort Meyers, and the flats out in Islamorada. This was one of our first video's playing with Go Pro's and shows some unique POV shots that are tough to get without being out riding next to someone. Thanks to The Otherside Boardsports in Islamorada for putting us up and taking care of my dog Bongo when we're on the water! Enjoy the vid
http://vimeo.com/16489376

Annie and Salt Life

Annie, 53, is leading the big dogs. She is the imbodiment of the Company Salt Life, she does it all and with gusto. Big wave, SUP, waves and racing, kiting and snowboarding. It never ends. A great spirit and role model for young girls and a treat to be around.

She loves the Salt Life Company and has decals all over her car and boards, EVEN THOUGH THEY DON'T SPONSOR HER. Her husband is world famous surfer Mike Doyle and we think some of his knowledge is rubbing off on her. Together they make a great team and quite an influence in the water world market place.

-Salt Life

Sanibel

Put the new bay boat on the trailer and headed out of Jax towards Sanibel. Finally made it, just in time to catch a West coast sunset- a little something different for an East coast boy. What a nice change.

The next morning it was time to find some fish. One of my main sponsors asked me to come down to host three anglers for an inshore tournament. Only one day to pre-fish, no pressure....

Water levels were low and visibility was bad, not the best conditions to chase reds across the flats. We ran 20 miles North to Charlotte Harbor. After spending the morning drifting over miles of flats with no results- my girlfriend and I decided to change the plan and just have some fun. We ran out of Boca Grande Pass and saw

schools of Spanish and Jacks crashing baits across the surface. We quickly tied on a couple of MirroLure top waters and for the next hour, had all the action we could handle.

We decided to anchor up close to shore and take a dip. Man, that salt water feels good. The boat doesn't look bad from the waterline either.

These beaches are famous for a variety of shells, so we decided to take a look. We weren't disappointed- I don't know all the names of every shell, but they were all cool, we even found an intact sand dollar.

After another swim back to the boat we decided to run on the outside home. Feeling the breeze and watching the birds...

On tournament day, my crew decided they wanted to just have fun, and not necessarily go after the win. So we did! The fish were chewing, and they weren't picky. Top waters, spoons, twitch baits, all caught fish. After sight fishing all day, the mission of fun was definitely accomplished.

Long day of fishing- time to put the boat on the trailer and head North. We have the Full of Bull tomorrow and 5 hours of road ahead. Lots to do...

Oh yeah, we won the tournament too...

Livin the Salt Life.

Slimy 5's,

Capt Don

Fishing the St John's for Reds

Every year from labor day to Halloween, I run charters chasing big bull redfish in the St Johns River. Even though my heart is in the blue water, these trips are pretty special. It's got everything you could want in a great fishing trip- lots of big fish, easy to get to, fun to catch, etc.

Countless memories... From kids catching their first fish, to Grandpas catching the biggest fish of their lives, happens each Fall on my boat. This year was no different- from annual regulars who return every year, to a group that has never experienced the tug of a bull red on the line, it feels more like a reunion of family and friends out on the water for me than fishing charters, this time of year.

This year's run was average- with afternoons of 20+ fish from 25-50lbs common. Throw in a few teenage black drum and that makes for an awesome day on the water.

I use heavy tackle in order to respect the fish, and ensure a healthy release. 30lb mainline tied to a 60lb leader. Use half of a fresh blue crab on an 8/0 Eagle Claw circle hook, soaked on the bottom. The reds are in huge schools, so 3 to 4 fish hooked up at once is a regular occurrence.

Talk about fun! It's usually a trip where even the oldest anglers act like kids again. These trips bring me back to my roots and keep me grounded.

Watching the sunset every afternoon on the St Johns and taking people to catch reds until their arms hurt from reeling- is my Salt Life.

Slimy 5's

Capt Don

2011 Flounder Pounder presented by Salt Life

Anglers competed in the 2nd Annual Flounder Pounder presented by Salt Life on October 22nd at Fort George island Marina. This tournament raised money to help support the Jacksonville School for Autism. Salt life is proud to be the presenting sponsor and wants to thank everyone who participated in this tournament.

2nd Annual Flounder Pounder winners are:

BIG FISH:
FIrst Place Winner $1500 ~ Rick Thacker 8.29
Second Place Winner $750 ~ Ray McCauley 5.89
Third Place Winner $500 ~ Randy Kight 5.67
Fourth Place Winner $350 ~ Robert Dykes 5.47
Fifth Place Winner $200 ~ Rich Kersey 5.45

3 FISH AGGREGATE:
FIrst Place Winner $1500 ~ David Merry 15.42
Second Place Winner $750 ~ Ben Dodd 14.03
Third Place Winner $500 ~ Bill Kelly 12.81
Fourth Place Winner $350 ~ Kevin Mears 12.68
Fifth Place Winner $200 ~John English 12.38

Jr. ANGLER:
FIrst Place Winner ~ Ross Kersey 5.45
Second Place Winner ~ Tony Eden 4.68 (JA First Name?)
Third Place Winner ~ Chris Bunting 4.17 (JA First Name ?)

HEAVIEST TOAD FISH:
Mike Mango 2.10
Wins 1 sandwich a week for a year from Angie's Subs

Congratulations to all of the winners!

-Salt Life

http://www.saltlife.com/

http://www.jsakids.org/

http://flounderpounderjax.com/results.htm

Costa 2

Waves crashing on the beach from a building swell, traveling all the way across the Pacific... A fresh cup of Tican coffee, "Si, con leche, por favor." there is nothing like waking up in Costa. A couple hours in the water, now it's time to check in with old friends. This part of Costa Rica is like home away from home for me. There are things here I always have to cross off my list when I get here: Caliche's tuna poke in Jaco, smoothies, fresh fried chicken, pastries, coffee, rice and beans, diving, surfing, fishing.... So what's next? After hearing about it from two friends that have lived there for over twenty years, I decided I had to check out some secret local waterfalls. Armed with a detailed hand drawn map (if you ever get Tican directions, you know they might not be entirely accurate, everyone just assumes you will get there. "Just keep going... don't be scared of the road, Don" seems to accompany most of the directions) we set off in search of the waterfalls. After saying "is this it?" 50 times, we pulled into a driveway. We knew we needed to pay the lady to park in her yard, turns out the price is double for gringos. She points out into the cow field and went back inside. We turned and followed the trail to a fork.... One side was a road, the other a cow trail. We stood there for a few moments looking lost. > "Have you guys been here before? Are you going to the waterfalls?". We turn around and I see a blond girl in a bikini and cowboy hat. She says "You can follow us to the waterfalls." It felt like I was in that scene from "Turistas." but we didn't know where we were going, so we decided to chance it and follow her and her friends. > "It's too muddy for flip flops, take them off, watch out for cow patties and the spiky plants." she points out the local plant that reacts to movement by wilting and growing razor sharp spikes. After a mile and a half of twisting trails and every terrain, we finally get to the waterfalls. A beautiful three tiered waterfall with deep pools in the middle of nowhere, all to ourselves.

Gotta love Costa...Slimy 5's,

Capt Don

Costa

Finally, my plane lands in San Jose, Costa Rica. Bags, check. Rental car, check. Over the mountains to the Pacific Central. Anytime you have someone new in Costa on the road to Jaco you have to make a stop at the croc bridge. Even though it's the start of the rainy season and the water was high, there were still a few monster crocs around, hanging out on the bank.

Oh yeah, one more thing before we hit the road again- a fresh, chilled coconut. They chopped the top off with a machete and stuck in a straw, 1,000 colones, now onto the beach.
Note to Self: There is something about being in a Tican rental car with full coverage insurance that might lead to slightly more aggressive driving behavior. We were headed to Los Suenos, but after that flight I had to see some salt water, so we stopped by the beach, just to take a look. Next stop is Wishbone's for a huge bowl of tuna poke....After a good night's sleep it's time to fish! We met my good friend Capt Dana Thomas on the "Hoo's Your Daddy" at Los Suenos Marina with all our gear ready for a new adventure! Something about pulling out of Los Suenos... it's one of those "no where in the world" kinda' places....We've shot quite a few episodes over the years with Dana. Big sails, Marlin, triple tail, tuna, deep dropping... but today was all about just having fun and fishing. Our anglers Joshua and are ready! We jigged some runners and put the lines out by the island of Tortuga... It wasn't long before we had a nice Roosterfish boat side!
Over the next couple of hours... nice sized cero mackeral and jacks kept the lines tight.
Capt Dana suggested we take a break and head to Tortuga for some fresh ocean oysters... An older guy in a small panga pulls along boat side and begins to prepare fresh ceviche in the shell...Good Stuff! I can still taste them... (gotta' get back there!)

After a short swim and stroll on the island it was time to climb back abourd the Hoo's your Daddy and head home. Good day of fishing with old and new friends in paradise.....my kind of day....Livin the Salt Life...

Slimy 5's,

Capt Don

Fishing with Salt Life Captain Don Dingman

It's been a couple of weeks since the King Buster 400. Today I am scrolling through the pictures, realizing the deep impact and positive memories that are a result of this event. I guess I'm a little biased as the Brian Dingman Memorial Junior Angler Tournament was named after my son who passed in 2004.

Watching ten-year-old Alan Damon and his family bringing their huge kingfish to the scales with even bigger smiles brought back vivd memories of the days Brian and I were racing to the scales with his big catch. You know, when you are out on the water with your kids its funny how your job, their homework, the chores- they never come up. That's what makes sharing the salt life so special. A bond that can't be broken.