10415618_10152311131098786_191238392838700575_nDr. Anthony Martin won first place in the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Cobia Classic Tournament. One hundred boats entered the tournament, and they all had a great time fishing and raising money for the Peninsula YMCA. This year the tournament raised over $15,000 in support of the Peninsula YMCA and its programs.

Dr. Martin is the dentist and owner of Anthony Martin Dentistry, a family and cosmetic dental practice located in Yorktown, VA. Dr. Martin has been fishing since he was a little kid. He can remember his father teaching him and the whole family going out to fish together, so it has always been a part of his life.

“Cobia fishing starts early in the morning,” explains Dr. Martin. “We start out our day at 4a.m. Lines are allowed in the water at 6 a.m., and since it is barely light most anglers start out chumming. At some point in the morning we switch to sight casting, which means we drive around a particular area looking for a fish that commonly cruise the surface. It is a day of fishing filled with not a lot of anything happening, punctuated by intense excitement when a fish is finally spotted and hopefully caught.”

“It’s important to have the right equipment and technique when fishing for Cobia. We had a great team that all worked together to find, cast and land the fish. It is a group effort,” added Dr. Martin. His team members who helped him reel in the big prize included his wife, Dawn Martin, Craig Freeman and Trent Graham.

At the end of the day, the whole team was anxious and nervous to see the final results. They knew they were on the leader board, but were not sure if the their fish’s weight would hold out.

Explaining the experience, Dawn Martin said, “Waiting the last 30 minutes for the last of the fish to be weighed was nerve wracking to say the least. There were some great fishermen in this tournament – some that make their living fishing. Once the last fish was weighed and we were the winners, we were unbelievably excited and proud of our accomplishment.”