SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) - Sport anglers fishing off the coast of San Clemente reeled in what is believed to be the largest bluefin tuna ever caught on the west coast on Tuesday.
It took the 1 hour and 45 minutes, and help from the entire M/V Ranger 85 crew, for angler Joe Roder to reel in the 345.5-pound beast. The tuna weighed just over 100 pounds more than the previous record and is believed to be the largest sport-caught bluefin tuna on rod and reel in the west coast.
Cell phone video from aboard shows one of the crew members howling with pride as the rest catch their breath and stare in amazement at their record catch.
"It's awesome," Roder said. "Like I said, it's a once-in-a-lifetime fish. You can't really put too many words to it."
The crew arrived at H&M Landing in Point Loma at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning to a large celebratory crowd. The fish was hung upside down for a group photo before it was laid on its side for a Gyotaku nature print, a custom that dates back to mid-1800s Japan that involved rubbing fish down with ink or colored substance and printing its silhouette on a white sheet so that fishermen could record their catches.
Roder said he plans on keeping some of the meat for himself and giving away the rest.
Ranger 85 Sportfishing captain Robert Gray was just as excited about the catch as Roder was.
"We could not be more stoked on the results that we ended up with this massive 345-pound bluefin tuna caught on 130-pound test," Gray said. "Fish of a lifetime, for sure."
The sportfishing company told News 8 that last week its boats caught 60 bluefin tuna in between 130 and 180 pounds.