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Elmo Horine Pensacola legend

Bob Keyes
(@bob-keyes)
Eminent Member

I fished with Elmo for 2 1/2 years in the mid 70s what a character.
One of the most productive shark fishermen of all time Was Elmo Horine of Pensacola Fl, Over a span of about 10 years he put over 650 sharks on the sand in the Pensacola/Navarre beach area, I am proud to say he was a friend.

I was in the navy at the time, poor as a churchmouse. I had hitchhiked from the base to Pensacola Beach with a packframe with a pack bag and tacklebox on the frame and a squidder and spinning rod strapped to it with bungee cords, I was carrying a 12/0 too. Someone took me to Pickins and said that was where people would fish for sharks there,good enough for me.

As I walked up the pier I saw people catching piggy perch by the buckets, a good sign, I set all my gear down and started rigging up the squidder planning on grabbing up one of those piggy perch and fishing for some bait. Before I got the leader tied on an older man, wearing grey work pants, a blue pocket T-shirt and a "Thirston Howell cap" walked up and asked, "What are you gonna do with that big rod and reel?" My reply was " Fish for sharks, once I can catch some bait" The old man grunted something, shrugged his shoulders and wandered off. I finished rigging up grabbed a piggy perch when I heard a thump behind me like someone has dropped something on the pier, it was a frozen bonito about 2' long. There was that old man with a big smile on his face, "No sense wasting time fishing for bait, you think this will work, my name is Elmo Horine"

What an introduction to the man who became my mentor, Elmo came from central Indiana where he worked as a steeplejack during his career he fell twice and walked away from it, then wound up in a wheelchair after falling a total of 8" from a stool at home. He was on 2 "dead man" pensions and could not work and earn any money at all. Shark fishing is what got him back on his feet. As he told it he went through doctors in wholesale quantities, when one would tell him he would never walk again he would "fire" the doctor and start over. At last Elmo found a doctor who was as pigheaded as he was, the doctor told him that he was not going to tell a man that determinedto walk again that he couldn't. He did tell him that it would take time, how much he didn't know, but when it happened it would be a surprise to everyone. Elmo took him at his word and went fishing. He was on Navarre pier one afternoon and had a shark grab his kingfish hook itself and the fight was on. Elmo said,"Here I was fighting the fish in the corner of the pier and looked around and the chair was over by the back rail. I was so shocked that I lost it, fish, rod,reel, the whole shootin' match over the side into the gulf. I walked over to that chair, picked it up, and threw it into the water! Took me 3 hours to fish the damn thing back out, I had just bought it, cost me $300 and I was going to get my money back,"

Over the next 2 years we fished together and I spent a lot if my free time when we weren't fishing at his house I helped him build a new front room on his house, carried sea store cigaretts and coffee to him from the Lex. This was also my most productive time and I put a lot of fish on the sand.

I have been talking with William about him for a while now. We are trying to locate pictures and other information. Any one who has photos etc. can let either of us know and we will get it posted. As I get my thoughts together I will post them on this thread.

Bob

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Topic starter Posted : 02/19/2011 1:12 pm
Anonymous
(@anonymous)
Prominent Member Guest

Mr. Keyes,

My grandmother was married to Elmo. She recently passed on 12/27, and while going through all her pictures we found so many of elmos pictures with his sharks!! Please email me at tiffanykembro@yahoo.com and I will get those for you!!

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Posted : 01/04/2022 9:51 pm
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