[Sticky] S Beach pier memories of Rene,Jimbo/Jd,Dave by George Games

Sent to me on May 9th 2013 this story is well written and puts the reader right back there at South Beach pier and describes Rene and all around him to the tee.Thanks to George Games for the memories and for taking the time to mail it to us to share with the rest of you all.

By George Games 5/9/2013

My early 70’s South Beach pier stories.
My family moved from NJ to Miami Beach in late 71. We moved into an apt. on 4th street between Collins and Washington Ave, and stayed there a year – that one story bldg is no longer there. I enrolled in Ida M. Fischer Jr. High and continued to Miami Beach High in Sept. of 72. I have many fond memories of that time, many involving time at the pier. For most of that year I fished, weekdays after school and weekends at the pier, whenever I wasn’t snorkeling out on the versatile and colorful shallow reef that used to exist before the dredging (may it RIP). Looking back, the time was kind of magical (of course); we get more nostalgic as we grow older.
With time I got to know the regular fishermen and shark fishermen. The one I was able to befriend was Rene; most likely because he was approx my age (three years older). I’m now 55; Rene would have been about 58 now. I recall another fellow, named Jimbo (with long blondish hair), there was a Dave (the “senior”….stout, a mustache somewhat out of control, untrimmed to a certain degree, full of swagger and some arrogance, with his outsized 12/0 reel which loomed large all the time – you couldn’t help but be impressed with that reel) who would spend countless hours on the pier, just as Rene did. Unlike the others though Rene was frenetic and obsessed 24/7! At that time I don’t think Rene had anything larger than a 6/0; he was only in his late teen years and probably couldn’t have afforded anything larger. I still recall him using his rods “backwards”; with the right handed reel and rod under his right armpit and reeling in with his right hand – a bit uncomfortable I always thought. Anyway….
During that first year I couldn’t afford the Penn Squidder, which was the choice reel (I recall it cost about 50 dollars at the time – a hefty amount for a pre-high school kid), so I settled for a black look-a-like that cost if I recall correctly about $28, or maybe it was $14, still a respectable amount for a teen. Don’t recall the brand; I had some minor trouble with it sometime later (a piece of junk in hindsight I must say). Anyway, after that first year we moved up to 71st on Normandy Isle but I did return to the pier for some more fishing every so often. Later, I did get a Squidder and wow, what a difference; a prized possession for fishing from the pier. Smooth, accurate, well worth the 50 dollars. I combined it with a nice one pc tubular surf rod and WOW, I could easily cast a line a bit over what seemed like a hundred yards – unbelievable distances consistently. I was always impressed at the distances I could launch an 8 ounce sinker and bait.
Anyway, the following moments are likely from that first year spent afternoons and weekends in 1972 when I was constantly there, as were the shark fishermen.
Moments I still recall somewhat vividly:
Hooking into a small blue runner, while elsewhere you could hear Rene bemoaning not having any bait for his shark fishing. As soon as he found out I hooked into one, he immediately laid claim to it; reserved it so to speak. “George, that’s mine; I need it” he would say. I was fishing from the north side of the pier, somewhat back from the end of the pier, probably about 1/3 from the end of the pier, in the area where there was a fence behind you (when you were facing the water), and no sooner did the blue runner come over the concrete wall, Rene came running (in his barefeet – as usual), and still explaining he needed it, justifying his actions, he unhooked it and ran off with it. Don’t recall if he caught anything with it though. I was initially aggravated but realized that blue runners were no good to eat anyhow, so I probably got over it quickly.
Another moment. One afternoon when Jimbo landed a 5 to 6 foot Tarpon. He beached it (I’m thinking on the south side) and dragged it back onto the pier. I recall marveling at the size of the scales – 4 to 5 inches in diameter. That was the only Tarpon I had ever seen caught there – an unusual catch that soon attracted many onlookers.
One early evening when Dave hooked into a large hammerhead. I think it was dark already....he had no live bait so as a last resort took a previously caught “ladyfish” that looked half dried and hard, cut it in half, baited the hook and literally swung the bait around a couple of times, to gain speed and momentum, released it, and out it went. Later in the evening, though not too much later, his reel started whizzing, he was elsewhere and started running towards his reel, then planted the hook. It wasn’t too long after that that he had what was probably a 10 to 11 foot slender hammerhead alongside the south side of the pier, close to the end of the pier; the shark creating a ruckus while trying to escape. It was decided to gaff it, so they lowered a gaff. Dave had given the rod to someone else I believe and he did the gaffing. Well, he ended up gaffing the shark towards the tail and the shark started to whip his tail around. In the process of holding the line (and the whipping of the tail and gaff line) Dave’s hand(s) jerked down and hit the top of the concrete retaining wall and I believe broke his hand. At that point I believe he had to hand landing of the shark over to someone else. His hand was either broken or seriously damaged.
Recall with less vividness other bull sharks caught every so often.
As I mentioned in our phone conversation some weeks ago I was there when Dave hooked into a very large shark one evening. The bait may have been rowed out a great distance, though that part is foggy about. Anyway, after about 4 hours of fighting he was still nowhere close to landing it (you couldn’t see the shark yet from the pier at the point) and I had to leave to go home - it was a weekday as I believe I had to go to school the next day. Afterwards I recall people saying it was about a 14 foot hammerhead.
A favorite (of all of us “pros”) was when we’d see someone fishing who was holding their rods incorrectly; i.e. a spinning reel hanging up, instead of down. We called them ‘tourist”. We had fun with that often. We’d look around and spot one and alert the others….”look at that tourist”, and laugh. I still recall Dave muttering under his breath ‘tourist” when he had some kind of altercation with one; maybe it was when he asked for the persons’ fish to use as shark bait and the person refused him.
I recall Rene being barefoot most of the time, his feet were flat (no arches) - he was in a perpetual state of dishevelment, suntanned to the max, but he didn’t care – solely focused on his fishing. But every now and then when he wasn’t already there, he would show up clean cut, showered, etc., and looked out of place, it was funny. I probably busted his chops about it. May he rest in peace.
So, these are my stories from the wonderful South Beach Pier; may it rest in peace as well.

George Games