RPBIC is the most prestigious billfish fishing competition in Malaysia and since its inception in 2004, has attracted teams from all over the world, each with one goal in mind, catching, tagging and releasing the magnificent billfish in the waters off Rompin.

Being a fly angler, I have been chasing the Rompin sailfish since 2020 and the thrill of hooking and landing one has never ceased to excite me. Chasing these magnificent fish has been on my bucket list since I first heard about their acrobatic jumps and blistering runs which could reach 110km/h. James Isaac was instrumental in helping me land my first sail on fly.

Every year without fail, we will book Capt Steven Chong’s boat for our rendezvous with the Rompin sails. With the pandemic closing the borders, we were lucky to be still able to fish locally. Having booked our slot for 17-18 Sept 2022, without knowing that the RPBIC would be held, we were busy tying flies, preparing our fly fishing gear for our annual sailfish pilgrimage. Later, we learnt that the competition would be held and we decided to give it a go. Having only landed one sailfish on conventional gear prior to this, it was a foolhardy decision.

With our usual sailfish comrades, a team was formed and after much brainstorming, Blue Water Anglers came into being. James, Clevin, Nic and I made up the team and with Capt Steven as the skipper, we were in good hands. We registered for the event 5 days before the closing date and from then it was a chaotic rush to get our gears ready. Rod and reels were sourced to supplement whatever basic gear we had and Boon Cheng came to our rescue by loaning us some top quality gear from Penn and Abu Garcia.

We arrived at Rompin Beach Resort (RBR) on a very wet Friday afternoon. The unusual thunderstorm was not expected and it caused concern for the next two days of competition. Rain was forecast for the weekend and rough sea condition was expected. But from the excited faces of the participants and confident demeaner of the organizers, all looked good. Fishing would be competitive and fun, rain or no rain.

After registering our team and collecting our goodie bags, we headed to our homestay, a comfortable two-storey house with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. It was perfect for the 4 of us. You know this is a homestay for anglers when you see a large chest freezer on the porch and rod holders in the living room.

Dinner was at the famous Rompin Baru Restaurant and the highlight of our meal was the Sizzling Hot Plate Squid, which happened to be in season during this time. After dinner, we were back at the homestay for some last minute preparations. FG knots were retied with fresh leaders, equipment was checked and rechecked. Contents of tackle box were recounted to make sure everything we need for the competition was there. It was going to be hard to sleep that night!!

We were up at 6 am and within minutes all our gear was loaded and we headed out for our Nasi Dagang breakfast, a traditional meal that consists of bonito cooked in thick curry sauce, riced steamed with coconut milk and pickle vegetable added to the side. It is one meal I would not miss when I am on the East coast of Peninsular Malaysia.

We arrived at the jetty slightly after 7 to meet Capt Steven. His boat was park a short distance away from the event jetty. A short 5 minutes cruise, we arrived and went ashore to collect our tags and boat stickers. We also had a draw to select our marshal for the day. A fine gentleman by the name of Mizal, who is always ready with a smile.

While waiting for the flag off, our anticipations rose. I still could not believe that we were actually part of the RPBIC. Boats were lined up and the captains were in their pilot seat, participants looking at each other, sizing up the competition. This year there were only a total of 14 teams and some came as far as India, Australia, Singapore and of course the host country, Malaysia.

The siren sounded and the we were off! We were speeding towards the FAD, locally known as the “unjang”. The first order of the day was to fill up the live bait well. Multi hook jigs or better known as Apollo jigs were set up. The plan was to have 3 anglers jigging for baitfish and one to remove the hook. Every minute counted and when we sensed the boat slowing down, we all jumped into action. There was no time for small talk and jokes. Even fishing for baitfish was stressful.

After 30 minutes, Capt Steven looked at the live well and said, “ Ok. Enough. We head out now.” I estimated that there were an approximate 30 or so fish in the live well.

The first spot was about an hour and a half away. Fishing for sailfish is like a gamble. If the sailfish are at the predicted spot, you would have a good catch, but if they are not, then it was time wasted travelling. Moving about to find fish is time consuming and will cost you the chance at catching them. Competition like this depends on luck as much as skills. Having a knowledgeable and skillful captain is essential. Half the battle is won when you have the right Captain and Captain Steven is one of the most sought after captain for sailfish in Rompin.

On the way to the sailfish grounds, we had a strategy planning and everyone had a clear idea of what to do. As we were approaching our fishing ground, we all scanned the distance to look for birds. Hovering birds was a sign that there was a baitfish ball near the surface. Having the spotted the bait ball was just one part of the hunt. The experienced captain would then see if there were sailfish harassing the bait ball. May times, there were no sails, only dorado or bonito. Casting to these bait ball would be a waste of time. On a typical competition day, we only had 8 hours of fishing and that was of inclusive of travelling and catching baitfish.

“Sailfish! 12 o’clock!” We ran to the bow of the boat and cast out life bait towards the commotion. Within seconds, the free swimming bait was taken and line was shooting out of the reel. First it was Clevin’s rod. He waited and had to resist the urge to strike as we were all using circle hooks. In this competition, only a single circle hook was allowed. The hook should hook the fish at the corner of their mouth, minimizing injury to the fish.

Sensing the time was right, he closed the bale arm and started to fight the fish. All as planned but lady luck has other plans for us. His line went slack and the atmosphere on the boat turned from excitement to utter disappointment. Losing the first fish of the day was a big deal. Without dwelling on the loss, we all baited up and cast to the school. The sailfish were in a frenzy and soon we were all hooked up and fighting the acrobatic sails. We were all focused on fighting our own fish, determined to bring the fish in as fast as possible.

James’s fish jumped close to the boat and in that instant, a hook flew out of its mouth and with a splash, the fish bade us farewell. I was determined not to let this happen to me. I fought the fish carefully, holding on tight when the fish was running and lowering the rod when it was jumping. All textbook technique to fight a sailfish. The reel was screaming and the fish jumped again, 50 feet away from the boat. With each jumped, I prayed that the fish would still remain attached. I managed to catch a glimpse of Clevin and Nic fighting their fish, serious and determined to land their sails. Nic had just landed his first sailfish two weeks ago on the same boat. I prayed to every god I knew that his experience would help him land his fish. Then tragedy truck! My line went limp! That was the most gut wrenching feeling any angler would have. I had lost my fish! There was no time to feel sorry for myself. I kept my rod and heaped encouragement to my teammates. They fought like seasoned pro and the Capt Steven was doing what he does best: maneuvering the boat to help the anglers land their fish. Clevin was the first to land his fish. James expertly grabbed the bill and passed the fish to Clevin to have his photo taken for catch confirmation. There was no celebration and we focused our attention to Nic’s fish. With the same professionalism, the fish was landed, photo taken and released. The line was cut instead to minimize the time the fish was hooked.

Without wasting time, Capt Steven went to search for another flock of birds and soon we were in action again. Within a short span of time, we were all hooked on to a sailfish. In was total mayhem. At this point, it was every man for himself. The captain would only be able assist the angler with the fish closest to the boat. Sailfish were jumping everywhere. My fish decided to fight deep. Not even once jumping. Initially I thought I have hooked up to something else. Then it did a jumped and confirmed its identification. Then it swam towards the boat. I reeled in as fast as I could, barely able to keep the line tight. There were several times when I thought I had lost the fish when the line went slack. It continue swimming and then went under the boat. I pointed at the water and as the fish continues to swim, I pushed my rod under the water. There was nothing I could do. Then I felt the line scrapping the bottom of the boat and I knew in that instant I would lose this fish. True to my prediction, the line snapped and I reeled in a frayed mainline. Fish number two lost. This day was getting really bad for me. Fortunately, Clevin and Nic managed to land their fish. The tally so far was 4 sailfish landed, and with 600 points for each sail, we had collected 2400 points.

It was another round of mayhem when we hit another school of sails. Clevin landed another sail and it was the end of fishing. The storm unleashed its fury and we had to leave the area. It was a good hour and half away from the jetty. The last check in was 5pm and there was no time to lose. The boat was tossed about in the 2 metres plus waves. The visibility was so bad that we could only see about 50 feet in every direction. We were drenched but the wind and waves were relentless. It was a very uncomfortable ride back. On a normal day, all of us would be dozing off on the way back.

The weather cleared a little as we approached land. We arrived at the jetty with 30 minutes to spare. There was going to be a barbeque dinner hosted by the organizers but we decided to eat on our own. The day’s event was draining, putting us through a roller coaster of emotions. The day ended with 5 sails landed while losing numerous fish. Capt Steven was telling us that we could be in for a podium finish but we didn’t dare raise our hopes. On previous competitions, the leading teams were averaging 10 plus fish on the first day. Some even surpassed the 20 plus fish mark.

At about 9.45pm, we received news that we were leading with 5 sails landed. We were ecstatic. It was unbelievable. We chatted excitedly that night. Planning our strategy for the next day. Leaders were retied and gears checked and recheck. We were not leaving anything to chance. Sleep was hard to come by for me and after a few short hours of sleep, I was up again. Sitting quietly alone, contemplating on the events that unfolded yesterday, I was trying to figure out what went wrong. I had lost 4 good fish.

Part of the strategy was to allow the angler with the better luck to fish. I was not going to fish today. The most important thing was to get as many fish to the boat as possible. It didn’t matter who caught the fish. As long as it was in by our team.

The day started the same and we shot off to the unjam to fill our life well and then headed to yesterday’s spot. The sea was rougher today. Today’s fishing hour would be shorter as we had to check in at 4pm. The wind was strong and there were no birds in sight. Then we saw a few birds circling high in the sky. They were searching for the baitfish. Then they dived and more and more birds joined them. We sped to the area and cast out our lines. Nic and Clevin had the responsibility of increasing our catch tally. James and me were relegated to deckie duties. Clevin hooked up and after a spectacular fight, a beautiful sailfish was pulled alongside the boat to have its photo taken. Fishing was very different today. We had to drift along the unjam and cast our bait as close as we can. The fish would take the bait at the same spot. The strong winds and current made controlling the boat difficult. In these hard condition, Clevin caught another sail in the last few minutes of the competition. After that we had to speed back. The strong waves and heavy rain accompanied us back to land. The mood on the boat was sombre. With only two sails landed today, we were quite sure we had lost the lead.

There was a dinner that night with the Tengku Mahkota in attendance. It was a grand affair and all protocols were observed. Speeches were delivered and dinner was served. Lots of sponsors goodies were given out through lucky draw. All these serve to ease our minds as we were waiting for the winner announcements.

Then it was time to announce the winners. The announcement started with the 7^th winner and slowly worked its way up. With every announcement, we were hoping our names would not be called. When the third place winner was announced, we knew we the first runner place was ours!! When Blue Water Anglers was announced, I couldn’t contain the excitement in me as we walked up to the podium. I shook hands with the Tengku Mahkota and collected the trophy on behalf of our team. A mock check for passed to us and then followed by a range of other prizes which includes fishing rods, reels, jerseys. It was an unforgettable event to be up there on the stage. We felt like celebrity and had our 5 minutes of fame.

While at the table taking photos of the prizes and trophy, we heard Clevin’s name being announced. He had won the Best Angler award!! Wow!! It was indeed and unforgettable competition.

This competition is really a test of teamwork and also the knowledge of the captain. Captain Steven has made all the difference for the result of this competition. Also not forgetting James Issac for his arrangements and encouragements, Clevin and Nic for their trust and persistent that made this a reality.

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