Die Hard 2 makes quick work of 437.8-pound blue

From left, William Lane, Fuzzy Alboro and Sam Thies with their 437.8-pound marlin. PHOTO BY DONNELL TATE
LAHAINA – The Die Hard 2 recently joined the marlin stats with a 437.8-pound blue by William Lane. He was fishing with Captains Fuzzy Alboro and Sam Thies.
They had been fishing the SO-Buoy off the southwest end of Kaho’olawe and were heading in toward Olowalu. Just as they crossed the 200-fathom ledge behind the LA-Buoy marks, they had a strike on the long gone position.
Fuzzy heard the rigger come down. He looked back to see a marlin tail-walking and greyhounding straight up the pattern. It turned to the starboard side, tail-walking inside the long rigger position, then out past the short rigger position.
The marlin turned and tail-walked in toward the long rigger again and then toward the short rigger, back and forth, two more times before it disappeared. It reappeared a few seconds later charging toward the boat. Fuzzy throttled the boat ahead, getting away from the fish, and the line tight, as it went down.
The marlin stayed near the surface as it ran off 300 yards of 100-test line. Fuzzy had both engines in full reverse chasing the fish down, giving it no time to rest. He backed the boat right up to the marlin in less than ten minutes. They had it straight up and down off the stern five minutes later.
Things happened so fast, mentioned Sam. He didn’t want to get it too quick and green. Fuzzy thought it was tired from all the aerial activity and running.
The marlin found a zone it liked just past double line and hung at that level in a stalemate for a few minutes. William took short pumps on the rod to slowly haul it up. Fuzzy slowed his attack, going in and out of gear, when the fish got too close to the stern.
As the marlin came to double line, Fuzzy idled the boat ahead to keep the fish out of the props. It pulled a little line off the spool, out past double line, from the boat movement.
The next time to double line, Sam grabbed the line and pulled the fish up to leader. He took a couple of wraps as the marlin swam right up to the boat. Fuzzy got the fish secured, and they pulled it in the boat.
Sam said that it was the easiest marlin he had ever caught. The fight only lasted 22 minutes. Fuzzy mentioned, “Easiest fish ever.”