Captain of the Month
Captain JB Sirgany, Foxsea Charters - Bahia Mar, Ft Lauderdale
REACTOR watch company has been the sponsor of our Captain of the Month Program since day one. The response from our winning captains has been total exhilaration powered by pride to wear these first rate watches. Thank-you REACTOR for believing in this great industry and in our Captains.
Congratulations goes to Captain JB Sirgany of FoxSea Charters
out of Bahia Mar in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida! Captain JB wins the new watch along with a plaque from Gray Taxidermy naming
him – CAPTAIN OF THE MONTH, MAY 2015!
Captain JB Sirgany has been in Fort Lauderdale for 58 years!
“I started fishing in the south Florida canals and fishing piers.
My dad took me on a charter for my 8th birthday on “The Bolo”
in Pompano. From that trip, I was hooked on Sportfishing.”
“I fished in the Bahamas, St. Thomas, Venezuela, Mexico and
Kona, Hawaii. I’ve won many tournaments with the best
fishermen in the industry. I’ve Giant Tuna fished in the
Bahamas with the Stards brothers, we caught 13 in one week - very cool! I was fortunate enough to buy the “FoxSea,” at Bahia Mar and I am grateful for my co-workers, Tom Zsak, Taco, Rick Brady and the “A” Dock Charter Fleet.”
“My greatest joy is watching the kids catch their first “trophy” fish with their family. The FoxSea has been seven years of great customers which has made us a premier charter boat on the East Coast. Life just doesn’t get any better!! Thanks to Team Gray for your professionalism, craftsmanship and support of the Charter Boat Industry.”
FaceBook Fishing...
What your customers post
- "Here's the beautiful shark on the wall, thanks for doing such a great job."
- "The mounts were delivered
last Monday- we had a
busy week but we finally
got them out of the crate -
THEY'RE REALLY AWESOME!!"
- "Can't thank you guys enough for the incredible replica of my trophy 100 inch 90 pound pacific sail fish, just moved down to south Florida and this was the first thing to be hung on the wall, thank you again."
Legend and Rock Star - Luis Basurto
Legends and Rock Stars… This month’s honoree encompasses both. Even though he’s not old enough to have a “Legend” status, his numbers alone speak for themselves…. He truly is a Legend in many eyes; however, we know at any age he will always be a “Rock Star.” We are honored to have Luis Basurto as part of our Gray Crew family, leading the way in Cancun, Mexico.
We feel that it is very important to acknowledge how blessed we are to be in this business, blessed by the people we get to work with, blessed by the future we see in this industry, blessed to be able to make a difference in the Charter Fishing Industry as well as fishing in general on a global basis. This is only feasible because of people like this month’s Legend and Rock Star, Luis Basurto.
Luis Basurto:
“Everything began when I was a little city boy. At a very young age I was introduced into the world of fishing by a very good friend, his name is Jean Bojanowski. Jean was like a father to me and taught me how to fish. We spent so many years sharing so many memorable trips together, a time I will always cherish.”
“Eventually time passes and I had to make a decision. As a young man, different opportunities come along and you have to decide what path to take. I didn't know if my decision would be the right one; but, I knew that if I could make a living doing what I love to do, I would never have to work anymore.”
“Over 20 years ago, I came to Cancun, Mexico, looking for the opportunity to work in the fishing industry. After just a couple of years, I had the chance and privilege to run one of the most successful Charter Boat Operations in Cancun. A couple of seasons went by and I start working with Gary Taxidermy in the early 2000's. We have
developed a solid relationship that has been very successful year after year.”
The secret is very simple, ALL FISH ARE TROPHIES! Thank-you Gray Taxidermy for all your support!
One last thing to remember…
THE DAY ISN’T OVER YET.
As proud supports of our Legends, we have teamed up with SIMRAD to bring our captains a Simrad HH36 Handheld VHF radio as a “Thank-you” for always supporting this great industry. This radio is a feature-packed handheld, Class D, DSC marine VHF radio loaded with the latest technology, integrated GPS, loud and clear audio and navigational features that leave other handheld VHF radios in the shade. Great for use on any sized boat, for professional or leisure use.
Mate of the Month - Chad Braggs
It was a 63” Cobia that landed this month’s Mate of the
Month a pair of COSTA Sunglasses! Congratulations to
Chad Braggs from Florida Gulf Coast!
Being a Florida resident for over 30 years, saltwater flows through the veins of Chad
Braggs. A huge fan of beach and jetty fishing, Chad has landed hundreds of Snook,
Sharks, Kingfish and more. Many of the Snook over the 40” mark.
It was only natural he fell right into place and at home as first mate with DJB
Charters. For the past couple years, fishing 280 days a year, he has become a huge
asset to the boat in helping people with big fish to pancaking a 12’ net for bait.
Knowing Chad’s first priority is safety and his second priority is on customer interaction, we are
hopping he’s along for the ride for a long time.
Quick Pick Captain – Captain Nick Stanczyk
PELICAN has teamed up with Gray Taxidermy to bring one lucky
captain each month a new PELICAN cooler. All Elite Coolers are
built tough to exacting standards and are engineered with
rugged polymer exterior walls that feature an industry leading
2” polyurethane foam core, allowing them to preserve ice for up
to 10 days. Congratulations to Captain Nick Stanczyk from
Bud N’ Mary’s in the Florida Keys!
Despite a resume that includes helping pioneer daytime swordfishing, arguably one of the greatest discoveries in the recreational fishing industry in the last decade, Nick Stanczyk just turned 30 years old.
As the son of fishing legend Richard Stanczyk, who has owned Islamorada's iconic Bud N' Mary's Marina since 1978 (seven years before Nick was born), Nick Stanczyk is a true "Conch" or Florida Keys native.
Raised in the Keys and an angler all his life to date, he spent most of his childhood hanging around Bud N' Mary's, fishing after school and on days off. Later, after high school, he
followed in his father's footsteps by attending the University of Miami.
Led by his father Richard, Nick and the team at Bud N' Mary's are perhaps best known for discovering a large body of broadbill swordfish off the coast of Islamorada. Prior to the 2002 discovery, few broadbill swordfish had ever been caught and typically they were
targeted only at night. The Stanczyk’s and their crew discovered how to fish for them during the day and have turned Islamorada into a top destination for catching the species. In the last few years, Nick Stanczyk has captained swordfishing charters for visitors from around the world, hailing from places like Australia, Germany, England and more, they all came to Islamorada just to fish for swordfish.
These days, the young captain can be found fishing for anything in the Atlantic Ocean side of the Keys. A true family affair, Bud N' Mary's Marina is the home of 40 different fishing captains. Nick hopes to carry on the Stanczyk family tradition, keeping the name of Bud N' Mary's Marina alive, living and raising a family in Islamorada — and spending time on the water fishing with children of his own one day.
Gray Taxidermy ROCKS Hawaii 2015!!
In a continuing effort to bring assistance on the dock, we would like to
welcome Max Fogarty to the Gray Crew. Max is going to be lending a hand
on the docks in Hawaii. Hawaii is full of famous and infamous Captains
and Mates that get the job done and have done so without much
assistance as their time zone is a little off from ours… I begged for this
job by-the-way, but alas, Max and his credentials clearly took this position.
A little background on Max:
“I grew up on fishing”! Max started fishing in Fort Lauderdale on a drift-
fishing head boat when he was just 16. From then, he has Commercial
fished, Charter fished, Private-boat fished and Tournament fished in the
Bahamas, the Florida Gulf and the East Coast of Florida. “I fished during
my summers and spring breaks while attending FSU to pay for tuition.” Max has also Charter Fished and Tournament fished in Australia and
would love to tell you about his experiences.
“Although I have fished in all these places, I still love to do it. My
favorite fish to catch is Marlin, no matter what size but the big ones
really get my blood pumping. What I love the most about Charter
fishing, other than fishing in general, is that there is always more to
learn and new people to meet.”
“Fishing, and mounting fish has helped me travel the
world and get a first-class education. I look forward
to my role assisting new fishermen further
progress and fund their careers as well as just lending a hand to the many accomplished Captains here in
Hawaii.”
Your Facebook Campaign
By working together we can provide an even better Facebook experience for your existing customers as well as thousands of potential customers! We can post your fishing adventure photos, and you get the opportunity to advertise your company directly to people that love fishing and in return you will receive added exposure for your Charter business. IT’S THAT EASY!
Send us your fishing photos to photos@graytaxidermy.com and we will post them to our growing audience of 147,000+ fans, exclusively for Gray Taxidermy Captains and Mates. Make sure you let us know the Charter Business name, the Captain and mates name along with your location. Feel free to include your logo, website and phone number.
