It had been a long, slow, hot day in the Gulf of Mexico.

Capt. Peace Marvel gave it his all, chumming for tuna and instead drawing rainbow runners and sharks from the nearby oil rigs and they kept stealing our bait before it drifted down to tuna depth. By late afternoon, the cooler contained only one yellowfin tuna and a few baitfish after a dozen hours fishing. Five Alexander City occupants had resigned ourselves to paying for a near-skunk deep sea trip.