A West Virginia angler drove 400-plus miles to Chesapeake Bay recently to fish for striped bass and came away with a pending world record.
Alex Foster caught the 48.03-inch striper on Jan. 7 in rainy off Cape Charles with Sho-Nuf Sportfishing. Photos and measurements have been submitted to the International Game Fish Assn. for consideration in the all-tackle length record category.
The current IGFA length record is 117 centimeters, or just over 46 inches. Foster’s fish taped out at 122 centimeters.
After the catch, Sho-Nuf Capt. Clinton Lessard wrote on Facebook: “Alex Foster landed this massive 122-centimeter striped bass to potentially set the new IGFA All-Tackle Length World Record.
“Alex was trolling a live eel and fought the fish for 15 minutes prior to measuring and releasing it! Congratulations, Alex, on potentially your first IGFA World Record.”
The length record is designed for anglers who prefer to release fish they believe might warrant record consideration.
Foster’s striper weighed 58 pounds on an uncertified hand scale before it was tossed back. (Newly passed state regulations do not allow the keep of striped bass longer than 28 inches.)
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According to the Virginian-Pilot, Foster has had the length record in mind for some time. His 445-mile drive from his home in Charleston, West Virginia, to Chesapeake Bay was timed to coincide with the run of striped bass along the coast.
“I’ve most definitely been targeting this record,” Foster said. “I’ve put a lot of time and effort into this fish.”
For the sake of comparison, the IGFA lists as the all-tackle weight record an 81-pound, 14-ounce striped bass caught off Westbrook, Conn., in August 2011.
–Photos showing Alex Foster and his striped bass are courtesy of Sho-Nuf Sportfishing