Captain Travis Mayeux had a group on board his charter boat, the Sweat Shop, and all they wanted to do was catch tuna.

Lots and lots of yellowfin tuna. Mayeux, a man to oblige, put his group on four yellowfin before they had even moved to their second spot. By the time they arrived a spot No. 2, Mayeux’s customers hooked a beast of a fish that was fighting like mad.

While this yellowfin put on one heck of a battle, and a bit of a show, the rest of the boat was busy pulling in three other fish — all tuna, as well. Few things make the charter captain more proud than to see four out of four customers hooked up to big yellowfin tuna all at the same time. A feat, he says, “all thanks to Mustad Demon Perfect Circle hooks.”

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Capt. Travis Mayeux, running the Sweat Shop for the Mexican Gulf Fishing Company, had another good weekend in his first summer as a captain with the offshore charter company based in Venice, LA.

On back to back days he put customers on big hauls. Not uncommon, for talented charter captains, mind you, and certainly more to the norm for MGFC, but to say this was fun is an understatement, as evidence by the photos attached with this story.

On Saturday, Mayeux’s boat already had four yellowfin tuna when they had pulled up to their second spot.

The boat doubled up again, and then landed a third tuna that acted as if someone or something from the deep had pissed in it’s cheerios. While a customer was fighting that fish, tuna just kept following the boat. What happened next? Well, let’s just say it was fun.

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Capt. Billy Wells, proud owner of the new 37ft Wild Bill, (built by Freeman Boatworks), had a nice day at the office this week when he put long-time customers Tom Steed and crew on a slew of fish.

Steed and his friends have been fishing with Wells for more than 10 years. They travel to Venice, LA from Key Largo, FL. They come for the non-stop action, and for big fish, and that’s exactly what Wells delivered with this outing.

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Captains Kevin Beach, Billy Wells, Jordan Ellis and Travis Mayeux have been booked solid through the month of June, and the fishing has been fantastic.

When asked to describe the action, Capt. Beach says, “bait, bait, bait, bait, bait, and more bait!” It’s here, and the fish are loving it.

The Fish Report Venice, La for June, 2014? All four of MGFC’s captains report plentiful bait in the Gulf right now. Pogies, redfin, herring, and hard tails are abundant.

When asked what they’ve been catching, Wells says, “tuna, tuna, tuna. We’ve been putting our customers on lots and lots of tuna. We had a phenomenal week at the end of June, and really hit July running with big mahi mahi, a few marlin, and lots of tuna.”

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Capt. Travis Mayeux, who runs the Sweat Shop for MGFC, followed up his debut with a great trip this weekend. He put his customers on two big yellowfin, landing one — a 148lb gem shown in the photos below. 

The fish was caught in the Gulf of Mexico just south of Venice, LA. Travis put his customers on Shimano rods & reels, and suited them up with this AFTCO Clarion Fighting belt. We’re proud to have Shimano and AFTCO as sponsors of MGFC — some of the best gear for big fish!

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