1986 - We (Geoff, Sanbo, Kenneth and I) fished in the waters off Pyramid (i.e. San Clemente Island). The weather was nasty, but we (Geoff) managed to "hang" one. After an hour it looked like the fish went straight down and died. Geoff slowly cranked it up, but the wind was blowing so hard we had to keep backing up merely to stay in place. It took an hour and 50 minutes, but we got it up. Having initially declared a "release" we notified the committee boat to confirm that we did not have to bring the fish back to Avalon in that - how shall I say it? - shitty weather. Kenneth had accompanied me to the Club meeting before the tournament at which time the Club President reaffirmed the policy of NOT having to return a declared release that had come up dead to Avalon - especially in that weather. To our horror, when I notified the committee boat this same Club president stated: "You will have to return the fish to Avalon (in order to get credit)." I blew my cork. The language over the radio was unbelievable. I - no all four of us - couldn't believe what we had just heard. I let him have it and then ignored anything further they had to say. Johnny Crean of the Balboa Angling Club offered to take the fish and put it in his refrigerated fish hold. The next day when we returned to Avalon we weighed it in. I then went home and created a special "Screwed up, broken rule Award." It features a microphone atop a base with a ruler broken in half and 4 screws (pointing upward).