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Mark Sampson ("NMN")

10418 Exeter Rd.
Ocean City, Md. 21842

410-213-2442 (work, home)

Occupation - Charter fishing boat owner/captain (primary)
.................- Outdoor Writer
.................- Captain's School Instructor

Background and experience:

1973 - 1986 - Manager, Bahia Marina Inc., Ocean City, Maryland (bait and tackle shop, boat rentals, charter booking, slip rentals , fuel pier, etc.).

1976 - Current - Member, NMFS Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.

1981 - 1986 - Owner, Bahia Service Center (boat & motor sales/service).

1980 - 1990 - Founder and president, Ocean City Sharkers Club.

1980 - Current - Founder and director, Ocean City Shark Tournament.

1981 - Current - Lecturer & demonstrator - sharks and shark fishing.

1982 - Current - Member, Delaware Budokan (Martial Arts School)
San Sai Dojo,
Rokudan, Master Instructor (6th degee Black Belt) w/San Sai Ryu - Karate
Kyosei (3rd Dan) - Kenjutsu

1983 - Current - Freelance outdoor writer, published in The Edge, Fishing In Maryland, Coastal Fisherman, The Sportfishing Report, Sunny Day, Tidelines.

1985 - 2007 - Outdoor (fishing/hunting) columnist Maryland Beachcomber and Maryland Times Press,

2007 - Current - Outdoor columnist Ocean Pines Independant, Worchester County Times

1998 - Current - Monthly outdoor (fishing/hunting) columnist Fishing & Hunting Journal,

2000 - Current - Weekly outdoor columnist Daily Times,

1986 - Current - Owner/operator, Fish Finder Adventures (sportfishing charters).

1997 - 1995 - Member, NMFS Northeast Steering Committee.

1995 - Current - Volunteer, National Aquarium (Marine Animal Rescue Program).

1995 - 2005 - President, Ocean City Charter Boat Captains Association.

1995 - Current - Active member - Outdoor Writers Association of America.

1997 - 1999 - Offshore Com. Chairman, MSSA Atlantic Coast Chapter.

1997 - Current - NMFS Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel member.

1999 - Current - Member - Mercury Marine Saltwater Pro Team.

2000 - 2009 - Member, Maryland Sportfishing Advisory Commission.

2005 - Officicially listed as an International Gamefish Association (IGFA) Certified Captain. Has guided anglers to 17 IGFA world records.

2005 - Current - Instructor, Three B's Captain's School

2008 - Author - Modern Sharking (sharks and shark fishing)

Education - 1981 graduate, Salisbury State University BS - Business Administration

Statement of Guiding Philosophy

Marine Management mis-management, too little too late, scandalous, indifference, incompetence, bad science - so many negative words and phrases are pitched around these days by groups describing how our marine resources are being managed. Commercial fishermen, scientists, recreational anglers, environmentalists, seems that everybody's complaining about something. Why? Everyone wants a fair portion of the resource. Unfortunately the bottom line is that when you start slicing it up, there's not always enough of the "pie" to go around!

Citing historical use, economic impact, international agreements, and public support, politicians, paid lobbyists, and concerned citizens speak out to back the claims of every user group convinced that they deserve the lion's share. As quickly as research is converted to statistical figures, each side either contest the results, claiming them to be invalid, or embrace them to use as a sword in a fight for their own cause.

Caught up in the middle of all the politics lie our marine resources. As management efforts are stalled by conflicts of user groups, species that have perpetuated for millions of years are being prodded down a path to extinction. Recreational and commercial fisheries emerge and preserve only in the presence of healthy marine resources. Marine management must consider the well-being of the resource first and foremost before the needs of any group, for without a healthy resource, user groups will cease to exist.

Functioning under a dark cloud of ever tightening regulations, dwindling resources, and a deteriorating public image, commercial fishermen especially have a tough road ahead. Marine managers must consider the needs of the U.S. commercial fishing industry, but not at the expense of providing adequate management for threatened stocks.

Recreational anglers must understand that while their average per-fisherman catch may be quite meager, there are so many fishermen engaged in this fishery that their total catch can be quite significant. Proper management into the future will require better accounting and regulation of the recreational catch.

Recreational anglers have the ability to use our marine resources without heavily impacting certain populations if proper catch-and-release practices are employed. However, not all species can survive the stress and physical punishment they experienced during catch-and-release. It is, therefore, important that fishermen have the proper training and equipment needed to ensure the survival of any fish released. In some cases it may be necessary that marine managers close a fishery even to catch-and-release when it is determined that released fish have a low chance for survival.

The earth's living marine resources should not be used as pawns in political chess games played out between countries or user groups. Resources belong to no one, but their stewardship is the responsibility of us all.

If marine management fails in its objectives, future generations won't care who killed the last swordfish, had the biggest allocation of bluefins, or netted all the flounder. They'll only wonder how it could be that species that were once so abundant, in an ocean so vast, are gone, and resent the fact that in their lifetime they will never see a bluefish blitz on a sandy shoreline, cast a plug to breaking tuna, or watch a marlin rise to a teaser.

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