Circuit breakers.

The venerable Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Shootout, Slam and Showdown Circuit keeps jammin', adding bigger numbers of participants and better catch records year after year. Participation in the Shootout in May and the Slam in June were both up over last year's numbers, and with the kind of cash prizes on the line at the Showdown, to be held in early August, turnout should be strong. One prize alone at the Showdown, the KDW kingfish-dolphin-wahoo prize, is likely to be worth at least $30,000.

The Slam in June fielded 128 boats, 19 more than last year, and Bill Wummer's team aboard Spiced Rum III beat the tournament record for kingfish, landing a 54.65-pounder. The Circuit's new affiliation with the Southern Kingfish Association (SKA) has created new divisions for SKA-registered anglers, and Spiced Rum III pulled down a total of $8,695 as winners of the Division 8 event.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Another first at a Pompano Beach Saltwater Circuit tournament: Team Reel Line became the first boat entered in the Average Joe division, and the smallest boat ever, to win an event. Fishing on their single engine 23-foot Pro-Line, Jason Miller and his two sons, Chris, 14, and Jarrod, 13, along with Alex Benarroch and Luca Cagnaca won the Slam and took home $12,250. Big fish honors in the Slam went to Rich Sujat and his Luna-sea team with their 65.88-pound wahoo, caught slow-trolling in the Juno area. They earned the biggest payday of the tournament, $13,5S0.

At May's Shootout, ReelBlue's Matthew Luen, 18, of Pompano Beach, landed a 58.83-pound kingfish, beating the 2006 record of 57.8 pounds, to help win his team $11,018.

Less than a pound made the difference in first and second place overall. Mark Lamb's Hard Way weighed 4 tunas, plus 4 kings for 217.5 pounds and beat Get Sum by .86 pounds, also with 4 tunas and 4 kings. Hard Way won $17,505. For details and entry forms, see bluewatermovements.com.

By DAVID CONWAY, Managing Editor