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Local Fishermen Reel In 920-Pound Tuna

BOSTON (CBS) - It was a catch of a lifetime, and three local fishermen are talking only to WBZ about how they did it.  Imagine having a 920-pound tuna on your line, the largest one to come into Gloucester Harbor this year.  It was an epic battle and the ultimate thrill.

Giant Tuna
The 920 pound tuna. (Photo courtesy: Gregg Looney)

When they realized what they had hooked into, the adrenaline started flowing.  It was a monster tuna.  Nine feet long and over 900 pounds, fighting for his life.

The outcome was far from certain for three long, shoulder-wrenching hours.  "It was crazy.  We were on the reel 10, 15 minutes and your arm went.  You could not even move your arm 10, 15 minutes into it.  You're looking for the guy behind you to take your place," says Michael St. Jean, one of the anglers.

They each took turns fighting the fish that just wouldn't give up.  "When you watch the tuna shows, they're two hours into it and they lose the fish.  So I think all of us are like, I do not want to be the guy on the rod when that fish comes off," says Allan Gourley.  And at one point, it looked bad.  "The reel was heating up and it actually broke the reel at one point," says Gregg Looney.

But after a true battle, they had it.  "I just thought, this is amazing.  I can't believe this happened to us.  It's a once in a lifetime gift," says Allan Gourley.

And now the friends are turning into celebrities of sorts.  "I'm getting phone calls from people I don't even know," says St. Jean.  And the rest, as they say, is fishing history.  "What it did is it ruined us, because now we're going to go out and we'll never catch a fish like that again," he adds.

The boat the friends were on has been featured on the reality TV show "Wicked Tuna," but the only video that captured the battle is the one the fishermen shot themselves.  No word whether it will make it on the show.

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