Ballantyne, moments after setting a world record by catching this 75-pound lemon shark on a 4-pound-test line.

Dotty Ballantyne was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, and attended Garrison Forest School. Ballantyne received her bachelor of arts from Sarah Lawrence College, then earned her master of business administration from the University of Wisconsin. Deciding to settle in Madison, Wisconsin, Ballantyne pursued her career in the financial services industry.

After moving to Montana in 1995, Ballantyne’s life was forever changed by fly fishing. She began to fly fish in Wyoming and Montana, and purchased land along the Yellowstone River. It was again in 1995 when, in an effort to contribute to the conservation of the river, Ballantyne donated a conservation easement on the Yellowstone property to the Gallatin Valley Land Trust. She also became an active board member with several conservation organizations, including the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, the Park County Environmental Coalition, the Gallatin Valley Land Trust, and American Rivers.

Ballantyne added saltwater fly fishing to her resumé in 2000 when she met her husband, Fitz Coker. Coker, an expert saltwater angler, taught Ballantyne how to work with the larger saltwater equipment and how to cast to the larger fish. Her saltwater career started in the Florida Keys with tarpon, but by 2003, during a fishing trip to Australia, Ballantyne was catching saltwater world records on a fly. She specializes in catching records on light-test tippets, including 2 pound, 4 pound, and 6 pound. To date, Ballantyne has landed ninety-two world records, including:

• a 75-pound lemon shark on 4-pound-test line
• a 9-pound mutton snapper on 8-pound-test line
• a 5-pound horse-eye jack on 2-pound-test line

Dotty Ballantyne continues to travel the world in the hope of reaching 100 saltwater records and spends her time between Key West and Montana.

Note: this text was written in 2011.