lilonnally on a sunny June morning Murray Bridges is 

 either tending the crab shedders behind his house or on 

 the water in his boat. 



But this morning, Bridges' sons, Otto and Scott, in- 

 sisted that he leave work behind and take a seat in front 

 of the television. They set the channel for NBC's "Today" 

 show and left Bridges to watch. 



For nearly two hours Bridges gazed at the set as 

 "Today" show hosts Bryant Gumbel and Jane Pauley 

 intermittently discussed the North Carolina coast from 

 their shipboard location near Wilmington. 



Finally about a quarter until nine, the words "soft 

 crabs" rolled off Gumbel's lips, and Bridges hollered for 

 the family to join him. 



Seconds later, the program cut to a prerecorded spot. 



There, before several million viewers, was Colington's 

 own Murray Bridges and his wife, Brady, shedding crabs. 



Today Bridges chuckles about his network appearance 

 and admits shyly that he "had fun" watching the morning 

 program. 



But nationwide television exposure wasn't one of 

 Bridges' goals 12 years ago when he began to hold blue 

 crabs for their impending molt. 



Making a living was. 



Employing ingenuity, hard work and good common 

 business sense. Bridges made a living and a reputation as 

 one of the biggest, best and most innovative soft crabbers 

 in the business. 



No doubt about it, it's a business that's cracking out of 

 its shell. 



Soft crab landings in North Carolina have increased 

 over 600 percent in just four years. And it's all because 

 people are biting at the chance to sink their teeth into 

 the sweet, soft blue crab. 



In fact, "Today" show researchers learned about 

 Bridges from an article in an airline magazine about soft 

 crabbing. 



Newspapers and magazines have touted Bridges' suc- 

 cess, often placing a portion of the responsibility for Dare 

 County's $1 million soft crab industry on the shoulders of 

 this unassuming fisherman in the striped cap and flannel 

 shirt. 



Undoubtedly, Bridges opened a lot of fishermen's eyes 

 to the profits gained from and the skills needed for shed- 

 ding crabs. 



He's led seminars in the state and out. And he's 

 answered hundreds of questions from callers and visitors. 



"If I can help somebody I will," drawls Bridges in his 

 High Tider accent. "People helped me. 



"People get worried with me around here for being so 

 open. But I tell them they wouldn't have done it (soft 

 crabbing) if I hadn't been here." 



When Bridges began shedding crabs, he was one of 

 only a handful of crabbers in Dare County willing to fool 

 with the ornery crustaceans. 



"I learned about shedding crabs from my wife and her 

 mother," he says. "They've always shed crabs in 

 Colington." 



The first years for his family-operated business were 

 lean ones. Bridges admits. In fact, Brady Bridges named 

 the shedding operation Endurance Seafood Co. in 

 remembrance of the hard times. 



But gradually from Sea Grant, other crabbers, publica- 

 tions and trial-and-error efforts. Bridges learned about 

 the business and the biology of shedding crabs. 



At first, Bridges detected a crab's impending molt by 

 watching for the crustacean's abdominal apron, or flap, to 

 turn pink. But only female crabs' aprons changed color 



"In those days, we probably threw 90 percent of the 

 male peelers (crabs about to shed) away," he says. 



But not so today. At a Sea Grant workshop. Bridges 

 was taught to read, or sign, peelers by detecting the color 

 change in the last joints of the paddler fin. 



And through experimentation. Bridges became the first 

 crabber in North Carolina to move his shedder trays from 

 the sound to the shore. 



Crabbers traditionally floated wood-slat trays along 



