You should try 'reeling' in a line with your hands. I was fishing off a boat when I was younger and hooked into something big (I was younger then so it seemed even bigger) as I was trying to pull it in, the pole broke. It was my favorite too cause I had used it since I was little. Anyway, I started pulling it in by the line. Not my brightest idea but I was the only one who hadn't caught anything. I eventually got it in. It was a 16lb catfish. Fishing line and bare hands with a fish like that isn't the most fun thing but it was pretty cool that it happened
Thats sweet!