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Old 01-13-2008, 03:14 PM   #16
Tino Bernazzani
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Re: How did it all start?

Wow,
some great stories of generational spearfishing.
I hope to start the process with my family.
Funny story for my entrance.
At a college buddies bachelor party we decided that one of the days events would be a group ab dive. Doing everything wrong a group of 6 headed into the cold waters. An hour and a half later I was hooked being the only diver besides the resident expert to grab a legal ab. I can still remember how hard it was to get down 15', with a rental suit and 25lbs of lead, ha ha. As a group we lost a weight belt, a set of fins, a mask/snorkel, and a couple of ab irons.
The next day I of course was an expert and figured I knew it all. I decided to head down to a more secluded spot I had heard about. After a long walk off the road the trail ended and I looked down to find an old ski rope running the cliff side. The remaining two brave souls and myself decided that this was doable and proceded. Repelling down an old ski rope with a float tube in one of your hands is an interesting experience I will never forget.
Once down the hill the oceans power was evident with the deafening sound of surf slamming into jagged rocks from a rather exposed exit. 30 minutes later I crawled up the beach towing a friend with no abalone even seen. Ahh getting my A@# handed to me by the ocean would never get old from that point on. I guess I am a slow learner with that one and still have a hard time with it.
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Old 01-13-2008, 04:35 PM   #17
branclark1
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Re: How did it all start?

Awesome thread.... I have grown up on the water... My parents, surf bums themselves taught us (brothers and sisters) the principles of life around the water. Naturally boating, surfing, and fishing we planned around family trips. When I was younger, my brother and I were snorkeling in the Florida Keys; I think I was around 10. We dove maybe 10ft, it seemed deeper but whatever I was ten. Anyways I remember seeing this Bull Shark that was twice the size of me; it came up to us within feet!!! The Shark was just checking us out in almost a friendly way; I just remember it was one of those experiences that got me hooked. Very similar to catching your first wave….
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Old 01-13-2008, 07:21 PM   #18
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Re: How did it all start?

I started my snorkeling/freediving at 5 years old while living in Belize. Jacque Cousteau came while I was there to do his documentary on the Blue Hole. I remember my friends and me were much more cncerned with the 5ft+ barracudas that would hit fish on our stringers while we were poking under holes hunting snappers with our pole spears. My friend Mike got a nasty cut/bite from one of the cudas that got pretty infected. Funny we didn't mind the sharks too much as long as they weren't twitchy. Boy I miss those wonder years!
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Old 01-13-2008, 11:08 PM   #19
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Re: How did it all start?

Did alot of H&L. Brought out a buddy who spearfished on scuba while we waited in the boat with penn reels in hand. After watching him have so much fun I kept my ears open for a good deal on some gear...after my first spearing trip I think I've held that penn about 4 times in over 5 years and 300+ trips.
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Old 01-13-2008, 11:21 PM   #20
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Re: How did it all start?

A guy named Joe Robinson is the guy that I have to thank.
He is the one who introduced me to diving.
He suggested freediving as my Senior Project for school and we just went with it. I got 2 abs on my first dive and 3 on my 2nd. Started spearing on my 5th dive.
Im hooked on the sport.
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Old 01-14-2008, 04:13 AM   #21
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Re: How did it all start?

i remember clowning on poly last year or the year before when i was up north fishing and dredging about him not kill many fish , when i got back down to LA i told him id go out and check it out , since i was dredging up north most of the summer i was scared of some cold water so we went to malaga , he had some riffe euro 110 and i borrowed his little pole spear. man we hit the right day cause it was like 30' clear by far probably one of the best days i have seen at malaga to date, anyway i remember he got a little calico and thinking to myself there is no way i can get outfished by martin so i got motivated to kill something i chased this calico behind a stringer and shot where i thought he was and ended up with a 17.5" calico which toped his
i guess i was lucky cause the conditions just happened to be perfect if it was shity i probably wouldnt have goten into the sport
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Old 02-07-2008, 06:35 PM   #22
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Re: How did it all start?

10 years ago me and a few buddies would go up to Laughlin with a few boats and jet ski's to party during the summer. We would always try and find different things to do so one time a buddy brought a JBJ gun. When the sun started to go down small carp would come toward the shore. We would chum them with bread and take turns diving and spearing them. One day I thought I would try and find bigger ones so I parked the ski near a cove that had a lot of cover in the water and rocks. Dove down and after a few dives a big carp swam right up to me. I let the spear fly and shot him in the ass as he was trying to swim away. That carp pulled me underwater and around for probably was about 15 seconds, but it was long enough to get the heart pumping. I eventually got back to the surface and got some air and landed the fish 10 minutes later. What a rush. It was a lot more fun than holding a pole and reeling all day so I was hooked! Got back into the sport at a more serious level after moving to OC last summer. Haven't landed any big fish yet, but hopefully that will change this year!
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Old 02-07-2008, 06:42 PM   #23
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Re: How did it all start?

Been h&l fishing since before I can remember. I came back to Monterey for the 3rd time in October 2006, and Nate had just started doing it right about that time, and him, Brad and Brian drug me out in the freesing water in a 4/3 surf suit weraing waaaay too much weight. Needless to say, I had to get drug out on a float thinking I was gonna die, and i was hooked. Worked really hard last year to get where I am, and this year should be even better! Thanks to all the guys that came out and dove with me this year and got me to where I am, and everybody that helped out with the starting of our great new club. You guys are some of the best friends a guy could ever have, and you all know who you are!
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Old 02-07-2008, 06:47 PM   #24
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Re: How did it all start?

Quote:
Originally Posted by twentytwomonk View Post
Been h&l fishing since before I can remember. I came back to Monterey for the 3rd time in October 2006, and Nate had just started doing it right about that time, and him, Brad and Brian drug me out in the freesing water in a 4/3 surf suit weraing waaaay too much weight. Needless to say, I had to get drug out on a float thinking I was gonna die, and i was hooked. Worked really hard last year to get where I am, and this year should be even better!
Sounds like a hella rough start.

I've always H&L'ed and for the longest time lived close enough to the ocean to enjoy it every day. I always wanted to get into it but had no idea how to get started until one day a little over 5 years ago a buddy of mine got into it through someone else he knew and there I was. I already had the fins, mask, snorkel and weight belt from when I got scuba certed, even though I've never gone scuba diving since then because it cost too much for all the rest of the stuff, so I said why the hell not. I went for the first time on a Friday with a JBL polespear because the next day was the Sturgill and my buddy and his friend were going to that.

It's a cheap thrill and that's why I love it. I guess Scotty was right, freedivers are cheap by nature
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Old 02-07-2008, 06:51 PM   #25
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Re: How did it all start?

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Originally Posted by mnguy View Post
It's a cheap thrill and that's why I love it. I guess Scotty was right, freedivers are cheap by nature
Funk that! My Sea Sniper gun was hella expensive, and that was his low end gun!
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Old 02-07-2008, 07:33 PM   #26
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Re: How did it all start?

i yosed to fish h&l then in 6th grade we went to catalina and i saw all these fish that i could wave shot. my dad had been spearing for a couple years so he got me and my twin brother started
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Old 02-07-2008, 07:54 PM   #27
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Re: How did it all start?

Long ago in a far off land.
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Old 02-07-2008, 08:07 PM   #28
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Re: How did it all start?

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Originally Posted by Bill McIntyre View Post
Long ago in a far off land.
Do you still remember how to chip away at those rocks to make spear tips?
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Old 02-07-2008, 08:09 PM   #29
Bill McIntyre
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Re: How did it all start?

We used bone.
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Old 02-07-2008, 10:38 PM   #30
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Re: How did it all start?

The first time I went fishing I was in a crib. My grandma literally took me out in the crib. H&L so much as a kid that it was just a natural progression. The first time I went spearfishing, was actually a coincidence. I was running a few miles through the trails and roads around the house when a very good friend of mine, who taught me everything I know about offshore H&L, stopped me and asked me if I wanted to go try and shoot some mullet in the bay. Hell, I was always up for a day on the water and spearguns were the coolest thing I had ever seen. I killed a few fish and was instantly addicted. I was certified when I was 15 and about a year later, me and a buddy started shootin on scuba pretty often. Here I am broke as I can be and still lovin it.
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