Gully Challenge 2011 spearfishing comp

To say that we have been waiting with bated breath for this comp would be an understatement. Right from the formation of our club we have been trying to have this comp but mother nature would have nothing of it. It threw gale force wind, rain you name it at us! The planets however did align for us on the 29 October 2011 and we finally had the opportunity to get into the water on a Saturday morning.

There were reports of decent viz along the Wild side (the western area of Port Elizabeth as its called but the locals) and temperatures of between 18 and 20 degrees. Everything looked perfect for our first club comp and the first of 6 Eastern Province trials. We had a great turn out with 15 divers and 7 boats, so after the slightly delayed briefing we were all more than a little excited to get into the water and set some club records. Although the records were not the only thing keeping us going that day, we had some awesome prizes for the top 10 divers, with sponsorship from all the local manufacturers – Freedivers, Rob Allen, Mikes Dive Shop, Rabitech and One Fish.

Even with the favorable conditions it would seem the fish had somewhere else they had to be. Most of the regular reefs were barren of anything bigger then a Hottie, not that this was a problem as it forced the divers to show some skill in finding the fish, a skill that we need on our Eastern Province team. And with the Gully Challenge doubling up as a trial for the EP team it was a great opportunity to see some skills in action.

Sadly many of the divers blanked on the day, not being able to find the fish. So it was up to the experienced and skilled divers to show their brawn and that they did, with one of the boats bringing in a humbling catch, one that ended up taking 1st and 2nd place with some max weigher Musslecracker, Poenskop and Cape Knifejaw.

The highlight of the day however, had to be a 5kg Cape Yellow Tail taken by Max Harrington. Not only was it the biggest tail of the day, it was also his first and for a new diver we know the excitement he must have felt! Best of all was the skill shown in bringing in this notoriously challenging catch without being reefed. So a huge WELL DONE to Max! This feat earned him the prize of “Most Improved Diver” a beautiful Rob Allen rail gun!

Even though the fish were sparse everyone had a great time with some of us even being graced with sightings of Humpback Whales mere meters from our boat, and after a few morning showers some of the best weather PE has on offer. So thank you to everyone that made this competition possible, and a special thank you to the sponsors for their generosity in providing the amazing prizes!

Prep'ing for the day

Some exposure for our sponsors 

Briefing

The Divers

The launch

The launch

Charl weighing in his catch

Max Harrington assisting with weigh in

Charl Blignaut - First place

2nd place winner Martin van Niekerk receiving his prize

Lohan Geel receiving his prize

Max Harrington receiving his prize

Eugene van Wyngaard receiving his prize

Gert Jordaan receiving his prize

Winter, rain, wind and diving

Did I put diving in the heading? Well there has been very little of that done over the past 6 weeks. Port Elizabeth has received almost 4 years of rain in just 2 weeks resulting in widespread floods and mayhem. This has not done anything for the viz in and around PE, with record swell of up to 7 meters been recorded. Many of the local rivers and estuaries also came down in flood with the Swartkops river being the worst hit resulting in a seriously trashed eastern Algoa Bay after all the mud/silt that was pushed out the system by the flood waters.

OK, I have vented my frustrations. I have to admit however that its not all doom and gloom in Port Elizabeth. As mentioned in my previous post PE now has its very own Spearfishing Club called Gully Jumpers. We had our inaugural AGM just 2 weeks back and elected in our committee. It is encouraging to see how many guys are so eager to see the sport grow in an area some up Natal way might scoff at for its lack of viz.

Well the club is officially off the ground thanks to the likes of Nick Horn and Richard Leonard and we can already look forward to our first comp the Gully Challenge. This will eventually become the main annual club comp, while only catering for club members in its formative year, we look forward to expanding it to include all national clubs. We have secured some amazing sponsorship for the comp from all of the local spearfishing suppliers and can happily say that everyone will walk away winners!

The clubs mission is based on the growth of spearfishing as a sport and is therefore geared towards development and beginners, helping interested people experience the sport for what it really is - Amazing!

So if you are in PE and interested in the sport of spearfishing now is the best time to get involved. Head over to www.gullyjumpers.co.za and sign up as a member, trust me you wont be sorry!

Gully Jumpers - Port Elizabeth's own spearfishing club

So this Saturday the 4 June 2011 will mark the opening meeting and the formation of Gully Jumpers Spearfishing Club!

It was about 3 weeks back that I recieved the following email:

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GREAT NEWS!

A new spearfishing club is being launched in PE - Gully Jumpers!!!!



Gully Jumpers Searfishing club is being officially registered with Sauff (South African Underwater Fishing Federation) and we will be holding monthly and annual competitions as well as social events with the first one being the CLUB LAUNCH!

It’s all kicking off on the 4th of June at no. 28 Albert rd Walmer, 6pm. We will be introducing you to the club, what we are about and giving you an opportunity to register. Club fees are R200 for a single member and R100 per family member there after; this includes your Full membership to SAUFF. There will be a free club T shirt for everyone who joins on the night. We will also be doing the briefing for the first competition (Gully Champs 101) to be held on Sunday, the 5th of June, weather permitting. (If not the next date will be advised)

There will be fires on the go, salads and rolls, so please join us for a braai and the latest action packed spearfishing movie called One Fish will be on for all of us to enjoy! www.onefish.co.za

So come along and make some new friends, bring your own chow and bar and lets enjoy this great sport together!

If we have missed out some of your friends with this mail please feel free to forward on to them, please pass on their details to us for record purpose.

Shot for all your responses

For more info call:
Nick Horne: 083 447 1482
Richard Leonard: 074 102 3385

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002432970343

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I am not one to get excited over much, but dam this is good news. I spent the best part of 6 months learning about spearfishing the hard way, and now that I have a better idea of things up pops a group of guys who have some seriously good knowledge of the sport and are more than eager to share.

I hope for those interested in the sport, that Saturday is marked on their calenders with a huge red X, that their cell phones have reminders and that every alarm in the house is set.

Oh, and did I mention that there is a comp on the following Sunday. Yip, these guys are not messing around!

See you there!

I finally have a boat!

I feel like I just got my first car! The effort required to get on the water has many more parallels to my first car purchase. Money, hidden costs, effort oh and did I say money? Yip, buying a boat is not for the feint hearted and in hind sign not for the shallow pocketed.

I eventually found a rubberduck I thought would do the trick. Many hours were spent on gumtree searching through the classifieds looking for that needle in a haystack deal. When what appeared to be a good deal surfaced I pounced and I towed home a 4.7m Prestige CAT duck with a 90HP Yamaha 2 stroke. 

Boat with old pontoons

Now I might be a hands on sort of person but I am not a mechanic and even less so a marine/boat mechanic. So for peace of mind I dropped the boat off at a local Yamaha dealer for its service and a general once over. Well thats when the first foot hit my nether regions, they saw me coming. I was way to trusting and ended up with a bill for R7000.00, thats R5000.00 more than I was quoted. Did they phone me to get the "all good" for the extra work? No, that would be customer service, and we live in PE, we just bend and take it. The best of all was a charge of R250.00 to replace a single bolt on the tow hitch of my trailer! 

OK, enough with the venting. The moral of the story is, pretend you know what you are talking about and try hard not to look like a walk over. It also helped that the owner was a few feet shorter than me, but I got a decent discount on the original invoice after I raised my voice. It's also comforting to know that there is a new Yamaha agency that has opened in PE to add a little competition to the industry, let hope like hell that pans out well for us plebs.

Well I towed home a boat that now was not such a great deal after all. But wait the best is still to come, the pontoons, like a knife to my heart that word still rings in my ears. Yip, my ignorant self thought "well they look in decent condition" when I bought the boat. How ignorant I was, it was becoming more evident each time I took the boat out that I would soon need to have the boat re-pontooned. Well my suspicions were realized when after a scorcher of a day in PE the one tube in the pontoons burst a seam. Yes I know what you are going to say, "don't leave the boat in the sun", "deflate the tube when not being used" blah, blah. and I was new to the inflatable boat scene and coupled with being somewhat forgetful I now had to re-pontoon the boat. 

Boat with new pontoons 

Well now the "good deal" was totally out the window! But hey, I have a new boat, as over capitalized as it is. But then one day I stumbled on the C-Ski 440 and suddenly I need to find a buyer for my rubber duck. This is never ending!

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part8 - Gloves & Dive Knife)

We have covered our feet with fins and socks, we have covered our body with a wet suit and we have covered our face with a mask. One of the only things left exposed is our hands and this brings us to the need for gloves. The sea has some pretty abrasive and sharp things just waiting for your exposed flesh!

When diving in a decent swell you might find the need to hold on to a rock. When handling a fish you have just caught you would want to protect yourself form the sharp dorsal spines and gills common on many species. So there are many logical reasons to don a pair of gloves, but what gloves?

Most wet suit manufacturers also produce a few variants of neoprene gloves of varying thicknesses. Although these do their job in protecting you from the elements they come at a sacrifice. Wearing a pair of 5mm neoprene gloves is like trying to thread a needle while wearing a pair of boxing gloves, you loose allot of your hands sensitivity and accuracy. But when you are hanging on a rock encrusted with sea urchins you might see the sacrifice as worth the effort. 

Neoprene Spearing Gloves

One of the most noticeable areas effected by the loss of sensitivity is your trigger finger, you don't want to be swimming along and accidentally pull the trigger of your gun. For this reason I opt to not wear a glove on my right hand (trigger hand). I can hold on to the reef with my gloved left hand while still maintaining sensitivity and accuracy with my right trigger hand.

These neoprene gloves are not cheap. You can expect to pay in the region of about R500 - R600 for a good pair. It's for this reason that I opted for a cheaper option. I am sure you can remember your mother pottering around in the garden with a pair of fabric gloves? Well these double up as a very good alternative. You could also use a pair of crayfish gloves as these have the added benefit of a non-slip palm surface that might assist you in holding on to your catch while stringing it. These gloves you can pick up from your local fishing tackle store for as little as R30!

Crayfish Gloves

Another item that should be in every spearfishermans kit is a dive knife. Almost all the areas you will dive will also be frequented by traditional line fisherman, many of them leaving the remnants of their efforts by means of   fouled fishing line. Many of the deeper reefs are also frequented by commercial long-liners, their line is substantially thicker and stronger than average and can pose a serious danger to a spearfisherman especially if there are hooks still attached. Find yourself caught up or entangled in this line and you will be ever thankful for your dive knife. Another use of a dive knife is to kill the fish before stringing them. This is not only humane but it also avoids the now distressed fish attracting sharks.

If a whale can become entangled so can you!

There are a few variants of dive knives out there, but most of them will suffice. I like the feature on my Kershaw dive knife that has a line cutter at the top of the blade that makes it easier to cut fishing line. Make sure the knife has a decent sheath that is easily attached to the inside of your leg or upper arm. Make sure the knife is out of harms way as your float line can easily become entangled in it.

A knife also doubles up as a tool, be it a screwdriver or just to pry off a muscle to use to chum the water, it is a very versatile and useful part of your kit.

Kershaw Dive knife with line cutter

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part7 - Buoy, Floatline, Stringer )

when referring in an earlier post to the different style spear guns I mentioned the use of a buoy & float line. These items are generally more popular with shore entry divers as it provides them with the security of attaching their catch to a buoy/float that is held a few meters away. While boat divers tent to find them cumbersome as well as them having the luxury of a boat to load their catch on.

The buoy/float however serves another purpose in my opinion other than just to hold the stringer containing your catch. They are normally brightly colored and for good reason. Most of us will opt for a natural colored wet suit and other gear so as not to spook the fish. With this gear you as a diver become very difficult yo spot in a decent swell never mind behind the breakers. Using a buoy/float that is easily visible will help the skipper of a boat to spot you should you need assistance as well as avoid drifting to far off your position.

I also found that while diving out at Cape Recief, a shore entry that required a decent 800m swim to the reef it was my buoy that kept my wife sane on the beach. I have also heard of divers diving in high traffic areas that have had very close misses by other ski boats due to not having a buoy.

Buoy/Float with an Alpha (diver down) flag

The stringer is attached to th buoy/float to secure your catch. It is generally made of a stainless steel spike about 200mm long with a cable attached to the middle of the spike. The other end of the cable is then attached to th buoy. This spike is then threaded through the gills of the catch to secure it to the buoy/float. It might be a good idea to attach a decent swivel between the buoy/float and the stringer as the swell might cause the fish and stinger to become entangled in your float line.

Stringer

Float line is basically just a nylon line (rope) that is joins your spear gun to your buoy/float. There are a few different options available for color and thickness. Try to get a line that does not float (yes, this might sound odd), as a float line can easily become caught up in a boats propellers. You often find that when diving the bright color of the float line might spook some fish. To defeat this you can setup a "ghost leader". There are different designs but it is essentially just a thick piece of clear fishing line (3-5mm) attached to the float line for the last 5m and then attached to your spear gun.  

Various colors of float line

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part6 - Weight Belt)

As you have seen from previous posts, a spearfisherman carries a decent amount of equipment, from wet suit to fins, mask and snorkel. All these items displace water and therefore increase your buoyancy, this is counteracted by carrying weights.

There are two main different types of weighting methods. Firstly let's look at the traditional belt. Most spearfishing/freediving specific weight belts are made from rubber as most spearfisherman/freedivers spend allot of their time descending head first into the ocean, as depths increases so do pressures, with pressure your wet suit will compress as well as your body, this will leave a standard webbing weight belt loose compared to its initial fitting on the surface. With a rubber weight belt one can fit it with a slight bit of elasticity to compensate for the decreased body size at depth. The rubber weight belt can be used with conventional scuba diving lead weights.

Rubber Weight Belt

Conventional Diving Lead Weights

The one drawback of a weight belt is that the weight is centered around your waist while most of the bodies displacement is due to the torso. This brings us to the other weighting option, the harness. The weight harness fulfills the same purpose as the weight belt but enables a diver to distribute the weights so as to attain a certain buoyancy of certain areas of the body. One can also use wrist or ankle weights to further fine tune weight distribution.

Weight Harness

When deciding how much weight a person needs to take on a dive there are a few things to consider. The rule of thumb is 10% of your body weight but this changes depending on the depth you are planning on diving. Remember that you wet suit as well as your body compresses under pressure at depth, this results in less displacement of the body and therefore less buoyancy. You would therefore need less weight when diving deeper, exactly how much less would be a matter of individual trial and error. Another important thing to remember when donning your weights, be it a weight belt or harness, is how easy it is to release should you need to do so in an emergency. Weight belts do not have loops for securing the slack of your belt, this is so it is easily accessible so the belt can be release with just a tug of the belt. Most harnesses have equally easily operated safety releases, make sure they work smoothly before descending for your first dive.

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part5 - Wetsuit)

We all want to be protected from the elements and maintain a comfortable body temperature, this is where a wetsuit comes becomes a necessity. In Port Elizabeth as well as along most of the Cape coast temperatures can drop well bellow the comfortable 13°C mark and when spending extended periods of time in such temperatures you want to make sure you are warm.

Most common wetsuits you see come with a "closed cell" neoprene. This is when both sides of the neoprene have a protective layer of nylon fabric This has the added benefit of protecting your wetsuit from tears caused when donning your suit (jaggered fingernails) but it does result in a loss of thermal insulation due to the water it allows to flow between the skin and the suit. An "open cell" suit on the other hand has a layer of nylon fabric only on the outside of the suit thereby allowing you skin to come into direct contact with the neoprene and forming a good seal that will keep the cold water out and your body warm. Obviously one would have to take proper care of an open cell suit, this I will cover in a later article.

Another positive aspect of wearing a wetsuit is that it adds protection from more than just the weather elements but also from the critters that live in our oceans. We are hunters, and as such we are often required to conceal ourselves so as to make that prized catch, this might require us to lay in a gully, or in a bit of seaweed, actions that if unprotected, might bring with it some nasty scratches and grazes, many of which can become infected and painful. I have personally experienced a coral rash (hydroid sting), something I will do everything possible to avoid in the future.

Coral Rash

In Port Elizabeth we also get a fair amount of Blue Bottles (Portuguese Man O' War) blown into the bay by some of the seasonal Southerly winds. These and other Cnidaria can inflict very painful stings that can very quickly put a person into shock and ruin a days diving. A decent wetsuit while not providing full cover (face, hands and feet) does reduce the risk of extensive stings considerably. 

Blue Bottle Sting 

An added feature of wetsuits that has become popular over the last few years is the camo print. this obviously enables a person to blend in a little more with their environment making them a little more likely to fool that prized catch. Although this is a great feature one must remember the limitations when diving multiple locations where the colour of the water and fauna change considerably as this could end up having the opposite effect to the desired camouflage. 

Camo Print Wetsuit

Most spearfishing wetsuits will be in a 2-piece configuration. This will give the added benefit of a double layer of neoprene over the torso increasing the thermal protection, but also making it easier to don the wetsuit. Most will also come with a built in hoodie that covers the head, this drastically helps retain warmth as its been said that the body can loose up to 50% of its body heat through the head. As you can imagine most wetsuit manufacturers make wetsuits in a variety of thicknesses from 2mm all the way to 7mm. One will have to look at the average sea temperatures where they plan on diving when making this selection.

Here are a couple of the main local (South African) manufactures of good spearfishing wetsuits:

Free Divers

Rob Alan

Coral Wetsuits

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part4 - Snorkel)

As a spearfisherman you are going to be doing most of your breathing through a snorkel. While there are not many features that make for a good spearfishing snorkel there are a few that need to be discussed.

You will once again find that most dive gear stockists keep a range of snorkels, most with fancy self draining valves and other fancy attachments. You will also find they come in all colours of the rainbow. Now these are two features that a spearfisherman does not need. First of all the self draining attachments become more of a burden and at times can actually hinder air flow, it is therefore best to look at a simple straightforward snorkel that will have less attachments that can fail while you fight that prized catch.

Flexibility is a feature that is often sought after, when you dive you don't want to have this appendage sticking out the top of your head causing drag and no doubt alerting all the local marine life to your presence. You also don't want a straw, as I mentioned you are going to be doing allot of breathing through the snorkel so you want one that can accommodate this by having a sufficient bore size thereby allowing you to breath unrestricted and naturally.

many manufacturers also offer a camo print on the snorkel so as to blend more effeciently into your surroundings. While this is a nice added feature you want to consider all the areas you plan on diving in and make sure its not going to have an opposite effect in some of the areas.

Snorkel with camo print

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part3 - Mask)

A mask is almost as important as a speargun because you cant shoot what you cant see!

There are a few different varieties of masks mostly due to the scuba diving and snorkeling industries but spearfishing has some unique demands that are not often met by the run of the mill masks out there. When diving to depths in excess of 5m one will note a bit of pressure on your face caused by the air cavity between your face and the glass of your mask becoming compressed. This can not only cause pain but can effect your vision as well as leave nasty marks on your face where the blood is drawn to the surface of your skin.

Mask Squeeze

To avoid this one needs to equalize the pressure in the mask with that of the outside pressure, this is done by breathing a small amount of air through ones nostrils and into the mask cavity. Obviously when holding ones breath on a dive every little bit of breath is precious, so what spearfisherman and freedivers have done is use a low volume mask. This is a mask that holds a smaller amount of air in the cavity between your face and the glass than that of conventional scuba masks and therefore only requires a tiny amount of air to be breathed into the mask to equalize it.

You will also find most spearfishing masks have a black silicone skirt. This feature is to give the spearfisherman tunnel vision so as to aim correctly and not be distracted by reflections of light that tent to come through the sides and skirt of the clear silicone masks.

Low volume mask with black silicone skirt

Another feature that is becoming popular amoung spearfisherman is that of reflective lenses. Most divers report that fish are spooked when they make eye contact with a diver, so many manufacturerers have now released models with a reflective coating on the lenses that avoids the fish making eye contact.

Mask with reflective lenses

These are just a few of the features most sought after in a mask by spearfishermen, but one of the most important features is going to be fit, so go into your local dive shop and try on a few making sure that the mask seals correctly and most important that it is comfortable.

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part2 - Fins)

I am sure by now you have noticed that most sperfisherman and freedivers don much longer fins than those of scuba divers and snorkelers. Why is this the case? Well remember that spearfishing requires you to hold your breath for extended periods, while holding your breath you will need to conserve as much energy as possible so as to increase your bottom time. These "longer fins" help in that you get more propulsion from less effort but this comes at the cost of having to have strong legs. There are numerous exercises that can be done to strengthen your legs in preparation.

Back to the fins. There are a two different options of fins you can look at:

• Off-The-Shelf fins
• Foot pockets with interchangeable blades 

Off-the-shelf fins offer the added extra length but do not have a few of the luxury features that the interchangeable blades offer. They are pretty much maintenance free and can be considerably cheaper than foot pockets with interchangeable blades. Should the fin however become damaged in any way, it will require the replacement of the entire fin!

Off-The-Shelf fins

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Foot pockets offer a wide variety of features to suit any diver. You are able to fit the foot pocket to the exact size you require while taking into consideration the neoprene sock you no doubt will be using. Should the pocket tear or otherwise become damaged it can be replaced without having to replace the entire fin and therefore at a reduced cost, the same applies to the blades.

Blades are constructed in 3 main materials:

• Plastic
• Carbon composite
• Pure carbon fiber

Plastic blades are very versatile and rugged. For shore entry dives these are a must if you are only starting out. They however have limited flexibility and only flex uniformly along their length (the base of the blade flexes the same as the tip), this therefore reduces the efficiency of the fin considerably.

Carbon composite blades are offer slightly better flexibly when compared to the plastic blades. Manufacturers are able to adjust the flexibility on the blade along its length to provide more flex towards the tip and thereby improving the efficiency of the blade.

Pure Carbon blades, need I say more. There  is nothing that cant be modified on these blades. Pure carbon blades can be custom made for an individuals strength and desired thrust. These blades however can come at a cost and don't even think of taking them over the rocks on a shore entry dive. Once the epoxy layer and weave of the carbon has been compromised you can pretty much throw them in the bin!

Foot Pockets

Spearfishing kit - What and where? (part1 - Spearguns)

May of us when looking at starting a new hobby look to the internet to give us a starting point. With spearfishing it is no different as there is a wealth of information out there, its the putting it into tangible, practical advice that becomes a little tricky.

I was lucky enough that in my escapades on the net in search of more information I stumbled on a chap who was able to steer me in the right direction. I will share some of the wisdom that was imparted to me.

As I am sure you have by now realized spearfishing is not as simplistic as it originally seemed. Gone are the thoughts of you swimming in the ocean with nothing but your swimming costume and a speargun, nope there is allot more to it than that. Let me briefly list a few items that a spearfisherman might need, we can go into a little detail later:

• Speargun (obviously)
• Fins
• Mask
• Snorkel
• Wetsuit
• Weight belt
• Buoy
• Float line
• Stringer
• Dive knife
• Gloves

OK, so as you see there is a decent amount of kit. Let us now look at each item individual over the next few blog posts and see what options there are for each one. Let us start with the...

Speargun

This is the main part of your kit, something you are going to bond with and become immensely fussy over as you develop your own style.

The main difference in spearguns is the length, you can expect to find lengths from 70cm all the way to 140cm. Why the variety? Can you imagine swimming on a reef, along gullys and in caves. Cruising around with a 1.4m speargun is going to pose a bit of a problem. So logically the size will depend on the application, but it does not end there, it seems the longer the gun the more accurate it is, so you are going to need to give it a bit of thought before running out and buying the first gun you find. Along with the length you will find the longer spearguns have 2 rubber bands, this is to give them that extra power to get to that huge game fish. I have personally found a 1.1m gun to be a good all-rounder especially the models with muzzles able to take a second rubber band.

You will also find "rail guns", these are spearguns where the spear runs on a rail for the full length of the barrel and  not just on guides at increments along the barrel of the gun. This feature allows the spear to travel smoothly off the barrel increasing accuracy but also stopping the spear from bending under speed and then clipping the end of the barrel resulting in a loud "ping" sound as the spear exits. This frightens the more spooky fish and you could possibly loose that trophy catch you had your eyes on.

Next is the more debated feature, reel gun or traditional gun. Now this is where you need to see what suits you better. A reel gun has a reel attached to the gun with about 30m of braided cord attached directly to the spear via a bungee, this will allow you to let a large fish run with your spear giving you time to surface. A reel gun offers freedom of movement as you are not "attached" to anything (buoy), this setup tends to suit boat divers more as they can just load their catch onto the boat rather than onto the stringer on the buoy. It's also a good setup when negotiating caves and other areas where a buoy line might get tangled.

A traditional setup on the other hand is more suited to those than like the security of a buoy to string their fish and mark their position. It also allows you to let your gun go with out the risk of loosing it. This setup is generally favored by shore entry divers.

Reel Gun

Traditional Speargun

Some examples of locally made spearguns:

Freedivers

Rob Allen

Orca

Rabitech

To be continued....

To powerhead or not to powerhead

Most of us cringe at the idea that such a loathsome creature as a shark even dares to inhabit the waters vaguely close to our homes. Many people stay away from local beaches just at the thought of their presence. But what about us that actually want to venture into their turf? Are there dangers? What do we do to protect ourselves?

I have been reading with much interest about the sudden increase in Great White sharks in our bay (Algoa Bay). Other spearfisherman have reported sightings of some decent sized specimens, some in excess of 4m and many within swimming distance of popular bathing areas. The exact reason for this increase is still unknown although many are pointing fingers at the new Coega deep water harbor development. The fact of the matter is they are here.

We as spearfisherman are not about to stop at the thought of their presence. For this reason many have resorted to carrying bang sticks or power heads and other tools to fend off sharks, this has led to a bit of a debate as there are many pros and cons.

Powerhead - A powerhead, bang stick, or shark stick is a specialized firearm used underwater that is fired when in direct contact with the target. Powerheads are often used for spear fishing, and against sharks or alligators for sport, defense, or to kill nuisance animals. The term powerhead refers to the firearm-like part of the device; when attached to a shaft to form a spear, it may be referred to as a bang stick or shark stick. The spear in question may be handheld, or launchable from a spear gun. Wikipedia

A variety of powerheads (bang-sticks)

Let's look at a few of the pros:

• Peace of mind knowing you have the firepower at hand
• Might save your life in the advent of a shark bite

Now what about the cons?...

• You need to have time to load the unit onto your spear
• It is live ammunition and therefore volatile
• You are using it in water, contamination could cause a misfire
• You will be carrying an illegal firearm (in South Africa)

OK, so you might have noticed that I am not pro powerheads. Let's think of it in real world terms, although many sharks are known to harass spearfisherman its the big five that we are really concerned about (Tiger, Bull, Great White, Hammerhead, Mako). I am no marine biologist but I have a good idea of the ideal hunting conditions of these sharks. If you are spearfishing and have a fish on, you only then see a shark, I can almost guarantee its already too late to start groveling around for your powerhead.

My next argument is their legality. In South Africa it is illegal to carry a modified firearm, a powerhead pretty much falls into this category. I know many police officers have turned a blind eye to the powerheads carried by some fisherman but I don't think you want to be the unlucky chap that has to explain it to that irate cop that is not so lenient. Also remember regardless of the firearm used to discharge the ammunition, you are still going to need a license for the bullet used. It' starting to get a little complicating hey....

What about the moral aspects? Granted that this is where I will get the most flack as it's justifiably only my opinion. When we enter the oceans, we are entering a sharks hunting domain, we should respect this by educating ourselves about them rather than just destroying the first one to cross our path. There are many techniques that have been developed to repel sharks, most times a stern prod with the tip of your spear behind the eye is enough to send a shark in to the depths allowing you enough time to get yourself and your catch onto the boat.

I do understand that there are extenuating circumstances that may require a person to do away with a shark, but you will soon find that most sharks that are powerheaded are merely the victims of selfish spearfishermen that are trying to clear a dive site of the pesky characters and not as a result of an impending attack.

We all want to be safe and we all want to enjoy the ocean, let not the combination of these bring out our selfish traits!

Totally unnecessary 

Where it all started

I originally come from up country, from that city we all love to hate - Joburg. As a kid I used to join my older brother and his friends on frequent trips to the East Coast, namely Kosi Bay and Mabibi. These holidays still bring back amazing memories of lounging in the sun to the point of actually getting bored. One of the more recalled memories however was that of snorkeling, getting into the rock pools at Mabibi and enjoying some of the best underwater scenery our country has on offer.

At one spot that the locals had shown us due to the abundant crayfish there was a decent drop off to about 10m.  Try as I might I could not get to the bottom cave that held the loot. After about a weeks worth of camping and me trying unrelentingly each day to reach the cave I finally managed to get to it, albeit for about 10 seconds. I did not managed to retrieve anything but still felt that sense of accomplishment.

I vowed to myself that I would return the following year and retrieve something from that cave even if it was a handful of sand. So about 2 weeks prior to our next holiday I started with some exercises in the communal pool in our housing complex. I had no idea what to do, so I just practiced holding my breath while swimming laps of the pool underwater. I was about 13 and had to do this between school, homework and a nagging mother begging me to come inside for supper, so I did not get in nearly as much pool time as I thought I needed as the memory of the depth of that cave (now a year old) had somewhat exaggerated the effort needed.

About a week later we arrived at Mabibi camp, and as you can imagine I rushed down the 150 odd stairs from the camp down to the beach, in the process aggravating the rest as they where left to set up camp for the ensuing two week holiday. The tide was a little low and I was left tip-toeing over the rocks to get to that familiar spot. I slipped into the warm water, readied myself and took my first dive to the nearest sand bank to warm up for the next deeper dive. I returned to the surface, now overly excited as on my previous dive was shared by a sizable turtle, something I had only seen in an old hand-me-down Divestyle magazine. I relaxed for a few minutes, managed to catch my breath and took the plunge, the one I had been preparing so fervently for, the one I had sacrificed many weeks of homework on. All the excitement, all the preparation rushed through my mind as a kicked towards the bottom.

There it was, "the cave"! It seemed my preparation had paid off, I still had a bit of breath to spare. I forced myself down just that little bit more so I could peer into the void I expected to hold a prized catch. Feeling my chest contract as it pleaded for breath I looked in and found nothing, nothing but a stray Scorpion Fish hovering mid water staring back at me with it's almost cocky "you suck" stare.

I returned to the camp somewhat de-motivated, the wind out of my sails, left to pitch my tent and sweep out the campsite, day dreaming of the two weeks ahead.

We never managed to go back to that camp after that holiday. The memory however nagged at my unconscious. I worked hard part time after school to pay off a scuba diving course trying to maximize my time underwater, to see all that there was on offer.

Time passed, circumstances changed. I ended up moving to Port Elizabeth in seek of greener pastures. It took me a few years before I finally got in the water with more than a costume, but when I did I felt like I had come home. I scuba dived as much as I could, I dived before work in the mornings as well as night dives, but this all faded with time, I eventually stopped diving, it all seemed to become a bit, well, boring. Even during this sabbatical I regularly recalled my time at Mabibi camp, the freedom I felt with nothing more than a cheap mask.

I related my Mabibi experience repeatedly to my wife. She seemed almost skeptical of it, having come from a history of asthma and respiratory complications as a child, her exposure to the underwater world was therefore somewhat limited if not nonexistent. We decided to ease her into it. We went to the local dive operator and bought a set of snorkeling gear. This went astronomically well, she was amazed at what lay just under the surface of the water at the beach she had frequented since childhood. It was not long and she was asking about doing a scuba diving course. A visit to a 'diving doctor' and the unexpected all-clear made for an exciting December holiday as she completed the classes and the dreaded exam.

Then came the dreaded day, her first ocean dive. I decided to join her for the moral support, but thought it would be best if I remained on the surface with just my mask so as not to complicate the process. Due to my wifes interest we invested in an entry-level underwater camera and I was now eager to put it to use documenting this pivotal moment in my wife's life.

A short boat ride brought us to Phillips Reef just off Kings Beach in Port Elizabeth. After a few frantic minutes the students where in the water and on their way down to the reef. I had to help my wife don her kit and therefore missed most of their time on the surface, the photographic opportunity just before she headed down with the others. I was not going to miss a photo or two! I relaxed as I watched the bubbles rise from their position just a mere 7 meters from the surface. I took a breath and headed in their direction. Suddenly the memory hit me again, I felt 13 again! I returned to the surface out of breath but almost in a daze, excited and covered with goose-bumps.

A few more dives and we were back on the boat and heading home, but I did not remember a minute of the ride as my mind was awash with thoughts and memories of Mabibi. I managed to take some photos of my wife, but the photos that took her attention were that of a large Red Stumpnose that I managed to get with in a meter of, I felt I could touch it.

It was not long after this that I started spending more and more time in the water with just my mask and snorkel. A few hour in front of the computer and I had a new word in my vocabulary - Free Diving!