for every fish landed, there is a story behind it. want to hear it? great! it was towards the end of a drift dive in the strong current 33 miles out at sea. we were about to jump back on the boat and do the drift again. Kyle was already on the boat, Jonathan was almost about to go back. i just thought i’d do one more blind dive. a blind dive meaning “diving deep down and just checking things out.” anyway, i go down to about 70′, i wait looking around in the dark deep blue sea. right as i was going to start my way back up, i seen a huge shadow. OMG! it looked like a submarine! a huge 250lbs. or 100 kilo yellowfin was swimming right below me. it was at about 90′ down. i thought “should i turn back down, shoot the fish, and just die?” ummm, better not. so i make my way back up, come up screaming to Jonathan, “OMG, HUGE TUNA!” Jonathan dove down and right about 20′ deep, 2 smaller tunas swim by. i guess Jonathan thought those were the tunas so he shot one. i would have too.
yes, this is the small one. still big, but compared to the monster i seen deep down there, there was no comparison. but a tuna is a tuna. Jonathan was stoked! i was so stoked just to witness all that action. it was the biggest adrenaline rush ever!
Jonathan shot his tuna in the tail and it was barely secured. i went down for the backup shot and seen his shaft barely hanging on by the tunas skin. so i shoot the tuna in the head. perfect shot? well, the tuna wakes up again and starts going crazy. swimming away with my shaft in his head. i was so happy to get the perfect second shot, but i was yelling through my snorkel “OMG, my shaft is bent!!!” just the sheer power of the tuna swimming away bent my $100 stainless steel shaft. well, actually my friends shaft. haha.
tuna hunting and diving gear isn’t cheap. a bent shaft hurts the wallet. and to tell you the truth, i probably bent over 80 shafts in my lifetime. ouch.
so i go buy a brand new one. Kurt at Maui Sporting Goods tunes it up for me. now it’s a perfect fit and ready to go again. i’m going to return the gun to my friend Shane. and now i’m officially retired from chasing yellowfin tuna. i would never do it again because i achieved my ultimate goal as a free diver. and finally, i can sleep better at night!
