SCUBA spearfishing

Quote from Dude george

Chase dont get me wrong I feel the same passion for my ocean and really get where you are coming from, but I believe you are wrong on your no tanks spearing. We all do it for sport, so do you, know matter how you phrase what we do the facts are we will not starve without fish harvesting nor do we depend on it for our livelihood...therefore you fish for that rush and for the sport.
That being said sustainability is the name of the game and I dont believe that scuba does more damage than scuba wherever you are... if scuba is getting more action its because the shallow water divers have killed all the fish shallow. The truth of this is we all play a part.
Dan all I get from above is the freedivers killed all the fish shallow so they retreat to the deep and now they want the deep protected from harvesting as a shelter, BUT the damage is not the scuba fault, all that paragraph is saying to me is stop one method to give the fish a breading chance, why not stop the shallow as well?
Many times I have touched on this forum what commercial free divers are doing to our Caribbean reefs, it aint good and no scuba commercial guys could ever do what I see those guys do. Thats the facts not a opinion. But I am not sure what good this discussion does for our reefs, fishes and our sport.

No offense dude, but I dont dive for a "rush". Quite the opposite, Im a combat vet and I dont need that feeling. I dive to feel peace and serenity. Like Ive been saying, I go beach diving for 4-6 hours on average and sometimes I dont harvest any fish and I am just as content as if I did. I see fish all the time but Im very selective on what I harvest because I dont believe in killing for no reason or for fun...

There is no way freedivers are causing more harm than scuba. To make a statement like that shows ignorance. Its common sense if you actually sit back and think on it. Any pop belly 50 yr old person can slap the air tank on their back and "kill something". Not everyone can hold their breathe and dive down past 40' let alone 60', 80', or even 100'. My thoughts are this, no one says you have to harvest fish via diving. If you want to do so, get in some kind of shape and try your luck freediving. Most guys dive for 20+ years to be able to freedive down to 80' or deeper. It takes time. Do you understand? If someone is not willing to give the fish a "fair" chance then they should go line fishing off the pier or something. Those kinds of divers are what's giving the rest of us a bad rap. And when you have a dedicated air supply and go night diving with flash lights and all this gear, where's the fairness in that? Did you forget that these fish are living things?

Save the scuba for wreck diving & exploring the ocean, who knows you might learn something. The saying "to each his own" only applies when your not affecting/harming anyone or anything. Kind of like our legal system, your rights end where someone else's begins. If you would like a prime example of what scuba divers do to spearfishing as a sport and the reefs they beat up, just look at the Mediterranean sea. Scuba has been banned for exactly the reasons I am stating and you can only freedive if you want to shoot a fish.

- Chase

And I am speaking about South Florida waters only. I have no idea what divers are doing around the world nor do I know their methods. My concern is where I live and hunt and the total disregard that Ive seen from a lot of so called "divers".

Later,

Chase

Quote from Dude george

Chase I have been a dive master since 88, you cant imagine the amount of dives i have done, or the fish i have killed, i dont speak out of ignorance. And i can say vet or no vet if your in the water killing dont be a hypocrite about it, if you pull the trigger and kill a living thing you are part of the killing period... The coral hugging i swim for hours and dont shoot shit has no water with me, nor does I feel nothing but serenity when i kill. You have no idea what serious breath hold divers can do to a shallow reef.
I feel more at home in the water and could swim before i could walk, island boy from 300 years of island boys. You show ignorance arguing from ignorance and limited experience, i applaud your passion but passionate opinions with limited knowledge or experience is just that..ignorance.If you feel Florida tropical waters cant learn from other Caribbean tropical waters experiences then i am wasting my fingers typing. LOL actually i am being a ass, i am out of this thread.

I dont need any experience to be able to use my own two eyes. I personally dont care what youve shot or your status. Your not beating up my home waters so knock yourself out bud. And i didnt know you had a phD in psychology? Really? So you know how Im feeling in the water and what Ive done or been through? Please, indulge me with details. Sounds like I struck a nerve or something, unfortunatly I dont care. My POV is what it is and you cant change what Ive seen in MY home waters. Whatever your situation is wherever your at is of no concern to me and if you want to scuba speardive and shoot 100+lbs of fish in a day, knock yourself out bud!

Just so you know, with my "limited experience" Im on the water 2-3 times a week. Diving for a year now, Ive learned my hunting grounds well and made great progress. Its not always how long someone does something. More so how fast each individual progresses in his journey.

But hey, since your a 'master diver' I cant really tell you anything probably. In reality, someone who "knows it all" isnt worth a damn because they refuse to learn anything new. Good luck though bro!

Cheers,

Chase :laughing:

Quote from Sames

Chase,

Being a combat vet has no bearing on spearfishing that I can see, as comparing the rush from killing a fish and killing a fellow human being are not comparable in the least. I have never felt a rush when killing a fish though, so that may just be me. I think I get the basic principle of your argument that some people abuse their spearfishing "rights", but I think perhaps you may be getting a little carried away with the idea that freedive spearfisherman take less on average than SCUBA guys. Many more experienced divers than you and I here have all said the same thing and it seems you don't want to listen to their advice.

I am not trying to flame you, and as a fellow combat vet (U.S. Army, 2nd Infantry Division, Battalion Sniper) I am simply putting my advice out there, take it or leave it; I will not be offended. Good hunting.

Respectfully,
Sames

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My point on that exactly! I feel NO rush shooting a fish. I think how good he will taste and how lucky I was to be able to take him home. I never said my combat experience had any bearing. Are we reading the same post's? Dude george insinuated that I feel some sort of "rush" after harvesting a fish. I do not. I feel love for our reefs and pity for the fish that really dont stand a chance. Its sad because eventually there will be nothing to catch and I guess we'll just be stuck inland because no one wanted to compromise by giving up SCUBA.

Im done argueing and meant no offense to anyone,

Chase

Quote from Marco

Hey! I'm a 50 years old pop belly! And I don't spearfish on scuba.

Haha! You remind me of my father-in-law. He's from Vieques, and he's a crazy diver like you! He goes deep man. I love your videos btw, Im a fan.

Chase