Experience creates opportunity

Let me begin by stating categorically: A BAD DAY SPEARFISHING IS BETTER THAN A GOOD DAY AT WORK. It was the first day of competition at the 2006 Nationals. I was recovering from a really bad case of flu.

Marius, our skipper on the comp, put us right on top of the fish. On my first dive in 22m I saw the back of a huge Yellowbelly Rockcod (Merou). I tried in vain to cut it off. I surfaced and did not keep track of my position and lost the spot. These were early days for me. Competing with little training, with equipment I was not completely familiar with. Our team’s tactics also needed much refining.

Marius suggested looking at the edge of reef for rip-rap (broken reef). Several dives later, I stumbled onto just such a spot. I was tired and my chest was playing up. A Red Stumpnose swam into view but my lack of experience meant a short bottom time and I lost my position, not dropping a marker buoy! The morning was turning into a complete disaster.

As the day progressed, I had missed opportunities on several more fish. In this manner Bronze Bream, Red Roman and Cape Knifejaw were granted a reprieve because of my inexperience. By this stage I was coughing uncontrollably. Large lumps of phlegm were coming loose in my lungs and every time I breathed I could feel a distinct rattling in my chest. I kept at it and the intensity of the coughing worsened. In fact it became so bad that on several occasions, lying in water 20m deep, waiting for something to be stupid enough to approach me, I had to abandon the dive because the coughing would start underwater. I even missed shots at easy fish like Butterfish (similar to Morwong).

You know things are really going wrong when close fish approach from the ‘wrong’ direction. A particularly large Baardman did just this. It had taken me some time to settle down on the surface and prepare for a good long dive. By chance I landed on some good structure and relaxed to wait for something to come in. I glanced over my shoulder to see the Baardman looking at me nice and close. My eyes grew to the size of saucers and I spun around dragging my gun over the reef. The fish was long gone before I even thought I had a chance.

I ended up weighing 2 small fish that day (Jutjaw & Cape Knifejaw). My team-mates, the Penetrator and the Punisher, weighed 7 and 4 fish respectively. We placed in the top 10 for the day. Apparently lots of teams had struggled with the conditions. If only I had taken all the fish I saw.....