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Children spearo's

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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foxfish said:
I like your pink bathers Bob.... I never knew!!!!
Click to expand...

Thats my wife... i'm the one holding on
Gets me to the bottom without kicking so I have a better bottom time, and that looks like a great bottom.....time!rofl
 
Hi Nobby,
1 kudos on the obvious passion and love for the child, kudos for asking for opinions, kudos for generating debate. Not so many kudos for the speargun in the pic lol.
In Apnea Academy we have a programme called Aquaticity for children. In it Umberto states the best age for teaching children is 7-9 years and that they be reasonably good swimmers. At this age they are better able to learn and evaluate and judge situations. There is an "advanced" course for kids of 10-14.

We don't know if there are any contra indications for children holding their breath as their bodies are still developing and obviously it would be unethical to experiment. I am inclined to think there aren't as long as we are sensible about it. We don't ever look at competitive distances or holds with kids but more get them to be aware of their bodies signals and sensations. Having fun in safety is the goal and the over riding message is " my companion stays close to me and is always ready to help me".

The pic is of my daughter Niamh a few years back she is 12 now and wants to get back in surfing at present but I have to hold her back as the sea temp is still too cold. She has dived beyond her depth a few times but I had her use the rope the first few times to pull down to experience pressure on her ears, then to learn equalisation. She has dived to maybe 3m max and is comfortable in the water but a float is always near at hand and has never used a weight belt.

I would be with Mart on the spearing. A pole spear at 10-12 and graduating to a speargun would be the way to go. Bear in mind there is something intrinsicly sad about extinguishing the life of a creature. It matures you and shows you the power you have over some animals. He will have the rest of his life to be a man but only a few years to be a child so I would hold him back as long as you can. Bearing in mind the reason he wants to spear is to impress the person he admires most his Dad.

Peace out brah.
 

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Reactions: spearo nobby and bobdonny
That sounds like an awesome course, it's a shame there is nothing like that around here for the young children who love the sea. It's good to see people agreeing on a common age to introduce children into spearfishing, this is what Nobby wanted to hear from other people.

Thanks to everyone for bringing this debate back on track : )
 
Reactions: Dai ASBO
Just stumbled across this thread so thought i would mention my own personal experience...First started going out with my dad from the age of 4 (just snorkelling at this stage) - As i got slightly older would watch from the surface/dragged around on his float while he was spearfishing (my choice!). First used a gun at the age of 10 (fully supervised with him next to me) - was a midi sten five pronger! (still have it!) - Started entering comps at the age of 14..... As i started playing underwater hockey at a very young age i was very confident and comfortable in the water with mask, fins and snorkel, so would say i had the background to be able to do this. As for what age is right, well to me nobody can specify an age, its down to the parent to decide when they think that their child is ready. I have a 10 year old daughter who swims at county level, but she isnt anywhere near ready to start using a gun, as this is an enviroment she isnt comfortable in (yet).
 
Reactions: spearo nobby
Having grwn up in a family of rodfishers and hunters,me and my brother probably learnt how to handle guns at the age of sevenish,only target shooting though.weve been fishing since before we could walk. As I got older I went through a period as a vegetarian and Im still not that keen on hunting.I got my first pole spear as a gift for my 8th birthday. My kids are 9 ,11 and 13 they all love the water and rodfishing, and I feel that having introduced them to rodfishing and the importance of respecting and allso eating the fish we catch at an early age,maybe three ,fourish is a good thing. That said, my eldest who turns thirteen this fall,will be getting a speargun this summer,hes been polespearing for a couple of years now and is confident in the water. He is one of theese active children that needs challenges and confidence builders. He can easily go to the bottom of the fivemeter pool we practice in,and have done a 2* cmas snorklig course. I will of course not just send him off to sea alone,we will be going together with one gun and a shared float. The other two of my kids allso love snorkling,and they usually get my camera to bring with them when we go swimming,all three of them have a polespear together,but its usually not used that much,they have yet to catch anything with it Splashing around in the shallows looking at all the strange creatures hiding in the seaweed is usually enugh.
 
Reactions: spearo nobby
Thanks guys for the debate on this subject. I hav taken on board all comments and i will b using all points of view wen considering at wot time to do wot with my son. Im glad that most r in agreement on a ages on when a child should start out with a gun with right mindset abillity ect . I am liking the way the thread is heading now and would like to see this continue as i feel there could b alot of info that can b looked bk on on this thread for any other parent considering starting there child up or even just introducing them to the world of underwater. I would ask for ppl to refrain from posting about my child and use this thread as it is ment. As i said tho guys if there is anymore posts like the last few this could turn into a really resorsfull thread to other parents . Thanks again for all points of view and the informative oppinions.
 
Reactions: Dai ASBO and fcallagy
This is a great thread and very thought provoking.
I'm a father of 4 young children and before this thread have considered the 'if and when' my kids become interested in spearfishing what would I do? I think I'm pretty much at the same opinion now as I was before but with lots more food for thought and ideas.
I was not brought up around the sea -this is all a new world to me so firstly I know I need to concentrate on bettering myself through practice / learning etc to be as good and safe as I can be. I also know that this will take time and practice and to be honest I'm in no rush - it will take as long as it takes. So thoughts of me spearing with any of my kids is a LONG time off. Similar to the feedback already submitted I've always had from 14 yrs old in my head for some reason which I can't place, must have read it somewhere. Seems to me that certain kids will be at different abilities throughout the teenage years wich will dictate when they are able to undertake spearfishing with sufficient understanding / respect / ability / safety awareness. So I've always assumed I'd see how things develop for all of us and if and when they are mature / physically capable enough and want to - then apply the 'I know my childs abilities and limitations' as a parent.
Between now and then what I can and will do is make sure they grow up in and around the coast, get in the sea, snorkel and generally become confident with the environment. I will also teach them the philosophy I (and most of us here) apply to spearfishing of respect for the sea / fish, that I catch to eat, minimum sizes of catch and reasons why etc so they grow up knowing the ethics behind it all as well. And cooking the lovely fish too!!!!!
I'd be chuffed to bits if the kids want to get into spearfishing when they're older - but if not no problem, I continue to get 'my time!!'

Nobby - I dare say you've had a stressful few days!! I think you've handled yourself well for such a personal topic and you have come across as a good and commited father. Respect and reps to you.

Scoobaru - good on you for supporting your mate and his boy with your added experience. Respect and reps.
 
Reactions: spearo nobby
Lad's forgot to say in the last post that Umberto recomends that the snorkel isn't used for long periods of time as it could possibly affect orthodental development. Now bear in mind that probably applies more in the Med where you could literally be in the water all day rather than our waters but still food for thought.
 
I spent my afternoon diving with my daughter yesterday, she's 6. So we went looking at fish, and diving for shells. My speargun? On the beach, away from her.
 
Reactions: spearo nobby
ReefTroll said:
I spent my afternoon diving with my daughter yesterday, she's 6. So we went looking at fish, and diving for shells. My speargun? On the beach, away from her.
Click to expand...

If she enjoys the water and would like to spearfish at what age would you introduce her and help her spear her first fish?
 
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