HEALTHY OBSESSION / Bob La Mar
Bob La Mar
Age: 47
Occupation: Freedive guide
Town: Gualala
Sport: Free-dive spearfishing
Why: Freedive spearfishing is a unique sport that combines the discipline of breath-hold diving with the practice of hunting. For me, it is the ability to be selective that makes underwater hunting so rewarding.
Latest accomplishment in your sport: Hunting the legendary "El Bajo" in Mexico. El Bajo is an underwater seamount that rises to within 50 feet of the surface and is renowned for attracting large pelagic fish. Here I faced the ultimate challenge: staying true to my personal code of honor or shooting the fish of a lifetime. I passed on shooting an endangered marlin only to be rewarded by spearing a trophy amberjack.
Gear you can't live without: Matrix long-blade composite freediving fins (#2 stiffness).
Where you train: The southern Mendocino coast.
Time you get up in the morning: I roll out of bed around 5:30, boot up the computer and check the buoy reports.
Most annoying thing people assume about athletes in your sport: That "spearos" shoot everything they see. Hunting in the ocean on a single breath keeps the chase fair and the choices honorable.
Advice you'd give a rookie: Be aware of your limits and always show restraint.
Know someone hooked on a sport? E-mail healthyobsession@sfchronicle.com.
Bob La Mar
Age: 47
Occupation: Freedive guide
Town: Gualala
Sport: Free-dive spearfishing
Why: Freedive spearfishing is a unique sport that combines the discipline of breath-hold diving with the practice of hunting. For me, it is the ability to be selective that makes underwater hunting so rewarding.
Latest accomplishment in your sport: Hunting the legendary "El Bajo" in Mexico. El Bajo is an underwater seamount that rises to within 50 feet of the surface and is renowned for attracting large pelagic fish. Here I faced the ultimate challenge: staying true to my personal code of honor or shooting the fish of a lifetime. I passed on shooting an endangered marlin only to be rewarded by spearing a trophy amberjack.
Gear you can't live without: Matrix long-blade composite freediving fins (#2 stiffness).
Where you train: The southern Mendocino coast.
Time you get up in the morning: I roll out of bed around 5:30, boot up the computer and check the buoy reports.
Most annoying thing people assume about athletes in your sport: That "spearos" shoot everything they see. Hunting in the ocean on a single breath keeps the chase fair and the choices honorable.
Advice you'd give a rookie: Be aware of your limits and always show restraint.
Know someone hooked on a sport? E-mail healthyobsession@sfchronicle.com.
