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Hit-and-Run off Point Loma

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PhilLJCA

New Member
Feb 10, 2005
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On Sunday August 13th at 6:45 PM a buddy and I were spearfishing off Point Loma at the Water Tanks. A Turqouise-colored "Chaparral" runabout (CF 0846 JF) ignored two dive flags (on the boat and on my float line) as well as my screaming and waving and ran over me and my rig. I was dragged for about 50 ft by my float line before I came untangled. My injuries were, fortuneately, fairly minor. The boat initially stopped (was pulling a lot of kelp along with my rig behind it). I confronted the drivers who proceded to flee as soon as I asked for their CF number. Fortuneately we got it anyway. Im posting for 2 reasons:

1.) Because I lost my gun, a Riffe Island with front and rear wing kits, and I am hoping some of you might find and return it (I was on the outside of the kelp directly off the coast of the tanks). The gun has the thicker 3/8 shaft on it and an ice-pick slip tip. I would be very indebted to the person that returns it to me.
2.)to warn you about this extremely dangerous boat (more appropriate, dangerous operators) which hopefully wont be on the water much longer. The boat is a distinctive turqouise color and appears to be new. Its operators are currently wanted by the harbor police.


thanks,

Phil
 
Sounds scary, good to hear that you're ok. Please inform us how this ends.
(Hopfully castration by slow repetitive needle pricks, if there's justice)
 
Sounds very scary. Glad you are OK.

I prefer to use a reel, but used to think that it was safer to use a float line and float in areas of high boat traffic. Your incident is one example of why I've been rethinking that. It seems like so many boat operators ignore the float and don't see the line, and it just gives them something else to hit and drag you.
 
Hiya

Unfortunately, using a reelgun would DEFINITELY put you at a dis-advantage. When diving inside the kelp beds, you're fine with a reelgun, as boaters will very rarely drive through the kelp beds, becuase of the fear of the kelp strands tangling with the props.

In open water, its a NIGHTMARE with a reelgun. We use reelguns exclusively, when hunting for yellowtail in the open water, which normally has very swift current. The boat stays with-in 10m's of us, YET, we still have close call!! Most boaters don't even know what a alpha flag (dive flag) is!!! Some boaters DO know, but still just don't care. Scariest of all, i've even had a fellow spearo drive his boat OVER me whilst i was on the bottom in 5m of water, WITH a float, in dead calm water!! Needless to say, we had words, and are no longer on talking terms. I've even had guys try and pick up my boogie board whilst tuna hunting!!rofl

One of my scarriest moments was coming up from the bottom, after shooting a yellowtail, only to see 4 rapala's (fishing lure's) come swimming past my head!!:vangry :vangry

For those guys who hasn't encountered a boat yet, its the worst thing imaginable. You can HEAR a boat, but you're absolutely CLUELESS as to from which direction its coming and how close or how far it is from you. NERVE-WRECKING, when you HAVE to surface!!!

Regards
and stay SAFE!!

miles
 
Miles- you seemed to contradict yourself. If boats ignore floats and lines or even are attracted to them, then how does a reel put you at a disadvantage? In the case that started this thread, the di

In high traffic areas, I think a float and float line just makes you a bigger target.
 
Hiya

What i'm getting at is that in open water, the float is simply more visible. The fact that many boaters don't know what a float represents or even a dive flag, is the problem. Diving in open water with-out a float is EXTREMELY dangerous. Other boats can't see you, neither can YOUR boat-man. We normally spear 4 guys. Three dive, whilst one operates the boat. We spear in very strong currents, so all of us drift down together, with the boat close by for protection from, other boats, sharks, etc. We've encountered some problems when the swell picks up and you're spearing big yellowtail (BIG for SA standards!!) 10-15kg class fish, which have no qualms in dragging a diver up-current. Losing a diver in a lumpy sea, with a strong current is a DISASTER!!

The main reason we use reel guns is because of our type of diving. We do drifts over wrecks, in very strong current. You jump into the boat every 15-20 minutes, if that long, and rolling and unrolling a floatline becomes tedious. How-ever, the greatest advantage is that a reelgun doesn't tangle the props, immobilising the boat. I've had to pick up spearo's when their boats props was tangled with one of the guys floatlines and a large GWS was paying them some attention. NOT FUN!!

Regards
miles
 
I agree that a float line is so much more visible in open water. However, he was not offshore. I believe he was on the outside of a kelp bed relatively near shore. Boats charge up and down the coast or next to our islands and either don't notice floats, don't know what they are, or are actually attracted to them when they don't know what they are.

But you are also admitting that you don't even use the floats offshore, and neither do most of us for a similar reason. We are running from one floating kelp paddy to another, jumping in and looking to see if there are fish, and then moving on to the next paddy. It takes too much time and too much trouble to put lines and floats in, then get them back out. A few days ago I had two guys with reels and one with a float line, and the contrast was dramatic. It took the one guy so much more time, and then I had to avoid running over his line and tangling it in the prop.

I had a special experience last week that would not have been helped by a float line. I saw a kelp paddy and turned toward it. I noticed a big boat coming down swell toward me, but it was a clear sunny day, and I assumed that once he saw that I was on the paddy, he would veer off. I took it out of gear next to the paddy, and this boat went by about 15 feet off my stern at full speed. We looked into the back of his cabin and saw a gun straightening up after apparently being bent over doing something. I guess he was on autopilot and never even saw us. If my divers had been in the water, he could have run right over them. Or if he barely missed them, he could have picked up their float lines at 25 knots.

Admittedly, this was a freak occurrence and should not be the basis of a decision on reels vs. float lines, but it is one more example of a case where having a float line might be worse than a reel.
 
Glad you're ok Phil, stuff like that can so easily turn out bad.

I think the float argument could be settled with a rig like this

 
Reactions: Mr. X and naiad
Don't know if this will help in every scenario but after having a few close calls learned to unhook the flag and hold it in my hand whenever I heard a boat. After it passes, clip and continue on. Keep in mind these were non-spearing scuba dives so that may not be of help to you.
 
Well I did not intend to re-ignite the whole float-line vs reel debate. I will say this however: I dont intend to trade in my float line for a reel any time soon just because some a@@%&*! ran over me. This jerk violated several boating laws in addition to common sense and human decency. Call me inflexible, but I believe it is wrong to change the way I do things just to accomodate the dangerous and stupid behavior of lawbreaking scum. He will have his day in court soon and I will be there to make sure he gets what is coming to him.
 
We went diving at catalina island last weekend and my buddie was hit by a zodiac. I was on the boat and noticed a guy in a zodiac heading in my buddies direction. So I began to scream furiously at the top of my lungs "diver in the water". While at the same time pointing frantically in my buds direction. The guy in the zodiac was trolling some lures and just stared at me.
I looked over and saw my buddies Riffe torpedo float WITH FLAG about 20ft ahead of the zodiac. However, my buddie was submerged and I could not warn him. I saw the commotion and my bud come up a few moments later. He was flayaling at the surface, but appeared allright. The guy in the zodiac stopped and began reeling in one of his rods. Because he had snagged a piece of kelp. My bud swam over to him and spat a few dirty words at him. The ass had headphones on and did not hear a word of it and did not even say a word back.


Later my bud got back to the boat and told me what had happened. He heard the boat coming, but had to come up for air. He did his best to angle away from the boat. However, on his way up he hit his head on the bow of the zodiac. Then he quickly ducked down again and had the propeller pass within inches above his head.
In addition, he told me that if it had been a hard hulled vessel he would have probably been knocked out and hit by the prop.
I really hate diving catalina, especially on a long weekend! It is so hard to just relax and enjoy diving, when you constantly have to worry about boats.
He even had that huge torpedo float and he was still hit. Are people just stupid or what?
 

They got him? Good. I hope they throw the book at him.
 
Good of you to post PhilLJCA, hope you get this asshole to court and make him pay. I recognise all of the trouble described in this thread and haven't I don't even do bluewater. I mean one takes a float to be visible and more safe only to realise that most boaters dont give a shit about your float, head right over it or cruise 5-10 m from it at high speed and think they showed plenty consideration. this summer I was spearing in Corsica right at shore, I mean like 10 meters from the rocks. I mean that is so close to shore that there could as well be bathing kids there right?. This german tourist in a zodiak passes right over my float. I asked him what the was doing and he didn't even undertand what I meant. He said "but I saw you" in an arnold-like accent (no offence meant to our german members). w t f. What does one say to that? I mean people like that have such a nil understanding of everything involved that you can't even explain to them why it is a dangerous situation. Diving in an area with boat traffic just isn't a nice experience. It isn't possible to relax when you constantly hear speedboats.
PhilLJCA please post when this guy gets it in court, I am really looking forward to it.
 
Point Loma can get a little wild and wolly..we have two Idiot Points or Origin (SD bay and Mission bay) within five miles. Glad your OK. I dive the area time to time, will be on the lookout for whats left of your rig. Flag, reel, neither one will save you from a knucklhead with a boat in southern california.
 
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