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Spearfishing right way nets duo giant trevally
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Posted on Sep 07 2008
Long-time partners Morito Asai and Felix Sasamoto used their vast experience to pull-off a giant trevally from the bottom of Cowtown during a routine spearfishing trip on Labor Day, Sept. 1.
Asai and Sasamoto are the president and vice president, respectively, of the Marianas Apnea Spearfishing Club.
The 37-lb. trevally, locally called locally as mamulan was one of the biggest fish they ever caught.
The fish was over a meter long and fed about 20 people.
Asai said there were still leftovers.
“My local friends and some tourists enjoyed the “catch of the day”.
Asai recalled how their training helped the duo a lot in bringing the giant fish to the surface after an hour of struggle in a cave about 120 feet away from their boat.
He said he they would like to share this experience because it would also help other spearfishing enthusiasts on how to be safe underwater if they know how to follow the rules.
The duo is offering safety rules presentation as part of their desire to help locals improve the sports of spearfishing on Saipan.
“We want to build a strong competition among the locals,” Asai said.
Asai wrote in an email how he caught the mamulan as it struggled in 120 feet of water and his gun stuck on top of a cave with a depth of 100 feet.
“I had to dive angle and after I took out the gun, I needed to fight with the down current. I got blackout right after I reached the surface but my partner, Felix, picked me up,” Asai said.
They finally brought the mamulan to their boat after 40-50 minutes of struggle.
“I felt MASC safety rules (one up, one down and much more!) are very important again and hoping that all the fishermen follow them for their own and their partners’ safety,” Asai noted.
He said that MASC is happy to relay their experiences about fishing and real marine life for younger generations.
Interested schools may contact Morito Asai at 483-7625.
