The Pacific Coast Spearfishing Championships were held on Saturday, September 26th at Spooner’s Cove at Montana Del Oro State Park and this year they were hosted by GLACD.  It was the first time they have been held at this location since the 1970’s.  Montana Del Oro is located about 6 miles south of Morro Bay and when the fog lifted on meet day, you could see the majestic Morro Bay Rock fully exposed.

The PCC’s attract a hard core spearfishermen and this year it was no different.  Many past PCC individual champions were in attendance such as Rene Rojas, Dennis Haussler, Mike Pender, Brock Kennedy and Dan Silveira.  The camaraderie was great as usual!  Burgers at Sylvestors in Los Osos was fun after meet day!

The morning started out foggy and a long period swell dropped visibility considerably from the previous days.  The sheephead and reds headed to deeper water.  But the divers in the meet found fish, many of which were donated to needy families.

GLACD put together some outstanding looking award plaques with a bronze USOA medallion at their centerpiece.

For the third year in a row, Dan Silveira won the individual high aggregate and this year with a score of 106 points.  Dan’s catch also included the largest fish of the day, a 16 plus pound lingcod.  This is the third year in a row Dan has won high individual aggregate and that is a first in the long history of this event.  While attendance is not what it used to be,  Dan has won the event with scores averaging greater than 100 points which is a level that have been infrequently reached over the years, even when fish were more plentiful.   Most years, the top PCC scores are around 80 points and that is when the sheephead limit was generally 4 per diver.  This year, only one sheephead was allowed by GLACD compared to the daily State limit of 5.

Dan’s team which included Dave Edlund and Kale Pastel took high aggregate team honors with 225 total points.  This was Kales first ever spearfishing tournament!  Second place team honors went to Dennis Haussler, Rene Rojas and Paul Young with approximately 165 points.

LAKE WORTH, FL – September 15, 2009 – SpearoTek, Inc., the exclusive  distributor of Beuchat International in the U.S., announced today that  Team Beuchat member Kimi Werner placed 2nd in mixed competition with  partner Wayde Hayashi and 3rd in the women’s individual competition at  the 2009 USA Spearfishing Championships at Leo Carrillo State Beach,  Malibu California. Werner also received the All American Honors of being  the number one ranked woman to go to the Worlds. The 2009 USA  Spearfishing Championships took place on Thursday, August 6, 2009.

Werner flew to California early to put in three weeks of scouting before  the Championships. “It was hard and painful at times to get used to the  cold water and big waves that came in this year,” says Werner, who  started scouting with a 5mm Beuchat Camo wetsuit before upgrading to a  7mm Beuchat Elaskin suit. With the warmer suit, Werner really could  enjoy the California Coast. “Diving in the beautiful kelp forests and  learning all the new species of fish and other marine life was an  everyday adventure.”

Werner, who grew up on Maui, says, “People sometimes wonder why we do  this—why spend so much money and time to travel to a competition with no  cash prize attached. I used to think that perhaps it was for pride, or  for proving to oneself that goals can be accomplished. Now I realize  it’s so much more than that. It’s for the sake of sportsmanship,  teamwork, exploration, and perhaps above all, connecting with great  people who share the same enthusiasm and love towards all oceans.”

The 2009 Championships were Werner’s second United States National  Championships. Werner, along with partner Andy Tamasese, won the mixed  division of the 2008 USA National Championships of Spearfishing in Rhode  Island. Werner also won the titles of Women’s National Champion and  Rookie of the Year in 2008.

Founded in the 1930s, Beuchat has been involved in the development of  all aspects of underwater activities. SpearoTek, Inc. is a leading U.S.  wholesale distribution company for the most innovative spearfishing and  freediving equipment from around the world. Through extensive research,  development and testing, SpearoTek, Inc. is first when it comes to  bringing cutting-edge spearfishing technology to U.S. markets.