Houma resident living out passion for spearfishing

Rafe Antill is the president of the Louisiana Council of Underwater Dive Clubs and an avid underwater spear fisherman.

The Sports Net caught up with the 46-year-old Houma resident to discuss his fascination and passion for underwater hunting.

Sports Net: First off, tell me what S.C.U.B.A. stands for?

Rafe Antill: Synchronized Under-water Breathing Apparatus.

SN: OK, you passed the test. You’re legit.

RA: Yeah. I’m president of all the LCUDC, which stands for Louisiana Council of Underwater Diving Clubs. We compete against each other and have a year-round tournament in addition to all of the weekend tournaments that go on over the summer.

SN: How did you first get into spearfishing?

RA: I had no intentions at all to ever scuba dive. A buddy calls me up and asks &#8220Do you want to take some dive lessons?” And I said &#8220No way.” I’ve been fishing out here all my life and I’m not about to go jump into that crap. I had a cousin of mine who was going to try it, so I said &#8220If he’s going to try it, then I’ve definitely got to try it.” I can remember the first time I went diving. I skipped a dive or two because I was feeling a little bit antsy.

But when I finally got into the water, the rest was history.

SN: You fell in love with right away.

RA: Yeah, I did.

SN: Was it a little intimidating at first? Depending on where you dive, you do leave yourself susceptible to attack from predators of the sea.

RA: Very, very intimidating. The intimidating part is water clarity and current. You’re more worried about getting down and getting back up. I guess the reason I still do it is because when I jump into the water, I think about nothing else. It’s not like deer hunting where you sit on a stoop or duck hunting where you contemplate everything that’s going on. I have a business with employees, and you’re not worrying about what’s going on here or there and blah blah blahŠit’s just BOOM. Your mind completely clears as soon as you hit the water. All you think about is what you’re going to do, and getting back.

SN: So the movie &#8220Jaws” never swayed you away from exploring the depths of the sea?

RA: No. We look for Jaws all the time. The group of people who do it, the hardcore really good spear fishermen are down there to kill the biggest legal fish they can kill – I don’t care if it’s a 20-foot carp or a five-pound sheephead. And we don’t overshoot. We’re very, very, very selective. It’s the most selective type of fishing there is because we actually see what we’re trying to shoot. We’re taking just what we want and no more.

SN: You fish underwater. How does that work?

RA: We target different water depths for different species. We dive along the continental shelf from 70 feet of water to 800 feet of water. We keep records about the types of fish we shoot, the time of the year and the weather conditions.

SN: So how deep do you dive?

RA: The recreational limit is around 130 feet. You can go to a commercial diver and tell him what we’re doing and he’ll tell you that there’s no way, he’ll bet there’s no way you can do it. We make six, 200-foot dives a day, but we don’t stay there very long. Our limit is probably 250 feet, but I’ve been deeper.

SN: Deeper than 250?

RA: Oh, yeah. I’ve been as deep as 300 feet. There are dive tables, and every time you dive it shaves time off of your table. But we can’t use that. There’s no science to what we’re doing. We call it bounce diving – in other words, we go really deep for a short amount of time. And we spend about an hour on the boat, and then we make another dive. There’s no scientific formula for what we do. Mother Nature pretty much weeds out who can and can’t do it.

SN: What does diving that deep do to your body?

RA: You know, it’s kind of like drinking three beers. It affects everyone differently. The worst thing you can do down deep is get into a bind with a big fish. Diving is maybe 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical. It’s about being smart and not shooting big fishes down too deep. You’re talking about shooting 100-pound amberjacks at 230 feet, and a 30 to 40-pound amberjack will kick your butt on a rod and reel.

SN: So spearfishing is obviously a little more challenging than conventional fishing, where one sits in a boat, lets their gut hang out and polishes off a case of suds?

RA: There’s no doubt about it. I don’t want to say we have guys die on a regular basis, but the last guy we lost this year was a retired Navy Seal. He was diving for the Hell Divers Spearfishing Tournament back in June, which is the biggest spear fishing tournament in the south.

SN: Where was this?

RA: On the mouth of the Mississippi. He was diving in murky water, came up quick and hit a pipe. He knocked himself unconscious, and he’s not the first one. When you’re down deep and something happens, you go to the bottom.

SN: On a lighter note, what have been some of your more impressive catches?

RA: I have the Louisiana state record for triggerfish (and it’s tied for world record) at 14 lbs 8 oz and another state record, a mangro snapper 20 lbs 6 oz. That one is close to a world record. And you have to know these species to respect the weights. I have a Louisiana state record for black drum at 68 pounds, and I’ve shot multiple 100-plus pound amberjacks. I also have a 368-pound sand tiger (shark).

SN: So obviously, spearfishing is a good exercise?

RA: You have to be a little mentally bent to do it. It’s very expensive, but very challenging. It’s kind of a He-Man type of thing. Don’t get me wrong – there’s different levels of every type of sport. There are guys who go out and do it over the weekend and just abide by the rules and tables, and they never get into a bind too much. And then there are a group of 40 to 50 people in the state who are really hardcore. You have your scooter drivers and motocross guys, and we’re the motocross guys.

SN: Why do you think the curious should give it a try?

RA: For anyone curious, I’d ask &#8220When’s the last time you swam with the fishes?” It’s a world very few people ever see, especially down deep. Everything tends to move in slow motion down deep.

And it’s all mental. There’s a thrill about almost passing out. (Laughs) And it’s about the camaraderie. When you’re out there with four or five guys for three days of hardcore diving and everyone lives, you’ll enjoy the best beer you ever drank on the way in.

Rafe Antill shows off a 65-pound black grouper he caught on a spearfishing expedition. (Photo courtesy of RAFE ANTILL)