Captain’s speech
Hunting tuna and our watercraft
I started fishing at the age of six, because I lived near the river in Ukraine. There is no child in the world who would not want to catch fish at the age of six, just like there is no 60 or 80-year-old man who does not dream of repeating what he did at six. If to speak about fishing it is possible to tell that fishing is a sport, a hobby, and an interest. Fishing is my whole life. Before I moved to Spain, I caught mainly on rivers and lakes, considering sea and ocean fishing to be somewhat passive, when I released the spindles and furrowed the waters of the ocean, the watercraft does its job, and you only watch the process. And if there’s a bite, that’s when your job starts. Now, with seventeen years of ocean fishing experience behind me, I can confidently say that I was wrong. Spain, in addition to the beautiful climate, wonderful Mediterranean cuisine, amazing wine and undisturbed and calm Spaniards, has opened up new horizons for me in my favorite fishing activity, but, first things first. Previously, tuna fishing competitions among sports boats were held every year in Spain. In 2001, I took part in such competitions. As I said, the existence of a fish like tuna, before I moved to Spain, I only knew from the menu in the restaurant. I had no idea how to catch it correctly, did not know a hundredth of what I know now. Our watercraft was called «Yana,» that’s my middle daughter’s name. About 120 boats from Spain, Portugal and other European countries took part in these competitions. The championship was held for three days and was held in Puerto Banus, well known to all. All participants and their boats were based there. For the entire time of the championship, only 12 tuna were caught, two of which I caught. The first is -167 kilograms, and the second is -273 kilograms. So I became the Champion! And so began my «tuna story» in the country with which I connected my life and the life of my family. Previously, in Spain, anyone with a boat could go to sea and catch tuna. In the coastal waters of the Mediterranean and, of course, in the Strait of Gibraltar, there is one of the rare and most valuable species of tuna — red tuna (atun rojo). It is valued for its delicate and refined taste and is the largest representative of tuna. Not in vain it is also called sea veal, since it very much resembles meat in taste. Several years ago, according to a decision of the EU and the Spanish Ministry of Fisheries, fishing for tuna on boats without special quotas and licenses was prohibited. That is, a simple civilian person has no right to go to sea on his boat and catch tuna. They can punish very strictly. I had a question. Or I had to stop catching tuna, and by that time it was already pretty good, or come up with something that would allow me to continue my favorite occupation. Then, for the first time, the idea arose in my head to buy some kind of professional fishing watercraft of ours that would have quotas and licenses. The fleet in Spain is very old, to build a new boat, and to get quotas and licenses there was no chance, and they were not given. I was told that you can buy two old boats with quotas, and then destroy them; having received permission from the Spanish government, and, already under the quotas that were on the old boat, build a new one. That’s what I did. I bought two old fishing watercrafts with licenses and all the necessary documents, destroyed them, according to the requirements and existing legislation, and built a modern professional «tuna catcher» 30 meters long at the shipyard of Spain, according to my own project.
Our watercraft
In this watercraft, I realized all my knowledge and dreams about what a real fishing boat should be. My boat has everything from professional and most modern navigation and fishing equipment to crew cabins, VIP areas for guests and moonshine still. When I invite friends to fishing, I say: «Let’s go fishing, catch a pike!» If we talk about tuna, then the word «fishing» should be deleted. Tuna is not fishing, tuna is hunting! Hunting tuna! This is a fish that moves at a speed of 70-80 km per hour, this is a fish that never stops, this is a fish which heart muscle is connected to the tail, the tail is the motor, this is a fish that at a weight of 100-150 kg when biting, it goes to a depth of 500 to 800 meters. You experience incredible emotions when you fight it. We catch tuna in different ways, but the main thing is what you all do with your own hands. Believe me, pulling out tuna is not easy, but when the trophy is on board, it is a reward, a reward that you really earned and deserved. Each person, in my opinion, has two chips in his head: a chip of positive emotions and a chip of negative emotions.
Our watercraft
So, when a person is just starting to prepare for fishing, his chip of negative emotions is already dampening and the chip of positive ones is turned on, slowly, but is already starting to work. Why? Yes, from anticipation… from the feeling of something that makes a person happy! When a person is just preparing to throw spinner, the chip with negative emotions is almost completely extinguished. And when does he have a bite!? There are no more problems for him! No rain! No snow! No problem at work! He’s only thinking about pulling out! Pull out, pull out, pull out… and when he has the fish finally in the boat, he’s happy to be insane! Which one of us doesn’t want to repeat our happiness? Repeat twice, triply… Hundreds, hundreds and hundreds of people, loved ones and distant ones, friends and friends of my friends were fishing with me, because I do not like to catch alone. Some say: «We do not want to catch in the crowd.» And, on the contrary, it is interesting for me to see who is catching; it is interesting to understand whether I can catch something nearby. I always fish surrounded by a large number of people, and with delight I watch the reincarnation of people on fishing. I have seen them forget about problems, as they begin to feel growing happiness. Today, few people go fishing for fish, everyone goes… for happiness! I have a wish for everyone, especially for those who, like me, are older — at least once a day to open a passport and watch the numbers. You will ask: “What numbers?” I call a friend and I say: «Hey Petja, let’s go fishing?» And he says: «Yes, I would love to, but you know I have much to do, you know, I need to drive my daughter, to check a mail»….. And I say to him: «Open your passport and look at the numbers» and in response I hear: «Yes, I remember by heart the number.» «Don’t look at passport’s number! Look at your birth year, and think how much longer you have to fish, my dear? «My wish is to look more often in the passport and fish more! Better is bad day on fishing than good… at work! Captain Jan Rovner.
