Pregnant Florida freediver spears pending world record fish

DESTIN, Fla. – It’s one factor to be 40 and freediving with a polespear, however to be eight months pregnant and nail a pending world record black drum is an entire different factor.

Destin’s Julie Augustine did simply that Oct. 1.

“It was crazy, that’s not how I anticipated my day starting, but what an adventure,” Augustine mentioned.

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Augustine shot a 37.6-pound black drum with a 9-foot Bermudian slip tip polespear whereas freediving.

According to the International Underwater Spearfishing Association, the present record for black drum within the Sling/Polespear Division for a feminine diver is a 36.3-pounder shot by Lucie Cardet of the U.S. on July 19, 2018.

‘Do you want to go find a world record?’

Augustine acquired the chance to dive when she acquired a name from her buddy Joe D’Agostino, who requested if she needed to exit on the boat.

“It’s looking really clear. … You should be able to handle the conditions today, if you want to come along. I won’t be out that long,” was how the dialog went, she mentioned.

D’Agostino had moved the boat to Joe’s Bayou upfront of Hurricane Ian, however on his method again he noticed a faculty of fish that seemed prefer it had some sizeable fish in it. When he pulled as much as the marina to select up Augustine, he informed her to seize the polespear.

“Do you want to go find a world record?” he requested.

“I said … ‘Yes, I do,’ and that’s what happened,” Augustine mentioned.

They had been in Choctawhatchee Bay, however like all fishermen, D’Agostino wasn’t gifting away any specifics.

“I don’t want to say too much, because we don’t want to give our spot away,” D’Agostino mentioned.

However, he did say it was shallow at about 8- to 10-feet deep.

“They weren’t quite where they were, but we went hunting and found them,” Augustine mentioned.

She mentioned visibility was troublesome.

“There were some fish that were bigger than the one I got. On the surface they were clearly visible, you could see their shape, but then when I got in the water, I couldn’t see the tip of my spear,” she mentioned.

Then her fish got here by.

“I saw its shadow. In the water and from my vantage point it was a big shadow. So, I took a shot and it was a good shot. I brought it up and I was hoping and praying,” Augustine mentioned.

The polespear doesn’t shoot with a set off, Augustine defined. She mentioned it makes use of the power generated by the discharge of the polespear.

“It’s very primitive,” she mentioned.

45-second battle

Augustine was freediving and down below about 45 seconds or so. After she landed the fish, they introduced it right down to the Destin Fishing Rodeo to get an official weight on the fish for certification. Weighmaster Bruce Cheves referred to as it 37.8 kilos.

“It was such a fun experience,” she mentioned. “We needed that certified scale to make it perfect, but it was fun to represent that sport as well.”

Augustine, who swam in faculty, has solely been freediving polespear fishing for a few years.

She was within the navy and stationed within the space a very long time in the past and moved again to the realm throughout COVID.

“It was supposed to be temporarily,” she mentioned.

But that summer time she took a stage one free diving course by means of Benthic Ocean Sports.

“I fell in love with the sport and started freediving. So, I’ve been doing it since the summer of 2020,” she mentioned.

During the final couple of years, she has speared a few dozen fish.

About three months in the past, at 5 months pregnant, she went out on what she thought could be her final spearfishing journey till after giving start. She had speared a pink snapper at 70 toes down that was simply shy of the world record.

“What a bummer,” she mentioned. “So, when this opportunity came up, I couldn’t say no.”

Baby Finn is due Nov. 15

Augustine, who’s a doctor’s assistant on the Crane Center in Destin, mentioned her due date is Nov. 15 and it’s a boy.

“I’m going to name him Finn,” she mentioned.

Is she involved about diving at eight months pregnant?

“My baby’s health and safety are, have been and will always be my top priority. I’m blessed to have had a relatively healthy pregnancy. I listen to my body and work closely with my obstetrician to ensure any activity I or we participate in is safe for both of us. If at any point that changes, so will my activities, in or out of the water,” she mentioned.

“This is not the year I was expecting, but it’s just been a blessing in so many ways,” she mentioned.

As for the attainable record, she is within the technique of getting the credentials and all of the paperwork stuffed out to ship in.

But the fish, “we cut it up and I’ve looked up many black drum recipes. The meat looks fantastic on this one,” she mentioned.