Interview with Matthew Novakovich
Today’s interview is with Matthew Novakovich, the man behind Ocean State Spearguns! Born out of seeing a need that he could fulfill, Ocean State Spearguns are hand-crafted timber spearguns that can be customized to your liking! Want a big mid-handle 5 band blue water speargun? Or how about a short speargun for low viz diving and shooting in caves? Matthew has you covered! Starting as a small hobby, he gave Cameron Kirkconnell one of his spearguns to test and he’s been making more ever since! Doing most of his diving in the usually dirty and cold Atlantic, he has learned a thing or two about making robust spearguns that work well and look good while doing it. Check out OceanStateSpearguns.com to see what he’s doing!
He has some great insights into barotrauma and has a story about how it almost ended his diving career but more importantly – how he responded. If you have a barotrauma and are being told you’ll never dive again then give the Divers Alert Network (DAN) a call! Visit their website Dan.org and view all of their medical info here! Not all injuries are permanent!
Important times:
- 00:13 Intro
- 02:30 Hello and welcome Matthew!
- 03:55 You have some nice fish over there like Tautog
- 05:00 David Hochman @SpearItCharters
- 05:55 Tell us about Ocean State Spearguns
- 11:15 How do you make your spearguns?
- 12:40 How many spearguns are you making? Are you making spearguns full time?
- 15:00 So you started spearfishing again after 15 years!
- 16:15 What are your diving conditions like?
- 18:00 Did you just shoredive? What type of diving are you doing?
- 19:50 What was a memorable fish to hunt?
- 21:22 Colour grading your footage
- 23:25 Striped bass?
- 26:30 Biggest obstacles you faced starting again
- 30:40 How much time did your efforts take to benefit your diving?
- 31:30 Did your dive buddies progress with you or were some more experienced?
- 35:00 Is your dad spearfishing now too?
- 36:55 Scary stuff: Barotrauma
- 40:00 Pin holes in wetsuit ears
- 41:00 What did the doctor say? You can never dive again!
- 42:00 What did the DAN doctors say? Yes you probably can! Dive medicine is sometimes more specialized than most doctors have experience with
- 49:30 What’s next with Ocean State Spearguns? Rollers?
- 52:30 Social media
- 54:20 Componants
- 57:05 Shafts
- 57:50 Do you any do any off-shore bluewater diving?
- 58:40 Do you get a guide when traveling?
- 59:40 Travel speargun?
- 01:01:40 Funny stuff
- 01:04:50 What gear is in your dive bag? Mako and Salvimar wetsuit
- 01:06:00 Mako fiberglass fins
- 01:07:10 How long is your ‘warm’ season?
- 01:08:15 Spearo Q&A
- 01:10:00 The speargun building community is great! Where should people look to find out more?
- 01:11:00 Thank you for being on the show!
- 01:11:45 Outro
Listen in and subscribe on iOS or Android https://link.chtbl.com/Download_This_Episode
Important Links
Noob Spearo Partners and Discount Codes
- Adreno Spearfishing – Buy your spearfishing equipment here. Use the code NOOBSPEARO save $20 on every purchase over $200 at checkout – Flat shipping rate, especially in AUS!
- Neptonics Spearfishing and Freediving – Use the code NOOB10 to save 10% off anything store-wide. Free Shipping on USA orders over $99
- KillShot Spearguns | Simple, Effective, Dependable Wooden Spearguns. Use the Code NOOB to save $30 on any speargun:)
- Adam Sterns FreedivingFamily.com use the code SPEARO to get 20% off any course and the code NOOBSPEARO to get 40% off any and all courses!
- Penetrator Fins Use the code NOOBSPEARO to save $25 on the full Penetrator Spearfishing Fin Range here.
- Immersion Online freediving classes | 28-day Freediving Transformation (CODE: NOOB28 for 15% off) | Equalization Masterclass – Roadmap to Frenzel | Free Courses | Freediving Safety Course | How to Take a 25-30% Bigger Breath!
- How To Freedive | The 5 minute Freediver | Break the 10 Meter Barrier – Use the code NOOBSPEARO to save $
- Old Man Blue | Wickedly tough and well thought out gear! Check out their Lobster Bag HERE
- Noob Spearo MAD GEAR | ‘Spearo Dad’ | ‘Girls with Gills’ | ‘Jobfish Tribute’
- The Best Place to Find Fishing Buddies and Fishing Trips | Fishing Trips (fishingtripsapp.com)
- Spearing Magazine Subscribe to the best spearfishing magazine in the world. International subscription available!
- Audible.com Get a free audiobook along with a 30-day trial here. Listen to 99 Tips to Get Better at Spearfishing
