Kayak Angler, Shark Battler: Interview with Isaac “Rocket” Brumaghim
OutdoorHub Reporters 08.06.13
Isaac Brumaghim is a former Hawaiian canoe racer and the founder of the kayak fishing club Aquahunters. Although already well known on the islands of Hawaii, Isaac exploded onto the world stage earlier this year when a video of the kayak angler and a shark went viral. At the time he was fishing from his 16-foot kayak roughly two miles from Oahu, Hawaii. Isaac had just landed a nice-sized mackerel tuna when he had a close encounter with the shark he affectionately nicknamed “Chompy.”
Since we were able to catch up with Isaac about what happened that day, we’ll let him tell that story:
It was slow for much of that day but it begin picking up right before the shark came. I was tournament fishing with my friend Chris and he draws me over, telling me that something is taking the bait. We spread out a bit and then I got the feeling that something large was around me. Of course it was a shark, just lurking around. We saw it a few more times and it passed us. We laughed.
We moved away from it and set up our bait. I got a hit and I was bringing it up when I realized that this fish was good-sized. I get it closer to my kayak and I see that its huge, but then why does it look like kawakawa? Later I understood it was the shark right on the tail of that tuna and I had mistaken both of them for one big fish. The kawakawa jumps and the shark jumped after him, and misses him like a scene from The Matrix. The shark was so aggressive I knew if I brought the tuna aboard it would swing right around and bite my kayak. The kawakawa is about 20 pounds and it’s trying to get loose. At that point I thought about my gaffing it but then I see the shark, out of my peripheral vision, coming right at me. Its hits the underside of my kayak and takes the kawakawa. That was it. I ended up just laughing because I looked at the camera and I knew I had it recorded.
It was scary, but I was marveled [by it] at the same time. The shark was so comfortable with me that it just lurked around. I don’t want it to happen to me again but it wouldn’t stop me from fishing.
Isaac has a healthy respect of sharks and later told reporters that he was in the shark’s “domain,” so he bore no grudge against Chompy. Video of the event taken from Isaac’s kayak can be seen below:
Brumaghim was kind enough to give OutdoorHub a few minutes of his time for an extended interview.
OutdoorHub: How did you get started fishing from a kayak?
Isaac Brumaghim: I just decided to crossover my shoreline fishing with my canoe paddling. For a short while I was fishing from a one-man racing canoe, and that really brought me back to my Hawaiian ancestors who did a lot of their fishing from a canoe. Suddenly I felt very connected to something else already in my blood and that made me very enthusiastic about the sport. I was living my life now much like my ancestors did. Early on I didn’t know what was happening with kayak fishing in the wider world. I just decided to transfer my fishing from a canoe to a kayak based on how much more durable the vessel was.
That’s when I really started looking deeper into the sport, and how many people are already invested into it around the world. I realized I had to bring this to Hawaii, to represent Hawaii, and I founded Aquahunters.
What is Aquahunters all about?
Aquahunters started off as a small club with my closest friends, who were all watermen. I began to compete in tournaments and represent who we are. It all started to change when I realized other people were going to start competing against Aquahunters and that’s not what I wanted. I had left canoe paddling by that point but I took a lot of things I learned with me, and one of those things is that other folks will always try to compete with you. You got prove yourself. We started off as a family club. We call family Ohana here. After a while people started catching onto our style and they started liking us. It’s all about camaraderie rather than rivalry or hatred, its about having each others’ backs. It took a lot of ego-swallowing.
Aquahunters is super deep. Good sportsmanship, building positivity. Now after nearly nine years Aquahunters, I hope, has had a role in making Hawaii one of the top kayak-fishing destinations in the world.
Isaac hunts for ahi tuna:
What made you decide to bring along a camera to these trips?
I’ve wanted to film for years. So much has changed in terms of technology over the last nine years to make it much easier now. I’ve always wanted to film my adventures but it’s been something that frustrated me. It’s such a heartbreak to come home and find out that the footage ended up being unusable. A lot of people said it wasn’t going to work but I always knew it was. Right now I’m about to launch my web series because of Chompy and the following I now have. I fish to pay my bills on a kayak, so it’s not exactly lucrative. I have to work super hard to both land fish and to get good footage. I knew there was money in video, I just had to wait for it to pop up.
What’s next for you and Aquahunters?
I always wanted to do my kayak fishing tour and I want to do more videos. I have several projects going on right now and I don’t want to give too much away, but right now we have a major opportunity on our hands. It’s like the Super Bowl, you either make it or you don’t.
Issac’s Hawaii Extreme Kayak Fishing:
We’d like to thank Isaac for giving us the time to interview him and you can find more of Aquahunters TV on their YouTube channel.
Editor’s note: This interview is part of a series with OutdoorHub’s featured video partners. Click here to read our interview with fishing and hunting star Larysa Switlyk, and click here to read our interview with firearm guru Eric Blandford of Iraqveteran8888 . Happy Shark Week!
