From 3 Meters to the Reef: How Kristian Went from Nervous Beginner to Confident Spearo in One Weekend

The Starting Point

Kristian had been a keen line fisherman for years, but watching his brother-in-law bring home quality speared fish—and seeing countless flathead at Moreton Bay that he was practically stepping on—sparked his curiosity. The tipping point? All that spearfishing content flooding his social feeds made it impossible to ignore.

But there was a problem. Kristian had only ever dived in 2-3 meters of water along mangrove channels, picking up estuary species in the shallows. While he’d managed flathead, bream, and mullet, the idea of diving deeper terrified him. More than that, as a father, he carried a deep-seated anxiety about sharks—not so much encountering them, but the thought of bleeding a fish in their presence.

“I was super nervous about spearing and bleeding a fish around sharks,” Kristian admits. “Now I’m not afraid of sharks, but back then with kids at home, that fear was real.”

Kristian (right) buddying Scottie on a simulated dive

The Hesitation

When Kristian discovered Noob Spearo’s 1770 retreat through the podcast, he was tempted. He’d been following the content and hearing about other participants’ experiences, but two things held him back:

1. The cost. It wasn’t insignificant for a family man.
2. The commitment. He’d almost signed up for the Straddie retreat multiple times but kept hesitating.

What finally made him pull the trigger? The safety aspect. “If I want to do this sport, I need to do it safely,” he realized. The podcasts and retreat media showed him this wasn’t just about catching fish—it was about building the foundation to do it right.

The Retreat Experience

Kristian’s first impression of the 1770 spearfishing retreat? “No ego, full froth.” Everyone was there for the right reasons, and the diverse group meant nobody felt like the odd one out.

The learning came fast and varied:

• Sandstrom taught him the art of the stalk
• Bri showed him how to call in trout
• Noffs demonstrated checking pockets and reading structure

But it wasn’t just in-water skills. The theory sessions covered everything from taking a proper breath to understanding duckdive mechanics—knowledge that would take months or years to piece together solo.

Kristian diving on the line

The Breakthrough Moment

At 12 meters depth, Kristian landed his first trout. It might have been “just a bomb dive,” but for someone who’d never gone past 3 meters, it was monumental. “I was stoked,” he remembers. “That was deeper than I thought I’d be getting fish.”

The daily debriefs and end-of-trip podcast recordings became highlights—good humans having a laugh, sharing stories, and learning from each other’s dives.

The Transformation

Before the retreat:

• Max depth: 3 meters
• Species: Shallow estuary fish only
• Anxiety: High around sharks and deeper water
• Skills: Self-taught, uncertain

After the retreat:

• Max depth: 12-13 meters (4x improvement)
• Species: Reef fish including trout and parrot
• Confidence: “Heaps more relaxed around sharks (reefies at least!)”
• Skills: Proper breathup, duckdive technique, reading structure, stalking, and safety protocols

“I can spear at a depth that was like triple where I started,” Kristian says. “The breath hold is heaps better, and my general awareness has improved as well.”

The Bigger Picture

For Kristian, the retreat delivered something beyond fishing skills—it gave him a new way to experience the ocean he’d spent his whole life on. “I’ve been on the water most of my life, so it’s great being able to experience under the water as well.”

The time on the reef. The camaraderie. The structured learning that compressed months of trial-and-error into a single weekend.

His Advice to You

“You won’t regret it. Not only are you learning heaps and doing it at an amazing place with an amazing crew, I don’t think you could do any better than this as a beginners course.”

Kristian’s already planning ahead: “I can’t wait to take my sons on it when they’re old enough!”

His biggest takeaway? “Leave the egos, embrace your mates, dive safe, and the rest will come.” But he’s also clear about the practical advantage: “It can’t be underestimated the head start you get in the sport from a course like this. Feel sorry for all the people who don’t get a chance to learn this way!”

The Retreat in Three Words

Welcoming. Rewarding. Epic.

Ready to write your own transformation story? Whether you’re stuck in the shallows like Kristian was, or you haven’t even made your first dive yet, the Noob Spearo retreat will give you the skills, safety knowledge, and confidence to become the spearo you want to be.