The Spearfishing School by The Frenchman

Absolutely amazing ! I've been out with max twice now and both times were brilliant and I'm now booking again to do the winter diving for lobsters. Highly recommended

I went on the "Bearded Spearo" lobster hunting course in late October 2022, with a few friends. Our aim was to turn occasionally spotting lobsters whilst hole-hunting Sussex to actually grabbing them, and then to start purposely hunting them in winter. Initially Sam shared his wealth of knowledge on how to find lobsters in different terrain, the areas to find them (or not find them), the signs to look for, and the different ways to extract them based on the type of hole/structure you find them in, as well as a general safety and kit talk, and then we went to look for them. The location we went to was not one of Sam’s usual places, as storms had completely wiped out the visibility in 95% of Cornwall – so it was extra interesting to see the theory really put into practice: Not just going to an easy lobster place he knew well, but finding them effectively in a place new to everyone. We then split into dive pairs, with Sam alternating between us, showing how to scan the terrain, spot the signs, and advising us on extract the lobsters. Everyone had a go at extracting lobster, and I was able to grab a nice 94mm carapace one, which was promptly rescued from drowning and given a hot bath. I think the course was a complete success. Finding and extracting lobsters allows you to really understand how they react and how fast they react (and lose any fear of the claws), which I’m sure will translate into getting lots of lobster this winter.

A fantastic experience with a very well informed and professional guide. I would 100% recommend this course. Thanks for all the info and practical demonstration Sam.

Good course. Learnt a bunch of stuff I’d never have found out otherwise. Sam is an excellent teacher, and all round good egg.

Thanks Max, Sam, David and Matt. I have actually been out on two separate courses this month with different dive buddies. One a beginners course and the other the deep course diving to 30m. Big congrats to Max and the boys for running excellent Spearfishing courses that can accommodate for different divers and make sure everyone in the boat has a great experience. Super helpful and I certainly came out of it a better spearo. Thanks Again. Zane

Excellent course with the DREAM TEAM, David on Apnea, Max on Hunting, Matty Spearo as Best Boaty Captain of the vessell. All of these top men are experienced spearos. The guys share their voluminous experience and confidence to help you achieve your goals and stay safe. Defo recommend this course for any Spearo Hero wanting to improve, go deeper and stay safe.

I had a great course with Max. Before I was diving around the 10-15m mark, however I can now comfortably spearfish 20-25m and can get to 30m. A great weekend away and would highly recommend! Thank you Max

Awesome day on the water with Max. Professional, safe, fun, fruitful (came home with a couple of meaty Wrasse). It was my first time spearfishing and Max was the perfect teacher and tour guide around the Plymouth spots.

What a day I had with the Frenchman and friends during my spearfishing course ! Being a total novice in the sport I never thought I would be able to dive to 10m and even shoot my first bass ! Max was Super attentive throughout the day and I learnt some vital skills needed in spearfishing . Would definitely recommend to anyone thinking of trying spearfishing or experts . Cheers to Sam the bass whisperer also !

The course with The Frenchman was brilliant. Max spent the morning teaching us better technique to help us become more efficient and improve the proportion of our dive that was spent on the bottom. We then spent time learning how to execute an effective rescue in case of a blackout. After this we spent the rest of the day with Max hunting at different depths and locations. I cannot recommend the course enough. Max is a brilliant teacher and was very patient.