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(808) 900-3331 | 75-5737 Kuakini Hwy, Suite 202 | Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
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freedivesafehawaii

🔶 501(c)(3) providing FREE community freediving/spearfishing safety programs in Hawai'i.
🔷 Follow us for upcoming events statewide!

Incredibly grateful for the support of @skeeprong

Incredibly grateful for the support of @skeeprong and their donation of this carbon fiber pole spear during another one of our FreediveSafe events!

Congrats to Derek and the rest of the 27 Kauai youth and their parents that showed up in today’s training course and put in the work to become safer divers.

Streaming live from our Kauai Spearfishing Safety

Streaming live from our Kauai Spearfishing Safety Training Event with @thesaltyskipper @mementoludenmori @_tetsujin @kiyomi9595 @nikistepanek and @seasportdivers at Kauai High School.

Mahalo to Seasports Divers @seasportsdivers for ho

Mahalo to Seasports Divers @seasportsdivers for hosting us today and supporting our work sharing lifesaving spearfishing safety training with the community. World Record Spearfisherman & Omer athlete Jon Barretto showed us some of his favorite gear from @omeramerica wetsuits to @olukai sandals. Check them out if you're on Kauai! Super awesome crew putting the community first 👊🏽 www.seasportsdivers.com

#kauai #kauaispearfishing #divekauai

You never really know for sure if you are within y

You never really know for sure if you are within your limits while freediving and spearfishing, that’s why its crucial to have a properly trained buddy who is educated and knows what to do in the event of an emergency, and also for you to be properly educated, too.

The safety training provided during FreediveSafe! Hawaii events is only effective at protecting our divers when they are implemented on every single dive. Its like wearing a seatbelt - it has to be worn every time you sit in the car. There is no room for justifications to not dive safe on one dive. It may be that dive that goes wrong.

It is not the freediving blackout that kills freedivers and spearfishermen, it is the lack of training of the freediving/spearfishing buddy that leads to the blackout victims drowning. That is why it is so important to be properly trained. Learn more about Freediver Blackout on our website at: https://freedivesafe.org/freediver-blackout/
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#freedivinghawaii #freediving #spearfishing #spearfishinghawaii #fishinghawaii #holoholo #spearo #freediverblackout #freedivesafehawaii #ocean #fishing #fish #worldwide #hunting #deep #diving #underwater #saltlife #fishinglife #underwaterphotography #snorkeling #dive

Photo credit: Alyssa Rodrigues @_allysssa

Sonny Tanabe: a humble barefoot boy from Hilo, an

Sonny Tanabe: a humble barefoot boy from Hilo, an Olympic swimmer, expert at freediving and spearfishing, teacher, Waterman Hall of Fame and an inspiration to us all.

Sonny taught and coached swimming and water polo for 33 years and was also a Water Safety Instructor with the American Red Cross for 30 years. He shared his knowledge of freediving and spearfishing in his book The Evolution of Freediving – And History of Spearfishing in Hawaii make sure to check it out! ➡️ https://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Freediving-History-Spearfishing-Hawaii/dp/098393570X

Sonny was our special guest during our 2013 Molokai Spearfishing Safety event organized by @nikistepanek in collaboration with nonprofit Ka Honu Momona. We trained 62 Molokai residents in safe freediving and spearfishing protocols. We are inspired by his work and accomplishments. He also has a beautiful collection of Hawaiian Slings, swipe to see!

Sonny is our hero and paved the way for the sport!
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#freedivinghawaii #freediving #spearfishing #spearfishinghawaii #fishinghawaii #holoholo #spearo #freediverblackout #freedivesafehawaii #ocean #fishing #fish #worldwide #hunting #deep #diving #underwater #saltlife #fishinglife #underwaterphotography #snorkeling #dive

Photo credit: Perrin James @perrinjames1
@hawaiiskindivermag

Introducing our Kauai Spearfishing Safety Event Sp

Introducing our Kauai Spearfishing Safety Event Special Guest, Jonathan Barretto @_tetsujin. Jon is a world record spearfisherman with years of experience competing at elite level in spearfishing competitions worldwide. We're grateful for his support in organizing our upcoming event on September 24 in Lihue (full capacity) and look forward to listening to him speak during the event! MAHALO Jon 🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼

Story behind Jon's famous Ulua record shot with @evolvediving polespear -

"I got to one of my favorite spots, meeting up with my buddy Nester, and anchored. I spit in the ole goggles (natural defog), put my fins and weight belt on and jumped in. I could clearly see the bottom at 70' I then see a large Ulua swimming in and out of the hole at the top of the reef. I was actually there to look for pelagics! I thought to myself that's kinda deep to be trying to 3-prong an Ulua! What if I don't stone it? It'll go nuts and break my Evolve pole spear? I gave it a go anyway. I yelled to Nester that I was gonna try and 3-prong the Ulua and to back me up in the event of an emergency. I breathed up and descended on the hole. I laid just on the edge and watch a number of smaller Ulua swimming around. Then the big gal (I say gal because there was a lot of eggs when I cleaned her) emerged and with no fear swam straight at me. I aimed and fired nearly head on! Bango I hit it in that sweet stone shot spot! I nearly yelled but realized I still need to get to the surface first. As I swam up I realized how much drag this big fish was. Normally we'd be at the surface pulling on our reel line, but I could only swim up with the polespear in its head! As soon as I surfaced I could believe it! We yelled and Cheehooed! Next thing was to get to a certified scale! Made to Times Supermarket, who graciously let me weigh my fish there, and placed it in a shopping wagon and walked in, so many people staring in awe! The Philippino Unlces wanted to buy um "I like dah head, make fish soup". The rest was cheeehooos, knuckle bumps, & photos after the 90.1 lb weight was verified."

#hawaiiskindiver #hawaiispearfishing #hawaiifishing #freedivesafehawaii #spearfishing @evolvediving

Huge mahalos to Toyota Hawaii for supporting Freed

Huge mahalos to Toyota Hawaii for supporting FreediveSafe! Hawaii. Their donation allows us to provide life saving education for local spearfishers on Big Island and statewide.
Go check out their Toyota Hawai'i Stories: Holoholo Series, where they are highlighting outstanding Hawaiians in our community. Each episode shares a different story that will amaze and inspire you with the efforts being made to leave this land abundant for future generations. We at FSH are very proud of Episode 3, which features Justin Lee, our FreediveSafe! Youth Event leader and Ambassador, as well as FSH student Kamaha'o Ocean Kanekoa. Both Justin and Ocean are shining examples of what it means to respect the balance of life on this island, only take what you need from the land and work to leave it better for those to follow.
So go watch Toyota Hawaiʻi Stories: Holoholo Series at @toyotahi link in bio or visit toyotahawaii.com/holoholo @toyotahi, @musubman and @bigisleboy24 @painabyocean @ocean_kanekoa

Heads up south side Big Island, FreediveSafe! is e

Heads up south side Big Island, FreediveSafe! is excited to announce our upcoming course in Miloli’i on November 5th.
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This subsistence Hawaiian fishing village is one of two in our entire state and exactly the community we want to reach with our spearfishing safety training.
We are looking forward to spending some quality time there, getting to know the generations of Hawaiians that call it home and supporting their traditions with safe diving practices. Please help us spread the word if Miloli’i is a part of your ohana too!
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@kkaupiko @fii_freedive @toyotahi @olukai @bigisleboy24 @nikistepanek @merlifehawaii @misfit1214 @sandyseabottom @lionsdenfreediving @maple.mermaid @moistmaninis #freedivesafehawaii #milolii

FreediveSafe! Founder/President @nikistepanek prov

FreediveSafe! Founder/President @nikistepanek providing ocean support at @dukes_oceanfest Raising Canes Going to the Dogs SurFUR ComPETition @surfdogshawaii. Tune into the Pet Hui, Sunday night on Spectrum Sports OC16 to watch the surf action! Surfur & IG star: @supercorgi_jojo

The annual Duke’s OceanFest Watersports Festival celebrates Duke Kahanamoku’s life, athletic contributions and spirit with a variety of lifestyle sports disciplines that represent Duke Kahanamoku’s legacy and the culture of Hawai’i. It is the largest ocean sports competition in the world with over 2000 individual athlete registrations in 2022.

Duke Kahanamoku (August 24, 1890 – January 22, 1968)

@hawaiihta @outriggerwaikiki #surfdogshawaii #oceanfest @dukefoundation #goingtothedogssurfurcompetition #waikiki #freedivesafehawaii

We're stoked to be heading over to Kauai to host a

We're stoked to be heading over to Kauai to host a FREE spearfishing safety training event on September 24th, 2022 with Jon Barretto and our instructor team. The event is open to ages 12 and older and will be hosted at Kauai High School. We started accepting registrations yesterday and the event reached 50% capacity overnight! So, be quick! Register at www.freedivesafe.org - Events - Lihue.

Help us find our young Kauai divers providing the 'ohana and community with fresh fish - let's keep 'em safe!

Aloha!

#kauaispearfishing #spearfishinghawaii #fishingkauai #hawaiispearfishing #freedivesafehawaii

USA National Spearfishing Champion & Hawaii native

USA National Spearfishing Champion & Hawaii native Justin Lee shares an important message for our community.

FreediveSafe's sole mission is raising awareness of the dangers of spearfishing and combating the growing rate of "Missing Diver" headlines and freediving/spearfishing-related fatalities, which are often misunderstood as unpreventable drownings associated to our sport.

Professional freediving/spearfishing safety training is proven to ensure every diver returns home safely.

Please share & help us get this important message out!

www.freedivesafe.org

@toyotahi @bigisleboy24 @freedivesafe

#spearfishinghawaii #spearfishing #spearfishinginternational #hawaiifishing #jleestories

We’re disappointed to see older, experienced, tr

We’re disappointed to see older, experienced, trained divers promoting and attempting to justify spearfishing solo. There are no special passes in a sport where, if you fall unconscious underwater without a buddy to rescue you, the likeness of your survival is extremely unlikely.

Don’t ever try to justify diving alone. Don’t do it. Restrain the urge, tame it, and smash it back into its hole. There is zero room for error in a sport where “diving within your limits” is impossible when so many variables affect our body’s ability to withstand the stress of hunting underwater on any given day (sleep, food, family stress, sickness coming on before you feel it, etc.).

Our public safety experts don’t go out to rescue a diver who blacked out while diving alone. Tragically, they go out to retrieve a body while a heartbroken community holds onto hope.

This selfish behavior risks putting our public safety experts in harm’s way, strains our county resources by diverting already limited funds from our community, and destroys the lives left behind on the shoreline, often leading to addiction, depression and other mental health issues.

Call out anyone heading out on a SOLO spearfishing mission.

Photo @perrinjames1
Freedivers @thesaltyskipper & Cory Fults

www.freedivesafe.org

#communityfirst #spearfishinghawaii #spearfishing #safetyfirst #freedivesafe

@thesaltyskipper ascending from a deep 100ft plus

@thesaltyskipper ascending from a deep 100ft plus drop.

Notice the relaxed body position to conserve energy/oxygen as he rides the positive buoyancy zone to the surface.

Perfect dive weighting makes us safer and more efficient divers.

📸 @makaifreediving

#freediving #spearfishing #spearfishinghawaii #freedivingtraining #hawaiispearfishing

“‘I owe everything to the ocean and the mounta

“‘I owe everything to the ocean and the mountains that have created who I am... I think with this program, and Niki’s vision to educate as many kids on the island as possible, for free -- how can you not stand behind that mission, especially in a place that has given me so much?’ — USA Spearfishing National Champion & FreediveSafe! Hawaii Ambassador/Youth Leader Justin Lee.

Lee’s work with FreediveSafe! Hawai'i is not just an inspiration to local youth, but to all of us involved in spearfishing, diving, and ocean communities across the world -- because we all depend on and impact the human and non-human ecosystems we’re part of, and through our engagement, we decide what we want that impact to be.”

Words by @jules_of_the_sea

I had a blast writing this article for Spearing Magazine about local spearfishing legend Justin Lee & inspiring community leader Niki Stepanek, & their efforts to combat the epidemic of freediving & spearfishing-related fatalities among Hawai’i’s youth.

Change starts with the passion & vision of those who dare to dream it, & it’s been unspeakably beautiful watching this change ripple across communities. Ocean safety, ocean conservation, & empowering youth are interconnected pursuits, & when you give a child the gift of knowledge that allows them to to safely enjoy the ocean & their environment… this gift transforms & saves lives, for generations to come.

Thank you Niki for the opportunity to assist with our Waimea event, & Justin for sharing your knowledge & time — ✨be sure to subscribe to Spearing Magazine to obtain this month’s issue✨ , featuring my article on @freedivesafehawaii & Justin Lee, with beautiful photos of our Waimea event by Alyssa Rodrigues.

📖: @spearingmagazine
📸: @_allysssa / @_akrphotography

Mahalo for your work @jules_of_the_sea

Mahalo to our supporters and Waimea event volunteers for ensuring the success of this ocean safety mission -

@olukai @fii_freedive @im_foundation @kohaladivers @hawaiicommunityfoundation @makaifreediving @thesaltyskipper @sandyseabottom @nikistepanek @jenbrant @hawaiiprepadmissions
@hamakua.haole @saltedberries

This is too important not to share. Our training w

This is too important not to share. Our training works and we are working hard to make it accessible to as many divers as possible. Mahalo @coachmuffn for sharing your experience with the community. Well done for following the safety procedures and keeping your dive buddy safe!

Joel was trained by @bigisleboy24 @thesaltyskipper @makaifreediving @sandyseabottom during the FreediveSafe! event in Waimea, Big Island.

#freedivesafe #hawaiispearfishing #bigisland #501c3 #freediverblackout #shallowwaterblackout #shallowwaterblackoutprevention

Mahalo to @fii_freedive instructor volunteers @moi

Mahalo to @fii_freedive instructor volunteers @moistmaninis @merlifehawaii @diveconor for sharing their professional expertise with our latest @freedivesafehawaii Big Island youth group!

Formal freediving safety training saves lives! #konatown

Mahalo to @consciousconservationalist for donating a beautiful carbon fiber pole spear!

Our team was so excited to meet World Champion Wat

Our team was so excited to meet World Champion Waterman Zane Kekoa Schweitzer @zaniac1 during the 2022 Molokai Holokai Ho'olelea. Zane set a new Pailolo course record of 1:34 minutes on a wing foil (27 miles, Maui to Molokai). That's an average speed of 17 miles per hour, and max speeds of 35mph! In true champion style, Zane stayed on to celebrate with the first timers and inspire us to keep working hard. That's what makes Hawaii's ocean competitions so special: world class conditions mean it's the home base for the world's elite ocean athletes.

On the second day of the event, Zane called in to the free FreediveSafe Spearfishing Safety event at the Molokai Youth Center to share some inspiring ocean advice with the local spearfishing community. He had time for an interview on FreediveSafe and ocean safety before shooting off to the 10 mile Kamalo Race start! We look forward to collaborating again in the future!

Zane, we mahalo you for sharing your aloha during the Molokai Holokai and FreediveSafe! Hawaii event. You showed some seriously inspiring Zaniac spirit in both sportsmanship and athleticism.

Mahalo to Claire Albino (@youthinmotion) for welcoming us to the festival and hosting a fun and successful event (@molokaiholokai @m2molokaichallenge). And mahalo to the event sponsors ( hta @mauicounty
@oceanpaddlertv) for making it happen!

FreediveSafe! Hawaii is a 501(c)(3) Hawaii-based nonprofit organization sharing free spearfishing safety training with Hawaii residents. Our #m2molokaichallenge across the Pailolo channel was dedicated to the lives
lost to spearfishing in Hawaii.

We're excited to return to Kona for another youth

We're excited to return to Kona for another youth spearfishing safety event on Sunday, July 24th, 2022 with @moistmaninis @merlifehawaii @nikistepanek.

@consciousconservationalist has donated a beautiful pole spear for our event and we'll be hosting a random drawing for one lucky student! @moistmaninis called it super cherry 🍒 Mahalo for your donation!

This FREE full day event is open to 12 - 25 year olds. Lunch and gear rentals are provided at no cost, and we can help with student transportation from the classroom to ocean. We want to meet as many young divers as possible! If you can make it from other areas, come down! Parents are welcome to listen in.

Register at www.freedivesafe.org

Mahalo to our 2022 Big Island Youth Spearfishing Safety Event supporters Kukio Community Fund via Hawaii Community Foundation, @konasportscenter @fii_freedive and the Ironman Foundation.

Photo by @_akrphotography
@_allysssa

#konatown #spearfishingsafety #bigisland
#holoholo #hawaiifishing #spearfishingsafety #spearos

Talking story with FreediveSafe! Hawaii Director a

Talking story with FreediveSafe! Hawaii Director and @countyofmaui Paramedic, Tabitha Pupuhi from Molokai. Tabi's primary goal with FreediveSafe is ensuring this free safety training reaches our divers most at risk of spearfishing fatalities. As a talented all-round competitive waterwomen with multiple inter-island channel crossings under her belt (OC1, OC2, 6 man, SUP), Tabi has dedicated her life to ocean sports and public safety. We're immensely grateful for her important work with FreediveSafe. @tpupuhi

We're also huge fans of her Dad, Captain Clay Ching @hallelujahhoufishing, and brother @recon_808. Check out their legendary bonefishing charters on Molokai. Catching double-digit bonefish on flys 🎣🤙🏽

Tabitha and Captain Ching are @officialmauijim Ambassadors.

#mauijim #freedivesafehawaii #spearfishingsafety #hawaiifishing #paddling #oceanpeople #mauiparamedic

Mahalo Wayne and Mahalo Nelson @poketako_ for shar

Mahalo Wayne and Mahalo Nelson @poketako_ for sharing two powerful takeaways from our free community spearfishing safety event, "I want to make sure everyone comes home on the same canoe as we left off" and "No fish is worth your life." 🙏🙏🙏

Both statements encompass all ocean activities. We watch each others back out there so everyone has fun and comes home safe.

Mahalo to the Molokai community for your warm welcome and love and support for FreediveSafe's mission. It was a special event for our team, made possible by our kind-hearted donors who wanted to make this event happen for the Molokai community.

We're immensely grateful to our students, parents, volunteer team, and donors.
@hanapaafishing @venturewetsuits Molokai Fish & Dive @kohaladivers @evolvediving @fii_freedive @hawaiiskindivermag @m2molokaichallenge @molokaiholokai @zaniac1 @misfit1214 @lionsdenfreediving @garrettandrewmoss @merlifehawaii @jenbrant @sandyseabottom @nikistepanek

www.freedivesafe.org
Hawaii based nonprofit 501(C)(3) serving the spearfishing community with FREE freediving safety training since 2020.

#hawaiispearfishing #hawaiifishing #hanapaa #molokai #spearfishingsafety #freedivingtraining #freedive #spearo @spearingmagazine

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