Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 879 is a conversation with Captain Ryan Harrington, a Tampa Bay fishing guide who spends roughly 320 days a year on the water. Ryan guides inshore for snook, trout, redfish, and tarpon out of the Tampa Bay area, then travels for sailfish in Costa Rica, marlin and tuna in Louisiana, yellowfin in the Bahamas, and offshore billfish tournaments back home. We get into how a "never say no" mindset built his whole career, the story behind his No Bananas superstition, and why a Tampa Bay redfish still means the most to him.
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Ryan Harrington is a full-time captain out of the Tampa Bay area who fishes around 320 days a year. He guides inshore in Tampa Bay for snook, trout, redfish, and tarpon, runs his own No Bananas Sport Fishing, and has spent 14 to 15 years building a career that also takes him offshore for billfish, tuna, and sailfish from Costa Rica to Louisiana to the Bahamas.
Ryan credits it to a rule he learned early: don't say no. He started billfishing at nine years old and says being well-rounded across every kind of fishing keeps more doors open and keeps him from burning out. He rotates through seasons on purpose, moving from Costa Rica in winter to Tampa Bay inshore in spring, tarpon in early summer, and offshore billfish tournaments in the heat of the year. He explains how the days actually add up in the episode.
Ryan grew up on Tierra Verde, a small island in Tampa Bay, and Tampa Bay is his home water. His full-time guiding is inshore there for snook, trout, redfish, and tarpon, twelve months a year. He also runs and fishes offshore boats and freelances as a captain or mate on other teams, which is how he ends up chasing billfish and tuna around the world.
Ryan named his business No Bananas Sport Fishing because he takes the old fisherman's banana superstition seriously. He walks through the three theories he has heard, going back to the sailing days: spiders hiding in banana bunches, the gas that makes bananas spoil the rest of the fresh food, and bananas being the one bright thing that floated up after a boat sank. He does not know which one is true, but he would rather not test it on the water. He tells all three in the episode.
Ryan picked up the nickname "Captain Bacon Bits" after a tournament trip to Biloxi, Mississippi, where a grocery run went sideways and he ended up living on bacon bits for four days. If bananas are bad luck, he decided bacon bits are good luck, and he now keeps stashes of them all over his boat. The full story is a good one, and it is better heard than summarized.
Ryan describes offshore tournament fishing as being in a transitional period because of 360 sonar. He says a full install can run about $150,000 and lets a boat spot a single sailfish more than a thousand feet away, and the boats that have it consistently finish at the top. Many tournaments now run separate sonar and non-sonar divisions, which splits the money. He gets into both sides of that debate on the show.
Ryan says the easiest way to reach him is on Instagram at @CaptainRyanHarrington, where he answers messages and will follow you back. He also gives out a text number in the episode for booking, and notes that with 320 days a year on the water he is better at texts than phone calls.
I had been trying to line this one up for a long time. Ryan and I do not know each other well, but I have followed what he does for years, and I have always been pulled toward the same thing he is chasing: being the complete angler, someone who can go from inshore to offshore, from a Tampa Bay redfish to a blue marlin, and be at home doing all of it. I have spent my own life on that pursuit, so when I saw a guy fishing 320 days a year across that many disciplines, I wanted to hear how he actually pulls it off.
Press play in the player at the top of this page to hear it.
There are 365 days in a year, and Ryan is on the water for around 320 of them. I wanted to know what that number really costs, and what it takes to keep from burning out doing it. He walked me through how he moves through the seasons on purpose, and the one piece of advice from childhood that set the whole thing in motion. Worth hearing him lay it out in his own words.
Ryan has caught sailfish in Costa Rica, marlin and tuna in Louisiana, and yellowfin in the Bahamas. Ask him his favorite, though, and the answer is a Tampa Bay redfish. His clients think he is bluffing when he says it. I understand exactly what he means, and the reason he gives comes down to something a lot deeper than the size of the fish. He explains it in the episode.
Ryan named his whole business around the banana superstition, so I had to ask him about it. He has heard the same theories I have, going back to the old sailing days, and he laid out all three of them. He also told me about the client who showed up with an entire bushel of bananas to test him. His reaction to that is my favorite part. Hear how he handled it in his own words.
Bananas are bad luck. Bacon bits, in Ryan's world, are good luck. The nickname traces back to one tournament trip, a grocery run he did not want to go on, and four days of stubbornness that turned into a legend. I laughed the whole way through this story. It is one of those ones that lands better when you hear him tell it, so press play and let him.
The technology conversation is where this one really opened up for me. Ryan says offshore tournament fishing is in a transitional period, with 360 sonar installs running around $150,000 and letting a crew spot a single sailfish from a thousand feet away. I have been watching the same argument play out in bass fishing with forward-facing sonar, and we got into whether splitting tournaments into sonar and non-sonar divisions is the right answer. His take, as a guy who has fished both sides of it, is worth hearing.
Listen to the full conversation: Apple Podcasts · Spotify · or watch in the YouTube player at the top of this page.
Ryan is good friends with Jacob Wheeler, and that friendship led him to fish six bass tournaments as a co-angler with zero pressure and almost no bass knowledge. What he brought to those lakes, and the one simple lure he kept tied on while everyone else carried thousands of options, says a lot about how he thinks about fishing anywhere. He tells the whole thing, including the walk of shame up to his first pro partner, on the show.
What stayed with me the day after this one was how much of Ryan's life comes back to that simple rule of not saying no. It got him offshore at nine years old, four days at a time into the Gulf when almost no kids were doing it, and it is still the reason he says yes to a bass tour or a freelance mate spot on someone else's boat today.
The other piece I keep thinking about is the balance. He is fishing 320 days a year, raising two young girls, and just started riding a Peloton before dawn to keep his energy up. That is a hard life to sustain, and he is finding ways to sustain it while clearly still loving every day of it.
Press play in the player above, or grab the episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Ryan Harrington · No Bananas Sport Fishing · Tampa Bay, Florida · Tierra Verde · Costa Rica (Los Sueños) · Louisiana · The Bahamas · Boca Grande · Biloxi, Mississippi · Jacob Wheeler · Anthony Randazzo · Bouncer Smith · Rick Murphy · ICAST · Tom Rowland (host)
Captain Ryan Harrington is a Tampa Bay-based fishing guide who spends around 320 days a year on the water. He grew up on Tierra Verde, started billfishing offshore at nine years old, and now guides inshore in Tampa Bay for snook, trout, redfish, and tarpon under his No Bananas Sport Fishing banner. Over 14 to 15 years of guiding he has built a deliberately well-rounded career that also takes him offshore for sailfish, marlin, and tuna from Costa Rica to Louisiana to the Bahamas, and he can be reached on Instagram at @CaptainRyanHarrington.
Full episode transcript. Section headings link to that moment in the video above.
Tom Rowland: What's going on, everybody? It's Tom Rowland podcast brought to you by Star brite. We have a fantastic guest today, somebody I've been trying to get on the podcast for a while. And as you're going to learn, he is very busy fishing over three hundred and twenty days a year all over the world, does all kinds of cool stuff. It's captain Ryan Harrington, and he is on right now. Here we go.
Ryan Harrington: Alright. I'm captain Ryan Harrington, and this is the Tom Rowland podcast.
Tom Rowland: Ryan Harrington. What's going on, man?
Ryan Harrington: Oh, not much, man. Busy, but, found a good day to to meet up with you. It's raining and windy out there, so this is perfect.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Well, we've we've been trying to set this up for quite some time, and, really happy to have you on here. What, I mean, man, looking back through the the text that we've exchanged, you've been to all over the place. Where what
Ryan Harrington: is where
Tom Rowland: have you been lately?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. It's, probably a shorter list to say where I have not been. Yeah. That's that's kinda how I've rolled the last, fourteen or fifteen years since I've been guiding. It's, and even before I was guiding, you know, I'm kind of the guy that never says no to an opportunity and, blessed with a a family that's always been okay with that. But, that's my thing. You know? It's, opened up a lot of doors for me Yeah. Really, since I was a little kid, you know, these opportunities. And I've learned a lot along the way. The less you say no, the, more you get to experience Well really in all walks of life.
Tom Rowland: That's a pretty good piece of advice.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah.
Tom Rowland: Really. So how, how are these opportunities coming to you as employment or as, like, you could tag along with with a trip? Or how how do most of these opportunities happen for you?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. So I was, I mean, kinda blessed from an early age to, to get experiences in all all levels of fishing. You know, I've had anything from in shore to offshore, kingfish, billfish, you name it. I kinda do it all. I'm very well rounded. And so that opens up more doors. You know, sometimes I think if you're very, one-sided and and fish one certain, type of fishing, you get your certain season, you get your prime times, and your prime areas. So that limits you more, opposed to being, you know, well rounded. I think that the more types of fishing, that you can do, the more opportunities are there. So to answer your question, you know, some are employment, some are, you know, hey. We need your help. Come either run the boat or or be an angler or a mate. That's the other thing too is, I'd I love, you know, running a boat, being the captain, and I'm happy to be a mate and rig ballyhoo and and not touch a rod. So that, again, opens up more pop opportunities as well.
Tom Rowland: So what are some of your favorite?
Ryan Harrington: Man, it's, I get that question a lot. You know, my my, I even get the question of what do you do because I do it all. Yeah. So my my full time, you know, my inshore fish in Tampa Bay. I guide, inshore for for Tampa Bay, snook trout, redfish, tarpon. And when it comes to my favorite, that's a question I get on guided trips in Tampa Bay. And, you know, people think I'm I'm bluffing when I say, hey. A Tampa Bay redfish. They go, but we've seen your Instagram. We've seen what you do. You catch all these big cool fish around the world. And, honestly, it is. It's it's a Tampa Bay redfish. Yes. I've caught bigger fish. You know, you can say more interesting or or bigger or more exotic places. But, it's my roots in Tampa Bay, and there's, you know, fired at Tampa Bay redfish, so that that'll never get old ever.
Tom Rowland: Is that what it goes back to that it it's like a, a roots thing? Like, that's what you did growing up? That's what that's what ignited the fire of fishing, and that's why it's so close to your heart? Or or is there something else about the Tampa Bay redfish?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. It it's weird because everything else is, is cool. You know? Like, I can't put down any of the fishing I do. You know? Catching sailfish in Costa Rica is awesome. Catching, you know, blue marlin, catching tuna in Louisiana or, you know, yellowfin tuna in The Bahamas. Like, everything I do, it has a special place. But maybe it is because it's home. It's what I'm used to. It's it's it's home. It's got that homey feeling. But there's awesome fish. We get them year round. They fight. You know, you can take all the pictures you want, drop them on their face, and still release them. They're gonna be happy, healthy fish. You know, they're not every fishery is that is that healthy, not hardy. So it's a a good fish, and it's fun for all ages. Easy to get to. You can fish them twelve months a year regardless of weather. So it's I think it's just a good all around target, three hundred and sixty five days a year.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Nice. Well, before we get into, many other questions, we have this thing we do on the called the hot seat, which we ask, some questions to get to know you better, for the audience to get to know you better. Some of them, we just covered. But, so let's let's run down this list, and then often that gives us a lot of other things to talk about. So it's kind of an either or question, just rapid fire. Sunrise or sunset?
Ryan Harrington: Oh, that's a good one. Sunrise.
Tom Rowland: Spin or bait caster?
Ryan Harrington: Spin.
Tom Rowland: Inshore or offshore?
Ryan Harrington: That's a loaded one. Well, let's go. Man, let's let's go in shore.
Tom Rowland: Okay. Coffee, tea, or energy drink?
Ryan Harrington: Coffee.
Tom Rowland: Mountains or beaches?
Ryan Harrington: Beaches.
Tom Rowland: Winter Olympics or summer Olympics?
Ryan Harrington: Summer.
Tom Rowland: Drive or fly?
Ryan Harrington: Fly.
Tom Rowland: Office, friends, or parks and rec?
Ryan Harrington: Office.
Tom Rowland: Tarpon, marlin, or redfish, which we just kinda covered.
Ryan Harrington: We did. That's man, depends on the day.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Depends on the day and the location probably. Right. Right. Best win or catch in your career that you can Oh. Comes to mind.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. That's that's loaded too. That's that could be a whole segment right there. Yeah. Let's go. Narrow down once.
Tom Rowland: We got all day.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Narrowed down is really, really tough. You know, there there's so many that come to mind, and it evolves over the years. If you would ask me that question fifteen years ago, it was different than ten and five. And I think now now having kids, you know, it's changed. It might the fish might not get bigger on that answer. They might get get smaller, but it might be a first.
Tom Rowland: Yes.
Ryan Harrington: So it's, it's all about the smile.
Tom Rowland: Right. How many kids do you have?
Ryan Harrington: Two.
Tom Rowland: What, Yep.
Ryan Harrington: Two, two girls. Seven.
Tom Rowland: Girls. Nice. How old?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Seven and one.
Tom Rowland: Seven and one. Wow.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Yeah.
Tom Rowland: Wow. Awesome. Wow. I have three kids. They're all grown these days. Yeah. My youngest is 20, and my oldest is 26. My middle one
Ryan Harrington: is 26. Gauntlet.
Tom Rowland: Well Yeah. We're we're still moving through the gauntlet, but, you know, it's it's there is light at the end of the tunnel for for you and your position. Sometimes it doesn't seem like there is, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. A movie that makes you laugh.
Ryan Harrington: I have only seen two or three, so that's not a good question for me. I'm not a TV watcher.
Tom Rowland: You've only seen three movies in your life?
Ryan Harrington: That I've stayed up for. I'll start about fifteen with my daughter, but I'm I'm ten minutes in. I don't care what time of day or how exciting the movie is. I'm I'm over there snoring.
Tom Rowland: Nice. Yes. If it that if you take a fishing guide on a day off to the movie theater, it's an immediate nap. If you if a hardworking fishing guide because you get in the you get in the the theater, it's nice and cool, it's dark, you lay your head back a little bit, and out go the lights. Yep. It is I'm I'm with you. I do the same thing. Text or calls?
Ryan Harrington: Text.
Tom Rowland: Instagram or Twitter?
Ryan Harrington: Instagram.
Tom Rowland: One thing you're afraid of?
Ryan Harrington: Snakes.
Tom Rowland: One piece of technology that you rely on heavily.
Ryan Harrington: Cell phone.
Tom Rowland: Favorite fishing destination.
Ryan Harrington: Costa Rica.
Tom Rowland: Best piece of advice you remember being given.
Ryan Harrington: Don't say no.
Tom Rowland: K. That leads us right in. So, that's awesome. So don't say no. And that sounds like that has has opened a lot of doors for you and sent you to places all over all over the globe. And, is that do you when did you first start to think, okay, I'm I'm doing this. I'm gonna say yes. Maybe the first couple are easy. As you start, building your career, you've got other things going on as well, family. It becomes harder and harder sometimes to say yes or don't say no. So what what what was the first kind of opportunity that you remember that you jumped on?
Ryan Harrington: So it's it's kinda cool as far as, I'm in the West Coast Of Florida. So we're not really known for, like, a billfish destination. We have a great fishery out there offshore, but it's it's about a 100 miles to get to. And I was I was born in 1981. So you gotta think in the eighties, going out a 100 miles. Now it's not as big of a deal, but back then was, the wild west. Very, very, very few people did it, and very few kids did it. So at an early age, I was born on born and raised on a small little island, called Tierra Verde in Tampa Bay. Back back then, there was, I don't know, maybe a thousand people that lived out there total. And, we were blessed with a neighbor, that owned a big Ford dealership here, had a a 55 foot Hatteras, and that's how that's how I got into fishing. But, to get to the short and sweet, question of, you know, when did I start saying, and not saying no? That that was it. So I started Bill Fishing at nine years old, out here in the West Coast Of Florida. So there's some places, you know, The Keys or some places, it's a short run-in the center console, and you can catch a sailfish, but we had to go offshore for four days straight. Wow. So that was, that was probably easier to say no to, being a kid. And, you know, a lot of kids are playing baseball or riding their bikes, doing other things, and to really go away from that for four days at a time, into the wild west. You know? Worried about getting seasick. And back then as a kid, you don't know. There's sharks and whales. And, you know, it's a scary place to go out there, especially in the middle of the night for four days. But that's that's that's what I did, and then, it opened my eyes to, wow. That's that's pretty cool. So as a early early age, any opportunity to do anything outdoors, I'd I just always said yes to.
Tom Rowland: So would your dad go on that trip too? Or, like
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Yeah. So, kinda how that worked was, my dad, he's he's from Wisconsin. So, he he wasn't, you know, that in the saltwater fishing, but our neighbor, and him were best friends. Okay. So he he would fish, you know, with him, but, that's that's who I learned from was was our neighbors. So he owned the Ford dealership. He worked Monday through Friday at the dealership. And my dad tells the story better than I do, but I was like a puppy dog at the at the window. You know, it's a townhouse. Now I was sitting there at the window just glued to it, waiting for 05:30 on Friday when when he'd come over. He'd he'd walk straight down to his boat, you know, go inside, and I was I was right there at the front door, you know, beat it down. And he'd let me in. He'd always put on boiled peanuts, you know, cook boiled peanuts, and I'd sit there and just rip through fishing magazines one at a time. And, looking back, it's probably annoying. You know? I'm like, hey. Uncle Bill, what's this fish? What's this fish? Where do you catch this? What's this fish? You know, it's before the Internet. Yeah. I mean, he answered every question, and that's where I got the passion right there. So he's, you know, and and they're still to this day best friends. So if if I call my dad, he doesn't answer. I call Bill, and and they're together. So that's that's, yeah. It's almost like, you know, a family that's not blood related.
Tom Rowland: And so the opportunity to go on the trips is one thing for a nine year old. At what point do you start, tie tying knots, rigging ballyhoo, doing whatever, catching bait, all that?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. I mean, I was, I was like a sponge, so that that's on the offshore at nine, but even as early as, like, two and three years old, we grew up on the water. So I was out there, you know, just fishing off to see you all. And, looking back, it's cool how different things are today for kids. Yeah. With the Internet, with things like this, with the podcast. I mean, there's so much technology that that kids can can, learn from, which I don't know if it's it's good or bad. But for me, you know, two and three years old, barely walking out to the sea wall and and just, you know, probably did doing everything wrong to learn how to do it right. So, I mean, I I wish I had some of those first, you know, poles and knots and stuff where I could see what what I did. But that was, that was, you know, self learning curve there, off the seawall. It just immediately fell in love with that. I I always love fishing, you know, since since, as early as I can remember.
Tom Rowland: That's cool. There have been a lot of snappers caught on a double granny, not Yeah. You know, over the day. I mean, I I watched my kids kids do the same thing. You know, we lived on the canal, and and they would, you know, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches wrapped around the hook with a double granny knot and some of the best snappers I've ever seen, they're caught like that. That's it's Yeah. Awesome. That's a great place
Ryan Harrington: for a
Tom Rowland: kid to grow up.
Ryan Harrington: My dad's got a funny story because, you know, back back then, it was it was shrimp on a hook, you know, off the dock. That's that was our go to. And, my I would bug my dad. The bait shop was ten minutes down the road, and, you know, I'd I'd burn through three or four dozen shrimp in twenty minutes. Say, hey, dad. I need more shrimp. So he'd run back up there. And one day after about his fifth trip back and forth to the to the bait shop, he's like, hey. Like, he didn't wanna go anymore. He goes, son. He goes, one of the best beets is right there. And, I'll never forget. It was it was a sea grape tree that was, in the yard. And he goes, yeah. That that's the secret bait I haven't told you about. So, I kinda looked at him kinda weird and looked at the sea grape and figured it out, but I I started tearing that into little pieces. And, I guess I worked it good enough to to finally catch a fish on it. I thought it was the magic secret bait. So that's that's a you know, artificial guys will love that story. You can
Tom Rowland: you can That's what you can take on a on a tournament these days is a a sea grape with with you for good luck. You know? Yeah. Do you have a good luck? I see that your your charter's called no bananas, so you obviously have bad luck. Is there a good luck?
Ryan Harrington: Man, probably my lucky no banana socks, which is kind of ironic.
Tom Rowland: What do they look like? Are they yellow?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. They're actually blue, but they have a a banana with a big old no sign through it. So What do you think? I wear those
Tom Rowland: I think that Bouncer Smith would take on a bad day, he would take those off of you and be like, there is a banana on the sock. Even though it has a a a red line through it, it's still on there.
Ryan Harrington: I've, I've evolved over the years. I used to be so intense with the no bananas. I wouldn't want yellow I used to have yellow braid, and I realized one day that's that's too close to to a banana. So no yellow braid. No. I mean, nothing. No banana, but sunscreen. Even back in the day, the Hanes underwear had the or through the loom.
Tom Rowland: Yeah.
Ryan Harrington: Had a little banana on it. I mean, it was anything that closely resembled a banana was an absolute no. And it's I know a lot of guys are on both sides of the fence on that, Nick Stanza, and everyone, you know, they'll dress up like bananas and catch fish, and it's all good. But, I mean, we're we're out there too many days a year. Something's eventually gonna happen. And if I have a banana on board, I I guarantee that's why it's gonna happen.
Tom Rowland: So from a young age from a young age, it was no bananas? Did you have an experience with bananas?
Ryan Harrington: No. I never had no. I don't even know when I
Tom Rowland: That's not something you wanted to mess with.
Ryan Harrington: It's like, why why play with fire?
Tom Rowland: I'm with with you.
Ryan Harrington: And I do like bananas. If I have a day off, I'll eat bananas. I'm not against them all day.
Tom Rowland: Think that it's okay if the banana's in you?
Ryan Harrington: No. I I mean, I have, like, a thirty two hour rule.
Tom Rowland: Thirty two hour rule. Well, there is the I I know that. Like, that, I think Rick Murphy told me that one time. I was eating a banana, and he was like, yeah. But it's gonna be in you tomorrow. And I was like, oh, I never really thought about that, but stew like bananas. I got I got a friend, Anthony Randazzo. Do you know him? He's up in
Ryan Harrington: I know.
Tom Rowland: Louisiana. He goes the other way, and he's, like, he's taking a banana on, like, 5,000 charters. I've got I've got a a picture of him netting a redfish. He's got a banana in one hand. He's half eaten banana in one hand. He's netting this big redfish in the other, but he always he always has banana. Yeah. I don't know.
Ryan Harrington: But, I
Tom Rowland: mean, like, there's, like, why, why if if that is something that, that you think could possibly mess up your mindset, mess up your attitude, mess up something, why mess with it? Why why why have one?
Ryan Harrington: That that's the thing. And I don't I don't like bananas that much to to have to have one on the boat. So, yeah, again, like I said, why why play with fire?
Tom Rowland: So over all of these years, you you obviously have all your clients ask you why why no bananas? Do you tell them stories? Like, I've always heard, like, three different stories about the banana. I'd like to hear what you have to say about bananas.
Ryan Harrington: I might have the same three because it is three, so it goes back. And it's it's the first hour of every trip that I have in
Tom Rowland: the car. Correct.
Ryan Harrington: That's that's the first thing that pops up. And I even have some that that think they're funny, and they'll bring one banana. I had one guy bring a whole, like, bushel, like, 70 of them. And, I didn't even laugh. He showed up, and, I mean, he thought it was funnier than I did, but I I said, hey. If you wanna bring them, that's fine. I go, I don't mind. You're the one paying for the trip. I said, we're we're not gonna even cast the line, though. We can go out to the sandbar and hang out. We're like, we don't have to leave the docks. So, yeah, it's one of those things, but the the the three theories I've heard, yours might mimic this, goes back. I call it the pirate days to make it sound cooler, but the immigration days. So one theory is that, the bananas, the bushels back then, you know, could have a spider in it. It was a two month journey to cross the Atlantic. You don't wanna risk getting bit. That one's got something true. It's kinda cheesy in my opinion. The other the other theory is that bananas give off, like, a a nitrous or a gas that, and this is true today. You know, in your kitchen, if a banana starts to spoil, it's gonna spoil all your other fruit around it. Mhmm. So they didn't wanna risk losing all their fresh fruit. That's theory two. Theory three, I think the the bad luck version of it, is that back then if a a ship or a boat would were to sink, they didn't have life jackets. There was nothing. There was no plastic. There was nothing bright that visual that floated, except for bananas. So one boat may see another boat that sunk, see people floating in the water and see yellow bananas and say, oh, you know, that's not good.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Stay away from that. I've heard I've heard all of those. I there's one other one that was, like, about some king and bananas were the fruit of royalty, and and then these fishermen stole the bananas and took off on a fishing trip, and he put a a a hex or a curse on all fishermen with bananas. That's the other one I've heard. I don't know. Probably who knows? Maybe there there's gotta be something to it because it it's stuck around for a long time.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Yeah. And I and I'm probably gonna pass it on. I mean, I named my whole business, no bananas, you know, sport fishing. So, I'm gonna pass it on without knowing the true answer, and it's one of the one of those mythical things. You know, I'm sure there's other other good luck and bad luck things out there.
Tom Rowland: Would you would you ever own a a yell a yellow boat?
Ryan Harrington: No. 100%.
Tom Rowland: I wouldn't either. I wouldn't either. I mean, it's kinda like, you know, I'm I'm not like, I can have bananas. I don't mind bananas. I don't bring them. It's not like I'm gonna make my lunch and be like, oh, there's a banana in here. But, you know, I could go either way on it. I just kinda Yeah. I'm kinda like you. I I kinda like, well, if there's a possibility that there's any bad luck associated with it, why take an apple. Like, why do you want a banana? So there's a lot of things that can happen out there.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. And I, I don't eat on the boat anyways, so a a banana or not. But one one I I got the nickname captain, banana or captain bacon bits. So I I do have a you know, bananas are bad luck. Bacon bits are good luck. That's all I eat. And, if you look through my boat upstairs downstairs, there's stashes of, just cheap bacon bit, containers everywhere. Where does that start?
Tom Rowland: How do you start eating bacon bits on the boat?
Ryan Harrington: Well, just like bananas, you know, kind of bad luck theory. The bacon bits is a weird one. It was I've gone back probably maybe eight or nine years. We fished the, the King Master tournament out of Biloxi, Mississippi. So it was, myself and and two couples, were was the team. So we trailered up 36 elephant from, Sarasota up to Biloxi. So, you know, it's I'm the kind of the fifth wheel, and I'm sitting there with these two couples. We get to, we get to Biloxi, Mississippi and, you know, get the boat in the water, get everything done. The two couples go to to freshen up and shower. I'm not a big gambler, but we stayed at the, the Golden Nugget. So I went straight down to the to the craps table. I'm not a big gambler, but I was up pretty good. You know, middle of the day, I'm playing by myself, and I'm like, damn. This is you know, I got some money in my pocket. This is this is fun. So next thing I know, the two couples come down, and they go, hey. Let's make a grocery run. We're gonna go get groceries, you know, because we were going out for basically four days for this tournament. And, I said, here. Just take this money. You know? You got you I'm easy. I'll eat anything. Just go ahead and, you know, get me whatever. So the owner of the boat, he goes, well, we're a team, and we should all go together. You know? I'm not really wanting to go to the grocery store at this point. Like, I'm not a gambler, but I'm not big on the crap stable. I don't wanna leave to go to Publix or whatever. So, sure enough, he's the owner of the boat. It's his call. So, I've just got my head down not wanting to go. We end up at Walmart in Mississippi, getting groceries together. So I wasn't in the best mood to do that. I I just remember getting, four cases of Coors Light, cracking one open right in the middle of Walmart, and just upset. They're getting their I cannot say this word. Chuck charcuterie. Yeah.
Tom Rowland: Yeah.
Ryan Harrington: So, I mean, there are two couples. They're getting all their cheese and all that stuff for it, and I'm just not having it. So I go down the aisle. I see the bacon bits. I don't even know if I like bacon bits at the time, but I grab every one of them I see, throw them in the cart. So I got four cases of Busch Light and 20 bottles of, bacon bits. And I go, that's it. I'm out of here. So I leave. I said, I paid for it. I said, you I'll Uber back. You guys meet me at the casino. So sure enough, they stuck to their guns. They said, you can't have any of our food without attitude. So I lived off Coors Light and bacon bits, and we ended up finished the second of the tournament. So it's a
Tom Rowland: That's a breakfast of champions right there.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. And, the other four people on the boat, they can't even smell bacon bits now. I guess every time I opened it, they could smell it. But
Tom Rowland: Well, there is a lot of sodium in those things. So you got your electrolytes covered if you're sweating.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Yeah. I don't know if it's a healthy diet, but
Tom Rowland: Kevin Bacon bit. Alright. I gotcha.
Ryan Harrington: That's
Tom Rowland: it. So is with all the different, types of fishing that you've done and and done professionally and competitively. Do you find like like, some of the things that that I've done as well are on different ends of the spectrum. Right? Like, fly fishing for trout and, you know, maybe deep dropping for swordfish. I don't know. Like, just something that's so different from one another. Do you find yourself drawing similarities either in the way that you learned something about this particular fish in a different part of the world and something that you do back home. And and I I just find that really interesting, with people that are really well rounded anglers about the similarities that they draw between very different fish and very different fisheries.
Ryan Harrington: A 100%. And, I'm actually excited to do this podcast with you because we don't we don't know each other that well, but I I kind of followed you over the years. I see that, we have a lot of similarities as far as you going a to z. Yeah. You know, from fly like you said, fly fishing to sword fishing. And it there's so many similarities. There's so many things. I think it makes you a better overall angler, because some people, they might be the best at at their one target species. That's all they do twelve months a year, and they're great at it. But for those people, I think it's harder to try new things because you're gonna stick with what works.
Tom Rowland: Especially as you get older. Right? Like
Ryan Harrington: Right. Yep. And then it's one of those. And I and you can't blame somebody saying, hey. This is how I've always done it. I've always caught fish. But they're they're a little bit maybe more afraid to step out of the box where, I love doing it, and and you can implement, I think, without even thinking about it. Maybe it's a different way you tied a knot or a different, you know, fish faster or slower. There's there's a lot of similarities, but a lot of differences too where if you do cross it, especially if the fishing's slow, and not every day is a good day out on the water. So when it's slow, that's why I like to kind of say, you know, my last good fishing trip, you know, was doing this in this area, and it might be totally different fishery, different area of the world. But you try those techniques, you blend them over, and all of a sudden you catch fish.
Tom Rowland: Yeah.
Ryan Harrington: I I think it just makes you a better over rounded, fisherman at the end of the day.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. I do too. That's actually one of my favorite things is crossing over into different areas and then using something that you've learned something else somewhere else and and having it work. Right? Like, especially on a slow day. But even on a even on a good day, you know, you're you go someplace, and that's just the way they've always done it. And you you do something a little bit different, and it works really well. That to me is, like, really cool. But, you know, I mean, I kind of I kind of enjoy the variety, and I kind of enjoy the the, pursuit of being the the complete angler, the all around angler, somebody that can maybe not be best at any of it, but be able to do at least do all of it. Right? Or or but but fishing is a is a big I mean, it's a big world out there. There's a lot of types of fishing. I mean, to be able to do all of it, that's a lifetime pursuit. It really is.
Ryan Harrington: A 100%. Yeah. And to
Tom Rowland: be able to do all of it in saltwater is one thing. To be able to do all of it in freshwater, but then to be able to cross over and and and do it confidently and and have passion for all of it is is Yeah. Something.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. And I'm I'm on the water, like, three hundred and twenty days a year on average. And there's you started out, you know, asking what my favorite is. It's it's not one easy answer because I I fish so hard. Like, we have tarpon season coming up. I'll run, you know, ninety days straight without a day off. I love it to death. I'm passionate about it. About that eighty eighth day, I'm kinda over it, but then I get right back in, you know, to bill fishing, in in July and August. Then I'll go hard at that until September. By the time I get burned out, then boom, it's back to inshore fishing in Tampa Bay. So, I think that's how being well rounded and being able to to target different different species, different techniques, it keeps me fresh. It keeps me going. As much as I love each one of the the species and the ways I fish, if I did it twelve months a year, I probably would have burned out years ago. Right. Yes. It can be a grind doing the exact same thing every single day. Yeah. But, yeah, it's a new challenge just going after a different fish and figuring it out and letting those seasons turn over. I I don't I don't think I'll ever get old.
Tom Rowland: Well, the learning part is is such a big refresher. Like, I used to just fish tarpon fly fishing for tarpon from February till late, you know, mid July. Right? And then I mean, it's just the same thing every day. And then when I had kids, I got a bay boat, and then I started taking my kids around the mangroves and doing stuff. And I was just like, man, this is amazing. Like, I was learning all this stuff, all this stuff that you just pass by every single day. It's like, well, there are fish over there. Like, they might be snappers or something, but my kids are loving it. And then it just ignited this new, kind of passion about learning. And and that to me kept kept things going, like, the learning part. And I'm sure that's the same for you. Like, when you're doing stuff, like you're doing, you kinda I mean, there's always learning, but if you're on the same milk route, I mean, you know, you've been doing it for fifteen years. How much more can you learn about that? I mean, there's always something to learn, I I would think.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. But I mean, every day too. It's, every single day you leave the dock, you're you're gonna you're you're always constantly learning. For sure.
Tom Rowland: So when you're booking when you're booking your schedule for the year, do you have hard fast dates? Like, I'm gonna tarp and fish until this date, and then I'm gonna be I'm gonna move to something else. You kinda went through it just a little bit, but go a little bit more specifically. Like, what are your seasons?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. So, if I were to start start the year, say, in January, you know, January, February, there's a lot of Costa Rica fishing mixed in down there. So I've been part of a team down there for the last couple years. I'm a sixty eight Viking. They're they're, you know, really dialed in in Los Sueños. So, that's a lot of wintertime because the the fishing's slow in Tampa Bay. So we can do Costa Rica in the in the, wintertime, January, February, and then, usually March, you know, come back. That's when the inshore fishing's real good, in Tampa Bay. So March and April, a lot of snook trout, redfish in Tampa Bay. And then, you know, everyone asks when it's tarpon season. There's not a date. There's not an open date or a closed date. But for me personally, I I run my my personal tarpon season. It's May 1 through July 12. May 1 is just when the the big migratory fish are in. I can I can guarantee if we go out May 1, we're gonna have shots at at tarpon? They show up as early as, you know, March.
Tom Rowland: Mhmm.
Ryan Harrington: But I don't like I don't like targeting a a species that may or may not be hit or miss. You know? We get them as bonus fish, but, basically, May 1. And people say, why July 12? That's an odd date, but that's give or take about when ICAST is. Yeah. So whatever date ICAST is, that's that's when I end my tarpon season, go to ICAST for a couple days, then I I literally leave Orlando, go straight down to QS for the QS Marlin tournament, which I've done for thirty five years. So we do QS Marlin tournament and then, mini season in The Keys, stayed on there for a couple weeks. And then then you get into August, which is kind of a slow time efficient a lot of times, but, we'll do a little bit of Billfish not here in the West Coast, make some make some runs out there, whether it's for tournaments, or we'll just go out on on a meet run or a fun run. So that kinda wraps up my August. And then September, we're back to get in shore fishery, Tampa Bay. September, October is really good red fishing here, into November. And then, December is when I I do take off some days. Nice. You know, Christmas, things like that.
Tom Rowland: So At 03:20 That's kinda it. Man, 03:20 is that's that's every day, man. I mean, there's Yeah. There's three hundred sixty five days in a year, but dang. I mean, that's only that's only forty days or so.
Ryan Harrington: And those are, the the days off, everyone's like, that's cool. You get a day off. Well, that's I mean, even after we get done today, it's technically, it's a day off because it's blowing 30 right now and raining. Yeah. So my day off is putting a rain jacket on and going to do my hundred hour service on my engine. It's, I guess this would be considered a fun day off for a guy.
Tom Rowland: Fun day.
Ryan Harrington: We yeah. We don't get the, those sunny days. You know? That that's when I'm on the water. So it's it's the rainy days we get to catch up on life.
Tom Rowland: Right. How many boats do you have? Do you just operate one boat?
Ryan Harrington: No. So, I I currently own a a 22 Ranger bay boat and then a twenty four hour Murata bay boat. Then we have a 25 Parker. I also have a a commercial stone crab business. So that that's a commercial boat. And then I I fish on a 42 elephant, a 63 Hatteras, and then, 31 birds and we're gonna have up and running down in Costa Rica, one of my teammates there. I'll be kinda running, you know, fishing some trips on that, with personal clients coming down. So all around. And then, I I freelance on boats too here and there. You know, people see my experience, and I'll jump on as a teammate. Nice. I don't mind working the the cockpit or driving or what whatever they need. I'll yeah. Like I said, I'll say yes to it.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. That's awesome. And then, the the stuff that you're going, to other places in the world, that you'll just you'll just cram a trip in there somewhere if you get an opportunity?
Ryan Harrington: It's hard to say. Like, I don't I don't plan much out. I do a lot of Bahamas trips, actually. Yeah. And those those are typically I got some buddies on the East Coast Of Florida, and those trips are I wouldn't say they're planned out more than two weeks in advance. It's usually, you know, see a weather window here. The fish is good and leave out of Palm Beach, you know, run the Abacus or whatnot, go for, like, two or three days, come back. So, it's usually those good weather windows. If we were to plan a trip like that a month or two out, you know, then I have to cancel my charters for those three or four days, plan on going, and the weather's could be bad. So those those are pop up trips, and I'll do I'll do four or five of those a year.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Nice. That's pretty awesome, man. You're really you're really going after it hard. Do you get tired?
Ryan Harrington: No. And I it goes back to, to doing, you know, different things. So there's always different different species. I think if I did the same thing for more than, you know, six months at a time, I will certainly be would get tired. No matter what species that is or where I'm at at in the world. I think I gotta gotta keep moving and bouncing and keeping it fresh. But, no. It's, I I since actually, since October, and I know you're a big workout guy. I I mean, I hate to admit I've never really worked out in my life because I figure, okay. I'm I'm in I'm in the sun. I'm actually doing physical work out there on the boat. I don't I don't need to work out, but, I I got my wife a Peloton for her birthday October, and I'm on that thing more than she is. Really? It's addicting. I'm seven days a week on it.
Tom Rowland: Really?
Ryan Harrington: I that that's actually I thought it I thought it was too tired to have time to work out, but that's certainly boosted by energy. I know you know all about that. But it's that's keeping me going even more. So I got tarpon season coming up around the corner. Like I said, I'll run ninety days straight. I'm excited to keep on that workout routine and see if I get that extra energy boost.
Tom Rowland: I think you will. I think you you absolutely will. That was I mean, people have asked, like, I I did long stretches like that, and that's what it all came down to is that I just gotten better shape, and I was able to go longer. And when I was out there, I was able to, stay attentive and stay excited about it. And it was just when you're in better shape, it's just easier. Everything's easy. Everything's just a little bit easier if you're in really great shape. It's cool that you've got that. How much are you riding? Like, you're you're riding, like, for an hour or thirty minutes? Or
Ryan Harrington: I'm I'm doing, different programs. I think on that, it it the classes are so fun, and it's got this stupid leaderboard and those little things where
Tom Rowland: That's fun.
Ryan Harrington: Your friends. Yeah. Well, that's the thing. I I at first, I'm like, this is kinda cheesy, and I only learned it. I was setting it up for my wife, and I did, what, five minute, like, warm up ride. I haven't ridden a bike since I was a kid, so I did a five minute warm up ride. And, like, two of my friends, I I don't even know how. So, I guess, on my email address or whenever that was on there, so I followed them back or whatnot. And it it keeps you, it it keeps you on your toes, but I I'll I'll ride, seven days a week. So I'm I'm about 260 miles a month. Nice. And it's it's there's no real I don't I really have any goals or anything on there. Just, like, however much time I have. I'll do a ten minute class sometimes. That'll be forty five minutes, an hour, you know, when it whatever it is. I don't really have personal goals yet, but it's it's it is cool seeing how much I'm riding.
Tom Rowland: Have and you've noticed you've noticed a
Ryan Harrington: A 100%. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Big deal. Basically, in the energy level, I I lost, like, 16 pounds doing it. But Really? The main thing is that energy level. And I don't mind getting up to 05:00 doing, you know, thirty minutes, however much time I have before I go catch bait. Originally thinking I'd be tired doing that, but I I I just it's like a extra boost of of coffee in the morning.
Tom Rowland: I think it is. I mean, I I think it is. But, you know, working 320 a year is is brutal. I think you need all the help you can get, to to do that. And for me, it was it was exercise. I used to run a lot when I was when I was working like that, and running was running was good, but, man, I was just telling my friend this morning. It's like, you had to have I had to have my my shoes and my shorts and everything, like, in the truck. So because if I walked into the air conditioning, it's over. Yeah. I mean, it's over. You're not go you're not stepping back out there to go running. Yeah. So I would have to like, I wouldn't I wouldn't even do any I wouldn't wash my boat or anything. Just go put the shoes on and go. Wouldn't walk in to see the kids, anything. Just
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Step out. Conditioning is, air conditioning is the devil. I'm the same way, like, out there. Because our our bill fishing here in the West Coast, Florida is in in the hottest months, July and August. And, I love working in the cockpit. I love getting out there and sweating. You know, it's nice inside of the comfy 63 haters. It's it's nice and comfy in there in the air conditioning, but, I don't, personally, I don't go inside.
Tom Rowland: Right.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. If I want food or a drink or anything, I'll have somebody bring it to me out in the cockpit sweating because it's two minutes in there, and then you're done. You might as
Tom Rowland: well have
Ryan Harrington: to sleep.
Tom Rowland: I mean, you just don't wanna go back out, and it's and you do wanna go to sleep. And if they're in there, how many times do you hook a fish and somebody doesn't even wanna come out and and feel it in?
Ryan Harrington: Exactly. Right?
Tom Rowland: Like Yep. Yep. It it can happen. So what is that trip like? You're you're is that a multi day trip, or is that a single day? Or
Ryan Harrington: or Yeah. No. Out out of here. Well, usually for tournaments, so we'll leave, we'll leave the dock on Wednesday. Like, kinda chug out there. And, basically, the the spot isn't the same every year. It's or every tournament. It's it's wherever the loop current is, off the West Coast. So there's times it's eighty, eighty five miles offshore, and there's times it's a 150 miles offshore. So we use satellite imagery and everything. That's what I was gonna ask
Tom Rowland: how you're finding that loop current, the satellite imagery?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. So the, basically, the temperature breaks. So wherever you find a temperature break, if if you can find a two degree temperature break or a three degree temperature break, that that's exactly where you wanna be. Modern technology makes that easy. There's, you know, Hilton report or off report. Now everything's even dialed into your, your your electronics. So you can get it up to the minute, and then you can get STARLINK on the boat so you can you can be offshore and even get updates. But, basically, if you get a a two or three degree temperature break, that's where the currents are going against each other, and that's where your weed lines are gonna build up. So it's it's kind of a, easy way to know where the weed lines are. You find the weed lines, you find the bait, you find the fish. So we'll, but we'll leave the dock Wednesday morning, kinda chug out there. You know, let's let's say 80 to 120 miles typically. We'll, we'll swordfish all night. So the tournaments, you can fish twenty four hours a day. So we'll swordfish usually all Thursday night, wake up, you know, lines in, at sunrise. We'll put our our, marlin lines out there, and we'll we'll throw our officials out here so we cover ground. You get eight to 10 knots. That's that's a lot of ground in the in daylight hours. So if we find a good area, we'll zigzag that the entire day. If it's not a good area, we'll just we keep the lines in. We don't we don't run a gun. So when the lines go in at sunrise, we don't pull them out till sunset. Wow. So we fish all day, and then that'll be what Friday night, swordfish all night. Saturday, morning, we troll for a little bit, and I usually come back the way, and it's usually on Saturday evening. So it's, three or four days straight because, we we we're fishing the entire time.
Tom Rowland: And then you got a a do you have to take a day off, or can you go straight into a charter the next day?
Ryan Harrington: Yes. So that's Sunday because
Tom Rowland: I Brutal.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. And I I like to, I like to fish. I mean, I take little catnaps here and there, but I like to fish the entire time. So usually when we're sword fishing at night, that can be really, really boring out there. So I'll sleep in a beanbag out there, in the cockpit, and I'll I'll, probably not smart. If you ever see me without a toe, that means we got a big fist because I'll put my foot up on the on the reel, to kinda feel the bite if I don't hear it. I it's in the back of my mind that that toe could get wrapped around you. I might be quick.
Tom Rowland: So What about the stars out there? Are you seeing some incredible awesome.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. It's it's one of those things. Actually, Joe Rogan was talking about that the other day. That's why I fell in love with hunting, when he said, you know, what was the stars itself. And I it's something I never thought about until he said that. It's just a it's a bonus of being out there, and it's a grind. There's two ways to look at going offshore for that many days. It it can be hot and sweaty and and rough and nasty, but but things like that, seeing nature, you know, I see whales every once in a while or just stuff cool stuff you don't typically see.
Tom Rowland: Yeah.
Ryan Harrington: And certainly, the the the stars out there. You know? We're we have so much light pollution no matter how big and fancy your house or your neighborhood is on land. You know? There's there's light pollution everywhere. So, really, the people that hunt and fish are the only people that regardless how much money you might have or not have, if you can get out there in that wilderness like that, you know, the middle of the woods or the the middle of the the Gulf Of Mexico or the ocean somewhere, it's it's it's an amazing thing. It makes you realize, like, how small you are in the universe. Yeah. It's kinda cool.
Tom Rowland: For sure. When you get to a place like I was in Africa one time. Maybe the best stars I've ever seen probably in in Africa, and we just stopped and we just all just looked up, and it was just it was it was amazing. But when you get out and you're doing that nighttime sword fishing or you're you're you're camping in Yellowstone or doing some awesome thing, it makes you realize, like, that was, like, what oh, you know, like, before TV, before the Internet, before all this other stuff. That's what people did for entertainment. It's like, look at the stars every night, campfire stars, and they were so connected to the stars. And you see that in architecture, and you see that in, like, the way the pyramids are lined up, and all of it is is associated with the stars. And we've gotten so far away from that That when you take somebody someplace where they haven't haven't seen it in, like, a kid these days, that'll be the first time they've seen the stars like that. Mhmm. It's amazing. It really
Ryan Harrington: is. That's something you you can't recreate. That's that's probably one of the coolest things I've seen in in real life, with my own eyes that I've never you know, there's no point even taking a picture of it. Right. You know, it's it's like one of those things that you know it's never you can't duplicate it. So whether you take a picture or video or show anybody when you get back, it's it it's not gonna have that same feeling. It's it's it's it's hard to describe, but it's cool talking to someone else, like, that has experienced it. And it's just one of those things that regardless of how old you are, what your background is, I mean, you see those stars, like, wow. That's that's pretty cool.
Tom Rowland: I mean, when you really see them in a dark place like that, like, way out in the Gulf Of Mexico or, like, I don't know, middle of the ocean or, like, Yellowstone National Park is a real good one. If you camp there, that there it's like the furthest place in the Continental United States. You can you can find the furthest place away from a road from a paved road in the Continental United States in Yellowstone National Park. But, you know, all over Montana and Idaho and Wyoming and that those areas, you can find some really dark places where they're not they're not many lights around. And the difference is is just crazy. Like, to look up there and when you really get there, you can see depth between the stars. And you can tell, like, some are are, like, further away than others and or at least it looks that way. And, you know, even if you're if it's real dark in your backyard and you look up, it kinda all looks like it's kinda you know what I'm talking about? Like, when when you really get in those dark places, yeah, it's three d. And it's just Yep. It's hard to it's hard to even describe to somebody that hasn't hasn't seen it, but it's just I don't know. I did see, we did this thing where we where we, went tarpon fishing with, night vision goggles. And, I had one of my friends that's an elite military guy, and he has really, really, really good night vision goggles. And the thing about the night vision is that you see the stars just anywhere like you do out like what we're talking about. I mean, you look up, and I just couldn't I almost couldn't take my eyes off the sky at night. I was like, oh my god. You see every star because it accentuates any light that's up there. You see it. So that was the coolest thing. I mean, seeing the tarpon at night was that was obviously very cool, but I kind of expected that. What I didn't expect was looking up and being able to see the stars like I saw in Africa or like we're you're talking about way out in the middle of the ocean. Just that was unexpected and super cool. I can't even imagine what that would look like when you got in a really dark place, and then you put the night vision goggles on. You would see stars that are impossible to see, but it it picks up every little star, and the whole sky just looked amazing. It was so cool.
Ryan Harrington: That's cool. That and that's one of the cool things about about fishing too and hunting is, you know, I I think we get to experience places that that not your normal person, not not normal destinations. You know? A a good fishery isn't necessarily a good hotel, you know, destination. Right. It's it's cool. Not you know, some some are, but most are, to be honest. You know? And I know you've had a lot of guests on here that have done way cooler stuff than I have as far as, you know, different countries and different places. I don't know, man. You're you're you're up there. Countries and different places.
Tom Rowland: I don't know, man. You're you're you're up there.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. I mean, I think everyone's got a cool story, but it's it's just cool that the destinations that that, fishermen and and hunters, you know, get get to see that there's really no other reason to travel to those places if you don't hunt or fish. Right. You know, a person that that likes the spas, they're not gonna go to 99% of the places that that, you know, people like you and me would travel to. And we get to experience the things like you just explained, you know, the stars. There's some people that will never get to see the stars like that. It's, it's kinda sad because they're right there above our head every night. I know. Just never get to see it.
Tom Rowland: I know. When you since you started fishing nine years old, you've done all these different, trips for all these different species and things. What do you think are a couple of things that come to mind that have that have changed either technologically or any sort of advancement that have made the biggest changes in your particular fishing, what you do?
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. The I mean, definitely definitely electronics, anything from in shore to offshore. You know, that's that's the biggest thing. I could probably go on forever about this. You know, things, as, as simple as weather apps even. You know? Everyone jokes that the weatherman's always wrong and this and that, but, you know, they're not always a 100% right, but they're definitely getting better. And then the access that we have to, you know, different weather apps for fishing, especially offshore. You know, you you really wanna know what what your wind conditions are. But even in shore, I'll plan my trips based around the the wind direction and speed about, you know, where I'm gonna start, everything else. And I've I've realized a lot of the, I'm not a big sailboat fan. I don't don't really Can't fish off
Tom Rowland: a single one of them.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. So, so or any cast, but, yeah. I'm I'm not a big sailboat fan. But when it comes to technology, I will admit that their apps for finding the wind is pretty cool because they they care more about the wind than we do, but I certainly, love, you know, seeing the wind and the wind direction, and some of those apps are pretty pretty dialed in. So that that would be on the, I think, the, the smaller version of technology that's come a long way, but it certainly helped. And then you get into the bigger stuff. You know, obviously, side scan technology has has come a a really long way. A lot of that stuff, you know, starts out military grade or maybe search and rescue, and then they get it down, you know, towards cost effective for the average angler to get it. I can say for tarpon fishing, you know, thousand percent. I I did, four or five years in a row down in Boca Grande, tarpon fishing. And, without a side scan there, I would have caught half the fish I caught here with it. It's you're finding schools at tarpon that might be two or 300 feet to your left or right of the boat that with a traditional sonar, you never would have seen those fish. And then you you go to the next step, and, you know, you got now you go to the, the sonars on the on the big sport fish that's almost become mandatory.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. That's what I was gonna ask you about that. Like, how how that's changing that that culture and that those tournaments and that fishing?
Ryan Harrington: So, we're in a transitional period offshore, I think, right now. So going back maybe three years ago, we were tournament fishing in Costa Rica, and we were one of the, probably I'd say out of 50 boats in the tournament series, I think maybe 10 or 12 had had the sonar, you know, 360 sonar on it. And those 10 or 12 boats were typically the top 10 or 12 every single tournament. You could see all the stats online. You could see the boats, the sonar versus non sonar boats. They were just consistently in the top 10, to the point that the the owner of the boat I was on, he he was watching one one boat with a sonar and just picking fish off from our stern left and right. Nothing wrong with it, but they just had better technology than we did. We didn't have a sonar, and they did. So he he finally said, you know what? Pull this thing out. It's about a $150,000 install, and something that as an owner of a boat or a lover of a boat, you don't wanna watch because they literally drill a hole into the bottom of the boat, to install it. So it's it's a scary sight to see for sure. But what's it saying? I mean, you get dialing in on that, we we can we can spot a single sailfish, you know, 1,700 feet away from the boat in any direction. 360
Tom Rowland: feet. 100 feet. Yeah. Wow.
Ryan Harrington: And it's, it's like the old Top Gun, you know, technology where they did spot lock, you know, on the other plane or whatnot. You can almost, like, you can almost spot lock on that sailfish, and every ping on the radar, you can see which direction they're moving and, get pretty dialed in. So when I say we're in a transitional period, offshore, you get, some of these big big money tournaments. If you don't have that sonar, you're you're not really excited about spending a ton of money efficient against these sonar boats for a lot of money. So right now, I'm seeing most of the tournaments do a sonar and a non sonar division Mhmm. Which I don't know if I agree with because the money is now getting split. So you're splitting you're splitting everything. And I understand both sides of it a 100%. I I I get why the guys in the sonar, you know, don't want everybody in and vice versa. But if all the boats go in, it's it's gonna be a bigger jackpot for everybody. It but it's it's hard to argue with the technology. You know, a non sonar boat is a 100% at a disadvantage. Yeah. You just you can't see those fish. It's it might only take one or two fish to to be the difference in first place versus third place.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. I find it interesting that that they're they're, they're creating rules about, you know, there's two divisions because the same thing's going on in bass fishing. In fact, I just had Jacob Wheeler on just the other day, and and, he has won without forward facing sonar, and he's won with forward facing sonar. And there's just, like, a whole group of people that are so against this technology. I think it's gonna ruin the sport. They think whatever. I had a interesting idea. I thought, what if you, you know, if you got six tournaments, what if you could only use it in a certain number of those tournaments or for a certain number of hours on those tournaments or something? Then, boy, now you got a lot of strategy that goes in. Like, I'm gonna use it in this tournament, but not in this one. And maybe you make the right choice, maybe you don't. But it's interesting in the in the offshore world. I mean, it's kind of the same thing going on at at a at a higher cost, like a $150,000, but you could spend $60,000 on on on this other technology and forward facing sonar for bass fishing. So there, you know, there's some people that say that it's a it's a it's not fair because some people can't afford it. But, yeah, these are big boy tournaments, man. Like, the like, the tournaments that you're fishing in, that's that's where the big boys play. So if you wanna step up to that line, don't you think that if that's what's required, then
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. It's, so here's funny. It's funny that you talk about Wheeler. So, him and I are good friends going after the yeah. We're on the national team, Evinrude team together back in the day. And, I got some funny stories about him catching his first redfish for sure. The the bass guy's hook setting with a circle hook doesn't work too.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Right.
Ryan Harrington: He he finally got the hang of it. So, no. He he's a he's a good guy. And, when I met him, I don't know, ten years ago, whatnot, back on the the national team for Evinrude, it was mostly all bass guys. I was, like, the only saltwater guy on the team. And, I don't know anything about bass fishing whatsoever. And it's funny, talking about the big big boy tournaments and this and that. You know, sir, in bill fishing, there's a lot of 6 figure checks are holding up and, you know, some guys even get in the millions in some of these big tournaments. So it's easy to look at the pictures of a big check on stage and say, wow. There's a ton of money in in bill fishing. But after talking to to Wheeler and some of the guys, those bass guys, that's where the money's at. Like, if I had to to go back in time and do it all over again and and fish if I was if I was fishing for money period, a 100%, you gotta be on the bass tour, because it's just now I'm not saying that their stuff isn't expensive, but those guys sometimes will complain about burning, like, a 150 gallons of fuel in a three day tournament. And I'm like, damn, man. I'd I'd we we burned that catching bait before we even started
Tom Rowland: the tournament.
Ryan Harrington: You know? So the technology levels come up, but it it's, as far as your profit margin on bass, you know, and then how we go back to some of these destinations that we go to are cool. You know, some of them for Billfish are inexpensive as well. You know? You have Cabo San Lucas, and some of these places are high in resorts, and you got your slip fees and everything else and, you know, the diesels. Everything's just expensive where, you know, some of these bass lakes are beautiful, but there's nothing wrong with staying in that $40 a night in La Quinta Inn or Red Roof Inn. Yeah. That they they get they get,
Tom Rowland: Or a lot of them camp. You know? They'll have their they have the, one of the rigs is, like, you got the you got the whole camper, you know, cab over camper in the back, the Lance or whatever. And then they when they get to the thing, they just leave that at the at the campground and and and go. That seems like a that seems like a really good way, but, man
Ryan Harrington: Yeah.
Tom Rowland: That's a lot of that's a hard way. I mean, there may be more money in it, but it is a hard way to make a living. It's kinda like being a a a rodeo cowboy or a professional wrestler.
Ryan Harrington: Oh, yeah. Yeah.
Tom Rowland: You're gone all the time. Very physical. Yeah. That's Very why
Ryan Harrington: there's very few of the good ones. There are always at the the cream of the crop, but I down with my toe in it on the FLW as a co angler a couple years ago. Did you? Yeah.
Tom Rowland: What'd you think? It
Ryan Harrington: was actually a lot of fun.
Tom Rowland: Did you do the Redfish tournaments? You did the Redfish tournaments too. Right?
Ryan Harrington: I used to. Yeah. Yeah. Yep. Yep. But I did the I did the FLW, the the bass Uh-huh. Tour, which was, it it was it was fun because I put zero pressure on myself. You know, sometimes a lot of these captains, they won't do tournaments, period. And and I understand it. I I come from a tournament background. I love tournaments. But there's a lot of times that it's a lose lose situation
Tom Rowland: Yes.
Ryan Harrington: As a guy because if we win, everyone looks as you know, they go, okay. Yeah. At school, yeah, you won because you're a captain. You're a full time. Of course, you won. Like, yeah, that's not fair. Like, you you should have won it. And then if you don't win and, you know, the weekend warrior beats you, then all of a sudden you suck. It's like, man. Yeah. That guy he's a full time captain. He lost. Like, this this guy over here, you know, won it. So I I get, you know, it's it's a fine line when you dabble into those tournaments like that. But going into the to the bass tour, I did, like, six tournaments in the Southeast, and it was cool for me because I went in with zero pressure. I didn't really care. I mean, it, I wanted to catch at least one bass so I could go up on stage and and weigh it in. But other than that, I I knew I wasn't gonna go in there and win it. I'm not going to try to I actually talked to Wheeler about it before I went, for my first tournament. I said, hey. I said, I said, what what should I throw? I think the first tournament was in Lake Toho, over in the middle of Florida. I said, I'm I'm fishing this tournament. Like, you know, what what kind of lewers should I get or whatever? And he sent me a list of about 7,000 different worms and all that. I walk into the Bass Pro Shops. I'm like, oh, man. I'm not I'm not trying to do that. I'm not even trying to throw a bait caster. You know?
Tom Rowland: Right.
Ryan Harrington: So I set up to my first, tournament. It's kinda funny. You just get paired up with an angler the night before, so you don't know who it's gonna be, and they're they're the pro. I was just the co angler. So I had to walk up to the guy, and it kind of a walk of shame and say, hey. Nice to meet you. I said, I got good news and bad news for you. Good news. I know my way around the boat. You don't have to worry about me. I'm fine. And I said, I I got thick skin too. If you see me do something wrong, you know, feel free to to lay into me. I I can I can laugh it off? And I said on the bad side, I I don't know anything about bass fishing whatsoever. So I was like, man, if if I could just catch one fish on five. So he he kinda looks at me. He goes, alright. He goes, we're allowed to bring five rods and a backpack full of tackle. So he said, what what do you bring? And I go, you're gonna start making fun of me right away because I just brought spinning rods, and and he was okay with it. He goes, well, I've I've thrown one every once in a while. But so I had, basically, my redfish rods with me Mhmm. And, you know, just a little bit of of tackle and stuff. And he said, well, do you have anything with 65 pound braid? I go, man. I said, you can make fun of me, but don't don't don't be like that. Like, you know, like, no. I don't have anything with 65 pound braid. And he was dead serious. I thought he was joking. But he was dead. I had all, you know, 15 pound braid. And he said, well, you're gonna need 65. I'm like, how big are these fish on this lake, man? Like, 65 pound braid.
Tom Rowland: Catch a marlin with that.
Ryan Harrington: 20 pounders or something. He's like, oh, man. I'm I'm on a good bite. You know, practice went good. A bunch of, like, four to five pounders. Now I'm really thinking the guys messing with me. But, yeah, we have punch fishing, which I learned a lot, you know, in my first one. And it's not the size of the fish. It's the amount of weeds you get
Tom Rowland: on this.
Ryan Harrington: But, it's cool. And then, again, not saying no to it. So I agreed to do that tournament series. I only did it one time, you know, one season, but it's something I would do again. I learned a lot.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Well, that was the next question is what does that t what does that experience teach you that you that you apply somewhere else? Going back to kind of the original question, and this is a perfect situation to to ask that. What is six tournaments on the Bass tour teach you about marlin fishing, king fishing, anything, tournament preparation? I don't know. Like, how do you apply that experience to success in another area?
Ryan Harrington: What's cool about that is that is it was, like, six tournaments with six different, the the six different anglers, you know, pros. So every one of them was different. How they prepared, where how fast we fish, how long we spend in a spot. You know, we're in different lakes every time, but, just seeing that different techniques get to the same same result. That was just in strictly bass fishing, but same thing. It's weird on that. You know, I I'm sure subliminally, a lot of that stuff did transfer over to what I do, but on the on the flip side, they all these guys were trying to make it fun of me on my setups, and and I didn't care. Like, I was just there to to have fun. So I I wasn't trying to rewrite the book and be the next Jacob Wheeler. I was there to to have fun. But on the on the reverse side, you know, these guys have their 7,000 different types of worms and frogs and all that stuff. I literally brought, like, mirror lure or little John's, which is my go to artificial lure. And when I do fishing seminars, a lot of them are at, like, bait shops or tackle shops or West Marine, things like that, where they sell tackle. And I'll get up on stage. I'll do my thing, and that question comes up a lot. Like, what's your favorite artificial lure? And my go to is that MirrOlure Lil John. It looks horrible. It's a stick of plastic. I mean, it's it's not sexy at all. You go in the tackle shop, you know, section with all these live targets and all these these, you know, pinfish looking baits that literally looks like you need to put that that bait back in the water. You think it's it's dying in the package? That's that's how good they look, but it's just a little stick bait. There's nothing sexy to it. That's what I would bring on these bass tours. And all six of the guys I fish with by the end of the day or the end of the tournament, I think they went out and bought them because it was catching fish. And it's just it's just how I redfish or trout fish. You know? It's it's a lure. It's my confidence lure. It's the it's how I know how to work it and use it. You can fish all different, you know, depths of water with it. So I I was just out there using it. I literally my exact same red redfish rig, going on in these lakes and catching bass with it. So, you know, it's something that transferred over, and I'm telling these guys like, hey. You have 7,000 different worms, but these bass live in a lake, and they've probably seen all 7,000 of those before. Yeah. This is something new I'm I'm throwing at them.
Tom Rowland: Something new that's super old. Right? Yeah.
Ryan Harrington: I think on the flip side, though, I I did use some, like, some Ned rigs, some things I wasn't familiar with, and I've used those and caught redfish off.
Tom Rowland: Sure.
Ryan Harrington: It's and, again, I think Tampa Bay redfish are very pressured, so maybe I'm throwing something at them that they haven't seen before. And there's fishing is really easy to overthink or underthink. You know? Sometimes it gets way too and I don't mean the stereotype of these bass guys. They seem like they have so many lures and so many different things. Like, I mean, if you go to, like, a a place like a bass pro shops, if you go to the bass section, it's massive. It's aisles and aisles and aisles. Then you go to the saltwater section, there's just not that much diversity in the lures. I mean, sure, there's a lot, but not compared to to freshwater versus saltwater. So I don't know. You can either overthink and underthink fishing. And when I do my seminars, there's always one or two people in the back. You know? Usually older people, old school, pen and paper writing everything down, which is fine. I'm I'm up there giving a talk anyways. You can take all my info. But I joke at the end of the seminar, and I say, okay. Everyone that that took notes on the way out, you can just crumble that up and throw it in the trash. They kinda look at me at first like, woah, man. Like, you're giving your info. I go, that's fine. Like, I don't care about the info. But every day I leave the doc and I go out there, those are all my theories. That's my experience over the last, you know, however many years. But that I prove my theories wrong every time I leave the dock. Yeah. So it's like get out there and fish and just figure it out. I mean, every that's what makes it fun. That's what makes the three hundred and twenty days a year not not be a grind. It's, I learn every single day I go off out there. So Dude,
Tom Rowland: that's awesome. I don't know if there's any better way to to end this one other than, asking you to come back. I'd love to go deeper on so many different things, and, and we gotta get out together and fish sometime. I would love to fish with you. For sure. Yeah. But tell everybody how they can, follow you, how they can go fishing with you, how they can do support you in whichever way they can.
Ryan Harrington: Yeah. Being on the water that much, I'm not the best at answering my phone. So, if you do wanna get get a hold of me, usually text message, I'll be at (727) 692-6664, or the easiest way is on Instagram. It's @CaptainRyanHarrington. You can message me or, follow me. I'll follow you back, and, we'll go from there.
Tom Rowland: Right on. Alright, man. Thanks, Ryan. I know that this is a rare day off for you, and, I'm glad to I'm glad to have gotten this taken care of and gotten you on. Really nice to talk
Ryan Harrington: to you. It's been a blast, and I appreciate it.
Tom Rowland: Yeah. Awesome. Okay. That's it for today. We'll be back with another awesome guest just like captain Ryan Harrington next week. See you then.
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