CatchCon 2011: Part Two-It's About a Staircase!

 We were being filmed coming into the pier. I'm not sure they've done that before. I honestly don't recall from years past. Most of us were on the bow of the boat, taking pictures, thus ruining what would probably have been a dramatic shot. :)

 

I made him pose for this shot.  I'm awesome at interrupting serious work. Anyway, that's a monkey fist knot and it weighs down the line he's holding so that he can toss it to someone on the pier and drag the big lines through to tie up the boat. Hooray for not drifting! 

After we were secure, the NW slipped in beside us, being driven by none other than...

Edgar Hansen! Jake Anderson was of course, there to help out as well.

Edgar's not fond of taking direction from others when it comes to tying up the boat!

  Matt Bradley was around for the ride too! Good to see him back on the deck, even if he doesn't look happy to be there. (Oh, and Ryan, if you happen to read this, show up next time, k? How else can we get fake married and freak out our loved ones?)

 Here, Jake and Matt are setting buoys between the two boats along with Danny Maki! Danny is one of the new crewmen on the Wizard and a super guy! It was great to get to meet him, and I'm looking forward to the next time I see him. 

I also managed to snag a shot of the elusive Norman Hansen. I once spent an evening just talking to Norm about all kinds of stuff. He's actually a very nice guy with a great personality, just kind of quiet. I'm sure he doesn't remember me in the slightest. 

Monte and Keith directing the action on deck!

One of the camera guys was filming everything. I tried to stay out of his way.  I probably failed.

 Here you can see Soper running the crane... FROM BEHIND HIS BACK, just like he does during the season, so that he can keep his eyes on the deck. Great skills... he has them.

 At one point, the crane actually sprung a leak, and here's Lenny, well, his hands at least, taking care of it!

The sorting table has to be moved out of the way so that people can walk on the deck during the tours... outside of bagging bait, it's times like this when it's handy to have greenhorns.

I know this isn't the most interesting shot ever, but I like it, a lot. The crane was swinging over my head, and I managed to snag a shot as it buzzed past. I figure this is a "crab's eye view." 

After moving the table, it was time to bring the gangway down onto the deck so that people could travel onto the boats. That giant metal staircase is weird. The stairs aren't deep, and they're too long, but not quite long enough that you want to take two at a time, so you end up just kind of shuffling down it while the boat is rocking, praying you don't take a header down the sucker. It's like the stairway to heaven... by which I mean, it's surprising nobody had died on the thing yet. Deadliest Catch, deadliest staircase.  "On a staaaaaaircase I ride..."

Yeah, I'm ending this one here... with a staircase... because I'm lame awesome like that. Next up, the Mariners disappoint Lynn Guitard, and CatchCon 2011!

CatchCon 2011: Part One- Sailing, Sailing!

 CatchCon!

Well, I'm finally posting about Seattle where another round of Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch convention, CatchCon took place. Like the previous CatchCons, it was full overrun with fans and fishermen alike! Of course, my experience is usually a bit deviated from the norm at these events, and this year was no exception.

The flight into Seattle was the standard cross country adventure, nothing to write home about... or blog about for that matter. The ride home however was a terror-filled, white-knuckled panic fest, but I'm getting ahead of myself. After landing, I met up with my fabulous friend, the wonderful Cindi, since she was landing only a half-hour after I did. Together, we grabbed our bags, headed outside and met up with our friend Lynn and two of his friends Brianna and Danielle, who were good enough to come pick us up from the airport. Lynn and Cindi are pretty much bff, and he's just a great guy all around.

 Me, Brianna, Cindi, Keith, Danielle, and Lynn at The Market Arms... good times!

We ended up in Ballard at a little establishment called the Market Arms, just outside of PacFish, where we met up with Keith, Monte, Lenny, Gary, and a few of other people. It was a fun night of swapping stories, playing a few darts, and  making new friends and catching up with old ones. However, it was getting late, heading towards the 2 A.M. mark, and we all had an early morning coming at us hard, so we turned it in for the night. The morning would bring us back to PacFish for our annual visit to the F/V Wizard!

Once the lines were untied, we started off pretty quickly. Unfortunately, Monte and the new greenhorn Danny were still standing on the deck of the Pinnacle! However, Keith maneuvered the boat close enough for them to hop aboard, no man left behind on the Wizard!

 Lynn! He's becoming a seasoned vet of the CatchCon shindiggery now.

 Craig Terrill was kind enough to pose for a pic with Jackie and me.

We had a huge crowd on the Wizard this year for the morning crossing. Craig Terrill from the Seattle Seahawks, several people from Discovery Channel, friends and family of the crew, Peter Moran from Rezin Marketing, who does a great job for the Wizard, and then there was us! It was a gorgeous morning for a boat ride.

Norwegians!

 Of course, the F/V Northwestern was gearing up for the ride over as well... 

...Complete with camera crew!

Captain Sig Hansen. Sig wasn't on the boat by the time we arrived at the Locks. I'm not sure if he hopped aboard or drove over to the pier actually. All I know is that he showed up at some point after the boats docked.

We make this same face and take this same picture at every single event we attend together. We're awesome. 

 Here's a shot of a lot of the folks with us for the day on the bow of the boat. Discovery, business partners, deckhands, and a Seahawk or two are all enjoying the ride. Still, I think Jax and I had the best seats in the house.

Riding high! Jackie and I get a great view from the top of the F/V Wizard's Wheelhouse.

We had a stowaway or two make their way to the deck as well! It seemed a few ravens wanted to take the ride from the terminal to the pier! 

Beautiful!

I thought this was a nice shot of Gary Soper. Soper's a cool guy, quiet, but with a great sense of humor. It's always nice to get to see him when I'm around for one of the functions. You'll probably recognize him from the cover of Season 6's DVD box! 

I always love sailing in and seeing the city appear in the distance. The grey, cloud-filled sky just screams "Seattle!"

And, what ride into Seattle would be complete without a picture of the Space Needle?

As we were sailing in, a Coast Guard chopper seemed to appear out of nowhere and fly directly over the boat! I've only seen them two other times, once at a previous CatchCon during a rescue demonstration, and again in Panama City, FL after a very tragic double red flag day when they were out searching for several bodies. The memories are chilling, one for what could happen, the other, for what did.

Thank you, US Coast Guard, for all you do!

 There it is, The Bell Harbor Conference Center, and the pier I've come to know so well. The next day will be a long one...

And, as always, I'm loving every minute of it! Next up, docking the boat, "hey, look, it's Edgar," and other shenanigans.

Deadliest Catch, Seattle, and More! ...All Over Again!

 Me and my friends! (Photo courtesy of Discovery)

Yep! I'm heading off to Seattle tomorrow, as I've done pretty much every April for the past 3 years. It's time for Discovery's Deadliest Catch CatchCon again, and I'll be right in the middle of it! I'm hoping to see some old friends and make some new ones. For anyone who won't be going but wishes they were, be sure to check out the live webcam on Discovery which will be streaming from 12:30-6:00 PM PST on Saturday, April 9th! Who knows, you might even see me hanging out on the F/V Wizard!


LIVE WEB CAM! 

 Hope to see you there! (Photo courtesy of Discovery)

Deadliest Catch: CatchCon 2010

At last blogging, I'd taken a trip to Orlando to visit my sister's family. As I said, good times were had; no pictures were taken. February and March, outside of family birthdays, were, I assume uneventful. I don't have any pictures, which leads me to believe that not much happened. Apparently, my memory is photographic...literally.

So let's skip on to April. April is my birthday month, and I spent my actual birthday the same way I'd spent it the year before...on an airplane, heading to Seattle. Discovery was hosting CatchCon, the Deadliest Catch convention, again this year and I was scheduled to do a little work and have a little fun. Unlike most of my flights, I did not sleep. Instead, I ended up talking with, through his protege/interpreter, a visiting professor of art from China. He was teaching in Houston and was from a Chinese province that I can't pronounce or truly recall. We exchanged drawings and stories, and took a picture together...on his camera.

 Here is the quick sketch he made for me.

Both of these guys were great and I enjoyed meeting two interesting people with lives so very different from mine. My flights to Seattle, they always seem to deviate from the norm. I've been proposed to (jokingly surely, but still with enthusiasm!), woken up to a stranger taking my picture with his camera phone, had song and dance (free!) cocktail hour with a flight crew, and now a drawing exchange with a Chinese art professor. I really should fly to Seattle more often.

Upon arriving in the Emerald City, I met up with two of my most rocking friends, Cindi and Carrie. Cindi and I work on the Wizard site together and Carrie is a Wizard fan who became a close friend thanks to her predisposition towards awesomeness. Our mutual friend Travis Arket and his friend Jay were gracious enough to pick us and all of our luggage up from the airport, and whisk us off to our hotel.

After dumping our bags in the room, we headed to the Westin, where we heard the party was in full swing. All the familiar faces were there, from Captains and crews to friends from far and wide.

You might...

recognize...

Josh Harris. ( I really don't know him all that well, but he's always nice to everyone.)

...I don't think I took many pictures that night. It was mainly just a great night to catch up with friends, hang out, and have fun. The next morning came all too early though. I believe we had to get the boat moving by six or seven AM, which of course means you have to be aboard all the earlier.

The Northwestern crew was having an early morning as well. 

 Here we are underway before the guys had to get to work, and before I decided I'd be most helpful by taking a nap.

Our friends Sheila and Jim, here with Capt. Keith, came along for the ride. Sheila's been a fan of the Wizard since it first came on the show and setting sail on her was, she said, a real treat.

photo courtesy of Faye Stevenson

Once again, the Wizard and Northwestern were docked along side the convention center and open for deck tours. I was on camera duty this year. If you attended the convention and stepped foot on the Wizard, you met me. I (or Carrie!) probably took a picture of you with the Wizard guys. If so, I hope it turned out OK!

 Later that night, a public tribute to the late Capt. Phil Harris was held. Josh, Jake, Phil's best friend, and several of the higher ups of Discovery/Deadliest Catch/OP spoke. It was  well done, and gave a nice insight into Phil's life by those who were closest to him in life.

At the end of the memorial, baskets filled with carnations were placed dockside so that people could grab a flower and toss it into the water. Everyone seemed to appreciate the participatory gesture.

Photo courtesy of Sheila Stowers.

After the memorial, we headed over to the Crab Pot restaurant for a bite. The folks on the right, we met in line waiting for the memorial service to open. Meet Aaron and Stacy Peterson. Aaron fishes crab on the F/V Silver Dolphin. It's not a 'show boat,' but meeting Aaron and Stacy was one of the highlights our my, Cindi, and Carrie's trip. They are fantastic, genuine people and we really enjoyed getting to know them. Plus, their boat jackets were slick, some of the coolest I've seen! (That's actually how we started talking to them. "Hey, great jackets! Yeah, yours are nice too...") Aaron says the whole DC phenomenon completely blows him away. I can understand that. It's got to be odd seeing your (grueling!) job become prime time entertainment for millions of people.

After dinner, we all headed back to the Westin...which is always the 'starter party.' Capt. Keith and Carrie seal a deal with a pinky swear while Monte looks on knowing good and well that trouble's brewing.

 I ran into the delightfully tall Mike Fourtner again. ("Fun-size" Jackie is behind the camera which really enhances the 'hey look, giants!' feel of this pic.)

Here's Larry Hendricks on the left...who Captained the now retired F/V Sea Star. I designed the logo for that boat. I don't think he has a clue who I am, but that's alright, because the check cleared. I'm not sure if he and Aaron knew each other previously, but probably. All of those guys know each other. (Still loving that jacket.)

...And here's Stacy with Keith, Monte, and Lenny. Bless her heart, she was shy about asking for a picture and didn't want to embarrass herself or Aaron, but I know these guys, so I just grabbed her up, introduced her, and snapped a shot!

Cindi and Jax talking to someone, and Cindi showing off her Wizard crew jacket. (I've got one as well, and man, it is the warmest thing I own!)

Good times were had, as always. We ended up in Ballard by the end of the night at a great little place called the Smoke Shop. After closing it down, we called it a night and left to get ready for the convention. The next day, thousands of fans from as far away as Scotland would converge on pier 66 for a chance to meet their favorite 'celebrity fishermen.'

 Butt seriously folks....

Speaking of celebrity fishermen, here I am with my bud, Travis Lofland, "deckhand extraordinaire" as he refers to himself. (He's showing off his best side.) He's actually on the season six dvd cover, behind Gary Soper, another Wizard guy and all around excellent dude.

Gary and Travis

Anyway, here are some shots from around the con...

Winnie! ...oh, and Trav. I was so glad to finally get to meet her.  She's friends with most of the guys and does a few publicity ventures with them. She's also a wine judge with a pretty sweet blog.

 Lynn, Carrie, and Paul (the Wizard's Newest Deckhand) hanging out on the deck of the Wizard. Paul was Keith's mountain guide when he climbed Mt. Rainier...and a few months later, his newest employee.

Docked right across from us was the Northwestern. Sig had disappeared into the event hall for one of the Captain's events but you can see Edgar, part of Nick, Jake, Matt, and Norman. (Oh, and that's Lenny of the Wiz on the lower left!)

At some point I and my friends Jackie and Carrie made our way over to the Northwestern. We found the elusive Norman Hansen, (rarely seen or photographed...he's like the fisherman version of bigfoot!) and Nick Mavar and snagged a photo. I apparently, found something to my left very interesting.

 Unexpected photo!

Here is an unintentional picture of Andy Hillstrand. I was actually trying to take a pic of Trav setting up for the deckhand game he was about to play with some fans, but as I went to take the pic, Andy, who I thought was a random fan standing by Trav turned around and walked right into my picture. So, there you go, Time Bandit co-captain Andy Hillstrand is a picture bandit. I felt like a paparazzi!

Back to Lynn, Wizard crewman and great guy, I took a pic of him in front of the publicity picture for the Wizard. (I love how they're all so serious in the photo, because in real life...well, just look at him!)  Lynn, who at that point hadn't seen much of the show, wanted a copy of the DVD for season 6. I told him to just ask for it at the merch table. So, Lynn ambles up to the guy selling stuff. "Hey man, would it be OK if I took one of the DVD sets?" The guy is just kind of looking at him like, "uh?"  So Lynn continues, "I haven't really seen the show, but I'm on it. I work on the Wizard." Enlightenment dawns and the guy kind of laughs and tells Lynn to grab what he wants. Hey, if you don't get paid for the show, at least you can get a free DVD box set out of the deal.

 Here's another shot of Andy during the Captain's panel...and of course, the bossman, Capt. Keith. I didn't really get to hear much of this year's panel since I was working down on deck, but I did sneak in to take a few quick pics.

Here's John and Sig. I believe John was talking about Phil here and imitated his voice. He sounded just like him. It was truly eerie.

Jake and Josh Harris signing autographs for the fans.

I know this convention wasn't the easiest thing in the world for them to do. They lost their father in February, and his absence was palpable at the event. Still, they appreciated the heartfelt condolences from the scores of people who offered them.

 R.I.P Phil.

I believe this lovely tribute was painted by one of Phil's buddies. They made smaller reproductions of this work and gave them out to the fans. The original was for sale, though I can't recall the price.

Photo courtesy of Jen Boyer

Ha! Here's a cool shot I found today because I was trying to recall the pier number at which were docked. After browsing through the article, I landed on this pic, taken through one of the windows in the Wizard's wheelhouse. You can see me and Carrie in the bottom right corner!

Well, like all good things, the convention...after many hours, thousands of people, and a ton of "if you'll stand up there by the crew, I'll take your picture"s later, did end. I'd say it was another successful CatchCon.

With the convention over, Saturday night was spent at various parties at various locations with various people. Sunday however, a few of us decided that it would be fun to see the Mariners play. I'd never seen a pro baseball game before, so I was excited!

 We started off by visiting the Pyramid Alehouse, grabbing a bite to eat and drink before heading down to Safeco.

Welcome to Safeco!  The Mariners were taking on the Texas Rangers...who just last night lost the World Series. What's so odd (at least to me) about that is that I saw the Colts play last year and they ended up at the Superbowl...and subsequently lost. Apparently, if I go to a pro event one of the teams will make it to the championship game, but they will not win!

States represented: Connecticut, Washington, Minnesota, Alabama, Texas, and Florida...Hawaii is taking the pic!

It was cold enough that Trav actually bought this jacket at the game. It was a little drizzly too, which didn't help matters! I am not used to cold weather in May! I think I had on a tank, a t-shirt, and a giant sweatshirt. I would have been wearing my awesomely warm Wizard jacket, but like a winner, I'd left it on the boat.

 Lynn loves this guy! He told me to make sure and get a few pictures. Being a mascot must be a fairly fun job. I mean, look at this guy's day: 1.dress up like a cartoon moose. 2.Ride around on a fourwheeler. 3.High-five strangers who automatically love you. All in all, not a bad day at the office.

That's Ichiro, who is apparently, a big deal. (I don't follow baseball, ok?) It was great fun to attend a Major League game, yet after 11 innings, the Mariners weren't able to seal the deal, and the Rangers walked away with the win. 

 Photo courtesy of Jackie.

We still all had a great time.

Sunday night, things wound down and I ended up just hanging out with Arket at his director's house, watching some footage from a commercial in which he'd recently starred. Other than that,we just cruised around and talked. He was leaving within the next few days for a multiple month hike along the Pacific Crest Trail. I just wanted to see him one last time; since I was sure he was soon to be eaten by coyotes. Well, that pretty much sums up my trip. It was great fun, saw lots of old friends, made a few new ones, and possibly cursed a baseball team to lose the world series. All in all, a pretty good trip.

Oh, and a current event update: The Wizard pulled into Dutch last night 11/1/10 for this season's first offload of King crab! Wish them well as they head back out soon!