Ocean Institute Distinguished Speaker Series to Host Captain Brett McBride of OCEARCH

BY BREEANA GREENBERG

Brett McBride knew he wanted to be a fisherman since he was 5 years old, out on an offshore fishing trip out of Point Loma, San Diego.

The captain and crew of the New Lo-An “took me under their wing at a really young age,” McBride said. “I’d just follow them around everywhere. That’s what I wanted—that’s why I knew I wanted to be a captain at a really young age.”

Growing up, McBride’s mom would drop him off at the Point Loma harbor on Fridays and pick him back up on Sundays.

“They would just babysit me on the water throughout my childhood,” McBride said. “And then, when I got big enough, when I just graduated from sixth grade, the next summer I was offered a job.”

At 12, McBride worked on a 65-foot sport fisher. Shortly after graduating from high school, McBride moved to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and began taking longrange boat trips to Costa Rica, Panama, Alaska and “all the ports in between.”

“Just kind of nonstop up and down the coast throughout those years,” McBride said.

In the late ’90s, McBride met Chris Fischer and the two partnered to create the television show Offshore Adventures

“Offshore Adventures ran for 14 seasons,” McBride said. “It was the No. 1 rated outdoor television show for those 14 seasons straight.”

The duo also produced a show focused on spearfishing called Ocean Hunter Ocean Hunter focused primarily on diving and spearfishing, McBride said.

“That stuff all led to us, me and Chris, working more with scientists at the end of Offshore Adventures, McBride said.

“I love the ocean as much as anybody in the world,” McBride added. “So, my conservation aspect, if I can do some-

Dana Point Harbor Partners Announces New Live Music Series, Pop-Ups

BY BREEANA GREENBERG

With summer well underway and the weather warming up, the Dana Point Harbor Partners has announced a new live music series and two new pop-up storefronts to draw visitors to the harbor.

Starting on July 20, on select Thursdays, local artists will perform in the thing that leads to conserving this for my children as well, that means a lot to me as well, and that’s part of my motivation.”

When Fischer purchased a 126-foot crab fishing vessel, now known as OCEARCH, the duo created the show Expedition Great White, tagging sharks with scientists.

“That, we did four seasons on National Geographic, and we shot a show called Shark Men at that time,” McBride said. “We were tagging and doing the same stuff we’re doing now, but to a much lesser extent back then.”

From there, McBride and Fischer filmed Shark Wranglers for the History Channel where the two captured and tagged “40 specimens in South Africa,” McBride said.

“Since then, we’ve been throughout the Atlantic, Australia, South America, up and down three quarters of both of those continents,” McBride said. “Then we’ve been really focusing on this western North Atlantic White Shark population study.”

Through OCEARCH, a nonprofit collecting data on the world’s oceans, McBride has continued his efforts to study shark populations as a co-captain and fishing master.

“I’ve always been interested in oceanography,” McBride said. “I was always super fascinated with the outdoors, filming and studying and science.”

The nonprofit also offers a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) curriculum to encourage environmental awareness and conservation for students of all ages.

McBride will share his experience as a waterman and fisherman, educating the public on all things sharks, fishing and the ocean on Aug. 2 at the Ocean Institute’s next Distinguished Speaker Series presented by the Nicholas Endowment.

“It’ll be mostly focused on my background and a little bit about what we’ve

Hansen Courtyard as part of the Live Music on the Wharf series from 4-6 p.m. The lineup will include Lauren Black, Chloe DeMore, and Anthony Small accompanied by Matt Samia.

Black will perform on July 20 and Aug. 3, DeMore will perform on Aug. 17 and Sept. 7, and Small and Samia will perform on Aug. 31 and Sept. 21.

“We really want this summer to be a huge success,” said Susan Lieb, senior director of property management for the Dana Point Harbor. “The weather has not cooperated … but we’re getting some sunshine.”

Lieb added that the harbor is very learned,” McBride said. “I’ll be talking about methodologies, stuff like that, as well and how I choose the methods for sport fishing from all the marlin tournaments and commercial fishing that I’ve done and how that relates to taking care of the animals that we’re studying.”

With Shark Week kicking off on the Discovery channel on July 23, McBride noted that he’d like to see the shark shows move more toward science and away from the drama.

“Most of the shows that I’ve shot, that I’m proud of, are more science-based,” McBride said. “I like to get away from the threat of shark attack, which I think is not even worth talking about because it’s so small.”

McBride added that he’d like to help people understand sharks better and feel less fearful of getting in the water with them.

“I couldn’t imagine another creature dog-friendly, inviting visitors to walk around the harbor and enjoy the new summer events.

The Dana Point Harbor Partners has also announced two new storefronts in the harbor.

“We have a couple of pop-ups that are coming,” Lieb said. “So, we’re excited to activate different areas within the harbor.” on the planet that has the potential to be dangerous and has few interactions that actually are,” McBride said. “When you look at, there are about eight billion people on the planet, how many millions in the water and you end up with six or seven shark attacks that are fatal in the entire world in a year.”

Pretzelria, a new storefront offering fresh baked pretzel bites, soft serve ice cream, coffee and lemonade—located between Jon’s Fish Market and Frisby Cellars—opened as a summer pop-up on July 2.

Having respect for an apex predator that serves an important role in the ecosystem is “super important,” McBride said.

“You’ve got to respect them for their role in what they do for the ecosystem so that all of those other animals can survive and thrive,” McBride said.

General admission tickets for the upcoming talk at the Ocean Institute are $10 each, but they are free for members and students with valid IDs. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. The talk will run from 6-8 p.m. on Aug. 2.

The Ocean Institute is located at 24200 Dana Point Harbor Drive, Dana Point.

The Doggie Barkery, offering accessories and healthy treats for dogs, will open in Mariner’s Village near iHeartYoga on Aug. 1.

On July 27, the Dana Point Harbor will host a blood drive in collaboration with the American Red Cross, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. To make an appointment to donate blood, visit redcrossblood.org/rapidpass.

Those who donate blood from July 1731 will receive an exclusive Shark Week T-shirt from Discovery while supplies last.

For more information on summer happenings in the harbor, visit danapointharbor.com.