In order for someone to know fishing secrets, he doesn't have to look like the hero of the novel "The Old Man and the Sea". Marko Sekulić did not mind the fact that he is not even twenty years old, that he recently won the first place in ecological fishing at the international Mimoza Cup in Herceg Novi, in competition with experienced anglers from all over the region. The interlocutor of "Vijesti" is a member of the bar club of sports fishermen "Pristan", his hobby is also radio-amateur, he deals with the service of electronic equipment and has enjoyed fishing since his earliest days.
"As a child, like other boys, I started fishing, around the first grade of primary school. First with my uncle for a while, then he went on the boat, and I started to slowly gather equipment. I remember the first catch, on a red ferral, the first time I had a reed rod and a float, I caught a grasshopper, nothing special, but it stayed in my memory. I have been fishing for sport only for the last two or three years", says Marko about the beginnings of his great passion.
Even though he is young, he already has his own fishing philosophy: going fishing is for him to relax, "to let my brain out", to enjoy himself, he says, he never preferred to have to catch something, "but, I go, no matter what".
"As far as hunting from the shore is concerned, it has happened to me many times that I go home empty-handed, that I don't catch anything, and it is impossible to never catch anything from a boat," he answers shortly.
When asked if there is a famous recipe for a good catch, whether bait is more important than a rod or a blinker, he first answers with a laugh, as I guess all sports fishermen welcome the curiosity of fishing amateurs.
"To me personally, a stick, a machine, and nylon are irrelevant. At the Mimoza Cup, I had the worst possible equipment, the shortest rod, and in the end I took out eight mullet and three bream in three hours. It's important to catch the stunt the fish is doing, because it's never the same," says Sekulić.
Know-how transfer of knowledge in this profession depends from person to person: when asked whether fishing tricks are learned on their own, or are they passed on by more experienced people, Marko admits that there is also jealousy in sport fishing, "so he keeps quiet on this topic", and there is and different experiences, "I learned something by myself, something was helped by all the members of Pristan with whom I am in contact". At the same time, he says, he does not use the Internet to find out new details.
"For the bait, it is important that it is not sprayed with grapes and that it is fresh. I prefer shrimp, I only fish for them, not clams, mussels and squid, and I tried live bait one summer and it was nothing special to me. The spinning rod must be strong and light, because it is cast twenty times, and then the hand really hurts, the machine must have a large spool and a lot of nylon, in order to have a greater throw. That was an advantage for me compared to the others in Novi, they had five-meter sticks, and it's no use to them that they only weigh one hundred grams, because when they straighten them, they have a tensile force that pulls them down. For spinning, the tip should be sharp, not too soft, not twist, but work quickly, sharply," says Marko.
For the initial steps in fishing, for those who want to fish from the shore, they can also do it by hand, a carol is enough, "it's small, but sometimes the quality can go astray, even if it's caught when it's cast, then pulled, then sparki, Buckwheat". Beginners can also fish with a float, followed by a telescopic rod of a few meters and with nylon... The code of conduct in the world of sports fishing is what is taught in the first lessons, fish below the standard are returned to the sea, and in the competition even points are awarded negative points point for gram!
“Biggest fish I've taken out? That's up for discussion. When I go fishing for my soul, I go fishing 'to the bottom' and I do it with a sliding system for bream, now, I don't know about the weight because I've never measured it. And as far as the big fish is concerned, the most I remember is a spar that was the size of a fist, that's the big fish for them," continues the young bar fisherman.
Prejudices that this is a hobby for loners and silent people have some basis in practice, he says, but only with the elderly, especially those over eighty years old, "well, you shouldn't talk to them".
"We, the younger ones, gather together in a crowd, so whoever gets what. I go fishing randomly, when I can, mostly when I'm not working - over the weekend, or whenever I have time, sometimes at two in the afternoon, sometimes at six... From the coast, I don't have so many plus points that I'll come earlier," he says jokingly.
When asked if there are superstitions in fishing, he answers: "I don't mind when someone says 'Good luck' before going fishing, because I didn't go fishing, but to lose some time." And whoever lives from fishing, well, you can get a bad experience from him if you greet him like that".
Tunes are stage, physical work
When asked how he perceives comments such as "look at these idlers, why are they fishing when they don't catch anything", Marko answers as if from a cannon: "And why do people watch football and not play it? They look at him, because it suits them. Well, that's how fishing is for us!".
Does Marko dream of hunting swordfish and tuna?
"Well, it's physical work, especially tuna, it's a stage! You can't do anything yourself, you need help," Sekulić admits.
I don't go to competitions to win something
"I didn't go to competitions to win something. I even thought about stopping halfway through the cup, because the waves were all over me, I thought that this was already becoming an obligation, and nothing has to be an obligation, but I stayed. I met many people at such meetings, I am in contact with many of them", says Marko.
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