The Deadliest Catch

I'm hooked! That's all there is to it, I love this show. If you haven't seen it, it's on Tuesdays on the Discovery channel.

I can only describe it as a docu-reality show. It takes place in the Bering Sea, northwest of Alaska and chronicles crab fishermen (these are REAL men) and the dangerous work they do.
Crab fishing is a very lucrative business where many of the crew will only work two months out of the year, two hellish months! Also, it is one of the deadliest occupations around.
More than 80% of the fatalities are due to drowning - from either falling overboard or from a boat accident.

My favorite boats/crews are:

1. The Northwestern, with a very superstitious, fourth generation fisherman Sig Hansen at the helm and his younger brothers Edgar (the Deck Boss) and Norman working on the crew.
2. The Time Bandit, with Johnathon Hillstrand - last season, the crew of the Time Bandit saved the life of a fisherman who fell off another boat while attempting to tie down the pots - very exciting viewing.
3. My third favorite is Phil Harris and the Cornelia Marie. Phil's eldest son, Josh just started working on deck with his younger brother Jake, whose working his third season. it's fun watching the greenhorns get ribbed and given all the dirty jobs.

While at sea, they face nearly 24-hour shifts for days at a time, more often than not terrible weather conditions: 40-foot waves, 80-mph winds, subfreezing weather and 700-pound crab pots slamming against the deck — not to mention the nearly 100 percent injury rate.

The payoff can be huge: If the pots are well-placed, boats can collect millions of dollars worth of king crabs ... or just enough crabs to cover the boat's operating expenses.

You can almost feel the adrenalin rush and mind-numbing exhaustion the crew experience and work through. It's awsome.

Thanks to Jimi for the season one overview. It makes some great reading.

See ya!